The Process of Uprooting

For those of you who know us personally, you may have heard whispers. Tales of things brewing, plans unfolding.

Something even my husband and I never thought would happen.

The Shumans are moving!

We began the process of selling our home and searching for a new horizon back in January. Shortly after the birth of our third son. Bryce and I looked at each other at the end of another long day. We admitted to feeling stuck.

“I just don’t want to keep doing this for the rest of my life,” My husband confessed. “I want to do more.”

“What do you want to do when you grow up?” I asked.

Without missing a beat, my husband replied, “I want to be a farmer.”

It was one of those moments, I’ve had over the years that I realized I really did marry my best friend. My heart wanted the same thing.

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Please know. We did not make this decision lightly.

We adore our current land and home. Two hickory trees still grow in our front yard that made the backdrop to our wedding.

We have poured out many hours into renovating the house from top to bottom. (And sometimes twice)

The backyard had turned into a lush, productive oasis. Providing us with food, laughter, and peace.

We’ve raised all three of our boys here so far, and this house has seen the birth of our youngest.

At what point can you continue to hold on to the comfort of familiarity when your heart is desperate for more?

As sad as we are to leave our current home, we know taking this leap of faith is the right choice for us and for our children.

Before

After

What would you do if you weren’t afraid?

Our offer was accepted this past week on a farm with 34 acres, an existing home and barn located in the same area as we are now.

I’ve heard it said that sometimes you have to experience the loss of one thing, in order to embrace something else. And in this case, I’ve found that is very true. It is so hard to wait for something to come along, when you think it should already have been found.

These past months we have pursued a few other avenues, all with great potential only to consistently miss the mark for them. Trying to follow God’s path for you also means you have to honor His timing.

For all the doors that have shut on us, or still may, we are thankful for the knowledge we have learned along the way. The time we have been given to plan and prepare for our new homestead. The ability to dive further into research that has opened our eyes to so many possibilities for this new journey.

The Plan

Our desire is to provide high quality, grassfed/forested meat while maximizing the potential of each animal to build soil health. The animals will be born, grown, and butchered on our property.

Fear not! My gardening heart is bursting with the opportunity to grow bulk herbs, mushrooms, stone fruit, and berries for the community.

Utilizing permaculture practices and holistic management of our animals we will strive towards regenerative agriculture.

Repairing the soil to its former glory and ensuring the future generations have a firm foundation to build upon.

Are we crazy? – Probably.

Are we showing our children by example to follow their dreams? – Absolutely.

Timing

Since we have been unsure of how events will transpire, our gardens and summer animals have been put on the back burner for this season.

I chose to forgo the 100 Days of Growing Food Challenge this year. I have planted parts of my garden and with the perennial fruit and roots we have, we are eating off the land well!

My hopes is that the future owners will get to enjoy some of the benefits a Back to Eden garden will provide for them!

Rome certainly wasn’t built in a day. Neither will this new farm. While the long term goal will be for both my husband and I to work together full time on our farm with our children, we know it will take several years even for this dream to come to fruition.

We hope you join us on this journey!

Resources

I do want to share some of the books we have been reading, incase anyone else wants to broaden their horizons and learn about regenerative agriculture!

• Polyface Designs: A Comprehensive Construction Guide for Scalable Farming Infastructure
• Your Successful Farm Business: Production, Profit, Pleasure
• Water for Any Farm
• The Organic Medicinal Herb Farmer: The Ultimate Guide to Producing High-Quality Herbs on a Market Scale
• Homegrown Herbs: A Complete Guide to Growing, Using, and Enjoying more than 100 Herbs
• Farmacology: Total Health From the Ground Up
• Holistic Management: A Commonsense Revolution to Restore Our Environment