Life is Better on the Farm.... at the very least that's what we're hoping!
Sam and I have 5 kids that we love - we love working together, learning together, playing together, and praying together. Of our 5, the first 4 are girls, our little ladies; the last of the 5 is our little gentleman; their ages range from 14 down to 5 1/2. We've been married 16 years this September - and it's flown by faster than we ever expected it to.
In October of 2016 our family of 7 took the plunge into farm life, selling our home, leaving family and friends and community to our new little place 42.1 miles away. To our family that was a huge leap of faith - we sold our home very quickly and packed and moved all within a month of deciding to make this choice. Some of us were eager to embark on a new adventure, some of us were, well..... not. 42.1 miles may not seem like a huge number, but it became very clear to us how big a difference this would make in our lives, and it didn't make the change of place and pace any easier for those of us that struggled with the move.
A year later most of us have adjusted - some a little slower than the rest. We've taken each day and tried our best to do what we can with what we have; some days that's just faith in tomorrow's sunrise. They're a bit more beautiful here on the farm.
We've named our little farm "Rusty Metal Ranch" because that seems to be what's been raised here before us. We have found all sorts of vintage and unique things around the ranch - from vintage wallpaper, still in the packaging, to rusty gears, wheels, and farm tools. It all takes me back to a simple time - when life was better on the farm. That's what we're here for, to find the simple pleasures of a farm life, the blessing of returning to the land, working hard for what we earn, reaping the greater rewards of closer family, values rooted in God's natural laws, and greater perspective to what is really important in this life.
In the course of this past year, our family expanded to include our favorite little doggie, Rosie. She's a heeler/collie mix and full of energy and smarts. She quickly stole our hearts away and our family will never be the same again - we love that girl so much. We added 12 hens and 1 rooster, which have started laying eggs just recently - we are so eggcited to have them! I never thought of myself as a "Chicken Lady" until we had them awhile. We've had many a delightful conversation, those little hens and I. We also have some farm cats that are very good mousers and bird catchers. I actually love the birds, so when we got our first "bird present" this morning my heart was sad. This exemplifies one of the greatest lessons we have learned so far about farm life: the cycle of life and death.
Looking back, I would have done it all again. There are some things I would do differently when we move to our next farm, this one's just a bit too small for us, but I would never trade the things I've learned. I hope you join us on this journey of ours, to see if Life is Better on the Farm, maybe there's something you learn from it too and we'd love to hear your stories. We'll be seeing ya!
Fondly,
The Hale Family and Farm
