When it came time for Cathy Lehman to build a second home with her husband and become a stay-at-home mother for her two girls, the familiar mountains of her childhood were a perfect fit. Having made frequent visits to the Catskills with her family at a young age, the idea that her own children could spend part of their youth appreciating the same serene locale drew her in. “I think it’s a great family neighborhood,” she says. “I’d rather be up here or in the city. I don’t like that in-between. This is country and I love it here.”

After considering many different options, Cathy and her husband Bob Lehman, a partner with Ernst and Young LLP, settled on Yankee Barn Homes, a custom post and beam company with versatile home designs based on barn architecture. “I did a lot of research, and when I stayed in their model home, it was just a very solid product,” Cathy says. “They had a lot of choices, and I felt like this kind of house would fit great up here. There were certain things I wanted to add, and by starting with their model, I was able to do what I wanted with full control.”

At approximately 4,000 square feet, the finished home sits tucked away in the hills of Jewett and conveys a stunning view of the countryside. Some special additions made by the Lehmans include a luxurious deck, complete with an outdoor kitchen, barbecue, dining table, and fire pit, as well as a 10-foot-deep black bottom swimming pool and volleyball court for their children and friends to enjoy. “This is my absolute favorite area,” says Cathy, who used her love for photography and creative nature to design the entire pool area as well as many other features within the house. “I hang out here all day.”

Besides being able to spend their leisure time in the stunning backyard, Brittany, 14, and Caitlin, 13, often enjoy the getaway with their closest friends in what Cathy calls “the kid section.” In a separate area of the house, the girls’ bedrooms feature a connecting Jack and Jill bathroom, as well as a guest loft located directly above, giving them ample opportunities to host sleepovers. One of the girls’ favorite features, however, is their proximity to Windham Mountain and other picturesque local scenery, where they enjoy a worry-free vibe with plenty of skiing and kayaking. “When everybody gets up here we just relax,” Cathy says. “We’ll find ourselves reading and just kind of chilling and then noticing it’s already 5 o’clock.”

For the Lehmans, one of the most important aspects when designing and building their new home was sustainability, which made Yankee Barn’s selection even more enticing. The Yankee Barn roof and wall panels in each of their models contain efficient, rigid closed-cell foam insulation to retain heat, requiring less energy use. This particular model also employs a Lifebreath Total Recovery Ventilator, which regulates humidity in the house, preventing condensation from forming in high-humidity areas like the kitchen or bathroom. With this system, humidity is evenly spread around the home, allowing heat to be recovered and circulated for even distribution. Additionally, radiant heat warms the floors in the bathroom, garage, and basement.

According to Lisa Glennon, design manager for Yankee Barn Homes, the building site chosen by the Lehmans was perfectly suited for solar assistance. With the help of sunlight pouring in from strategically placed windows, the large granite Rumford fireplace built in the middle of the great room acts like a heat sink. At night, when the ambient air temperature drops, the stored heat is released from the granite. Decorated with rocking chairs and a cozy couch, the great room is the perfect spot to “curl up and read an entire book,” Cathy explains. “It’s kind of a fun, easygoing, comfortable house. I didn’t want it formal. I wanted people to feel like they can come in and put their feet up.”

During the summer months at the Lehmans’ other home in northern Westchester County, they often will depend on their air conditioning throughout the day in order to stay cool. In fact, if you drive through their neighborhood, “Everybody is running air conditioners and all you can hear is a loud hum,” Cathy says. With their second home’s smarter design, the Lehmans rely only on the cool air circulating from the collection of open windows throughout the house, creating a spacious atmosphere in touch with the surrounding nature. “This is my air conditioning,” she says pointing toward a window in her workout room. “That’s all I need. No matter where you are inside the house, you feel like you’re outside. You don’t feel enclosed and stuck.”

With its convenient location, the Lehmans’ new home has inspired them to channel fresh ways to live a greener lifestyle. In addition to recycling and using compact fluorescent light bulbs, supporting local agriculture and buying organic food is very important to Cathy, especially during the summer months when the regional farm stands are open. The family is also considering installing a wind power system because they are in “the perfect place for it,” says Cathy.

The Catskills have brought more than healthy, sustainable living to the Lehmans—Cathy can now share the affection she developed for the area with her own children as their family bond grows stronger. “Just simple things like making s’mores at the fire pit bring us closer,” she explains. “They’re going to come up tonight and we’re all going to have dinner out [in the pool area]. We’ll be out here till 10 or 11pm. At home, we would sit down, eat, and they’d be up in their rooms on Facebook. When they leave home and they come up here, it’s a different mindset.”