Settling In....

Wow!  It has already been almost a year since Maid Elizabeth purchased her first home so I thought it was high time I took you along on an updated house tour.

Maid Elizabeth purchased a home in our small town because, really, it was too good a deal to pass up. The house was owned by the bank and for one reason or another, no one else seemed to see the potential in it's Edwardian era charm.  It was a definitely a "fixer", with the bathroom needing to be completely gutted, however it's bones were good and it's structure sound.  Elizabeth made an offer, the bank accepted and then the real work began!

Sir Knight and Miss Serenity gutting the bathroom

Ugh!

New flooring!  And plumbing!  The wall needs to be painted, but progress!!

Elizabeth completely reconfigured the bathroom

Working on a limited budget, Elizabeth took care of the big things first, specifically the bathroom.  The subfloor was pulled up and the walls were pulled down and all of the plumbing was replaced.  There is still work to be done but Elizabeth will do that as she has the time and the money.  And for now, she has a fully functional bathroom!  She also painted - EVERYTHING!  She painted the kitchen, after tearing down the panelling to reveal shiplap and she painted her living room RED!  I have to admit, I was a little concerned when she told me that she wanted to paint the living room red - I mean, who does that?  Red, of all colors!  But, once the color was on the walls, I saw her vision.  It is perfect - warm and welcoming and rich - just right in her large, wood accented living room.

Shiplap under the paneling in the kitchen

The chimney in the kitchen

The Pioneer Maid

Antique apartment sized gas range - Perfect!!

Elizabeth's antique drafting table in the kitchen/diner

New light fixtures installed by Sir Knight

A rocking chair in front of the cook stove!

The children pulling up flooring in the laundry room

Laundry room/white goods

After living in her house for about six months, Elizabeth noticed that her kitchen was dark.  In reality, her ceilings are ten feet tall and she had two single lights bulbs at the ceiling.  During the summer, she hadn't noticed the lack of light, but during the dark days of winter, she was suffering.  She bought two light fixtures at Costco and Sir Knight installed them and now her kitchen resembles the surface of the sun!  I'm pretty sure the entire neighborhood knows when she's home!!

The living room - before

And with RED walls!

A daybed under one window and a child's table under another

Cozy with a gas fired burner

Elizabeth still has many, many things on her to-do list.  She would like to turn her front porch into a snug, refinish her stairway and hall, finish her bathroom and install flooring in her utility room. She has painting to do in the bathroom and painting and flooring to tackle in the upstairs bedrooms.  She is saving money to put on a new roof, as well as an exterior paint job.

The front porch that will be a snug

Elizabeth's winter transportation - a kick sled with basket!

Maid Elizabeth truly has settled in and is enjoying every moment.  And the page turns on the next chapter.....

Motor Oil and Oat Rolls - A Day of Serenity

There are days that our lifestyle presents itself as a peculiar depiction of stark contrasts.  Take Miss Serenity for example.....

On an average day, Serenity can be found helping clean the house before she vigorously undertakes her academic workload.  In the afternoon she may be strapping on her saw chaps and cutting wood from the log deck, or perhaps she'll be curling her hair for an upcoming swing dance.  Her evening activities could be anything from reloading ammunition to teaching her little sister how to paint her fingernails.  Serenity fits into no mold - she is the epitome of the "Competent Man".....

"A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly.  Specialization is for insects."

Robert Heinlein

Not to long ago, my friend Lady Day was over for tea.  After Serenity had made tea and set the tea table, she joined us for a cuppa and some conversation.  Finishing her tea, she pulled on a pair of mechanics coveralls and headed outside to change the oil in her truck.  A little while later, she was back in the kitchen, oil covering her hands, washing up at the kitchen sink.  After tying the top of her soiled coveralls around her waist, she grabbed a bowl of oat roll dough that she had made earlier in the day and began forming dinner rolls.  Letting the rolls rise for a bit, she slid them into the oven, set the timer and headed back out to finish the maintenance work on her truck.  She finished the oil change, installed a new air filter, checked her power steering fluid and topped off the wiper fluid.  Washing up again, she slipped out of the coveralls, checked her rolls and sat back down for another cup of tea.  Soon, she was brushing her perfectly browned dinner rolls with melted butter and sliding them onto a cooling rack.  No specialization here - nothing but a well-rounded, competent young woman.

Sir Knight and I have always endeavored to give our children the tools to successfully navigate this thing called life.  We are convinced they need to be able to run a home, fight a war, be creators (and appreciators) of beauty and to build society rather than destroy it.  Their lives need to be a peculiar depiction of stark contrasts.  That is why motor oil and oat rolls equal a day of Serenity.

A Prepper Mandate - Inventory and Organization

What's the difference between a prepper and a hoarder?  Inventory and organization of course!  A preparedness lifestyle requires copious amounts of "stuff", both inside and out.  Pantries overflow with foodstuffs, cupboards are packed to the brim with medical supplies, batteries and radio equipment.  Sheds, barns and garages are filled with tools, vehicles, fuel and every manner of odds and ends that may come in handy "when the balloon goes up". 

One problem that plagues most preppers is organization.  With so much stuff taking over their lives, they struggle to contain it all.  We have found the key to preparedness is painstaking organization.  I regularly inventory and organize everything we have so that in the event of an emergency I can lay my hands on whatever is needed  - immediately.  Really, if you can't find something, you may as well not have it.  

Glove in two sizes

PPE at the ready

Trays for quick access

Recently I inventoried and organized our medical supplies.  Because we live in a small "shouse", I use every square inch to the best of my ability.  In an ongoing attempt to make our shouse work for us I rearranged our bathroom and added a 4 x 6 foot shelving unit to hold all of our medical equipment and, for now, our radios and batteries.   

Our new shelving allows us to organize medical supplies in labeled tubs for easy access and also allows for larger bulk storage.  Within easy reach we have oral hygiene and fever reducers, along with allergy medicine and cough drops.  We have personal protection equipment (gloves, face shields and surgical masks), cold packs, elastic bandages and co-flex, in addition to betadine, alcohol and gauze.  All of the tubs are labeled and easily accessible.  

Tubs of necessities

Easily accessible for every member of the family

Larger bulk items

The shelves go on and on....

Newly rearranged space

As I organized, I also took an inventory of what we had and what we needed.  With young children, we still go through more medical supplies than I care to admit, and never seem to have enough band aides or co-flex.  I've found that taking inventory once a year generally maintains our standard of readiness.  Every spring I inventory medical supplies, followed by food stores in the summer and fuels in the fall.  Every winter I inventory seeds and gardening equipment.  This constant schedule of inventory and organization keeps us well supplied and ready for whatever may come our way.

We keep a trauma tray in the table in the living room.....

For everyday emergencies!

Ultimately, your preps are only as good as their location - if you can't find it, you may as well not have it.  Inventory and organization will not only save you time and money, it may well safe your life.

Homegrown Winter Fun

For a number of years I have wanted to build an ice skating rink in the back yard so the children could spend their winter gliding across the ice.  This year, after a little planning, a little building, a LOT of water and some seriously cold weather, Miss Serenity and I made our skating rink a reality!

The first thing we did to build our winter wonderland was buy a large tarp, about 25' x 25'.  After we scouted the backyard for a mostly level area, Serenity and I pulled pressure treated 4" x 4" posts off our lumber pile and built a frame to hold the tarp.  We screwed the lumber together to form a 20' x 20' box, arranged the tarp inside of the frame, making sure to push the tarp down to the ground inside of the frame.  After straightening the tarp and making sure it was pushed to the ground inside, we secured it to the frame with a staple gun, making sure there was enough slack so that the tarp didn't rip when we filled it with water.

Miss Serenity sweeping the rink

After a light snowfall

Once our frame was built, Serenity started the generator and we began the process of filling a 20' x 20' x 4" area with water.  That took some time!!!  We filled the rink to about an inch from the top, let the water freeze overnight and topped the rink off with water the next morning.  After freezing all day and all night, the skating rink was ready to use!  The ice was perfect - smooth and clear and solid, just right for pirouettes and speed skating alike!

Master Calvin and Princess Dragon Snack

Getting their skating legs

Little brother is steadying big sister!

Taking a break

Up for more

Getting brave!

After school was finished, Miss Serenity and I started a fire in the fire pit, hauled a bench to the rink and called the kids to their new playground.  Oh the fun they had!  It took a bit for Princess Dragon Snack and Master Calvin to get their skating legs under them, but they were off and skating before they knew it!  They spent the first few days going around in circles and doing tricks and then out came the hockey gear (and the friends).

Skating with snow falling gently - and a fire glowing!

Practicing a dip

Really getting the hang of it!

Let the hockey begin!

The cold winter has been perfect for skating, and with a skating rink in the back yard, the children have spent hour upon hour gliding through the crisp air.  Perfect homegrown winter fun!

Miss Serenity and I have plans to perfect our skating rink before next winter.  We would like to build a frame that can be easily taken apart in the spring and put back together in the fall.  We would also like to buy a large hay tarp that will last for many years and provide a much larger skating platform.  I can see ice hockey in our future - for many years to come!!

I hope you too, have enjoyed your own version of homegrown winter fun!

Kitchen Update

By the time February arrives, I'm usually anxious to do something - anything!  I'm tired of being cooped up in the house and itching to get my fingers in the dirt, but of course I can't until the snow is gone.  And so, my house bears the brunt of my pent-up energy.  Nothing is safe.  I've gone through the children's rooms , the reloading room, the bathroom and the kitchen.  I've cleaned under the beds, in the cupboards and behind the stoves.  And still I'm a bundle of energy looking for another project!

The cupboards, well, they looked so plain.  And my children asked what was for dinner - again.  And there was that one verse I wanted to memorize - it would be nice if I could see it every day.   What to do?  Well, paint the cupboard doors with chalkboard paint of course!

Really, the job was pretty easy.  I scrubbed the doors with Whistle, an industrial cleaner Sir Knight brought home (I love it! - it works on everything) and taped them up to paint.  After cleaning and taping, I spray painted them with chalkboard paint.  I sprayed the doors twice,  allowing the paint to dry in-between coats and then I let them dry overnight.

That was it!!!  My cupboards had a face life and I had a place to keep the menu for the week and a new Bible verse every week as well.

It's fun, and fresh, and now I'm thinking of all kinds of home improvement projects that I can't wait to get my hands on!

And I truly can't wait for spring!!!

A Modern Manifesto

I'm back, I'm back, I'm back!!!!!  I'm sorry to have been gone so long - technical difficulties - I'll tell you about it later, but for now, I thought I'd share the Communist Rules for Revolution, found in Dusseldorf, Germany, in May of 1919 by the Allied Forces.  Remarkably, these Rules for Revolution are no longer for card carrying Communists only,  but for modern American politicians!  Having forgotten our history, we are truly doomed to repeat it....

Communist Rules for Revolution

A.  Corrupt the young, get them away from religion, get them interested in sex.  Make them superficial, destroy their ruggedness.

B.  Get control of all means of publicity thereby:

1. Get the people's minds off their government by focusing their attention on athletics, sexy books and plays and other trivialities.
2. Divide the people into hostile groups by constantly harping on controversial matters of no importance.
3. Destroy the people's faith in their natural leaders by holding the latter up to contempt, ridicule and obloquy.
4. Always preach true democracy, but seize power as fast and as ruthlessly as possible.
5. By encouraging government extravagance, destroy its credit, produce fear of inflation with rising prices and general discontent.
6. Foment unnecessary strikes in vital industries, encourage civil disorders and foster a lenient and soft attitude on the part of government toward such disorders.
7. By serious argument, cause the breakdown of the old moral virtues, honesty, sobriety, confidence, faith in the pledged word, ruggedness.

C.  Cause the registration of all firearms on some pretext, with a view toward confiscating them and leaving the population helpless. 

And that, my friends, has become our Modern Manifesto.  For shame!