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Bluestem Gables

Gardening with vegetables and native prairie plants

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80 Year Old House Reno 17: Installing Siding

July 15, 2026 by Erika Leave a Comment

Back to work on the old house renovation! Summer is well under way, but the siding on the addition is finished. Let’s take a look at what we’ve done! A long time ago, Kent decided he liked the board and batten siding. To be honest, it didn’t ...

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potato salad in wooden bowl on place mats with whole potatoes and potted plant on butcher block

Homemade Potato Salad

wonderberries in a small bowl on a place mat with a plant on weathered wood

Wonderberry: Is this Success or Failure?

large cloves of peeled garlic in hand

Part 1: Why Local Garlic

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closet shelving in mudroom

Simple Mudroom

April 7, 2026 by Erika Leave a Comment

Another very important secondary room! Just like our pantry, this mudroom is designed to be a simple workhorse – a room to hide the mud. Check out what we have accomplished, and what we have planned for this simple mudroom. Small war or post war ...

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Old farmhouse enamel sink in our old house remodel

Old House Remodel 13 – Farmhouse Sink

bubble glass vial and teaspoon with painted flower background

80 Year Old House Remodel – 8 Trades & Treasures

Baker Creek seed packets displayed on weathered wood planks

Baker Creek Seeds

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stocked pantry shelves

Build a Pantry

March 16, 2026 by Erika Leave a Comment

This might be the most anticipated room in our old house remodel. At 6x12 feet, this pantry is almost as big as our old kitchen. Let’s explore how we build a pantry and what we have planned for this workhorse of a space. Our old kitchen was an ...

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native prairie flowers blooming

Starting a Native Prairie Flower Garden

jar of hulless pumpkin seeds on placemat on weathered boards with greenery

Hulless Pumpkin Seeds

homemade pizza with golden crust and golden cheese

Homemade Pizza Crust

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green kitchen drawers with copper pulls

80 Year Old House Remodel #14 Kitchen

October 31, 2025 by Erika Leave a Comment

Ok, time for a kitchen update I our old house remodel. In keeping with our country setting and love of rustic, our kitchen is a definite reflection of this, with its green cabinetry and butcher block counters. Check out the progress we’ve ...

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paint swatches for old house remodel on pine with deep red and gold fabric

Old House Remodel 9 – Colour!

rusty rim against a tree

Homestead Garden Decor

three jars of dry beans

Grow Your Own Dry Beans

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staining wood trim with brush

80 Year Old House Remodel 11: Finishing Trim

May 5, 2025 by Erika Leave a Comment

This article is packed with everything on finishing wood, from wood conditioner and wood bleach to stain and polyurethane. Join me on the nitty gritty journey of finishing our trim for our old house remodel addition. I have completed a bunch of ...

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young mugo pine evergreen drought and cold tolerant shrub

Drought Tolerant, Cold Tolerant Evergreen Shrubs

green bean soup in a pot

Green Bean Soup

elm trees with yellow fall foliage line a road

Plant a Tree: Native vs. Introduced Trees

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yellow door with wood looking concrete pavers and a dwarf snake plant

80 Year Old House Remodel 10 – Epoxy Floor

March 31, 2025 by Erika Leave a Comment

We’ve had several projects on the go in our old house remodel. Check out how we applied epoxy on the basement floor, foam rollered paint onto some doors, and got a concrete paver hearth for our wood stove. Things are getting close to being livable in ...

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spaghetti sauce with Italian sausage in skillet

Grace’s Best Spaghetti Sauce

piece of rhubarb dessert on white plate

Melt in Your Mouth Rhubarb Dessert

crane raising the roof trusses over the addition of the old house remodel

80 Year Old House Remodel – 5

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paint swatches for old house remodel on pine with deep red and gold fabric

Old House Remodel 9 – Colour!

March 17, 2025 by Erika Leave a Comment

How fast can an experienced amateur paint a house? As we continue our old house remodel, we add colour, yes, colour. Join the journey! There was one thing Kent and I agreed on – no white paint! He may have regretted that statement. He probably ...

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green bean glory on plate on placemat

Green Bean Glory Casserole

jars of chokecherry syrup on a stump with flowers

Harvesting Chokecherries and Chokecherry Syrup

sliced montreal market melon on a wooden cutting board

Grow Montreal Market Melons

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bubble glass vial and teaspoon with painted flower background

80 Year Old House Remodel – 8 Trades & Treasures

February 15, 2025 by Erika Leave a Comment

Getting back to the old house remodel. The only thing worse than working slowly, by oneself, is waiting, especially for someone else. Life lessons, kids. In the last few months a lot has gotten done, but it hasn’t seemed that way while living in ...

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excavator begins digging the basement for our old house remodel

Old House Remodel – 3: Dig a Hole

from below, looking through the floor joists to the trees and sky

Old House Remodel 4 – The Basement Gets a Roof

peeled willow bark with pruning shears and greenery on place mat on weathered wood

Harvesting Willow Bark

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Welcome! I'm Erika, I live on eighty acres in the northern prairies of southern Manitoba with my husband and four kids. Here, we enjoy the outdoors and try to be more self sufficient as we try new things in the garden and learn about our land and the world around us.

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Featured Posts

Ground cherries and grond cherries in husks in a bowl on a place mat on weathered wood with a plant

Ground Cherry: Tropical Taste in Zone 3

wonderberries in a small bowl on a place mat with a plant on weathered wood

Wonderberry: Is this Success or Failure?

Summer squash in a basket on a place mat on a stump with a wildflower bouquet

Summer Squash Success

garlic stalks pulled from the garden, on the lawn

Part 2: How to Grow your own Garlic

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WELCOME

I'm Erika, I live on eighty acres in the northern prairies of southern Manitoba with my husband and four kids. Here, we enjoy the outdoors and try to be more self sufficient as we try new things in the garden and learn about our land and the world around us.

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