Sunny's first egg...

 

Autumn's guinea hen, Sunny, laid her first egg this past Monday, April 29th. Autumn's such a proud guinea-grandma and insisted we don't eat it. I agreed to let the first 5 eggs go, and she agreed we could harvest the rest...
 

A little landscaping...

Put together this little pathway with things already at hand:

 

Flat stones from an old wall, and transplanted carpet moss, trillium, lilies, and violets...

Guinea keets...

The newest addition to our farm family, four week-old Guinea keets!

Clockwise from top: Fizzgig (my Little Dove), Peep, Sunny, and Professor Aronnax

Sleepy babies

We won't know until they mature whether they're cocks or hens, but praying for at least 2 ladies so we can get some egg. Either way though, we love their sweet peeps and dispositions, and funny antics...

Horned owl...

One evening a few months ago, we spied a horned owl looking down on us from one of our barn's upper windows.


Always a symbol of positive tidings for me, it was heart-warming to see him there keeping watch over our land. Although Cleo might not be as pleased since we've noticed a decrease in the number of small rodents she's caught this summer...

New chapter...

The Riverstone House is now officially mine and Sammy's new home!

My parents came to the Closing yesterday, which went smoothly, and afterwards we ran some errands in the area, moved a few things in, met with the home security system guys, and one of the neighbors. The Closing on my condominium isn't happening for another several weeks though so I'll be going back and forth and taking my time moving all of my things in.

Here are a few photos I took of the interior of my house:

Exposed stone wall in the common room

Enclosed front porch (and Sammy!)

Kitchen fireplace (one of four)

River view from my kitchen

It's been a hectic two days and I can't wait until I'm finally settled in. And then it will be more hectic times, I'm sure, what with the restorations and renovations I'll be starting. It's exciting and a bit intimidating when I think about the new chapter I'll be writing, not only in the story of my life, but also in the long history of the homestead, on my stewardship of the land...

It's official...almost...

My offer on The Riverstone House was accepted last week and today marks the end of the 3-day attorney review.

Unable to help myself, I went by the homestead again yesterday (the second time in just 4 days), walked the grounds, and took some photos. They truly do not do the place justice, but here are a few:

Everytime I go by I am again struck by the timelessness of the place...the slow and steady flow of the river, the ancient energy of the huge ginkgo tree, the strength in the stones of the old house, the serenity of the open land...

I have my fingers crossed that everything continues to go smoothly (the sale of my Condo, the house inspection next week, etc.) so that Sammy and I can move in by the end of January.