We are still in the middle of preparing to live on our homestead, but for now I want to share the very beginning. A long time ago (when the weather was much cooler and humidity was a distant memory) in a far away place there was a forgotten about Texan parcel. After an exchange of money ( or dinars ) and later blood, sweat, and tears we became proud owners of our own lakeside homestead.
We were leery about purchasing in winter when most trees are dormant. A few we could obviously tell were dead but there were so many that were "maybes". Some of the deciding factors for us were the availability to power and water. Most of the land we had been out to view would be at zero percent ready, as in you would need to have power set up and water was only available with a well. We love taking on projects but with well prices starting at $14,000 plus equipment it was just out of reach for us. ... Turns out, after purchase of course, that our property had neither water nor power:( ... Do your own research and don't believe realtors.
Our very first project was getting power. I didn't even take one picture because 99% of this was done via flashlight way after hours. This was also our first hurdle. I was under the assumption that we had a power pole (with power) and that I simply needed to make a phone call, from the comfort and warm of my couch, to get it turned on. Wrong, so wrong. The power pole on our property wasn't on our property but two feet over. I was then put on a waiting list from the electric company. I still had no idea what needed to be done to get power because I was waiting for an electrician to survey for a power source. The weeks passed as the delays and disappointments added up, but we stayed positive because we are exercising our freedom to own and it's glorious...... After building our own meter loop! And breaker box! complete with fuses and such, we have power! I was my Mr's vital right hand gal through the bitter cold and rain but he deserves all the credit as he was the one building it.
Jump starting the homestead was more difficult than we had originally planned on. Even with the best laid plans, there will always be unexpected hurdles... I now try to incorporate hurdles in my plans:). Next up, our work shed. This is just one of those shed kits from the hardware store. Notice that the shed sits on a platform. The kits do not come with a floor. There is so much I could say about those dang kits, simply put they are a joke. This would be the blood and tears portion of project homestead. The metal sheeting they give you is thinner than paper and sharper than a razor. Wear gloves.
That would be the power pole that isn't ours, but the giant debris pile to the the left are all ours.
This is the very beginning of our never ending story, prepping for fencing. The weather had finally started to warm up and with it our motivation was refreshed and project remove all debri began.
Much of our motivation came from the beauty that our property was blooming into.
The story continues with adventures in fence prepping. Till next time y'all keep it classy.
-Shalimar
