"....Your children shall be like olive plants all around your table." Psalm 128:3

Monday, September 17, 2012

Our Falconhurst

Hi friends,

One of our favorite read alouds from last year was the Swiss Family Robinson by Johann Wyss. My children loved this book!

I read the unabridged version and it took some time to make our way through the book, but it was worth it.

And hearing about the awesome tree house ( named Falconhurst) that's mentioned in the book  made the children want one of their own. They mentioned it to their dad and the planning began.

Thankfully, we have a small patch of woods on our property, and in that patch of woods is the perfect sycamore tree for tree house.

My boys helped their dad every evening after he got home from work. It took several weeks to build it, and the best part is that it cost very little because my hubby's boss gave him most of the lumber that was left over from jobs; lumber that would have eventually ended up getting thrown away.

Here are some photos of the whole process...


Building the deck of the tree house..


The "bridge" that leads from the platform of the rope swing (pictured below) ...


Hubby put in this 40-ft. rope swing a few years ago...

The kids like to do this trick and give me a heart attack lol..


Ok, back to the tree house..the decking for the bridge leading to the tree house..





All of the supporting posts were cedars taken from our woods. Hubby wanted to give it a rustic look. :)



Handrails on the bridge...


 More of the rustic look....pickets are made of cedar branches.  :)







Bridge to the tree house is finished..


Deck of the tree house. I love the way hubby built it around the trees. And this fall, it will be carpeted with red oak leaves and yellow sycamore leaves.  :)

To get down from the tree house, my hubby cut the top off a dead cedar tree and attached it to the tree house as a ladder..


Next, he decided that we needed a crow's nest. But from the tree house to crow's nest (14 feet high), we needed another bridge..


Looking up at the crow's nest from the ground...









Now for handrails and pickets..


The bridge and crow's nest are finished!


Looking up at the finished product..

 And last, but certainly not least, hubby wanted a spot for us to sit and watch the children play. So he used cedar to posts to hang this swing on. This swing is very special to us. It's the porch swing that belonged to my beloved father-in-law. He used to love to watch the children play when he came to visit. Now we sit and watch them on his swing.


So there you have it  - our very own Falconhurst. I need to be careful about what I read to my children. You just never know what they're going to ask for.  ;)


Thanks for reading, friends. Hope you have a blessed week!








sharing with The Modest Mom

22 comments:

  1. That is SO neat! Wow! I am very impressed! I am sure it will bring hours of enjoyment! Have a blessed week ahead~

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    1. Hi Emily Fay,
      Yes, the children have a wonderful job of "breaking it in". :)
      Hope you have a blessed week as well, my friend. :)

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  2. Oh I want a 'Falconhurst' just for me!!! Outdoors is my very favorite, ever since I was a child and it still is:) ... What a wonderful tree house for your children and so many memories they'll look back with joy!

    The wooden swing, so special to you, is very inviting.

    Happy Outdoors to you from me:)
    ~Deanna

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    1. Dear Deanna,
      We are outside more than we are inside - weather permitting, of course. So this whole thing fits right into our lifestyle. We've had picnics in the tree house. It is wonderful. :)
      Happy outdoors to you, too. :)

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  3. Wow, that's amazing--we are actually in the middle of reading that book aloud and Gideon is enjoying it. Last night he actually brought the book to Joshua and asked him to read it! So cute!

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    1. Hi Stephanie,
      Way to go - reading the classic to your children! :)
      You'll have to bring Gideon to our house to see if what he thinks of the tree house. :)

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  4. That is one amazing structure! Great job to your husband and sons!

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  5. Oh Lisa!!! This is so up MY alley!!! What adult still doesn't dream of a Swiss Family Robinson style tree-house!! I was in heaven looking at those fun photos. We read the book a few years ago and loved it so much as well. So much to learn! But I think we can all agree that the hands on learning is the best! If we lived closer, I would be asking… "Can we come over and play"… And I would be including myself :)

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    1. If you lived closer, I would definitely be having you over for a play date. :) (And I love the tree house as much as my children.)

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  6. Amazing! I can't wait to show my husband and boys these pictures!

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    1. Thanks so much for stopping by, Theresa. Hope you have a blessed day. :)

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  7. Oh wow Lisa! That is truly incredible! How clever your husband and children are. Looks like the children are going to have years of fun and take some pretty special memories into adulthood too.

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    1. Thanks so much, Shirley Ann. We are trying to build a treasure of happy memories for our children. :)
      Many blessings to you, my friend.

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  8. Your children have a treasure of a mom and dad. Blessings to you. And prayers.

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    1. How sweet, Christine. The same can be said of your children; may the know how blessed they are. :) And if you lived closer, you could bring your children over to try out the tree house. :)
      Continuing to pray for your little princess..

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  9. Note to self: Thou shalt not covet! That is one amazing tree house. Great job by your husband and children!

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  10. Wow, that is one amazing project and treehouse! Your husband did a great job! I/we have always loved that book too. And I love that you are able to use your FIL's swing again for the same purpose, how dear.

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    1. Thanks for the kind words, dear Jane. Hope you're having a wonderful week. :)

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  11. This is amazing! If more kids had this and less TV... This is so great!

    Iris♥

    The Blue Birdhouse

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Thanks so much for stopping by. I love to hear from my readers, and your thoughts are welcome. And I try my best to respond to each and every comment. :)