How we came to be..in the country...

One of my sweet little chicks...only a few days old.

You know, it almost doesn't seem fair, that my dear hubby and I actually are living our 'dream come true' of getting out of suburbia.  We never really intended to be here in the Sam Houston National Forest of Texas or intend on moving to the 'country' per se...He's from Issaquah, Washington and HE was longing for the forest. I had spent many a vacation pointing at shacks on hillsides in the Arkansas River Valley with my dad and mom--we were trying to pick the one we wanted to buy and fix up.Sigh... Dreams.... I loved the woods...deciduous forest..sunshine sparkling on damp leaves...the rustle of a squirrel through the undergrowth...ponds with all their minutae of life flitting here and there...

Rebekah though, now she is TRUE BLUE COUNTRY! She knew exactly what she wanted...pasture and lots of it!  (Along with the requisite horse of course!) The boys just wanted a place where they could dig holes without their meticulous father complaining that they were messing up the yard...which had to be perfect per the notices of the neighborhood Urban Gestapo...
In fact, this desperate need to dig had hilarious consequences when we first moved out in the middle of nowhere somewhere halfway between Willis and Cleveland..It's not a town..you just point out the spot in a middle of green on the map.  Our second oldest dug a hole out in the woods that was big enough to fit THREE of our boys!! The sandy mulch was perfect and he had a total blast. I really think he felt a little better after that...He quickly moved on into young adulthood...free to leave childhood behind. I'm not sure if he would ever have been normal without that last boyhood accomplishment!

This was my very first dozen eggs from my very first chickens...minus an egg from Henny-Penny...her eggs are 'half-penny' size since she is a bantam. :o)   I don't know who was prouder...the hens..or me!

When we started looking for a place to actually buy after 23 years of RENTING (count em'!)...it had to be the absolutely perfect place. I guess only the Lord could have found a place that would satisfy all our longings...   We have tons of pasture and the only true homestead in our little area of the forest. In fact, they gave barrel racing lessons here apparently.  It had a lighted roping arena! Can you imagine how thrilled Rebekah was to find that?  For me (I had a desperate desire to raise chickens!), someone had built a chicken coop inside the barn...with 30 nest boxes...oh heaven!

For the boys, we had acres and acres of woods enough to play in and dig in all they wanted...and Jacob could finally learn to hunt.  For Christian, the Lord provided a gorgeous riding lawnmower...vroom! vroom!  He now has a second one that he and daddy are trying to take apart and fix up. The first one is for riding ...and mowing now and then too.

For Tim, the best part of all was that we were surrounded by tall green pines...like the ones he played in as a boy (and the mother of all workshops!) I knew we were going to buy this place, once Tim saw the workshop. (Thanks Lord!)

And for the kids, the best part of all was the barn which had a real loft. It became their playhouse  and all the friends that visited headed straight for that loft. They had so many adventures and games up there--it was the perfect clubhouse for a bunch of young teens. Sleeping up there was a privilege beyond all privileges...

And all my quilts that had been neatly folded and tucked away...covered in woodsy and country themes...got pulled out and hung on the walls of a real country home...where they knew they belonged. No more suburban quilt racks...just a homey place that fitted them perfectly.  They depicted my dreams of someday faraway and helped me not to give up.