This Old House

Matt and I have lived in a lot of places in the nine years we have been married. Each place we've lived we have met great friends and made lots of happy memories.

We got our start at 310 High Street in Albert Lea. Matt had the place before we got married...he bought if for $85,000! It was tiny but so cute. We were a block off the lake, we had wonderful neighbors, a huge garage, beautiful hardwood floor, and a small yard to mow. It was wonderful for our first house.

(This is not a very good photo but the poor house was foreclosed on after we left AL and this was it's state)

In 2004, we decided to build a house...what an undertaking. 71827 Phillip Drive was a fun adventure that we put a lot of time, sweat and tears into. It was in an awesome neighborhood (again with wonderful neighbors), had the things we really wanted in a home, and lots of character for a new home. The thing that was sad about building this home was that we were only in it a year before we moved to Farmington. I still think about that place and feel blessed to have been there. We met some of our best friends in Albert Lea and still consider it one of our happiest memories to have lived and worked there.

Still can't believe we lived here...was such a short time!

We then headed to 19630 Meadowlark Way in Farmington. I can honestly say looking back that I appreciated the townhouse...it was beautiful and new... but I strongly dislike everything else around that move. It was not the place for us and definitely not a place that I wanted to raise our kids. It served it's purpose for the time but I believe God kept us moving to get us to where we are now!

With a new job for Matt and a strong desire to get closer to family we headed to the Kenyon area. We had the opportunity to move south and with Matt already making the commute to KW for work it made a lot of sense. We just didn't know where we would go! That brought us to PO Box 82 or in other words the Cheese Factory! We lived there for 5 1/2 months and it was like living in a cabin. At the end of the driveway of some very dear friends, the Cheese Factory was 800 square feet of happy little living space. A tiny kitchen, tiny bathroom, tiny living room, two tiny bedrooms, a larger unheated storage area and the most gorgeous landscape you can imagine. When I think about living there it makes me smile. Cameron was only about 13 months when we moved in an I was pregnant with Emmy. We didn't have a washer and dryer so for the summer we would go to the laundrymat. There were times of frustration after leaving a very beautiful and NEW townhouse but looking back on it, what a fun memory! It was preparing us for living in another old house in the future I think!

This place is like a little country cottage, we lived in the upper level part Our house today...40210 County 14 Blvd. Even though we are renting this place it feels most like home over any of the places we have lived.

I'll be honest in saying I have a love/hate relationship with the house we are in. I realize hate is a strong word so I'll say strongly dislike. I strongly dislike that at this time of year we can feel the winter breeze moving through the uninsulated walls (also giving us a $700-$900 fuel bill each month in the winter!). I strongly dislike that it feels like you are going into an outdoor outhouse when you go to the bathroom with no heat vents in it. I strongly dislike that our old house has very poor electrical wiring and I can't run the washer and dryer at the same time without blowing a fuse! I strongly dislike all the critters (mice, bats, squirrels and who know what else) that live together with us.

My loves do outweigh the dislikes though...I LOVE the landscape and the area of Sogn Valley. I LOVE our neighbors. I LOVE how close we are to family. I LOVE that our home has a long driveway and is a safe place for our kiddos to play outside. I LOVE that there are projects around our house to do that keep me connected to my agriculutral roots. I LOVE that we can take a hike, ride on the ranger, and play in the wide open outdoors any time we want. I LOVE the changing seasons and the beauties that each of them bring in this area. I LOVE the space that this house has for our family. Mostly, I LOVE that we are here and believe this is exactly where God wants us to be for this time in our life.

The view from our back porch

The beauty of this place

I have a saying that is framed in my kitchen that says "Today I belong here...tomorrow if I don't, it doesn't mean that I never did, or never will again, my home travels with me." It is so true. I really hope that this is the home/place that we are able to stay as we raise our kids and until we reach our ultimate home in Heaven!