Today, a year ago, we spent an innocent weekend up in Sharon Springs NY (another interesting place). We were leaf peeping and land peeping, but who would have thought we'd find something our first time around......????
This all started actually, with an ad for a stone farmhouse for sale, in Country Living Magazine. It looked like the house of my dreams....historic, restored, funky, antiquey....it had some land (not much-but who knows what is, when you live in suburbia)....cheap, or what sounded cheap, to us city folk. A call to a friend, who had relocated to this same area, from our hometown, revealed what the magazine, magically, left out. While this house was indeed a jewel, it was surrounded by dilapidated houses or trailers, a section 8 apartment building across the street, next to a trailer proudly flying a confederate flag. OK, not my idea of idyllic, country, weekends & happily ever after! Hence this house is still for sale.....and it will be, until someone has the money & ambition, to move it, to a better area!
So, I hooked up with a realtor & booked us into a B&B & off we went! Never before had I been in this area...but I guess it was love at first site! And the rest is history! And this Blog!
OK now fast forward to this weekend,,,,Peter took our son Daniel up for the first time, to lend him a hand, installing the boiler & HW heater (YAY)
Daniel, who has always stayed behind, when I join Peter for the weekend, to take care of our 2 dogs,( since there is no room in a tuna can sized trailer, for four people & 2 big dogs) never was inclined to see the farmhouse anyway, once he heard there was no cell phone service (a fate worst than death to a 20 yr old) But, Peter really needed him this weekend & he had no great plans & he's a big, strong, lad.....who owes us big time, so yeah, we made him go up there.
Long story short, he liked it! He didn't realize the vastness of 90 acres. He rode a quad (which he hadn't done in years) all over, explored the barn & the remains of the ice house, climbed the waterfalls, snaked thru the trails, deep in the woods. He was always, my nature boy, so I knew, he would really relate, once he got over his cell phone.
The boiler & HW heater are now installed. It was an impressive job. Next, the sheetrockers. Next, Peter runs the baseboards. And we inch closer & closer to being able to sleep in the farmhouse.
Daniel survived being unplugged, for the weekend. He was rested & good natured about the whole thing. Actually, that's the nice thing about the farmhouse, I think. Its good to unplug.
Our actual anniversary, of buying the farmhouse, is in January, when we closed. We celebrated, by carrying in a box of pots & pans (my idea) & putting the farmhouse back to sleep for the winter.
We've often said, about this spontaneous, almost impulsive, purchase....its either the most brilliant idea we've ever had together, or its our worst decision yet. A year later-we still think it was brilliant!