Childhood Dreams
I've loved animals and farm land for as long as I can remember. When I was young and we would be driving in the car and pass a horse farm or a cow pasture, I'd think, "that is where I want to be."
In middle school our bus root always took us by a dilapidated old farm house and I'd think, "I sure with I could fix that up!" That house is long gone, but I remember the beauty I saw in that old thing.
I purchased my first horse when I was 16 (with a little help from my grandfather). She was young and crazy and I was young and brave enough to ride her. We spent many hours on trails in the national Battlefield near where she was boarded.
In my mid twenties I always said that when I got married and bought a house I wanted to be able to see my horses through my kitchen window. Why this was my dream I'm not exactly sure. Did I know that as a mom I would spend 5 million years each day in the kitchen? I dont think so. It was just something God put on my heart, probably so that many years later I could see His faithfulness in all things, even a little dream of seeing a horse through a window.
With a life time of loving animals and making crazy dreams about old farm houses, it should be no surprise that the home my husband and I bought was a 100 year old farm house. It sagged in the middle and was full of led paint, I'm sure. But it seemed perfect to me. There was no heating or air-conditioning and one of the windows was boarded up, but when I looked at her all I saw was child hood dreams coming true.
The first thing my new husband, of only 2 months did was put up a fence so we could move in my horses. As I stood in the kitchen and looked out the windows and watched my horses in their new pasture, I realized God does exactly what he says he will do. Always.
Its been 13 years and we are still in this saggy old farm house. There's been an addition to the living space and many coats of (lead free) paint added to all the walls. The kitchen got a miny face-lift last year thanks to my husband and my father. We've had several beloved dogs come and go here. We brought home all 5 of our beautiful babies to this old house. We added a horse and buried another. These walls have seen the best of me and the worst. I've taught many homeschool lessons and life lessons and I've learned so many more in this little house. Its been a beautiful realization of a childhood dream that God so beautifully put together for us all.
As my children have grown, so has the farm. My oldest daughter has several rabbits that she breeds and sells. My youngest daughter has a grumpy pot belly pig named Sarah Bow. We had 2 turkeys this year that made the most fantastic Thanksgiving meal! There have been countless guinea pigs buried in the back yard and one very beloved hedgehog. We have the worst barn cat ever.....he's very rarely found in the barn and it is more likely that he can be found sleeping on one of the many beds in this house. We currently have the best dog in the whole world; He loves us and protects us well.
But perhaps through all these beautiful blessings found running around our property, my favorite (except for the children of course) are the chickens. They eat the bugs and lay beautiful eggs each day. And, if you create an environment just right for them, the eggs miraculously turn into cute little fuzzy chicks in just 21 days!
This is our second year hatching our own chicks and its a beautiful lesson in life, loss and everything in-between. Not every egg will turn into a chick. Infact if you have a 75% hatch rate that's deemed a success. Not every chick hatched will find a place on the farm....really theres only room for one (maybe 2) roosters. The rest have to go, or get eaten.
Watching life form right before our very eyes is so amazing! It gives us lots of opportunities to see God's handy work all over this world....right down to the egg layed in our own back yard. If God can take an egg and turn it into a beautiful little fuzzy baby, how much more can he do with us?!
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