ouroldfarmhouse.com - Restoring a Historic Farmhouse

One Room at a Time: Restoring the Old Parlor

For the past several weeks, it’s been demolition and restoration work in the office—what may have originally been the home’s parlor. There’s still a lot to tackle in this space.…

Phil Atkinson May 1, 2026

History Planning

Digging Deeper: The Hidden Bricks of Proctor Place

So, one of the mysteries now has an answer... For years, the history of Proctor Place included this claim: "The footings of the house are of brick-five rows of brick…

Phil Atkinson March 23, 2026

Money Pit Moments Planning

Foundations and Faith: One Year of Stewardship

As of today, it’s been one year since we became stewards of ole Milton—and I’ve got to say, he’s been a bit of a grumpy old soul. In many ways,…

Phil Atkinson February 28, 2026

Planning Progress Update

A Year later: We Passed!

Outside of early planning, I believe demo began in late March or April '25 for a garage project I optimistically thought would be wrapped up by late June or July.…

Phil Atkinson February 27, 2026

Progress Update

The Never-Ending Garage Saga

From the Land of Cursed Construction… For whatever reason, we just can’t seem to wrap up construction on the garage. Just before the New Year, the plumber and electrician finished…

Phil Atkinson February 3, 2026

Progress Update

Heat, Gutters, and Hard Choices: December at the Old House

Another month, and there’s still not a lot that feels “big” enough to report on, but things are moving along. The HVAC is installed, so the heat is on and…

Phil Atkinson December 26, 2025

Progress Update

Phase 1 Complete (almost): Grateful and Ready for What’s Next

Hard to believe it's been a month since my last post... let's see... So, we both got COVID back in October. Only my second time, but for whatever reason, I'm…

Phil Atkinson November 20, 2025

Progress Update

The Garage Advances, the House Waits

It’s been a busy week. I took some vacation time to catch up on projects around the house, though a few work items still managed to slip in — pretty…

Phil Atkinson October 19, 2025

Progress Update

Inspections Passed, Timelines Slip: Another Week on the Build

It’d be nice to say everything has been smooth sailing since framing began—but you know that’s never quite the case. After a couple of promising days, the framers disappeared, juggling…

Phil Atkinson October 15, 2025

Progress Update

Garage Build: Framing Day 1

I half expected them to build the entire thing in a single day. A three-man Amish crew arrived just after 8 a.m. and worked straight through until about 5. Hard-working…

Phil Atkinson October 6, 2025