Mothering with a Purpose

A Little Dose of Country Living Inspiration

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A Week of Laughter and Excitement!

February 16, 2017 by Morgan Stevens 1 Comment

This week has been busy, fun, and exciting!

To start off, my aunt has been teaching me how to build a deck the past three weeks. This is her first time doing it too, but we have friends that give us good advice. Last week, we worked on the deck some more and fixed some things that weren’t quite right. We also built a wall, once we thought the deck was fine, to keep the geese from eating my aunt’s irises. Last year it was a wild hog eating her irises. This wall was free and not very time consuming.

morgan drill 2

While putting the wall in we had to remove a 15 foot telephone pole from the ground. My aunt was surprised that I could get it out of the ground and lift it up over my head. Next, I had to get it out of our way by dragging it several feet.

morgan pole deck

I am a 17-year-old girl and I did something a grown man could do with the same amount of effort. I am so proud of myself for that! This kind of goes back to the Farm Life is a Great Teacher subject.

That afternoon, my aunt told my cousins that they had to move the telephone pole out of the driveway. Aunt Allie and I laughed as her boys had trouble moving the telephone pole to where the rest of the poles go. That was what I call comedy!

Later, we started putting black, metal poles behind the wall to keep the cats and geese from knocking it over. While I was hammering a pole in, I barely missed the pole and hit the small outer layer of skin on my first finger. It formed a huge blood blister that was ugly, painful, and annoying.

Later that week, I had to scrape paint off the house and garage trimming. I had to hang over the edge of the roof to scrape paint and take down the gutters! Honesty, it was very fun.

morgan deck 1

Also, I am happy I didn’t die, because it was sometimes scary.

I kind of wanted to jump off the garage roof and into the compost pile that was six feet away from the corner of the garage. Aunt Allie told me not to–she must think I am crazy.

Honestly, I know she is really just proud of me. That makes me proud of myself.

Filed Under: Stories Tagged With: country, country living, deck, diy, farm, farm fun, farm life, fun, girl, girl power, hard work, home improvement, homestead, kids, ldsyouth, parenting, power tools, pride, teaching kids how to work, texas

Fun Times On The Farm

February 9, 2017 by Morgan Stevens Leave a Comment

Depending on where you live the country, everything and everyone can be far from everything and everyone else. You can be loud and do almost whatever you want. Being a kid this comes in handy. I love to go outside and goof around with my cousins! There are so many ways to have fun times on the farm! I am starting to feel as though I’m getting too old for horseplay, as soon I will be a young adult going to college.

fun times farm life

One of the many fun things we kids like to do is play hide-and-seek in our back pasture. We enjoy building tree forts and what we call hobo huts. A couple summers ago, we pulled old, trashed plywood and carpet, wooden spools, and broken furniture to the back of our ten acres where it is wooded and built a hideout. We still hang out in it.

Trees are our best friends! We love to use trees to help us build our forts.

We also climb a lot of trees. Climbing trees is always fun. The trick is to be the first one up the tree. If not, you may get dirt, bark, small twigs, and leaves in your eyes from the person climbing above you. My aunt would rather not see or know how high we can climb.

fun times farm life

Our neighbors would rather not see the old chair my cousin, Ryan, strapped to the tree.

It’s been there for two years now.

When climbing a tree, the first thing you should do is make sure the tree is healthy and not rotting. Then check the tree for ants. My aunt says we should also make sure the tree doesn’t have any hornet, bee or wasp nests, however we kids never really do watch out for hornets, bees or wasps. We do, however, ALWAYS look for ants and rotted out limbs.

fun times farm life

Hide-and-seek was fun when it was summertime, because the brush would hide us from each other. We just had to make sure that we didn’t run into any ant piles. Ever been attacked by fire ants? They HURT!

I also try to remember to wear pants and a jacket, because when I forget I come back with lots of briar scratches. I use my pants as “armor.”

fun times farm life

One day while playing hide-and-seek, my fourteen-year-old cousin, Austin, and I decided to hide together in the car. Like a genius, he locked the doors with the lock button in the front seat. Then I remembered that if we tried to unlock by pulling the lock up the alarm would go off. So, after hiding for 10 minutes in the stuffy car we  made the decision to quickly open the door and run! So, Austin and I looked at each other and began the countdown…1…2…

“Austin… run for the side gate! No one will see us and we can say we were in the pasture the entire time!” I whispered with panic.

So on THREE we opened the door causing the car alarm to trigger. So we jumped out, slammed the door, and hauled our butts to the gate.

We weren’t scared at all, in fact, we were laughing so hard I was crying. To make matters worse Austin tripped and did a face plant right into the weeds which only made me laugh even harder. We were laughing so hard our bellies ached which only made us laugh even more. I have never had such a better time with my cousin. Just thinking about Austin crashing and burning is making me laugh again!

fun times farm life

In the end, the cops didn’t get called and none of our neighbors noticed…which is one of the many benefits of living in the country. To this day, this funny moment playing hide-and-seek with my cousin is my best memory with him. My favorite memories so far in life have been while living with my aunt on her farm in Texas. When I move back to the city for college it’s definitely going to be a change.

Filed Under: Stories Tagged With: country, country living, cousins, family fun, farm, farm life, fun, fun times, funny, games, hide and seek, hobo hut, homestead, kids, life, lol, parenting, play, stories, teenager, texas, tree fort, woods

City Life to Country Living

October 12, 2016 by Allie Leave a Comment

The transition for me from city life to country living was a rather refreshing decision to make. It was long-awaited and something I had wanted to do since I moved away from the Texas Hill Country as a young woman in junior high to the cultural shock of Indianapolis, Indiana.

country living

In fact, one of the reasons I chose to go to college in Rexburg, Idaho was because of the small town atmosphere as opposed to continuing my education in a large city. When I returned to Texas as an adult to begin raising my children I nearly bought my first home in the country, but for personal reasons ended up closing on a home in the heart of Lewisville, a suburb of Dallas. I always meant to return the country sooner rather than later. Instead, I spent the next thirteen years living in hustle and bustle of the city.

Once the housing market changed in 2014, I knew it was time to move my family to the country. This was my one chance.

My home sold amazingly quickly (in just 20 minutes!) and so the search was on to find my next home to raise my family and my illegal backyard chickens. I decided to not settle for anything less than country living.

After a stressful real estate search, I bought a home in far north Wise County, Texas on 10 acres. My kids love the amount of land and the freedom to roam as they please. I love the potential of the land–a pond to stock with fish, a large garden area to cultivate, and a simple barn to house livestock.

country living

My first purchase was four dairy goats: three lamanchas and one nubian. I soon went from four goats to seven goats. By my second year of living in the country I owned nearly 30 dairy goats, mostly because of the kidding season that spring. I just recently sold all but my seven best goats. I also own around twenty-five chickens, a flock of geese, several ducks, and honestly way too many cats.

country living

In the two-and-a-half years I have made my home in the country I have learned so much. I have made some huge life changes (my fifteen year marriage ended in divorce and I’m raising my teenage niece). Our entire family has made lifestyle changes that we believe are healthier and for our benefit (that includes eating cake). I love my little homestead and the growing opportunities that it provides us. Mostly, I am thankful to God for allowing me to live this laid back lifestyle where I can raise my family and be independent through country living.

I love the quiet.

I love the land.

I love being self-reliant.

I love that people aren’t nosy.

I love the sunsets and sunrises.

I love country living.

Filed Under: Stories Tagged With: city, city life, country, country lifestyle, country living, farm, fry healthy, goats, healthy living, homestead, land, lifestyle, texas, texas land, wise county

10 Beautiful Farmhouse Style Bedroom Ideas

September 24, 2016 by Allie Leave a Comment

I am falling in love for these Beautiful Farmhouse Style Bedroom Ideas! I love browsing the internet looking for different bedroom decorating ideas. One day I will have the perfect get away. Until then, I hope you’ll enjoy looking at all of these beautiful country inspired bedrooms.

farmhouse style bedroom ideas

10 Beautiful Farmhouse Style Bedroom Ideas

farmhouse style bedroom ideas

Farmhouse Style Bedrooms Can Be So Romantic!

  • I love this bedroom set up and the DIY King Size Bed is amazing. Yes, I said DIY! -via Shanty 2 Chic
  • I love this collection of romantic country bedrooms. Lace, flowers, and femininity. -via The Budget Decorator
  • Here’s 8 Country Bedding Ideas that are light, bright, and colorful. -via Country Home Tours
  • I am absolutely head over heels for this light and airy farmhouse style bedroom! -via Faded Charm
  • Here is an amazing French Country Bedroom. I adore the tall ceilings and big windows. -via Kathy Kuo Home

farmhouse style bedroom ideas

Beautiful Farmhouse Style Bedroom Ideas to Inspire You

  • This English cottage style bedroom would look wonderful in a country farmhouse. -via Better Homes and Gardens
  • I love this farmhouse home tour with it’s beautiful farmhouse style bedroom. Everything about this home is crisp and clean. -via Love Grows Wild
  • I love how she cleverly mixes masculine and feminine in the master bedroom. -via Savvy Southern Style
  • Here’s a bedroom that’s a little more simple in this farmhouse style bedroom and home tour. -via Southern Trunk
  • You’ve got to see this 114 year old Canadian Farmhouse style bedroom and home tour! -via Creekline House

Share with me your favorite farmhouse style bedroom ideas on the Mothering with a Purpose Facebook page!

Filed Under: Country Living Tagged With: bedding, bedroom, bedroom decor, bedroom decorating, bedroom decorating ideas, country, country bedroom, country house ideas, country room, country style, farm, farm house, farmhouse, farmhouse bedroom, farmhouse ideas, farmhouse style, farmhouse style bedroom, farmhouse style bedroom ideas, farmhouse style ideas, french, french country, southern, southern bedroom

15 Gorgeous Country Homes You’ll Love

September 24, 2016 by Allie 1 Comment

I’ve compiled my favorite 15 Gorgeous Country Homes You’ll Love and that I hope will inspire you. I love browsing through pictures of country homes and dreaming about what my own home will look like one day. Just like I tell my kids, there’s nothing wrong with dreaming!

country homes

15 Gorgeous Country Homes You’ll Love

country homes

Country Homes to Inspire You

  • I love this simple country home plan with it’s large front porch. -via Southern Living
  • A small country home in the right colors can make a big impact. -via Better Homes and Gardens
  • This country home with a library and a screened in back porch is absolutely stunning! -via Architectural Designs
  • Here’s a collection of several white farmhouses that I love. -via Inspired Design
  • If you like rustic farmhouses, then you’ll love this lake view country home. -via houzz
  • If you’re going to dream big you might as well GO BIG! I love this 4 bedroom open farmhouse plan with an add on suite. -via Architectural Designs
  • Don’t throw rocks at almost glass houses…seriously though this Californian country home is amazing! -via Velvet & Linen
  • I almost once bought a plantation style home. I would have loved to decorate it for Christmas like this one. -via Southern Living

country homes

Simply Beautiful Country Home Design

  • This farmhouse in Texas was beautiful designed by Magnolia Homes. -via Sortra
  • Here’s a rustic cabin ready that would look perfect in the backwoods. -via Cabin Living
  • This Texas Hill Country home is a perfect blend of rock and metal. See the interior also! -via Burleson Design Group
  • Turn a metal shop into a spectacular country home complete with rock siding and a wrap around porch. -via Metal Building Homes
  • Breathtaking! You have got to see this absolutely amazing barn house in Utah! -via Hooked on Houses
  • All my friends know this is my dream modern farmhouse. One day! -via Paul Varney Construction
  • Here’s a lovely porch to sit and stay a while…my dream is to buy an old country house and fix it up. -via Olive Out

I would love to see what inspires you–share on the Mothering with a Purpose Facebook page.

Filed Under: Country Living Tagged With: beautiful homes, country, country life, country living, farm, farm house, front porch, hill county, homes, homestead, house, ranch home, texas, texas homes

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