Feirin De's Exterior Photos

Yesterday I shared some interior photos of our beloved vacation home, Feirin De, during a virtual house tour.  Today I am back with some exterior photos!

The first morning we were at Feirin De I made J get up and go for a walk out to the lake with me so I could take some pictures and take in the scenery.  He was a very good sport as I traipsed through the foot of snow and took lots of photos (especially because he didn't have any boots on and I did!)

In the summer, these are beautiful blue hydrangeas.  In the winter, they are still beautiful but in a much more muted tone.

I had never seen the lake this frozen before.  Last year, we spent New Years with Ashlee and JY up there but the lake didn't look nearly as impressive then as it did this time!  As far as the eye could see, there was nothing but snow and ice.  Even the waves had frozen in place, creating these mountainous ridges near the water's edge.

Here's a closeup of the ice mountain ranges I mentioned along with what looks to me like an iceberg frozen into place further out into the water.  These frozen icebergs sort of freaked me out when I saw them!

 

This is one of my favorite parts of the property.  It is the corner foundation for the original barn that was built around 1900 and all that remains of the structure.  I love it in the summer when wildflowers grow in and around it, but it looked pretty serene covered in snow too!

And the pièce de résistance of the property:  the big white barn.  It was this barn that originally led my grandparents and parents to the property.  While on their way back from getting groceries, my dad and grandma saw a sign on the main road that said "Barn Sale."  This caught their eye because they had never been to a yard sale in a barn before.  While they looked around, they learned the property was for sale and began dreaming how wonderful it would be to own a place like this.  My dad brought my mom and grandpa back to the property and the neighbor who happened to be the realtor stopped by and offered to give them a tour.  And the rest, as they say, was history.   

The previous owners had three horses (two ponies and a Paint) who called the barn their home.  When we bought the place, they left behind most of the items in the barn, including old newspapers, bridles, combs, hay and a tractor.  As a ten year old girl obsessed with horses, the horse paraphernalia were my favorite treasures.  

Last year we repainted the barn and added green trim to the windows and painted the door green.  We also put in new windows.  It is a dream of our family to one day convert this into a bed and breakfast or somehow incorporate it into a living space!  For now, it's a great place for kids to put on plays, store bikes, the riding tractor and golf cart, and other odds and ends.

I hope you are all staying warm today.  The ice and snow has stopped for the most part here but the roads are still a bit dicey.  Be careful out there!