We started our homestead with a meager home on a meager piece of land…
Step 1 – Buying Land and Moving In
We relocated back home to Arizona in Winter 2015 to be close to family and to make a permanent home for our family. We were fortunate that a friend of the family was selling a 1 acre+ property with a really OLD, ugly mobile home, a shed and a water tank/pressure tank for the house. They were willing to do an owner carry contract with a down payment, so the price was right for us. It was on power with a septic tank. It was also fairly close to a paved road. The property was fully fenced but most of it wasn’t cleared or level. Now, its our home and we are making it into our dream farm a little at a time.
We were living in our 34′ long 5th Wheel RV during the move and it was a welcome change to upgrade from 400 sq. ft. to 720 sq ft.! The 80’s grey and pink shag carpet and peeling 1960’s floor tiles were not impressing us though. Don’t get me started on the pink wall color in the living room. Ugh! It was time to remodel!
The other major downside of our new home was that there was no well on the property and we had to haul water from a commercial well about 5 miles away once a week. We ended up starting some fig trees, an orange and a pomegranate tree which, as well as the horses, increased our summer water usage to about 2400 gallons a week. It was really a “build it and they will come” philosophy until we finally (miraculously) got our water well drilled in 2021 (Thank you, Water Well Trust!).
So we moved in and the never-ending projects began!
Completed Projects:
- Cleared the property (except Ocotillos, Joshua Trees and barrel cactus)
- Remodeled both bedrooms with new insulation, wiring, sheet rock, tape and texture, fixtures and flooring
- New solid flooring in the living areas, bathroom and boys’ room
- New bathroom toilet
- Partially completed kitchen upgrades and NEW stove (Thank you, Mom!)
- Repainted living room from pink to a soothing blue/green
- Built horse corrals, goat pens and a chicken coop
- Drilled a well (Thank you, Brown Drilling!)
- Built a shop/barn
- Planted fruit trees
- Built a year-round raised bed garden that’s chipmunk and rabbit-proof!
- Made an enclosed, private courtyard out of metal sheeting
- AND purchased tax liens on almost 4 acres abutting our property with plans to expand! (More about this process in another blog post later!)
Our Goals (this will take some time!)
- Put in an off-grid solar system
- Build a watering system to irrigate more fruit trees and crops on our new property
- Plant an orchard and a pasture for the goats and horses
- Make a farmer’s market stand for selling produce to our community
- Keep expanding!
Most of our materials for projects have come to us free as scrap from my husband’s construction job. We co-own a New Holland Skid Steer and have access to a mini excavator and a large excavator. We are currently refurbishing a 1954 Golden Jubilee NAA Ford Tractor to use on our row crops. We are very grateful for all the blessings that have come our way!
