The plan
for 
started looong
ago:
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Background History of the plans & vision for
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of the work & property of
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Below is a snapshot of where we are at the moment. The journey has been long to get here - the history of the journey is being prepared and will be available soon.
APRIL 2007 LATEST PANORAMA:
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The Progress of the Current Property: Due to how busy we were there are not too many photos but you can get a bit of a 'feel' from the below! |
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Property - When we first came to look at the property we were thinking "no way - too far away, too sandy, no nice trees...." Then when we came to this section of bush below - we both suddenly felt different. Suddenly we were excited. Oh no!
It was far from what we had in our minds as perfect & there was a lot of hurdles to jump... |
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Preparing - This is what it looked like to start with....
Basically a wide firebreak. No water, power or even a track! Crazy you may say - to move from the comfort of a house with a 3 month old baby and a one year old to a caravan on in this terrain 50kms from the nearest town? We agree! It was a big step - one that we may never have taken if we knew just how hard some of it would be... The first of many, many truck loads....
Another couple of trips & it was now too late to go back. Sharmini was now looking after the boys full-time. I would spend a couple of days collecting items (cheap or free) picking up concrete slabs, dismantling sheds & loading the truck. Then I woudl do a day trip to the property - 3 hours each way & unload in the middle. Sometimes I had a helper - but either way I woudl come back trashed!
The first couple of weeks we used this van for everything - too small for four!
Elijah's van moved into place.
We also bought a very cheap big bus - and after weeks of waiting it was delivered the day before we delivered a truck load of furniture that needed shelter...the bus became very useful storage!
Sheds went up...
....more sheds and ute - (thanks Jason)....
And even more...
And the place started to expand!
The day we left suburbia & arrived here to live, we had to concrete the pole in for the internet satellite...The installer was here just 2 hours after we arrived & we had internet access - our only way of contacting the outside world.
The work begun right away....
This shed was our place for 'showering' when it was too cold outside. We had a BBQ to heat up water in a 20L tin & then sat in a tub & had a bucket shower. This was FREEZING - though felt warm compared to the 100m walk back to the caravan!
The washing line was put up very early...to help Sharmini with the 'home' feel. the only clothes washing that could be done at this stage was in a camping tumbler (thanks Dave & Neen!)
At this stage we were borrowing Phil's ute & firfighter unit to fill up our little water tank...About 6 trips every 3 weeks was needed.
Then we realized that where we had parked the vans was all wrong...The ground was solid rock underneath so the vans, solar panels, power shed & slabs all had to be moved....The solar panels found a place on the tool shed. A new power shed was put up...
Jehdeiah and Elijahs vans moved...
Then a nice square was made...
Now we were only 30m from the 'bathroom'!
A free carport made a great laundry....
We now spent the time & money to run a water pipe 3 kms to one of Phils big tanks. This went to a small 1000L tank & then a small 24v pressure pump provided water on demand! Turn a tap on & water comes out - WOW! And she even made time to do cloth nappies (big thanks to Michael & Ruth from http://www.greenkids.com.au/ )
Now came a MAJOR step forward! - On the outside of the bathroom shed...
...and inside:
That's right Hot running water! Hot showers...you have no idea how good it felt that first night...tears well up remembering!
The laundry gets cupboards & an old twin tub (thanks yet again Phil!)
The progression of the Play area happened at the same time as the bathroom...
Thankfully Jehdeiah had his diggers & trucks working flat out too!
Then the school bus...and other toys
And the vegie patch & Chook shed needed work too!
A larger water tank in the background (borrowed of Phil) helped us have not-so-hot showers in summer...3kms of black poly & the water was boiling. Still the water was very hot - and it was hard having a shower to cool down as the BEES started attacking as soon as water was around. They didn't literally attack - but they would cling on to get water...then if you moved / sat on them etc they would sting.
A carport to work on the cars was vital with the sun & our cars that needed constant work (thanks John!)!
Then the ANNEX!!! This gave us somewhere for a dining table which made eating so much easier with the four of us.
Unfortunately the cloth annex (the green one to the left of the photo) didn't survive long - the wind up here gets pretty full on at times & this was one of the casualties. The heat, bees, wind & ticks have been the hardest to deal with - along side the isolation. We had hardly any visitors during this stage. Was very very hard.
Now a games shed - somewhere for the boys to play out of the heat...except the heat was WAY too intense even for the insulated annex let alone a tin shed!
Now the shed for the composting toilet...The floor had to be 1m off the ground
Christmas Day 2006 - the first time we could use the toilet THANKYOU JESUS (and Puvi & Teresa)! No more digging holes in the middle of the heat or at night...
Great View too!
Walls & Roof - yuppi eh?!
This looks like a palace to us - an NO SMELL!
Yet again a re-designing led to more work...Moving the boys vans again was the best way to ensure we have undercover area during the rainy season.
Everything is much closer together now...
This section will all be undercover soon....we hope!
The bus will be half kitchen & half dining room once we can find someone to deck it out at a good price :)
The chook shed now moved further away...and a variety of plants in the vegie patch...
Teaching Jehdeiah to test when the melons are ripe...
Showing love to the watermelon!
Most of the pipeapples where attacked by roos when we were away - this is only one that survived - chewed to bits but still hanging in there! :(
Our seven residing chooks - started with ten...a fox got two, we nursed one back to health & then Phils dogs got another 2...they are very friendly & do there job very well! We now have a dog to keep the foxes away - No more waking up in the middle of the night with two foxes having a squabble under our caravan...Getting boring!
So far we have basil (can't stop it!), lemon grass, mint, parsley, chives, gooseberry, tomotoes, eggplant, chilli, rockmelon, watermelon & onions growing. We are just about to start planting winter vegies...
A make-shift hot houes to try to keep tomotoes growing as the weather gets colder...vegie prices up here are a bit lofty.
Currently we have lemon, curry, kaffa lime, guava, pipeapple, banana (thanks Chad & Anne!), mulberry, plum and fig trees growing.
A view from the left to the right..... Starting with broken truck & salvage yard....
...more salvage yard, fruit trees, green & tool sheds...
...carport & power shed, chook shed & vegie patch, office & purple HR (thanks Phil & Kylie!)...
...dog kennel, storage sheds, bus, main van & boys vans...
...playground, laundry & bathroom, toilet shed & games shed...
...spare van, tent shed, yellow van (ripped off by Adrian - needs Jesus pray for him!) and incinerator (thanks Jim & Lyn)...
...(mattress chewed by the dog), flattened power shed and the pool enclosure (an attempt to get rid of the bees!)...
So there you have most of it so far....there is much more to do but for now that is all we have done. It has been 8 months & various challenges have slowed us down. We have prayed on more than one occasion for God to close the door of rthis property as it is too hard...but by His grace, strength & power we are still here. We will try to add to this over time as we get the chance!
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Rural W.A. Perth Western Australia
