We've Been Working on the Railroad

You probably all realize that we don't have a railroad here (maybe someday...?) but we do have a parking lot full of railroad ties.

We placed a railroad tie at the head of each parking space and then drilled holes at both ends of the tie. We used sledge hammers to pound pieces of rebar through the holes and down through the gravel and into the dirt below. The kids helped out by using a punch and hammer to knock the rebar down as far as possible into the ground.

I now have much greater empathy for railroad workers after swinging an 8 lb. sledge for a few hours. William surprised us all by very trustingly holding the punch even after Owen accidentally hit Will's hand with the hammer.

And the best news of all - the parking lot is now DONE and APPROVED by the county!