Fall Home Improvement 2018

HOME Fall IMPROVEMENT

2018

A special supplement to the Steven County Times, September 8, 2018

How does the garden grow? see T2

Father, son project in Hancock see T3

A family home in the country see T4

T2 Saturday, September 8, 2018

2018 Fall Home Improvement

The Stevens County Times

Submitted photo

Susie Hanson waters the vegetables in the family’s garden in Morris.

Family grows a garden Hansons expand with variety of fruits, vegetables.

By Rae Yost Stevens County Times he garden wasn’t always this big.

Ask Susie and Kris Hanson how their garden grew and they will share a story.

A friend who was living in Ireland returned to Morris for a visit a few years ago. The Hansons and their friend were looking at the Hansons’ backyard and what was then a small vegetable garden. The visiting friend complimented the Hansons on their garden.

The Hansons were surprised by the compliment because the garden was small. The friend explained that in Ireland the term garden described an entire yard

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Your home is not just your house, it’s your garden KRIS HANSON or lawn, while the vegetable garden was called a vegetable patch.

Kris said the friend’s compliment and Irish description of a garden was a pivotal moment for him and Susie.

“Your home is not just your house, it’s your garden,” Kris said.

The Hansons began to think in terms of “Our yard is our garden and how do we want to use that space?” Susie said.

And with that, the garden began to grow.

The Hansons intentionally allowed the vegetable portion of their backyard garden grow near the sidewalk on Oregon Avenue, which is a sidestreet for their house at 401 E. 4th St. There is a fence in the garden but it doesn’t prevent passersby from seeing the vegetables.

“I like the fact that our garden is so close to the sidewalk,” Susie said. “The neighbors

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and neighbor kids can eat some peas and beans and talk to me while I garden.”

The garden has been a means for neighbors to get acquainted, the Hansons said. The garden has also changed their lives in other ways.

Kris, a salsa lover, now has a seemingly abun-

dant supply of homemade salsa. The family has fresh peas, beans and other vegetables to eat. Susie also cans vegetables which keeps the family well-supplied in the winter.

The garden doesn’t stop in the backyard as the Hansons have planted fruit trees in the front

yard. They also have fruit trees planted in another lot across the back alley from their backyard.

The fruit trees are bearing fruit and those fruits are eaten by the family throughout the year.

HANSON: Page T6

The Stevens County Times

2018 Fall Home Improvement

Saturday, September 8, 2018 T3

The nice thing about Hancock...people stop and just offer to help. I lived all around the country and I never lived anywhere where anyone just jumps in and helps.

MICHAEL MILLER Rae Yost/Stevens County Times

A view of the side of the Michael and Cheryl Miller house in Hancock. Michael and his son Shawn are building the house.

Building it together Father, son build house in Hancock

By Rae Yost Stevens County Times t may take a contractor three to four months to build the same house Michael Miller and his son Shawn plan to complete in 11 months, but what the father and son lose in time they gain in savings.

“The cost savings is huge. The equity you get is huge,” Michael said.

Even if they add a value of their labor to the cost of construction they still save because “it’s money in your pocket; you are paying yourself,” he said.

The father and son construction team also gain more than cost savings.

“Definitely pride involved. I don’t know if that’s the right word…,” Shawn said. He might not think he has the correct word to describe it but Shawn knows there is satisfaction in having built something himself.

The pair are building their second house in Hancock. Several years ago, the Millers built a house for Shawn and his wife Jodylee. The two men are building a house

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this year for Michael and his wife Cheryl.

The couple couldn’t find an existing house that fit their needs in Hancock. Shawn said they were concerned about the cost of buying a house and, then, the cost of remodeling. They decided to build a new house with Michael’s help.

Michael is an electrician at the University of Minnesota Morris.

Shawn works for West Central Environmental Consultants.

Michael has been an electrician for more than 30 years and he also has a construction background. In 1994, he built an addition to his former house in Hancock.

Then, Michael and his wife Cheryl decided to build a new house because of Michael’s back problems and the difficulty with stairs.

The couple wanted a retirement home. They bought a family lot across from the Hancock School baseball and football field.

Shawn’s son Riley is 11 and just started playing football. Michael and Cheryl Miller have plans

for their front porch. “It will be nice for them to set out here and watch (grandson Riley ) play,” Shawn said.

Michael and Cheryl live in Shawn and Jody’s basement while their house is being built.

Shawn and Jodi and their two children lived in his parents’ basement when their house was being built.

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T4 Saturday, September 8, 2018

2018 Fall Home Improvement

The Stevens County Times

A house built for family

Gahms design house house with lots of space

By Rae Yost Stevens County Times fter six years of living in a rental house, Brittany and Dylan Gahm relish the space and the quiet of their home in rural Stevens County.

The house was built for the couple’s future children (one is on the way) and to entertain family and friends. The design and the interior finishings are a match of their two tastes although a few items are distinctly Brittany’s or distinctly Dylan’s.

“We entertain a lot,” Brittany said.”I like the way the kitchen is set up.”

The kitchen has a penisula counter that serves as an eating area and, when they entertain, a serving area. Guests can be served at the counter and walk through a larg-

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er kitchen to a table in a large dining area.

“We have enough space so that everyone fits in,” Brittany said.

The dining area and kitchen are large enough to fit two large dining room tables.

Those in the kitchen can easily see people in the dining area or in the large living room near the front door.

A wood, vaulted ceiling encompasses the main living, dining and kitchen areas. The Gahms wanted the height and the wood. The ceiling is complemented by wood cabinets and wood-look floor that give the main floor a rustic feel.

The stairway to the finished basement is just off the dining area and does not face the kitchen. The stairs can be reached from the dining area or from the

We entertain a lot. I like the way the kitchen is set up.

BRITTANY GAHM living room. The Gahms created a space so they can walk from the living room to the basement stairs without walking through the kitchen and vice versa.

“I wanted a circle in the house for kids to run around,” Brittany said.

Because the stairs to the lower level do not face the kitchen, a sound barrier is created, Brittany said.

GAHM Page T5 001771761r1

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Rae Yost/Stevens County Times

Brittany and Dylan Gahm recently built their home in rural Stevens County. The couple designed the home for their future family and for entertaining other family and friends.

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The Stevens County Times

2018 Fall Home Improvement

Saturday, September 8, 2018 T5

Rae Yost/Stevens County Times

The Gahm home has an open space on the main level. The couple wanted a natural flow from the living room to the kitchen to the dining area. The ceiling on the main floor is vaulted.

From Page T4

Noise from the upper level does not carry as easily downstairs and noise from the lower level does not carry as well upstairs.

The main floor not only provides space but it’s also functional because the couple wanted practical features. The laminate flooring looks like wood but is easier to clean and maintain than

wood, the Gahms said.

“We chose it for its durability,” Brittany said.

Dylan had a particular type of countertop in mind for the kitchen.

“The counter is three inches taller than the standard height,” Dylan said. He wanted extra height because it would be easier to do dishes and other tasks in the kitchen, he said.

The additional height has proven to a be good decision, he said.

Dylan also wanted to make sure the laundry room was on the main floor. That’s an important feature since they plan on living in the home for many years, he said. As they get older it will be easier to access a laundry on the main floor.

Ever since she was a kid, Brittany wanted a bay window in her own home. Although some people suggested she not install a bay window in the living room, Brit-

tany stayed true to her dream. The bay window overlooks the front lawn, driveway, and a goodsized portion of a front farm field.

The front door opens to a large living room with carpet and with a view of the kitchen in the open floor plan. The master

bedroom and bath are on the right, a nursery is also on the right. Brittany wanted a main floor bathroom within plain sight of the front door.

Traveling guests often need the bathroom when they arrive, she said.

The downstairs, or finished basement,

is carpeted. The stairs open to a living area with neutral colored walls and a wainscoating-style feature using wood from the old barn on the farm site. Dylan was unsure at first at how the faded original red paint on the

GAHM Page T8

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GAHM

T6 Saturday, September 8, 2018

2018 Fall Home Improvement

The Stevens County Times

HANSON From Page T2

The Hansons are teaching their three children about the food cycle while Susie has delved into a hobby she loves.

Susie plants the garden and incorporates traditional row planting with vertical planting. She’s learned which plants complement each other in a vertical structure. “My garden starts in February,” Susie said.

She starts some of her plants indoors and moves them outside when conditions are suitable.

“Part of the reason I start in February is that I love that my library suddenly smells like a garden,” Susie said.

While she starts with indoor planting in February, Susie starts to plan the garden in December.

Susie makes a detailed list and drawing of the location of each type of plant in the vegetable garden.

It’s an advanced garden for someone who’s main experience with gardening was pulling weeds in a relative’s garden. “Her grandmother was a hardcore gardener,” Kris said.

Susie found herself drawn to the plants and dirt.

Submitted Photo

Susie Hanson works in the front yard garden.

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HANSON: Page T9

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The Stevens County Times

2018 Fall Home Improvement

Rae Yost/Stevens County Times

A view of the side of the Michael and Cheryl Miller house in Hancock.

Michael and his son Shawn are building the house. Right, a view from one doorway of the house into the main living area. The living are looks out over the Hancock School athletic field.

MILLER From Page T3

The father and son have spent almost every evening and weekend working on the house.

“We got a late start because of winter,” Michael said.

The goal is to get the house enclosed so construction work can continue inside during the winter.

The 1,900-square-foot home has an open floor plan. The main floor has a master bedroom suite with bathroom and a second bedroom that Cheryl will use as a sewing room. The laundry room is on the main floor along with another bathroom, living room, kitchen, dining area and pantry.

“The kitchen is the biggest thing,” Shawn said of his parents’ house.

“The kitchen is a big deal. My wife ran the Owl’s Nest for 15 years,” Michael said.

Cheryl Miller wants her style of a working kitchen, they said.

While Michael has construction experience, Shawn said he learned while working on the first house. The two complement each other as each has different skills.

MILLER: Page T10

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Saturday, September 8, 2018 T7

2018 Fall Home Improvement

T8 Saturday, September 8, 2018

The Stevens County Times

To me, it was putting old barn wood over my sheet rock.

But I like it.

(Brittany’s) happy with it and that makes me happy.

DYLAN GAHM Photos by Rae Yost/Stevens County Times

The Gahms selected a kitchen with a rustic look. The countertops are three inches higher than what is typically installed in a kitchen because the couple wanted a height that made it easier to cook and prepare food and do the cleanup.

GAHM From Page T5

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GAHM Page T12

wood is from the barn on the farmstead where they built their home

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! t s e B e Simpy th

most efficient way to go,” Dylan said.

The basement also has a formed drain footing system to help keep the basement dry. The basement also has a sump pump.

The Gahms also installed a propane-powered generator so that if there is an electrical power outage, the sump pump continues to operate and the house has power.

Dylan, who works at the Morris Co-op, said a co-worker suggested installing a generator.

The home has an attached garage Dylan and Brittany Gahm used barn wood to decowith a bathroom. rate the wall of a living room in the lower level. The

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Dylan and Brittany Gahm kept the stairway rail from the house of Dylan’s grandparents and used it as the rail for their basement stairs. Dylan’s grandparents lived on the farm where the couple built a new house.

barn wood would look in the room but he’s convinced on the choice.

“To me, it was putting old barn wood over my sheet rock,” Dylan said.

“But I like it. (Brittany’s) happy with it and that makes me happy.”

The downstairs has three bedrooms, each with a large closet. The closets have motion lights so they turn on with movement and turn off when movement ends. One bedroom has a cast iron bed frame that Brittany has had since she was about two years old.

The other two bedrooms each use a half of a bunk bed which had a double bed and single bed structure.

The Gahms said they furnished the downstairs

living area with items they had in their rented house. They didn’t buy new furniture for the entire house but, instead, kept items they liked and have added new as the budget allows.

The couple also painted much of the home’s interior and did other work on the home to reduce some of the cost.

The basement has styrofoam insulated walls and all but the utility room has been finished with sheetrock and paint.

The home is heated with an air-source heat pump that is supplemented with a propane air furnace.

“If you can’t get natural gas, LP gas in the

The Stevens County Times

2018 Fall Home Improvement

Saturday, September 8, 2018 T9

Submitted photos Kris Hanson tills a part of the garden at the home in Morris.

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Harvest in the Hanson garden includes peppers and apples.

HANSON From Page A6

stores.

Kris said he’s watched Susie’s enjoyment of gardening grow. He was worried it would be too much work but “I saw how she responded,” Kris said. “It made her come alive.”

His life is enriched because she enjoys gardening so much.

And, Susie said, he has a big supply of salsa in the cupboard.

HANSON: Page T11

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While the garden is good-sized and Susie uses a detailed plan for it, she started small.

A small garden patch was a blessing because it allowed her to learn, Susie said. “If I would have started this big, I would have quit,” she said.

She started by using a book on easy-to-grow vegetables. The garden has grown into a success but it’s not always easy.

“We’ve had our setbacks,” Susie said.

Setbacks included learning that blueberries are vulnerable and their garden is suited to honeyberries. They’ve learned how to protect various garden items from critters and how to protect fruit tree trunks

from animals who eat the bark.

Susie has struggled with weed control this year. And during some harvest seasons, the amount of one vegetable that is produced can be almost overwhelmingly.

“I try to make sure the garden is serving us and that’s it is not us serving the garden,” Susie said.

That perspective means she can have less stress about the garden.

The Hansons said they’ve come to love growing their own produce and fruit. They like that it provides them a healthy food supply.

The vegetables and fruit are part of healthy eating but the family isn’t consumed by locally grown and organic choices. Life can get busy and, sometimes, they will order a pizza. And, the Hansons said, they still buy food at local

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T10 Saturday, September 8, 2018

2018 Fall Home Improvement

The Stevens County Times

Photos by Rae Yost/Stevens County Times

Michael Miller saws wood while building his new house in Hancock. Shawn Miller measures an opening in the house he is building with his father.

MILLER From Page T7

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“We never get in too far over our head or too far in….You think about stuff ahead of time,” Shawn said.

Friends and family members have helped with larger projects such as digging the basement.

Michael said he works with many skilled tradesmen at UMM and they have all answered questions on both houses.

“Help is just a phone call or a text away,” Shawn said.

The Millers said they’ve received help when they asked for it and even when they didn’t.

“The nice thing about Hancock...people stop and just offer to help,” Michael said. “I lived all around the country and I never lived anywhere where anyone just jumps in and helps.”

“I have gotten texts that say ‘what are you doing today? If you need a hand, I can be there,’” Shawn said.

The culture of community is one reason why Shawn and his family moved back to Hancock after living in Indiana for about seven years.

Shawn was too young to help when his father built an addition to the family’s former house in 1994. Michael’s dad was an electrician and died when Michael was in his 20s.

The two men appreciate the chance to work together on the construction project. They talk about sports and other topics. Neither one serves as the project boss although Michael does get to choose the radio station which plays classic rock.

They have no intention of building another house when this one is finished. They will be too busy watching the grandkids, or kids, participate in school and other activities.

2018 Fall Home Improvement

The Stevens County Times

Saturday, September 8, 2018 T11

Submitted photos

Canned goods made from the plants grown in Susie and Kris Hanson’s garden.

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Susie Hanson works with one the fruit trees in the family’s garden.

Part of the reason I start in February is that I love that my library suddenly smells like a garden.

SUSIE HANSON 001565656r1

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T12 Saturday, September 8, 2018

GAHMS

2018 Fall Home Improvement

The Stevens County Times

From Page T8

The bathroom is a pratical feature since Dylan’s family members work the farm land. It’s easy for them to use a garage bathroom if they are muddy or dirty from the field.

The Gahms said they still have projects to finish, such as the backyard deck and more shelves in the garage.

They learned a lot by designing and building a house. Decisions such as picking the color for a countertop could be more difficult than they expected. “They give you this little square of (a sample),” Dylan said. It was tough to determine what color and style would look good in the kitchen but once it was installed, they knew they made the correct choice.

Brittany said there were times when it felt like many decisions needed to be made at the same time.

Dylan helped during those times by having them focus on one decision at a time.

“I would do it again,” Dylan said of building a house. Brittany agreed.

They have a home they love and plan to stay in for a long time.

Rae Yost/Stevens County Times

The stairs to the lower level is just off the dining area and the door to the laundry room. There is a walkway from the living room to the stairs past the laundry room and from the living room through the kitchen and dining area.