Peeps n Projects

Baraka, Alana, Cedar and Indigo

Above - A passion flower vine growing in a tree just off the porch - just began blooming

Chelsee and Geoff on the Betty Bus, just rigged up some bug netting to scare away the scorpions

Janga, Geoff, Sage and Indigo

The banana fruiting along the trail up to the house

A view from the solar shower

An orchid blooming along the trail up to the house (or down to the bus, depending on your point of view)

A fruiting katuk tree - we've been eating these leaves in our salads - taste a bit pea nutty

Chelsee and Michelle enjoying the view

The beginnings of a new mandala garden. We gathered knurly mango logs from down the hill then corralled all the kids and hiked to the creek to get rocks.

A two-day project: harvesting water lettuce from the ponds and using it to mulch the gardens. All kids were involved at some point, Alana got us started and Danielle, Sage and I were the primary team.

The kids would use the rakes to pull the lettuce close to the bank, then we pile it up on shore to drain.

I hauled one wheelbarrow load after another around to various garden beds

One pond cleared

Preparing to mulch

Day two - next pond. Danielle, Sage and I did this one without the assistance of the little minions, just little minnows

And lots of fish eggs

Indigo lunching on the bus

Baraka

Preparing for another project: marking swales. Gathered up an A-frame with a level attached, a machete and a mallet

Following the contours of the hillside, we pounded in stakes to mark where the swales will be. In the rainy season, they will catch the water and channel it into planted areas before making its way down the mountain.

Hiking up to the main house, gathering lemongrass to make tea. We've started calling the path "lemongrass trail"

Indigo taking care of Cedar

Danielle playing a game with Baraka

Indigo, Sage and Cedar

Looking through a hole in the door into Janga's room

Melida feeding Cedar; she comes 3-4 days a week and does their laundry and takes care of Cedar

Here they are with a bunny

Melida has 8 kids, the eldest is Albiz, who works here on weekdays doing lots of heavy labor, random fix-it projects, gardening and construction. He seems to know how to do just about everything.

Julio, building frames for bunk beds in the room above the bodega. This structure used to be pig stalls and are now being turned into bedrooms.

Michelle, sewing bug nets to go around the bunks

Sage, on his way up "stairs" to help cook another meal

Taking a break from farm work: to do some of our laundry

With Michelle and Julio here for a week or so, we were able to begin setting up a community kitchen area. Michelle did a ton of cleaning and organizing down here while I was doing the same up at the main house.

See the color of the water in the pan? That's just from rinsing a couple of shirts. Everything is full of red clay.

I give the water to the plants around the greenhouse

And rinse again

We hang everything under here, next to the pond

Indigo and I in the teapot, sneaking in a playful moment between chores

Setting up the new community zone in the garden house, a sample of our fruits, and a newly cleaned room ready for Tracy to arrive and move in.

Danielle, Michelle and Julio have gone on to new adventures. Blake, Geoff and Chelsee are still here with us. Tracy has moved in and 4 more women have arrived - 3 from Quebec who speak french - mom and her 2 daughters; and Lisa from Lebenon - speaks french, english and arabic. Never a dull moment here!