At Home in Orchard Farms

After Taryn left, Maggie, Isabelle and I turned to figuring out life in the south while Paul went off to work. There were a few trips to the grocery store, a few walks around the neighbourhood and to the playground and pool, some yard work, some cleaning and a lot of unpacking.

We met some of the neighbours who all have children - most a few years older than Isabelle. Most of them are on the swim team and seem to be shuttled back and forth many times a day. One neighbour brought a care package of lasagna, lunch meats, cheese, salad, bread etc to help us get settled. After having so much car time, I tried to limit our time in the car the first week. I also started Maggie on her new regime of kennel training. She is very good about going in the kennel, I think she realizes that she is better off there than in the hot car, but when we get home I can hear her howling. At least I know she is safe in her kennel.

One day, Isabelle and I went to check out a new gym which is nearby. It is very nice but quite expensive for the amount of time I could actually use it. The bonus was that just down the street from the gym is a new doggie daycare, about a five minute drive from the house. The outdoor area is much bigger than the other one we looked at and they have indoor/outdoor kennels just like she had at Ella's.

Orchard Farms subdivision was started in 1996 and has over 400 homes. It is sort of divided into two sections: the north and the south.

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We live at the very end of Redglobe Court and can hear the chickens on the farms beside us. The community is not gated but the three entrances are quite formal, complete with signs. The cul-de-sacs don't have sidewalks but the main streets do so we can walk to the playground and pool (on the left/west side of the map). The pool is open most of the day and is very nice, Isabelle loves it. Unlike many subdivisions I have seen, ours is quite treed and our backyard has a lot of shade which is nice for all of us on these very hot days.

There is a homeowners association which enforces the restrictive covenants and organizes community activities including the subdivision swim team. The covenants (only 30+ pages long)control a lot of activities and ban clotheslines. (I'm waiting for state legislation to overrule that one!) Waste is picked up weekly, we have Waste Management (same as in West Hants) but others use other companies. The only curbside recycling is plastic beverage containers, aluminum cans(not steel), and newspaper. Other things can be taken to a recycling depot, the closest is about 10 minutes away, but even there many things cannot be recycled. Of course, food waste goes in the garbage (we are investigating worms). So, I am feeling very guilty about things right now!

Our lawn isn't in great shape - it needs work and my plan to use the reel mower may not work since it is so uneven, unlike the lawn below. I saw this fellow mow his lawn three times the first week we were here. It looks more like a putting green than a lawn. This weekend when we drove past he was washing his lawn mower with soap and water. We also will not be contenders for the yard of the month award which the lower house received. The sign does not stand out in the picture but there is a sign on the lawn.

I will try to get more pictures of the neighbourhood and some of the nearby subdivisions - some of which are pretty incredible. Until then you can see the area on Google Street View.