Home Away from Home

Today, I thought I'd take you on a tour of our 

Home Away from Home.

Last summer,

when hubby's company  sent him to an out-of-town job,

 we landed here...

At King Farm, in Rockville, Maryland.

King Farm is nearly 2 hours away from our little homestead in Pennsylvania.  

We try and go home every other weekend..

sometimes every weekend.

But for now, 

it is our home away from home.

King farm is described as a 

high-density, walkable, mixed-use community

consisting of 3,200 homes on a 430-acre site.

As you can tell by its name, King Farm was an actual farm.  But when the owners died, the family could not keep up with the costs.  So today, it has been transformed into  a planned community.

It consists of apartments, (like our row of apartments pictured below), townhouses, and single family (LARGE) homes, as well as green spaces, parks, ponds and shopping.   One might call it a

 package deal!

Our little nest is tucked away behind this holly bush!

Our little apartment boasts a whopping 800 sq ft!

You can almost see everything upon entry!  

The apartment is furnished with a mish mesh of extra furniture we managed to round up!

Josie enjoying a little HGTV 

One of the ways I entertain myself is by crafting.  I have taken up the entire "dining room" with my crafting goodies!  

The lighting here is great.

Our boudoir is in that darkened space just beyond the craft table. I actually had to  drape some sheets over the window blinds because we can't sleep with all the streets lights! 

And believe it or not, 

the light still comes through.  

We like it dark at night.  

Pitch black dark!

This is the view from my "craft room" these days. 

There is a lot of activity outside this window.... 

Lots of passersby headed to the bus or Metro.

And lots of emergency vehicles....

all hours of the day and night. :( 

But just yesterday...

on a bitter cold day....

clusters of robins adorned the trees outside my window.  

This is my little kitchen.  

It serves its purpose, as it is stocked with all of my 

home grown, 

and home canned food.

                         

   But it's a far cry from our homestead kitchen.

One of the perks of living here is the well kept community.  Trees and shrubs and flowers decorate every street.  And because it is cared for by a homeowners association, it is always beautiful!  Every sidewalk here is edged,

 something a visual person like myself  can appreciate!

Nearly everyday, 

Josie and I make our way down this street to one of her favorite parks.

It is very quiet and peaceful here, but as you can see, just beyond the park is the beginning of city chaos.

This picture was taken on the street corner closest to our apartment.  In the background you can see what remains of the original King Farm.

The barn, silos and farm house remain.  

They are part of  Rockville Parks.

It is a bit of walk to get to the farm. 

 But just beyond the farm, is Josie's favorite place.....

Oh yeah, it's the 

Dog Park!

It's a place where she can run and play and smell.

  Meanwhile, back at the farm...

The farm itself  has been transformed into a community garden.  I have to admit that I was very impressed with the variety of veggies grown here....

by city folk!  

 

During the summer months,

 I was beginning to feel very spoiled.

With 2 pools 

and no real responsibilities

I just lounged around by pool in the afternoons. 

I have to admit though,

it was a wee bit boring by the end of the summer.

Behind the planters is a hot tub!

During these winter months I have been able to utilize the indoor pool.

No lounging here.  

I take advantage of the pool by doing some real lap swimming and 

some pool exercises. 

I have to keep my water aerobic skills honed!  

Located at the center of King Farm is a shopping complex.  

There you can find a variety of shops, banks, and businesses.  

There is also a Safeway store I can walk to if necessary.  

Many of the store fronts are empty though. 

 I suppose a casualty of the high cost of doing business in this area.  

 Well folks, this is the end of our tour...

I hope you enjoyed seeing how the 

other half lives.

Even though living here is not exactly our

cup of tea...

It has surely been an interesting experience!

And, it's been a bit of a honeymoon for me and hubs (and Josie)!

I'm thinking that one day, 

we may look back at our time in Rockville,  fondly...

Maybe someday......

In the meantime, my thoughts are never far from that place that we call home...

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