Surviving Winter

 The cold weather brings on all sorts of challenges for a 120 year old house and barn. I go into full pioneer mode.  It takes lots of energy to keep everyone safe warm and happy.  This year I insulated the drafty barn using  layers of cardboard a  tip I found on Pinterest. The beautiful old drafty windows in my house get covered with shrink wrap plastic. Then layered with heavy curtains. I put as many rugs out as possible on my frigid wood floors. My doors all have their own set of winter draperies to hold out drafts.  My tiny dogs need sweaters even in the house. It's too cold to get water from outside.  I have to haul buckets to the basement to be rinsed and filled. Snow has to be shoveled to create walking spaces for the animals.  It's a hard back breaking season. We manage to survive it every year. this year I am taking the bull by the horns and working to make things easier.

I am looking into alternate sources of heat for the house and barn. I am particularly interested in wood burning stoves since I always have lots of wood from broken tree branches in my yard. This winter has just started but we have already consumed 500 gallons of oil. The environmentalist in me is mortified. I keep the house temperature low, even so frigid temperatures make it necessary to run the heater all night. 

I am diligently exploring all sorts of environmentally conscious options. So far it looks like solar power can only be a supplemental source. It's cost is prohibitive and my township has rules about visible panels. Adding either wood or propane stoves seems like a great option. I am investigating off the grid sites to gain enough knowledge to make this decision.  I am hoping to get something installed before a big snowstorm hits.

Some of these photos are from past winters. I thought you might enjoy seeing the critters exploring the snow.

If you have any good advice about my energy decision. I would love to hear from you. How do you survive frigid temperatures with animals?