New Life Old Farmers

We were set to have the dumpster hauled away first thing Monday morning, so we could begin filling it again. Unfortunately, Waste Management was short handed and we were days away from a fresh dumpster. Simple set back or a bigger plan?

Tuesday early afternoon I received an email from a Seattle based blog reader. I’d never heard from her before, or knew about her, but there was an immediate connection. She and her husband have been restoring an old home in our neighboring town. Old siding is hard to find and in a nutshell, if we haven’t emptied the dumpster could they come out and dig through it?

Arrangements were quickly put together. Her Spouse called My Loving Spouse and they were on their way over.

‘We’ll be stopping in Issaquah, do you want something from Trader Joe’s’, my new Dumpster Friend asked. I laughed as this is always THE Question when some one is coming through Issaquah to us.

I said to My Loving Spouse, “When you talked to THE Husband, did it seem like they’ve been our friends for a long time?”

‘Yes, exactly!’

To say we ‘hit it off’, would be an understatement. We delightfully shared all the wood we could find, that was useful to them. They dug around, thrilled to be able to out fit their home that needed wood both inside and out, re-arranging and making more room in our dumpster as they went. This was a win-win for us all. We were delighted that these old bits would be used again…

Sharing, making and meeting new friends, who will be back for more wood… and we suspect a bit of fun as well.

Oh, indeed we are blessed.

For years we tried to use the back bit of the house. It had no foundation and was falling off. It was 3 old pieces of house or porch or cold storage plan with 12 inch walls filled with saw dust. The ceilings were filled with sawdust as well, and it was always dirty…what a surprise.

This weekend it came down. Bit by bit, wall by wall.

We did it ourselves with a few new tools. A crow bar for him, a respirator for me, as I am allergic to sawdust.

Sawdust was everywhere, every time we opened a new wall or board or ceiling….it was in our hair, our ears, our eyes and blowing across the valley, with thanks to our winds.

I was sad as I pulled out cut/square nails, all very old indeed. I was not sad when I pulled on a rotten wall, that came apart easily….sawdust flowing out of boards which were beyond use.

We gazed at where the new kitchen sink will be.

There was no shortage of nails.

With each wall we took out, we thought…is this it? Will this be the one where the roof finally falls, (away from the house…we hope). We were cautious and careful. We broke some rope, and we broke some chain. We smashed a knuckle or two, but for the most part…we came through the ordeal unscathed.

Our first roll off box for debris is full…we’re waiting for the second.

Thrilled to have the wind blow as much of the sawdust across the valley as possible. We still have a tad of clean up to do.

….and what did we find in our 100 year old walls besides sawdust?

a skirt…

A flannel shirt….

An old pepper can…

A few burlap bags, an handful of old overalls and rags… a bird’s nest.

A wasp’s nest…

It is fascinating how they are built….

We find how the old house was put together…. an older roof hidden under our metal roof, as we see how one bit was added on to another. We’re a teeny bit tired, a teeny bit overwhelmed, a great bit excited.

Lucky and blessed indeed.

The kitchen table was loaded with bacon, biscuits, jam and fresh scrambled eggs. Sweet J, Number Four Son and I were set to dig into it all, as My Loving Spouse sat down. I said to him, “Sweetie, today you are the boss. You’re in charge, just tell me what you want us to do. I’m not going to argue with you.” The ‘kids’ quietly snickered and My Loving Spouse sort of scoffed, but I was serious. The job was sprinklers. All I know about sprinklers is that I just want them to work…..that and do not use that big digger thing over the septic drain field.

The Bride (Sweet J) and the Groom (Number Four) had calendared the day to help us work on the farm. With their help, sprinkler installation was sure to be a cinch. Except the weather stunk, as in cold and drizzling.

The whole sprinkler installation, information, drip, new pipe, diggers and the like, had My Loving Spouse and I doing what we seldom do….got a bid for someone else to do it. The bid was for $5800. This renewed our belief, that we could get it done.

The Bride and I tackled removing the dog yard fence as it was attached to the part of the house that is soon to come down. We were masterful un-screwers and had the panels down in no time.

We had Gunner’s new temporary yard built and were quite pleased with ourselves.

Number Four had the sprinkler lines dug in quickly and the septic system was left intact, this is what we call a win-win.

The guys have discovered that the back flow device must be replaced, Bad British word. The rain is still drizzling and the temperature too low to glue pipe.

The ‘Boss’ now gets to the job he’s been trying to do for weeks. This job is called unscrew the metal roof. We had originally planned to reuse the roof, then we’d planned to sell the roof, then we’d planned to ditch the roof, and now we’re planning to see how hard it will be to just get the darn roof off.

On a few other work days, the ‘Boss’ and I had a difference of opinion on our work priorities. He was ready to unscrew the roof, while I was thinking that we should actually empty out the stuff from the room, where the roof was attached. I know, silly me.

Number Four Son gets the trim off and determines that the roof is not salvageable due to the way it is installed. This means only one thing….how much roof can we lift off with the tractor…just for fun.

We call it a day and send our sweet cold workers home. Sunday morning there is a small window of good weather, which is why we were not in our regular pew at church, but out in the yard gluing pipe.

We do work well together and manage to get 2 of the 3 stations glued together with hardly any Bad British words.

After a very stressful week of planning the sprinkler system, driving around the county trying to get parts, help and information, the Boss is quite pleased at all we’ve accomplished and currently taking a well deserved nap on the couch.

….and we are blessed.

Cows are tough on fences. Barbed wire is tough on us. Cows are strong. They stick their heads in between the wires (trust me their hide is tough) and reach to nibble any available blade of grass, bending fence posts and snapping fence clips. Keeping fences upright is a challenge. In an effort to reduce the maintenance on fences, we’ve moved to ‘field fencing’.

Big barb-less grid fencing that is heavy and expensive. However, since cows cannot stick their heads through the grid, the posts do not get bent over and we’re hopping to have better fencing with less maintenance…..once it is up.

We start with a small stretch on a cold spring morning. My Loving Spouse needs to work down low and says something like. “I can’t work with these bloody gloves on!” So off they come.

He’s not too keen about having to lie down on the cold damp ground, so I do not mention that he is also rolling in….

Cow poop. Well, we are putting up field fencing in a field for cows….so watch where you step or lie down.

We have a fairly straight run of fence posts, that we actually got in back in October. I kept laughing to myself, as we had friends visiting at the time, one who is 6 years younger than I and he kept saying, “This is a young man’s job”. Well, that may be true, perhaps we’re in our second childhood….then again…perhaps we’re just stubborn.

Either way…nice field fence.

Spring is always a treat! Delightful to work outside with grass so very green.

Our clouds return and everyone is pecking away…..

We rush off to Yakima to figure out a new sprinkler system. We’re sort of burning the candle at both ends, hopeful to get a new sprinkler system in soon, very soon, as in next weekend, as we will have both THE Bride (Sweet J) and THE Groom (Number 4 Son) here to work for the day BTW.

We are trying to stay calm and get as much done as we can, because any day now, in fact…..it came!

In case you cannot read the small print….all we have to do is pay more $$$ and we’ve got our permit. Goodbye shack in the back...hello remodel!

We are grateful and blessed…and a teeny tiny bit anxious.

The chain saws were roaring again. We had a small, yet perfect window of time to bring down 3 large spruce trees.

We assumed that the trees were originally the previous owners ‘live’ Christmas trees planted after the holidays were over. A lovely thought, however as they grew, they crowded each other out and shaded an already cold house.

The first tree comes down by our very own pair of Young Bucks. E who is a chain saw loving, smoker jumper and Number 4, who is a work horse. The ‘bucks’ were both able to bring down the three trees on a pre-spring day of mild temperatures and nothing yet blooming through the snow.

The first tree shows that it was rotten at the core. We’re doubly grateful that it is down. Our ‘bucks’ get all trees down safely….the trunks blocked, the thick limbs cut and stacked and the long limbs piled up into 4 piles that covered the front lawn, all in one long productive day.

My spring break from school now begins. I spend the next 3 days dragging limbs across the lawn, toss them over the fence to my small slash burn pile. No wind, mild temperatures and the scent of burning spruce. I get a bit of help and encouragement from Hal.

I get a bit of the rotten trunk root burning and before you know it, I have the stump burning from the inside out.

I encourage the stump to continue to burn as it needs to come down as well. I haul and burn and haul and burn and occasionally get a bit singed.

The stump is well burned out….

We’ve a bit of trunk removal still to do, but I cannot wait to begin growing a gorgeous flower garden this year, BTW….!!! The trees we’ve left will now have a better chance to grow.

The snow is gone. The tree mess is cleaned up and spring bulbs are peaking through.

I am grateful and blessed.

Hoarfrost | meteorology | Britannica.com

https://www.britannica.com/science/hoarfrost

“Hoarfrost, deposit of ice crystals on objects exposed to the free air, such as grass blades, tree branches, or leaves. It is formed by direct condensation of water vapour to ice at temperatures below freezing and occurs when air is brought to its frost point by cooling.”

In other words, it has to be (Bad Word) COLD!

Or as I like to say…the beauty of hoarfrost is God’s way of apologizing for making your nose hairs freeze.

It also makes us especially glad, that one week later and the snow is melting and the sun is shinning!

We are grateful for Spring!

Many years ago, I said that my favorite sound was my kids laughing together. You know what, it still is.

Apparently, the idea began with my daughter-in-law, Number One Wife, and was carried out by My Loving Spouse, Number One Wife and all my Kids….

They came…as a surprise….for me. My Loving Spouse had bought the ingredients for my favorite dinner and hidden them in his truck, which is currently colder than our refrigerator. He’d plowed the driveway (twice) and dealt with me wondering/whining, if we were in fact going to celebrate this big (BIG) birthday in any way. The Number Ones, complete with THE Grandchildren drove over from Spokane, Number Two Son got the night off and My Girl and Her Guy came from Yakima. My heart was full.

The weather was cold. Nasty cold….about 9 degrees. We appreciated that the new stove worked really, really well…and that the weather where they lived was awful too….and we had fun. Having fun with those you love is as good as it gets.

Our neighbor shared his big field and his old snow mobile with us. Number One gave THE Grandchildren a ride around the field.

Then it was my turn and let me tell you, I rocked it! No, seriously, I rocked it…the wrong way I guess.

Luckily the snow was very, very soft.

Number One Son and I were then deposited to Gard Winery, the tasting room Number Two Son helps manage. Number Two had offered me a present of a ‘Sip ‘n Paint’ earlier in the week, when the whole surprise was still a surprise and I was feeling a teeny, tad forgotten. Going to a ‘Sip ‘n Paint’ with Number One was due to be a real treat, as I rarely have time with him alone and he doesn’t take being creative too seriously….and there would be ‘sipping’.

I love being with my boys. When they are together, they’re like two magnets…coming together to giggle and speak a language of their very own.

We painted and visited and….sipped. What a wonderful afternoon! Number One Son manages to turn his painting of poppies into a political satire.

As Uncle R/Number Two Son showed up for breakfast Sunday morning, the temperature was still far, far below freezing…so we commenced playing indoors. Hide ‘n Seek…a family favorite….for ages 2 to 60. Laughter is good for the soul….

….my soul is overflowed.

I am old….or so they (Team Offspring) say….and very, very blessed.

I continue to be amazed….at much. Snowing all day just days before my birthday…amazing. Turning 60…super amazing…I think I’m suppose to feel older.

Late afternoon chores, including climbing into the cow’s hay stack to pull down heavy hay bales…amazing. What would have been more amazing would be my managing to get my iphone flashlight to work so I could actually see what I was doing under that heavy tarp.

Appreciative bovine….Agnes & Hal.

We were worried how the ducks would ‘winter’. They’ve done just fine and Aflac continues to lay large eggs daily. The only problem is that the ducks play in the heated water meant for drinking and the whole chicken coop is a wet mess daily. All of this funny flock will be happy for spring.

I bring in the horses for the night, feed the cats and throw the ball for the best canine companion. There is a reason to use a green ball!

I’m amazed that his black nose has turned pink, we do some research to learn it is called ‘snow nose’….of course it is! His black nose should return…eventually.

Amazing or just downright humorous, I love living in the country. One never knows what a teen may drive to school.

I am content. (I do wish the snow would stop), but I am grateful for a life I love…and I am blessed.

The old refrigerator has been on its last leg since we moved in 6 years ago. We actually hate it, but always speak nicely about the darn thing whenever we are near it, for fear it will conk out. As THE Remodel is on the horizon, we began scouring the market place for our new appliances.

With frugality in mind, we found a snow-free window of opportunity to travel to The Westside (Seattle) to pick up our new units, opting for a site that specialized in customer returns and last year’s models. We purchased refrigerator, stove and new hood for the same price we paid for a fancy frig in California 8 years ago.

The stove and hood are currently sharing my garage space. The refrigerator needed to be put into service right away. All we needed to do was unload it from the stock trailer, which was easier said than done, that baby is heavy.

Team Offspring will be happy to know, that we asked our friend, Croquet Joe to assist My Loving Spouse (instead of them) to move the new unit.

The weather was cold. The refrigerator was heavy.

With the supervision of Pooh the barn cat, they got it up to the stairs. I was on hand to fetch a measuring stick, which proved that the refrigerator would not make it through the porch posts with out the doors being removed etc and so forth. Work was halted for the day, as men were cold and needed to go off to work.

The refrigerator had traveled on its side in the stock trailer, so it would need to remain upright for 48 before being put into use. My job was to secure the tarp.

It remained upright for 4 days….and it snowed.

The only way for the refrigerator to enter the house was for the doors to be completely removed. Refrigerator door removal is no easy task. The good news is that My Loving Spouse was able to get it done. He says, “It is quite an operation”. To say nothing of then getting the unit in through the door by himself, can you say stubborn?

The bad news is, that he will need to do it two more times. Once when the refrigerator moves out of the current kitchen during THE Remodel and then again, when it moves back into the new kitchen, whenever we reach that wonderful day.

Until then….we are blessed…and My Loving Spouse needs some Advil.