Standing on the edge of a cliff – it begins!

Well – this week has been a crazy but worthy adventure – and I had to come here and fill you all in. I’m selling my house and buying/building a farm.

The remodel finished this week and we can finally put it on the market. It should sell pretty fast – just about everything in it is completely new. With the proceeds, I will be starting my next journey into building a hobby farm and plant nursery. I’ve put an offer on 20 acres of land and we’re now in that negotiation stage – but I’m feeling very confident that we’ll come to a mutual agreement.

Maybe soon, I will be the owner of 20 acres of land in Washington state. 20 ACRES! And a few trees. And a cabin. And a barn. There’s a well, a septic, some solar and even internet. And an old riding lawn mower and 20+ chickens!!

Gonna be a chicken momma!

I’ve spent a lot of time preparing myself for this next adventure – studying permaculture and sustainable, responsible farming techniques, learning about water filtration, studying techniques of the amish and understanding how to work the land efficiently and leveraging what you have to work smarter. I dream of what my gardens will look like. I’d like a small orchard. My son wants a duck. Side note: Did you know that ducks are cuddly?! I now agree with my son and want a snuggly duck too – if that’s possible. I hope to build a geodesic dome on the land – the kits aren’t terribly expensive. And I can already picture what the views will be like from inside.

All that said – my next adventure is going to be a big one. I’ll continue this blog here, but i’ve upgraded this space to a better domain – this baby is growing up too!! – but the new farm will have a website of it’s own. I’ve registered BougieFarmers (dot com). hehe. I can’t wait to watch it change and grow – and I just know we’re in for a serious learning curve as we figure it all out. I’ll let you all know one I’ve set something up over at that domain too.

One of the views on the property

It’s been challenging to navigate all the emotions and feelings as we’ve done this. Packing up my studio was emotional, packing up the house has just been annoying – as you never realize how much stuff you’ve collected until suddenly you’re trying to pack it all up to take it to storage. It feels as if it’s never done. We officially list on Thursday and I think I expected the house to look different by now – we’ve done SO MUCH – and yet – the living room still looks like a bomb went off and I need to clean the kitchen counters – AGAIN! Oh well- I’m trying to just savor each moment as it comes. This is the beginning. There will be tears, there will be stress, there will be moments of joy and moments of downright frustration – but in the end, this land will be my forever home, and I certainly have the time to get it set up the way I want it.

Oh – and to any of you readers who are homesteaders…. or living off-grid, please – share with me your best piece of advice you’d give as I start my journey! Anything you’d have done differently if you were starting now vs how you started?

To the rest of my readers – thank you for always being here with me. And I hope you’ll enjoy hearing all the updates as I move this dream along. You’re appreciated more than you could possibly know.

Goodnight neverland!

Update: My bucket list

It’s been a year since I posted this … figured I’d update it and cross a few things off.

1. Go on a long road trip on a motorcycle.
2. Skydive
3. Get in a food fight
4. Learn to surf
5. Publish a book
6. Ride a hot air balloon
7. Go grape stomping and make wine
8. Go scuba diving
9. Ride an elephant in Thailand
10. Explore a real castle
11. Attend a ball
12. Eat sushi in Japan
13. See the cherry blossom festival
14.  Design a video game
15. Attend SDCC
16. Achieve my ideal weight
17. Learn to ski
18. See the amazon rainforest
19. Climb a mountain
20. Paint a mural
21. Make a CD – in a professional recording studio
22. See the aurora borealis
23. See the pyramids
24. Send a message in a bottle
25. Buy a house
26. Go on a cruise
27. Visit New York
28. Visit Vegas
29. Cook through an entire cookbook
30. Fly first class
31. African Safari
32. Experience Zero Gravity
33. Explore the Louvre
34. Visit Tuscany and experience “the Tuscan light”
35. Fly in a fighter jet
36. Drive on a race course as fast as I can go
37. Play a real game of poker in a casino
38. Go to the airport and take a random flight for a weekend
39. Experience Mardis Gras
40. Be at Times Square on New Years Eve
41. Get hypnotized
42. Speak at a design convention
43. Milk a cow
44. See Stonehenge
45. Meditate in a temple in asia
46. Rent a bus and party with friends
47. Set up a soup kitchen
48. Dress up in disguise for a day
49. Camp on a beach
50. Make a cherry pie with a lattice top
51. Throw a boomerang
52. Spend a day in bed… NOT sleeping 😉
53. Be “stranded” on an island for 3 days
54. Attend the Olympics
55. Kiss under the mistletoe
56. Be a part of a flash mob
57. Attend a murder mystery dinner
58. See real fireflies
59. Skinny dip in the ocean
60. Sex on a beach
61. Swim in a tropical ocean at night
62. Taste a sprouted coconut
63. Buy an investment property
64. Make someone smile every single day
65. Learn to play guitar
66. Go 140 mph on a motorcycle
67. Take a pottery class
68. Make stained glass
69. Flip a house
70. Attend my kid’s graduations
71. Meet my grandkids (this better be a LONG LONG time from now lol)
72. Join the mile high club
73. Take a bubble bath with someone