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It’s “porching” weather friends!
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This is the farmhouse that my husband and I built about 3 years ago. One of the things that we were looking for in a house plan was a house with a lot of porches. We live on a hilltop with a view all the way around and we felt like (almost) wrap-around porches were really important.
Maybe you would like to come along on a porch tour!
.
.
It’s “porching” weather friends!
..
This is the farmhouse that my husband and I built about 3 years ago. One of the things that we were looking for in a house plan was a house with a lot of porches. We live on a hilltop with a view all the way around and we felt like (almost) wrap-around porches were really important.
Maybe you would like to come along on a porch tour!
Valerie jensen says: Aren’t porches the best part of country homes? Your porches are awesome! Our western Montana home has huge porches facing east and west with a window wall on west with mountain view and French doors on east but I still have to spend a few moments (at least!) of every day hanging out on one or both of our porches! We also have minimal furniture, and like you a porch swing was an absolute! Enjoy
Dori Troutman says: Hi Valerie,
Oh they are. I do think every country home needs a porch. And I bet your home in Montana has some amazing views with the wide open spaces and gorgeous sunsets. We’ve been to Montana and it is so gorgeous.
I sure dreamed (when we were building our home) of having all kinds of little “sitting areas” with lots of fun furniture, pillows everywhere, etc… and I actually started that way. Until I realized it just wasn’t working. 🙂 Minimal is best when it is a country porch!
Thanks for reading and commenting!
– Dori –
Cindy says: Soo cute! Looks great !
Dori Troutman says: Thank you Cindy!
– Dori –
Krista says: Thank you for the tour of your beautiful porches! At the moment our house has a very small front porch and an alright sized back porch. There is only room to lounge on the back porch but we avoid it most days due to the super hot sun and absolutely no shade. We talk about building a house in the future and I know a large porch is in my dream house. I want one where I can relax and watch the sun set in a rocking chair. I also want to make sure it has plenty of shade. We will see what happens! Thanks for the tip about heavy furniture. I would much rather not chase around furniture when a storm comes through! Enjoy your porching weather!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Krista!
A porch is a must isn’t it? But the good thing is that you don’t need a huge one to enjoy it! Just a little porch with shelter and shade! And room for a few rocking chairs. And a bed. And a swing! Ha Ha!
Thanks for reading and commenting.
– Dori –
Love the idea of a bed on the porch, what a relaxing place to take a nap. Very neat spaces you’ve created.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Carole,
A bed on the porch is the best thing ever!
– Dori –
Oh ! So enjoyed the tour of your farmhouse porches. One thing I wondered about was not seeing any cats. I also live on a farm and find it so hard to keep it clean and tidy. Between the muddy boots and fly stains, I find it hard to keep up. Of course we use fly spray…but kitties are always on my chairs and table. Love some of your other ideas..like oil cloth on the picnic table top. But life on the farm is forever changing…mainly because of the weather. So thanks for the tour and great ideas…u have a beautiful place to call home.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Kate,
We do not have any cats! We have an Australian Shepherd dog that for whatever reason tolerates absolutely every animal (chickens included) but she does not love cats. And after one awful experience (the cat lived, thankfully) I’ve not wanted to try with another cat.
You are so right… life on a farm is forever changing. What worked today doesn’t necessarily work tomorrow.
– Dori –
I am finally getting a “porch”, actually a deck, on my farm house this year! We have a concrete stoop at the front door that faces the road, but like you, our back door is the one you drive up to, so it really functions as the entrance for everyone. My husband is building the deck off the back entrance and he will put up a porch swing per my request also. This is just one of many projects we have been completing over the past 6 years, since buying this over 100 yr old house, as there is always something to do.
In my dreams, I also see a covered front porch in the future, but it might be quite some time, as there are other things that need done worse. There used to be a big porch on the back, but it was covered and became part of the interior of the house at some point in the past.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Sheryl,
My daughter and her husband have an old home also and you are right… there is a never-ending list of projects. But oh my word – don’t you just love having an old house? They are so special. Your porch will be lovely and you’ll love that swing!
– Dori –
Dori Troutman says: You are my favorite daughter ever! 🙂
xoxo
– Mom –
Ann says: What a lovely option to have 360 degree porches from which to choose how to spend your days or evenings taking in the beautiful views from your hilltop home.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Ann,
Oh we are so lucky to have our view. We try so hard not to take it for granted.
– Dori –
Mary Rauch says: Got a question for you Dori. According to my theory (and a few things I’ve studied), I wonder if you have mosquitoes up there? Probably not, right?…I’m so curious.
Dori Troutman says: Hi Mary,
We DO NOT have mosquitos on the hilltop!!!!! 🙂 It is a miracle! They clearly do not like the breeze that consistently blows. Yay!!!
– Dori –
Marilyn says: Congratulations on your beautiful home. Thanks for sharing the photos.
Marilyn
Dori Troutman says: Thank you Marilyn!
– Dori –
Marvene says: Dori, you are blessed to be able to enjoy your home and “porches” at a younger age. They are truly beautiful. You are both are very talented!!
Dori Troutman says: Hi Aunt Marvene!
I don’t know about talented… just high energy and crazy! 🙂
Love you,
– Dori –
Howdy Dori!
What clean and inviting porch spaces you’ve created! Thanks so much for the tour. I think my favorite spot is your sleeping porch…A rare treat for any farmgirl for sure! I sure enjoy ours at the cottage too! Happy ” porching” !
Hugs!
Deb
is a certified farmgirl at heart. She’s happily married to her beach bum Yankee husband of 20 years. She went from career gal to being a creative homeschooling mom for two of her biggest blessings and hasn’t looked back since. Debbie left her lifelong home in the high desert of Northern Nevada 10 years ago and washed up on the shore of America’s hometown, Plymouth, MA, where she and her family are now firmly planted. They spend part of each summer in a tiny, off–grid beach cottage named “The Sea Horse.”
“I found a piece of my farmgirl heart when I discovered MaryJanesFarm. Suddenly, everything I loved just made more sense! I enjoy unwinding at the beach, writing, gardening, and turning yard-sale furniture into ‘Painted Ladies’ I’m passionate about living a creative life and encouraging others to ‘make each day their masterpiece.’”
is a “MaryJane Farmgirl” who lives in a large metropolitan area. She is a lawyer who has worked in both criminal defense and prosecution. She has been a judge, a business woman and a stay-at-home mom. In addition to her law degree, she has a Masters of Theological Studies.
“Mustering up the courage to do the things you dream about,” she says, “is the essence of being a MaryJane Farmgirl.” Learning to live more organically and closer to nature is Rebekah’s current pursuit. She finds strength and encouragement through MaryJane’s writings, life, and products. And MaryJane’s Farmgirl Connection provides her a wealth of knowledge from true-blue farmgirls.
an old-fashioned farmgirl with a pioneer spirit, lives in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. As a “lifelong learner” in the “Live-Free-or-Die” state, she fiercely values self-reliance, independence, freedom, and fresh mountain air. Married to her childhood sweetheart of 40+ years (a few of them “uphill climbs”), she’s had plenty of time to reinvent herself. From museum curator, restaurant owner, homeschool mom/conference speaker, to post-and-beam house builder and entrepreneur, she’s also a multi-media artist, with an obsession for off-grid living and alternative housing. Cathi owns and operates a 32-room mountain lodge. Her specialty has evolved to include “hermit hospitality” at her rustic cabin in the mountains, where she offers weekend workshops of special interest to women.
“Mountains speak to my soul, and farming is an important part of my heritage. I want to pass on my love of these things to others through my writing. Living in the mountains has its own particular challenges, but I delight in turning them into opportunities from which we can all learn and grow.”
Dori Troutman is the daughter of second generation cattle ranchers in New Mexico. She grew up working and playing on the ranch that her grandparents homesteaded in 1928. That ranch, with the old adobe home, is still in the family today. Dori and her husband always yearned for a ranch of their own. That dream came true when they retired to the beautiful green rolling hills of Tennessee. Truly a cattleman’s paradise!
Dori loves all things farmgirl and actually has known no other life but that. She loves to cook, craft, garden, and help with any and all things on their cattle farm.
describes herself as a goat charmer, chicken whisperer, bee maven, and farmers’ market baker renovating an 1864 farmhouse on an Ohio farm. With a degree in Design, Mary says small-town auctions and country road barn sales "always make my heart skip a beat thinking about what I could create or design out of what I’ve seen.”
Rooted in the countryside, she likes simple things and old ways … gardening, preserving the harvest, cooking, baking, and all things home. While you might find her selling baked goods from the farm’s milkhouse, teaching herself to play the fiddle, or sprucing up a vintage camper named Maizy, you will always find her in an apron!
Mary says, “I’m happiest with the simple country pleasures … an old farmhouse, too many animals, a crackling fire, books to read, and the sound of laughter … these make life just perfect.”
is a budding rural farmgirl living in Palmer, the agricultural seat of Alaska. Alex is a graduate student at Alaska Pacific University pursuing an M.S. in Outdoor and Environmental Education. She lives and works on the university’s 700 acre environmental education center, Spring Creek Farm. When Alex has time outside of school, she loves to rock climb, repurpose found objects, cross-country ski on the hay fields, travel, practice yoga, and cook with new-fangled ingredients.
Alex grew up near the Twin Cities and went to college in Madison, Wisconsin—both places where perfectly painted barns and rolling green farmland are just a short drive away. After college, she taught at a rural middle school in South Korea where she biked past verdant rice paddies and old women selling home-grown produce from sidewalk stoops. She was introduced to MaryJanesFarm after returning, and found in it what she’d been searching for—a group of incredible women living their lives in ways that benefit their families, their communities, and the greater environment. What an amazing group of farmgirls to be a part of!
Suburban Farmgirl Nicole Christensen calls herself a “vintage enthusiast”. Born and raised in Texas, she has lived most of her life in the picturesque New England suburbs of Connecticut, just a stone’s throw from New York State. An Advanced Master Gardener, she has gardened since childhood, in several states and across numerous planting zones. In addition, she teaches knitting classes, loves to preserve, and raises backyard chickens.
Married over thirty years to her Danish-born sweetheart, Nicole has worked in various fields, been a world-traveler, an entrepreneur and a homemaker, but considers being mom to her now-adult daughter her greatest accomplishment. Loving all things creative, Nicole considers her life’s motto to be “Bloom where you are planted”.
Aren’t porches the best part of country homes? Your porches are awesome! Our western Montana home has huge porches facing east and west with a window wall on west with mountain view and French doors on east but I still have to spend a few moments (at least!) of every day hanging out on one or both of our porches! We also have minimal furniture, and like you a porch swing was an absolute! Enjoy
Hi Valerie,
Oh they are. I do think every country home needs a porch. And I bet your home in Montana has some amazing views with the wide open spaces and gorgeous sunsets. We’ve been to Montana and it is so gorgeous.
I sure dreamed (when we were building our home) of having all kinds of little “sitting areas” with lots of fun furniture, pillows everywhere, etc… and I actually started that way. Until I realized it just wasn’t working. 🙂 Minimal is best when it is a country porch!
Thanks for reading and commenting!
– Dori –
Soo cute! Looks great !
Thank you Cindy!
– Dori –
Thank you for the tour of your beautiful porches! At the moment our house has a very small front porch and an alright sized back porch. There is only room to lounge on the back porch but we avoid it most days due to the super hot sun and absolutely no shade. We talk about building a house in the future and I know a large porch is in my dream house. I want one where I can relax and watch the sun set in a rocking chair. I also want to make sure it has plenty of shade. We will see what happens! Thanks for the tip about heavy furniture. I would much rather not chase around furniture when a storm comes through! Enjoy your porching weather!
Hi Krista!
A porch is a must isn’t it? But the good thing is that you don’t need a huge one to enjoy it! Just a little porch with shelter and shade! And room for a few rocking chairs. And a bed. And a swing! Ha Ha!
Thanks for reading and commenting.
– Dori –
Love the idea of a bed on the porch, what a relaxing place to take a nap. Very neat spaces you’ve created.
Hi Carole,
A bed on the porch is the best thing ever!
– Dori –
Oh ! So enjoyed the tour of your farmhouse porches. One thing I wondered about was not seeing any cats. I also live on a farm and find it so hard to keep it clean and tidy. Between the muddy boots and fly stains, I find it hard to keep up. Of course we use fly spray…but kitties are always on my chairs and table. Love some of your other ideas..like oil cloth on the picnic table top. But life on the farm is forever changing…mainly because of the weather. So thanks for the tour and great ideas…u have a beautiful place to call home.
Hi Kate,
We do not have any cats! We have an Australian Shepherd dog that for whatever reason tolerates absolutely every animal (chickens included) but she does not love cats. And after one awful experience (the cat lived, thankfully) I’ve not wanted to try with another cat.
You are so right… life on a farm is forever changing. What worked today doesn’t necessarily work tomorrow.
– Dori –
I am finally getting a “porch”, actually a deck, on my farm house this year! We have a concrete stoop at the front door that faces the road, but like you, our back door is the one you drive up to, so it really functions as the entrance for everyone. My husband is building the deck off the back entrance and he will put up a porch swing per my request also. This is just one of many projects we have been completing over the past 6 years, since buying this over 100 yr old house, as there is always something to do.
In my dreams, I also see a covered front porch in the future, but it might be quite some time, as there are other things that need done worse. There used to be a big porch on the back, but it was covered and became part of the interior of the house at some point in the past.
Hi Sheryl,
My daughter and her husband have an old home also and you are right… there is a never-ending list of projects. But oh my word – don’t you just love having an old house? They are so special. Your porch will be lovely and you’ll love that swing!
– Dori –
Love your porches… To the best Grammy ever!
You are my favorite daughter ever! 🙂
xoxo
– Mom –
What a lovely option to have 360 degree porches from which to choose how to spend your days or evenings taking in the beautiful views from your hilltop home.
Hi Ann,
Oh we are so lucky to have our view. We try so hard not to take it for granted.
– Dori –
Got a question for you Dori. According to my theory (and a few things I’ve studied), I wonder if you have mosquitoes up there? Probably not, right?…I’m so curious.
Hi Mary,
We DO NOT have mosquitos on the hilltop!!!!! 🙂 It is a miracle! They clearly do not like the breeze that consistently blows. Yay!!!
– Dori –
Congratulations on your beautiful home. Thanks for sharing the photos.
Marilyn
Thank you Marilyn!
– Dori –
Dori, you are blessed to be able to enjoy your home and “porches” at a younger age. They are truly beautiful. You are both are very talented!!
Hi Aunt Marvene!
I don’t know about talented… just high energy and crazy! 🙂
Love you,
– Dori –
Howdy Dori!
What clean and inviting porch spaces you’ve created! Thanks so much for the tour. I think my favorite spot is your sleeping porch…A rare treat for any farmgirl for sure! I sure enjoy ours at the cottage too! Happy ” porching” !
Hugs!
Deb