Whats it REALLY like to live Tiny????

We have officially lived in our tiny house now for almost 2 MONTHS !! Can you believe it !!! ??
So NOW I can REALLY tell you what its like ! People ask me a lot of questions and NOW I REALLY can give you all educated HONEST answers.

Here's some of the questions I've been asked :


Don't you feel cramped ?

Usually no. Having a kiddo with autism, or we will say having MY kiddo with autism has always meant I have a space invader in my life, though he does not like to BE touched he sure does like to touch, bang, tap, squeeze, squish and INSIST we talk incessantly about his preferred topics ( i.e the HULK) . So do I feel cramped sometimes YES but no more than I did in my three bedroom home.


How is Noah doing in such a restricted space ?

Having a large space for Noah gives him more room to flail around and no boundaries or space limitations, for him that means he can spin right out of control. Having the smaller space seems to make him feel safer and more in control.


Can you really SLEEP in that  LOFT ?

Well I'm going to be HONEST with you, there are no windows in my loft, the first time I slept up there I did feel a bit claustrophobic, so I just simply spun myself around and instead of sleeping with my head to the back of the loft, I sleep with my head to the front . Noahs still sleeping on the pull out couch until his loft is done. If I sleep with my head to the front of the loft I can just look over the edge and see him as well.


What about having company over ?

So far I've the most people I've had in the house at one time is 5. Because I have a couch that seats 5 comfortable or 6 cozy and because I have cathedral ceilings everyone seemed to be feeling like they had their own space.

Where do you eat ?

Right now I have a small table that also doubles as a coffee table in front of the couch but in the future I plan on having a fold out bar top and seats( that will be project 257)

What is the biggest problem your dealing with right now ?

The only thing that is even remotely uncomfortable for me right now is at night when Noahs asleep I have to be really quiet, no tv or video's ect. I'm not really a tv person so it doesn't bother me much but it does prevent me from having company IN the house in the evening. Getting his loft done will remedy that. Until then we all just hang out on the porch.

What if you get married ? Where will you put the hubby ?

If I do ever meet THE ONE , he can bring his Tiny house on over and hook it on to mine and we will have a bigger tiny house :p

                                                                    Good Night Folks !!

                                                    See you all back here tomorrow :)

THE MAN BEHIND THE HAMMER INTERVIEW !! DIY TINY HOUSE !! TRIUMPH !!

Here it is !!! With lots of patience and perseverance I bring you the MAN BEHIND THE HAMMER INTERVIEW  straight from my Tiny house porch !!! I know you are going to LOVE it !!

There you go ! He just said it the they way it is. Tiny house living isn't just for the rich or gifted craftsmen. Anyone can have/build a tiny house ! So get on YOUTUBE , talk to friends and family. Or jump on the band wagon with me and we will build a Tiny House community together !!

Everyone go ahead and leave a comment and show Mr Jay some support ! He was convinced he broke the CAMERA !!

It was AWESOME to see you all on here !! See you tomorrow !!

RULES FOR A TINY HOUSE ON THE SPECTRUM

I finding out quickly that the rules in a tiny on the spectrum can change QUICKLY. Rules that were import like DON'T EAT ON THE COUCH take a back seat to this very very VERY import rule that was not really high on my list in a 3 bedroom home. The number one RULE in a tiny house BELIEVE it or not is something you would NEVER EVER think of most any place else. I even write this RIGHT NOW with the straightest of face, are you ready for it ??? NEVER EVER EVER FART in a tiny house !!!! This is not a joke people !! As I rite this right now I am hiding on my porch with the door wide open waiting for Noah's lactose intolerant little belly to settle down !

The man behind the Hammer ??? I know you are all waiting for this AWESOME interview I did with Mr Jay last night and I got to tell you all its been a frustrating ordeal trying to get the video up loaded. I mean I have tried everything short of just jumping up and down and crying to get this video to you all BUT unfortunately after finally up loading it for the zillionth time it finally published on YouTube (according to the message the page gave me) when I went to find it was GONE !! So now I am uploading it AGAIN and we still 188 minutes before its done !! Rule number 2 NEVER EVER THINK FOR EVEN A SECOND thinks won't change.

                                               So this is what got done tonight

These are the inside rails on my loft, the rails that will save my life when I'm half asleep trying to get to the powder room in a rush in the middle of the night. Honestly I have NO idea ho Jay pulled this one off with me on the couch muttering obscenities in a power struggle with my computer and Noah literally spinning in circles around the poor guys feet BUT not only DID he do it, he did a good job and walked out of here smiling !! TINY HOUSE on the SPECTRUM rule number 3, lots of people are curious and want to check out the tiny house and its inhabitants BUT its a great filter, only the REAL friends stick around ! HOW BLESSED WE ARE :)

INTERVIEW WITH THE MAN BEHIND THE HAMMER and the pot hanger ?

CRAZY busy weekend here ! Who would think a girl could run around in circles for 48 hours and get so little accomplished !!??? Yup I had big plans this weekend ! I WAS all set to get my loft finished and Noah's started, the skirting stained BUT we were FORCED to go to the fair Saturday and REALLY who could miss out on a time like this ???

PIG SCRAMBLE !!!

After 6 hours at a fair riding rides and eating UNRULEY amounts of FAIR food neither of us were feeling particularly well by the time we got home last night.

GAME ON TODAY. I got ahold of this BURLY dude today and his GIGANTIC  truck !

Meet my oldest son Nathanial (or as we like to call him BIG Nate)

Nope he's not standing on a chair and yes those are beams that go through a 11 foot cathedral ceiling behind him !

We was off to home depot ! We got the plywood for Noah's loft, some 2x4s and some 2x6s all loaded in his GIGANTIC truck and now its in a big stack in the loft just WAITING ! I can barely stand it !If kiddo wasn't sound to sleep I would be up there hammering away right now ! I've got BIG plans for his loft, I'm thinking either an ARK theme OR a tree house Theme. What do you all think ???

                   OOOOH and CHECK OUT my AWESOME yardsale find !!!

This baby right her is going to be my pot rack ! That's right ! A GREAT BIG pot rack for my little tiny house. I have no idea what it was in its past life but I do know what its going to be now.  Its going to be SO stinking cool !!

The BIG plan for tonight was suppose to be an INTERVIEW with JAY ! BOY OH BOY what an interview it was!!  BUT as I was sitting here writing patiently watching and WAITING (there's that word again) its been 2 HOURS since I started uploading the video and its only on 7% AND the upload time is showing in measurements of hours not minutes UHG ! So if you want tip and tricks of the trade. If you want to know how to do this Tiny house thing from scratch with a VERY small budget. Come on back here tomorrow night because I WILL be posting it for you all !!  

SEE YOU BACK HERE TOMORROW !!

THANKS FOR STOPPING BY !

Smiling to my self ON my TINY house porch :)

Well its Friday night people !!! Kicked back and smiling to myself . Its simply surreal just sitting here on my tiny house porch, I'm just TICKLED !! INSPIRED !! Got my feet up on my porch rail, just got done yacking with my FAVORITE sister (pass tense sister  inlaw BUT I wanted to keep HER) she's got the tiny house FEVER as well AND OOOOH BOY is it cool when you get to talk with some one who is OBSESSED with the same obsession as you ?? !! I got to tell ya this lady is tough, retired Army and been through the wringer BUT if anyone could pull off a tiny house it would be her !! AND she would make it fancy to boot !!

Tonight I'm feeling like a bit of relaxing is in order. I got a full weekend of projects I cant wait to share with you BUT tonight I'm sucking in some inspiration and I want to pass it on to you ALL !!


                                         Got A PRESENT FROM ME TO YOU !!
                                                
                                                                 (This is me)

                                                        HERE'S YOUR PRESENT !!!

 

       I didn't create this but this but let me tell you, had I thought of it I would had !! Hope you all enjoy and TONIGHT Be good to yourself !! Reflect on the blessings in you life AND RELAX !! I'm going to !!!

                                                 See you all tomorrow !!!!

Tiny house A 1000 REASONS

Today Noah and I made the trek to the big city to see his Cardiologist. Everything was GREAT ! If you hadn't read my previous post Noah had heart surgery August 22.

Noah's not a big fan of doctors offices or being touched a lot but Rochielle has some kind of ultrasound tech magic touch and its always a good experience for us.

After the doctors appointment we stopped at a church thrift store on our way home. There was an elderly man outside the store, with dirty clothes, unshaven with his bag beside him. He was sitting contently under a tree in front of the store entrance in what looked like a yoga stance. His eyes were closed, his hands clasped together over his head. His face was tan and leathery but he had the sweetest most peaceful smile on his face. How could you not just LOVE him ?

This isn't him but looks just like him ! I thought all the way home about him.

There are so many reasons I am writing this Blog. There are so many things that need to be said. I will try to keep my focus on my main objectives. What life is like living in a tiny house with my little boy who has autism and the journey that brought us here as well as our journey into the future. MORE THAN ANYTHING I want to share our experience, my drive to climb out of the clutches of poverty and WHAT drove me and still drives me. Like any parent I fight to give my son the best life I can but its not just that . Its something SO MUCH BIGGER ! I have worked as a behavioral specialist for 20 years, part of my work included working in shelters all over the state. As I mentioned in previous posts working with a demographic of individuals is completely different than being part of that group of people. Living in a shelter with my son was worlds away from working at a shelter. As a professional I was taught early on how to maintain professional boundaries, I was taught the "thems" and the USes" BUT I am here to tell you its a BIG wake up call when YOU become one of the "THEMS".  In the state of Maine the median income is 53,000, in my county its 40,000 with the majority of the community living well below the poverty guideline. I work at a community action agency within my community and for the first time I am seeing the hidden poor, the poor you don't see or know about. The elderly living in homes with little more than dirt floors, people that live in very rural areas with no working vehicle. In the last 6 months in this position I have seen things I never new existed, things I would like to unsee. Within that I am inspired by these very same people as they welcome me into there homes though often time afraid as they tell me their stories. These people are STRONG they are surviving in ways I never thought possible. So how do we even the odds for them ? For me its just to start some where and that place is this blog. Through this it is my BIG DREAM to build as many of these STRONG, hard working people a home as I can, a TINY home, a home that will be warm and efficient, a home where they can not be ashamed to have company over and won't cost them every dime they have to their name plus more to heat, a home with running water and working septic. A TINY HOME !! REALLY is that so much to ask ?  I don't know where or how but what I do know is I have started.


DO YOU have ideas ? How to make this happen ? Start here by sharing your thoughts/ideas

See ya'll tomorrow !!

I WANT IT ALL ! The TINY house storage story >

So my guess is every single one of you have said to yourselves. HMMMM Where does she put everything ? Well here is the done low on that. I spent the better half of the last 10 or so years collecting tiny house storage ideas, now I'm in my Tiny house I have realized that a LOT of them look good but aren't very functional. Like floor storage for example, it looks cool, seems like a good idea until your STANDING on the floor in a TINY house that is suppose to have storage IN it. NOPE not for this girl. Vertical storage is ok to a point but once you go beyond that point you feel like your living in a tiny matrix, so light on the vertical storage. So what does that leave ? Right now for me two things.  We have 10 outfits a piece for each season. Out of season cloths will go in secure top tubs and be stored in the house this year. Next year maybe I will have a tiny storage shed. That means having clothes that are versatile. My work requires I have office casual attire so I have cloths that can be spiced up with a scarf and a few pieces of jewelry or worn with a sweatshirt on the weekends plus a dirty work outfit. Noahs outfits were easy, he only wears jogging pants/shorts, Tshirts and many other variations of soft stretchy clothing EASY. Here is my cloths storage at the moment.

In the baskets you see along the wall are ALL mine and Noah's cloths the big baskets are shirts in one and pants in the other, the smaller baskets are for socks and unmentionables . Though the baskets are cute this is temporary until I feel confident in watching enough YouTube videos to attempt to build a storage unit under the couch. It will look something like this.

Only I will take the legs off my couch and sit the couch on top of a storage unit. That will free up space behind the couch and make that space look and feel more open.

I will also build in storage in the between beams of the under the loft, over the living room space for smaller items.

As for kitchen and bathroom storage I am working on a few ideas, I will get back to you on those.

If you have storage ideas or hacks you would like to share be sure to post in the comments.

Big day tomorrow ! We are off to the cardiologist for our first follow up after little misters heart surgery a few weeks ago . The BIG plan is to visit his FAVORITE Walmart Yes Kiddo has a favorite Walmart !!!

Thanks again for ALL your support !! We have literally THOUSANDS of views from all over the WORLD in just the 2 weeks Tiny House On The Spectrum has been live !!! The goal is to gain enough support to build a tiny house community !! Don't miss a minute of this EXCITING JOURNEY !!

                                             See you all tomorrow !!!