This Page is Down for Re-Design
In 2019 I walked into this house; I was greeted by this gorgeous staircase! I fell in love instantly. This is the staircase I have dreamt about my whole life. You know, the kind you would see in Gone With the Wind and Scarlett O’Hara would be walking down the stairs to greet all her male suitors. Why would the owners be selling this gem? Oh, where do I start. With my rose-colored glasses, I purchased the house. That my friend is where this journey began.
HOUSE HISTORY
The house was built in 1904 by Paul J. Sorg, former US Representative. Multimillionaire, entrepreneur, blah, blah, blah. Snooze. But get this, the house was built as a wedding present for his son, Paul A. Sorg and his soon to be wife. Its purpose was to be their “summer home”. Yes, you heard me correctly, I said “summer home.” I think I got china as a wedding present.
THE JOURNEY
So, for the last three years our journey has been filled with a lot of ups and downs. We have experienced water coming through ceilings, bathrooms with no working fixture, water streaming into the basement, outside doors made of plywood and opened with a drill and screws, holes in ceilings, and the list goes on and on.
But the joys have been incredible. When you take a piece of history and return it back to its original beauty, it is breathtaking.
Our journey continues today, one project at a time. I don’t regret it, but I will confess, sometimes it was overwhelming, and it still can be. In desperate need to find my peaceful place and wondering what the house was like in its heyday.
I believe it would have had gardens! If you are using the house as your party house, you would have to have gardens to help feed all your guests. That’s where I found my peaceful place!
The garden does wonders for the soul. So once again I started thinking, what else might they have had here at the “summer home.” Chickens? I know that they had horses but maybe, just maybe they had chickens. Well, I can’t afford horses, so we started small with chickens.
Have you ever heard of chickens being the gateway drug to other animals? Well, you guessed it, I needed more animals. I got rabbits to help support my gardens. Their manure is cold compost that improved our soil tremendously.
Before you know it, I had to question myself, “are we homesteaders?” Are we building a homestead? I believe we are. So, in true homesteading fashion, I had to get more animals. I had to have pigs. Not just any pigs, but the KuneKune heritage pig. Be still my heart.
Where do I start?