Well, it’s been a challenging and rewarding year on my house build.

Snow all winter and rain most of the summer and fall made progress slow and often frustrating, but with the year nearly over, I’m ready to pour the bond beam and get the roof on the house.

I’ve built a channel with 1/2" OSB on the top of the wall, braced where needed for the pour.

I put #4 1/2" rebar in the channel per code, two parallel runs on chairs all the way around.

Once the concrete is poured into the channel and left to set, I will pull off the OSB and start building the pony walls on top of the bond beam where the vigas will be placed.

I will build interior frame walls, and after the vigas are in I will attach the ceiling decking to the vigas. The top plate will go on the pony walls, and the roof trusses go on after that.

You can see the sliding glass door for the dining room in the foreground. I’ve run out of places to put things, so it’s just sitting there for a moment until the ceiling is on.

Once I get the trusses on, it’s a race to get the rest of the work done. I hope to be finished by late April or early May.