April - May - June - July 2022
This first period has been all about making the podere our home. So tidying, cleaning, discovering beautiful authentic details and vacuuming out a huge pile of spider rag. In the 2nd week of April our furniture arrived and suddenly the house was totally our home! An entrance with our dining area, a room with the wood stove and cozy chairs, a warm cozy living room, a kitchen, a guest room, bathroom and our own bedroom.
The weather these first weeks was not so good. Especially the nights, how cold we were! Below zero at night, lots of rain during the day, except for a few lovely sunny days.
Fortunately, the condition of the house turned out to be fine. The roof is old, we knew that was in the architectural report, and must be replaced, during the rains it can leak. We experienced this, fortunately only in the room we made into the living room. Not very severe, bucket underneath and a mop nearby. On the agenda to accomplish in the winter of 2024
Cleaning up the farm further and fighting the tall grass. The brush cutter has become Kees's great friend. The job is huge, all over the property there appears to be roof tiles, broken bottles and branches under the tall grass. Once it is cleared and the grass is cut, the reward is great. Every day Kees comes across another surprise, beautiful plants or a street that suddenly turns out to be there, beautiful walls and vistas emerge. The fruit trees and plants bloom. We have cherries, strawberries, apricot, apple, pear, plum, fig and lots of blackberries. The first olives are also coming to the trees.
Glad we chose Devon before leaving to live with Kees in Italy as a faithful quadriplegic.
It turns out to be a good choice. Devon certainly keeps him busy, has already broken loose and run away a few times, yet he is also a very sociable dog.
August - September 2022
In preparation for everything, Kees has already started removing the stucco from the white barn.
How we began:
After some work, this comes out from behind the thick layer of stucco:
With this impression in mind, we continue quietly.
Pergola, Tuscan Jasmine, evening with a drink on the terrace....
