The Great Pillars of Amherst

Pete had a chance to do some more work on the brick columns for the garden.  Or as Michael (who helps with the mowing) christened them, "the great pillars".  I agree, they do look a little ridiculous out on their own in the middle of a field, but just you wait till they're joined up :-)

yet more holes... awaiting stumps

Besides getting the windows in for the "lake house", Dad also made progress on the front verandah.  He's dug the holes for the stumps, so next trip hopefully they'll be able to get put in.  Once the stumps are in, the rest seems to happen relatively quickly - or at least more visibly.  :)

the lakehouse starts to take shape

Progress at Amherst is always sporadic, but we're on a bit of a roll at the moment.

My brother Pete saw a lot of old cedar windows being thrown away from the building site he was working on, so rescued them from the skip for Dad to collect.  They're in great condition - I can't believe people throw away stuff like this!

Anyway, rather than hassle finding a place to store them, Dad decided instead to use them right away in building the "lake house", aka the fancy shed being built on stilts in the middle of the dam.  

He moved the scaffolding from the house down to the dam and set up little plank walkways so he can move around the outside.  Dad seems to be making up the design as he goes, and there's a lot more windows in than previously envisioned, but that's OK.  It'll end up I suspect feeling more like a sunroom than a boathouse, but it still suits the setting so I'm not fussed, and I am just grateful to have progress!