Surprise! We moved!
I still can’t hardly believe it, but we moved! It has been so long since I’ve been on here. I needed a good social media and technology cleanse, and honestly, it was so wonderful and so much more needed than I realized. During that time away, we really dove into listening to the Lord and trying to follow where He was leading us—even when what He was asking us to do seemed absolutely insane. We took a huge leap of faith. And now, every morning when I wake up, I look out at our land and still can’t believe it’s ours.
There have been so many twists and turns getting here, and honestly, the story is one I never could have written myself. There were moments when we thought it wasn’t going to happen, moments when we wondered if we had completely lost our minds, and moments when we had to remind ourselves over and over again to trust God’s timing.
But somehow, we’re here. So, I thought it was finally time to share the story of how we ended up here, how we’re making this crazy camper life work, and what we’re dreaming about for the future.
How We Got Here
Not long after we moved to Texas, we knew we wanted more land. One day, because I tend to get these crazy ideas, we randomly decided to start looking at land.
My grandma grew up in Oklahoma, and I grew up with her, listening to all of her stories about her childhood and the places she knew and loved. I always knew I wanted to see, in person, all of the places she had talked about over the years.
One weekend, we decided to take a trip to see her old house and explore the area around her hometown (it didn’t take long-its a tiny town). While we were there, I randomly started looking online for land in the area and found a beautiful piece of property. We all know that land can look completely different in pictures than it does in real life, but we figured, “Why not go check it out anyway?” So we did. And it was every bit as beautiful as the pictures—and honestly, even more beautiful.
We talked, prayed about it, and ultimately decided to contact the realtor. We quickly put our house on the market, fully expecting things to fall into place. But after about six months, our house still hadn’t sold.
Shortly after that, the realtor called to tell me the land had sold. We were so disappointed, but we also just figured that maybe it wasn’t God’s plan for us. As hard as it was, we tried to let it go.
Fast-forward nine months.The same realtor called me again and said, “The gentleman who bought the land is having some major health issues and has to sell the property. Are you still interested?” I was completely shocked. It felt like God was opening that door again.
Once again, we quickly put our house on the market and decided to purchase the land without even having our house sold! During that time, things were definitely financially difficult, but we felt so strongly that this was a door the Lord was opening for us that we had to step through it. Six months later, we sold our house, bought a camper, and moved into the camper but not onto the land yet.
Learning to Wait
Since then, I have had to remind myself more times than I would like that things take A LOT longer than anticipated.
After moving into the camper, we had to move to an RV park because we had raw land with no utilities. That was definitely an adjustment, but I am so thankful for the RV park we were able to stay at. It was clean, safe, and conveniently located near my husband’s job.
We thought getting utilities to the property would take a month or two. It took about six months. Six months of waiting, figuring things out, and constantly reminding myself that God’s timing is not always my timing.
How We Are Surviving Camper Life
In order to actually survive life in a 35-foot camper, we knew we needed just a little more space. So, we built a shop. Inside the shop, we created a little family room and a makeshift kitchen with a stove. We also have a kitchen table where we can spread out and do school at an actual table—which has been a HUGE improvement over trying to do everything inside the camper.
It has also become one of my favorite places for family dinners. It’s not fancy. It’s not what we originally envisioned. But it works. And honestly, there is something really special about watching your family make a home out of whatever space God has given you.
Many of my close friends know that my dad has lived with us for many, many years. At our last house, he had his own area upstairs. Now that we’re living in a camper, we knew we needed to figure out a way for him to have his own space again. So, we bought a shed and converted it into a tiny house for him. And it is absolutely perfect. Everyone has their own space, and somehow, it’s all working out.
The Future
Our goal for the near future is to build a house. But as we all know, gas and groceries are currently the bane of our existence financially! We have designed the property and leveled everything with the mindset that, when the Lord decides the time is right, we will build our house. And Lord, I hope it’s soon!
Our house plans are in the works now, and we’re making sure everything is ready for the day we can finally start building. As we all know, nothing ever goes exactly according to plan. I am being gratefully humbled every single day by learning to go with the flow and trust God’s timing.
For now, we have chickens and dogs. We had guineas, too…until something massacred them all. So, we’re hoping to get some more eventually! In the future, our goal is to get fencing up and add goats, cattle, and horses to our little piece of Oklahoma.
This journey has looked nothing like I imagined it would. There have been financial challenges, waiting, setbacks, and plenty of moments where I’ve wondered, “Lord, are we really doing this?” But through all of it, I keep coming back to the same thing God opened the door.
So for now, we’re going to enjoy this season. We’re going to soak up family time, ride the ATVs, play in the creek, fish every chance we get, and make as many memories as possible. The house will come when it’s supposed to come. The fences, animals, and all the other dreams will come in time. For now, we’re going to enjoy what we have been given and be thankful for this little piece of land we get to call ours.
And even when the timing hasn’t looked anything like what I expected, He has continued to provide a way forward. So, for now, we’re living in a camper, raising our kids, doing school at a kitchen table in a shop, taking care of chickens and dogs, and dreaming about the house and farm that will eventually be here. It’s not the finished dream yet. But it’s ours. And we are incredibly grateful for it!
I don’t know exactly how this story is going to end. I don’t know when we’ll build our house, when we’ll have our fences up, or when we’ll finally have all the animals we’ve dreamed about. But I do know that God has brought us this far.
What started as a crazy idea turned into land, a camper, a shop, a tiny house for Dad, chickens, dogs, and a whole lot of lessons in patience. It’s not the life we originally imagined. But it’s the life we’re living—and I’m learning to be grateful for it. Maybe someday I’ll look back at these camper days and realize they weren’t the waiting season I thought they were. Maybe they were part of the dream all along. For now, we’re going to keep building, keep dreaming, keep praying, and most importantly, keep trusting Gods timing.
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