Sunday, May 3, 2009

Anniversary Arch

A few years ago when we bought our small ranch, my wife Lana said that she always wanted a driveway arch. So evenings and weekends at my work, I secretly started building one. I work at a steel fabrication shop, so I gathered all my parts from scrap left over from projects that were headed for the scrap bin. Every piece for my arch was recycled. The best part of the plan was to use existing posts that were already in the ground on each side of our driveway entrance. This made my job much easier because it gave me a base to start building the arch. The other best part of my project was that we would be celebrating our 20 yr. wedding anniversary that summer and I wanted to make it for Lana as a surprise present for her. Of course in time it was hard to keep making excuses for why I was at work more than normal so I had to give in and tell her what I was up to.

I took many measurements and drew up a sketch and then started putting together parts on the floor to come up with a design, and found everything I needed to make the arch. Then I had to build it in pieces small enough to lift and handle because I did not have a crane to lift the parts. It ended up being 3 separate parts that I brought home and with my pick-up truck, a ladder, my brother, and my two daughters , we put it together and no one got hurt in the process.(warning don't try this at home)LOL.
We finished putting up the arch on a day when Lana was at work, so I was able to wait and see her come home and for the first time drive through her new Arch. She loved it and it was the best anniversary present I could have gave her. That summer we had a big family party to celebrate our anniversary and everyone loved the new addition to our ranch home.

2 comments:

Jim @ CoolStuffForDads.com said...

The driveway arch looks great! Sounds like a lot of fun living on a ranch. Enjoy!!

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