The house is finished

We have now been 3 weeks in the house and it's been great.  To finally have our own space again has been good  for everyone involved.  Cath and I have spent the last three weeks getting used to the house, finding out it's successes and failures.  I am please to say that failures are small, our open showers do not work as we wanted them to, and people who spend a lot of time camping would know there are a lot of bugs out there!!  We get them coming through the screens for the lights.  It's all a learning curve and I'm sure we will continue to learn and find ways to make things better.
Would we build a straw bale house again?  maybe too early to answer this as our response at the moment is no.  We had a shit year with the weather and every aspect from footings, to straw to render was greatly affected - perhaps building in a dry year we might think differently. I think 12 months in the house will determine how we feel about it - having a winter in there without heating (we have individual heaters) will show us whether the straw will work for us.
As for the land and the spot we are in - we love it!  It's great to see the cows next door just wander by the front door - kangaroos are truly in our back paddock - and last week whilst out on the deck I saw a Koala climbing up the tree - a sight most people don't get to see in the wild, so I am stoked about that.  It's peaceful and calm - something that appeals to me after a long a stressful year. 

A few photos...

We still have so much to do - as you can see the house is not painted, and the other rooms do not have the floors done.  We want to get a veggie garden going, and we are still unpacking boxes... but I am learning that we will get there - and sometimes there is a book that you just need to read before doing any work... or maybe a puzzle