My husband made my 30th birthday the most special one I think I’ve ever had. PJ went above and beyond and surprised me at every turn, leaving me instructions and items to use throughout the day because he knows how much I like surprises. You’ll see what I’m talking about in this week’s upcoming vlog, but for now, I just want to say I felt so very loved on my birthday, maybe the most loved I’ve ever felt, and it was all because of him.
My guy. My hero.
Well, it’s finally here. Today I am 30 on the 30th. My Golden Birthday! I’ve been waiting 30 years to be able to say that, and even though it sounds so weird to say now that it’s finally here, it also feels so good. I’ve always been an older soul at heart (not that 30 is old), and you already know how content I am going into this next decade of life, so it seems my age is finally catching up with me.
I’m beyond excited to ring in my 30’s with PJ and the kiddos by my side, and with so many new adventures ahead of us (that we can’t wait to share!). I’m getting overwhelmed in the best way just thinking about it.
Here we go!!!!!!!
Happy Monday dear friends! How sweet is my husband?
I turn 30 tomorrow, and PJ surprised me the other day with not one, not two, but three birthday presents! I wasn’t expecting any to be honest. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve found I care less and less about presents on my birthday and/or holidays, and for the last few years we’ve forgone presents in lieu of spending time together, nice dinners, trips, etc. The only thing I care about on my birthday is that I get to see the people I love.
Oh, and cake. Definitely still care about cake.
But, this is the first time I've ever received presents like these! He got me six (!) Yoshino Cherry Trees (which you can see in the top picture in the back behind the blueberry bushes- they have pink paper wrapped around the bottom of them), a few Jasmine vines, and three blueberry bushes! You can watch our newest vlog to see him give them to me and my reaction. They were both surprises and I was struggling hardcore to figure out what the blueberry bushes were when he showed them to me and told me to guess, giving me hints like “It’s your favorite fruit” and “I hate these but you always seem to buy them and let them go bad in the fridge”. It took me about 10 different guesses, but I got there eventually :).
He planted both for me on our land and I am SO excited for what they mean for our future out here at Holiday House. I’ve never had someone give me plants as a gift, but I should have always known PJ would come up with a loving and creative gesture like this- a living thing that represents so much more than just my affinity for a certain fruit.
What would I do without this man, y’all?
And after all the hard and heavy wind and rain that seemed to last forever (when in reality it lasted a little over 24 hours), the sun came out in full force on this beautiful Friday morning to bring us into the weekend. Unfortunately, it’s supposed to rain for the next few days, so the sunny weather won’t last long, but wow what a beautiful day it’s going to be. And we’re going to make the most of it!
PJ has been looking at something very exciting (to our family) online that we may go look at today. It will be a first step for an overall vision we have for Holiday House and our land, and even though it will be a lot more work (whatever happened to our word of the year “simplify?”), it will be something we can all love and enjoy. We’ll see how today goes!!
Happy Friday dear friends!! Hope you have a good one! xo
Pond progress!
PJ has been working on a small pond on our property for the last few days, spending many, many hours on it and getting it just right. How cool is that? Remember how I said there’s truly nothing he can’t do when he set his mind to it? This is a prime example. He built a literal pond, y’all, using a shovel and the tractor.
We hired excavators to dig a few ponds on our land and hope to have them filled (or at least the smaller one) by summer, but the weather hasn’t been cooperating with us the last few weeks, so their timeline is a bit delayed. After it rains, and it’s rained a lot lately, they have to wait at least three days before they can start digging again. As you can imagine, it gets frustrating quick when something that should have taken a week ends up taking over a month. Such is life, though!
Not taking that for an answer, PJ has taken it upon himself to create a little water haven for us using the mountain run-off water that builds up whenever it rains a lot. Every fall and winter, a little stream is formed on our property and runs for a few months while it’s still wet outside. Come spring and summer, though, it’s all dried up. We’re hoping that, because of the system PJ created for this little pond, it’ll stay filled from now on and get bigger as it rains throughout the year. We shall see!
For now, though, it’s been perfect for the dogs to swim in and the kiddos to play in. The weather has been so nice the last few days (low 70’s and sunny!) and we’re trying to be outside and in nature as much as possible. It may not look like much from these photos, but to us, it’s paradise right now.
The pond has also created a sort of relaxing retreat for us. The sound of the water running is so dreamy and the color of the rocks under the water is beautiful. Through the draining system PJ created, the pond stays pretty clear when no one is in it stirring up the mud, so you can see right to the bottom.
The kiddos and I have been helping PJ collect and stack rocks to create something for the water to break on and they are LOVING it! We’ve found they really like helping us out there when we’re doing various projects (older brother is sometimes reluctant, but for the most part he’s game, too). They love getting their hands dirty and seeing how many rocks they can get at one time. It’s so cute. Seeing their little hands pick up these ginormous rocks is my favorite thing ever, but seeing their excitement and pride in how hard they’re working is even better.
I can’t wait to see if this little pond works!! We should know something here pretty soon!
Thank you, Ron, SO much for the sweet package!!! We absolutely love introducing the kiddos to new books (they always enjoy reading a little before bed), especially ones that are inclusive and diverse as these are! Also, loving the fun and colorful mugs showing a gay family. Items like these are what normalize LGBTQ+ families and we couldn’t be more grateful for you, Ron, for sending them to ours.
Happy Wednesday, friends! xo
Our days look so much different out here than they do in town.
Back home, our days are mostly spent inside working, cleaning, and doing school, with the occasional walk outside now that they weather is a little warmer. Here, though, we spend more time outside than in. We spent so much time outside yesterday that I actually got a little sunburnt. There’s just so much more to DO here, I’m honestly not used to it. It’s exciting and overwhelming and beautiful in the best way.
Right now the kiddos are outside playing with their monster trucks in the dirt and pretending it’s Jurassic Park with toy dinosaurs (and fighting during all of this, but that’s beside the point) and PJ is riding the tractor smoothing out all the gravel that got delivered yesterday for the new driveway (yay!). Basically, there’s just a lot more going on here than at our townhouse. Every day there’s something to be done, a project to be completed, a different path to make, and just all together so much life to be lived here.
I know it could just be that this is a (somewhat) new place and it all seems more exciting because of that, but I think the majority of it is because, truly, it’s just a better environment for our family. PJ grew up on a farm and spent more time outside than inside for most of his childhood, and he was always swimming in creeks and playing with animals and climbing trees, and it’s that kind of lifestyle we want for the kids.
Back home, it’s sidewalks and streets and a tiny yard, which is great, it really is, and we love our home and neighborhood, but I think for this season of life we’re in right now, and because we have access to it, we want to spend as much time letting them get dirty and running around as we can.
Growing up, I never in a million years thought I would ever want to spend time on land. I grew up in the middle of town (in the house we live in now, actually!) and I loved the convenience of being close to everything, I loved seeing the people walking on the sidewalks, I loved living near parks. I loved living in town. But things are different now with the kids and the animals. Isn’t it wild how things change so drastically? Now, I find myself wanting to be at Holiday House more than at home. And we already know PJ could live out here forever and be the happiest person alive.
And you know what? I think I could, too.
PS: come back tomorrow for an update on the pond PJ has been working on!
The Property Lovers is a daily blog by PJ and Thomas about our adventures as husbands and dads living in our small hometown, life in our 100 year old Craftsman, and fixing up our farm. Welcome!
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