When Alex Gabbard turned nine years old in 2003, his mother, Liz, had a trick up her sleeve. For his birthday, she gave him a two-by-four inscribed with the word “treehouse.” Alex was confused by the slab of wood at first, but when Liz brought him out to the silver maple in their side yard and blurted out, “You’re gonna get a tree house!” the dream of every kid would become a reality.
Liz, who is an award-winning gardener, initially designed the structure to be an open deck—but that was just too simple. In its current form, the powder-blue urban getaway is a clean-cut cube with a window on each wall and an A-frame roof complete with shingles. Basically, it’s a miniature version of the main house that sits a mere ten yards away.
Trees expand slowly and subtly, and there’s been some talk of dismantling the playhouse. “As the tree grows, it’s pushing the frame out,” Liz explains. “It’s growing half an inch a year.” But following a recent visit from the tree doctor, Liz has been assured the tree house has some life left in it. “We’re good for another five years.”
