It’s a funny thing when Rick and I start brainstorming about the projects we want to take on. Our ideas have a way of growing and expanding.

After our first winter living in Tunbridge, we decided that we really wanted to have a garage (so that we would not have to dig/chisel out our cars every time we had a snow/ice event). But why pay for just a garage when, by adding a rental unit on the second floor, we can make back the construction cost? So while we’re at it we asked Dick Robson to design in the perfect apartment for a law-school student, and asked George White & Company to build it. Rick hatched a brilliant scheme to document the project, so you too can follow along with the progress on the construction cam .

Of course one major building project was not enough for us. Oh no. When we cleared the invasive white pine trees from the front of our property, we had in mind that it was not only to improve the driveway but also to provide a sense of open space and an area for a big garden. Keeping land open in the self-reforesting climate of Vermont is no easy task, nor is converting the thin, acidic soil into a medium to support vegetables. So we started thinking of solutions to both of these problems. What would be the most economical, environmentally friendly way to keep the land open and improve the soil? Why, animals of course, specifically sheep. (Besides, I’ve become enamored of knitting and having wool producers would be an added benefit.) Fortunately we met Marian White of Land & Lamb and she introduced us to her Navajo-Churro sheep , a rare breed that is diminutive and hearty. We’ve raised rare and heirloom vegetables, so why not sheep while we’re at it?

Before getting our sheep, we realized we need to provide shelter and protection for them, so we enlisted the help of our friend Justin Ferro to build a small pole barn to shield the flock from summer sun and winter winds. We’ve also contracted with Gordon Barnaby of the Corner Rail Fence Company to install an electric fence for us. But, after further research, we weren’t sure if an electric fence would be enough protection for the sheep. Sure, it would keep them in the pasture, but would it keep predators out?

While we’re at it, we decided to enlist the help of a proven guard species: llamas. Llamas have demonstrated their ability to intimidate and literally stamp out livestock predators. They are naturally curious and instinctively move towards anything "new" or threatening. Their large size is a deterrent to coyotes, dogs, foxes, and even bear. Several shepherds I’ve talked to also said that their guard llama(s) move the flock into the barn at night, or herd them to different grazing areas during the day. And unlike sheep dogs who require months of training, llamas work purely on natural instinct. It took several weeks of searching before we found the right llamas for our situation, but thanks to Don and Sue Mellen of Autumn Mountain Farm , we found two males (Guinness and Kuzco ) who we think will be excellent guards for our starter flock. (They have excellent fleece to boot!)

When we moved to Vermont it took a while to find a small, well-built house on good property. It took longer for us to both find jobs that we enjoy. Now we’re looking forward to our new roles as landlords and farmers. There is a lot to learn, and sometimes we feel overwhelmed by all of the changes. But we moved here not just to escape city life, but to have new adventures.

Despite the size of our plot, we only mow a small portion of the yard immediately surrounding the house. Notice I used the word “yard” and not the term “grass,” and certainly not “lawn.” From a distance our yard may look like grass, but it is mostly made up of many grass-like plants. Not being a big fan of the work (or chemicals) involved in maintaining a real lawn, we are happy to let the yard go au natural. However, not so much that the house is obscured by the inevitable not-really-grass forest.

It doesn’t hurt that the “lawn” mower is incapable of the stamina required to mow more than we currently do. The mower we have was a housewarming gift from my father, leftover from our house in Maryland where we had a postage-sized plot which could easily be mowed in under 30 minutes on one charge.

Yes, charge.

Our mower is a cordless rechargeable, and—I assume—quite unusual in rural Vermont, even with a large hippie population fighting global warming. It suits our needs and has enough power to cut as much not-really-grass as we need.

In fact, the mower’s limited power has helped inspire the landscaping surrounding the house. Well, that, and I got a late start on the mowing this year due to the rainier spring. The result was that the areas I left to grow on their own produced nice patches of wild flowers. We still have to keep on the alert for aggressive and invasive species—and definitely thistle.

For the past 8 months he has been receiving allergy shots twice a week. In addition to the shots, he was on antihistamines two-to-three times a day. He often needed to go on antibiotics if he scratched until he opened his skin, and occasionally he would need to take steroids both as a topical cream and orally. The latter makes him act a bit odd. Aggressive, but only when pushed. Normally he is very easy going even when prodded by his younger, smaller, ruder canine companion, Haley. But when he is on steroids he has a wild look in his eyes and is more likely to respond with force when Haley pushes his buttons. Recently we started a new treatment for Mickey’s allergies.

When Mickey had surgery recently to remove a benign cyst on his back, the doctor who did the surgery said that his blood work showed that the steroids were having an adverse effect on his liver. Luckily this could be countered with yet another drug; however, this news gave us the courage to switch to the newer treatment our allergy specialist vet had suggested many months ago. We had been hesitant to try this new treatment because it was relatively untested. We were concerned by the lack of long-term data, and how our older dog would respond. Knowing that the current treatment was hurting his liver was the spark we needed to change treatment directions. Our vet’s opinion that we would be much happier with the new treatment—and more importantly, that Mickey should feel the benefits of the new treatment—helped us make the decision. The bonus is that with the new treatment we shouldn’t need to administer additional drugs.

Mickey has only been on the new drug for a few weeks, but so far we are very pleased with his progress. He’s less itchy, his skin looks much better, his coat is softer and shinier, he smells better, and—most importantly—he seems much happier. So keep your fingers crossed with us please.

In other Mickey news, he got into a tussle with a mother raccoon.

A few nights ago, I went to let Mickey out for his last wee of the day, but didn’t turn on the light to check for yard critters. As soon as the door closed Mickey’s head went down in his familiar “hunting” pose. I looked toward the driveway and saw what Mickey saw: a mother raccoon with two or three kits. By the time I opened the door Mickey was off the porch and heading for the raccoons. I tried to call Mickey, but he was locked on to his target. I started after him repeatedly saying “Mickey, no!” but by the time I got close Mickey had lunged for the mother raccoon and the scuffle began. I grabbed for Mickey while the raccoon screeched, and luckily was able to grab him by his collar and pull him away.

Mickey suffered a few scratches on his mouth and chest, but otherwise came away in good shape considering. I think I was more frazzled than the dog. Plus I lost my slippers in the fracas, and each time I went out to fetch them in the dark I would hear what I assumed was the wounded raccoon. So I waited until morning.

Sarah called the vet as soon as we had checked Mickey over, and the vet informed us that Mickey was probably going to be fine, but that we had to bring Mickey in the next day for a rabies booster. Apparently it is Vermont state law that domestic animals get booster shots when they have encounters with wild animals.

Mickey is fine, thankfully, but for the time being he gets his walkies on his leash.

So, how’s the weather?

After not one, not two, but at least four April snow storms, the weather has finally warmed up enough to melt the snow and ice and turn the grass green. While we enjoyed winter, we’re more than ready for spring. It’s time to get outside, get grubby and sun-burnt, and finish a few projects we started last fall, like preparing an area for our first vegetable garden, and ripping out the last of the wild blackberries to make way for some creeping juniper in front of the house. If we’re industrious, we may be able to get a fall crop of greens in this year. Meanwhile, we’ll have our CSA subscription this summer for our supply of fresh vegetables.

Long-distance Visitors

Last week, Alison stopped by for a visit on her way around the country on an extended road trip. It was a lot of fun meeting her after reading her blog for years. Meeting Maude was also great, and introducing her to Haley was hilarious (for the humans). To Haley’s credit, she was generally respectful of Maude’s space and kept the obnoxiousness under control fairly well. Alison, Rick, Maude and I also got to enjoy the first fire of the season, under the benefit of a bright, clear night.

Decorating Dilemas

The sectional sofa we ordered in February arrived yesterday. We were overjoyed at the prospect of finally having something comfortable to sit on in the living room, especially something that holds two people and two dogs comfortably. So overjoyed were we that we got absolutely nothing done yesterday…no shopping, no errands, no cleaning, and no gardening. We did get a lot of talking about decorating done while we watched the NFL draft. No final decisions have been made about the living room, and it seems unlikely that we’ll be able to finalize a plan for the space until we put up a banister on the open-sided staircase, to replace the sideboard/bar that currently serves the purpose of keeping the dogs from jumping off the fifth step, and which I’d like to move into the living room, since it doesn’t really fit in the kitchen. It’s much more complicated than it needs to be, this decorating business.

We’re also having trouble deciding where to hang all of the art we have. I think this is left-over “renter’s syndrome.” I don’t think Rick or I have ever completely decorated a place before, and so making choices about paint colors, furniture arrangements and locations of artworks on walls is a bit overwhelming. The most “done”room is our bedroom, which still needs touch-up paint and new curtains, among other minor details. Still, we’ve at least chosen the colors in there and most of the furniture is either in place or on order.

Building Blog

In other news, we’re making slow progress on the garage/apartment building project. The next step is to test for and design a septic system for the apartment (an easier and more cost-effective choice than trying to get a permit to tie the apartment in to our existing septic system). We’ve been waiting until the end of mud season to get an excavator up our driveway, so that we can dig test pits, conduct percolation tests, and hopefully find a suitable place on the property for the new system. Once the septic is finalized and our permit is approved we’ll be able to move forward with the design of the building itself. The finished structure will most likely resemble a barn from the outside, except for the possibility of a second-story balcony off of the living room of the apartment. We’re also hoping that we will have enough room in the budget to convert our current electrical system over to solar (for both the main house and the garage/apartment). Much of such budgetary flexibility will have to do with the amount of sweat equity that Rick and I are able to put into the new building - tiling, laying floors, hanging drywall, installing trim, and other finishing work. Here’s hoping that all of the hours we’ve spent watching HGTV and the DIY Network will pay off!

After our lovely visit with Nancy and Greg and recovering from the great fun that is the Tunbridge World’s Fair, we settled back into our routines. Always something to do with winter around the corner. The “job jar” in our house is like a bottomless cup of coffee.

Mickey started allergy shots in September. It took some getting used to, but I became more comfortable with sticking sharp objects into my beloved doggie. Ends up it isn’t as big a deal as I feared, and now that the shots are administered on a weekly basis, the task is much less troubling. At least the nightmares of his taking revenge have stopped. Seriously, he is a good dog and doesn’t even notice the needle in the scruff of his neck. The vet did a great job of showing me the ropes. Sarah knows how to administer the shot, but that is just in case she can’t find me.

Sarah joined me for the last gathering at the Justin Morrill Homestead to help clean up the beds for winter. Margie had a small lunch and homemade brownies for us, and we found some time to chat. It was also the last time I saw Muddy, who died a week or so later. I’ll miss that sweet dog.

Inspired by the work we did at JMH—and to fight off the urge to nap—we returned home and decided we may as well act locally. We cut back the perennials, added mulch, and harvested the herbs and the last of the Thai peppers—stringing the latter up to dry. A few weeks later I was invited to join the Board of Directors at the Justin Morrill Homestead, which is a great honor and should be a lot of fun. There is a dinner in January when I will officially join.

October was designated “Anniversary Month,” and we celebrated by going to see moe. play in Burlington at Higher Grounds. This was our first visit to the venue and we enjoyed it. Higher Grounds reminds me of DC’s 9:30 Club, but without a balcony and a much larger footprint. Oh, and no smoke! We met up with a couple of friends from South Royalton and took our usual spot near the soundboard. The sound was loud and clear. The soundboard engineer even gave us the official setlist to take home as an anniversary memento. The only draw back to the evening being how far HG is from our little place on the mountain. Even without traffic, the drive is a little over an hour, and we didn’t get home until well past 2 a.m. Thankfully, Sarah’s office was closed the next day, so we at least got to recover.

On the actual day of our anniversary (10/12) we treated ourselves to dinner out. After much debate we decided to keep things simple and went to Sean & Nora’s in Barre. Our first time there, and we will probably return. Casual yet intimate atmosphere without being anything close to pretentious. We got a nice table out of the main room, and enjoyed dinner, wine and dessert. There was an older couple next to us, who revealed to us on their way out that they were celebrating their 63rd anniversary. We were advised by the lady with the cute maple leaf brooch to keep smiling and holding hands. Sage advice.

A few days later we were honored to play host to Josh and Lori, who dropped in for a short visit. It was a nice quiet weekend taking in the fall colors, hiking, watching the Mets, eating, drinking beer and watching NFL. We were able to take a few short rural drives as well as hang out at McGillicuddy’s in Montpelier to watch some football.

The end of the month brought the CSA season to a close as well. It was a tough year for Vermont farmers, mostly due to the very wet spring we had. Our shares were smaller than both we and Jinny probably would have liked, but we still had plenty of fresh vegetables and enjoyed the variety of produce she was able to put in our weekly basket. She worked hard, and we ate well. We are grateful for the fresh local veggies grown around the corner from our home.

The thing we enjoyed most was the surprise of what we would find in our basket any given week. We started thinking of our share as if it were the secret ingredient on Iron Chef. We’d pick up our basket on Tuesday evening and plan a weeks worth of dinners based on what was in the basket, before heading off to the co-op or Shaw’s. One week we had to be creative with fennel, the next time it could be squash or corn. It certainly made grocery shopping more interesting.

Speaking of food, Thanksgiving was fun. Yuriko Kinje came up from DC and we hosted a couple of French students from the law school where Sarah works. The French students had some friends in town from Paris for a ski trip, so we invited them too. Sarah really out did herself when it came to the dinner. She made spicy roast butternut squash, green beans with garlic and tomatoes, horseradish and garlic mashed potatoes, bread stuffing, gravy, cranberry sauce with port wine and orange, and homemade pumpkin pie. Oh, and she did an amazing job with the organic, free-range turkey we got from Misty Knolls. She brined it, stuffed it with parsley, apples, onions and carrots and roasted it. Everything was delicious! Even with 8 people at Thanksgiving dinner we had plenty of leftovers. We invited Jessamyn over for a Second Thanksgiving on Saturday, and enjoyed a nice campfire after dinner.

That about catches everyone up. Since Thanksgiving we have spent a good amount of time getting ready for the holidays and Sarah’s dad, JT’s, visit from Mexico. Putting up the tree, decorating it and the house, and sending out many cards. Now it is up to Mother Nature. THINK SNOW!

My mother, Nancy, and her husband, Greg, had timed their visit with us so that we could enjoy the fair together (in addition to other activities, such as fishing and a little sight-seeing). We started off on Saturday at our favorite breakfast spot, Chelsea Station, in South Royalton. Then we drove up to northern Randolph to the Maple Ridge Sheep Farm. Linda and Tuthill Doane have been raising Shetland sheep for about 30 years, and are well-known throughout the US for their quality animals. It was fun to see the sheep farm in action, as well as some of the fleeces that Linda had for sale.

After visiting the Shetlands, we headed off to the fair, which was teeming with Tunbridgiens and other folks from near and far. We hit the grounds in time to follow up on our sheep farm fling with a junior goat show. The children and kids were competing in a variety of groups: showmanship, which focused on how the animals were groomed and presented; conformity, which emphasized the goats’ physical characteristics and breeding; the dairy class, for the milking goats of course; and the best in show for the top over-all ruminant.

Afterwards, we wandered about, sampling the various foodstuffs and exhibits. We saw a llama named “Dharma” and some beautiful peacocks, ate ice cream and fried dough, and even coerced my mom onto the ferris wheel. We also got a chance to check out the historical exhibits, and we entered the raffle to benefit the Tunbridge Historical Society.

Overall, we had a great time at the fair. There was a lot to see and do, with a little something for everyone. And even though it was crowded, most of the fairgoers were well-behaved (we didn’t venture into the beer hall, however). Next year, I’d like to try the fair during an evening. The rides have always been one of my favorite parts of any fair, and night-time makes the experience of floating, swinging and spinning above the crowds that much more exciting. But it’s also usually more crowded and raucous at night, and that isn’t for everyone. I’m glad that Nancy and Greg were able to come up during the fair and the start of foliage season. We had a great time all weekend!

But no matter which village we belong to, we are trying to fit in and become part of the community. And we are grateful that the communities have welcomed us.

That type of daydreaming is useful and fun, but the next step is a little more difficult: where do we put what? Some of the decisions are already made for us. We didn’t stump the area to the left of the driveway (as you look out from our front porch), so that will remain a wild meadow. We’ll throw down grass and let that compete with the ferns and other naturally occurring plants while keeping an eye out for saplings that might threaten to crowd the driveway again. I’ve dubbed this the “hippie garden,” a place where we can experiment with whimsical features like a gazing ball, yard art, or even a small pond. We might also use it for an area to put our chicken house, if or when we get to that stage.

To the right of the driveway is the much larger expanse of land that runs from the house to the cabin, with a second “field” further off to the right of the house. This second field was an unexpected but welcome outcome from having the area stumped and graded by our contractor, Bob, who really is “an artist with a bulldozer”, as our forester dubbed him. Bob opened up level, firm, rich soil in an area that I, for one, assumed would be too sloping and rocky to be usable. Turns out it was just a big pile of dirt waiting to be smoothed flat. We might use part of this space for a greenhouse or two, but there will be more room for planting as well.

Still a third area that we need to address is the steep slope directly in front of the house. Currently there are some wild blackberries growing there, along with some sumac and various other native…well, weeds. At first, I was trying to convince Rick that we should dig up the weeds and keep the berries, but after getting snagged in their sharp thorns while harvesting the small, somewhat bitter fruits I think it would be better to tear out all the plants and start fresh, either with a variety of cultivated berry with a better taste, or with an low-growing ornamental evergreen like juniper that wouldn’t get out of hand and crowd our amazing view.

Needless to say, we have some ideas but we’re not quite sure how to proceed. Where do we plant the various crops? How large of a vegetable patch should we carve out the first year? Where will the berries go? Do we have a good spot to grow our own hops? (We both have a keen interest in home-brewing.) Luckily, between Rick’s contacts that he’s developed through the Vermont Master Gardeners, our neighbors who have been gardening on a large scale here for over twenty years, and the knowledge we already have from other gardens, we have some good resources to tap into. It just may take a while before we really learn the quirks of our land and this new growing climate.

While it isn’t necessarily as exciting as the logging part of the project, if you are interested, you can watch the excavation on the webcam.

If you have sheep you want to graze in our field next Spring, contact us.

While Ann and Jack were in town we also got to visit the farm we chose as our CSA. Four Springs Farm was hosting their first annual Firefly Festival. Jinny invited folks over to the farm for a potluck dinner and an evening of music and fireflies. We got to wander around the farm and see the fields that are currently growing the vegetables we will be eating all summer. We brought blankets and sat around eating yummy food including ice cream from Strafford Creamery. After dinner we listened to some live music before heading home to sit on the porch and chat. It was a nice visit and we look forward to seeing them again soon!

This past weekend was also filled with fun summer visiting activites. On Friday we went over to our friends Jill and Wayne’s for an evening of grilling and hanging out. Saturday night we went up to Barre for Meredith and Adam’s ice cream social. Our hosts fed us yummy pizza and went all out with make-your-own ice cream sundaes! I nearly made myself sick with lots of ice cream, hot fudge, caramel and jimmies, but it was worth it.