Tag Archives: homesteading

Into The Great Wide Open

I bought a house and my own whole woods! The reality is still setting in… I have dreamt of this for 15 years. It’s finally real. I bought a house. I bought a house on 29 acres. I bought a house on 29 acres! A creek runs through the property. It is heavily wooded with hard woods and butts up to a ridge in the heart of the Ozarks. I have a handful of neighbors and there is a small, unassuming post office in the trees that looks abandoned, or haunted. The closest gas station is 20 miles away. It’s perfect! I’m terrified. I’m elated. I’m at a loss for words…

All those years of fighting against all of the odds, swimming against the current, have finally paid off. I’ve been a single mom for the last 12 years. I’ve lived well below the poverty line the entire time, until I caught a break. It’s your typical “rags to riches” story, except I am still not rich by any stretch of the imagination. Just better off than I was. I have always been stubborn. Downright ornery even. I refuse to let go or give up when I set my mind on something. Call it grit or tenacity. Some may even call it stupidity, but here I am, about to step into the great wide open.

And now the real work begins. I have lists of to-dos. I have a 2-year plan, working on a five-year plan. It will be called Faith Haven Homestead. The orchard & perennial garden will go in this fall (hopefully). I’m planning to also build a chicken coop & start building fence. I can’t wait to get started!

Terrified but Exhilarated

I’ve been chasing a dream for the better part of 12 years. I’ve had great successes & epic failures. There have been many highs & lows. A few detours as well. At this moment I am at the threshold of stepping into the reality of my dream coming true. The work is far from finished. It’s really just begun… As I stand in the doorway, the reality hits me like a roundhouse kick to the face. I can’t do this. I’m one person. One, small, middle-aged female with little to no support system. How the hell am I supposed to build greenhouses, propagate plants, clear land, take care of animals, maintain a garden, run a business, manage a home & work 40 hours a week!? All this time I’ve been running on blind faith & sheer determination, and it’s gotten me where I am, but now what? I have never been one to cower in fear of the unknown. I’ve always been a fighter. A problem solver. A do or die kind of girl and I haven’t died yet. I guess it’s time jump off the cliff into the great wide open & see what happens. This Nomadic Farmer is about to become a rooted Gypsy in the Ozarks of Missouri.