Wednesday 14 October 2015

Are you still there?






Hello, friends :)  It's been a while, hasn't it?  Life has been so full these past 6 months...  We've got a big, exciting change coming and all our time has been diverted into making arrangements, planning and preparing.   After 17 long years, we're moving "back home" to the coast (which as you can imagine is filling our days and minds with many details and plenty of emotions).

I'll write more about the move as it unfolds, but for now we are in "patiently waiting mode".  Little Home In The Country is for sale.   When she finds her new owners, we'll be setting off for our new homestead on Vancouver Island.  

Meantime, while we wait, we are harvesting honey, putting gardens to bed for the winter, working at lessons for the 2 youngest, decluttering, selling things we no longer need and enjoying our (most likely) last Autumn here on the Alberta prairie.  We are in no rush.  Life has been good here and we've enjoyed it.  We'll move when the time is right - it's completely out of our hands but I promise to keep you updated :)


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In other news, our bees did very well this year and I completed my first ever hive split this Spring.  We've pulled 80 pounds of honey off so far and with any luck, there'll be about the same this week before we tuck the hives in for winter.  

The vegetable garden was productive but on an (intentionally) smaller scale as we were away a lot over the growing season (house hunting in BC).  




Our (many) new bee friendly plantings did very well and were a contest buzz of activity (and still are in some areas).




I've done no preserving this year as we can't move it all inter provincially.  Instead, we've been focussing on eating down the stockpile in the pantries and freezers.   We're doing well and should be down to zero before the actual relocation.  




We had a lovely Thanksgiving complete with a locally raised free range turkey.  There's nothing like a traditional roast turkey dinner with all the local/seasonal trimmings.   It was wonderful and oh, so tasty.   I love Autumn - it's my favourite time of year here on the prairie and I will miss it, actually.   With cool nights and sunny, colourful days, I always feel invigorated after the heat of summer.

Hope you are well, friends.  Talk soon XO






11 comments:

  1. It's so good to hear from you! I had been worried something had gone wrong. Sounds like your family is ready for a new adventure--I hope the new owners of your home are the type to make use of all the permaculture work you have put into it, but one never knows. I sure hope you will continue to blog once you move...little home on the island does have a nice ring to it ;) Take care!

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    1. Thank you for the warm welcome back to blog land :) LOL about the new blog name!

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  2. wow so much to do, hope you get an equally lovely place to call 'little house in the country' or on the island' as sevenoverb said. also hope you keep blogging, we will patiently wait for updates :)) good luck in your search
    thanx for sharing

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    1. Thank you Selina :) We actually already have a home and property to go to on the island. We just need to sell here before we can officially relocate!

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  3. Lovely to see some photos and hear how things are going Sherri.

    We are still here and its been great to hear from you!

    xx

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  4. A couple of days late but im here too. This is going to be so exciting for all of us.

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  5. Somehow I missed your "coming back" post. Hopefully, I have made my last move. You are wise to work down the stockpiles and declutter. I remember how hard it was, when I sold the farm. I did try to live closer to family, but my heart strings kept tugging me back to the prairie. I am now back ( two moves in two years), and very happy again. Everything is on a smaller scale....hopefully to be handled by me, until my last days...So good to read your post !!

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    1. You've done well planning for your senior years... It takes some honest assessment and true soul searching to know what's right but I think you have it all figured out now! Hopefully, in a year's time, we will be settled and able to say the same :)

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  6. Hello!
    It's so funny you have started posting again, as just last week I was wondering what happened to you!
    A new season awaits :)
    Best wishes with everything.

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