Friday morning we arrived on site and discovered our deep green roof had changed color overnight. The first snow of the season added a fresh layer of white to the façade, and had us giddy with excitement. Augmenting the general euphoria was the recent news that Terry, who winters as a ski school director, won the Einar Aas award for excellence in ski instruction. I’ve skied with Terry informally for a few years and he has improved my technique and confidence on snow without even trying. The qualities that make him such a great skiing mentor – patience, humility, and total mastery of the craft – shine through on the job site too, and Colin and I are better carpenters for it. Congratulations Terry; well deserved!

Congratulate Terry next time you see him! (Picture from last month.)

Now, if you stood inside the house right now and didn’t look out the window, you’d never guess winter was coming. That is the power of thick insulation. Chuck’s spent this week onsite hooking up the heat pump and heat recovery ventilator (HRV). On Thursday we turned on the forced-hot-air system and unplugged the electric heaters we had used since October. The system works perfectly, but – here’s the wonderful thing – it barely ever turns on. While we work indoors, our body heat alone is enough to keep the first floor at room temperature. The second floor feels even cozier.

Rob from Chuck’s (the HVAC contractor) programs the thermostat.

While Colin, Terry, Carson, and I finished up the flooring, other folks made terrific progress on painting. Cole picked the color for his bedroom and got cooking with the roller. Abby took care of the third bedroom, and also tackled more window extensions with her white trim color. She’s been exceedingly busy making the thousands of interior decisions that must be made all at once: lighting fixtures, bathroom tiles, slate for the mudroom floor, vanities and countertops, and paint colors for the remaining rooms. Plus she makes us lunch almost every day. None but good people working on this house!

Cole enjoys painting.

So does Abby. (The jury is out on Neo and Freeley.)

Snow means thanksgiving (not capitalized just yet), wool hats, a thermos full of hot cocoa, and the first eggnog of the season. Also, apparently, cabinets. We’re starting to assemble the kitchen, and late fall seems like the perfect time of year for making the heart of the home.

First of the kitchen cabinets… a teaser for my next entry.