A Ripe November

With a full schedule and a bustling Internship, plus the jungle creeping into summer, things have been really progressing.  Not just the bugs, but the garden, the earthen house, and all of our spirits are full with wonder!!

This little bug just dipped his legs into flower nectar:

The windows getting set into the adobe walls:

Let the plastering begin! 

Finger-dappled walls between plaster coats:

Ah, sweet sister nettle:

Our hike into the forest to gather nettle for making beer, soups, tinctures, infusions, and everything nettle we could squeeze out of our imaginations:

Medicinal plant searches along the river:

Have you ever seen the blood of a nettle plant?  It'll certainly make your mouth pucker!

And back to plastering.  Being one with the wall, being one with all: 

First coat of outside plaster complete!

Everyone's favorite plaster ingredient:  cow manure!  Great for impermeability, strength, and durability.  Plus it's so much fun to sift and stomp!

Our pig! Here he is checking out his new dance floor:

Those darn cats... they just can't stop the cute!

The garden is bursting with life and fruit!  We already had to put up our half-shade to protect from the arriving intensity of the summer sun rays.  All hands on deck:

Special thanks to our Kitchen Goddess!  Jax, you did a wonderful job, and we look forward to having you back next time around!

The bottle wall in the second bedroom, complete with final plaster:

Oooh, and a wee workshop in furniture renovation.  Thanks for fancying up Mama Roja, Jeremy!

Tea-stained wood, sealed with homemade iron acetate.  Left to right: black tea, green tea (makes it kinda purple!), and weak black tea.  So nice!

The final touches on the built-in closet!

Our Giving Thanks day celebration was of course Hip and Exciting, as we donned our natural homemade costumes.  Here's a few forest faires floating around:

Natural clay and starch paint going on the walls. First we made the paint samplers with wheat flour, our red earth, and some chalk powder.  Then, we tested them on the walls to see how we liked them in the different rooms and with different light.  (I think we like the lighter one best.)

And so, we leave off here, a final photo of the busy jungle in pre-butterfly state.