Beautiful

Lots of leaves behind the house

A few days ago we were able to spend some time at the new house in the morning.  It was essentially the first time we wandered around the property in the daylight. It was simply stunning to see the views with the sun having just come up. 

Picnic table 

View of property and outlying fields from the top of the hill

Remains of the old barn

The original tree-lined driveway

I can't wait to live here.  The country is calling.

The 'Before' - Part 2

Master Bedroom

Upstairs Hallway

Bedroom 2

Bedroom 3

Bedroom 4

Upstairs Bathroom

Upstairs Family Room

Bedroom 5

Overgrown Front Door

Lamposts at the road

Tomorrow?  Some beautiful shots of the stunning countryside.  

The 'Before'

Kitchen work space

Eating area and wood stove

Living Room

Dining Room

Front Door

Beautiful floors...yikes

Main Floor Bathroom

Bathtub/Shower

Laundry Room

Indoor pool....just kidding!  That thing has got to go.

Kids Playroom

Kids Playroom - opposite wall

Front Staircase

The countdown to demolition day is on!  In 5 days a huge dumpster will arrive and the gutting will begin. 

Tomorrow?  Upstairs 'before' photos and some of the beautiful country.

Stew-pendous

I was not a fan of sweet potato and had never tried kale.  Why would I try Pork, Sweet Potato & Kale stew?  The recipe seemed easy enough and that is really the only thing that counts.  And it was delicious. 

Let's get started.

Collect all your ingredients.

Cut pork into bite size chunks.

Place pork in slow cooker.  Top with garlic, onions, dry mustard, cumin, chili powder, thyme, salt and pepper.

Top with sweet potato cut into large chunks.

Stir together strained tomatoes, molasses, vinegar, and water.

Pour liquid mixture over sweet potatoes.  Cover slow cooker and cook on low 6 hours.

Stem and chop 4 cups of kale.

Stir flour into the liquid of slow cooker (push aside the pork and sweet potato to make it a

little easier).

Top with kale, cover and cook for 30 minutes more (until kale is wilted).

Serve with a thick slice of crust bread.  Enjoy!

This stew was hearty and flavourful.  Country Boy had three large servings.  That generally means success!  What I learned?  It's good to try new things....kale is amazing and I actually enjoyed the sweet potatoes.

P.S. I'll post the full recipe once I find where I put it.  :(

Tomorrow?  Day 1 of 'Before' pictures of the renovation.

Boo!

Big Farmer, Baby Farmer and Little Farmer ready for the big night.

Transformers, tigers and superheroes....oh my!  If you can get past the horrendous lighting in this photo you are wondeful.  My mothers living room does not make for the best photography.  Normally, I am not a fan of store bought costumes but decided, with the craziness of my life right now, it would probably be okay to cut myself a little slack. 

Halloween was extra fun this year with my biggest farmers having realized that this was the night they would get candy.  Baby Farmer garnered lots of attention running around shrieking like a wild banshee...possibly because that is what he saw the teenage girls doing.  Little Farmer developed an obsession with zombies which, at first, I was not too pleased about.  However, the obsession culminated last night in him asking if I have zombies in my bum.  Perhaps he doesn't know quite what they are after all....

Tomorrow?  The results of my stew.   Remember my stew?  Let's just pretend that the recipe called for 6 days of cooking on low.

Baby Farmer striking a pose with his signature frown.