Progress comes slowly............

Thank you all so much for all the kind comments. I really do appreciate them (along with the birthday greetings!) but I am not that wise or confident yet.  I am taking baby steps ..... and some days I do better than others.

I love, love, love the life I live.  I would not change it for the world.  But for all the simplicity and loveliness of my life....... I still have to work hard and I still need that paycheck.

Newly-married Margaret, I do worry about money.  A lot.  Constantly.  I live in fear of not having enough.  And my needs are simple .... but there is still that nagging fear.

So today ... I will show you some progress on the Summer Kitchen.  This is a fear.  And a hope.  And a dream.  This is a leap of faith.  A big one .... for me.

Like a lot of people last year.... Honey had to take a pay cut and have DWOP days .... (Days With Out Pay).  So his salary was down to what he made in 1993.  Yea. With 2010 bills.  And somehow ... the utility guys .... didn't get that!  Go figure!!!

And then ..... the summer months were wet ... and cold.... and my flowers liked neither.  I finished paying Greenhouse Gwen in April of 2010 for flowers that went into my garden in April 2009!   I went into this season with no fiscal reserves as the politicians might say! So I taught more classes, worked some extra hours, and stretched the ground beef a bit more. And I made it through the lean months.

But you know... sometimes you take a leap of faith if you want a business to grow. You raise more livestock, you plant more land, you buy a bigger tractor or move to a nicer location.  And this cute swoooopy roof building is my leap of faith.  And if no one likes it .... Honey and I will rent out the house and move into this!! 

So without further adieu .... The progress on the Summer Kitchen!!!!

I started painting today ... staining actually. The color is a light grey-ish green.  Love it!! Its definitely more green than it shows in the evening light.  And don't you love the scallops?  As we are building this on a budget ( a very very small budget!) Honey's idea of cutting the scallops really adds some charm.

Windows will be cut out and installed sometime this weekend.  The Summer Kitchen needs its "eyes".  We will have creamy white trim and dark red windows. On the wall that I painted today ... there will be another barn quilt.  I promise .... the last!!  Six is enough!!!

But what is going in there?

Here are a few of the flowers that will be going into the Summer Kitchen.  I love this clothes rack .... $13.  Seriously, isn't that awesome????  Now to harvest more.

Speaking of harvesting ... Intern Emily has been hard at work in the kitchen again today.  Jams. Jams.  And more jams.  Carrot Cake Jam, Cheerful Morning Marmalade ( a blend of orange, carrots and apples with allspice and cinnamon) Kiwi daiquiri jam and finally, one of my all-time favorites..........

Sunshine jam ... a blend of orange, pineapple and apricot that brightens my day along with my shelves!  

You know, if I just think about that jam .... all my worries go away!