Where did Spring go?

Hello again. 

I have been trying to figure out what I should post about next, and still haven't come up with anything specific. I have not done anything on our homestead so far this Spring and I don't know if I will. 

Summer is EARLY! 😰

I am a bigger gal. I am an Autumn, Winter and early Spring kind of lady. This year it seems we went straight from Winter to Summer and I HATE it. lol. I step outside and I feel like all life is draining from me and I have about 10 minutes to do what I need to do or I will die. No lie. 😟 So, HOW am I supposed to this "offgrid homestead" thing?!

I have many worries and concerns at the moment regarding my ability to handle life out here in the country. I know deep down that it is a goal that CAN be accomplished, I just have to figure out how I personally am going to be able to do it while taking care of a toddler. I stress out a lot about keeping him safe and that keeps me from doing much with him outside. I am working on it... slowly. 

When our house is finally done and we get into a new routine, things might be easier for me. I will actually be living in our own home, closer to our part of the property where our garden is. During naps, I can go out and do work and hear the baby monitor. I can't do that here. I know that I will need to start doing things outdoors with my son with me, but there are things that need done first. Lots of weeding, weed eating, moving things out of the yard into a more proper place, tick killer... list goes on. THEN I can put down a baby fence and let him play in it while I do my own thing and have a little more comfort. 

I should have baby-worn from the beginning 

So, this blog might not have a whole lot of homesteading stories QUITE yet.  Sometime in Autumn, we should be moved out and the adventure fully begins. How will this city girl handle not having so much electricity at her fingertips? Composting toilets?!! No cable or reliable internet service!? No central air!?!?!  Gods be good! lol. One day though, it will all work out. We will have figured out what works for us and if something doesn't we will fix it. I will have the solar I need to feel "normal" and I will have adapted to a few things as well (hopefully 😉)

 

Getting to know you

I thought that my next blog post should be a little background story about the lady who is writing all this. Me. :) Who am I and how did I get here. It is a rather long story, but I will make it a quick read. I have honestly thought about writing a book about my journey, but if that happens it will be a while.

 And FYI...punctuation and I aren't always the best of friends. I write how I would speak and I love to use ellipsis's incorrectly. I do not apologize. 😅

I was born in Ohio, but raised in Kansas.  I had stayed (if you want to call it that) with my biological mother until I was about 3 or 4 years old... moving around a lot. Bad things happened and I was removed from those situations. My parents had been separated for a long time and the state tried to figure out a way for me to go back to my mother or live with my father, but they couldn't make it happen. Foster care it was!

I had some crappy homes and I had some wonderful ones. I lived on a farm from the age of 4 to 8 and it was one of the best times of my life. I was loved and had a true family...I believe that they are who helped mold me into the person I am today. Not all foster children get blessed with placements like that. When I was 8, the state started talking more about adoption and they found a woman who would be perfect for me. A science teacher who loved cats and was looking for a daughter like me. The adoption was finalized when I was 9, and I spent 4 years in a confused bliss that ended with a broken heart. 

At the age of 13 I was put back into the foster system. They placed me back with my previous family on the farm, but I had gotten used to the city life that apparently I asked to leave. (Something I do not remember doing). My next homes were not the best and I started getting into activities that one shouldn't be involved in. Thankfully I didn't dive too far down that hole and in 1995, at the age of 15, I was placed in another home that has also helped me become who I am today. It was just us two, so I got the attention I craved ,In 1998... I messed that up. 

The age of 18 found me on the run. Some friends and I ran away and eventually got caught in Georgia. I was flown to Wichita Kansas and was placed in a girls home until I was 19. They had a program to teach you how to live on your own and how to save money. I was the first one to complete their program and was able to buy my first car and looked forward to being on my own. Then I met a guy who wasn't the best for me, got put in jail for a few days and ended up running away AGAIN, this time at the age of 19 and to a town a few hours away.

I wasn't a bad kid. My previous trip to Georgia caught up with me and I had to deal with the consequences of those actions. 

Life continued to happened after that. A 4 year bad relationship, moving from house to house, friend to friend, learning to do things on my own at the age of 23... jobs, bills, all that good stuff. Moved to the area that I am at now in 2004 and started to better my life. No more involvement with people who drank too much or did too many drugs. No more involvement with the law because of others bad decisions. Just me, my 3 cats and wonderful friends who helped guide me. Then May 22, 2011 happened. 

F5 tornado touches down on one side of the town and leaves destruction a mile (or more) wide through the center... all the way to the other side of town. Life changing moment. 

I found love and lost love afterwards. Became fearful of every storm that passed through. Who I was before that day I couldn't get back and that fact upset me greatly. But, I do believe that most things in life happen for a reason. Had the relationship lasted, or if the storm never moved me...I might not be where I am today. Happy, in love and with a beautiful son.

So, here I am. 38 years old and trying to give my boy a life of love, peace and stability... something I never had. Our past does not define us and we have so many chances to make life better for ourselves. That is what I am trying to do, always.

New Chapters

Join us on a little adventure.

Two years ago, my life changed drastically. I was a city girl living alone with her 3 cats, watching Netflix and eating pizza. One of my best friends was going to be married and I was (of course) invited to her bachelorette party. They were going to have it in "some guy's" field where there wasn't going to be access to a bathroom. This alone made me not want to go. (Pathetic, I know). My friend let me know that the guy was actually pretty good looking "wore a kilt and might be Asian". Okay okay... I will go! 
So, Sept of 2015 I met my baby's daddy.  😅

He was not Asian, and I have only seen him wear a kilt once and that was because I asked him to put it on. lol 

Anyways, that night of the party, we hit it off pretty well. Lots in common, some goals in life that we both wanted and we were both single. Huzzah! Well, I fell instantly for him but it took him longer to think of me more than just a friend. But, it happened and April of 2016 I moved out here and started a new life. 💕

 This man I fell for, JD, was starting an off-grid homestead. He was living in small barn with a loft that they put up at the back of the 20 acre family land. He had made it into his home and one day it was going to be OUR home... just needed some fixing up and some additions done. I was excited. I was going to lose some weight working outside, I was going to help make things happen! Then... I got pregnant! 😄

Wow... that was quick

So, here I was. 36 years old, overweight and pregnant. Such a joy I was! (haha!). My pregnancy was a bit difficult and a lot of things got put on hold.  February of 2017, our son was born and I was finally a mother. Never really thought that I would become mother, especially since I was in my late 30's, but fate had something else planned apparently. I had a classical c-section and my recovery sucked. But, I am all healed now, we have a beautiful 14 month old son and I am still morbidly obese. 

 The work on our home is finally finishing up. Last year the guys got an add-on completed that has our bedroom, hallway and bathroom. Right now they are doing an add-on that has our kitchen, our sons room and a bathhouse. I will make a post in the near future that will have some pictures of the progress. I look forward to when everything is done and we can make it a home. Right now it is still a bit slow-going because it is being done on one income since I quit my job to be a SAHM 4months ago. (I still do not regret my decision though I miss the money. lol) 

But, that is pretty much a "long story short". I could go into more detail on MANY things, but that would be no fun. I will tell stories as I continue to blog. I am new at this, don't know where this will go.. but I hope you join me on this adventure in life. City life to an off-grid homestead, and everything in between.