In The Past Three Months...

Ah, remembering summer! Three full months ago now, and after a long and glorious fall, we are settling in for the harsh winter they keep saying is coming....
September seemed like one continuous work party as we welcomed all of Scott's family members- though not all at the same time. We put everyone to work until they were all tired and dirty and vowing to get a hotel the next time they visit. So much love and sweat and beer. Thanks family!
We had a daunting list of small but important projects that needed to be completed to winterize our homestead. Even though it had been months without a hint of precipitation, some squirrel-like instinct inspired Jeff and Scott to whip out a storage shed. It took less than a day, and they had the whole yard sale- tools and bikes, chairs and all- neatly stowed away, just minutes before the first sprinkles.

There was chainsaw maintenance, filling in the water line trenches, tree felling and clearing, and then the biggest chore of them all....... moving the tent. After much debating and deliberating, we decided to change our original site plan and move the barn closer to the proposed home site. This meant that we had to move the tent (because it was sitting right where the barn will need to be), and it also meant cutting a couple of the big pine trees. Felling 120 ft. trees was a successful, but nerve racking task. This was a compromise plan needed to avoid some less than ideal land formations... (or should I say deformations?) that we found on the property. But we are grateful that we have spent so much time living here and getting to know and understand our land before beginning to build in the wrong spot!

The pace of our projects slowed down in October, as the air cooled and the trees became glorious. With our electric panel and water lines completed, the next major projects all seem to involve some serious land moving and machinery. We hired a local backhoe driver to carve out the driveway and connect us to the road. This had been a high priority because our only access was across our neighbors' front lawn. However, the project had been held up all summer by a PG&E power box centered in the middle of the driveway, and it took until mid-October for a crew to come out, make a big mess of the road, and move the box to where it should have been in the first place. Then, in only two days, for our friend the backhoe driver to expertly dig out a driveway from the hill, and it looks beautiful.

We were so impressed that we asked for his help with the septic system as well. However, with a rainy weekend in the forecast, he talked us into waiting until spring before digging up the field.... so here we sit... waiting until spring....

November has not been as rainy or snowy or cold or anything as people here keep telling us it should be. Perhaps we've lucked out this year, but none-the-less it has become just chilly enough to make spending much time in the tent uncomfortable and impractical. We had a couple of weeks of quality camper living (as you can witness in the video above), before we started to notice Penny pacing the aisle- running back and forth from bed to bathroom in four or five little baby steps- We contemplated insulation options for the tent, different heaters or a wood burning stove, even a hot tub before I found an apartment for rent just down the street......

It's not fancy or cute or quaint, but it is so stinkin' Convenient! Flushing toilets, a full size bath with an unending supply of hot water, Laundry, a KITCHEN with an actual SINK and an oven! We haven't had that since 2006.
So we are now living in luxury with the basic American amenities, while waiting for this harsh, rugged winter to arrive...and then leave. We are feeling quite stress free with the new space and time that comes with convenience, and as we enter the holiday season, we have been meeting new people, and enjoying the most festive little town in all of California! Happy Holidays!
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