Independence Days- take 2: week 10

It's been another busy week here. Things are starting to come together both for house and garden. The end isn't in sight yet but we're starting to see a glimmer of light. I'm ready to start dry fitting the tile in the bathroom tomorrow evening so hopefully Wednesday I can actually put it down officially. But on to my usual Monday business- The Independence Days challenge.

1. Plant something- Nope. I really need to figure out where my herb garden is going to go so I can get things planted so they have a chance to get established before winter. Maybe in my spare time....

2. Harvest something-

Beets!!!

Broccoli, chard, beets, a hot wax pepper, raspberries and yes, the first tomato!!! It was a tiny Cherry Roma- no bigger than the tip of my little finger and it was red, ripe and delicious. Sorry, no photos, it didn't last long enough.

3. Preserve something- made Summer Fruit Massacre jam. I've got lots of beets coming soon so I need to find my recipe for pickled beets and see if I can find the time to can up a few.

4. Reduce waste- the usual- recycled, composted, used cloth bags. We're reusing the old shower curtain that was in the basement as a tarp for keeping things dry in the barn since we're resorting to using the barn for storage since we don't have the basement finished. We have continued to repurpose as much as we can out at the house- even if it means more work than buying it new.

5. Prep and storage- Stocked up on sugar since there was a good sale and I needed more than I had for making jam. Otherwise, still holding off on putting much food out at the house until we actually move due to the potential pest problems we have out there. I'm still counting all the work we're doing on the farmstead as prep work since it is the ultimate prep.

6. Build community food systems- Have been trying to get back to eating more locally but it's been tough as busy as we have been.

7. Eat the food- Still eating a lot from the freezer although we've been slipping with 'convenience' foods when things get crazy around here. We've been eating at all kinds of odd hours, anything from 5:30 to 9:00 pm for dinner. Our schedule has been dictated by what we're doing out at the house- the kids have finally adjusted to the chaos and we rarely get the 'are we going to eat soon?' plaintive questions anymore.

I'm hoping to get a few days off work this week to get some more done. We're hoping to move some furniture in the next few days and the air conditioning guys are coming on Thursday morning to reconnect the exchanger so we'll be cool and dry. It hasn't been too hot but it's incredibly humid in the house which makes it uncomfortable to work.

It will be another busy week here. Wish us luck.

Progress- a long weekend in pictures

Whew! What a weekend. I have been a bit frustrated since it seems that we haven't been able to get out to work until lunchtime all the four days I've been off. Of course, there have been good reasons. But much progress has been made. Thursday morning J15 and I moved almost the entire contents of my closet to the new house while V worked at home- he had a big deadline for his paying job. But in the afternoon we got the drainage system finished for the house. And just in time- Friday night into Saturday morning we had 8/10 inch of rain and....the basement was dry!!!! Hoorah! It appears to have worked. Friday, the boys hauled composted horse manure from the barn/yard to put on top of the plastic rain barrier next to the house. Now I just need to plant some pretty annuals for landscaping and we're all set.

I didn't have much time to work in the garden but at least we got rain so I didn't have to haul water.

We got another head of broccoli- YUM!!!

The basement- will it ever be ready to move in???

V works on the last of the heating/air ducts.

The basement is a mess, without any walls as yet. But it is dry. and much of it has the insulation up and V finished the duct work today. We did get the concrete slab poured and the air conditioner unit is moved back into position. We just need to have someone come and reconnect it and recharge the system and we're all set. The ducts are all reconnected and the system works. We had the fan running this afternoon to circulate the air.

While V worked on the duct work. J15 and I worked on the upstairs bath. The drywall is all up, the cabinet is set in place and the tile backer subfloor is all ready to go.

It doesn't look like much but it represents several days of hard work!

We will tile get the toilet and sink base in place next, then tile the floor, and finally, tape and mud the walls. It still seems like a lot to do but we're making good progress.

The tile is all ready to go!

We're feeling the crunch now. We are required by terms of our mortgage to move by the 21st, so we're in the final push now. We're probably not going to have the basement finished, maybe not even J15's room done. But she will be gone for a week in New Orleans from the 20th to the 27th so maybe we can finish her room then.

I"m going to see how much time off I can talk my co-workers into this week. We NEED to get this done!!!!!

I hope you all had a fabulous long holiday weekend.

I'm tired

It was a busy, busy weekend here. We worked out at the new house Saturday afternoon and all day today. Today was really busy.

Saturday morning we slept in. Not intentionally but I think that exhaustion just caught up with us. even I, who don't generally sleep later than 7 slept until after 9. J15 got up at 940 and mentioned that I didn't wake her up for Tae Kwan Do. I did go up and wake V at that point but they opted to not go to Kum Do at 1015. V and I made a trip to one of the home centers and then we loaded up the vehicles and headed out.

This morning we got an earlier start. I feel somewhat bad that we have been skipping church a lot recently but I've only got so many hours in my weekend and while I find it helpful for centering, I often get the same feeling of peace working in my garden.

I did get a lot done in the garden this weekend. I finally got my sweet corn and beans planted, as well as the cilantro and transplanting the dill seedlings my Mom brought me. This morning I weeded the fenceline and installed most of the rabbit fence around the garden. I got 3 sides done before I ran out of fence and wire ties. Fortunately, I got the 3 most difficult sides done. Now I just need to finish the barnyard side. But I need to put in fence posts to fasten my fence to. I did a bunch of weeding around the peppers and tomatoes but I've conceded that I'll probably never be 'on top' of the weed until we are actually living out there and I can spend a bit more time in the garden. I'm trying to look at this as a 'building year' (taking reference from various sports teams). I did discover that I have a few little peppers set on. It's quite exciting!! The tomatoes are blooming but I think it's been too cool for them to actually set. My eggplant have blossoms forming so we'll see what happens.

This afternoon I spent time ripping out the old subfloor in the upstairs bath. We are planning to use ceramic tile on the floor and the existing subfloor is the wrong kind. So it had to go. But now we are ready to install the tile backer, rip out the existing ceiling and put in drywall, tile the floor, finish the walls, install the new sink base and sink and then we're almost set!

The insulation is finished for the exterior walls in a portion of the basement so we are getting closer to being ready to frame J15's room. The upstairs bath and her room are the things that are keeping us from moving completely.

V did finally get the lights in the dining room finished today. Except for the bathroom, most of the main floor is about ready to move in (well, the kitchen island still isn't finished),

In more fun news, we spent a little time this morning looking online at the available cats and kittens at the local animal shelter. I told J15 that if we are still a bit slow at work this week we will try to go visit this week. I'm not ready to bring a cat home quite yet- we're still a bit chaotic, but we thought we would go see what they have. She has fallen in love with a 10 week old kitten that she saw on line but I told her she needs to meet them before she makes a choice. I'm worried that a kitten that young may have a hard time with the dog. They also have several 10 month olds who look very promising.

Tomorrow it's back to work and the 'real world' V needs to write for his paid job so I don't see much happening out at the farm tomorrow.

Have a great week.

Independence Days- take 2: week 4

Okay.  I'm tired.  And it's only Monday... I've got all week to work yet.  Actually I shouldn't complain- today wasn't as bad as late Saturday and yesterday.  I did work on Saturday but when I finished up at work, V picked me up and we all went out and started digging to back fill the well pit.  We also have been packing like mad and taking both vehicles full out to the new house every trip.  Sunday afternoon I worked to get the entire dining/living room space painted. Man, it is a huge space when you're working to paint it.  The previous owners, in their infinite wisdom painted nearly every room in the house. Unfortunately, they didn't paint all the way to the ceiling- they only painted as far as you can reach without a ladder so the top foot and a half wasn't painted and you could see the roller marks on the wall.  So we're painting- not only to cover the bad painting job but also to add some color.  The floors are beautiful but everything else is SO white. Not even shades of white- just white.  Today we were hoping to finish filling the pit but we got rained out.  I did manage to get several boxes of kitchen stuff unpacked and the boys  unpacked a bunch of their toys. V got the rest of the upstairs bathroom demolished and we got the new sink base fit into place.  We can't fully install it until we get the drywall on the walls but at least it's there.  

My parents are coming up tomorrow to help us again.  I think they're expecting to paint so I need to make sure I have things here ready to start painting upstairs- either the woodwork or the walls in the boys' room.  

But now down to Monday business and my IDC update.

1. Plant something- nope, I need to get my beans and sweet corn planted and my garden is an absolutely weedy mess.  

2.  Harvest something- a few chives and the first tiny radishes.  I noticed this afternoon that my lettuce is getting almost big enough to start picking a few leaves.  It really took off with the warm weather.

3.  Preserve something- No.

4. Reduce waste- the usuals: cloth bags, compost and recycle.  Plus we are repurposing one of the sink bases from the basement for our upstairs bathroom remodel.  

5.  Prep and storage- Ummm, Not sure.  Right now we are so focused on getting this move underway and still trying to fix up two houses that I don't have much time for anything else.   I did manage to pull together all my collection of candles and pack them into one box for the move.  I've also been able to sort through my collection of plastic containers.  And I discovered a stash of party plates that I'd forgotten about. I've been looking over my kitchen and pantry storage spaces and trying to figure out where things will go.  I've got so much more storage than I'm used to that I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it all... but, oh, the possibilities....

6.  Community food systems.  No- I didn't manage to get to the farmer's market.  But I did find out from my brother (who dropped off more boxes for us today) that he has a bunch of 'super secret tomato seedlings' and he will give me a few.

7.  Eat the food- I've hardly been shopping all week.  We've been eating out of stores except for milk, eggs and cheese.  I still need to sit down and figure out the week's menu so I have a clue what I'm doing.

Garden updates

It was an absolutely gorgeous day here.  Too bad I spent the majority of it at work.  I guess it was good, though, work was fulfilling and we had a meeting with our new director who outlined for us how the department will be restructured.  This would actually give me the opportunity to apply for a supervisory position- if I want to.  I'm still on the fence about that one.

I only had a brief time out at the acreage.  We ate out there since J15 had her violin lesson tonight and the music school is less than 2 miles down the row.

Things are growing like mad out there.

The peonies are ready to burst at the seams!

The tomatillos, undaunted by frost, are blooming already!

The peppers and tomatoes look a bit singed around the edges but are doing well.  The one that I had my doubts about is still hanging on.  Really, we fared pretty well.  Out of 50+ tomatoes, I have to replace only 5 (3 due to frost, 2 to animal damage) and one pepper.  The heirloom peppers are already budding!

Looking around, I am finding just how much work there is to be done outside after we are finished with the house.

If you look really carefully, you can tell that this is a bed of iris.

This is the front 'flower' bed.  I guess dandelions are flowers....

My peas are growing and outpacing the weeds- barely.

It's going to be a challenge to keep up with everything outside.  We did investigate state tax write-offs for 'wildlife habitat' and wetlands conservation land.  We don't have enough acreage for the wetlands set aside- you need 2 or more acres that would qualify as wetlands.  Some of our land is a wetland- I can tell by the vegetation, and the squishiness- but we don't have over 2 acres that would qualify.  However, the wildlife habitat write off can be done with even less than 2 acres.  So we may apply for that for next year.  Essentially, we need to state that we won't use the land for commercial purposes and that we will leave it in a natural state for wildlife.  We've got no problem leaving a portion of the property in a natural state- I actually love the look of 'unkept' land.  I had fun looking up different wildflowers that we've found out on the hills.

I'm also excited to have some 'wild' land for the children.  I've been amazed at how much the boys have loved wandering around, exploring, and hitting things with sticks.  For two city kids, they have been loving it.  I just hope they keep it up after we move.  Right now, they don't have access to TV or video games out there so there isn't an entertainment option.

But they have been having fun:

Kids and barns- what a great mix.

They rigged up a 'pulley' system and have been hauling stuff up into the hay loft.  Of course, we have had them working as well.  Again, for city kids, it is a bit of an adjustment to actually having things that we expect them to do.  Not that they had no responsibilities at all before, but with us all working so hard to get things ready, they have had to pick up more than they have been used to doing.  It's good for them.

Pasta primavera anyone?

And now, a kitchen update.  The base cabinet is in place by the stove.  We don't have a counter top yet but I discovered that the cutting board that was in the microwave cart that the previous owners abandoned fits pretty well over the cabinet base.   The stove is also fully functional now.  I made a lovely seafood pasta primavera for dinner out there.  Yum!  Even K9 liked it.  I LOVE the simmer burner- it was great for the cream sauce for the pasta.

In cheesy updates from last night- we managed to get it all done- of course I was up til midnight cleaning pots and pans but it's all ready.  We estimated where 90 degrees would be on one of the 'old fashioned' thermometers that had the first mark at 100 and went with that.  I figure that when people first started making cheese things weren't so precise that you had to do something exactly at 88 degrees.  J15 now has probably about 1.5 lbs of cheese for her project and 2 loaves of bread.  We sampled the third loaf for dinner and it was great.  She needs enough for approximately 40 people to have a sample taste- that's several classes of students and any visiting parents/teachers.  Her teacher is really excited to try the cheese.

It should be another warm day tomorrow. I just hope I have time to get to the farmer's market for some replacement tomatoes- that and the lawn here in town desperately needs mowed.  Ah, no rest for the weary.

FROST!!

Well, we didn't escape last night's cold weather. We tied the record for low temps last night.  Normally our low is around 50 this time of year.  Last night we got down to around 35.  We had scattered frost out at the acreage.  It was rather random so I'm not sure if there was a pattern to it or not- even the weed seedlings took a beating.  I lost 3 tomatoes outright and one pepper.  Another tomato looks like it won't make it.  A few others are looking a bit rough around the edges but I think most of them should pull through.  Interestingly enough, the plants that took the worst beating (including those that are totally gone) were all hybrids- even the pepper.  The heirloom varieties look like they'll weather it pretty well.   I still have a few tomatoes left that I didn't plant out and my Mom said she still has a bunch if I need them.  I also want to transplant a volunteer from the back yard here at the town house.  We planted a yellow cherry tomato once a couple of years ago in the raised bed and they have come back every year since. I have also thought about picking up a few 'fun' tomatoes at the farmer's market for replacements.  One vendor always sells heirloom varieties in lots of colors-  last year we got a green tomato, red zebras and black cherry tomatoes.  I love variety.  I also noticed that something bit off one of my Amana Orange plants. GRRR.  I really need to get that fence up.

Everyone worked really hard today.  The boys did a grand job hauling away all the rubble from the well pit.  They loaded it up into the wagon and wheelbarrow and took it down to the riding arena where we are having trouble with erosion.  J15 worked on demolishing the upstairs bathroom. Yeah, I know I said we were done with demolition.  This isn't because of mice- this is because of UGLY!!!  Someone covered the entire bathroom in dark pine paneling: floor, ceiling and walls.  There is only one window that faces North, and it looks out onto the wall of the garage!  The room is incredibly dark and hideous.  We will bring up one of the sink bases from the basement and will drywall and paint the walls. We are also planning to put in a light tunnel- a small version of a skylight- to bring in more light.  It isn't a big area but they used tongue and groove boards on the walls and it is taking J15 a while to pull it all down.

I also used my new range for the first time today.  I11 wanted soup for lunch today so I lit a burner to warm it up for him.  He was beaming that he got the first thing cooked on it.  V did get the framing done for the island.  We pulled the cabinet from the basement but it needed some repair work before we install it so it is out in the shop for a day or two.

We also took out all the boxes I packed yesterday, plus a laundry basket full of kitchen stuff.  I did actually manage to get the laundry sorted and put away on Friday afternoon so I could use the basket to carry out some things that I'm not likely to be using any time soon. I really don't see myself using my springform or bundt pans in the next few weeks.  And on top of all the boxes- we took out the sleds!  We have a kick-ass sledding hill that should be fun next winter.

Tomorrow is back to work for me.  V needs to do some writing for his job and then will likely spend the afternoon out working at the house.  It looks like the weather for the next week will be warmer and sunny- no more rain for a bit.  J15 and I will be baking bread, cookies and making cheese tomorrow night for her English project.  Just when I thought things were beginning to get under control....

The day in pictures- good, bad and ugly

We had a great time celebrating (now) J15's golden birthday.  Per her request we had Chinese take-out.  It's a family tradition that the birthday boy/girl gets to choose what's for dinner that evening.  She had a fairly low key evening.  Dinner, cake and presents.  She got $ from my brother, my parents and Vs' mom.  From us she got some iron-on appliques that she wanted to customize her denim jacket, a book and an IOU for a cat.  She has been asking for a cat for a long time.  I grew up with cats and love them and we had a cat, as well as dogs, for a while when she was younger.  We're going to wait until we're moved into the new house before we get it.  I don't want to stress the poor thing out too much by bringing it home and then promptly moving.  Also, with as much as the doors will be open carrying stuff in and out I don't want it to run away.  I really hope the one she chooses will be a good mouser.  We may need it.  She wants to go to the animal shelter to pick one out.  While a tiny kitten would be fun, she wants a slightly older one that would be more able to defend itself against the dog should he decide to play rough.

We were out at the house this afternoon in the rain.  The basement is still leaking.  And while checking out one of the window wells, we found this charmer:

Isn't it beautiful!

And speaking of beautiful...

J15 says we're bringing sexy back to the kitchen!

It is sitting where it will be but we don't have the island built yet.  V and my Dad will be putting in the gas line tomorrow afternoon. I love the little side door.  It is a space to store the cast iron griddle that came with it as well as cookie sheets, baking stones and other stuff like that.

But now for the bad and ugly:

ICK!

We tore into a suspicious wall by the basement stairs- one we weren't initially planning to remove but I found a mouse tunnel leading into it when I was pulling down the ceilings the other day.  This isn't even the bad spot for mice although you can maybe see along the bottom where they have been.  The bigger problem is that there evidently was a leak in the roof at some point- which was patched- but they never repaired the water damage to the wall. There is plywood that has begun to de-laminate.  If that is even a word.  It will need repaired but we will probably need to take off the siding to get to it from the outside as well. Sigh, one more project to add onto the list.

But now, to round things out on a good note...  We have a winner in the family!  Since this was bike to work week.  The schools have been having a 'Ride, Walk, Win!' contest this week.  Every day that a student bikes or walks to school they have a ticket with their name on it put in for a drawing.  Earlier this week K9 won a nalgene water bottle and I11 won a bike headlight yesterday.  But today was the big drawing.  From all 6 local elementary schools participating, there were only two winners of bikes from a local bike shop. Guess who was one of the winners!!!

K9 with his certificate for a new bike!!!

YAHOO!!!  He has been complaining that he needed a new bike but that got put low on the priority list.  What a great way to wrap up the week.  

Now- I'm off to throw in a load of laundry and box up some books.

Have a great weekend!

It's here!

My new range and range hood arrived today.  Ok, hate me now- I forgot the camera.  I took several pictures on my phone but for some reason, my phone and laptop aren't on speaking terms so I can't download them.  I'll be sure to take some tomorrow when we're out.

V also took down the last wall in the basement today!  Hurrah!!!!  Maybe we'll have to break out that bottle of sparkling wine we have in the fridge.  Unfortunately (or fortunately), with the storm we had last night (LOTS of rain and wind) we discovered that we still have a few leaks in the basement that we haven't managed to stop. So that means no framing in that side of the basement until we figure that out.  At least it's on the opposite side of the basement from where J14's room will be.  That is the room we will frame/finish first so she will have a place to live.

My parents are coming up Saturday to help us again.  My Dad will help V run the gas line for my new range and my Mom will stay at our 'town house' and help J14 with her sewing project for school.  That frees me up to work on other things.  I need to get a few more boxes packed to take out- I'm running out of the 'easy' stuff- although there are always books.  We have LOTS of books.

And fifteen years ago today, V did something that caused the closing and evacuation of the federal reserve bank in Richmond, VA.  While working on an archaeological dig at the Tredegar Iron Works, he discovered what they thought was an unexploded civil war cannon ball.  The bomb squad was called and the area evacuated.  It turned out that the round had been spiked long ago but the next day we had our own little bombshell.  

After he got home from the events of the day, he had several drinks to calm himself down.  The next morning- I got up to make coffee and had my water break.  He refused to take me to the hospital until he had some coffee in him.  But later that day, our lovely daughter was born.  One bombshell on Saturday that was a dud and one on Sunday that has been going off ever since.

So, there will be a name change tomorrow. J14 will become J15.  Wow- it seems like just yesterday.  I'd better go bake a cake.

Garden update and such

I got my fingerling potatoes planted today. Yeah!!  The garden is looking really good.  My peas, radishes and beets are coming up and my onions are looking good.  My little plants that I set out are all doing well- except for the one that the dog snapped off with his leash.  Fortunately I have 2 extra plants left- even the same variety that he broke.  I've been meaning to get my fence put up- ostensibly to keep out the rabbits but maybe the dog as well.  I also managed to get the nettles dug out of the main fence line so I can install my rabbit fence.

One of my brave little strawberries.

The poor little things, they only have 3 or 4 leaves on them but are putting out flower buds.  I'll have to spend some time and pick these off before they set fruit to let the plant grow a bit more.

There is actually a blueberry in there.

My blueberries and currants are slowly leafing out but still look mostly like sticks.

The first kitchen move!

I moved my glass jars of dried beans and such today.  I'm guessing that I won't be soaking and cooking many beans in the near future as crazy as things have been on the food front.  I love the look of beans in the jars.  I have several very old canning jars that I got from my Mom and grandmother that I use for these- I don't want to risk canning in them.  I especially love the ones that are "Atlas- strong shoulders" jars.

This afternoon V and I were both busy.  V worked on taking out the concrete block walls from the old well pit.  That's a lot of block- it was really impressive to watch him throw a block over his head out of the pit onto the pile.  He's getting pretty buff again working on the house.  WOOF!!

V's pile of concrete blocks!

My afternoon project.

While V was working on the pit, I removed the last of the ceiling from the basement.  UGH! It's a dirty job.  The mice have been running around above the ceiling and when you pull down a panel, you get showered with mouse poo.  SUPER ICKY!!!!  But I did find probably the last major nest spot and entry point near the stairs so those are now cleaned and sealed.  We've got only one divider wall left to take out- it is the one with all the computer cables in it so V is going to have to sort through that one.  Then we are ready to seal the mud sill, insulate and start framing.  YEAH!!

I had a message that my new range and range hood should be delivered on Thursday afternoon. Well, we don't have the gas line run or the island built yet but at least we'll have them out at the house.  I can't wait to get a gas stove hooked up.  I really dislike electric stoves and that is all we have out there.  But I guess I can't complain too much, at least I have a stove that works.

Tomorrow we are taking a break to work our day jobs.  I'm back at work and V is taking a day off physical labor (after today I'll be surprised if he can move tomorrow) and is going to be working on several writing projects that he needs to get finished for his work. 

Tomorrow is another day.  Maybe I'll pack up a few boxes tomorrow evening.  For those of you wondering how/why I am posting so regularly- I mentioned that this is part of my sanity preservation system- it is also a record for us to be able to look back at what we have accomplished. It's also a way to keep friends and family posted without calling.

Thanks for all the support- we're really not super man/woman.  We're just motivated.

Independence Days- take 2: week 2

What a week it has been.  Things are progressing at the new house, although more slowly than I would like.  I know I was busy all day but I really don't feel like I accomplished anything.  I'm hoping that taking inventory with IDC will help me sort it all out. I know that a lot has been accomplished in the past week, so here goes.

1.  Plant Something- in addition to all my seeds that I started last Sunday, I planted out my tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and tomatillos.  I managed to prep the ground for my fingerling potatoes but didn't manage to get them planted today.  My peas, while in late, are starting to come up and I spotted radish and beet seedlings popping up as well.

2. Harvest something- a few chives and thyme. Oh, and lilacs.

3. Preserve something- I made lilac jelly in my spare time this evening. Phelan posted about lilac jelly and I was curious.  It is wonderful!  In fact, V liked it so much I may try to make a bit more before the lilac blossoms fade.  

4.  Reduce waste- Hmm, not much more than the usual.  I've started a compost pile at the new house.  It needs a bit more work- currently it's just a heap of grass clippings and a few veggie peels from meals.  We're being careful to salvage everything we can during this demolition phase and will be repurposing it or stashing it away for future reference.

5. Prep and storage- I don't think so- except for making the jelly, I'm trying to deplete the stores so we have less to move.  Even though we're only moving about 7 miles, it still seems like there is SO MUCH STUFF!!!  I need to get better organized about taking at least a few boxes out to the new house every time we go out.  But that means that I have to have them packed....

6.  Community food systems-  I missed the farmer's market downtown on Saturday.  There is one at one of the malls tomorrow afternoon. Depending on how things are going, I may try to stop by to get a few things since my garden got in quite late and I'm really wanting some fresh salad greens.

7.  Eat the food- No problem there. I've been better at planning and getting meals on the table than I was the first week or so we were working on the house.  In fact, J14 made it a point to point out that we were eating dinner before 630 this evening. Of course, it helped that I took the crockpot out and made beef stew that I could tend to and add things to all day.  It also made the house smell good- that and the big bunch of lilacs (not to mention the hours of cleaning and demolition) have gone far to eliminate the mousey smell that has been all too common.

In house updates, there is only one wall remaining in the basement to come down and one small section of ceiling.  We didn't get started on backfilling the pit today- the waterproofing mortar/sealer/stuff that V put on the outside of the new foundation blocks wasn't dry enough yet, hopefully by tomorrow it will be ready.  

We did get the new flue liner positioned in the chimney this morning and will put on the chimney cap tomorrow. We also did a patch job on the south side of the house where the birds were getting in to nest in the attic.  It will need more permanent work done on it (much like we did with the fascia on the north/west corner.  I didn't get much done in the garden apart from  prepping the row for my potatoes and making chicken wire cages for around the blueberries and currants.  I also spent a lot of time cleaning in the kitchen and taping around the windows and doors in the living/dining room to get ready for painting.  I was hoping to get started painting this afternoon but I ran out of painter's tape and wasn't going to make a special trip just for that.

In fun  house news, I was sitting on the porch stairs for a breather after dinner and saw a hummingbird flitting around the bushes.  I also noticed that there is a Baltimore Oriole flying in and out of one of the poplar trees.  We have hawthorne trees blooming, discovered that we have black willows (we planted a weeping one), black walnuts and hickories and figured out that J14's tree is a boxelder.  It's fun discovering what all is out there.  We always make sure that we take a walk around outside every day/evening to remember why we are doing all this work. 

Tomorrow will be a garden update, I hope.

Small fruits

Hurray!!!  My blueberries and currents arrived this afternoon.  Luckily I was able to get out of work a little early and was home when the UPS guy delivered them.  We had already collected the children from school and were ready to head out to the house.  I'm really impressed.  Since we bought from a local company- even though they are a nationally known chain- we are close enough to the nursery that everything arrived in a day.  I got the shipping notice yesterday morning and everything arrived this afternoon.  We went straight out to the house and put them in the ground right away.  J14's blue climbing rose arrived as well but for some reason they haven't shipped my red raspberries yet.  Oh well,  That's okay.  I've got plenty of things to do other than plant- although I really need to get the rest of my seedlings in the ground this weekend.

Today at work was a bit smoother.  Another co-worker screwed up her documentation and asked me to help her sort it out (I'm the most computer literate of all of us- even though the system is fairly self explanatory).  And, on a bright note- I have arranged to have both Monday and Tuesday off- so I have 4 days straight to get some work done.  I've also sent out the email that I want to take several afternoons off in the next few weeks.  All of my scheduled patient care groups are in the mornings and my afternoons are spent doing evals so if anyone else could pick them up for me I can get out several hours early.   The 2 other therapists there today were very supportive and 2 of the other 3 are also very understanding.  The only one who hasn't been that supportive of what I'm going through is the one that I was ready to slap yesterday.  She has her own issues so I think is rather self absorbed.  We have covered her butt for a long time so it's payback time.

The well is fixed!  V flushed the system today and has started fixing the hole in the foundation wall that used to go into the well pit.  We will still need to back fill the pit when the foundation has cured a bit and need to figure out where we will rob the soil from to fill it.  We are thinking that since we were planning to build at least one retention pool to help with erosion, that we may kill two birds with one stone and use the soil from the pool construction to fill the pit.

Knowing that I have 4 days in a row to get things done has done wonders for my stress level.  I need to call my Mom.  Since she offered to help with things, I think that helping J14 sew her vest for her renaissance costume would be a great help.  My Mom is an expert seamstress and taught my sisters and I to sew when we were young.  I have taught J14 the basics of sewing but this is probably the most complicated pattern she has attempted.  I have a suitable skirt and shirt for her costume but she wants to sew a lace-up fitted bodice/vest to complete her character's costume.  

Thanks to everyone for your support and understanding.  I reached my limit the other day.  I'm teetering on the edge but have been holding it together.  V and I need to have a sit down and talk about priorities.  He is so focused on the new house that he wants to put the things that need done here on the back burner.  While waiting to list this house won't be the end of the world- financially, things will be very interesting for us until we are able to sell this house- and, since there is a good chance that this house will be sold to someone who wants to use it as a rental- we are running out of time since people are already starting to sign leases for the fall semester here.  

I'm feeling better about leaving this place.  While I've wanted the acreage for years, there are things about this house that I love. But, things have been getting more and more violent around here.  In fact, there was an assault on our block on Sunday morning (about 3 am) where someone was knocked unconscious and robbed. He ended up hospitalized with a broken jaw.  We have always had trouble with vandalism but this type of violence is relatively new.  Makes me glad we're moving out of downtown.

200 posts!

Wow!  It seems like only last week that I started this little exercise.  Today marks 200 posts!  My goodness, how time flies when you're having fun!  So much has happened in the months since I started.  The adventure continues.

Today we got a late start out at the house.  We all slept in and were moving rather slowly this morning.  After a late breakfast and a trip to the home center, we all trundled out to the house to work.  My parents surprised us by showing up later in the afternoon to help (and to bring fresh cut asparagus from their garden- YUM!)

V finished getting as much concrete as he can safely remove from the well slab.  He is worried that breaking up the rest of the slab will drop pieces of concrete onto the pressure tank and we definitely don't want to damage that!  My Dad supervised while V worked and the children all helped move wheelbarrows of debris to a dumping pile.  V hopes to use the chunks of concrete for constructing dams in the creek to make some catchment pools to slow the erosion.

My Dad also helped me pound in the fence posts for the peas that my Mom and I finally got planted.  I have some earlier ones planted at Roger's house but these were the first things that we planted at the new place.  I also got all my onions planted (100 each of white, yellow and red) as well as chard, beets, lettuce, radishes and my broccoli seedlings.

Having my parents come help was great but it did really drive home that they are getting old (they are both in their 80s now).  My Mom had to take a break after planting a bit and my Dad was winded after hammering in the fence posts for me.  It really made me rather melancholy.  But the weather was beautiful and I finally got something planted.  My Dad helped me identify that we have a mulberry tree in the yard and Mom agreed with me that it looks like the apple was cut off at the ground and came up from the roots.

I also went the way of industrial ag this afternoon and wandered around with a sprayer of Round Up.  I know, I know... there are better, less damaging ways of killing weeds but we have SO MANY stinging nettles, thistles and poison hemlock plants growing that I wanted to really get them quickly.  There are nettles growing in the fence line around the garden and I keep running into them when I'm working.  Don't worry, there are still plenty if we want to  make tea.  I only worked around the garden edge and behind the barn where the hemlock was really thick.  I don't want the dog accidentally munching on something that poisonous.  I'm actually surprised that the previous owners didn't do something about it since they had horses.

Tomorrow it's back to work.  It should be really interesting.  We are starting with a brand new computer system for documentation that went live on Saturday. Hopefully they have gotten the kinks worked out of it by tomorrow.  It will probably be a very stressful day trying to get used to the new system so I just hope it isn't too busy.   I've got plenty on my plate with out work throwing me a curve.  

Dog Tired

Oh My, I'm tired!  V even more so.  We worked HARD today.  He was out early with a rented 12 inch chop saw cutting through the concrete slab that covers the well.   He didn't have a good time.  Evidently when they poured it, rather than using re-bar, they used several steel fence posts as reinforcement.  But he got through most of it before he called it quits.  Now that there is access, the well guys can come in next week and bring the well up to code and shock it so we can finally drink the water.  Then comes the septic.

Me, this morning I dug raspberries and then transplanted them out at the new place.  12 black raspberries and 16 golden ones as well as a few bluebells.  Then I mowed the lawn, at least that immediately around the house- with our push mower that chose today to suddenly be not-self propelled.  Ugh!!! What a job.  The grass was about 10 inches in some places and still wet.  To make matters worse, the previous owners' dogs dug holes in the yard which are now hard to see until you either step into them or the mower gets stuck.  Not to mention that the yard needs some serious re-grading (which hopefully will happen when we replace the septic) because there is a wicked hill.

We had a few visitors today as well. First, our realtor stopped out to see how things were going.  I think really to get a feel on when we will be ready to out our house on the market.  V is speculating that he has someone lined up already and is just waiting for us to be ready to move out.  

Then was the other surprise visitor.  V and I were taking a break to get a drink when an Iowa State Trooper pulled into the drive and got out of his car.  Lets just say that we were a bit nervous at first.  But, it turns out that he is one of our neighbors (one of the 3 houses we can see from our property) and was just stopping in to welcome us to the neighborhood.  It turns out that his MIL grew up in our house and is probably one of the kids from the family that originally built it.  Talk about a small world.

I did take a walk about to see what is blooming at the new house.  There were a few surprises that should be fun to see how they turn out.

The wild cherries are just starting to open (there is a bee on the blossom- sorry for it being out of focus- the wind gusted just as I took the shot).  Wild cherries here are a 'weed' tree but still good for making wine.

There is an apple tree beginning to bloom.  I have no idea if it will produce any fruit and it is in really bad shape- it looks like someone cut it off at the ground and it came up from the stump so there are lots of 'trunks' intertwined making it look more like a big shrub.
We also have an ornamental flowering quince- pretty flowers but not much else.
I know I already posted a picture of the Bleeding Hearts but they are just gorgeous.
Just on the other side of the fence is a grove of wild plums in full bloom.  They smell heavenly!!!  Also, as I was planting the golden raspberries near the fence I discovered that there are wild raspberries across the fence as well as what looks like gooseberries.  Hopefully they are escaped cultivars since I know that wild ones tend to not produce as heavily.  

I did get the rest of the garden tilled last night since Roger called and wanted his tiller Friday night so he can work his garden this weekend. It was a bit wetter than I would like because of all the recent rain but it wasn't too bad.  So tomorrow- I plant!!!

When we called it quits we finally went out and did our 'big ticket' ordering.  We have a lawn tractor that will be delivered on Tuesday and my new range and range hood will be delivered in about 2 weeks (they are both special order items).  Hopefully by that time, we will have the gas line run and the island constructed and ready to go in the kitchen.  We have realized that we won't get everything done that we wanted before we move in.  We at least need to have the kitchen remodel done and J14's room in the basement finished.  Everything else, we can finish when we're there.

In some other good news,  V had a call from his little brother- the one who is a co-owner of an energy company in Texas that he is doing freelance writing for.  Anyway, bigK and his partners evidently like the work V has been producing and want to give him more responsibilities/work and will double what they are paying him.  It could make things interesting with the timing of trying to get work done at the house.  Maybe we will need to get the cable hooked up at the house early since that is the only way we will get high speed internet access out there and we're not going back to dial up.  So, that is good news on the financial front, especially since the publishing company that V worked for previously will be closed for good on the 15th of this month so there will be no more copy editing jobs from them.

Now, off to watch a video with the children for a bit and then it's off to bed for me.  Tomorrow is another busy day.  I'm excited that I'm finally going to be putting things in the ground in my new garden!!!

It didn't rain today!

More bleeding hearts discovered- white ones this time!

V again spent the afternoon out at the homestead.  He had an editing job to do this morning (he'll finish it tomorrow morning)  and had to meet the guy from the heating/air conditioning people in the afternoon.  They got the air conditioner unit moved so we can begin the work on the well.  Next, we need to somehow remove the 6 inch thick concrete slab that sits over the well pit (the air conditioner was sitting on this) so the well guys can extend the well head and shock the well so we can drink the water.  After the well, comes the septic system.  Things are moving, although seemingly slowly on this front.

V spent much of his afternoon demolishing the basement.  There are only a few walls left.  The ceiling tiles in the bathroom were quite nasty, as were many things.

An open expanse- the west third of the basement.

You can see in the distance one of the many sinks.  There is another, identical sink about 6 feet to the right of that one and the plumbing for another one in another part of the basement (they took the utility sink with them- of course- grrr).  One sink down here will remain- an extra sink isn't necessarily a bad thing, especially in what will likely be a craft/work area. The other will be moved up into the upstairs bathroom- which is HIDEOUS!!! I'll have to post a picture of the upstairs bath sometime. It is entirely paneled in dark wood (walls, floor, ceiling) with only one small (North) window that looks out on the side of the garage- it is dark and claustrophobic.

Off to the right is the gutted darkroom, ground zero of mouseland.

Some of the framing will remain for these walls. In fact, the wall you see here will be one of the walls for J14's room, in the corner (ahead, right) will be my sewing/guest bedroom.

It didn't rain today.  I checked the garden.  It is wet but not WET so I'm hoping that if it holds off raining tomorrow as well, maybe I can till one more time tomorrow late afternoon or evening.  But, we're forecast for more rain tomorrow night, Thursday and Friday.  We already had 2+ inches- enough already!  I want to garden!!!

But one nice thing...after a few small repairs and actually connecting the downspouts to take the water away from the house (what a concept!)- even with 2 inches of rain Sunday night- we didn't have water in the basement Monday morning!  YEAH!!!

I'm feeling a bit more in control than I did over the weekend. We're getting the new schedule down pretty quickly. And coming home to the 'town house' helps with meals and homework for the kids.

Oh, and my fingerling potatoes arrived today.  Certified organic seed potatoes!  Woo-Hoo!  Now if I just had somewhere to put them....

House- Day 7: Exhausted!!

We have Bleeding Hearts!!!

That was the high point of my day.  We put in 11 hours straight today.  Whoosh!!! We're all tired.  Mostly V and I.  The kids took lots of 'breaks' but did manage to get a few things done.

I11 works on painting his room

We did manage to get both coats of paint on his room so tomorrow we can pull the painter's tape and it will be done!  Now we can start using both boys' rooms for stacking boxes.

V says that I "work willingly with my hands".  Wow, I didn't know I was virtuous.

But, the fascia and soffits are done!!!!  Behold:

Yeah, I know, gutters aren't that exciting to most people.

Now, it's very late and we have yet to eat.  (pizza is in the oven)  Tomorrow I go back to work.

Sigh....  I do wish I had more time to work on the house.  I don't think we will have everything done by the time we had hoped to move in.  But we'll see how far we get.

House- Day 6: A quiet day

Sorry, no pictures today.  We got a very late start today due to J14 and V having Tae Kwon Do and Kum Do classes this morning. They don't get home until about 1130 and then J had to be at school at 1 to set up for this evening's student film festival.  She is actually one of the people organizing it and was one of the judges.  While they were out the boys and I went on the search for boots for them to wear while playing in the creek.  I was amazed at how hard it was to find plain, children's rain boots. We ended up finally at the local farm/feed store where they had some.

Anyway, after lunch we packed up and headed out to the acreage.  It was rainy and low 50s today and with the late start, it was too wet and too late to start working on ladders at the roof line so, we will have to finish that tomorrow.  But I did get the lumber painted for the other section we need to repair so that should move much more quickly since we know the drill now.  We desperately need to finish the job so we can out the gutters back up since we are forecast to have rain almost every day next week.  So tomorrow, rain or shine, we will be up on the ladders ripping out bad lumber.  (We're going to be bad and not go to church tomorrow, although J14 needs to be there from 12-2 for a meeting about their trip to New Orleans) At least we started with the worst part so that is done.  There aren't any spots in the next section where birds have been nesting so it should be much less messy.  The wood is soft and rotting but not in as bad shape as the original portion we did.

J14 and I did manage to get the second coat of paint on K9's room so except for removing the painter's tape and putting switch/outlet covers and vents back in place, it is done.  Hopefully tomorrow J14 and I11 will be able to get at least one coat of paint on his room.  I don't really trust the boys to paint so J14 will likely be doing most of it.  

I hate to think of returning to work next week.  I feel that there is so much we weren't able to accomplish this week.  I got a notice that my second order of potatoes have shipped (rather later than I had hoped- but I guess that's OK, since I now have a place to put them- the others are at Roger's).  I didn't get a chance to do my second tilling yet, either.  Of course, it's supposed to rain most of next week so Roger won't be able to till either, but he does want his tiller back soon.

I had to leave early with the children this evening since J14 needed to be back at school at 6 for the film fest which started at 7 but V managed to precut the lumber to length for the fascia and deconstruct one wall of the darkroom.

For those who have been asking, as far as we can tell, almost every wall in the basement has had mice in it, some more than others.  Worst of all, the ceiling panels need to go since they have mouse poo on top.  We are essentially going to be gutting the entire basement and starting from scratch.  We are salvaging as much of the framing as possible and are going to repurpose the lights and outlets.  That way, we can be sure that there are no residual pockets of mousey surprises, and we plan to seal the mudsill and insulate as we go.  Currently there is no insulation against the foundation and it is COLD down there.

V had a call from his brother (bigK) in Texas who is planning to fly up for a weekend to help out when we start framing and drywalling in the basement.  Initially, he thought that bigK was joking but it turns out that he is serious about coming to help.  My parents, also, are planning to come help and Mom says we are to find jobs for them to do.  The problem is, my parents are both in their 80s and aren't as spry as they used to be.  Much of what we are doing now is rather physically intensive so I've got to think of what I can have them do that won't be demeaning to them but will be something that they can actually do.  I thought about having my Mom replace the damaged screens (we have the supplies) but V thinks that would be insulting to have her come all this way to do that.  My Dad is supposed to help supervise when V runs the new gas line for my stove.  Any suggestions for what we can have them do?  My Dad has cardiac issues and had bypass surgery a few years ago and my Mom has had both knees replaced.  They're not spring chickens but they mean well.

House- Day 5: YUCK

We came home to our 'town house' for dinner tonight.  We're grilling some of our grassfed t-bone steaks and having a bottle of wine.   V and I have been working all day and didn't even bother to bring the kids out to the acreage.  We had J14 pick up the boys from their after school program on her way home.

I came downstairs after my shower wearing a sundress.  The conversation that ensued was something like this:

V:  You're dressed up, what's the occasion?

Me:  I'm clean.

V: Yes, you are, but what's the occasion?

Me:  Because I'm clean!!!

You can tell by this that I had been in desperate need of a shower when we got home.  Today was the day of 'dirty work'.  V actually had it much worse than I.  He tackled dismantling the dark room which is ground zero of rodent infestation.  The darkroom was essentially a closet that was lined with black plastic.  The mice had gotten up on top of the plastic in the ceiling.  There was enough mouse doo up there that it was running down the back of the plastic and pooling on the floor.  V got kitted up to do battle:

Yes, that's a surgical scrub gown

For the guy who can handle anything, even he said he had a hard time not vomiting while he ripped down the plastic.

Then we both got down to dirty work removing the rotted fascia and soffit from part of the roof, installing venting and reconstructing.

Before

During

There were several sections where birds have been getting in.  The space in the center has already been partially cleared but the nesting material went back probably 3 or more feet.  It all got pulled out with a hoe.  Sorry Mama Robin, those eggs won't hatch.  It was filthy work and we both had to wear masks while ripping down rotten boards and clearing nests.  But behold:

Nearly finished!! 

It just needs the trim molding put back on but we're going to try to finish that tomorrow.  We're forecast for possible thunderstorms tomorrow.  I hope they miss us, we have too much to do.  I go back to work on Monday and that will leave V doing most of the work himself.

Miscellaneous photos from the week

The dog checks out the new house.

The seedlings arrive at their new home.

Isn't that beautiful soil!

Deer damage

Yes, it's a pile of horse manure.  Left behind by the previous owners, now well rotted.

Moving hosta plants that were near the well.  They would have been destroyed when it is serviced/repaired

House- Day 4: Late start

We got a late start today but still managed to get quite a bit accomplished.  We both slept like logs last night but had things to do this morning before we headed out to the house.  I needed to run to the grocery store and V had to write a post for the blog he works for.  We did spend time this morning out there measuring and marking.  We figured out where the kitchen island would go and marked the ceiling for the range hood and lighting.  The lights are downspot task lights that we are going to salvage out of the basement (there are 19 down spotlights in the basement!)

Speaking of salvaging:  K9 got his own wall to demolish (well, at least to knock chunks out of the drywall)

Look how he handles that hammer!

It's a good thing I called this morning and arranged for the delivery of this:

Our very own construction dumpster!

We discovered that the wall that K was demolishing had been infested by mice they had burrowed through the insulation behind the drywall.  Below is a picture of what they left behind.  

We didn't let K take down anything past the drywall after we discovered mice.

You can see where they tunneled down the wall into a chamber in the insulation.  A lot of what is on the wall is mildew that was behind the plastic, not just mouse s*!%

We also discovered, much to our dismay, that the idiot owner before us used treated lumber to frame some of the walls!!! What was he thinking!!!

Please disregard the stylish work boots with capris...

But, I did manage to get the garden tilled. at least the first time.  I only tilled the first few inches, since there was so much organic material.  I'm going to need to rake some of it off (again) and re-till deeper.

Here it is in it's glory!!

I didn't finish until nearly dark but the first part is done.  26 by 85 feet.  I wanted to go longer but there is too much erosion at one end that the previous owners tried to solve by dumping rocks in the area and they got knocked all over. That end is also partially shaded by a small grove of maples but I may plant my black raspberries there.  They seem to thrive in the semi-shade where we have them now