Where we began, where we're going.

I realized that before we got too far into the gushy details of our bus build and travel plans, it might be important to give anyone out there reading a little backstory. I dont think I'll go into a lot of detail about what kind of farm we have or the animals we raise, maybe ill save that for another day. I do know I have a lot to get off my chest and you'll see what I mean near the end of the post. Bear with me, our life on the farm and all we've been through as a family comes with a load of emotions, so here goes. My wife Sarah and I have been married since October of 2011. We have known each other since we were kids, attending the same school since kindergarten and even the same college after high school. We were always a part of each others lives usually without even realizing it. We knew each other existed and even had many mutual friends but, that was it. We were not high school sweethearts, we didn't even date in college. It wasn't until we were in our late 20's that our worlds somehow collided and ultimately sparked the fast paced love story that neither of us saw coming. It was incredible, we had each found our soul mate. The funny part was, Sarah had been living in big cities, enjoying the luxuries of well paying jobs, fashion, the nightlife, etc. and I had been back here in Michigan renting my grandparents old place with a buddy, working in construction and slowly creating the idea of starting a farm on this run down homestead. Im not sure how but I convinced her to stay here, live with me on the farm and start our journey together. Her family found it comical that she would even consider moving back to Michigan, marry me and live in this old farmhouse. This was a woman who was driven by careers in the big city and a life that was far from our little town. Listen guys, im not sure if I can express it without going into a lot more detail, but it made me feel pretty confident that this amazing, beautiful woman truly loved me. In 2012 we bought the 25 acre property, the farm was up and running and together we worked to build our new life.On top of farming, we both continued to work off farm jobs, Sarah as a high school teacher and me as an electrician. In 2013 we started our family with our amazing little boy, J.B. We now have 3 beautiful kids, but more on those little goobers later. Anyone out there who is homesteading or farming knows that this life is hard. At times it can be one of the most demanding occupations there is, second to parenting of course.The farm was meant to be a means for our family to eat the healthiest, sustainable, raised-with-love food that we could grow. I wanted this to be a place of peace and fulfillment and a place we could raise our kids, teach them about life and where our food really comes from. I think in this day and age and maybe even "back in the day" when folks decided to start a farm its all about HOPE. We have hope for a better world, a cleaner environment, happy animals and healthier bodies. Its this pie in the sky idea which quickly morphs itself into the real life picture of what a farm truly is.I could probably write a book someday about starting a farm and the majority of it would be what NOT to do.Don't get me wrong, we have also had joy along the waybut the reality is, we have learned the hard way with almost every single project, animal or product sold.Animals die, tools break, the weather sucks, products DONT always sell and the farm never seems to make enough money.Our business plan, or lack thereof wasn't working. The stress and the work load was taking its toll. We could see the strain it put on our relationships as a family and ourselves. Now, I'm not trying to lead anyone to believe that farming is a terrible idea, this has been a passion of mine for over a decade. I will never take for granted all of the benefits of being self sufficient and providing good food for our family, its amazing. We've become stewards of the land and our animals, so wherever we end up I know ill return to that passion. I urge everyone to raise their own chickens and at some point in you're life, you need to interact with a pig. These intelligent critters have so much personality and were always the life of the farm! All of the experiences and knowledge we gained, we will take with us wherever we go. We will never forget the connections we've made over the years with our amazing customers and people in the community. It has been a privilege to produce food for them and their families. They have trusted us, they believed in our vision and for that we are forever grateful. I think thats why it took us so long to realize what we needed to do. We thought this was it, this is what farming is. We were afraid to admit that we weren't happy constantly struggling with our sales markets, we weren't happy reinvesting every dollar (and then some) we made back into the farm and we weren't happy with where we lived. We wanted to explore. We longed to travel and see where we truly fit in. For most folks its easy to get caught up in the rat race. To be comfortable and complacent, even if we are not actually happy with where we are. This last year we decided to make some changes and so begins this new adventure. We may not know exactly where we are going, but we have our bus, we have the ambition and we have each other.