Splish, splash

After weeks of rain, mud, mold and mushrooms ... we must remind ourselves that the sun will shine again (hopfully soon!). To help that effort, enjoy these photos of the last "summer" day we had in New England ... June 7. It was so hot that Sunday even Moses needed to cool off. He enjoyed hours of play in our yard, splashing with his girlfriend Soli.

Earlier that day, the pups attended Whisker Walk at the Lancaster Fairgrounds; here's a shot of them enroute.

Knock, knock ...

We're loving our "new" storm door. The door is an orginal, or close to original, piece of the house - as its hand-forged rosehead nails indicate. By the early 1800s, nail cutting machines were in general use in America, especially on the east coast ... so we are to assume the door dates back close to the construction of the house in 1775. It formerly seperated what is now our entry-way and kitchen. After taking it down over a year ago in the remodeling process, we knew we'd find the perfect use for it again. The hardware we used is also antique, taken from a 19th century home in Lancaster that was being torn down by its owner.

We'll leave you with a pic of the world's best cat, Sam ... lounging in the entry-way, as he does every afternoon, waiting for us to get home from work.

A Sunday guest …

Early last evening, we had a surprise visitor call on us: a GIANT snapping turtle.

Just before dusk, while trying to unwind from a productive weekend (post-and-rail is in!), we noticed a car pulled over in front of the house. Someone had stopped to rescue the biggest snapping turtle we have ever seen from the middle of the road. We ran out of the house, camera in hand to take part in the rescue.

The passers-by managed to move the massive, snapping reptile a few feet off the street and onto our lawn and continued along their way. Afterwards, as we stood there gawking at the poor lil’ guy (that we now refer to as Turtle Joe, II) … we felt compelled to get him to safer ground. Here are a few photos we “snapped” while deciding how to accomplish this.

You can see his eyes and nostrils clearly.

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Look at his tail!!!!!!!!!!!! It has spikes!

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And those claws!!

Ready to snap …

After careful consideration and advice from a neighbor taking an evening stroll, we decided to gently roll him on his back … scoop him up with a snow shovel and carry him several yards down to the stream bed.

See below for Eric in action. Just look at it … the turtle looks like a baby dinosaur! We estimate he weighed 35-40 pounds.

An all too short, long weekend

It was a memorable Memorial Day weekend at 100 South Meadow. The weather: perfect. The company: sublime. Renovation progress: ideal!

Motivated by the amazing weather, we turned our renovation attention outdoors this past weekend. We spent some time doing the usually late-spring activities ... grass was cut, perennials planted and yard picked up. But for the better part of the weekend, our efforts focused on erecting a picket fence across the street side of our property. Soon, a post-and-rail section will be built near the property line bordering our kind and encouraging neighbors, the Ranieris.

Here's some photos of both the picket in progress ... and some pre-cookout shots with the finished fence in view.

in BLOOM

South Meadow is in bloom -- and our property is no exception. We're trying to relish every fragrant moment of our lilac bush before the blooms fade all to early.

Elsewhere - The apple tree is showing signs of Spring, as sprigs of forsythia brighten our kitchen.

Coming up: Work on restoring/renovating our attached barn is about to begin. Stay tuned for updates on this new project.

... but inside it's so delightful.

More snow predicted for tomorrow … adding to an already challenging winter. This makes us especially grateful for the blessings inside of 100 South Meadow. Most recently – a warm, fully functioning kitchen.

Take a look at the “before” and “after” pictures below. New England Country used wood salvaged from our home and barn to construct the cabinetry. We hope you’re as amazed as we are at the transformation.

There are still some odds and ends left to complete – such as cleaning up the beams and some paint touch-ups – but take a look at the results here:


BEFORE:















(old sink area)

















(old front windows area)

















AFTER:
(new sink area)
































(front windows)

(built-in dining nook)

Let it Snow!

After three straight days of steady snow ... South Meadow was left a Winter Wonderland.

Check out how last week's Ice Storm left our usually babbling brook:

And has become tradition, we'll leave you with some images of baby Moses -- snapped over the snowy weekend: