Hey Lady…been shopping "red" for my barn…Behr Paint "DozenRoses" was my pick…check it out !!! LuvLuv the snake, He will keep the bad ones away and if it is a racer, they are harmless…But can really relate…I have overcome with my Indigo’s we have on our property…It Helps to name them…lol…hugs from FL

I couldn’t help but laugh at the image of the snake in your hand as you realized what it was … but omygoodness, if it had happened to me, I think I probably WOULD have had that heart attack. Even though I KNOW logically that not all snakes are poisonous and that some are even beneficial(!), but o yes, they are scary.
I’m grateful for this blog – and for what you are doing to restore this property and care for the horses and share your journey. I say red barn with white doors. And the barnquilt of course.

I vote for the red barn. I don’t like snakes, and could feel your anxiety! You could consider getting Guinea fowl for your farm. They need a place to roost at night and a little feed now and then, but otherwise, are self-contained fowl. They are free ranging, good for eating insects and keep snakes away! They also are good alarms for "bad things" coming onto your property. Check them out. Always, love your blog.

Just remember, the snake you know is better than those that might show up later. Around here (Missouri), we have black snakes that are even larger and I hated them when I saw them stick their head in a bluebird box and eat eggs/babies. But they kill timber rattlers, copperheads and cotton mouths, so I let them be. With poison, always a chance something or someone else might get it. My soninlaw used to kill all snakes until the day a cottonmouth in their garage eating the dog food got between him and my granddaughter. As he says, he screams "like a girl" when he sees a snake, no one was bitten and that snake which he swears chased him, was in pieces, he now lets the good snakes alone. Don’t know if you have these to deal with, but it is a don’t bother them and they won’t bother you type of relationship. And dark red barns are great!

I just love your blog! I was a city girl gone country seven years ago. I vote red for the barn and paint the quilt, its a great idea. As for the snake, I don, t like to touch them but they eat mice so I tolerate them because mice and rats give me the hee-bee-gee-ees. Although, i did vow to never buy a black hose again. You definately need barn cats, they don’t always end up in the house, I held out for two years. Good Luck

Definitely red. Definitely feel your anxiety over snakes. Barn quilts are great. I made one for our shed. I vote for a traditional quilt pattern with lots of color.

I love your blog too! I had to laugh at your snake story – not because I’m laughing AT you but because I can relate. I grew up on a farm and one day a little garden snake slithered across my bare toes. I was only about 8 years old but I screamed bloody murder and still remember it like it was yesterday. I’m not sure I could live with that snake being in my barn. I vote for a RED barn; just imagine how beautiful it will be in the snow and it’s so traditional. I was going to say I liked the idea of the Christmas quilt for the barn until I saw another reader suggest you do seasonal quilts. I really like that idea. Good luck and I can’t wait to see what you decide about all of the above.

If you need inspiration for a barn quilt, you should take a road trip on Follow the Quilt Trail. If you’re in north Georgia, then Tennessee is not far away! http://followthequilttrail.com/trail/trail.html

Wow, your adventure has been my nightmare for years. I grew up in Texas and now live in Alaska where there are no snakes. If that had been me, I would have taken the .22 and shot me a snake. I don’t care how good they are for the environment, they can’t live at my house. Now maybe you can find a science teacher at a local school that wants a pet project for the students and catch the bloody thing for you. That way, you can enjoy your new barn as much as I love reading your country adventures and nothing lost is life. And by the way, red barns are a must have. Oh, and keep that knee wrapped when your out and about. Looking forward to your next installment. :))

Sorry to hear about your twisted knee Rebekah. I hope it feels better soon!
Love the post, I love reading your blog and posts here.
On the barn, it looks great! Definitely an improvement. White or barn red, it will be lovely on your farm.
Take care
Tammie

I love your blogs because I can totally relate! First, about the snake. I feel conflicted, too. We have tons of little garden snakes, black snakes, copperheads, and eastern diamondbacks. I’ve only ever seen garden snakes (so far!) and I know they’re useful, but I’m still afraid of getting bit. I keep my kids at a good distance and call my husband to shush them away where I can’t see them. Second, the barn. I like red barns and if you ever think about Hex signs (very popular here in PA Amish country), make sure you choose the design carefully because they all have a special meaning. And third, I hope your knee heals quickly! I moved my entire kneecap up by stepping down off of something and it was THE worst pain EVER!! Barn work got done very slowly for awhile! Your place looks great, snake or no snake!!

Your words and pictures blessed my heart this morning so much, here’s a huge thank you!
Just what the doctor ordered, or as my mom used to say "just hit the spot".
After waiting for warm weather to arrive here in the Ozarks, we planted our gardens 6 weeks later than usual.
I carried 40 pd. – 5 gallon buckets to water each plant individually from our
water storage tanks, 32 buckets total in a few hours time and something happened to my back, from my right shoulder all the way down to my leg.
Realized then, I am not 30 yrs old any longer!
So, with my back brace on, and ice tea in hand, I go outside and tour my gardens for inspiration and dreaming, reading, praying, and hoping.
Sometimes we are forced to slow down, sometimes coming to a complete stop,
to see what we are missing!
Your thoughts just made my day today, thank you so much for reminding me
to stop and smell the roses along the way!
Hugs from the Ozarks, Diana, Noel, Mo.

Lovely. Thank you for the video link. As I write this, I am at my office desk on the college campus where I work. My new-to-us rescue dog, Fozzy, came to work with me today, so there have already been two walks throughout the campus! As we were walking, I realized that without him, I wouldn’t have made the space to get outside — I would have stayed at my desk for hours without a nature break.

I was just watching a butterfly get a drink from my backyard birdbath…..nature is the best. Thank you for the video, we all need to be reminded occasionally.

Love your thoughts of gratefulness Rebekah. I must say that today was one day I needed to hear what you have said. Unfortunately I wasn’t much of a blessing to the young man and his son that is living with us. But, time alone with our Maker brings everything into perspective, especially my attitude. So, thank you! The video was great and much appreciated. I sit in my back yard of flowers and inhale the perfume they offer and the solace that is free for the asking, and say thank you for my life.

Thank you I am blessed and grateful that you shared this and honestly feel like a little bit of a better person because my eyes are open a little bit larger now and I can see more clearly…. <3

From my very earliest days, I have been a nature girl. Outside roaming, dreaming, observing, learning, appreciating, enjoying. As I got older and life got more complicated; no matter where I was, God always provided me with a little bit of nature to calm me down and "ground" me. When, 25 years ago, I had to run away from the life I had just then, I took my two children and asked God for a place with a tree on it. I got a beautiful 4 acres in the Mother Lode. God is so good! And I LOVE my land. Every day, all the time. I really liked this blog; and I wanted you to know that it touched me. God Bless.

WOW!!!!! Thank you!!!! Blessings abound. For once I am speechless and HAPPY. God Bless

Rebekah: I think you are that person you wish you were. Nature IS good for the soul and you have expressed it well here. I think we farmgirls are all in tune with it. How can we not be. Our gardens, our animals, our land are all so very important to us. Thanks for your blog today. God bless.

Wow. Thank you for posting this video. I LOVE Ted talks!

I’ve so enjoyed finding the wildflowers on our new property, Bloodroot, spotted wintergreen, tons of Solomon’s seal and false Solomon’s seal, even a huge clump of ghost white Indian pipe. All kinds of things. This house is a flower gardener’s dream when it comes to landscaping, but I find myself looking past the nursery plants, running into the house shouting to anyone who will listen to come look at a tiny bloom on some obscure wildflower. Ahh. That’s the good stuff.

I decided a while back in order to live a happy life I needed to "be the blessing". I look for ways everyday to bless those around me. When we open our eyes to this miraculous world and really "see", we instantly partake of the the happiness that is free for everyone. It’s hard to feel lonely and sad when you become aware of what is all around you, and if you do feel sad, get outside, look around, and SMILE at someone! The world NEEDS you! You’re a kindred spirit Rebekah, and thank you so much for posting the video link…I shared it on Facebook.

I grew up between my grandparents farms and small factory towns. It never once occured to me that people didn’t watch weather or trees or animals or insect patterns all the folks did. People move around…folks walk and watch. I learned this for the first time in college, then again in my first corperate job. A co-worker and photographer commented on my 3 year old…"you’ve already taught her to be alive in her world not live in it…so many people are dead in their surroundings". How practical purpose and beauty combine so completly in nature…don’t pick the pretty ones …let them go to seed…

Rebekah – I always love your posts, but this one is my favorite! What a blessing to have found that amazing tractor and attachments, and what an even greater blessing to have mighty good neighbors – I believe they are a testament to the kind of neighbor YOU are, too! Congratulations! I’m sure you’ll be driving that big beautiful machine in no time! You GO girl! Hugs – Nini

You are truly blessed to have neighbors who will drop everything to help you and are determined to complete the task. When you and your tractor are doing what a tractor is supposed to do, create a special dinner for your neighbors and invite them to enjoy your harvest. That’s what I’ve done and everyone is happy.

Yepper that is the REAL COUNTRY way of living – so glad to hear that it still exists! Oh how people like to help those less knowing in the farming way – but you are for sure giving it one of the best tries I have heard of in a long time. No wonder your neighbors want to help you – they appreciate all you are doing for the ‘ole farm’, it is hard to see a neighborhood not be taken care of and you for sure are seeing to this one. What’s the tractors name? gotta have a name. My neighborhood is a newer suburb out on an old ranch, we are 11 miles from town but only 3 miles from the ‘hub’ grocery, eateries etc. so we as neighbors do help each other, just not quite to the extent y’all do. We had lots of helpers with the Black Forest fire here lately and still helpers everywhere and I’m not sure but I for one do not expect to be paid back but I will guess there will come a time that I too will receive more than I give and you too will some day know exactly how to repay. Thanks for sharing, always a joy to hear from you. God Bless

Rebekah, what a wonderful post. So beautiful to hear neighbours being neighbourly. Helping one another out when needed is what being a neighbour is all about.
I love that you’re continuing with your dream and all the lessons being learnt along the way. I’m certainly learning a lot from your experience. I’d love that kind of life one day.