Happy Holidays!

John and I are off on another trip.  We are headed to Florida for a couple of weeks to visit Tim and my parents.

Before we left though, my Christmas cactuses put on a show. The rest of the year they just look kind of creepy, but when the bloom, the flowers are gorgeous?

Just look at the color!

The Hutch has Arrived in Port Orchard, Washington

We have been storing John's parents hutch for Karol and Andy. For quite some time it was in our den. After some research, I found a shipping company that offered white glove service. 

The shipping company picked it up, packed it for shipping cross country and set it on it's way to the great state of Washington. We had no idea when it would arrive.

  

Friday, October 16th, John and I hopped on a plane and headed west. Look what we found when we got out here! 

It looks great with Karol's bold wall color.

Karol had it set up with china and crystal and it looks so pretty.

We were so glad to see it get here safely, and it will be well loved.

Somebody wants to go too!

Roxie does not want to be left behind. She watched me pack her food, toys, and treats and decided to hop in with them.

She has been getting some training, and passed her trainers requirements - so all her travel forms a filled out and ready to go.

Today she got a bath so she's nice and fresh and comfy.

.... And away we go! 

The New Bathroom Floor Is Installed!

We have made progress upstairs! A beautiful new floor has been installed, the exact one I wanted.

They did a great job.

My white rugs look great.

So pleased with this.

I actually was thinking ahead and had him measure the master bedroom when he first came out. That way when I'm ready to undertake that, they have the measurements and I can just go pick out carpet. I'm seriously considering replacing it. 

CHECK OUT OUR HOBBY LOFT!

I've been wanting to set up the loft in my house like this for a long time. A place where I can leave my sewing machine and Cricut machines set up all the time. Where John can work on trains and use his 3D printer. I love how this turned out for so many reasons.

The sewing countertop is a hardware store shelf like you would put in a closet. I used it to span two Ikea bookshelves. Shazzam! Now I have work area and craft storage!

My desk is the place where the decal cutting happens. I have an Exlore Air 2 and a Joy. The Joy goes with me in the motorhome.

On the other wall is another Ikea bookshelf. More craft storage! Plus a nifty little cat cubby. Cali loves her cubby. She sleeps in it always! My goal is to eventually contain my crafts to this room. We shall see....

The room also now has plenty of light. We spend a bit more time up there now. John is currently up there working on garden whirligigs.

I've made two quilts.

This one:

And this one (all flannel):

So, now I'm thinking, what's next? 😁

Surprise! Guinea Hen Chicks!

John came across a little surprise the other day, or actually five little surprises. He spotted a mama Guinea Hen with five little chicks. 

I fear for them because of the cats, but I went out looking for them today and found them. They spend all their time weaving between the adults' legs.

 I was able to get some video of them walking around - so cute.

We now have three distinct hen herds. We have the original seven or so, another twelve that we hatched, and this herd of Mama, Daddy(?) and five chicks. Fleas and ticks don't stand a chance around here!

Drainage Improvements

Something we've been working with for some time... Drainage issues... Bleh....

So about two months ago we had a contractor come in and look at the property and give us some advice. The plan was to divide the water coming down from the upper property so that it doesn't just sit at the house. Now some of the water goes down the other side of the driveway to a culvert. The culvert goes past our little parking lot and down to the drainage ditch at the street.

The rest of it flows under the deck and out past the retaining wall. One thing I have noticed during the bigger storms we've had.... there is definitely less erosion going on.  Maybe a combination of the drainage work and all seed and fertilizer we spread? It seems like getting grass going up there to hold the land in place was a good idea. Also, during a rain storm, I do see less red mud coming down the hill. The water flowing to the driveway is mostly clear, and that is good news.

We added this little cascade of rocks just where the erosion was the worst. During a bad storm we never see water anymore. we know it just flows past the deck and down to the lower yard.  The final bit was rock around the lower deck, and a rock drainage area for the water coming down the downspout from the gutter.

This video shows the progression of water coming from the upper lot, at the moment it collects enough to start flowing like a little stream.

Here's a closeup of the rock waterfall. I really like the way it turned out. I'm collecting rocks still to add to it. Plenty of rocks on the farm!