(I started this blog post last Saturday by uploading photos, picking which ones I wanted to use and editing them. As soon as I got up on Sunday morning I started writing but a third of the way into the post I ran into a snag… I ran out of storage space on my free WordPress account. I had a decision to make – go back and reduce the size (and quality) of my images so that I could finish this post and then no more blogging or bite the bullet and upgrade to a paid account.
There was no time on either Monday or Tuesday to decide what I wanted to do because both days we had unexpected visitors. Monday evening a friend I worked with at Walt Disney World dropped by on her way from Indiana back to South Carolina. It was WONDERFUL to get to see her! It was a short visit but one I will treasure. Fingers crossed she’ll be back again! Tuesday afternoon we visited some of our local vendor malls shopping for items to furnish the cabin (fun!) and then in the evening we had some local friends stop by to check out the cabin. I’m thrilled there is so much curiosity and interest in it.
Now it’s Wednesday and I bit the bullet and upgraded my WordPress account. We now have our own domain name ‘dreamvalleyfarmstead.com’ and I have more storage. So, let’s see if we can’t finish this post and get y’all caught up!)
At the time of my last post it felt as if we were batting zeros. But, in a week’s time much has happened!
While I was at work on Monday CountryBoy got a start on the outdoor privy area…
If you’ll remember, last Sunday we were supposed to go pick up a side-by-side but the deal fell through.
The following day I was on my way home from work when I spotted one on the side of the road with a For Sale sign on it. I pert near got whiplash spinning my head so fast as I whizzed by making sure I just saw what I thought I saw. At a glance it looked pretty promising so I turned around and inquired about it. It sounded like a good deal so I told the feller I’d be back at 7 p.m. with my husband.
After missing out on the other one we went prepared. We stopped on our way at our friend’s to pick up his trailer he said we could borrow and we took the payment. You know, just in case we decided we wanted it.
It came with a lot of extras and was in really good shape. It even came with a snowplow! After checking it all out we decided it would be perfect for our needs so we loaded it up and brought it home that evening.
It’s a great little machine with a winch on the front, a hitch on the back, a custom-made cover for the dump bed, extra lights, upgraded seats, a secondary brake system and a bigger motor than the one we missed out on.
And, as I mentioned, a snowplow! I think I am most excited about the snow plow, ha. From what is being forecasted it appears we may be in for a snowy winter.
It all worked out for the best and we are so thankful! (And, I can say we have used it just about every day since then.)
Tuesday evening CountryBoy’s brother came in from Arkansas for a visit.
Wednesday morning, 6:43 to be precise, the phone rang. It was our local post office notifying us that we had a box we needed to pick up.
CountryBoy and his brother grabbed a cup of coffee and headed to town. This is what they picked up…
26 little chick-a-roos!
Egg production here at the farm has decreased considerably this past year so it was time to get some young’uns.
We decided to get them now while the days are still warm and the nights aren’t quite as cold making it much easier to keep them warm until their feathers come in.
They are growing quickly. In less than a week they now have little feathered wings…
Just look at those fuzzy little butts!
Speaking of growing, they have almost outgrown their cage. Soon we’ll have to move them to a bigger one.
I ordered eight chicks in three different breeds – Rhode Island Reds, Whiting True Green and Whiting True Blue. They threw in an extra True Blue and then there’s the rare breed surprise chick making a total of 26.
This batch of chicks has been fairly calm and quiet which is a good thing since they’re hanging out in our mudroom.
So fun! So sweet!
Wednesday evening our neighbor came by to measure the roof for the metal. Yay!
Thursday evening he delivered the metal.
Meanwhile, CountryBoy took a break from working on the cabin to visit with his brother for a couple of days but on Friday we were back at it. And, we put brother to work!
He helped me polyurethane the floors…
while CountryBoy worked on framing the outhouse…
An hour or so later, work began on the roof….
To say that I was thrilled would be an understatement!
A couple of hours later we had a gorgeous new metal roof on the cabin…
No more worrying about a surprise rain shower.
Speaking of rain, we desperately need some! We got a quick 15 minute shower this past Monday but otherwise we have not had any rain in almost two months. The ponds and creeks are drying up if not already dry. I may have to break into a rain dance before long!
We finished up early so we all quickly cleaned up and headed out to a vendor mall to see what goodies we could find for the cabin. We found these lovely two twin headboards with the metal frames….
I decided on two twin beds for the cabin in case two friends wanted to rent the space.
I also wanted to put our handmade octagon table CountryBoy bought in Arkansas in the cabin…
It is a beautiful table that we had in front of the fireplace but it did not show up very well in our dark house. I think it will be appreciated in the cabin.
For the now empty space in front of the fireplace I wanted to put a couple of chairs since we literally live there during the winter months. We found a chair similar to one I had in the living room when we found the beds. They fit perfectly and will get a lot of use in the upcoming months. (no photo, sorry.)
Although there is still much to do it is slowly coming together. We have a goal of having it completed by the first week of November. Pray everything continues to fall in place.
And thanks for following along and encouraging us on this crazy journey. Your support means more than y’all will ever know!
Dream Valley Farmstead 