November 2007 to April 2008 - The New Plan

As I'd mentioned, we'd debated and debated between two possible sites for the log home. The somewhat easier site on the ridge or the site spanning the drainage farther back with more privacy and better lake views. Against the opinions of some of our friends and family we finally chose the easier site. We were starting to realize the project was challenging enough as it was and we discussed building a nice little bridge and atrium in the back of the property so not to waste the nice, private spot. We'd already had a grader visit the property and say that grading the easier spot on the hill would not be a problem. So, the house plan for this site was a 32x36 home. The engineer finally finished the plans in late December, not quite the 3 week turnaround he'd promised, but it was winter and we had some time. The plans were submitted to the city for review just before January 1st, hoping to avoid any complications with the new code that was going to take effect after the new year. However, we were in Europe during this time and just missed paying the fees in time and the new code had to be enforced anyway. Didn't cause many complications and plans were returned about a month later with only some minor changes, whew! Despite being minor issues, it took the engineer another 6 weeks to finish them... He appologized and once again admitted he'd taken other projects and pushed ours to the bottom of the list. Anyway, revised plans were finally submitted to the city around the end of March and returned approved a week and a half later on April 2nd. We just had to remark the house site and property survey markers, which had not all remained in place through the winter. Yikes,we actually have approved plans and could get started!!

September / October 2007 - Finding a New Engineer

So, we tried to put the past frustrations behind us and start again, planning on breaking ground in spring 2008. We exhausted our options trying to find a local engineer that could do the project. The problem was first that most were not able to think outside their little box and get on board with the butt and pass building method taught in Skip's class. The vast majority of log homes in the area are not "real log homes." The few that agreed to do it wanted to draw their own plans, not just engineer them, which drove the cost up significantly. Jeff had already designed the floorplan and had Great House Designs modify a stock plan, which they did for a very reasonable price. Thus, we had to look down the hill in San Bernardino for an engineer. There was only one other log home built by one of the LHBA members in California that we knew of, so Jeff got in contact with them to see if we could possibly use the same engineer. The other home was in Kern County, not nearby, but it was worth a try. Unfortunately, the engineer was not able to take the project. So, we opened the yellow pages and started calling engineers. Finally, one in San Bernardino gave us a referral for another guy in Crestline, a nearby mountain community. Jeff discussed the plan with him and he seemed to be a winner. He understood the building method and agreed to just engineer the plans we already had. "Why reinvent the wheel and spend more money?" he said. Exactly!! So, he met us at the property and even took notes! (maybe he would actually remember what we told him and follow through with it, unlike the other engineer!) After all details were discussed, he said it should take him about 3 weeks. Again 3 weeks?? Is that like standard engineer jargon? We basically had to trust him. So far he was much more professional than the last guy and we hoped we'd learned something from the last ordeal, but how would we know? It really was a leap of faith, but we had to move forward, so we sent him the retainer, and toasted a small victory.

July / August 2007 - Abandon Garage/Apt Plan

We were busy, but still doing everything we could to keep on top of the engineer, trying to get plans completed and submitted to the city for review as soon as possible. However, nothing we did seemed to help and it was always promises, promises, and more promises and no results. Apparently, the engineer had continued to push our project to the bottom of his list when bigger projects came in. 3 weeks had become 5 months and it quickly became apparent we were not going to be able to finish before the winter snow. Finally, after really pressuring him, the engineer worked on our project, but after all that waiting, it turned out that according to the city engineer, it wasn't feasible to build the way we wanted. On top of being unbelievably slow, the engineer had made several mistakes along the way and as a result we were pretty much screwed. We were very frustrated, but after Jeff presented him with the facts proving his incompetence at least he refunded our money. And, after revaluating we decided that abandoning the garage/apt plan and just building the log home was a better way to go anyway. I guess it all happens for a reason...

June 2007 - Brooke Ashley Barnes is born!

Well, we were still waiting for the engineer to finish plans for the garage / apartment and were starting to get impatient, but we had other things to think about. We had a baby on the way! Since the small community hospital in Big Bear doesn't deliver babies, we'd been driving back to OC for doctors appointments and stayed there a month before the due date so we could deliver at the hospital there. Finally, after much anticipation, Brooke was born June 13th, 2007 a healthy 8 lbs 2 oz. We were home with her in Big Bear a few days later and quickly settled into parenthood. We enjoyed the summer a lot with our new little one and many visits from friends and family.

January - May 2007 - Change of plans

Well, Jeff's great job was not looking so great when after only a few months of employment, the company ran into funding problems. We had planned on having enough disposable income to pay cash for construction and take our time, but with Jeff job searching we had to put everything on hold till we could figure out a new course. Jeff searched all over the west coast of the U.S. thinking if we had to sell the property in Big Bear, so be it. Finally, in late March, he took a job in mergers and acquisitions which allowed him to work from home. Once that was settled, we didn't waste any time packing up and moving to Big Bear where we could live on much less (our rent was a third of what we were paying in Orange County!) Once settled in, we decided to change plans for the house and build a 2 car garage with an upstairs 2 bedroom apartment which we could live in and then take our time building the log home. So, we drew up a floor plan, and gave the engineer the OK to go ahead. He said no problem, should take about 3 weeks. Great, we should be able to build it and move in before the winter.

December 2006 - Finding an engineer

Well, after calling every engineer in Big Bear, we settled on one. It was pretty much a process of elimination of those that would call us back, those that were willing to work on a log home at all, and then the one that was willing to meet us at the property and agree to do the project. We'd heard a few good recommendations of this guy and everything seemed set to go. The engineer liked our plans for the property, including spanning over drainage and pinning into boulders. He was known for doing unique projects and even started as an engineer for Knotts Berry Farm. Sounds like the guy we need. So, we told him we'd get him the retainer soon, hoping to get plans done for spring.

November 2006 - Building the model

Jeff had taken a new job in Orange County so we moved there in Oct. 2006. I also found out I was pregnant around this time, for which we were very excited. Progress on the log home was limited to building a scale model and trying to find an engineer. Jeff worked evenings in the garage building a model and trying to come up with a floorplan. We were torn between two sites on the property to build, which required different types of plans. There was the site on the hill, which is pictured on the home page or there is a site farther back on the property where you get more privacy and better lake views, but would be more challenging to build on. We asked everybody we could get to come out to the property their opinion and majority said we had to take advantage of the site in the back of the property. So, that was our plan and we designed a model for a 55x25 foot home. Another challenge for this site was a drainage that ran through it, for which we planned to span over. There were also quite a few boulders that we needed to work with and it was pretty far from the road. But, we decided if we were going to do it, we might as well go all the way and take the utmost advantage of the property. However, after building the model, Jeff was having second thoughts. This plan meant a lot of logs to stack! We learned a lot from building the model, but were having trouble making decisions. This was taken on Christmas Eve 2006 on the property.

September 2006 - Taking the class

So, while we were waiting to close escrow on the property, Jeff spent a lot of time reading about building log homes. Of course, he came across the Log Home Builders Association website and it didn't take much convincing, this was how he wanted to build our log home. He signed up for the next available course in September 2006 and began to plan a trip to Washington. We had wanted to make a road trip of it, spend time in Washington where neither of us had been, and see the log homes my family built in Ashland, Oregon on the way. But, we were getting married Sept 16th, moving shortly after, and I had just too much to do to make the trip. Looking back, I regret this now and wish I had gone along. But, Jeff attended Skip's course and learned a lot. He returned confident and excited to get started. He also came back loving Seattle area and talking about plots of land there. Too late...

July 2006 - We've bought land!

So, once we'd made up our minds to do this - the first step was to buy land. We chose Big Bear Lake, CA for several reasons. It is in Southern CA near much of our friends and family and we've always enjoyed going there for vacation. It's the closest ski mountain/lake destination for Southern CA residents, hopefully making it a good investment. There are downsides though including; land is expensive, nice buildable lots are increasingly hard to find, and CA is known for having more red tape than other states. Between searching online and taking many trips to Big Bear, we looked at about 100 pieces of land.

We'd considered a few other less expensive plots and spent too much time looking at "good deals" that were low priced for reason (mostly too steep or small to be buildable). Our rule of thumb became if you have to climb on your hands and knees to get up the property, its too steep. But, we had our hearts set on a property with a view where our beautiful log home with big windows would look out proudly. So, we settled on a piece of land about a 2/3 an acre (big for CA) with awesome lake views, boulders, and backing to the national forest for extra space and privacy. We didn't have to use our hands to climb, but it is steep in front, which makes a driveway difficult and getting materials to the house site a challenge. But, we were expecting a challenge and the feeling we got when we stood at the house site was worth it. So, we have the land, now to learn how to build a log home!

Who are we? And why are we building a log home?

We are - Jeff, Katie and (new addition - Brooke) Barnes. I (Katie)will be writing these blogs and helping as much as I can with the construction of the house, while taking care of Brooke who is currently 9 months old. Jeff will be building this log home with the help of friends, family, and of course a few hired professionals along the way. He will also be working "full time" during this process, but works from home. He does mergers and acquisitions/financial analysis. We currently live in Big Bear Lake, CA. Jeff grew up around construction/development with his family in Arizona. I grew up in Oregon where my dad was a log home builder and lived during the contruction of and lived in several log homes. Who knew history would repeat itself??? We have been married about a year and a half but together about 8 years. We met through work in Orange County, CA and after a few years, sold everything to buy a boat and sail around the world. We left from Florida, spent almost 3 years, and made it to New Zealand (halfway around the world), before deciding it was time to get back to the real world. We hadn't yet concluded this venture when we started growing tired of tropical beaches and life on a boat and started dreaming about mountains, snow, and building a log home. The summer of 2005, we were in Fiji where we had friends visit and Jeff requested they bring a few log home books. And so it had begun... April 2006, we sold the boat, moved back to Southern California, and began acquainting ourselves with landlife again. We somehow had a bit of money left after traveling for a few years, but it was far from enough to buy a home in Socal. The market had peaked and was either still on its way down or going to stagnate for awhile, so maybe it was a good time to buy land and build? We hoped so, because we'd made up our minds to go for it...