Ivywood Cottage, Garden and Mini Farm

The joy of life is in the journey and we have decided to journey down the path less traveled. Join us as we embark on a new path in our lives striving to live a sustainable life here in our little shire in the mountains and reduce our footprint on this earth.
We will share our experiences with our garden, our goats and chickens, our path to environmental stewardship, cooking from scratch and organically, crocheting, bread making, jam making, homeschooling, soap making and just living simply and being good stewards of our little piece of land God has seen fit to provide us with. We feel that sustainable living starts in your own backyard and so we are endeavoring to walk the walk and not just talk the talk.

God sent us a little home,
to come back to when we roam.
Red fire lite and lots of chairs,
a loft for our daughter at the top of the stairs.
God sent us a little ground,
with tall trees standing round.
A cottage in a cove of pine,
small to be sure, but we like it just fine.
God bless us when the wind blows,
our home and all we know.
author unknown

May those who love, us love us
And those that don't love us,
May God turn their hearts:
And if He doesn't turn their hearts,
May He turn their ankles,
So we'll know them by their limping.

COME SIT WITH ME AND HAVE SOME TEA!!!
The teapot is on,
the cups are waiting.
Favorite chairs anticipating.
Fresh from the oven
and stacked on a plate,
skones and raspberry jam await.
For one and for all
who enter thru my garden gate.
author unknown

The cozy fire is bright and gay,
The merry kettle boils away and hums a cheerful song.
I sing the saucer and the cup;
Pray, Mary, fill the teapot up,
And do not make it strong.
Barry Pain, The Poets at Tea

Now stir the fire, and close the shutters fast,
Let fall the curtains, wheel the sofa round,
And, while the bubbling and loud hissing urn,
Throw up a steamy column and the cups
That cheer but not inebriate, wait on each,
So let us welcome peaceful ev'ning in.
William Cowper

Cobblestone paths in yard and from house to soap shed
Run electricity to the soap cottage
Build new chicken coop in front of chicken pen
New goat houses
Learn to make goat's milk cheese
Plant blueberry bushes
Add arbors and plant grapes between house and soap shed
Plant a minimum of 6 apple trees
Install gutters for rain collection
Rain storage barrels
Solar panels on house
Solar lights with motion detectors on house, barn and soap cottage
Double paned windows

Accomplishments
Walk to work
Recycle
Plant more raspberries and blackberries
Remove asphalt from front driveway
Install skylight in loft
Cloth napkins
Homeschooling
Goatkeeping
Yogurt making
Ice cream making
Jam making
Small flock of chickens for eggs
Soap making
Bread making
Canvas shopping bags
Composting
Eliminating non essential kitchen appliances
No dishwasher
Front loading washer that saves water
Low flow shower head
Ceiling fans
Cast iron and stainless steel cookware
Buying organic as much as possible
Clothes line

Weather sunny & warm, a perfect fall day
Ivywood's Cottage Kitchen not sure yet
Homeschool Math~positive and negative numbers with exponents, Religion~The cross and true riches, Latin~unit test on first 5 chapters, English~Learning Language Arts Through Literature~chp 7, World History~The Gifts of Primitive Man, Science~Air
Healthgood
Soap Pot empty
Grateful For my job
Today's Happenings homeschool, work
Sunday Breakfast sausage, homemade waffles, hash browns, tea, coffee and juice