Fun Weekend Plans & Happy Friday!

Happy Friday, friends!

It’s a beautiful day out here at Ocoee Farm, so we spent the morning walking the property and checking out the new fence.

A fence at the farm completely changes everything: we’re able to have more animals, create a diverse ecosystem that will hopefully produce more carbon into the air, effectively helping the earth and its atmosphere. I know that probably sounds CRAZY, and just typing it I feel overwhelmed because we’re just two people and how can we make a difference when it comes to the ongoing climate crisis? I honestly don’t know, but you gotta start somewhere, and we want to do this thing right, so we’re doing research and taking the steps to be the best little natural farm we can be.

In other news, tomorrow we’re going to one of our first social gathering events after getting vaccinated (our second dose is in a few weeks!). My best friend’s daughter is celebrating her first birthday, so we’re all going to be celebrating with her around actual people in an actual social setting for the first time in over a year. It’s weird to think about, isn’t it? But also, so thrilling.

We haven’t been anywhere with all three kids in an environment like that in so long that I don’t know how they’ll even act, but I do know they do so well in public places that I’m not worried in the least. I’m just excited for them; little sis is looking forward to getting to hold Betsy (she loves babies) and the boys will get to eat some cake. So basically we all win.

PJ has been on the phone all morning with the fence guy and the concrete guy and the painter and the pond guy and is currently outside with one of them discussing a new concrete patio/front porch for Holiday House. I am so, so, so thankful for him and for his ability to make things happen.

The thing to know about PJ is that he always has a plan. Always. He doesn't do anything unless he is 100% sure and has considered every other option. My guy. He’s a good one, y’all. The best one, in fact.

Hope you have a great weekend and soak up some fresh air and sunshine, if you can. xoxo

Welcome to Ocoee Farm!

Good morning friends!

We created a new Instagram account called Ocoee Farm to document the journey of starting our little farm and renovating Holiday House out here in Ocoee, Tennessee. Click here to follow along, if you want :).

We've Spent a Month Straight at Holiday House

The question that’s been on my mind lately: are we ever going home?

To be clear, we’ve been to our house in town many times over the last 30 days, but we’ve not actually spent the night there in more than a month. How wild is that? I can honestly say I never pictured that I would enjoy living in a half-torn apart trailer in the country more than living in our fully-renovated house in the middle of the city. Isn’t it funny how life changes your priorities so quickly? Isn’t it funny how having kids changes your priorities so quickly?

We know how important the farm is for the kiddos during this time in their lives, which is a huge reason we’re spending more time out here lately. They have the space and freedom to run around and climb trees and get dirty and play with animals and explore. It’s perfect for them. And guess what? It’s perfect for us, too.

PJ has been getting a new animal every week (like he did when he was little growing up on his family’s farm 😂), so with that comes many firsts for the kids, and, to be honest, for me too. I didn’t grow up on a farm or around sheep and geese and cows like PJ did, so it’s been just as exciting for me to see how cute and fun they can be. Spoiler alert: pretty darn cute and fun.

Life is different here, in a good way. Every day is something new and there’s always work to be done. I am hoping I feel as enthusiastic about spending time on the farm this summer as I do now, because while the weather has been somewhat mild lately (making it easy to be outside for long periods of time), this week it’s supposed to be in the 80’s a lot, which will lead into a mostly in-the-90’s-every-day kind of summer here in Tennessee. It can be unbearable, truly, to be outside unless you’re in shade or around some type of water to cool you off. We’re working on the water situation as we speak. Will we have something by summer? TBD.

So, are we ever going home? Yes, of course. But I don’t think any of us would mind if it wasn’t for a little while longer.

The Pink Moon

Did you see the moon tonight?

It’s the first supermoon of the year and it stopped me in my tracks tonight as we were all heading back inside from chatting with our neighbors here at the farm. It was so beautiful and bright, it looked like the sun!

This supermoon is nicknamed the “pink” moon because of how close it’s appearing next to flower blooming season. Who knew?

There’s another supermoon coming next month on May 26 that’s supposed to be even bigger and brighter than tonight’s. Can you imagine?

Mark your calendars!

The Power of Inspiration

The name of this post sounds like the title of a self-help book, doesn’t it? Is there already a book called this somewhere? I need to research that.

Good morning, friends. It’s Monday morning and I’m already on my second cup of coffee (something that doesn’t usually happen until mid-afternoon). We set up a little tiny desk area in the living room at Holiday House, which feels better than working at the dining room table or the new island, so I’m currently writing at that this morning while editing next week’s YouTube video. This place is starting to feel more and more like home.

As I’ve kind of touched on the blog before, we’re both feeling so inspired lately. We wake up to the view of the mountain bursting through the living room window and immediately feel creativity strike. We have always enjoyed slow mornings, both in town and at Holiday House, but especially here at HH. We take our time drinking our coffee before getting started on the day and it’s a time that’s become a sort of ritual for us, one that I know we both cherish deeply (whether we realize it or not).

This burst of inspiration is something neither of us takes lightly. I know that probably sounds silly to say, but if I’m being honest, we’ve both felt quite uninspired for some time now that this new point of view, no matter how long it lasts, is such an exciting and fresh outlook that just feels so, to put it bluntly…good. It feels good, y’all.

I know the biggest source for our inspiration lately is the farm and Holiday House. Being out here means something new for our family every day and the kids are feeling it, too. There’s so much work to be done to get this place to where we want it to be, but that part, the journey, is where inspiration is born for us. It’s the possibility of what this place could be that is the exciting part, the dreaming and the planning and the doing, and when it all comes together at the end…there’s somehow still more work to be done. And that’s the beauty of it.

We’re both creatives, sometimes in the same ways and sometimes in different ways. It’s what we do for a living with social media and flipping/renovating houses. We’re visual people who get excited about having a project to work on and who generally don’t like it when there’s down time and nothing to do. We thrive, personally and professionally, when we’re both busy and using our minds to get creative and build. For PJ, that’s quite literal: building things at home, at the land and Holiday House, something for the kids. He loves to construct and is extremely analytical. His mind works so differently than mine in that he can see how all the pieces will fit together long before they actually do. I can see thing like that when it comes to designs and layouts, but his ability to envision something fully finished is quite extraordinary.

I don’t know how long this new-found inspiration will last, but I know we’re making the most of it while it’s here. I do know that inspiration comes and goes and that’s just part of it. Right now it’s going and we’re taking advantage of it every day.

Happy Monday, y’all! Hoping inspiration strikes for you at least once today.

How Many Sheep is Too Many Sheep?

Asking for a friend :)

THE HORNS.

If there’s one thing my husband loves in abundance, it’s animals. And we now have the space to finally get the ones he’s always wanted- the ones he hasn’t had since his magical childhood growing up on his family’s farm.

How many sheep is too many sheep? I may have to get back to you on that one.

Happy Earth Day!

Let’s all remember to take in a deep breath of fresh air, get outside as much as we can, and treat the earth a little kinder today (really, every day should be Earth Day, but you get the picture).

Some photos of our beautiful earth around Ocoee Farm, below:

Have a good one, y’all!!! xx

How Refugees Celebrate Ramadan

April 12th was the beginning of Ramadan, and over on USA for UNHCR’s blog, they’re spotlighting a few refugees and how they’re celebrating the Islamic holiday.

Abdelwahed (above), has been a refugee in Jordan for the past nine years. He talks about how different Ramadan is for him in Jordan than it was at his home in Homs, Syria: “Ramadan in Homs was beautiful. I used to go to work before dawn, have Suhoor at the shop and stay up all night. I used to pray in the afternoon then take my children for a ride in the car, as a treat to smell the fresh air,” he says.

They also share a bit about Abdallah, a 13 year old boy who cares for his visually impaired mother. When he gets home from school every day, he organizes their laundry and takes her to the local market to buy fruit. They’ve been living in a small apartment for the past nine years, also in Jordan, and will be fasting and praying for Ramadan at home this year.

His mother, who lost her sight as a result of the psychological effects of the Syrian conflict, gushes about Abdallah: “The best moment of the day is when Abdallah is next to me. Even if he leaves me just for an hour, I feel sad and worried. He is the only thing left for me in this life.”

To read more about how refugees are celebrating Ramadan this year, click here, and thank you so much USA for UNHCR for sharing these stories!!!

(above images & information via USA for UNHCR’s website)