LDN (and more about the move of course)

WOOHOO!!!! I have now been on LDN for a full year!!!
I feel pretty good, the main problems I am having stem not from MS but from ol' Arthur Itis. My motion ain't so loco lately...the right knee hurts, stairs are pretty much out of the question. Fortunately the new place has a ramp...
The move is going fast...as soon as the funds arrive we'll have the down secured and all that will remain will be moving costs. We've bought an 89 Astro van (I used to have one, same year, even same color) and Bri is going through it and fixing everything that needs fixing (he is a very good mechanic) so it will be very roadworthy by the time he is done with it. Unless we find a trailer hitch, I guess I'm driving the car up.
We've freecycled the couches and the aquarium, the living room looks SO empty! I put out to the local homeschooling group that we have laying hens available...got two responses within about 20 mins, so the chickens will have good homes...I AM hoping friend "P" will take some for his garden, too. We thought about taking some but it will be such a problem and that room (space? in the van) could be put to better use. We're taking the rabbits, the babies in a bucket, the bigger ones in a freezer bag...we'll get more chickens there fairly easily, gotta have my big brown eggs!!!
The cats, of course, are coming. Might find a home for GinkyPig, though. He's sweet but his cage is pretty big and, again, space considerations arise...
I am looking forward to living there. Yes, we DO have a lot of friends here, but you know? We never see them, aside from a very select few. We've been in the area for 2 1/2 years and never seen some of them at all, so what will change there? Nothing, I guess.

Home

It seems a white knight is riding to our rescue...a friend is going to help us with the down...if all goes well we'll be in our new home by Mother's day! We also just got a good deal on a used minivan, the plan is...we'll get one of those car hitches, and tow the car behind the van, with whatever critters are coming (we'll probably give away some of the chickens, we've got about 25 right now) and the immediate need items either packed into the car or the van, then Rob will come back to WV with the van, and if he can't fit the rest of the stuff in it, get a u-haul and come back up. Meanwhile Robbin and I will start establishing our homestead. WaaHoo!!!!
I do have some bad news, though, quite upsetting...seems the doggy decided not to be a Wisconsin dog and had a terminal run-in with what probably was a semi on the interstate. She slipped her collar and somehow got through the fence that runs between the house and the highway, and was killed on the spot. At least it was fast. Strange thing is she NEVER would leave the area right around the house, so why she suddenly took it upon herself to run right out into traffic...well, we'll never know the answer to that one...poor baby. No-body deserves that kind of ending. She was a good dog, but will probably be out last dog...I can't go through that again and sure don't want Robbin to have to. I miss her, she had the saddest big brown eyes... :-(
SO we'll stick with cats and farm critters. We're planning on getting a goat or two up there, and of course we'll have the chickens and rabbits. Not sure what other critters we'll have, I do know we want a beehive...for the honey! The lady we're buying the place from said she had three hives and would get an average of 150 lbs of honey a year...I think at that rate one hive would suffice. There are farms all around us, is why there was so much honey...all the farmers and their crops...
Rob is going to get his forge up and running again and make skinners and offer knife sharpening. We will of course still do the readings, getting our site up and revamped is a current project...so as you can see we have a ton of plans...going to build on a room with a jacuzzi, too, to keep my poor ol' bones feeling good.
I am SO excited about this...tempered with sadness about poor Mitzi. Seems there is truth in the old saying about one door opening while another closes. I lost my sweet Boxer dog, Chata, the same day I converted to Judaism. And the last dog we had with the name of Mitzi, also met her end via semi...she was at Jimmy's and he let her run, even knowing how dangerous their road was and that she didn't know where the yard ended and the road, and the danger, began. So no more dogs...unless one turns up in the yard, one can't fight fate. I've learned that!

Wisconsin

Why Wisconsin, you asked? Well, the more I research it, the more I like it. It calls to me. And finding a home SO perfect for us in every way is a once-in-a-lifetime deal, not to be passed up. We are SO close to D.C. here, the violence, and the inflated prices, are encroaching rapidly. There, we can raise Robbin in a quiet, friendly, peaceful environment. And an affordable one! All we need is to get up the rest of the down, which brings me to my offer/plea. If you can help with a donation, I promise that for every donation of $20 or more we will woodcarve your name onto one of the logs that comprise the walls of the home. That way you will always be a part of it. Please send donations to me at akiba@twinflames.com, or email me at akyba@aol.com for snail mail info. And I THANK you~

Home at last!!!

Ok, I know I've been quiet of late, but not really...or should I say, I've been quiet but life hasn't been. We've found a home to BUY!!! No more renting, no more insecurity! Ok, so it's in Wisconsin, and it's cold there...but it has one of those outdoor woodstoves with a thermostat, you know, the kind you stoke once or twice a day and you're warm? It is cordwood and really nice...It IS rustic, but then again we're the rustic type, so it fits us and we fit it. We're getting up the down (anyone want to help? send donations to akiba@twinflames.com through paypal, we'll dedicate part of the home to you~I'll woodburn your name into the log walls! And take a pic to send to you so you KNOW I did it!!!) and the owner is working with us, payments will be a LOT less then we're paying here, for rent!!! It has 2 bedrooms, one is downstairs, one up, which could not be more perfect! Rob and I can take the downstairs and Robbin the up. The bathroom is also downstairs YAY. We plan to move at the end of next month. They made it with wheelchair access in mind, so the doors are sliding, not swinging, and the doorways wide. It is only 4 years old and made with quality parts. I am SO happy and So psyched!! We will have QUIET, we had the trains in Martinsburg, and the Interstate right next to us here, it is NEVER quiet. We'll take the cats and doggy, hopefully a few of the chickens, we can always start over there with chicks. There are 2 1/2 acres so there's ample room for chickens. We'll also take our breeder rabbits, the rest will come too, in the freezer...
There is a "barn", a 14x70 mobile that was "converted" (read - gutted) as they also had chickens, and goats. So I guess we'll get a goat or two as well!
We want to start a peaceful place, so people can come and pitch a tent and stay a while, relax, get healed and rested. We will build on, so eventually there will be rooms you can come visit and stay in. And we're going to build a spa/jacuzzi room as well! There is a sawmill not far away so materials will be easy to get. All we need is a bit more $$...and I KNOW that will come! It is all falling SO *right-into-place*, it HAS to!! We can easily afford the monthly, it is just the down and moving costs we need to attain. We even already have a lot of the down...just a little way to go!!!
I'll tell more as there is more to tell.
Meantime, the MS is doing well, the knee hurts like hades but I get along. If we can come up with the $ I will fly out instead of overextending myself with the drive. We'll see.
Quiet again! Northern Lights again! BIG stars again! I look forward to the peace again.