this and that...

Time flies...days turn into weeks, and it passes so quickly. Lately our autumn days teeter between blustery and balmy...as if Mother Nature can't quite make up her mind. 

We've had heavy frosts followed by the tiniest of delicate snowflakes, 

only to be followed with days of strong winds and heavy rains. And yet today, it was blue-skied and 60 degrees.

 

But no matter how warm it gets, the calendar still says November and winter can't be far behind. I've spent the last few weeks harvesting the end of the garden veggies, buttoning up the coop so the girls and their bachelor will stay cozy, filling shelves with food storage, ordering wood, and stacking hay.

 

                    

Good things come in 3's as the saying goes, and that's proven true for us this week.

Monday, our family had a small, socially-distanced, mask-wearing "celebration." While our son had his board-of-review and became an Eagle Scout a year ago, we wanted to wait for his official court-of honor until his sister came home from college in the spring.

Well we all know how the spring of 2020 began, and so we waited.  

And waited.

And then, waited some more. 

But because it had been a year, with careful thought and planning, we decided to move forward with the Eagle Scout court-of-honor...we kept the ceremony small, inviting only a few of our favorite people to join us. It was short & sweet, but still heartfelt (yep, I'm a cryer.) His Dad had the honor of pinning on his Eagle badge, and then our new Eagle gifted me with the mom and mentor pins. We took photos, had grab & go snacks for guests, then headed home. I'm so glad our daughter was home and we were all together. 

Tuesday the school honored students with their National Honor Society induction...again, it was safely distanced and kept to a minimum amount of time, but still a wonderful night for our family.

And lastly, today our son passed his driving and maneuverability test...I'm not sure how other states are handing these tests, but our BMV kept me in the car with him (no talking allowed!) while the examiner stood outside watching as he drove through a marked driving course. He's excited and we're happy for him!

It's true...good things do come in 3's!

Now with the week at an end, it's time to settle in and relax. My daughter and I love Saturday nights so we can catch up on our favorite British shows while Bailey curls up next to us.

Just in case you're wondering, she's doing great!

While we're settled in tonight, I'll pull out my notebook...filled with sketches, color samples, and brainstorming notes. Oh yes, I'm a list-maker.

My brainstorming began when our local indoor farmers' market closed for renovations a couple of years ago, then it didn't open again. Which is sad...it was a terrific opportunity for so many local farmers to share their goods with the community once the summertime farmers' market was over. I had fun by joining in selling some home-baked breads and sweet treats of my own.

After reading about Poorhouse Pies (what a story, you can read it here) and then making some calls, I found that I can still sell my cottage foods from home...that's where the plotting & planning began on the milkhouse. 

Built in the 1950's, our milkhouse needed a lot of love.  So over the past few weeks the cleaning, paint scraping, and tinkering began. While I thought originally I might give it a retro feel, I decided on keeping it what it is...a farm milkhouse. 

I had our local hardware store match paint from flaking chips I'd taken from the walls so I could recreate the original colors. I'm not smoothing the walls, I'm not striving for perfection, I'm leaving it exactly what it is...filled with history. I have a good friend who's father is a dairy farmer...she's a wonderful source of knowledge and inspiration!

There were plans to rewire for electricity, but that turned out to be much more involved than we wanted to do right now, so in keeping with the homespun feel, we'll simply add a few oil lamps.  

I was gifted with a large, roomy corner cupboard that will hold oodles of jams & jellies, honey, and sweet treats...I just need to decide what color to paint it (that's the fun part).  

I found a little wood burning stove for a song that will be perfect beside a couple of rocking chairs, then I pulled out wonderful old finds that were discovered tucked away in the barns...vintage screen doors, original house windows, and wooden ladders, I think it will be just right. I'll keep you posted on the progress.

And to end this long post, I wanted to share two photos of the good I see in the world now...people sharing and giving what they can.

 

                

The cupboard on the left says "Community Pantry" on the other side, and is found in the tiniest of towns not far from here.

The one on the right is outside a busy store in a much larger community. 

It touches my heart to see them...each filled to the brim with canned goods, free for anyone who needs a little extra right now. 

"By becoming the answer to someone's prayer,
we often find the answer to our own."
-Dieter F. Uchdorf