The More Things Change...

We have recently felt very much like Reeds on the river, if it was a tumbling, tumultuous river.  Maybe with some water falls.  However, we have landed safe on familiar shores.  We are back in Illinois after some crazy adventures with tiny house living and enjoying life, but for right now, home is where we need to be.

That doesn't mean we are doing things differently, though.  We are still up to the same things, gardening, raising chickens and children, trying to keep things simple and elegant.  For now, I will just share some pictures of where we are at this moment.

Tiny gardeners helping with the raised beds.

You can see our chicken tractor in this one.

Those yellow flowers are our Jerusalem Artichokes.

I love a volunteer to help water.

There's not too much coming out of the garden at this time of the year.

And that's the tour!

Eggs!

So, let me share my biggest thrill right now with you (aside from Shark Week, that is).

EGGS!

The ladies started laying earlier this week, and we are now getting two or three eggs a day consistently.  I cannot even tell you how happy this makes me feel.  But, I will try to show you with some (fuzzy cell phone) pictures.

So careful with her precious cargo!

I love how they are all different colors and sizes.

We had two eggs out of our first six that were double-yolked! 
And look how golden the yolks are!

Eating the fruits (my Dad used to call eggs
"rooster fruits") of our labor.

New Additions

We have had some new additions to Unseemly Manor since I posted last.  The first has been our chickens.  They are funny, cute, busy, and useful.  They have been not only eating all the bugs they can scratch out of the yard, but also contributing to our compost that has been feeding my rosebushes.  We got four Red Comet chickens, and each picked a name.  Meet Henny Penny, Paprika, Steve, and Boo-boo Chicken!

Baby chick!

Helping build the chicken coop.

All done!

They're getting so big!   The chickens AND Pandi!

We are eagerly awaiting that first egg that should be coming in the next month or so.  It's really hard to describe what a good feeling it is for me to be taking charge of our food supply, even if it isn't a very big part.  With the chickens in their coop and the veggies in the garden, I feel like we have a connection to our place in the world and a connection to the little patch of Earth we are tending to.

The last new addition to the family is Appa.  He is our Great Pyrenees puppy.  He is fluffy and white and enormous and gentle.  We adopted him from the Humane Society.  He has been wonderful with the girls and the chickens.  If we can only tame the shedding, we will be a match made in heaven! 

"That was funny.  Tell it again, tiny human!"

We're coming up on the fullness of summer and are looking forward to the bounty around us.  It was great to bring Appa to the farmers' market today and visit with everyone and look at all the wonderful things to eat, sample the goods, smell all the yummy things, and see all the smiles.  Preston and the girls picked cherries this afternoon and brought them up the hill in a bucket.  It's nice to feel the warmth in the air and the warmth in our hearts.

The Rain, Rain, Rain Came Down, Down, Down

...in rushing, rising rivulets.  Or, at least, that's how the song from The Many Adventures of Winnie-the-Pooh goes.  And that's how it's gone here for the past several days.  I've honestly never seen rain like we've had in the past few days.  I've seen crazy, driving rains in Illinois, tornadoes and driving winds that blew the windows out of our upstairs sunroom and tore up our barn.  But the rain here is so...rainy.  Seriously, the drops are enormous and it's more like watching water poured out of a bucket than rain.  And it lasts for days.  But, it's beautiful and soothing to hear it on the roof.  And it's really interesting to see how the river changes, swollen and muddy and rushing in giant WHOOSHES instead of the clear, rippling flow we normally have.

I am dreaming of farming again.  Right now, the only thing I'm growing is a basil plant in my kitchen window (it is gorgeous, by the way).  I passed a sign for pullets for three dollars, and I am tempted.  I think my property manager would be on board.  She's an animal lover and she's actually cleaning out a room in her home right now for two tortoises to free range in.

It is a little premature to be making big decisions, but Preston and I have been looking over home buyer's guides and dreaming of buying property here.  Our dream is still to farm and I think it would be a good place to do it.  The local residents and the local restaurants are really big on small-footprint food.  The local schools do farm tours, have school gardens, and eat local food in the cafeterias.  The students even receive a monthly local food magazine made by an organization in the surrounding counties.

In many cultures, this month is a time to honor our ancestors who have passed on.  In places like Mexico, they are remembering loved ones as they celebrate Dia de Los Muertos.  I am thinking a lot of my Great Grandpa and Grandma Cowsert and how much I loved being on their farm as a child.  I loved visiting the rabbits and chickens and eating good food from the garden and watching the corn grow.  But most of all, I am thinking about how much love a place holds when you have roots in your spot in the world and use hard work and perseverance to put them there.