Our Lifestyle Blog as We Create a Homestead in Northern Ontario
It was the best of boil times, it was the blurst of boil times… But seriously, things you never really think about in life. A few weeks ago it was front entrance cleanup day. As Kenny can attest to, this also includes the woodstove, as it is adjacent to the entrance, and I figure that … Read more
Welp, here we are in January – the month I was always holding out for during the long, dark days of November and December (and even a little bit in October already). This is the first year with nine panels feeding into our system. In spite of that, when there isn’t much sun, there isn’t … Read more
You become pragmatic about things when you’re trying to simplify or live in a small footprint. Now that the weather is consistently twenty below or colder, drying clothes outside is no longer really an option. I moved our standup rack inside and we have been making do with that, but it’s sitting in the middle … Read more
I have been quite happy with our Panda washing machine. And after extended use, we still liked it. But, as we have become more comfortable in our surroundings and have expanded our power and plumbing systems, we began to entertain the thoughts of something a bit more convenient. Time for a break Panda, you served … Read more
I screwed in the ABS panel in the corner of the kitchen that covers up the water pipes. It looks not bad, so I snapped a few pictures for your pleasure. Nice colour match! I used fancy washers on the screwheads to make it look professional. Just showing the nice corners that fit over the … Read more
Returning from the south over the holiday break also presented a few other opportunities – items I had ordered before leaving were now ready for installation! First up – protecting the wall behind the counter from inadvertent drips and splashes. I didn’t want to hide the look of our wood walls, but I didn’t feel … Read more
One experience that we’ve had more than our fair share of has been jump starting various vehicles. Our first and second winters were a lesson in finding which vehicle was able to start, and then using it to jump start the other(s) until all were running. Last year the Echo needed just one too many … Read more
The day we left for the south was reasonably sunny. I was in a hopeful mood that with the power switched off completely, any sunlight at all would go towards charging the batteries, and we could return to a nice, fully charged system. Kenny was still excited about the snow we were leaving behind. Will … Read more
Sorry to my regular readers for another hiatus, but it was the holiday season for many people, myself and my family included. This year we headed back to Waterloo earlier in the month and returned just after Christmas. We managed to dodge some dicey weather at both ends – somewhat. Starting two days before we … Read more