The Meadow Gate

What a wonderful Friday and Saturday we had at Catch Meadow Cottage! I cannot tell you how much we love it there. It is such a peaceful corner of the earth and I feel so very connected to nature, especially when I am hiking through the woods, walking along the brook or strolling down the path around the meadow. It all feels so hidden away from the world. I am so grateful to have this property.

Young Matt and his good friend Chandler stopped by to walk the trails and set up a trail cam and a blind in the woods. They wanted to see if they could catch some pictures of the different wildlife that might pass by.

                                             Both boys are avid fishermen and outdoorsmen

I continued to haul branches to the burn pile and collect large stones from the field while Michael's brother Mark started shingling the gable end of the house.

                          Michael showed Mark the first steps of shingling and Mark took it from there.

      Doesn't it look nice? He did a great job. The rest of that side will be finished today.

The most exciting thing that took place though, was the building of the new meadow gate! 

When my Dad was here, he suggested that we put something up at the meadow entrance to let folks know that trucks and cars should not be driven into the meadow. During the autumn hunting season, hunters often drive in and park so they can hunt the woods and the meadow. Now that we are living here and often have children and animals around, we do not feel safe or comfortable with that idea. Michael is also a hunter and is empathetic to other hunters but we just want to protect the safety of our home, our family and our neighbors. 

This is the entrance to the meadow. Our driveway is to the left (just out of the picture).

   We searched online and found several different ideas for gates but in the end, 

        Michael designed his own gate.

On Friday Mark and Michael dug holes for the posts and cemented them in. 

                                                            Then the laying out of the gate began.

Michael used a combination of pressure-treated wood for the frame and pine panels for the face.

                                                                   This is the frame.

Then the face boards went on.

The first side went up easily.

I started painting as soon as it was hinged in place.

                                            The second side went up just as easily as the first! 
                       This is the backside of the gate. We are going to get black, metal clasps and 
                        a lockset but for now we are just using temporary blocks to keep it closed.

I just love how the new gate looks! Michael is a true artist. He is going to add two small toppers in the middle of the gate and we will attach three long black, face-hinges on each side. He built the gate low enough so people passing by can still enjoy the view of the meadow. 

How lovely the birch tree looks sitting next to the gate. I will plant daisies and black-eyed Susans next to it to add color. During the Christmas Season, we plan on hanging a fir wreath in the center of the gate with a big red bow. (Oh, and that big pile of dried branches you see in the distance will soon be burned up to offer an unobstructed view of the meadow). 

    

                                                 This is how the gate looks from our driveway.

                                                        Our beautiful, new meadow gate!