Town House Homestead Tuesday

Well let's talk about activity and being busy. So much has gone on that I'm going to make it simple and mostly one liners if that's possible. 

Another find on this lovely half acre piece of the earth has been this peach tree. It's growing through the fence and has just a few peaches, but we'll see what happens. My daughter came across it when she was walking Hunter. 

I dehydrated sweet potatoes for Hunter so that he'd have some healthier chews. The teething and tooth loss has made him a little sick, so we've been trying to make things easier for him. Puppy kibbles are a bit hard so we've been adding some chicken broth to it.

I had a healthy harvest of garlic. As hoped I got 34 heads from the 36 cloves I planted. There are two braids hanging in the garage to dry well for the next few weeks.

Beekeeping has been a real trial. My daughter's first attempt at her own, and the hive split, which is normal. They swarmed to the dead apple tree about twenty feet from the hive box itself, and about eight feet off the ground. We watched it happen and immediately contacted another beekeeper and he came with his daughter to rescue it. 

This is Max doing his first swarm collection and what doesn't show in the pictures is that this is during a very heavy thunder storm.

Close to two hours later when the rain was letting up, Max and Brianna had the box filled and sealed up for transporting, and so far so good for them. Unfortunately one week later the rest of the hive swarmed to another tree 35 to 40 feet up and could not be rescued, but again I saw this swarm happen, and 24 hours later watched the swarm leave the tree and fly off into the sunset. 

This was the best picture I could get of the second swarm. We are sad, but the hive is still active and we will inspect to see if there is a third queen. You never know. 

The long neglected and dying apple tree was taken down. Emily and I needed to release some stress so in a couple of hours we had it down and mostly cleaned up. The future of the stump is still being decided.

One kids trash is a dogs treasure. Our friend Richard brought Hunter a kiddie pool. With a little duct tape repair it holds enough water for Hunter to play in. 

The gardens are growing. Weeds and all. The rose bush in the back I transplanted from a very shady corner of our lot and it is so happy. Blossoming on a daily basis. A bucket of mint and a bucket of lemon balm are almost ready for a good harvest, and there are Iris and spider wart in this corner. Much more growing and lots of planting to go this fall with bulbs. The front flower beds are growing nicely too and we'll have stronger plants to split next year to keep going. 

Everything has to look messy and old before it looks clean, new, and young again. The shed has been cleaned out so that a new floor can go down and new doors built. For now everything is in the pollination garden area that has not been planted, waiting for the new work to be done before it can go back in. 

We gathered all the landscape timbers that came with the property and stacked them in the back yard. These will become two raised beds. One for raspberries and one for blackberries. 

And here he is, the most curious puppy on earth, who stuck his face in front of the camera while I was trying to take a picture sitting down. Don't know what I was thinking. We're learning to work together. Hunter is five months old and completed three obedience classes. Some successes and a lot to work on, but he's still a baby as I am told, and he will get it. So that's how busy we continue to be as we build this half acre homestead. It is paying off in wonderful ways and we couldn't be happier. Lots more to do this summer and getting ready for winter, but even though time is passing quickly, we have accomplished a lot in 15 months. Thank you for stopping by for a visit and have a great week.

Town House Homestead Tuesday

Wow, it's been a while. So much to do while we have these warmer weeks. I'm trying to get outside work done, but it's been hard with my daughter unable to help because of back problems, plus an extremely active puppy, and just the ordinary day to day stuff.

Spray paint projects have been in full swing. My daughter commented that the colors and designs looked like the toppings for a cheeseburger (ketchup, mustard, and pickles). 

I made a little more progress on the pollination garden. This project is going to take most of the summer. I haven't figured out how to explain to a puppy that the plant markers I am putting next to my plants are NOT for him to take out and run away with, so I used a bucket to mark where I put some canna lilies. Yes, he managed to dig two of them out. Today it was my marigolds. Oh well.

My garlic is coming along nicely. I'm hoping next month to have a good harvest. For me that would be three dozen strong heads of garlic. Some to plant in the fall and most to use for fermenting in honey and a good amount for cooking.

I harvested a great amount of lavender yesterday. My daughter has had to sit, so she cleaned it up and made bundles for drying. Glad to help her so we didn't lose the first harvest. Looks like it's going to be a bountiful summer. I also harvested an over flowing cup of chives, and chive flowers for salads and vinegar.

This is a calendula blossom. The more you pick them the more they grow and they are starting to have many blooms. This one is so pretty. So nice to see those seedlings grow into pretty flowers.

The Bee Balm and St. Johns Wort are thriving nicely. They were just single stems when I put them in last summer. I had more than enough to split and add to the back yard garden. The pots contain shallots that I started from seed and I can't wait to harvest them later this summer.

The bees are doing well. Lots of orientation flights, so we know the colony is growing. We got a taste of their honey from a tool  being used for inspection and we are hoping to get a little in the fall. One day at a time.

We have been in our, new to us, home for fourteen months and what a difference a year makes. This is one after picture of what the front garden is today. 

This was one year ago this month and the work was well worth it. Just have to keep working in the back yard so that we'll see the same result next June.

In the next week or so all of these plants will be in bloom. My zinnia seedlings are in the ground now and I can't wait to see it all colorful in the next few weeks. This is another one year later picture.

I've done some more unpacking and sorting for a garage sale and along with the sorting I've been putting things in place on the breezeway. It needs a lot of construction fix up, but for now I have a place to chill while Hunter plays out back. I love the fact that we have a vintage home with vintage Pyrex collections. So nice that they can be out where I can see them and not shoved away in boxes or cupboards. 

Last, but not least there's Hunter. He's four months old now and I'll still confess, I am not a pet person. Here he is in his pen that he reconfigured to suit himself, but he didn't plan on a place to play. Needless to say he wasn't happy, but we couldn't stop laughing. Most of the time he is lose outside with us in the fenced in yard, or tethered in the gazebo out front, but he can find mischief wherever he goes. Maybe some day I'll share the nightmare story of his first obedience class, or maybe not. So, that's what's been keeping me busy at the new townhouse homestead. Thank you for stopping by and have a wonderful week. 

Town House Homestead Tuesday

Well let me update you about this little guy. Hunter is now three months old and quite a handful. It looks like he's imprisoned here, but he actually is quite comfortable with the crate and pen. Hunter has tripled in size and we'll have a weigh in at the vets on Friday. The bet is he's gained at least three pounds, but I think more. He has a wonderful appetite. Hunter is learning and trying and boy does he love to be outside. He will just sit in the pouring rain and watch what appears to us to be nothing, but I'm sure there's something. I am changing and growing with him and for the first month we had him, every day I wanted to find him a new home. Don't tell my daughter, but I think Hunter is staying.

I broke down this month and bought new tools. I drive, but I don't own a vehicle to get to garage sales and estate sales to find things used, so one trip to the home store and it was done and we have the additional things we needed. I looked at my purchases and wondered how we made it through the first year without them.

I got started on some planting in the pollination garden. The bees will be ready tomorrow evening and there's so much more to do. Yesterday, in the pouring rain, Emily and I were out digging in the mud trying to get things planted. This is because we don't want to disturb the bees while they are getting themselves oriented to the new surroundings. We can work to the sides and back  more easily than in the front of the hive. I can't wait for it to grow in so it doesn't look so shaggy. 

This is last night just after the torrential downpours. At least you can see the plants. Behind the bench is a row of St. Johns Wart and under the bench are variegated Hostas and Lilly of the valley. Also planted is lavender, bee balm, butterfly milkweed, and Calendula. 

This morning before the rain and while Hunter was in the crate, I went around the yard and thinned some Shasta daisies, black eyed Susan's, echinacia, and found a full pot of hyacinth bulbs that were just in odds and ends spots from last years tilling. A few new things appeared this year and we are just waiting to see what they are. I still have to move some iris, daffodil, and tulip bulbs. We are shopping our property first to save money. We can always change things as we grow.

This was the sunset after one of the wettest days we've had this spring. We were exhausted, but took a few minutes to enjoy it and the work we've been getting done. So, for this week that's what's been happening at the new Town House Homestead. Thank you for stopping by for a visit and have a wonderful week. 

Town House Homestead Tuesday

Well, I just don't know where to begin. This past week here has been a giant step forward. I'm almost sure I'll forget to mention something that got done. It's been very dry here with little rain and the temperatures have been in the nineties. We haven't had to mow the lawn since Memorial day weekend. This left plenty of time  to do other things. This past Saturday was an extraordinary day. It was a ten hour long work day. It started at 9:30 a.m., but we had been up much earlier than that. Family came with a full Jeep of work equipment and plants along with things for the house and before we knew it construction began. Or should I say deconstruction.

My daughter's God parents came in full force to put a new roof on the Gazebo. It had Cedar shingles and was covered in moss and infested with ants so it really needed to go. He installed an architectural, twenty year asphalt shingle in a pewter gray. My daughter's choice, but met with his approval. 

He had buckets of mixed nails and the sorting began. Of course we did it wrong and had to start all over, but it all worked out in the end.

This is me using the hammer while they went to purchase the shingles, removing an old gate that was on the gazebo. 

At the same time that the gazebo was getting an update this lovely husband and wife team were tilling the front gardens. She is a former co-worker of my daughters and they now have a landscaping business. Can you feel the heat?

Before any one arrived and the night before, my daughter and I removed the cardboard, lumber and stones we had put down to kill the overgrowth.

This is what they had to begin with and they did an awesome job.

These are just some of the plants that people have given to us along with my container tomatoes and peppers that seem to be quite happy. I even have flowers on the tomatoes. 

This is how it looks right now after two and a half hours of raking and fine cleaning it and putting in plants. We are not done yet, but it's on it's way. 

We have lots of friendly critters here as well. The ground hogs not so much, but these guys can stay.

Here is the gazebo with the new roof and yes, it is a peaceful setting. Eventually she will power wash it and stain it a dark gray, but for now at least we will be dry if we want to sit out.

On a final note, we all had to eat so I got my camping table out with my little grill and we officially had our first cookout. That made it feel like home and with all the help and love we are receiving it can be nothing but home. Thank you so much everyone for everything. If I forgot anything I apologize and will recognize it in a later blog. Thank you for stopping by and have a wonderful week. 

Town House Homestead Tuesday

So by now everyone knows that my daughter bought her first home which is a 1958 ranch, but as she calls it, her "Mid Century Modern" treasure. It was a foreclosure that a real estate investment company flipped and did what we call the "got by with just enough" work to sell it kind of job. Not bad and it's a solid home and she can go from here and make it hers. Before the former owner passed away he purchased the kitchen cabinets and they didn't really spend a fortune flipping it. Basically they purchased the counter tops and tile, did some work on the bathroom and finished the hardwood floors. The ground work for her to build on. We were also looking for the right piece of land to work with and she considers this perfect.This past weekend we spent more time unpacking.

We unpacked about ten boxes all filled with vintage Pyrex. They were packed well as you can see and nothing broke in the move.

We welcomed Michael Blaine to our home this weekend. He's a former student worker of my daughter's and is finishing up working for his big move to New York City in August. He volunteered to help unpack and settle the Pyrex into it's new home. Thank you so much Michael. It was a pleasure meeting you and making pizza for you. The wall behind the green table will be painted yellow as an accent wall and she would like to find a vintage table, but for now the green one works.

She collects shelves also. Here is what her mid century modern collection looks like in the new kitchen. The old with the new is working even better than I thought it would. She chose to put her Aqua collection on one side of the kitchen and the "Verde" collection on the other.

On the counter and in the lower cupboards are the odds and end pieces that I use on a daily basis to bake and cook with. For the first time in two months since we've been here it actually feels like home. Maybe that's what happens once the kitchen is settled and you can do what you need to do and find what you need to find. 

It wouldn't be her kitchen without a chalkboard. She found a black frame that someone at the college was throwing away and brought it home. She taped off the area  for the chalkboard paint and four coats later it was done. She mounted the frame and there you have it, perfect for over my recipe book shelf. 

We're continuing to reclaim the yard. This is the west side of the garage which is a hill. It's annoying to get the push mower up there and mow it so we had another co-worker of my daughter offer all the day lilies she wanted and we've begun to replant them. They will not only take over and be pretty, but our neighbors will have something besides grass to look at.

These birds hung off the deck at the townhouse. I spray painted the holder, which is an indoor wall hanger for candles, washed up the birds and hung it on the side of the garage above the lilies. A small amount of Gorilla glue holds the birds on. When the heat dies back we'll go out and finish putting the rest of the lilies in the ground. That's the very latest from the new town house homestead and thank you for stopping by. Have a wonderful week.