The Blue Nymph

The Blue Nymph The Blue Nymph is our urban homestead in the heart of Salem, VA. Built in 1890 it reminds us to not forget the past as we move forward in life.

Did y'all know I started a bakery out of our kitchen?? I did!! And I thought, from time to time, I might offer up some ...
12/06/2020

Did y'all know I started a bakery out of our kitchen?? I did!! And I thought, from time to time, I might offer up some seasonally delicious recipes that you can make in your own kitchen! So, here you go - Gingerbread Pancakes from Side Door Bakery
.. and if you want to like the page while you're there, I'd be very appreciative of the love! 😘

It's been brutally hot here so we decided to make the biddies a frozen fruit & veggie treat to help them keep cool. I po...
07/20/2020

It's been brutally hot here so we decided to make the biddies a frozen fruit & veggie treat to help them keep cool.
I popped my head outside and noticed them all swarming it, they are, as a flock, camera shy. Brownie (the black & white hen) however was not easily scared off and was determined to make the most of having the treat all to herself while I was out there. 😄🐓🐔

The chicken coop got some much- needed attention over the last few days: new roof on the run, some rotten boards replace...
06/23/2020

The chicken coop got some much- needed attention over the last few days: new roof on the run, some rotten boards replaced, and a very custom new paint job.
Here are the Before, During, & After photos. .... or at least they're "after" photos until I decide if it just still needs *more*

Life in bloom.
04/05/2020

Life in bloom.

Dreaming of future family meals?? Here's a recipe for "New Turkey Dressing" that will make your meal unforgettable!! 🤣
04/03/2020

Dreaming of future family meals?? Here's a recipe for "New Turkey Dressing" that will make your meal unforgettable!! 🤣

A POPular recipe back then! 🤣

March Egg Tally - we haven't done an egg tally in a while, but here it is:In March we gathered 71 eggs and, of those, sh...
04/01/2020

March Egg Tally - we haven't done an egg tally in a while, but here it is:
In March we gathered 71 eggs and, of those, shared 3 dozen. This is a BIG jump in production from the 13 eggs we'd gotten in February!!
Our Year To Date Tally is 84 eggs gathered & 3 dozen shared.

Food, and being able to get the foods we need to feed our families, is a big thing on everyone's mind right now. Remembe...
04/01/2020

Food, and being able to get the foods we need to feed our families, is a big thing on everyone's mind right now. Remember though, a lot of your scraps still have life in them! You can save scraps for making stock and you can also plant some to grow into more food!
Here are some pictures taken first on March 27 and then again today. The carrot top now has little roots and is planted in an upcycled soda bottle. The lettuce, which was just started on the 27th, has begun sending up new greenery!

This week's sourdough sandwich bread was sliced up and turned into grilled cheese sandwiches to be served along with hom...
03/31/2020

This week's sourdough sandwich bread was sliced up and turned into grilled cheese sandwiches to be served along with homemade tomato soup.
FYI - this bread makes EXCELLENT grilled cheese sandwiches!!

Some blooms to brighten your feed.
03/29/2020

Some blooms to brighten your feed.

From scratch Blackberry and Lemon Sourdough Scones. Because Saturday deserves scones. Recipe in comments below.
03/28/2020

From scratch Blackberry and Lemon Sourdough Scones. Because Saturday deserves scones.
Recipe in comments below.

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Salem, VA

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Our Story

We met while Justin was still in college and Carrie was in massage school. We became best friends carpooling to school together and discovering a shared love of craft beer. Then we got pregnant and had Kid 1. Everything was happening a little out of order and moving quickly, but it worked for us and we moved into the house Carrie mostly grew up in when our eldest was a little over a year old. It was our first house, and we bought it in 2005, the year Justin graduated from Virginia Tech. Now we have Kid 1 & Kid 2, both boys. We live on one income - Justin goes to work while Carrie stays home and homeschools the kids and manages the household. The house, which we named The Blue Nymph, was built in 1890 and Carrie’s great-grandmother moved into it in the 1960’s so that she had more room to garden; it’s been in the family ever since. The first year we lived here we planted five trees. We’ve since planted many more. We’ve added gardens all around the house, finding what works and doesn’t work with the local wildlife and temperamental Southwest Virginia weather. We have a small flock of chickens - something that involved having to help change our local city’s laws to make happen. We still don’t have central air and we most likely never will. This is our story - of having started “at the bottom” still in college and working minimum wage jobs, having a kid before schooling ended, getting a house, learning to stand solidly on our own feet, learning to budget and then how to begin actually setting money aside too. It is a frugal life, but a good one. Lots of people will say that families can’t survive on one income anymore, we’d like to help show you just how wrong they are.