Selling Our Ranch

As you know I’m big time, real deal OBSESSED with my home. It’s a dream home for me in every way. I designed it. I imagined it. I picked every little detail with Brian. We built it from the ground up. My papa was here often and I feel him all around. My husband and his papa built the banister. My dad did the electric and his hand writing is all over our breaker box. We brought two of our babies home from the hospital here. My mom helped me paint the kid’s rooms. I put a lot into the mural on Granger’s nursery wall. We created this entire ranch from nothing. It’s not everyone’s style but it’s amazing in my eyes. My emotional attachment to it is strong. I’m so proud of it and have a huge amount of pride in it. It’s my happy place. However, it’s geography isn’t ideal for cattle ranching. My husband has been telling me that for awhile but it’s been so hard to imagine not living here. I repeatedly shut him down when he tried to talk to me about moving. We didn’t realize when we built our home how bad the land was for commercial ranching and how much trouble flooding would cause us. The things that I love (hills, steep bluffs, caves, creeks, and lots of trees) make the ground less productive for cattle ranching. Some might say to just buy land somewhere else or rent land to run cows on but my husband hates the idea of having cows in multiple places. He believes in having your cattle on site, at your home base for safety and management reasons and I agree. It can be life or death to have your cattle at your home in the case of an emergency situation even if you check them daily on other properties. We own property in 3 places but don’t run cattle on the others. We are holding on to the other 2 properties because of the rental income from the homes on them and for our children to potentially built on one day. Brian has been looking nonstop for the perfect land and location to build a ranch on since Fall of 2019 but I refused to entertain the idea of moving. However, all of our realtor friends keep telling us that now is the time for quick sells at a premium price. Stuff is selling for more money and it’s selling fast. For that reason, Brian was more persistent that I consider selling. Eventually my heart opened up to receive his words and although nothing of ANY monetary value can replace the deep seeded emotional bond and ties to this home that I have, I understand the bigger picture. I know that it isn’t about giving up my dream home. We will build an equally as beautiful home. It’s about losing those specific touches from our loved ones that I’ll mourn But not the building itself. I truly believe that the Lord will work out the kinks. It won’t sell if it’s not meant to be. I trust that. This is emotional for us but all in all, it feels right long term to find more productive ranching land in a better location. We have big dreams of a very specific homestead. The house. The show barn. The riding arena. The land. The fencing. The location. We have such high expectations in mind and all of these goals for the ‘perfect’ ranch. The land that we found is absolutely incredible. It is ideal for ranching. It’s on a paved road but still without any visible neighbors. We can’t see anything but trees, rolling hills, and pastures. It has a spring on it but it’s towards the back of the property so not where we’d have to cross it to get to our home. It’s not in city limits. That will never be us and was a big ‘no way’ when we were looking for land to buy. We have to have seclusion and privacy while still being 10-15 minutes from town and family.

Most importantly of all, it is land that my papa worked cows on so although he won’t have been in our home, he’s been on the property. My dad and Brian’s papa will be able to help us again with the new build. It won’t replace those memories from our current home but it absolutely has that unique loved ones touch about it. A huge God wink to say the least. It took a lot of soul searching to get me to a point where I didn’t get mad or sad every time Brian brought up selling our ranch but God gave me a heavy sense of peace with it all. I know that I’m not in control. His is and that’s the best thing that I could ask for. It will all fall into place and either way it’ll be perfect for us. We aren’t against being here forever. We aren’t against starting over. We are just along for the ride, cherishing every moment and every thing that we have.

If you’re interested in our ranch, let me know. We plan to officially list it within the next few weeks. 

Vacation Tips for Packing for a Big Family

Our family travels many times a year for livestock shows and for fun. Packing for seven people is something that I’m highly familiar with. It’s a daunting task and one that I dread each time. It takes a lot of clothing, time, and planning to prepare for a week plus away in itself, let alone when you’re packing for a big family. Along the way I’ve learned tips and tricks to simplify this aspect of traveling so today I’m going to share those tips. 

Tip #1: Stay somewhere with a laundry service on site. Nearly all hotels have a washer and dryer available on location for a small change fee. We typically try to stay at a rental home when we are away so there’s a private laundry area. You can also find an actual laundry service company in the area that you’re staying. My mom does this when my dad is in the hospital. You drop your laundry off and they wash, dry, and fold/hang it for you. It’s a more expensive option but still reasonable. 

Tip #2: By doing this not only can you pack half of the stuff because you can wash it all mid week to rewear it but you can also wash it again and pack it back up before you leave so you aren’t washing a weeks worth of laundry when you get home. 

Tip #3: Preplan your week/each day’s outfit accordingly to that day’s activities. This helps with not over packing. 

Tip #4: How you fold your clothing matters! You can save space in your luggage by folding things a certain way.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE METHOD I USE FOR FOLDING

Tip #5: Make a list of what to pack and pack a week in advance. This helps with not forgetting anything because you have a whole week to remember items that you may have missed. 

Tip #6: HAVE FUN AND DON’T SWEAT THE SMALL STUFF. If you do miss something, it’s okay. Don’t stress about it. 

Happy packing!