Month: January 2013

Snow Freaks

Published on by Grace14 Comments

My son is now sick. I think it’s my fault. I must’ve overindulged him in too much snow.  I did get what I wished for.  We had a good amount of snow these past few days.

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After seeing this much snow from my son’s bedroom window, it was only natural for him to want to go outside and play.

So last Friday, I took him out for a long walk in the woods.

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It was -4C that day, but the cold did not seem to bother us.  We were having fun!  We crossed the woods to get to the other part of town.  Everytime we find a little inclined space, we take advantage in sliding downhill on his sled.

By the time we got home, he was literally spent.  He didn’t even wait to get to his room.  He just crashed on the sofa.

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This past weekend, we went skating with some friends.  Because he is still too young to skate, we placed my son on a sled so he can still enjoy the ice with us.   It was very cool.  Unfortunately, that didn’t do him well.  He got cold.  And because he was also tired, getting sick was inevitable.

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Now I am nursing him back to health.  Hopefully, we can cut the “down time” so we can enjoy the snow all over again.

Winter Wonderland

Published on by Grace9 Comments

We had a good amount of snowfall this past week.  My son had a blast!  

In school, he was riding on sleds with his classmates.

Photo courtesy of krokodylkolin.cz
Photo courtesy of krokodylkolin.cz

They also made a snowman.

Photo courtesy of krokodylkolin.cz
Photo courtesy of krokodylkolin.cz

In one of our ‘neighborhood walks,’ I went to the woods with him on a sled.  My right arm is hurting now but it was so worth the effort.

This whole winter thing is growing on me.  I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I wish we will get more snow tomorrow.

 

Inside Our Passive House – Part One

Published on by Grace25 Comments

As promised, here is my first post regarding our experiences living in a passive house. I’m sure most of you are more curious about the technical aspect of the house rather than the interior design, so this post is solely dedicated for that.

Our initial expectation of decreased heater usage was indeed met during our first 2 weeks here.
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A sunny winter day like this is enough to raise the interior temperature to 1C to 2C.  Because of the thick insulation and air tightness, the house has the ability to keep the temperature stable.

Give us 7 sunny days like this and we may not need the heater at all.

But for days when it’s gloomy and Mr. Sun is hidden behind the thick clouds, the house’s integrated heaters are programmed to keep the temperature stable.  Potential “cold spots” within the house are equipped with heaters that look like this.

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This is the biggest one  for the living room, but the smaller ones in the bedroom almost look the same.

The external blinds of the house has a central control unit that can be programmed to open and close at certain times of the day.  In winter, it is useful to open everything during the day to let the sunshine in and heat up the house.  But in summer, there will be a need to keep it closed.  Remote control switches are also available to adjust the amount of opening or amount of light that one would like to have.

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With its air-tight feature, you may be curious about how the house breaths.  Well, this equipment makes it all possible.

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Air vents are strategically located around the house to exchange the air.  There is no need to open the windows.  You are guaranteed to breathe in fresh air.

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We still haven’t done much about the exteriors of the house, so this is pretty much how it looks like from the outside.  Come spring and the landscaping is another major project.

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Anyhow, we are happy with our first few weeks in this house although it is not completely decorated yet.

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Call it crazy, but we are probably one of very few people who are very eager to receive their energy bill.