I would very much like to think that we are close to our dream of full-time farming, closer still to actually being parents to children that we can call our own, and hopefully reducing the impact we have on the earth by living a simpler life. But, as the saying goes, close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.
Careful planning and much research set us on a path to building a straw bale house. Have you guys heard of these things? Oh my, are they ever awesome! My first introduction to them took place shortly after I married Josh and (as most newlyweds do) we began discussing our dream house. The “dream house discussion” should probably take place during premarital counseling sessions, now that I think of it. We really lucked out since we had never discussed living on a farm before marrying. It was during the “dream home discussion” that we discovered that we were in complete agreement on where and how we would live. Both of us, as it turned out, were very concerned with conserving energy, using recycled materials, gardening, and farming.
What are the odds of finding such a counterpart in today’s dating world? Does Match.com even offer a block beside “wants to make own bread, participate in back-breaking work, and basically return to pioneer life”? Probably not.
With sheer joy in discovering that we shared more than just religious views, morals/ethics, and simpatico, we scoured the Net together for green construction tips, farm-building advice, and more. One such search brought us to A House of Straw. We were hooked. With the steady rhythm of the Northwest rains and gentle thud of Golden Retriever tails against the floor in the background, we clicked on every page of the site, looked closely at each photo, and turned to each other with big sloppy giddy newly-married grins.
We realize that our dream property and home is still part of the shining future, but we have mapped out how to get there and still keep our values and budget intact — a tricky task but one worth the effort.
This leads me to ask you what you are doing or have done to make your home more eco-friendly. What changes have you made? What will your dream house be like? How did your first “dream house discussion” go?
Please watch the following video. I think you’ll be equally impressed with this amazing single mother:
St. Fairsted Farm - My dream house is a metal barn with living quarters! It’s become really popular here in TX.
I loved the video and was quite impressed. I don’t know that a straw house would be a good idea for our humidity….
MaryJo - My husband used to say (during Viet Nam era)… “Close only counts in horseshoes, hand granades and B52s”! 🙂 Thanks for the memory!
Rosa - I love your giorgeous pictures! May all your dreams come true!
Cheers,
Rosa
Sophie - I just love your beautiful pictures!! And your writing is sublime!!
Lynnie - I had a friend who got married, had a baby, and lived in a tiny one-room straw-bale house for 18 months. It was so sweet and romantic and had heart and star windows. I was impressed.
Jake and I are trying daily to have a smaller impact on our earth. We are doing this now by trying to raise most of what we eat and supplying our neighbors. We are taking a HUGE leap this summer and expanding our farm and garden. It is also a leap of faith. We are hoping to make this our occupation since construction is kaput here!
As for dream house, we are thinking small (why do people build big houses?). I just want a decent-sized living room so that we can have friends over. Also, solar hot water with passive solar qualities (like windows facing the right way so that you use less heat). And everything inside painting a lovely happy orange! Though Jake might disagree with that…. : )
Simple Livin' gal - The metal barn idea has crossed our minds more than once. I love the sturdiness of those buildings and the use of recycled materials!
Mary Jo — I love your husband’s twist on the saying. Confession: even though I know that B52s are long-range, subsonic, jet-powered, strategic bombers — I’m currently singing “Love Shack” to my computer. Gosh, I miss you.
Rosa — Can you believe that I have a blog again?? Thank you! May all your dreams come true, too!
Sophie — Have I ever told you that I LOVE your name? Josh and I have often talked about names for children and it has always come up. We love it!
Lynnie — I agree completely. Why are big houses such a must for Americans? Why does everyone need their own room? Josh and I really want one large open space (basement) for romping with dogs, sewing, quilting tables, etc. The rest of our dream house will actually be fairly small. We do want a guest cabin on our property, though. We have made so many wonderful friends thanks to the website and all the PCSing (military moving) and I want them all to be able to visit!!!
Blessings and thanks!
Lacy
Oliver - Hi,
As a straw bale house enthusiast you might like this map:
http://naturalhomes.org/ecohousemap.htm?strawbale
You can put it in your blog too. The code is here:
http://naturalhomes.org/naturalhomesmap.htm
Regards, Oliver
Aunt Laura - I don’t care how big your home is…as long as there is room for me to visit! Glad your back up!
Judy - I have enjoyed reading your site for a few months now. I am excited to have found it and have been living vicariously through you since (just kidding).
I, too, am a military wife, though my husband has recently separated, his job is still with the military. We have been dreaming of a small farm and the simpler life like you and Josh are leading.
We are trying to do things that are eco-friendly and are learning more and more things we can do. It has been a slow, yet enjoyable process. We are composting and recycling of course, but also try to go 100% artificial and chemical free (foods, hygiene products, candles, cleaners, etc.). Actually, that’s where our interest in simple living started (my son requires it for his health).
We spent much of the winter preparing our yard for our first vegetable garden. I have spent hours and hours, pouring through books, magazines and blogs to learn as much as I can about gardening (and other back to basics subjects). It has definitely been and adventure and a lot of fun. My husband grew up on a farm, so he knows a WHOLE lot more than I do. But, it has been fun.
Thank you so much for the time you spend on your site. It is inspiring and very resourceful.
Judy - I have enjoyed reading your site for a few months now. I am excited to have found it and have been living vicariously through you since (just kidding).
I, too, am a military wife, though my husband has recently separated, his job is still with the military. We have been dreaming of a small farm and the simpler life like you and Josh are leading.
We are trying to do things that are eco-friendly and are learning more and more things we can do. It has been a slow, yet enjoyable process. We are composting and recycling of course, but also try to go 100% artificial and chemical free (foods, hygiene products, candles, cleaners, etc.). Actually, that’s where our interest in simple living started (my son requires it for his health).
We spent much of the winter preparing our yard for our first vegetable garden. I have spent hours and hours, pouring through books, magazines and blogs to learn as much as I can about gardening (and other back to basics subjects). It has definitely been an adventure and a lot of fun. My husband grew up on a farm, so he knows a WHOLE lot more than I do. But, it has been fun.
Thank you so much for the time you spend on your site. It is inspiring and very resourceful.
Marlene - Hi there,
Sure glad your blog is back up!!!! If A.J. and I were younger we would have built the straw bale or the Dome home that they have in Texas. It was a toss up. We will be in an older house but only one flour as our bods are saying no, no, no. You will get your wishes when you least expect it. At least you get practice. What a blessing. Keep up your good works in all yu do.
Love Always
Dawn - My sister in law, the one you know 😉 , went on a course a number of years ago to learn how to make one of those strawbale houses. We have looked at a lot of options for an addition to our house. We are big on having people over and our current house barely fits us and we don’t really have a seating room to have more than a couple guests over at time. With big families in our circle or having more than one couple over, it is near impossible so we do most of our inviting over in summer for outside. We would love to have a sitting room and a bigger laundry area so I can have a drier for emergencies. I haven’t used a clothes dryer in the 6 years we have lived here. Our current home has double 2×4 walls with offset studs so it is very well insulated. It makes for nice window sills too, to put stuff on, like plants in spring. I have received my first order of seeds. I love ordering them by mail and I will be starting a few things soon. I really want to have a good garden this year and store things well so we don’t have to buy so much next year. And we will get more laying hens this year and have more eggs for friends and family.
warren - We have thought about these things too. We got a few books and stuff and it looks awesome!
Anyhow, we are on house #2…but today we had a really nice dream house discussion…we’ve been sort of having the discussion for awhile but coming home from our trip day gave us great opportunity!
Leah - I cannot for the life of me remember the web site but I stumbled onto a link not too long ago loaded with pictures of this AMAZING house that was built in to the side of a mountain, in a cave. It was incredible. My kinda house. Waking up every morning and getting to step out onto a “porch” and look down at the vast world and see misty mountains all around… *sigh*
Anyway, just making some quick rounds to say hello before going to bed tonight, I have a busy day tomorrow. =)
Kath - We have the straw bales to build this!!! We mapped out where we want the cabin built while in WY this weekend. Oh joy!
Ann - Wow, that’s really cool.
Why, yes, Match.com does have that category!! Lol. Okay, maybe not…but it clearly should!
ToilingAnt - I’ve wanted to build a straw bale house for years! If y’all do it, I want step-by-step pictures! 🙂
tipper - I’ve seen documentaries on the straw houses-seems really neat.
farm mom - Isn’t that an amazing feeling? Connecting like that on so many levels? Eric and I have been together since we were 16. I still marvel that we’ve both come to this place together, our dreams still meshing and interwoven along the way. We’ve thought about building a straw bale house as well. Eric really wants to go for it! 🙂