Our Journey Begins

We've always dreamed of living a more sustainable lifestyle.

We've been talking about doing this sort of thing for years. We just wanted to stop living in the rat race, like so many young couples these days. We were looking for a challenge, a new way of life, simplicity, and raising our youngest daughter to eat fresh food from her own garden. Sustainability, self-sufficiency, intentional living, and off-grid living sounded like a pipe dream.

Then Gerald quit his corporate job he'd had for 13 years. Since March 2018, we knew our lives would not be the same.

First, we thought, that's ok. We can keep our house if I pick up some extra work. He'll find another job in no time. We lived in a house near downtown we rented from my parents. They bought it when my sister and I were attending Mesa State College (now Colorado Mesa University), and Gerald, his two teenage daughters and I moved in June of 2014. We had chickens, and in March 2015, we had our daughter Audrey. We had a small garden, our lovely chickens, and our outrageously comfy house for the 5 of us (the older girls were only there part time too). We got a roommate, who is now family, and I know he'll be part of the stories to come.

The Decision is Made

Homesteading. What is that? We knew we wanted to do something like that. We'd been talking about buying property for years. I found the perfect piece of property in Palisade, CO - 8 acres of irrigated land, existing fruit trees, an additional 4 or 5 acres of waterless land, and really close to town. However, $500,000 would be a lifetime of debt and a mortgage payment we may never pay off. It was 'perfect' though.

While Gerald was "between" jobs, we went to visit my parents in Nucla, Colorado. They have 3 1/2 acres at the edge of town. It's the second to last house still on city water (it's really bubbly way up there ;). After a wonderful weekend of helping my parents with odd projects, enjoying some wonderful food, and just relaxing, we were on a high from a taste of the peaceful life. The way I remember: on the drive back to the city, Gerald just said, "You know, we could live here. In Nucla. You're parents need the help, and we should get a jump start on our dreams without all the debt."

Wow. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would ever even consider living in my hometown. It's silly, really, since my husband and I are definitely more, ahem, 'alternative' than the average resident of the West End of Montrose and San Miguel Counties. The same qualities of the area I so disliked as a teenager were the same ones calling me back today.

In April 2018, we decided to move to Nucla, to live with my parents. Our older daughters opted to stay in Grand Junction with their mom (I can't blame them. I hated this place when I was a teenager!). So Gerald, Audrey and I decided to set off on an adventure.