It's hard to think of a better way to start the day than the way today began. John and I got to go traipsing through the new farm, talking with the gentlemen who are working on our road about how exactly it'll wind through the fields and woods and arrive at the house site. The cool, crisp morning air, the scent of wild, the sunlight streaming through the leaves, and the promise of all our farm will be -- it's almost just too exciting to describe!

I've had several people ask me where exactly it's located. It's a little hard to describe, but it's basically behind the high school football field. We'll access it from Cypress Lane (when, at the end of Johnson you're forced to turn right, you're turning onto Cypress). This land is basically perfect for us. It's essentially in town, but when you're out there, you feel like you're in the middle of the boonies. We'll still be able to get to the bank or school in 5 minutes' time. With John working a full-time gig and trying to farm a bit on the side, he doesn't need to spend too much of his day commuting. Plus, our proximity to town will be great for ballgames, practices, and dance-- something I'm sure we'll come to appreciate even more in the coming years as the kids get increasingly involved in after-school activities. I guess, for us, it's like the best of both worlds -- the convenience of living in town and the peacefulness of living out.

The road to the house site will end up being about a 1/2 mile long. Our hope is that it's construction will be as low-impact as possible. We don't mind for it to wind around a bit if it helps save trees, and the fewer materials used to build the road, the better. Based on our drive through today, it's looking like we may only have to take down 3-5 trees over the course of the 1/2 mile. That's pretty good! The ones that do go down will be put to good use, though -- either milled for lumber or cut for firewood.

We're still not sure how long the road will take to complete. The rainy weather has definitely slowed things down, there are several low spots that will need some extra attention, and it'll take a lot of dump-truck beds full of materials to build a road of this length. But, we are loving every step of this process. And, I'm excited to get to share it all with you!