Fast Year

As a child growing up, my dad used to say the older you get the faster time goes!! He certainly was right! I remember growing up and the school year seems so long. I always look forward to Christmas break felt like a long break. Usually my time was spent making snowman and going sledding with friends and playing with whatever we got for Christmas.  Now as an adult, it is spent cleaning up the aftermath of Christmas preparing for the new year and there are never enough days to get it all done.!!!

We ended up getting close to 11 inches of snow some blowing drifts so this morning as I am creating this content, my husband and I we spent a couple of hours out shoveling off the cement slab of the new home trying to prepare ahead of time for the builders and contractors we have lost close to 11 days of work due to weather ! But I know the end prize will be worth the wait!

My husband took the above photo when he was out pushing snow. That was Christmas Eve morning at 8:20 AM. You know it’s cold when you see the full circle!! But yet so beautiful to look at!

A  sample graph and design that I came up with for my kitchen in the future!

Hope everyone is staying healthy and hope that everyone is staying warm. I want to wish everyone a happy new year I do not know if I will be posting prior to the new year !

Blessed & Grateful

There are so many hidden blessings in life . Things we take for granted, daily simple things we do not even think of!  For instance, since all the storm damage and our living situation I will never take for granted indoor plumbing !  But, I am grateful for water I can carry to the stove to heat for dishes  or for humidity in the air, warm water to soak my cold hands in or warm water to wash my face … yes the little things we take for granted.   

Have you met Oreo and Beauty yet? Our inside outside babies.  They are border collie Aussie kelpie blue heeler cross and just turned two!   They both argue such good girls and yes they are sisters !  We love having them and their favorite game of course but a ball!

Now it is December and the hustle and bustle have started for so many and in a way sad to see! I love Christmas and I love to give  but I also believe in making the memories.  Take the time to sew or create an art memory with a someone.   Or perhaps a baking memory day and share a recipe!

This year for clients I am sharing a recipe that was given to me a few years ago by a dear friend ! I will share it here and hope all enjoy!!

She shed/Craft Shack

 

Getting the tools and gearing up for this winters project!

More so my husbands winter project but I will assist where I can I am just not good with building materials.....a skill I do wish I had though!

The storm back in May left the garage untouched so We plan to create the

first stall into my craft room/She shed  I have always  wanted one...As in his words....{Are you sure one stall is enough} LOL

We did get the old back door closed in and  we placed the entry door and new boards on outer walls are set

This upper photo is the back door which is now closed in.

Just a view from the front to give a  visual on the size. Once we  get stuff moving 

the rest will be cleared out and the freezer will be  gone!

I am wondering which I can utilize better.....open shelves with  baskets ect

or if I should do cabinets and hide the  clutter.

Any suggestions!?

2022 Fall Harvest just wrapped up for us!! My husband is pleased that he had no mud on the tires at all this year!! Yields were ok in some area and  short in others, we lacked rain this summer in August and  Sept. But we did not hail out so we are  trying to stay positive!

The Deck has been removed from the front of the house.....soon it will be totally demolished and a new build in the making. I wanted a last look of what has been home to us  since 1997.This farm sight  is  a  3 generation family farm place so it holds  a lot of  history for my husbands family and many memories for all of us

                                    

Late night suppers......the camper below will be home for  a little while until we can get my husbands shop organized and set up to settle in for the winter.

Oreo is one of  our border collie/Heeler crossed pups. Beauty is her sister, they are such good girls and hang out  close with both my husband and I

Since the storm in May,  I have  done Bonfires nightly  with debris  I clean up and sticks and Misc garbage I find/ at least the  evening have  been decent to sit  by a  fire!

Through all the chaos, I did manage to create some texture art...Having Ukraine on my brain as many have I wanted to create and came up with a field of wheat and a field of sunflowers. A Very soothing process for me! 

I will  now  be better with updates as  harvest  is  completed, and the dust will settle :)

Until next time my friends, be safe and stay healthy and keep on creating!!

 

Fall Progress

 Fall is  here you guys!!! Cooler temps, humidity for now  is gone! Light blanket by a fire feels good with a warm drink!!

I love fall, the crispness in the air,  the bold colors! The harvest.

Normally I would be harvesting and canning and gardening like mad in my gardens,  but due to all the storm damage this year, things took a shift...and that  is ok.   If this has taught me anything at all, it  is indeed that  it is  OK to not  do the normal, NOTHING in 2022 has been normal!

Just last week we got the numbers in for *Fixing our damaged home*  Now we are waiting on the numbers  to build new and see which will possibly be the best route to go....Out with the old and in with the new  or will  it be Fix and savor what we have.....Hopefully by end of the month we have a direction to go..

Either way we do it...stuff has been packed up...moved out.. storage.. our downsizing has been a challenge  yet  relief  all in one.....A good stage in life to clean house and  I will no doubt  do it again before I unpack it all in its new place!

No doubt I will bring you along on the journey..

Until next time, please enjoy the fall and the beauty it brings us!!

Rainy Days Stormy Nights

 Happy Friday all!!

I promised to stay active here so here I am with really no news, I guess no news is good news in some cases, however in ours at this time  such is not the case

We are still waiting to hear from insurance adjuster, This dates back to the May 12,2022 storm damage, followed up by 3 additional storms over Memorial day weekend/  Last week we had some 60 mph winds, took down a tree in back yard...the only damage with that was just the gardens and limbs, thankfully no structural damage to the house!

Sadly though, with each rain we have more and more damage to the interior due to the leaks, Contractors have been out four times to tarp the roof, but the winds seem to have other ideas, It will not be long until we will be living in our camper full time, the mold in the house is just unbearable! As I type this, my husband is on his way to Mora MN  to look at some trailers to store our furniture in. I just about have the basement all packed up, most of that is my canned goods, from previous two seasons.

Other than this update there really is not too much happening, But I do want to wish all a fantastic safe fun weekend!!

Until next time~~~~

Storms Never Last or Do They!?

May 12 storm

Damage took its toll on so many places !

A cattle shed is what hit the roof of our home left a few holes. Busted out the tresses in the attic  so the roof sits on the outer walls which since the storm have now bowed out close to 2 inches.  

Memorial Day weekend we were hit again:

This time dumping a tree on my office and taking out the doors on another shed  as well as tipping over  and damaging 2 irrigation systems 

With each rain comes more damage As we try and be patient for the insurance adjusters to arrive

Will share interior photos in a different post. 

Spring is Peeking at us!

 Good morning !! It is so wonderful to wake up and see the sun shine!!

We have had so much rain. A storm that passed through a couple weeks ago did  it’s toll on our farm plus many others in the region! I complain and grumble daily at the added work this has imposed for all of us. Sadly it doesn’t seem to help! One day at a time right!?

Farmers are struggling to get their crops in my husband said this will be the first year in his 50 year career of farming he can’t get the crops all in 

Some of my flowers are peeking through and my garlic is about to flower!!! Brings a smile to my face!

Now I have to try and figure out how to do photos here from my phone to share  some of the beauty!! 

I hope you all have a beautiful day!

 Oh my goodness, where has time gone!!?  Life happens, it bring dreams and struggles and happy times and sad  times and   things slow down then speed up and some things  get forgotten by brain fog and some pushed aside for a better day!

I am sitting this morning in a virtual masterclass on blog writing and  on self book publishing....and  I am taking notes and thought to myself  "I used to have a blog" I used to read so many blogs! Made great amazing friendships, and just enjoyed every minute of it happening!! At the same time thinking to myself there  is no way that blog  even exists any more and cant recall where it was....

Well did a google search and here I am...I am just totally amazed! the blog is  still here and I see my followers and I plan to spend the rest of the day clicking on each one to see what people have been up to!!

As for myself, Since 2014 when I last published,...Gosh a lot has  happened, Both daughters have completed college and moved on with their careers, I have 3 beautiful grandbabies, 2 boys and  a girl...and two older step grandchildren, both in college!  All doing well!

Our oldest daughter  and family live within 2 miles of our  home  creating their own little homestead! Such a wonderful journey for them as us!

Youngest daughter  and her little girl reside 25 miles from us and they are doing well, the little sassafrass reminds me  a lot of her mama when she was  little!

For myself: we still farm, I still garden and doing home preserving, sewing some, I still work from home doing Reiki, and also opened a small children's boutique, which my oldest daughter  takes care!

I hope I can regain this blog,....I hope I can create more friendships and rekindle the old!

In the mean time, Minnesota  is wet and cold, I still have not been able to get any garden in.....But  soon....yes soon!