lots to do

Our house is pretty much done.  There are a few details that will be added over time, like interior doors and security bars on the second floor, but the construction, plumbing, electricity, and windows are all finished.  We also still need to install railings on the stairs and perhaps put in flooring.

What remains is the rather overwhelming task of completely moving in.  We still have lots of stuff in boxes (some people in this family really love books...).  There is a bit of a catch-22, though.  In order to unpack, we need some more furniture to be able to put away the contents of the boxes.  We would like to make the majority of the furniture, but to do that, we need the tools and space to do it.  The tools are, you guessed it, in boxes, and many boxes are stored in the workshop where we will make furniture.  So which to do first?  Unpack so there is space to make the furniture, or make the furniture so there is a place to put the unpacked stuff?  The likely solution is to buy some of the items already made.

tetanus mountain

And there is the yard - a large area of potential where we can design any sort of garden we want.  And we will.  There is, however, a great deal of work to be done before we can properly start gardening.  For one thing, the yard is littered with bits of wire and rusty nails.  Every time I go out, I make sure to pick up any metal I see, and the mountain of discarded bits continues to grow, but it seems there is an unending supply.  There are also rocks, rubble, buried slabs of cement, and miscelaneous trash scattered about.  The soil, too, is quite poor, being composed mostly of sand.

Still, we do have some plants already set out.  The climbing roses are flowering, and we have harvested some radishes the kids planted in a small plot near the house.  A friend of ours gave us lots of small fruit trees and some avocado trees to add to the various fruit trees we already brought with us from our other house.  The trees from the other house are enjoying their new place, and we look forward to future harvests of peaches, figs,
chirimoyas and more.

It is exciting to consider all we can do with this new property and house.  It is also daunting.  I have to remember the moral of one of Abish's favorite fables, "Slow and steady wins the race."  Bit by bit, it will all get done.  Please pray for us as we continue our regular ministry, homeschool Abish, and do all that we need to completely move in to our house.