Two Years On Our Little Homestead - Then And Now. (LOTS of photos!)

Two years ago today we moved to our little homestead.

I thought I'd do a little round-up of how things have changed, and continue to change.

(I am so sorry that I lost my initial photos that showed how we did so much work to the inside of the house but hopefully you will get the idea of how things have developed.)

We'll start with the back garden. This big wood store dominated the garden but gradually it was taken down...

and in the top right of the picture here you can see the previous owners' dog kennel and cage.

Behind Jon you can see one of the many huge bamboo bushes we had to deal with so....

we finally ended up with a better looking space to work with and here we are today from these angles.

Now my pride and joy, the veg plots and my Poly House; thanks to a lot of hard work from Jon and help from the boys they have eventually turned into this.

Finally, you'll be glad to hear, is the chicken enclosure.

Right, this is getting a bit self-indulgent as I have spent lots of time looking at how things have changed and our achievements in the last year or so. I could have included so many more photos but that would have been ridiculous!

Hope you enjoyed some of these photos. It does make you realise how far you have come when you see the differences between now and then.

                                                                      ******
In less happy news one of our elderly neighbours died at the weekend. Pat, in her 80's, was one ot the first people to come to our front door and also to say hello to Jon whilst he was swinging his legs from the scaffolding pointing the gable end. She came brandishing a list of things that would be happening at the community centre across the road from us hoping we would join in. And I did. Also Pat would drop by and have a brew with me and I would stop by to check she was ok. I will miss her very much and was very pleased that her family came to tell me of her passing.

Pounds, Sinks and Fence!

On Tuesday evening we were in Aber and on the spur of the moment I decided to join Fat Club

I have always been a Weight Watchers girl since I first attended to lose a few pounds before Jon and I were married, then after having and losing babies. However, I enjoyed the meeting and really did need some structure to shifting the weight - a bit more than I thought after my initial weigh in to be honest but never mind. I have joined I guess what you would call a virtual fitness challenge by pledging to walk the equivalent of the London Marathon. I has already figured out a two mile walk so I am using that three times a week, two done already and with the weather being bright and cold it is a lovely time to be out. So watch this space for some, hopefully, positive updates.

So out on my walk out on Wednesday (second of the two so far) I saw the first daffs near to home that are in flower along with some snowdrops. (No photos as I try to have my walks free of everything apart from what is around me.)  Love it! Spring is surely on the way and I have so many daffs in the garden, more than I thought I had which I think have been churned up with recent work which is great.

Jon has finished the fence building in the back so my task was to do the creosote painting. Had great weather for it this last week so got my radio, a seat and set to it. I ran out of the stuff with just a few panels to go so purchased another container when out shopping on Friday so this coming week I am on it, hopefully.

Yesterday the boys began helping Jon clear the woodpile before it was being moved.

This is how the spot looks now...

and here is its new spot where the four of us moved it to this morning.

This will make it so much easier to fill up the house piles/baskets via the conservatory and we plan to build another kindling store and alongside that a coal bunker;  this be abe to be filled from the roadside. A really useful project that will be ready and in use next Winter.

This morning I have also got ready the Belfast sink for my spring onions and lettuces. I'm so chuffed with this and just hope they grow as planned.

First of all I put a layer of stones for drainage on the bottom; there is of course a plug hole, quite a big one, but as the sink is level this does not help too much and it is in the corner.

Then I put in some bought compost, some of my own and some blood and bone meal along with the compost from our not very successful mushroom growing kits.

Final result is a really useful sink full of earth ready to grow in. I plan on creosoting the base so, hopefully, snails and slugs find it tricky to climb up if they fancy a nibble on the lettuces!

Also today Jon has made me a new gate so we can keep the chickens out of the growing area; a little rustic affair! You can see where the sink is from here, too, and where the water butt has been moved to the other end of the room to let. 

We are chuffed to bits how things are coming along outside and all of our achievements! I can't begin to go into all the talk we have had today about the plans we have for the future; we are fit to burst about how we know it will all work out for us but I am sure I will share it at some point!

Right must dash as I can hear the drier beeping and me and Alfie are heading out for his piano lesson at 6pm. I normally wait in the car but it is soooo cold tonight that I think I will sit in this time!

Bye for now.

Lou.xx

2016 Photo by Photo.

Happy New Year to everybody.

I just tried to choose a photo from each month of the year and got as far as February. No, can't do it so I chose these just to show some achievements I was very proud of and things we enjoyed as a family.

Having the wonderful Poly House Jon built up and running was amazing.

Jon shot a rabbit in the garden and it was a family effort to skin, gut and cook it. Delish.

Our boys received the most improved Welsh award at the end of the school year and we were soooo proud!

I picked lots of blackberries and made everything from crumbles to pies to pastries with them. On my list this year is blackberry vodka in time for next Christmas!

I loved that I could make soup out of our own courgettes, beans and tomatoes!

We have created a fantastic parking area out of part of the garden we just were not using.

and enjoyed our second Christmas in the home of our dreams

It is great to look back on the year, and we have achieved so much but I there is sooo much to look forward to in 2017.

We have plans to get the second room to let finished as soon as we can, but of course keep promoting the one we have outside of Airbnb to increase our earning potential. I have set up a Twitter account, not keen on it but I am trying to link in with lots of events in the local area where people may need a bed for the night! 

I am full of plans to get our harvest increased on every level. I am not growing anything exotic but just the things we will eat and things I can hopefully preserve, too, so as to build up our store a bit more. I have already on order my sweet potatoes and regular spuds and have lots of seeds ready to make use of. I have more space this coming year because of the tyres and the bed I am not using for sweet corn again this year so really hope to give it a proper go this year. I have the veg patch and everything set out for what will go where.

I intend to sell some of our eggs and use the proceeds as a fun to feed the girls and buy straw etc. Should be able to start doing this as soon as we get a bit more light in the day.

Right, enough talk and rambling. Let's get on with this new year and look to it being wonderful in every way you wish and hope for.

Bye for now.

Lou.xx