It all started in August of 2010.
We were living in a large house in a golf community, doing whatever it is that suburbians do.
My husband decided to change jobs, and spent many hours trying to convince me that his new commute would not in fact bring him home even later than he was already getting home. I was totally unconvinced after seeing where his new job was on a map. His hours at the time were 6:30-9:30, and sometimes later. As a homeschooling mom of 4 kiddos, it was tough beginning dinner at 9:30 or after each night, but I was always determined to eat dinner together as a family.
One day, when I was out showing properties to some buyer clients of mine, my husband started playing around on the GA MLS system, just out of curiosity. He knew my desperate want for a larger backyard, but moving in a down economy, and selling a house that we put WAY too much money into upgrading, was just far fetched and unrealistic.
When I arrived back home from my showing appointments, he showed me some farm houses he had found in the area of his new job. FARM HOUSES! I was totally shocked. He knew I would pack instantly and move in the next day if a farm house was within our reach. But at this point, it was all just a fantasy.
I said, "we don't have anything else to do this afternoon- let's go take a look!"
Our kids had playdates over, but we gave them the notice that we were leaving, and off we all went!
While we were on our way, I called the first house on our list. It was a vacant house on 10 acres. I thought I'd better check in with the agent, just in case it was already under contract. To my surprise, she answered and told me it was her OWN house, and that she was currently living in it! She was kind enough to tell us to come on over and take a look, but informed us that if we were a family of 6, the fact that there was one bathroom might deter us from being interested.
ONE BATHROOM!
We were currently enjoying 4,500 square feet of living space. Moving into a small 2,000 square foot home with ONE BATHROOM was unfathomable. But we had already driven 30 minutes towards the property, so we would look just for the sake of the trip.
When we pulled in the long gravel driveway, the sweet agent from the other end of the phone popped outside to greet us. She was all smiles, and dressed in a comfy t-shirt and ball cap. I remember thinking, "this is my kind of realtor!" She took all kinds of time, showing us around the house. The house was small, but for some reason, it didn't feel overly cramped. This shocked me! When we walked out to the back of the property, the view literally took my breath away!
There was a pasture, 4 outbuildings including a barn, storage, a chicken coop and what I would consider an absolutely adorable green house!
The agent Rose took us on a hike through the back end of the acreage. It was gorgeous. Absolutely breath taking. It was as if you were on a mountain, away from everything, without a sign of civilization around. Then, all of a sudden, you end up on a winding creek. There was a tire swing, a zip line, and acre after acre of kid paradise. I couldn't help but compare this to our current 1/3 of an acre, with a golf cart path in the back and a concrete cul-de-sac in the front. Unbelievably, this tiny house was outshining our upgraded suburbian haven. I shook the thought out of my head, knowing that as soon as I got back in the car with my husband, he would shoot down the thought, dismissing the house as too tiny for our big family. We'd be back to the golf course within the hour, and I'd never see this adorable farm house again.
I spent the entire visit chatting with the agent/seller Rose, and grew to enjoy conversations with her. She was real, genuine, and open. She was quick to tell me about the negatives in the property, yet I could see the adoration on her face when she described all the details of the home and farm to us. She had bought this home with a plan. This was going to be her dream farm. Life happened, things took a different course, and she ended up unable to pursue it further. She had already invested a lot into the this property, but that was how it would stay. She only hoped that the buyer would love it as much as she had.
We got in the car, thanked Rose for all of her time, and rode silently down the driveway. I finally got the courage to look over at my husband. I braced myself for his, "are you kidding me? There's no WAY we'd fit in that house!" But, to my total surprise, he said, "the bathroom would be a problem, but we could always add on."
And so the dream began...
