SELF-CARE SEPTEMBER

Hey friends!

It’s Friday, the 13th…and a full moon… Maybe we should all go back to bed and hide under the covers.

It’s a drizzly day here in the valley, with a damp coolness that has me dreaming of firing up the old wood stove and snuggling on the couch with some mulled wine. The weather today is a welcome break from the 90+ degrees we’ve had this week. So far though, we’ve happily found that the temperatures at Hidden Meadow are never as warm as in town, and most days you can find a delightful little breeze playing through the yard.

This week has been one of recovery for the most part from our frantic fence-building and goat shelter building of late. In case you missed our video update over the weekend, our four baby goats were delivered Sunday evening and are settling in beautifully to their new home.

I was texting with a dear friend this week about the importance of self-care. In encouraging her to make more time for herself, realized I needed to take some of my own medicine. And so I did. On Wednesday afternoon, when the temperatures soared to 90 degrees, I pushed back from my massive mac screen, shimmied into my swimsuit and went for a delightful dip in the pool. Afterwards I laid out for 30 whole minutes with an iced coffee and my book and it was just divine.

I stopped thinking about my work to-do list, my house to-do list, farm to-do list.

I just breathed and soaked the sunshine into my soul. No better medicine.

So I encourage you if you’re feeling overwhelmed at all, or even if you aren’t, declare this month as Self-Care September. Make time, even if it’s just a few minutes each day to do something just for you. Push back from your emails, and your texts, and go take a bubble bath, drink that glass of wine, pick up that book, or go for a walk. The dishes will keep, your emails will still be there, and your social feed will be just fine without you.

So what did this week look like at Hidden Meadow? Let’s start with the goats. We had a paddock area across the creek fenced on three sides. So we had one 35 ft stretch of fencing to build. So after watching a few youtube videos, a ridiculous number of trips to Lowes, and an amazing amount of supplies crammed into our Rav4. (seriously, can’t believe how much it can fit) We started the fence on Thursday night. Tim used his new Auger (a gift from Ruth & Roger) to dig the postholes. Because these are goats and not horses or cows, we went with 6.5 foot posts and buried them about 2.5 ft in the ground. We secured them with quickcrete and let them sit till Saturday.

We then strung and stretched our wire fencing with 2″x4″ openings to keep critters out and keep them from getting their little horns and heads stuck.  Using a wire stretcher and come-along had a steep learning curve but was so satisfying when it was done.

We were pretty pleased with how the fence came out. We’re planning to add some boards across the top at some point, but for now, she’s sturdy and getting the job done.

The final part of the equation was building them a shelter. Goats are famous for a couple of things, 1) they will eat anything, 2) they HATE getting wet. Seriously hate it. So a shelter was a must-have. Back to youtube and the wonders of the internets. I found a guy who used old pallets to build a goat shelter, so I set off and found a ridiculous amount of free palettes in town, I hauled them back in the amazing Rav, and we got to work. It’s basically 48″ on the tall side, 40″ on the short side so it creates a nice slope for the roof. We lined with plywood to better keep out the elements. And added a corrugated recycled roof with asphalt. I painted her white and the job’s a good ‘un. (also please note below their four adorable little feed pans all ready and waiting for them)

And here are the babes settling in for their afternoon naps. If you’ll notice, the two kids laying down (well first they are twins, so cute) but they also are wearing their collars with bells. When they are out in the larger pastures eating brush I put the bells on them so I can hear them while I work, and I feel like I’m in Switzerland or something.

I can step out on the deck at any point in the day and call them and they all baaaa in unison. It’s pretty stinkin cute. They also run up to you and love being petted, well two do, the other two are a little shy but we’re workin on it.

So what else have we been up to you ask? Because clearly we’ve been lazy bums? Well as promised here are the before and after photos of our living room.

The walls were a pale yellow before. The ceiling was all natural wood which was hiding the beautiful beams in the room. The warmth from the walls, and floors and ceiling was all a bit much and gave off a rustic lodge vibe instead of a modern farmhouse.

We painted the walls and ceiling one of my favorite whites: Chantilly Lace. I wanted to paint the walls and ceiling the same color to draw the eye up and really showcase the beams. Tim’s mum’s piano fit perfectly in the little windowed alcove in the room. I caught him sitting down to brush up on his playing last weekend.

I found this amazing jute and denim rug (top right) online and added it to the room last week. My mother gave us this coffee table she had in storage as she thought the curves would be a nice addition to the room with so many angles. She’s a smart lady.  I love how the beams pop now against the white!

The dining room and kitchen also got a coat of white and brightened them right up. On the right is the craigslist bookcase I got for $50. It’s a beast of solid wood – an old converted wardrobe, and I love it. While there are still things to paint, and pictures and mirrors to hang, I love how the room is coming along so far.

Next week I’ll share before and after photos of Tim’s office – the current project. Until then friends. Thanks for following along.