Round Two

"Buy land, they're not making it anymore." Wise words from Mark Twain.

So, when the property next door to ours went up for sale, we pounced. Well, that's not exactly right. We pined for it for six years and made it known to the daughters of the elderly homeowners that we would be interested in it someday. Then, when they offered it for sale, we tried to get a loan, which turned out to have a terrible 6-percent-rate-with-a-five-year-balloon term, so we backed out. After waiting another year until they had to finally put it on the market, we were fortunate enough to get the first right of refusal. The week it was listed, we went on vacation while they got five offers by the time we returned. Knowing this was our last opportunity, THEN we pounced. If we didn't, there would be a giant HVAC warehouse built right outside our windows.



Back in the day, like before the 1920s, our two properties were one. Consider them reunited. Moreover, the two houses are twins, with almost the exact same floor plan, so we get a second chance to improve upon our previous remodeling experience with our own home, which for better or worse is still undergoing its own renovation projects.

So, why do we need a second home? And why, if we are fortunate enough to own a second home, would it be directly to the north of us instead of in some sunny or mountainous locale? Well, we realized early on that it could be the key to a new lifestyle. With our changing attitudes about life and food and family, we desired a new path for our skills as a writer and an architect. The property next door can be an extension of what we've started here, a way to take our little homesteading project and make it financially sustainable. We're not just growing vegetables anymore, we're growing a dream.

At the heart of the dream is the quaint little vacation rental. Of course, it's only quaint in our minds. Everyone else might use the word 'condemned.' It needs a lot of work, but we're experienced, remember, and we like the labor -- have you never felt the catharsis of demolition? -- and the creative process that ensues from a (semi) blank slate.

We have been gathering ideas, piecing together a look, mulling what we have, repurposing, reusing, rethinking. To read my mind, check out some of my inspirational pins. Mike's are here. Take a look at the ol' place below as it was when we bought it then keep following us on this journey.

west bedroom

east bedroom

kitchen to dining room

"dining" room used as a sewing room

living room

summer porch

The Dirt on Our Soil

I'm famous for gardening over my head. So why not quadruple the size of my veggie patch then go back to work full time? See our tiny (really, it's the exact size of our house: 1,200 sq. ft.!) original plot in the center of the photo below? We all thought that was big. But I have big dreams, and I'm not letting one little maternity leave get in my way. I can swing 10 weeks doing both, can't I?!

different textures and hues from an established spring garden
look out over the newcomers sprouting up in the back

The reason I needed four times the growing space I had was because after planting my spring garden, I didn't have any room left for the 60 tomato and 75 pepper transplants I grew from seed indoors this winter. That didn't even include the okra, corn, beans, melons and squash I wanted to seed outside. 

An expansion was in the master plan, and it got first priority. But whereas we hand-dug (no kidding!) our existing beds, we hired this job out to an old fella with a tractor and plow. He moved at his own pace -- three weeks between plowing and tilling -- but he was interesting enough to make it OK. And can you blame someone who's 80 for forgetting about your gig? 

He churned our earth into foot-deep waves that looked like the ocean then tilled them into soft, plantable soil. We swiped a portion of the tall grass prairie for production, cutting into it diagonally as a symbol of where the future pond overflow system will be. The result is a trapezoid, which will look awesome with the bluestem grasses and wildflowers dramatically rising behind a metal water channel. Where on the timeline that fits into the master plan, however, is TBD.

adding production space to the south

a burned field and plowed field will take different paths

One of the most important jobs for this upheaved ground -- as we've learned the last two years, one with me too ill with "morning sickness" to get outside, and the other once the baby was here and had plans for me that didn't include setting her down for even five minutes -- is keeping the weeds out. We don't use chemicals, just hoes. Mulches are a big help but because we're looking for ways to close the cycle on our property, we are testing grass clippings in the paths and mulched leaves on the beds. 

To get the clippings, we use the bagger on our PUSH MOWER. Oy. You can imagine the inconvenience of stopping the mower and frequently unloading, but in the weeks since we've tried it out on the original garden, it's made a huge difference, and that's sayin' something since we have two years' worth of weed seeds hiding out in there. As for the leaves, our entire lot of trees gave up only enough matter to cover the new north field's beds. I'm hoping the south field's vining squashes and melons will keep enough ground under cover that it won't be a nightmare. 

It's not quite lasagna gardening, but we might be headed that direction soon. Our goal is not only to reduce weeds now but to improve our soil in the long term. This fall we'll experiment with manure and cover crops to continue increasing tilth. 

to the north: peppers, tomatoes, herbs, onions