Happy Home-iversary

It was exactly 1 year ago that we signed the papers on our home.

What a fun year it has been!

We have enjoyed our own space - inside and outside - 

have enjoyed learning about yard care and some inside maintenance

and we continue to enjoy dreaming about improvements as time or funds allow.

We have been so thankful each day for God's provision of a home.

We are truly blessed.

In addition to the home itself,

He continues to provide for the payments plus extra.

As of this morning, God has paid off 85% of our home.

It appears that on our second "home-iversary," we may actually own our home outright.

In honor of our home-iversary,

I have focused on some "Spring" cleaning this week.

When asked what this entails:

it involves moving furniture and appliances to clean,

it involves cleaning the curtains,

it involves going through cupboards and closets,

it even involves cleaning on top of the kitchen cabinets (which still had sawdust from the installation).

At this point, I have the "little" guest room with its "big" closet

and I have the laundry room left to clean.

As I have cleaned and found "homeless" things, this last room has become a bit cluttered.

I have also been waging a new war.

We have had an invasion of Japanese Beetles.

We first discovered them on the apple trees

and they have since found the cherry tree out front.

We have seen their evidence around the neighborhood.

I think we caught it before the damage was at crisis level.

I had planted nasturtium and marigolds which they were not supposed to like -

but later found them living in and under the marigolds - so much for that theory.

I tried a homemade mint spray - again a scent they were supposed to hate - 

they would fly away for a bit and then come back as happy as could be.

I tried a commercial "natural" spray which again worked for a couple of hours,

and then they were back.

I have now installed two "beetle" bags.

While I may be calling the beetles from the whole neighborhood,

they are working to keep the swarms off of my trees.

I also broke down and dusted my apple trees and serviceberry tree.

Quite the lesson to learn on my home-iversary.

 

And, it looks like we will have neighbors in the backyard VERY soon.

We are praying for nice quiet neighbors.

Two houses are just about done (but not purchased yet)

and the third should be going up in the next 2 weeks.

It will be nice when their yards get some grass to extend the green that we see :)