This Week at Ramsey Farms

For the week of July 28 to August 3, 2014

What a week! It seems that many more than seven days have passed. This time last week I was sitting in my house in North Carolina and through many prayers, blood, sweat, tears, and two nights sleeping on the floor, I am proud to tell you that I am writing this article from my desk in my living room on my own little 14-acre farm in southeast Georgia!!

We picked up the moving truck on Tuesday afternoon. Did you know you could fit almost 2,200-square feet of stuff plus tools, yard equipment, and some houseplants onto a 26-foot truck? Well yes, you can. My Chief Farmhand is one of the best puzzle solvers in the world and he can pack a bag, pack a car, and obviously pack a truck like nobody’s business! Give him a round of applause please.

We spent all Tuesday afternoon and night packing. We finally crashed on the floor to sleep about 4am.  We were back at it by 6am. That house had to be empty and clean by 2pm. Physical exhaustion and stress and a tight deadline will really make you reconsider personal possessions. I am sad to say that many of my back porch plants were unable to make the cut. L Moreover, we totally ran out of time (and or forgot) to harvest the leeks, the green tomatoes, and the green beans to take with us.

The mourning of plants aside, my daughter and I made it to the law office on time for the 3pm closing. It took about ten minutes to sign papers to sell our home of the last 14 years and we hit the road – southbound to Georgia! We caught up with Chief Farmhand / Head Truck Driver, Chris and his co-pilot, our 4.5-year-old son on I-77 and caravanned for about three hours. The cheap motel in Augusta was a sight for tired eyes. We grabbed some dinner and showers and all four of us went to bed about 8pm and slept until seven the next morning. I could have slept longer but I was so excited that that was the day we were buying a farm!!!

Another 2.5 to 3 hour road trip this time no interstates, but state roads, county roads, and back country roads to…HOME! We pulled in that long dirt driveway about 11am and as my car crested the hill and the house came into view, my heart skipped a beat and I knew. I knew we were home. For a minute! Then my daughter and I rushed off with our Super Realtor, Susan to the lawyer’s office for my second closing in as many days. Chris stayed home to unload the truck.

Our dear realtor had left us all a super spread of welcome home gifts from a basket of bath and hair products for my daughter, a fishing pole and lures for our son, pool toys and floats for the kids and grill tools and party platters for us!!

After the closing (which took over two hours by the way – many more papers to sign this time!) and more truck unloading, we drove about 12 miles to our nearest grocery store for supplies. There was more truck unloading Thursday night and hardcore unloading Friday, as the truck was due back! Therefore, we got to make another trip into town Friday but had set aside Saturday to just hang out at our new house.

Chris and I took an extended hike around a big portion of our land. We discovered tons of wild muscadines growing all over the riverbanks and in the woods, saw wild hog and deer tracks by the river, sought out good fishing spots, and heard wild turkeys clucking off in the woods. We’ve enjoyed a bunch of cute little frogs coming up to the pool at night and an owl sat on our fence only 25-feet from where we sat next to the pool.

So much to do and get started. I am ready to start a little garden and create a nice little herb garden…

I just want to stop my storytelling to let you know that this entire process and feat was not mine alone. I give thanks to God for making it possible and providing us the things we need to achieve the goals He has ordained. Closing on two houses in two states in 30 days is not an easy task to undertake and without God and a wonderful team of people – this would not have happened. Thank you Jesus for the dream and the love that inspires the courage to go after a dream. I know this could not have happened in the way that it has transpired without God’s blessing. Thank you.

Thank you to Chris for facilitating, coordinating, and being the muscle behind my dream. Thank you to my kids for their trust in allowing me to upheave the only life they’ve known. Especially thanks to my daughter who helped carry, lift, pack, move, navigate, communicate, and just generally helped so much more than a fourteen year should and whom without we could not have accomplished this. 

Thank you to Mary and Katie for helping us pack and load the truck. We could not have gotten done on time without you. 

Thank you to Debi for being so willing to make this happen in time for us both!! Thank you to Melissa for pulling off the mortgage side of this in what I bet is record time. Thank you to Warren for selling the impossible. Thank you to Nikki for the road trip snacks! Thank you to Susan for her Super Realtor status – not only is she a detailed, on the ball realtor, but she is a truly wonderful person with whom I am happy to begin a friendship here in Georgia with. She made sure this deal was going to go down, on time. 

And thank you to the people who have encouraged, inspired, supported, listened, and been a part of this learning process, search process, selling/buying process, moving process, and just the people who helped reduce the stress during the past three months of extreme house hunt/move stress. THANK YOU! 

Dreams to Goals to Reality! If you dream it, you can achieve it! Anything is possible! :) Ramsey