Winding Down on the Farm!

Pumpkin season is almost over....

The end is in sight!

I can tell because I was able to wash the bedding from two beds, top to bottom.

I was able to sweep floors.

I was able to spot wash the family room carpet.

And next week I will keep cleaning because when farm season walks in the door, cleanliness flies out the window. There are only so many things a body can do and no one pays us to clean so other than absolutely necessary tasks.... A lot gets put on hold.

So now it's kind of fun to do "spring cleaning" in the fall... and next week is window washing week. And more inside tweaking between writing times.  And I actually have my writing time back again.

Oh, saints be praised! Hallelujah chorus!!!! :)

I love clean windows. Clean windows are a must. I know why I love clean windows... because I grew up in a house where the windows were really dirty and smoke-crusted. There were no curtains. Some broken blinds...  And the windows were all dirty.

Now I don't expect it was that way when my Grandma Herne lived with us. Myrtle Swarthout Herne loved to garden...

So do I.

She loved to work outside.

Me, too.

And her windows were always clean!  But she moved out of our house when I was five, so I don't really remember the time with her there.

So did the love of clean windows get passed down from her? Or was it simply my reaction to growing up with really dirty windows, so now I like to keep them clean.

Washing windows is extremely satisfying.

Now, before you laugh, think about it. There is something very nice about greeting the change of seasons with clean windows. It makes the sunny days brighter and the gloomy days less foreboding.

A clean window is like a gift. Like a mirror of the soul. I've mentioned that in a couple of books, people liking their windows clean and that's totally me injecting myself into the plot...

This house is 164 years old. It isn't like a lot of old houses. It has LOTS of windows.

Now you would see that in village houses and city houses circa 1900 and on, but not so much in farmhouses because windows were expensive (and still are) and farms needed to invest in seeds. Equipment. Barns. Stock. Hired help.

Who had money for windows?  But as people have owned this house, they've made a few nice adjustments with each owner and each one added more windows. (I added twelve myself when we put the family room on.... so I'm just as much to blame!!!)

We have to replace some next year. A few years ago we replaced the three in the attic. Then we replaced all five of the basement windows....

And we added the family room with twelve windows.... I wanted the little ones to see the world around them without having to climb on anything. (I might have wanted to think about how CHILLY the west wind gets in winter. Ooops...)

On the second floor we have some very drafty windows that need TLC, plastic sheeting in winter, and maybe replacing if it's priced right... but each bedroom has four windows. Yep. Four. There is even a window in each closet. Trimmed in gorgeous oak.

WHO DOES THAT?????

The former owner. I could turn one of those closets into an office and still have a window! That's so New York, right????

Anyway, the point of all this is that I love clean windows and I don't mind cleaning them... because then when I start putting up Christmas swags and candles, everything just glows with sweetness....

I LOVE THAT SO MUCH!

So there you have it.

I love windows. I love cleaning windows. And I love getting that done before decorating because it makes everything look so very special.

Sparkling clean windows are like a light unto our souls....

I used a quote like that in "Running on Empty" and when Beth Jamison got to that, she was like... "Yup. That's Mom. Clean windows are a must."

I always figured if the windows are clean and a twenty minute pick up takes care of most of the mess, the house really isn't all that dirty. Is it?

Laughing, but you know it's true!  So here are a few farm pics from this week:

Great YMCA field trip yesterday. We did an easy-up tent because we have no barns... and it was sprinkling lightly and then "Misting" as we went to meet the donkeys and sing songs....

And they seem to have had a good time!

And our first BIG BUS school trip:

And a group shot on the front steps:

:)

Multi-published, award-winning author Ruth Logan Herne does seem to get odd enjoyment out of unlikely things like cleaning windows and taking care of donkeys, but we try to overlook that here at the cafe... where the windows are very, very clean! :)

You can find her website at ruthloganherne.com or friend her on facebook or follow Ruthy on Twitter.