Hello Again, Summer

I know the calendar still says spring, but I swear that yesterday summer officially began in Tennessee, so we did what anyone would do when it’s 80 degrees outside: we went swimming in the small pond that PJ built for us, of course.

Tennessee has, for reasons unknown to me, a tendency to shorten seasons, so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that we went from winter to a little bit of spring for a week and then straight into full-on summer. It’s still kind of chilly in the mornings, but it’s calling for hot weather the rest of the week, so I think it’s safe to say we’re done with spring (though my allergies would disagree).

The water was still a little too cold for me to want to get in (I hate cold water so, so much!) but the kids couldn’t stay out of it. I always tell PJ, to everyone else this probably looks like just a big, muddy pile of dirt, rocks, and water, but to us it’s paradise. It still has such a long way to go, and we haven’t even scratched the surface of what it’s going to eventually look like, but the biggest and most important thing is that we have water on the farm (for now at least) to keep us cool this summer.

Last summer was so miserable (for many different reasons) because we didn’t have anywhere to cool off in the 100 degree temps. That’s why this little pond is paradise for us right now: it’s a step in the right direction to get us to where we want to one day be out here. We can see the vision of what this farm could be for us, and maybe even for others, and that “someday maybe” is giving us the fuel we need to keep working.

Here’s to short seasons and many more hot days in the coming months!

Good Morning

I coudln’t help but taking a quick picture when I walked outside this morning to let the dogs out. The sunrise never disappoints here at Holiday House and I don’t think I’ll ever stop taking photos (and posting them) of it.

Good morning dear reader! xx

Missing This Today: Barcelona

Good morning, friends.

Thanks for all the love on yesterday’s post- it meant a lot!

I am currently drinking coffee, the sun is pouring through the living room windows, and it’s a beautiful 63 degrees outside, which means it’s a totally blissful morning here at Holiday House. BUT. I’m feeling nostalgic. What else is new?

I was going through my phone looking for photos when I came across these from our trip to Barcelona 2 years ago (!). I haven’t had an itch to travel in some time, as we’ve been enjoying time at home with our family and spending our days at Holiday House, but for some reason, seeing these pictures has me wanting to travel again, only this time with the kids.

We want to show them how beautiful the world is far beyond Tennessee. We want them to experience different cultures and see how people live in other parts of the world. I can’t imagine how tricky and difficult (?) it is to travel with little kids, but I think the want is so big right now that we’re up for the challenge. Maybe one day soon!

Though we were only in Barcelona for 24 hours (click here to watch the vlog of our trip), I remember how magical I thought the city was. It felt like you were in an exotic location while also being in the middle of a big, bustling city at the same time. I loved the old streets and beautiful buildings, and the way the streets felt so alive, even early in the morning.

We climbed to the roof of the hotel we were staying at to take these pictures as the sun was coming up and I felt so energized; like anything was possible and the day could really be whatever we wanted it to be. But, do you want to know a secret? I get that feeling out at Holiday House, too.

A trip abroad might be a tall order for traveling with them for the first time, but a trip to the beach is in the works this year already!!! We can’t wait to see their faces when they see the ocean for the first time.

Have a lovely day, friends! xo

4, 5, 6 Pick Up Sticks

Happy Friday, friends!

We spent the majority of the day yesterday picking up sticks from a dead tree we had cut down at the front of our property. Fun, right? It was one of those tasks we’d been putting off for weeks but yesterday was the first sunny day in a while, so we finally tackled it. The sticks and limbs in these pictures aren’t even half of what needs to be picked up (sadly), and let me just say that picking up sticks is not to be underestimated in the least. It is extremely monotonous and time seems to move at a snail’s pace when you’re doing it.

Poor PJ did most of it while I was editing a video and making lunch, but I hopped in for about an hour and honestly thought I had been doing it for half the day. Riveting stuff.

BUT. The tree they came from is at the very beginning of our property, which is also directly in front of the pavilion, so cleaning up the fallen branches is one of the many steps we’re taking to make the plans we have for the pavilion come to life. We’re treating the grass, PJ took down walls and demoed last year, cleaned up the overgrown shrubs and bushes surrounding it, and also had a new roof put on it. Slowly but surely, it’s coming together. This is what it looked like when we purchased the land a few years ago:

We’ve been talking a lot lately about what we want to do with it and I think we’ve come up with some really fun, exciting plans that include multiple uses for the space. After more than 2 years of brainstorming what all it could be, which at one time included just tearing it all down and starting over, we both feel confident about its future. Can’t share it all just yet, but we’re SO excited to get started on it and have you experience it one day!

The kids even jumped in on the fun and helped for a little, but, mostly, they just found and played with bugs in the grass. 

Finally, Some Green!

It seems like, for the last few weeks, I’ve been counting down the days until the trees (and the grass) turn green, and today, I looked up and saw…GREEN! Finally! I snapped this picture this afternoon and look at all of the leaves on the trees! I swear they didn’t look like that just yesterday. All the rain we’ve been having (that I wrote about earlier today) paid off, as it always does.

I feel like the first true signs of spring are when things start changing colors. Just as I love the way the leaves turn orange and brown in the fall, I absolutely adore when color comes back in and livens things up a bit. Do you know what I mean? The birds start chirping, the sky looks different. The rebirth that comes with spring is magical thing to witness.

When the grass turns from brown to green, the land feels like an entirely different place. We could just as easily be in the English countryside, or maybe even Sweden (why not?) with our rolling hills and mountain views. Have I mentioned how much we love it out here?

Not to mention, we haven’t actually spent time at Holiday House in the spring yet. It’ll be neat to experience the land, and this house, in a new season, a less cold one, that just begs us all to spend as much time outside as possible.

Which, if you’ve been reading the blog, you know we’ve been doing every chance we get.

Rainy Day Blues

Friends,

I have written about my love for rainy days on this blog approximately 1,000 times (the feelings of coziness it brings, staying in and watching movies), and I would like to formally retract all of those entries right now.

I only thought I enjoyed them, but as we’ve been spending more and more time out at Holiday House, it’s becoming clear that 3 kids and 2 dogs and 1 cat stuck inside a 1200 sq foot home that is currently in the middle of a renovation while you’re trying to juggle school for a kindergartener and work for your business at the same time is exactly zero amounts of fun.

We spend so much of our time here outside that when we’re forced to be inside all day, it brings feelings of frustration and dare I say even a little resentment. But resentment towards whom? Mother Nature? The clouds? Who knows. But the feeling is real, and it’s there.

It rained all day yesterday, but it’s supposed to be sunny today. Cold, but sunny.

I’ll take it.