While others worry about getting sand bags in the event of rising storm water, my hubby and I went to the DIY store to buy some drywall early today. We are working hard on the small bedroom in our little house. Getting the drywall inside before the rain arrives was a priority. I’ll be so disappointed if the storm doesn’t bring rain to the Bay Area.

 

 

Last year, rain pooled in places because we hadn't finished putting the gravel down

Last year, rain pooled in places around our property (among them, the driveway) because we hadn’t finished putting loads of gravel down

 

 

We have a decent gravel driveway that we finally put in. Flooding hasn’t been a problem. Our chickens don’t mind the rain either. Instead of huddling together in their dry little designer chicken house, they prefer looking for the worms and bugs that show up during and after a storm.

 

 

Who minds wet feathers when there are worms to be found after a rainstorm?

Who minds wet feathers when there are worms to be found after a rainstorm?

 

 

Also, I’ve been tapping away on my computer keyboard, pounding out my latest mystery-in-progress. I had a pretty good idea come to me after I woke up this morning. That means my mind is working creatively even when I’m not typing words. I’m plotting and visualizing scenes and scenarios, making linkage and associations. This novel will be number three in my Henny Penny Farmette series, and I’m pretty excited about it.

 

 

While the work continues on the house and on my book, I’m also getting ready make up holiday baskets for family and friends, searching for lovely boxes, baskets, and cookie tins.

 

 

But I think that if this big storm that’s been forecast to arrive in the wee hours of the morning does arrive on schedule, I’ll spend an extra hour in bed tomorrow. I love sleeping in when a storm is howling outside my window. Sleep and rest nourish my little gray cells, too, meaning I might be more prolific at writing, carpentry, and crafting.  So bring on the storm.

 

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Inviting Nature in through a Kitchen Garden Window

Author: Meera, November 17, 2012

Carlos building a kitchen garden window frame on the kitchen floor

 

At only 1,000 square feet, our farmhouse, at times, felt claustrophobic to me after we moved here in 2010. I needed windows and lots of light.  I wanted hardwood floors and granite countertops. But I also wanted to reuse, recycle, and do the work as inexpensively as possible. My husband Carlos is an architect and I’m his number one (dare I say visionary) helper. Together we’ve done remodels on both coasts, so a little farmhouse should be no problem, right? We had no idea how much work was (and still is) ahead of us.

 

 

The window frame is evolving

 

Fans of network television home improvement shows will tell you that if you ever want to make your money back on a renovation, fix the kitchen and the bathrooms. So, of course, those were high on our list of priorities. Rotting wood and mountains of broken ceramic tile had to be carted away before we could even start our interior work. But we did put in a marble kitchen floor. Carlos laid it out in a pretty pattern. It looks lovely, is easy to keep clean, and feels cool under bare feet in the summer.

 

 

The finished kitchen garden window with granite base and wood molding

 

 

Finally, we began to slowly and methodically open up the space. Inside the kitchen, we installed the back splash of Italian honed marble that we bought at a closeout sale. We reused the garden window. For me, windows are a lovely way to link indoor with outdoor space. Framing the window and adding a flourish of crown molding finished it off nicely. Now I can look out on a maple tree, roses, and lavender planted along the fence line when I do dishes. Anchored in front of that window, I incubate my ideas for my books and dream of what renovation project to tackle next.

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