Town House Homestead Tuesday

With the melt off of winter storm Stella came some more adventures for us. When you buy a house that has not been taken care of for a couple of decades, or more, it is to be expected that the old will die and need to be replaced. This past week it was the sump pump, but thanks to our dear friend Richard, we have a new one. My daughter learned from him some more home maintenance, and he's the kind of gentleman that doesn't mind explaining. We cannot thank him enough for all his help. Along with the sump pump issue came the issue of the foam glued to the wall, and water damage to the basement walls. 

Yesterday, with the help of Emily, she and I filled seven large bags of this Styrofoam from the walls in the last quadrant of the basement. It could wait no longer. We also filled six bags with decades old insulation, that at one time had housed some mice, and we came across some spiders and ants while pulling it down too. Oh insects. What can I say? At least it wasn't wasps.

It is looking much better and now there are literally miles of old cable wires, ancient phone wires, and who knows what other wires that need to come down. This all has to be done before we can get any new insulating done.

The walls have suffered some damage, but for now they need to dry out before we can scrape off loose cement, re face it, seal and paint, but it's work we expected to do this coming year any way. Yes we had enough intelligence to cover the sump pump to prevent anything getting into the well. 

On the more exciting side for us is the bee garden. We got a very good deal on a water bath this past weekend, and it is holding it's spot in the garage next to two new rain barrels. The tilling has been scheduled and weather permitting we will have the garden ready before the bees arrive.

The safety signs arrived this week too. the orange caution sign is metal and will go on the locked gate to the back yard. The red sign is for the garden itself. Everything is coming together well.

With every home comes the necessity for tools. We had a good start, but we still need more. This past weekend there was a yard sale around the corner from us. In the 36 degree cold, with pouring rain, we stopped to look. We got a six foot aluminum ladder, a decent wheel barrow,, a garden rake and weeder all for $15. We were feeling quite elated, especially with the wheel barrow, because it's a bit difficult hauling stones, fallen limbs and trash to the curb, even though it is just half an acre of land. Needless to say with Springs arrival we are getting better situated to handle all the chores. 

This last picture is that of two boxes of non perishable food that I am donating to a college food share. For the last five years, maybe longer, I have fed hungry students, but not in the capacity that I wanted, or even could actually. If there were hungry students in an office where my daughter works she would tell me and I would send whatever I could to help. I recall sending individual pot pies, soups, home made loafs of bread, banana bread, cookies, and bags of potatoes so they had something. The student government opened a food share that my daughter recently discovered and from now on I will make a monthly donation to them also. These two boxes contain 45 pounds of food, egg cartons for egg distribution, and Ziploc bags for them to provide smaller portions if needed. My new philosophy about stopping hunger has come through Instagram. I follow "secondhand_swagger", who started this program in February this year, to push the fact that so many charities need food supplies. So now any time, at any store, and for no reason other than to fight hunger, I will pick up two food items, plus when I do my monthly shopping I will pick up what I can and fill two boxes. I am so ready to put in a large vegetable garden so my giving can grow, but for now I'll do what I can to show how grateful I am for what I have. That's some of what's been happening here at the Town House Homestead, and I can't thank you enough for stopping by for a visit. Have a wonderful week and keep up the hard work. It does pay off.

Town House Homestead Tuesday

It is so nice to be able to retreat to blog posting and get away from so much media frenzy, hate, and lies. These girls live without television, but we are constantly bombarded with it on other devices of our choice. We are where we are and have what we have not because of any politicians, but because of hard work and determination, obeying the law, paying taxes, and sharing with all who come and help. No one has ever left without a meal to go, a full belly, or something to help them get ahead too. So, moving forward and speaking of hard work, yes we did more this past week. It's getting harder because we are tired and hurting a bit more, nursing injuries, and sleeping less but in the end it all pays off. 

Again with help from Emily, she and I finished more painting in the basement and have set the germination shelf in place. Next step will be the lighting and then we can start our seeds. What you can't see clearly in this picture is the closet organizer being installed beyond this shelf. It's still a work in progress. My daughter got it free with her Amazon points and it will be used for more storage. Extra parts will be moved around and used elsewhere. This part of the basement is moving out of it's dungeon stage slowly, but the end result will be pollinating flowers, herbs and some vegetable plants. The reward for hard work.

I needed to get a few items at the grocers and after that we took the time to do some indoor walking through a couple of thrift stores. It was too snowy and icy to walk outside. I found close to three dozen more canning jars to add to my "jar" bank account. There are four different sizes and it was orange tag day so quite a few were 50% off. None cost more than $.99.

I continued cooking and baking from scratch. Yesterday's bread was so good and I calculated the price per loaf at $.35 and a little kneading. I also know that I can pronounce all the ingredients. So, here's to all who are working hard to be successful. I hope that this blog is more than an encouragement to you. Thank you for stopping by and have a wonderful week.

Town House Homestead Tuesday

I have garden fever. Okay? There I admitted it. I know I am not alone and that's even better. This has led to more renovations and a big step forward almost a year earlier than we expected. 

The hive in the living room is now two medium supers taller and the paint or stain is next. We believe we have everything we need now to get the girls in April and start a strong colony. Here's hoping any way. 

Our friends Richard and Karen provided me with a ride to pick up a large shelf unit a week ago. The larger shelves were reduced in price and I needed to act so that we could get one step closer to having a good place to germinate my seeds. I put off a canning project to be able to purchase this shelf, but that's on the agenda for February now.

Emily came by this past Sunday to help put it together with me. We inherited a shop light in the rafters of the garage and she helped me get that down so that in the up coming week or two we can test it to see if it works. Shop lights will be hung from the shelves to provide the light I need for my seeds. I'm sure this is not new to many of you out there. Just having the space to do it is exciting for me.

This is the start of the fourth space/laundry room area in the basement. It wasn't even going to be thought about for a few months if not longer, but the universe is leading the way. I started painting the wall bright white to reflect the light for the germination shelves. There are electrical outlets already wired and a couple of months ago we found a water line run to this part of the basement for a future wash tub. We shopped through all of our electrical collection we had and found hanging lights to illuminate this dark corner so we could work. I have a ways to go, but it will be done soon enough to set the shelf against this painted wall and we've once again utilized more space. This has been an amazing nine month journey. First seeds will be for the pollination garden to be planted around the bees. Our goal is to give mother nature back some of her wild, and rid our corner of the planet of some useless grass. I have a small glimmer of hope that we can start with some vegetables too and start a community garden, but for now only time and income will tell. That's what's been happening here at the new Town House Homestead. Thank you for stopping by and have a wonderful week. 

Town House Homestead Tuesday

Oh what a wonderful feeling today. We have been in our new home for seven months exactly today. We'd like to say that we slowed down, but we are just beginning to unpack more boxes and the work will continue forever. 

We continued this past weekend with painting another section of the basement floor. Walls have divided it into rooms/areas that we are naming. This will be the pantry. The freezer will be placed along the back wall and shelves organized with our canning, cooking and baking supplies. It may even have a couple of chairs and a table along with a coffee pot and be a break room too.

By this weekend it should be cured enough to work in there more, but it sure looks clean and usable. 

This is the cart she painted with the microwave just set on it for now. It will be moved to the pantry when the floor is ready so she can do projects and have that cup of coffee. Still lots to do, but things are out of the garage before cold weather set in.

We have been finding the boxes with the vintage sheets and to my surprise my daughter has had a sheet in her stash that I had been stalking for months on eBay. It's the yellow one and she gave it to me to combine with my other vintage sheets and spreads. I purchased a used sheet and made two pillow cases from the better parts to go with them. I also matched some spray paint to change the colors of some wall decorations and we got those hung. We are moving along and it's beginning to feel like it's ours. I did can some butternut squash and some butternut squash soup, but pictures have not been taken. Everything is just being set in the laundry room until we can use the pantry. We did some cement repairs in the garage to seal holes and raise the floor in one corner so the door fell flat against the floor preventing critters any entry. With the holidays quickly approaching we need room to have company so getting the jobs done so we can unpack has been steady. That's what's happened this week at the new Town House Homestead. Thank you for stopping by and have a wonderful week. 

Town House Homestead Tuesday

Today is a very exciting day for me. The blog post I have been waiting so long to write is ready. Now to get it out of my head and on to this page. For the past few months I have been posting so many adventures, but the one we've worked hardest for is close to done and more than functional as of Sunday. This is how it began. 

It was a dark and dingy basement. This photo is after we pulled down a drop ceiling and dragged out bags of refuse like old wood, broken cement, and left behind trash from previous owners. The windows hadn't been opened until we opened them, and the breathing status of the basement was very poor. After pulling out a lot of the old fiberglass insulation, after the wasp situation, it was doing much better. As of last week the new furnace was installed, and a dear friend of my daughters spent an afternoon placing the washer and dryer in their proper locations and got it vented correctly.

So this is what all this progress has been for. Five months of hard work with the help of several friends and this is what it is now. This portion of the basement any way.

One up and coming work/sewing studio. Room for growth and more than one person to work, play, create, and imagine. It was a race against mother nature to get most of the boxes out of the garage and unpacked before cold weather, but they did it and as of Sunday my daughter has had a couple of hours to relax and sew. But, all our time was not just spent on the basement renovations. 

This was a side project. We found this vintage cart on Craigslist for $25 and took it apart, and spray painted it. Now that it's cleaned up it has been set in the basement to use for the extra microwave and coffee pot. She will need coffee to keep going while she works and the microwave will be used for projects she loves to do. 

I have been busy during the day time hours taking advantage of sales and enjoying cooking in my cast iron dutch oven. This is a BBQ pork shoulder that I made into pulled pork and there it is all canned for the pantry along with another slow cooker batch of apple butter. 

I also cooked a reasonably priced turkey and canned some meat, made some soup, and put more broth on the shelf in the pantry. We are ready for cold weather when it finally arrives. Can you taste the pot pies and casseroles yet? 

For me canning is never over. There is always something to put up. I went to the farm market for my butternut squash, so next week it will be canned squash, canned squash soup, and for the holiday a squash pie. I was able to stock up on a few jars for the next month or so to insure that I could keep going. With all the expenses fixing up the house it has been a blessing knowing the pantry shelves are filling up. Along with what we did before we moved I think we'll be able to survive the winter. That's what's happened the last couple of weeks here at our new Town House Homestead. Thank you for stopping by and have a wonderful week. 

Town House Homestead Tuesday

WOW! Another week behind us and we are so exhausted. When we moved here we chose not to have a television. We can do most of what we like with computers, but without the television we have found that we do more work. We feel like time is running out to get the things done around here that need to be done before winter. The house and property have come a long way in six months, but so much was not taken care of and here we are trying to do, what for almost two decades, wasn't done. Hopefully next week the furnace and hot water heater will be replaced. It's holding up some of the basement renovations, but my daughter has been building her studio. Still work and touch up painting to do. 

We've come this far while we wait for other work to be done. With help a few of the tables and chairs and boxes have been brought down, but they are waiting in another portion of the basement for a week or two. I think it's going to look awesome.

Vegetables keep coming our way. My younger daughter brought the eggplant, half a zucchini and all those hot peppers my way. The other pepper donation was left on our front step Sunday night with an empty canning jar. Thank you Emily for thinking of us and not letting them rot on the vine. I will be making chocolate zucchini muffins and dehydrating most of the peppers for hot pepper powder. I can store it vacuum sealed until I want to cook with it. 

I made eggplant Parmesan in the form of a pie for dinner with the eggplants which was more than enough for us to eat for a few meals. It is so yummy. 

I spent several days this past week taking out plants that needed to be housed over the winter and got them all tucked in. All the time I was doing it I was dreaming of the compost bin that will be built for sure next spring. I pulled all the container plants and turned the garden soil to loosen it and this morning, bright and early, I planted 36 cloves of garlic. Not a lot, but more than enough to start us off, and with hope some to plant next fall. I am still dreaming of the garden in the back yard, but for now, these are in a couple of corners of the front flower beds. Better there than no where. That's what's been happening at the new Town House Homestead this week. Thank you for stopping by and have a wonderful week. 

Town House Homestead Tuesday

Not a lot to post about today. It was a mad rush yesterday to get the Cana lilies out of the ground because the first frost came overnight. We were gifted six bulbs, but look what happened in the three months they were in the ground. There's a bushel of them. 

This morning we got up to a colder than usual home to find out the furnace won't come on. Help will be here some time today to fix that, but in the meantime we are grateful for the electric heaters as backup.

We had a movie night last night. We watched "The Great Gatsby" in surround sound using the wall for a screen. It was great and the company included the young people who have been helping us work on the house. Pizza was served.

The floor paint has set and we have juggled things in still another temporary situation so we can continue working. This is the situation in the food pantry as of today. Glad we put some color on the walls. 

Now we need to scrub the rest of the floor and continue painting. A lot of this past weeks work was outside. Mowing the lawns, cleaning brush, and repairing damaged foundation so insects (Wasps) and other wildlife won't be getting in. 

We had help this past weekend continuing the work of removing cloth wrapping from the copper pipes and properly insulating them. More out with the old and in with the new. Time well spent to do it and do it right. We also discovered a water line to the laundry room which some day may get hooked up to a basement sink. The potential is growing and the progress continues. That's what's going on at the new Town House Homestead. Thank you for stopping by and have a great week. 

Town House Homestead Tuesday.

We are taking our time and doing it as right as possible, but the waiting is killing us. We had a couple of days at the end of last week that we really did not feel well. Tired mostly, but Sunday with the help of a dear friend we pushed through. The floor was washed three times and vacuumed even more to get it as clean as possible. It was worth all the scrub. We got all of the walls touched up and started the trim and down went the first coat of floor paint. We let it dry and got the second coat on. This basement tear out and renovation is coming along great and barring no further delays in a couple of weeks we can move the studio in and re shelf the pantry.  Wish us luck. We are racing mother nature because as soon as the studio is moved out of the garage we need to fill holes to keep critters out of it.

While the second coat was drying we moved on to the third portion of the basement. We'll call it the furnace room and got the cement walls coated in white with the primer. The further wall will be blue and the wall on the left may need another coat.

A portion of the space that will be the food storage room got a start with the floor. We did just enough to be able to move shelves in and organize the pantry when the time comes that we can walk on the floor.  

As I said we are doing it to the best of our knowledge and ability. Thanks to friends, YouTube and research it is going to be nice. We have even found some one who can help with the 59 year old screen windows that need replacing.

Once the shelves are in place we will be adding the canning that we have been doing, yes, while we've waited for paint to dry and in between the regular work. Here we have pasta sauce and apple butter. 

My daughter wanted to make something from scratch doing all the work herself and the canning herself. So she spent time making the apple butter and I gave her the first basic lessons in water bath canning. It was a job well done. We put the apple peels and scraps in water with sugar to make vinegar. It's doing well and fermenting in the cupboard.

Today's adventure in the kitchen was a batch of root beer jelly. The root beer was from a recent trip through a drive through for a quick bite and it never gets consumed so today I made jelly. It tastes like root beer candy. It will be shared with friends and the excess added to the pantry.

That's what's new at the Town House Homestead this week. All the work is beginning to feel great and the results have been amazing. On October 15th we will have been in our new home for six months and it feels like it's been home forever. We still love her. Thank you for stopping by and have a great week. 

Town House Homestead Tuesday.

We are taking our time and doing it as right as possible, but the waiting is killing us. We had a couple of days at the end of last week that we really did not feel well. Tired mostly, but Sunday with the help of a dear friend we pushed through. The floor was washed three times and vacuumed even more to get it as clean as possible. It was worth all the scrub. We got all of the walls touched up and started the trim and down went the first coat of floor paint. We let it dry and got the second coat on. This basement tear out and renovation is coming along great and barring no further delays in a couple of weeks we can move the studio in and re shelf the pantry.  Wish us luck. We are racing mother nature because as soon as the studio is moved out of the garage we need to fill holes to keep critters out of it.

While the second coat was drying we moved on to the third portion of the basement. We'll call it the furnace room and got the cement walls coated in white with the primer. The further wall will be blue and the wall on the left may need another coat. 

A portion of the space that will be the food storage room got a start with the floor. We did just enough to be able to move shelves in and organize the pantry when the time comes that we can walk on the floor.  

As I said we are doing it to the best of our knowledge and ability. Thanks to friends, YouTube and research it is going to be nice. We have even found some one who can help with the 59 year old screen windows that need replacing.

Once the shelves are in place we will be adding the canning that we have been doing, yes, while we've waited for paint to dry and in between the regular work. Here we have pasta sauce and apple butter. 

My daughter wanted to make something from scratch doing all the work herself and the canning herself. So she spent time making the apple butter and I gave her the first basic lessons in water bath canning. It was a job well done. We put the apple peels and scraps in water with sugar to make vinegar. It's doing well and fermenting in the cupboard.

Today's adventure in the kitchen was a batch of root beer jelly. The root beer was from a recent trip through a drive through for a quick bite and it never gets consumed so today I made jelly. It tastes like root beer candy. It will be shared with friends and the excess added to the pantry.

That's what's new at the Town House Homestead this week. All the work is beginning to feel great and the results have been amazing. On October 15th we will have been in our new home for six months and it feels like it's been home forever. We still love her. Thank you for stopping by and have a great week.