At the end of October 2018, my dream of buying a farm became a reality.  I wasn’t raised in the country and I don’t know anything about growing vegetables, raising animals or fixing fences.  But this is going to be the adventure of my lifetime. Honestly I can’t even tell you the joy and satisfaction I experience on a daily basis just pulling into the driveway and walking into our farmhouse kitchen each evening after work.  

As a little bit of background, I’ve lived in Maryland since 2002.  Went to college here, worked, went to grad school, backpacked for 4 months, worked, got married, worked, had a kid, worked, had another kid, and am still working.  Seeing a theme? I’m not sure if there are words to describe it but I’ve always felt caged by the status quo of “work, work, work, retire (aka start enjoying life), then die.”  That feels stifling, suffocating and backwards, and I’ll be honest, I haven’t had super demanding jobs that keep me at the office 80 hours a week. I have no problem with having a job, waking up with a purpose, and getting stuff done; I’m quite driven.  I’m just a little befuddled with the equation of giving all these hours, days and years of my life to a company and having nothing to show for it. I know that’s grossly simplifying it and you might be thinking that I just need to find a satisfying job. I actually have a pretty great job and can see the good that I do nearly every day.  But in my heart and every fiber of my being, the rat race toward a finish line that I didn’t choose isn’t enough for me. I have realized that I need a different North to be pointing toward.

So we bought a farm.  This allows us to get away from the busy, the buzzing, the ringing, the honking, the chatter that has become our society.  Are we checking out, going off the grid, and aiming to be self-sustainable? Not likely (but I do love Homestead Rescue and aspire to meet the Raineys).  We just want to get back to the earth, the rhythm of the day and seasons that we have become so far removed from. For me, it’s just easier to do that when I can look out at the sunset and not see another human or house.  Maybe I listened to “Wide Open Spaces” by the Dixie Chicks a few too many times as a teen.

I’m not exactly sure what I will talk about.  My goal in writing is to chronicle the successes, challenges and moments of pure glee that we experience over the next X years.  I know I have so much to learn and you will be a wealth of wisdom and inspiration. And if I can in some small way help you take a small step or ginormous leap toward one of your dreams, then cheers to us both.

I promise it won’t always be so “woo woo” but I felt like a little bit of explanation helped provide the context.  I know we aren’t the first to do this and certainly will not be the last. And I am absolutely certain that no two stories are the same.  Thanks for your interest in our story.