A Dad, His Boys, and Their Tree House

I’d like to introduce you to my great friend Jon…fellow daddy of 2 young kids and a guy who loves building things and getting outside as much as he can with his family. Being a master of almost any tool he can get his hands on and having a creative bent, Jon builds things that are not only functional, but things that have a heart…things that inspire. In fact, it was the tree house he built that started me thinking about building one for our girls. Keep reading and you’ll see what I mean.

My name is Jon Carr…and I own a company that specializes in remodeling and custom carpentry (Right Angle Remodeling).  But of all my projects…one of my favorite is the tree house my family and I built in our backyard.

My wife Ann and I have 2 young boys…and I have always believed in letting them play with most of my tools…and because of this, my boys will sometimes want to help me with my projects. So I thought this tree house was the perfect project for them to hone their carpentry skills on.

Before going any further I should probably tell you that I like to build with used materials whenever possible…recycled, repurposed, salvaged or whatever trendy term you want to use.  I also like projects that when they’re finished they have the look of having been there for generations.

So my tree house design utilized columns I acquired from a neighbor and windows I got by stopping at a house that was having its sashes replaced.  I was also able to use a bunch of cedar from an old play set and balusters from and old deck.

Once I got the posts and floor joists set and we started decking the floor, Ann and our boys were able to really start helping. They would cut, drill, hammer and help with spacers.

I also took the opportunity to teach my oldest son (who was eight at the time) to use a chop saw. While he was a little skittish at first, by the time it was all said and done he became very confident with his cuts…under our watchful eye…of course. Over the years I have gotten a lot of joy out of my boys using and mastering different tools.

Like a lot of projects, we are really close to being done, but we still have a couple of things left to do. We are trying to find the perfect door…however, we did add a light and an outlet. With the outlet our boys can decorate their tree house for the different holidays.

The boys love playing in their tree house…and although they enjoy it on almost any given day, like most other toys, it gets the most use when friends come over.  Regardless, we’re looking forward to many more great times together in our tree house…finishing it up or simply just hanging out.

Thanks Jon! And here’s to all those other dads who love to get outside with their families and build things. I can attest that there’re few things greater than that.

(Oh…if you want to see any of Jon’s other inspired work, check out his page on Facebook.)

Take care all,