Life is truly incredible, and as I have found out, my plan didn’t pan out the way I expected it to, it’s so much better!! My family and I are WOWED and so BLESSED to have an opportunity to own this little farm. It is our weekly reward and exciting getaway every weekend and then some! (for my husband it’s almost daily)
When I met my now husband, Rhett, in 1990, he was a young handsome stockbroker with many dreams. I, too, had dreams, but they started with serving a full-time mission in the Philippines. He was crushed when I left him for 18 months. But I knew that if he was the “one” then he would be waiting when I returned. (I’ll share our amazing, heart-wrenching love story later)
We were married in August of 1996 and ready to make our dreams come true. As for this chapter, Rhett’s dream became OUR dream.
When he decided to start our business it was at first a place where he could work with both his mind and his hands and he was really good at it. I didn’t know anything about this world of designing or building, but I learned and we learned to manage it together and have become an unstoppable force. With our business goals met and continuing to grow, other dreams had become prominent in our world. The dream of a wonderfully large family (also achieved!) and a home in the country. This is where our story for the blog really begins.
It’s hard to see the open gate at the bottom of the road, but this is the entrance to our farm. The pasture is on the left with a barn in the back. The driveway is lined with tall trees and curves around to the right with a small pond on the left and leads to the farmhouse hidden in the trees. Plowing this driveway in the wintertime is going to be a big chore! Good thing we have lots of boys and a tractor!
Our weekends have always been full since our first son, Rhett Taylor, was born, and this has yet to change. While the boys have been growing up, I would usually love to stay at home on our days away from work, to watch my boys be boys, involved in all kinds of sports and recreation. Rhett would take weekends to go out in the country with our dogs, Maggie, Fergie, and Gunner, to explore, hike, and prepare for their dog trials. This dream of being in the country was satisfied by a weekend away, here and there, as long as he could be away from the city.
I hadn’t thought of our, now, new country home as being MY dream, but what surprised both Rhett and I, is how much this has turned out to be the most amazing decision for me personally. It has literally saved my life and keeps me excited and striving for those weekend feelings! For me, life is like a parallel universe when I get out to the farm. Let me explain…
Our property is covered with hundreds of trees and acres of beautiful green grass. The nearest reservoir is only a quarter of a mile from our property. We look forward to many fun activities boating, fishing, and wakeboarding!
In the city, I’ve been relying on help and the digital age conveniences for years now. When I had four young boys, they had a full-time nanny (who I will talk about later), a tutor to help with homework assignments, and a weekly housekeeper to keep up with cleaning. (I admit I’m a freak when it comes to a clean house.) We were working out of state often and I had to hire a caterer to take care of our food needs, as Rhett and I were working late and were far too busy to cook every day. Instacart, Uber Eats, and Door Dash have been my saviors for food and snacks for four growing boys. And to mention my favorite, a Trunk Club/Stylist would come to my rescue when I was in need of something nice to wear. It may sound pathetic to some but as a business owner, I delegate to make my work more efficient and as a mommy, with four boys, it’s no different. I need all the help I can get!!
Now, however, all of that is gone on the weekends and I am a true farm gal at heart. My favorite store is Tractor Supply and I even buy clothes and galoshes there to wear at the farm! While we are at the farm, I’m a true Betty Crocker with baking cakes and cookies. I make a hot breakfast, lunch, and dinner while making sure we leave our weekend home absolutely spotless when we head back to the city. No Instacart for me in the country! I love the local market and all the wonderful produce and variety available. We eat seasonal foods and have lots of fruit trees and I hope to start a garden in the spring. It’s such a transformation and I will continue to share my triumphs, and, undoubtedly, failures along the way.
The ponds are what initially attracted my husband to this property. They are so majestic, full of fish and add so much tranquility to our farm. I spy a cute little farmhouse nestled in the trees!
When we first took our boys to see the farm, they were excited but didn’t quite understand the depth of how life would change for them. But who am I kidding, neither did I!! The boys immediately took to farm life and loved being involved. It must be in their genes to enjoy building things because they beg to get out there every weekend to keep working on the farmhouse, I think they like seeing the progress it’s making too.
Our before and after pictures already show a totally different home. As a family, we have stared for hours at walls, torn down those walls, fought over paint colors, and laughed about mistakes. It is no doubt that all four, oldest to youngest Collins boys, will be a master of remodeling within the next year along with learning some serious farm skills!!
