Faithful Blogs and Reviews

So you all now know I have had some struggles upon moving from Georgia to Michigan.  But I did not go into all the details of such and figured I should, since its kind of interesting on how it’s going now.

We arrived in Michigan on August 10, 2018.  We knew that when we arrived we would not have water nor power but that we should within a couple of days.  This is my first official chance to see this property instead of the various photos my mother had sent and the old Trulia listing photos.

The campground itself is one of the more rustic looking ones from the many we had passed to get here.  It has these cute tiny cabins that are red with yellow trim along with a huge old house that matches the color scheme as the cabins. The store sits right in the middle of the cabins and next to the large house.  The small house (white house as its called) is further down the property on the far side of the cabins.  The property has been closed/abandoned for about 5 or more years.  My mom and her partner have owned for about 2 years before we decided to come up and reopen it.

We all knew that there was work that needed to be done to every bit of it.  The large house would need a new roof and the upstairs rooms to be refinished. It is not in a livable condition as it sits and mom knew she would have to live in one of the cabins until they decided on what they would do with the house.  The back side of the roof has caved in and there is a lot of water damage on the backside from the top floor to the basement.

The store is in much better shape as it was redone entirely before the sale.  It includes various coolers, displays, a pizza oven/kitchen area, and a gift shop area.  On the backside of the store is a bathroom and shower for the “Dry or Rustic” cabins.  There is plenty of history in the store about the property that the Au Sable River Camp sits on and the community around it.  We found documents that were dated back to the early 30’s with photos of the cabins.

There are four “Rustic or Dry” cabins on one side and three that are more modern with running water and bathrooms.  Mom had visited a few weeks prior and said we would stay in a cabin for the first couple of days while we unloaded the truck as they were more habitable.  We had already planned on staying in a hotel for at least a couple of days or so until we could get the power reconnected and water going.

That was only the beginning of the issues with had.  It took three weeks before the power could be established as the power company here took its sweet time.  With the property being hooked up to well water, we couldn’t access the water without the power.   There are three meters total on the property; the large house, store and the small white house.  They were able to establish power in the first two without a problem.  But the small white house had to be inspected and that took an additional week and a half.

My mom had to return back to Georgia for a week in between due to getting the rest of her furniture and her other car.  My two girls, two cats, doggo and myself decided we would stay in one of the cabins and patiently wait for the power to be established.  These cabins are about 200 sqft total and I honestly thought it would be super cramped with everyone.  But fortunately enough, it was quite cozy.  We lived in a cabin with two beds, a stove, fridge, sink, and a full bathroom.  After going almost two weeks living between a hotel and roughing it, I was super happy to have any shower that I could have daily.

Once we were able to get the power established in my new home, I still wasn’t able to move in right away.  The property used to be an old county precinct building where people would go vote.  It was later turned into a cabin with two small bedrooms with no doorframes/walls for them.  Yes, you read that right.  There is a wall that divides the two rooms and curtains for the doors/walls for the doors.  I knew this before moving in and I was more than ready to redo some things in the house in general.

The property itself has its own pump system for the water.  Having grown up on a well water system for before, this pump is a bit different than what I am used to knowing. The pump house is in a hole underground that can fit a tiny person in it.   The pump would not turn on.   So, instead of moving my two girls, two cats, doggo and myself over there while mom was still in Georgia, I decided to wait on her.  I needed her help as she was already hiring a plumber for all the leaks that my husband and her partner had dealt with that week they came in.  I figured I could get them to turn it on and start fixing what leaks I knew would be in my house.  As nothing on the property was winterized, every pipe above and below ground had leaks.

As life would have it, it wasn’t just a switch I was missing or a priming of the pump.  I had a very seized and rusted pump that was costly to replace.  After calling my uncle who is the expert in pumps and wells, crying with frustration, and on the brink of giving up entirely, we just so happened to find the company who installed the pump and dug the well for all the property in recent years by seeing their nameplate on the campground well system.  He came out and had water flowing in a newer pump within three days and offered to work out a much cheaper price.  Of course, as soon as he turned the water on to the house, everything leaked.  So we had to shut it off and figure out what to do next.

At this point, my mom and I are beyond tired and frustrated at everything becoming an issue with leaks.  We are asking why over and over and just losing all hope.  We both had a sense of feeling we were both there for a reason but with each leak or electrical issue we had, it was hard to see the light at the end of a tunnel.  My mom took it worse than I did.  I had no choice but to be positive just for the sake of my girls and so they wouldn’t worry about what would happen.  They had enough to worry about with a new school.  I became the sounding board and rock through every trouble we had.  I’m honestly surprised at how well I was able to manage it all. I have no one to thank but to the few close friends I could talk to about it and praying every night to keep my sanity.

We did find ourselves with two older men who were electricians and plumbers that worked on the side.  They are a true Godsend to us and I have grown very fond of the old farts.  They didn’t overcharge us on things and helped us as much as they could.  I am currently living in my house.  They had to cut the bathroom floor, realign the toilet flange and replace what flooring that was rotted.  They also fixed the shower from spraying all over the walls and helped me fix the kitchen sink.  Well, sorta.  The kitchen wasn’t plumbed with a proper drain system.  Everything was going down into a pipe that leads to the ground under the house.  This is a project that will have to wait due to lack of funds.  For now, I am using biodegradable soap and a bucket method.  Silly, I know, but it works and it forces me to conserve water.  I call it my own greywater system.

The repairs are far from being done.  Most of the leaks on the property as a whole are temporarily fixed or completely fixed.  We have to redo the drain in our kitchen sink and I am hoping to run a proper drain down and out away from the house.  The roof needs to be replaced and that will be a bigger project in the spring.  For now, our main goal is to get all the cabins ready and the store supplied to open October 1st.

I know I promised more photos of my house and what my tiny house will look like.  I am still trying to figure out how I am going to redo some things inside.  But, to tide you over in the meantime, here are some photos from the first day we got there and I was able to see it.  The house is not pretty and you will see my car, but I plan on taking more for the next post.  This will give you an idea of what I am working with size wise.  I still have a lot of work but I plan to share with you everything I do and how I do it.  I will also be making crafts to sell in the store as well so there will be a few of those posts.

Here is my tiny house!