For many reasons, both practical and personal we are finding a new home for our herd to roam. Beyond personal reasons, it sure would be nice to have our own hay-field to cut, mature wood lot to harvest and road frontage with easy access and parking for a farm store.

The mountainous road will become another farmers task come winter. And the ruts of mud season will be flattened with other truck tires.

Twila and Trisha are still ruminating after breaking the news. They are very contemplative goats. Deep thinkers.

The herd would love a wide open, sunny pasture with plenty to graze and room to carry on their goaty antics. Spring kids will come into the world in a a bigger, more comfortable barn. And maybe I’ll even have that milk room I’ve dreamed of.

The chickens will find new places to hide eggs and funner stuff to roost and poop on. Chicks will hatch, roosters will head to freezer camp and we will surely fight off new predators.

A bittersweet adventure lies ahead for us. One thing is for sure, we will only sell to a farmer who will carry on the legacy we instilled in this land over the last two years. They can grow those roots deeper and stronger. We will throw ours down elsewhere.

This house was a shell when we moved in. No chimney, let alone our 1910 Noyes & Nutter cookstove were ready for us to warm the house with. No toilet, doors, flooring, or cupboards either. I’m keeping Grampa’s cupboards and they are coming with us to adorn a new kitchen.

With as much time as we have spent pulling rocks from gardens, bush hogging the land, building livestock housing and fencing it will be hard to let go. We won’t be going far. I have family and friends too dear to my heart to put too much distance between.

Only days after listing our homestead on Facebook ourselves without a realtor we have had a few interested parties. One is due to tour the homestead later today.

The cat would like a bigger barn to prowl—obviously our main reason for packing up 12 goats and a coop full of chickens, changing school systems, and settling into a new town.

We expect to be busy. I will update as our journey finds a new destination to call home.