We have Pear trees!

Well, the mini orchard that we originally thought was an apple orchard, is really apple and pear. Turns out that two of our 5 fruit trees are pear trees. It's so cool to discover that you have something that you didn't know. That little farm seems to be full of surprizes every time we are there! So now we have 2 apple, 2 pear, one cherry tree, and one large raspberry bush. We feed the chickens the raspberries and they love them! Next Spring I can plant a nice vegetable garden and a flower cutting garden too. Hopefully we will get the pond dug out next Spring too and stock it with some fish. There is so much we want to do, but of course the house takes priority. But we made progress on the kitchen last time. Got all of the walls, dark wood trim, cabinets and brick primed. It's so nice to see the ugly pink and blue and brown disappear. It was a big accomplishment and the kids all helped. We are so proud that our kids are so willing to pick up a paint brush and work in a dirty, musty old kitchen. It's hard work and they are just as eager and happy to do it as we are. And I know one day they will be proud when they look back on all the work they did to restore our old house. It's a great experience and will hopefully make them better little people because of it.
On another note, we also decided that we need to build a bigger coop. The one we bought as a kit was fine when they were smaller, but we want them to have more space. The more room they have, the happier they will be. And the happier chicken, lays better eggs! So, my wonderful husband offered to build me a delux walk-in coop like the one he built me a few years ago but had to take apart because our neighbors complained. We have 8 hens and one rooster, so a larger walk-in coop with windows for ventilation, and more next boxes, and a windw box on the outside would be really fantastic. Plus we can paint it to match the barn and it will look like it was always there. So, that may be our next project after some more interior work.
If only we had a team of helpers to get all of the work done that is on the list! But it's o.k. Making the time to do it is all part of the journey. And we always say, it's the journey, not the destination. So our journey continues...