Jimmy and I have been relaxing for the last few days - getting back on track after an amazing whirlwind of a visit with my favorite girls. Errands, TONS of laundry, cleaning, and animal tending, with a few visits to nearby towns mixed in. It finally rained for the first time in months over the weekend, cooling down the weather drastically, so it's been a beautiful few days laying low around here :)

The Boars and the Bees

Jim's Nature Roundup

Hello, friends. We've been a little short on pictures lately (not so short on time consuming hard work), but here's a quick look into the nature side of life on the farm - the flora and fauna of Tuscany. We'll report back with a couple more well-focused nature posts, but for now this intro will have to do. My time spent at Alderleaf Wilderness College changed the way I see the world, and now, after slowly transforming Allie into a wide-eyed naturalist, we both constantly find ourselves on the lookout for sweet new flowers, awesome trees and mysterious animal tracks. Since we're still beginners, most of our enthusiasm stems from the fantastic idea of EDIBLE wild plants (and for me more than Al edible critters, too). In the right place with the right knowledge, a forest, meadow or coastline turns into a free trip to the best grocery store this planet has to offer. I love snacks, and Tuscany is full of them.

Here's a quick look at some of the wildlife we've found on our walks here at Barbialla Nuova.

Allie has seen a minimum of 16 wild boar out and about while we've been here - usually when walking trails alone between 3-6pm or so. At first it was terrifying but now we think of them as friends.

One of our major tasks lately has been clearing and remarking the extensive hiking trails on the property. No photographic proof yet of the pain endured during these excursions, but the picture above should give an idea of the way the nature defends itself and why certain things just aren't meant to be touched...even if the protected fruits are gross, slightly poisonous and mostly useless.

There are so many more plants and animals here, so we have some pictures to take! But until then - ciao ciao, ragazzi.

-Jimbo

Simplicity

When you take a quick glimpse at our lives here at Barbialla Nuova and compare it with our city lives in lovely South Boston, there's one key theme to how our current life differs. Simplicity.  We have been relishing in the simplicity of our lives here, and really allowing ourselves to live this 180-degree change to its full oppositeness. There have been a couple drawbacks to this (you can't put up a weekly blog post when you're mostly ignoring technology - whoops!), but for the most part it's been a great way to get to know our new home in the best possible way.

Besides the obvious fact that we're living on a farm rather than in the hustle and bustle of a city, here are some of the reasons we've been forced to simplicity:

1. No cell phones
2. Very slow internet connection
3. No vehicle
4. Five day wardrobe
5. No TV
6. No income

Doesn't this list seem generally negative? I think I would have thought so if I looked at it a couple of months ago. But au contraire!  I love (almost) everything on this list.  It eases the mind to have limited options and less going on. It's amazing to now know so clearly the difference between things we need and things we want. We have only spent money on food since we've been here (and barely any at that), and instead we've had time to read, and learn, and spend time with our new friends and neighbors - and of course, each other.  No TV means more reading, no cell phones means people need to actually be there when they say they will (how lovely!) and less clothes means no morning battle with myself over what to wear.

So with that, here is a list of the simple things that we are loving here at Barbialla:

1. fresh fruits and veggies
2. spending time outside every day
3. kind friends and neighbors
4. the delicious scent of wildflowers
5. wild cherry & mulberry trees
6. cute kids experiencing their first ladybug/apricot/snake in the grass
7. waking up to the rooster crow
8. one pot meals with 5 ingredients or less
9. gardening & hiking
10. books to read, sheltering arms, and a cozy bed

(To name just a few).

And here are some more simple meals and moments from our time here so far.

More to come next week - Happy Father's Day!!