I've decided to create a blog to keep our family and friends updated on our lives (out here in the middle of nowhere, USA)... so here goes.

Sometime in April/May I moved out here to Ithaca, MI to an old family farm that was owned until recently by the Cheney family.  I don't know much about its history but I know it's over 100 years old.  How do I know that?  Because of this:

The old farm house sits right behind the modular home I am living in.  Dad, Geoff, and I have picked through its contents and found quite a few treasures.  Someone just walked out of this house some time in the late seventies I'm guessing (because of the age of the magazines left in it) and left almost everything in it.  A few things I found in the OLD house:

Collectible vintage canning jars!  I have found quite a few of these, as well as postcards, pictures, and other odds and ends.  A few pieces of primitive furniture came out of there as well.  The house is also full of great materials Geoff and I have started to reclaim.  Last weekend we started tearing down the chimney.  It was pretty much falling apart, so we started at the top with a hoe, knocking bricks down the back side of the house and picking them up.  Then I got brave and climbed up there and started heaving them down into the lawn.  Here is a picture of the house without a chimney:

In one afternoon we made it from the top, through the upstairs level and down into the living room:

So far we have removed, cleaned mortar off of, and stacked 330 full bricks and many many more have broken.  

This chimney goes all the way to the basement so we figure we are maybe 1/3 of the way done with that little project.  We plan to create a brick walkway/patio, as well as a pathway in the greenhouse with these reclaimed bricks.  The OLD house also has some great wood floors that are in good shape that we will try to reclaim as well before the thing gets knocked down.

The rest of the property looks like this:

Our house:

Oh so kindly provided by my employer :)

We are surrounded by about 400 acres of corn!  We have a house across the road with potential for neighbors but it is for sale, so for now it is quiet as can be around here.

We also have a very old barn, see?

The smaller shed in the foreground will become our chicken coop after we repair the roof. 

Our other project (we decided we are only allowed two at a time) is a greenhouse that we are building with salvaged materials found in the barn and begged from friends and family.

So far we have put in the anchors to keep it from running away.  This weekend we will begin building the trusses.

It will be 12' by 18' and house greens and other veggies over the winter.

Upcoming projects?  We have several!  One of which is to transplant and trellis the raspberry tangle that is going on behind the shed:

I still haven't figured out if it's best to transplant these things in fall or spring, so any input would be appreciated.

My lovely dog Angel is eating grass in front of the raspberry tangle... there's also a rose bush in there I wouldn't mind moving.

Here's another picture of Angel, and a blurry glimpse of the inside of the house:

This summer I have taken up canning with a vengeance, part of our goal to be as self sufficient as possible.  In the last two weeks I have put up over 40 pounds of tomatoes (salsa and pasta sauce) with plans to can more this weekend.  I have also canned pickles and strawberry jam, and have frozen corn, cantaloupe, pesto, blueberries and strawberries.

Right now we are working on finding Geoff a job so he can move here.  The goal is some time in late September. Updates on that will be forthcoming.

This fall we will begin to prepare for a season of growing as much food as possible here.  We are very excited about our homestead and are really enjoying working hard together :)