a hike with MY hunter

yup

he's a taking me for a hike

there he is

isn't it BEAUTIFUL

even on a gloomy day like this one..

look at THAT tree

it just SCREAMS out that we MUST name it

could it really be THIS green...?

this late in the year?

what a super cool stump!

oo oo that is a deer rubbing..

ever hear hunters talk about that..

well THIS is what it looks like

and it's a GOOD one

one of our wee creeks 

:)

i love that animals can get water on this property

it leads to another creek that these trees fell across..

can't you just HEAR the wonderful sound of a chainsaw in the spring...

YOWZA!

yup this tree has these

just STICKING OUT OF IT

thinking of just CHAINSAWING any of these EVIL things down...

OUCH

and Jesus had a CROWN made of thorns..

(somber moment)

wow

need a peaceful scene after that heavy realization...

again...

WOW

what the LORD has done

and IS doing!

so excited to witness it all

so inspired by HIS creation

fungi growing on a fallen branch. 

JUST look at how beautiful

yup

he's loving the liberty to be on his land and hunt..

it's like PINCH him happy

and THAT be a spring o' water

so where's the deer?

love this stretch of trail..

i really love it..

i hope to smooth it out enough to ride our bikes through it!

takes my breath away .. 

every

single

time

'

so THAT is a track

we are tracking one BIG ol' buck..

(i don't KNOW that it's a buck, it could be a big girl... 

but...

guy hunters ALWAYS figure that if it's BIG it must be a BUCK

and if it is small 

and delicate

it's a doe

does that mean that Machine Man don't notice 

I am less delicate 

with four kids 

than before?)

i like details

queen anne's lace curled up for the winter....

rose hip...

(?)

hmmm

beautiful

so thankful my hunter to me on this autumn hike...

no deer found..

not

YET

The Littlest Room - part 3

Making PROGRESS...

moving forward IN the plan

sometimes means really REALIZING that there were more steps to the plan than you realized

like when you climb a big hill, 

only to get to the peak and realize that the flag you were aiming for

was on the hill next to this one..

you must go down this one on the other side

you must go through a valley

and climb the next hill

and it is.. higher...

that said... this ceiling isn't as low as that wonderful wallpaper made it seem

the room is really coming along

I really took time to clean this wall and the crack.. 

now that it's cleared up a bit, I think the repair will be simpler than I imagined before

ceilings are EVER so difficult..

and the vinegar keeps dripping all OVER us!

It is simply AMAZING how aching this work is..

It exhausts the immune system,

my lymphatic system seems stressed and I will have to do some gentle lymph massage later

do you see how some of the cracks are sort of dancing.. rather elegant

while others are just brutal and needing repair in that 

very matter of fact

very practical

very feet on the ground 

nothing fanciful about it

sort of way

? 

did you notice that too?

i would call THIS progress!

what about YOU?

and I call THIS a mess

time to clean up

at least a BIT

(i can't see my status if it's TOO messy)

there..

that is a bit better.. but.

wait

what is that?

did it RE-GLUE itself?

yup..

that is EXACTLY what it did..

so..

let's get this straight..

i just spent all this time..

with the Blessings

ripping THIS off..

and it is NOW stuck on the floor..

well 3M has NOTHING on who ever made THIS glue

i have NEVER seen an adhesive like THIS

awww....

say it ain't sooo...

schooling on the farm...

it really IS not all just 

hands on practical skills they "be learnin'..."

We do more than teach tiling

and plumbing

and 

electrical stuff,

and

forestry,

and

hunter safety,

and

refinishing flooring,

and

how to paint, plaster, sand, stain, caulk, and begin to farm...

YUP

we do OTHER schooling too

this is one of Buddy's Math Books

it is his FAVORITE !

it is ONE Ginormous word problem, forcing him to THINK all day about the problems...

to problem

to problem solve

He has this nice composition notebook to work things out in...

Everywhere you walk

IF you don't HAPPEN to be in a construction zone

you MUST keep your eyes open.. because someone may have JUST been sprawled out studying.

they may have just gotten up for a sip of water..

and YOU might trip over Algebra..

or a Book on World Views

or Homer, or Bullfinch, or Beowulf, perhaps Ivanhoe, or Shogun, 

a copy of one Shakespeare's plays or a book on Aesop's fables

or some such thing 

we take every moment 

and try to make the VERY most of it...

discussing he most EXCELLENT literature

working out wonderful mathematical equations with our Life of Fred Curriculumn

and studying the processes of Nature

by observing it, and referencing our many Science and Nature guides

we just have to be CREATIVE when we are up here

to THINK

and to BE out of the BOX

it is exciting to attempt the innovative

Looking forward to finishing certain walls so our world maps can get up :)

indoor grill....

to grill indoors or not

I loved the idea that we have an INDOOR Grill

Machine man was a little Stressed OUT by it

he wasn't sure IF it would work...

how it would work

IF we should work it..

but having worked IN restaurants

I WAS PUMPED!

here is a photo of it again in our Make SHIFT kitchen

(we are under construction remember?)

and it's sort of the center piece.. but

we still haven't used it

and it's driving OPA

(my Dad)

NUTS!

We have this SUPER cool Grill

and WE are NOT using it!?????

that HAS GoT to Change!

So..

He has put it on his "To Do List"

and with Princess as a Side Kick..

He has cleaned it out

and started the coal heater thing up..

pretty snazzy

Right?

she's a wiping things up nice and spiffy

waiting for the coals to heat

Opa is instructing her in some thing or another

in the end...

they decided the first run on the grill ought to be on

frank'n brat's

rather than Steak..

so if the grill needs more "tweeking" we don't ruin anything all together

TOO 

WORTHY

The Littlest Room - part 2

PROGRESS!!!!

Talk about 

SWEAT EQUITY

This is some seriously difficult work

check out Princess laboring away :)

she IS learning what it IS to restore a home

FIRST hand

what it costs in time, in talent and in resources

how to do it on a budget

and how to do it 

with nearly NO budget

(thanks to RESTORE & good will)

FEAR NOT

No child labor laws are being broken.. 

Princess is not doing this room alone :)

she just looks a LOT better on this side of the camera!

IS the student

&

isn't taking photography classes! (YET)

(certainly NOT on my new camera )

(yet)

we are working together on this room

so much opportunity to learn, to teach....

sometimes boyz come in and help

and learn

but..

 they all end up leaving after a while ...

she stays laboring along side me.. 

Anyhooo

~

that glamorous wallpaper was hiding

VERY fancy cracks

of VARIOUS

lengths and widths

equal opportunity at our place 

:)

check out that doooozy

YOWZA!

One wall just about done.. more to go ...

and.. a ceiling..

ugh...

The very Romantic "Littlest Room"... ok ok.. not so much..

So I have this VISION

of a VERY romantic Get Away Room

a "Retreat" if you will....

it IS at the moment

the MOST hideous 

MOST horrible

smallest room IN the house

the MOST recent wall paper is circa 1950

and NO -

 that is NOT paneling..

on the wall next to the fancy bomber airplanes...

it is 

WALLPAPER 

meant to appear to be paneling..

yes.. 

that IS wierd

Someone ON this planet,

SOME blessed soul created in our FATHER's image actually THOUGHT up that idea..

bless them... (amen)

it IS horrid.. (i agree!)

but we must deal with it, we MUST move ON

so.. what to DO??

WHAT IS

the plan of attack?

In that bottle is Melaleuca.. 

I switched to Straight Vinegar, 

to save money...

because it REALLY will save me money

by the way..

I am a HUGE Melaleuca fan! 

I use it for almost... 

EVERYTHING

 I get mine from Kim F.  

If you are interested,

LET ME KNOW!

So for this post..

think VINEGAR, hole maker thingE, E scraper thing...

oh & not to be forgotten... soda

icy cold soda..

I needed some caffeine...

because

I AM that wimpy...

it IS not good for me

it does NOT help my lyme disease AT all

and YES I know that

but...

it's a bit like beach volley ball when you aren't a pro.

you just NEED to GET the ball OVER the net

the game won't last forever

it doesn't have to BE pretty..

you need not have to worry TOO much about form

finesse

it's not on CSPAN

really just GET the ball OVER the net..

you can regroup tomorrow..

getting the Ball over the net for me...

in regards to THIS room

is having Soda

because In THIS room

they EVEN papered the ceiling..

at some point.. getting the BALL OVER may require

 French Wine ...

that said... 

let the ripping begin! :)

can you see how we make the holes with this little tool?

you just roll it ALL over the place

just roll, roll, roll...

when you think you have rolled enough

spray,

and roll again, 

then

 spray spray spray

it helps the moisture penetrate deeply

which in THIS case is super important

because then..

you scrape, and it comes RIGHT off

WHY is it SO important IN THIS CASE???

ugh?

This is what WE discovered about The Littlest Room's Wallpaper :)

JUST THAT

 there are about 4-5 layers of paper

ranging from about circa 1870-1950

and the glue is EXCELLENT

the paper THICK

and they NEVER painted beneath

base?

PLASTER

say it ain't so...

YUP

it so..

PLASTER

no paint

NO lead

just good ol' fashioned plaster

so baby came in to help for about...

3 minutes...

Making the 

"Littlest Room"

"romantic"

is a really BIG big BIG project...

more

Later