gardening

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Making a House a Home

You can pay money for a house. You can move into that house. You can even start improvements on that house. But for me at least those steps don’t make a house a home. It’s been such a long time since I have had a house, at first I thought it was just a transition problem, but honestly this feels quite a bit like the first house we ever bought and just like then it felt a bit like we were “playing house.” Weird right for a 58-year-old woman? But I try to own my feelings at this age, and it just didn’t feel permanent to me.

I have no doubt that some of that was 10 years of moving from place to place with a built-in lack of permanence and I hoped that as we started to make the house “our own” that would change. Lee was tremendously helpful with this because I have been working a lot so he had me post a list on the fridge of my top 5 items I wanted done. Simultaneously he worked on things he cared about as well and slowly we started to change the space.

One of my favorite things he did was turn the large breezeway/mud room into a HUGE pantry. He hung shelves on the walls, built freestanding shelves for canned goods, and turned this weird awkward space into an amazing room. I also found a space for all of my magnets from our travels, and now I really like it in there. One of the best things he bought was a couple of cabinets and a countertop from FB Marketplace and now I have a space I can use to plant or do canning. At the moment it’s a GREAT space to unbag groceries when they get here without making a mess of the kitchen. VERY cool.

At the same time, I decided I was going to try and plant a fall garden, and he helped me tackle the crazy weird situation out there. In the month between the offer and closing we had a wall of thistle and other weeds that were well over our heads, and to clear all that out was a multi-day effort. Lee used a brush cutter attachment on the weedeater, then I would hand remove the thistles then he did it again. My in-laws gave me a nice little roto tiller (lifesaver) and I tilled the ground and then shoveled out whatever was left. It took over a week to get it all done (we could only work part of each day because of the heat) and I was able to plant some corn, green beans, and snow peas. I planted from seeds and wasn’t sure how that would go but this is good dirt, and I am shocked by how quickly I have gotten sprouts. Very cool! During this process I also for the first time in my life created a compost pile which was a layer of cardboard, layer of vegetation, over and over again, I stopped when the pile got to about 4 feet tall and I am pretty proud of the effort. Better for the environment and hopefully at some point I will have mulch and/or soil.

I look alot like my grandma in this picture

Oh and guess what! Back in the corner totally surrounded with weeds we discovered two huge rasberry bushes!! Very cool. It was a bear getting the weeds out of there, but there is already tons of fruit.

The beginning of my compost heap
It doesn’t look like much in the pictures but that is all the weeds from the garden, most of the cardboard boxes we have been ordering, and the straw and llama poop from the barn stalls. It took more trips than I can count to make this pile.

So, the outside areas were starting to feel like mine but the house not so much. Part of that was we were still waiting on living room furniture so when the couch and chair came and we finally got it arranged that made a big difference. Ultimately, I talked Lee into hanging the TV on the wall and putting the couch underneath it and the room really works now. Plus, it was all in time for Wimbledon which I have rarely gotten to watch the last ten years but with a DVR and cable I could watch to my heart’s content.

Original TV placement on a temporary stand the previous owners left behind.
Furniture Arrived

The original couch placement Lee and Jack loved but I felt shoved in the corner in my new chair (which is awesome by the way) but admittedly too big for the room.

Just didn’t work for me
This works sooo much better! Oh and Jack loves the rug I bought. He’s much happier with less hardwood floor!

There were other things along the way that really mattered to me. Lee installed a screen door in the front which was awesome and although he was worried it was actually as easy as could be and only took him 15 minutes!

We also got some housewarming presents from a couple of people that were really nice and had some visitors which was great!

From my sister and brother-in-law
My boss at work this made me laugh so hard
And Denny my father-in-law bought me some cute Llama pillows

One of the other things that made it start to feel like home was when we got the rest of our storage tubs from DeDe and Denny’s. It was mostly T-Shirts from our travels (Lee has enough literally to last until he dies) but there were a few treasures in there including this colander my mom gave me that I kept all these years.

No joke this is a small portion of them
Funny Story Lee bought me a new set forgetting we had saved one so now I have three!

Overall, the thing that had the most impact was the first night we had a steak dinner. It took a few weeks to be able to sit down and have a nice meal, but that moment felt very special. For us home is truly where the steak is 🙂

It still doesn’t feel like home quite yet, but we are getting there, and I am about to fill it with animals which I think will make all the difference. That’s in the next post!

We very much appreciate your support of our blog.

  • You can purchase the ebook telling the story of how we became full-time RVers.
  • You can purchase our recipe book filled with 80 recipes we have cooked in our RV and taste tested by Lee himself. You can purchase the kindle or paperback version on Amazon or buy the Apple version on Itune
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We made an offer on a house!!

Well, it’s been a whirlwind these last two weeks but (spoiler alert) we made an offer on a house. It is a small ranch on 3 acres of land with several outbuildings and just perfect to have a hobby farm. I’ll talk more about the house later, but I should probably back up a bit and tell you how we got here.

It’s worth noting that I have only owned two houses in my life and it’s been 23 years since I have gone through this process. Now it is a sellers’ market, versus 10 years ago when I sold my last house and it quickly became apparent that we better have our ducks in a row and make an offer quickly. Over the course of one weekend, we went to three open houses and drove by 25 others and the “good ones” weren’t on the market long.

We came particularly close to a 100 year old farmhouse on one acre of land but thankfully someone else made an offer on it. I say thankfully because I liked the idea of the house more than the actual living space and ultimately, I think it would have been a mistake. Part of the problem is Lee and I were pretty far apart on what we wanted. We agreed on the land and outbuildings, but I wanted a smaller ranch with everything on one floor and Lee wanted something with “character”. He loves the older homes, which I do as well in concept, but I am looking for something I can stay in until I need assisted living, and those old stairs are not super friendly for older people.

It may seem weird at 58 to be looking so far ahead, but I am looking to put down roots and I imagine those are going to run deep. After some pretty intense conversations we met in the middle and found an older ranch with some quirks that make it unique. Actually, looking for a quirky house works to our benefit because quirky usually means a little less expensive! What really spoke to us though was the land. The 3 acres has multiple mature trees with just massive low canopies, and a huge garden along with a small two stall barn. Someone raised llamas there and there are three pastures already fenced off. It also has a new detached two car garage and an attached garage which will be perfect for my pottery/craft studio. Best of all it has a large open kitchen which I was adamant about after years of cooking in a small RV kitchen.

Yes, the bedrooms are small, and the bathrooms are nothing special but overall, it was perfect. So, we completed a showing on Saturday and by Sunday they had accepted our offer. Then the fun began. We were already preapproved for a conventional loan but the amount of paperwork they want now is crazy. Thankfully we have everything electronic, so it wasn’t too bad to find most of the documents. A couple of weird things was proof we paid our taxes this year (That’s harder to do than we thought it would be) and a letter from my company stating I had the right to work remotely. That was because my work address is in Dallas, and I can only guess they want to make sure I can keep my job after I move.

The interest rates are higher than I would like at 6% but I will take it and the 15-yr fixed rate loan we ultimately applied for. The loan requires 5% down and I am hoping when the bank appraisal comes in they don’t need any more than that. When we sold our house 10 years ago, we basically broke even, so I don’t have a pot of money sitting around to put into the house. Being debt free is great though and really gives us a leg up on qualifying but unless I want to tap into my 401K (which I don’t) the mortgage will be around $2500 a month and of course we will have utility payments for the first time in ten years. The good news is even though it’s rural we can get cable internet for the first time in forever which is exciting for both of us.

My idea is to have a hobby farm and try out having bees, goats, canning, and other things I have wanted to try for years. Apparently this is called “homesteading” now and is super trendy, but for me it is going back to my roots in small town Ohio. I didn’t grow up on a farm but went to school with lots of farm kids and my parents gardened and canned foods pretty consistently when I was young. The idea of having a freezer full of farm raised beef is super appealing and I am dying to try having some chickens. The cool thing is if I find gardening or farm animals are not worth the work I can always pivot and change the use of the land. I happened to have lunch with a cardiologist last Sunday and she said she loves homesteading because she finds it so relaxing. I think that is how I will be. Then again, I’ve never tried to catch a chicken.

I am not going to share any pictures here or any more details until after the close because frankly you never know. The inspection could uncover a major issue or the bank appraisal can come in low and the whole deal could go away. If that happens we will accept it and move on with our search with the added benefit of really knowing what we are looking for. That being said please think good thoughts for me because I really think this house will be perfect. I promise to let you know as soon as anything major happens so stay tuned.

Oh, one last thing. We originally were going to have to move from our current RV park June 6th which was going to be a major pain because the closing is scheduled on June 13th. Thankfully we got a call yesterday that someone cancelled last minute which got us another site until June 26th. Absolutely amazing! Things all seem to be coming together.

We very much appreciate your support of our blog.

  • You can purchase the ebook telling the story of how we became full-time RVers.
  • You can purchase our recipe book filled with 80 recipes we have cooked in our RV and taste tested by Lee himself. You can purchase the kindle or paperback version on Amazon or buy the Apple version on Itune
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First Time at Tuscon Botanical Garden

We waited until the very end of our time in Tuscon to see the botanical garden with the hope that some flowers would be in bloom. When we initially walked into the garden we went to the left and didn’t see much color but still walked around and enjoyed the beautiful sculptures. I also really liked the colorful benches and they had bee houses and a beautiful butterfly sculpture to honor the 1-1/2 million children that were killed in the holocaust.

Pretty quickly though we entered an area that was full of birds and it was really amazing. A couple were building nests and swooped very close to our heads and we got to see birds in holes in saguaro cacti which was super cool. Unfortunately, I didn’t get very good pictures of the birds but their song filled the area which was nice. We also walked around a corner and saw a VERY realistic statue of a velociraptor which made me jump a little 🙂

My favorite part though was the flower garden area which was an explosion of color. IT’s been months since we have seen flowers like this and it was beautiful. They also had several small gardens with colorful statues and various homemade flower pots which was great as well.

DeDe you should make one of these

They also had a small butterfly garden which Lee loved. It was a bit claustrophobic for me but Lee stayed in a long time. There is a HUGE moth in there, the Atlas moth, with a wingspan of over 10 inches.

By far though the best area was the train area. They have a HUGE outdoor space with multiple trains and reproductions of famous buildings. The buildings were made by engineering students at the local college and judging by the Yellowstone Lodge reproduction (I’ve been inside the original) are very accurate. Lee had a blast in this area as did other kids big and small and I highly recommend bringing your kid to this garden because it is super kid friendly.

Lee made a video of this as well! Looks best full screen in 1080!

Finally they had a lovely gift shop and we were super impressed with the entire garden. They definitely have made the most of a relatively small space and I can’t say enough about how interactive it was.

We very much appreciate your support of our blog.

  • You can purchase the ebook telling the story of how we became full-time RVers.
  • You can purchase our recipe book filled with 80 recipes we have cooked in our RV and taste tested by Lee himself. You can purchase the kindle or paperback version on Amazon or buy the Apple version on Itune
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First Time at Tohono Chul

When you talk to people about places to go in Tucson, several people mention the gardens at Tohono Chul. But since it’s January and not much is in bloom I truly wasn’t expecting much, but it turned out to be a beautiful place. The layout was surprisingly spacious with a long walking path, multiple courtyards, a children’s area, and several gift shops and was more than worth the price of admission. They even have a greenhouse on site where you can buy some of the plants you see while walking around which was really great.

There is an inner trail and an outer trail but we spent most of our time on the inside trail. Along the way the plants were all clearly marked which was nice and there were gorgeous sculptures that I absolutely loved.

My absolute favorite part though were the MANY small courtyard areas that showed what you could do with a small space. Several of these had small water features and I am not kidding I loved loved them. Made me want to have a patio and start creating which I am sure if the point.

My absolute favorite was a gorgeous set of stairs with a waterfall inside the semi-circle surrounded by plants. Absolutely beautiful. I would love to have something like this one day.

They even had a small farm that showed how to grow crops in the desert and a little museum with some local artwork I really liked. Truly this place is worth a stop even in the winter time. They pack quite a bit into a relatively small space and it was really lovely.

Two last things we saw that were really special. One was a bird drinking out of a water hose and the other was a dedication plaque with a saying that really spoke to me. This little moments are really special in our travels and this place was full of them.

The bird was sticking it’s head in the end of the hose
Loved this

We very much appreciate your support of our blog.

  • You can purchase the ebook telling the story of how we became full-time RVers.
  • You can purchase our recipe book filled with 80 recipes we have cooked in our RV and taste tested by Lee himself. You can purchase the kindle or paperback version on Amazon or buy the Apple version on Itune
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First Time with an RV Garden

When we first moved into this RV park we discovered that we were allowed to have small pet fencing and “some” plants. This was a first for us in over 10 years of traveling, and we definitely wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to give Jack a fenced in area so he could lay outside and watch the world go by. I also really wanted to have a few plants, if for nothing else than to block the large pipes next to our site, so before I left I found some pots on clearance and was excited about filling them up when I came back.

For those of you who know Lee what happened next will come as no surprise, but even after 35 years of marriage I have to say his commitment to doing something that really matters to him surprises even me. When I came back he had a beautiful little white picket fence constructed, with a front and back gate, all set up, and a handful of maybe 6 or 8 plants. That same weekend we went to a wonderful small nursery I had found, and bought a few shrubs and trees and plants.

This is what I saw when I came home!
We added these Silver Sheen, they work great to help block the pipe, grow well in pots, and are pretty in the sunlight. When they sway in the breeze the sunlight makes the leaves look silver, they’re beautiful. The pots were a lucky find at Home Goods for only $15 end of season clearance. They’re HUGE.
And we added some flowers

My other three plants were all flowering and we got hummingbirds and bees right away. The roses in particular were absolutely beautiful and will bloom here all year. When I saw my first hummingbird I bought one feeder and we got so many hummingbirds Lee bought 4 more. At times we have as many as 30 hummingbirds snacking in our yard and Jack really likes watching them through Lee’s desk window.

So in no time we had flowers, and plants, and hummingbirds. We even had a tomato plant, cilantro, green onions, and strawberries. For me it was perfect. But Lee, well Lee had other ideas 🙂

I should say at this point that Lee’s Mom and Dad have a gorgeous garden. And when I say gorgeous I mean they were on the front page of the Columbus Dispatch newspaper gorgeous. I recommend taking a moment here and clicking this link to a previous blog post about their garden. You truly have to see it to believe it. I mention that because when Lee decided he wanted to try and put a little water feature into our little space it’s not as crazy as it might initially sound. I will say though I was pretty dubious for a variety of reasons, but I should have known that when Lee wants something he generally makes it happen. He spent the next month scouring Facebook marketplace and little by little he created his pond.

Because we obviously can’t dig here and the center is twice as deep as the shelf edge, he used some wood to support the edge so it wouldn’t droop when it was full of water, and it worked perfecetly. The actual pond, pump, filter and waterfall spillway he bought used on FB marketplace from a bunch of different people, and a ton of work went into positioning it and raising and lowering the spillway until he got the perfect sound. Then we went to a specialty pond store and bought a few pond plants. The most expensive was the lily at $50 (ouch) but we only need one and it is really pretty.

Next he bought some stone pavers and then flowering plants to put all around the pond. Along the way he asked my opinion about colors and types of plants, which I appreciated but largely I stood back and tried not to get in his way lol.

I had the idea to put a couple of long hanging plants on hooks right behind the fountain to sort of frame the water fall with greenery and give it a background, and I bought the frog at a swap meet and added the spiky plant so he would look cool, and Lee just popped him into the spillway where he stands guard over the pond.

I was a bit worried that we were overdoing it and someone would say something, because some people are like that, but so far the responses from neighbors have been very positive, and the kids in the park are really fascinated. One older gentleman even stopped and told me we were the pretties site in the park, which was nice to hear. Beauty is contagious, too. Our neighbor added a bunch more plants, and some outdoor string lights, and a couple of hummingbird feeders, which was fine by me because they are greedy little buggers, and now we’re going through a lot less sugar. 🙂

Lee talking to some kids in the neighborhood. He added three of four different types of fish and somehow we even got a visiting frog, so there is lots to look at.

Since Lee likes sitting outside so much he also added some RGB LED pond lighting, a long string patio lights, and a few dozen flicker flame tiki lights hidden all over. I really like how the lights make the garden look at night. It really is beautiful, and since it’s temperate here year round we are really hoping we will be able to enjoy it in the winter months.

Knowing Lee this will be a work in progress as long as we live here, but I wanted to catch you up. Yes, we know that if we move ALL of it will have to go, but building something with that in mind is kind of freeing. I am sure there are lots of people here in the park who would be happy to buy or take various pieces of what we have done and in any event we have no plans on moving in the near future so why not enjoy it while we can? Our quality of life went up exponentially when we moved here from the previous park in the valley, and now it has shot up again, which is nice.

We very much appreciate your support of our blog.

  • You can purchase the ebook telling the story of how we became full-time RVers.
  • You can purchase our recipe book filled with 80 recipes we have cooked in our RV and taste tested by Lee himself. You can purchase the kindle or paperback version on Amazon or buy the Apple version on Itunes