Hygge

 WE HAVE A HEARTH!

Guy wanted to have the woodstove hooked up by Christmas and guess what?

He did just that. We spent many hours on the hearth and mantle piece. The mantle wood came from a friend/old teacher of ours, Mr. Frank Pender.  (He also happened to officiate our wedding) 

It is now super cozy in our home. We turn the fan on the furnace and blow the warm air around the house through the vents. The temperature was 72 degrees when I came in earlier. Way too hot for me. But it is real nice to be able to heat the house with a cozy fire in the woodstove. 

The house is starting to feel like a home.

We sold our condo this week. With the help from Saint Joseph.

You're not familiar with using his services when selling a home? Check him out. He can help with that. I can say, with 100% faith, he helped. We now have him on display in the new home. Thank you St. Joseph!

Guy's DIY video he made for his youtube channel.

He is a bit serious... but it is an excellent video if you've ever tried to replace one of these on your John Deere Tractor! We will be posting more videos in the future. He really should be sharing his knowledge. If he doesn't, I fear his head will explode.

I will edit the next videos better. This is rough around the edges. And I promise the next videos will have a bit more of his goofy personality. Perhaps I will have a video of him telling a story. Those are always highly entertaining. 

Enjoy

We have a website!

https://leppinfarmonthehill.com/

Check it out. Let us know what you think.

Here are some turkey's for you to enjoy. :)

Mama and her three babies.

Afraid of Heights?

 More like afraid of falling. 

Guy set up the scaffolding on the South side of the new house in order for me to reach the peak. However, we are currently suffering from an Asian Lady Beetle infestation. Which means every 3 seconds I swat at something. And since I would rather not swat at something, lose my balance and fall, painting has been cancelled today on account of the bugs. 

If you're curious about the difference between Asian beetles and regular lady bugs, the white pattern on their heads is a give a way. Asian Beetles stink and can sometimes bite. LOVELY!

Lady Bug vs. Asian Biotch!

Thinking of heading down to the pond with Henry. Henry Weinhard, that is. Have a great day everyone. It really is a beautiful fall day in the Willamette Valley. Don't waste it.

P.S. Here is the most recent pic of our goals.

And a few updates on the new house -

 

Geneology

I am not sure how many of you know, but I love doing geneology.
Researching as much as I can, as often as I can.
I love finding connections between you and your ancestors.
Take for instance, my maternal great-grandparents share a wedding anniversary
with Guy and I. Except they were married 127 years ago.
I don't know why things like this make me very happy.
I bet my mom got a kick out of that.

If you're interested in learning about your ancestors, let me know. I love doing research.


💞

Of course they spell her first name wrong.
(Perhaps I should double check mine. 'Hiedi' is pretty common. Lol)

Just how big is your butt?

I never, in my life, thought I would actually need to
contemplate the position and location of my kitchen island
in consideration to where my ass will be when I bend over
to remove things from the oven.

#enlightenment

Time flies when you're - BUSY

Six years.
Gone just like that.

I recently asked a friend how do I begin blogging on this page and act like six years didn't just march across my face. Six very interesting years. She said to just do it.

So, here goes.

Shortly around my last entry, my mother's cancer reared its' fugly face again. It decided to take her from us in September 2012. Cancer, you dirty bastard! And the wind was taken from my sails.
And then Christmas that same year, Grandpa Harvey left us. Followed by his wife, Alice, less than two weeks later. (They are pictured together in an earlier post on this blog of mine . They are walking hand in hand by our pond) My mother and the Harvey's loved being out here. I like to think they still come to visit every now and then.


And that's all I've got to say about that.

Good news? I have some!

The following spring, Guy asked me to marry him. In August 2013 we said our I do's in a simple, one room country church in Oak Grove, Oregon.

My great niece Kyla and our grandson Maison-

Beautiful photos by Tracie Rabago Photography




We now have 4 grandchildren with another one on the way! They are fun and am looking for many years ahead of us spent playing with them right here on the Leppin Farm on the Hill!


We have had to let things go around here these past six years - like the peaches!! Who ever thought to grow peaches in the Willamette Valley is glutton for punishment. You need so many chemicals on those things. The raspberries, along with most people around here, were struck with a bad case of root rot. They are gone. We hope to get another crop going. I love raspberries! We planted rhubarb down by the pond, on the lower part of the acreage. After a good spring down pour and then a week of sun, we came back to the crop and discovered a jungle instead. I would need a full time paid hand to keep up on the weeds. Which we were not interested in paying for at the time. Hard to keep up on these things when you work full time. Oh, there is rhubarb down there. You just have to find it. :)
Rhubarb hunt, anyone?

And when one thing dies off, I know for a fact, something is being born-

We have had new family members born, and we have had some pass away. We have had some marry and others divorce.

Our two older puppies are still kicking around stinking up the joint.
We have since gotten another dog. Why? Don't ask.
He was cute. We know Aerona and Max are on their way out of this world.
We live on a farm. Aren't we suppose to have dogs?
Isn't it standard to have a dog that gets sprayed by skunks at 2 in the morning,
rolls around in the cow pasture across the road and eats all the food dropped
on the floor?
No, it isn't a standard?
Well, son of a bitch! Anyone want a dog??

We have had six seasons of putting hay in the barn...
those are always a lively time out here. Tractors, bailers, buckers of all shapes, sizes and breeds.
I can't say enough about the hard working crews that we have had up here.
Some have been our own kids, others we've had to adopt for a couple weeks.

From 2017- 

 HARD WORKING CREW, RIGHT THERE!!!

 OUR OLDEST BOY, KJ

HUNKY HUNK, MR. LEPPIN



Ok... you are pretty much caught up to speed.
I told you six years go fast!



Current News from the Hill-

We have decided a build a new house. I know, right????

Building our forever home.
Well, Guy is building it.
I am just second guessing him.
He knows just enough about everything to do the job!

And boy does he look FINE doing it!

Anyone get that?

My bedroom view! HEAVEN

Max is digging that view out the master bedroom.

STILL PRETTY! Even amongst the chaos of construction.



Remember when I said I second guess him?
I am really not hard on him.

I do, however, take a lot of pictures.

Can you tell?
See below-

He is hoping to be done August 2018.
He can do it!! Right?
We have some serious parties to host and I have no kitchen.

I am truly looking forward to having a kitchen.
It has been interesting, to say the least.
But I have a good partner who puts up with me when
I complain about living arrangements.
(DON'T ASK ABOUT THOSE!) LOL
But I will tell you a part of it involves water backing up
into the bathroom when it is raining too hard for the septic to keep up...
See! I told you not to ask.

I have been without a kitchen for over 8 months.

I have been cooking with help of a hot plate, microwave, crock pot,

a traeger, propane bbq, electric griddle and a George Foreman grill.

I am pretty sure my cookbook for dorm living will be a huge hit!! ;)


Things are still absolutely beautiful out here and we are still
amazed every day that we get to call this place home.

 SISTERS. love

Max hanging out with us down at the cabin by the pond.

Looking forward -

Once the house gets completed, I will be starting back on my fairy lanterns.
Elegant Floral in downtown Dallas, on Mill St. has a few left of my last batch to sell.

And with that, you are all up to speed.

(This is basically six years of Facebook stuff anyway)

We have many, many things up our sleeves.

STAY TUNED!

Life moves pretty quickly...And we stop once and awhile!

When it comes to buying a new home the work never seems to be done.
When you buy a farm, it never will be.

The quicker you come to terms with that, the easier life will be up here on the hill.
Work is never ending. 


Now, some of you might think I am complaining. I am not. This has been worth every minute of it and not only will it come back to us in the end, we are enjoying the rewards every day we get to spend out here. Every evening after work, when I drive up the road towards the house, I have a smile on my face. 


...
We are proud parents of a new tractor! The Executor of the Estate called us out of the blue about a month ago and ended with picking up the tractor we had intended on buying. But the estate needed the cash. Sorry, we don't have 12K sitting around for that anymore. So all of a sudden, over night, we were shopping for a new one. We went back and forth over orange or green... we decided to stay with orange. It will be best for our farm. We should get our new Kubota tractor tomorrow if all goes right. By the time we finish paying it off it will seem like we raised a child. You still have to pay it to do chores. Keep it quiet with some attention and steer it in the right direction so it will treat you good when you get old. Just like a kid.

...
Raspberries are about to become fully ripe so I hope everyone is ready to come out and do some serious picking! I can pay you in berries. ;) 




...
We now feel official! Had our business cards made and they've been delivered! 
It felt so good to hand those two out so far. ;)




... 
Back in May we had my nephew in law Jacob out here helping us lay...or is it pour...? the concrete for the pig pen and the dog run. Later, Bret helped Guy put the finishing touches on the future homes of Una and Jelly. More to come on the pigs later...
Life keeps moving up here and I am finding less time to blog the longer the sun decides to shine. However, it makes for playing catch up a pain. The only way to track the true progress is to merely stand back and look around. And thank god my camera saves the date the photo was taken and places them in folders on my computer by the date in which they were taken and not uploaded. So that will help with records and time lines. So, let's take a little trip back over the last month and a half through pictures. (Because Lord knows, I can't remember!) 

Jacob having to bring out the BIG GUNS.
Pouring the pig pen.

Jacob and Guy. It's called team work folks!

Here is the concrete slab for the dog pen. I am so glad we built it.

Pictured here is one of my favorite people! OF ALL TIME!
He pruned the old orchard right by the house in May.
Let's just say it needed it. Still does. We just don't want to butcher the poor things
 before we know EXACTLY what we are doing.

What my youngest boy Bret thinks about building pig pens. :)

The Pig Pen in the barn. DONE! Thank you Jacob, Guy and Bret!

I think Bret is happy he helped build the pen! Good job! 

Dog, Pig. Pig, Dog. Dog, Pig. Pig, Dog. NOW BE NICE!!

Now on to the chicken coop. We decided to put it in the first stall in the
barn. Since the chickens have been in their new home
they seem happier!

My Allergy Boy Andy was sticking it out and working hard. He helped out a lot. Considering his allergies were
really making it difficult for him. He is a good worker and makes me proud. I just wish he was
13 all over again instead of 20. We could really use a hard worker or two...or three!  Bret helped with
the assembly of the pig pen. His allergies were bothering him, too. But we never had him doing this. :) Sorry Andy!!

Una and Jelly-  Yes, I said Una and Jelly! My Great Niece named them. She is only 3. We had started to call them Breakfast and Christmas Dinner. But Kyla felt they needed different names apparently. She is a silly girl. The odd thing is Una a character in a 14th or 15th century poem. She is a Fairy Princess. And Kyla does not know that. So, where did Una come from? Her mother thought it might be a character of a mermaid in some TV show Kyla watches but wasn't real sure. (If you know me, I still find that fascinating) and Jelly...well, I guess that is to remind us that she really is only 3.

They are over twice this size now. :)

Poor Max! The pigs get all of his leftovers. Oh well. They will come back to us in the end.
When Max eats left overs all we get out of it is HIS stinking gas! NO THANK YOU!

The first day we put the chickens in their new home they huddles together. They were very insecure about their new environment.  Of course now they are all over the place.

Watching the chickens is very relaxing. Especially since Guy tuned their radio in the barn to Classical Music! No joke.
He is hoping relaxed chickens make the best laying chickens.

Aside from all the projects around here we are working on, it is always nice to stop and smell the roses.
Or bird watch. It is my newest favorite thing. 

We have doves here, too.

At the end of May we decided to have a BBQ out here. Had some friends and family up early to fish our pond. My brother Johnny came early and was even successful!

It's not a limo ride down to the pond but I think it is better!

One load of fishermen, women, children and beer...I am sure of it!

Kyla wanted to fish! SHE NEEDED TO FISH! Until Uncle Johnny caught one. She saw the fish dangling and jerking on the end of the line. She dropped the pole, walked away and said she didn't want to fish anymore...

We caught a few... Jane, my brother in law Eddie and Kimber... 

Sorry honey... objects in the frame are only closer ...not larger. 

Nice BASS!!!! James caught a big one so Guy carried it up on the back of the tractor for him. We ate it that night. Jane cooked up wonderfully. So good!

Guy and some of his family. Glad they could make it to the BBQ! 

Kyla hanging it with Great Grandpa and Great Grandma. She must be telling them about the big fish she caught. 

My chiminea make the best "mallows"!!!!!

This is the face of a keeper!!!

Guy was thrilled to spot some deer on the property. A week or so ago I saw two running up the road on my way to work.
A day or two before that we spotted them down in the lower raspberries.

We have hummingbirds out here. I think I always spot the same 3. However, there could be a lot more than that. I only see 3 at a time. Here they are playing. Can you spot the one above the one perched on the branch? They were flying around and what seemed like playing...or mating... it is spring anyway!

Happy Hummingbird

Kyla and her mom spent the night with us a week back. All she wanted to do is play outside!! She is awesome!

Guy and his Grandson Maison. Good looking boys!!!

For Father's Day Guy had his daughter and son out. Only one missing was his oldest boy who is in Idaho.
I think he was glad to have at least the two of his kids there! And Maison!!! 

With all the Fairy Moss floating on top of the pond, (The red stuff)
Guy thought he would see how hard it was to fish with it in the way.
 It sucked!!!
However, we found an way to tame it. (With a boat and skimmer and a lot of time)
Also, we decided to transplant some of it into the small fish pond up by the house.
 It is said t help with water clarity and the fish like it. Seems to be working.

We have so many birds! We have to fill this feeder up every other day if we had to. I usually wait. That way they land down on the ground and pick up all the food they wasted during the week. They usually do. They seem to be pretty secure knowing we have no cats!

...
We finally got the garden planted. We are behind up here but what I am learning is our garden will always be behind those just 5 miles away. Funny how that is. Here are some photos of the garden process along with a few extra pics of some shenanigans we got ourselves into.

Guy needed to do some mowing. So off he went down to the lower raspberries
to get some much needed mowing done.

Uh-Oh! This is what happens when you run over irrigation
caps. We had a day of repairing the leak before we could turn the
water on to the gardens. Just a small hiccup. It's ALL GOOD!

While we were down fixing the busted irrigation pipe I noticed lots of
tiny fuzzy peaches growing.

This little guy was running all over the inside of the tractor. The dogs couldn't even catch up to him when he decided to make a run for it over the driveway to the compost pile by the garden. Quick thing! 

Mice by the tractor and frogs by the hot tub! As long as they stay in their proper places,
we are going to get along just fine~

Clearing out beds that have not been tended to in over 2 years is a royal pain the behind!

Things are growing!

Tilling the middle garden. We will plant corn here to see how they grow.

Tilling the lower garden. It will house Watermelons, cucumber, pumpkins, zucs and potatoes.
(The potatoes came up on their own...I love that!)

8 rows of corn is good enough for the first year. Believe me!!! :)

Time to call it a night...

Time to relax and enjoy! Good night everyone and come again!!

The Peeps from The Leppin Farm on the Hill!