How I Came to Love the Country Life

As a city girl gone country, if you had told me thirteen years ago I would find myself raising my children in the country and the owner of animals I knew nothing about, I would have laughed at you and called you crazy. But, low and behold, that is where I am at and exactly what I am doing! We are the proud owners of two dogs, three donkeys, seventeen chickens, a handful of goldfish in a trough, and eight breeding rabbits.

I’ve come to love our place out here in Papalote, Texas. These days I cannot imagine living my life anywhere else. The feelings of peace and tranquility that I now hold close to my heart did not come immediately, or easily, though. It took some time for me to find joy in my country environment. Initially, I felt lonely and definitely out of my element.   It took thirty minutes to get to Wally-World, for goodness sake!

While those initial feelings of isolation were pretty intense, I’m quite certain they had a lot to do with the fact I was thirty-eight years old and pregnant.  Raging pregnancy hormones and a lonely mama do not make for a great combination.  I had a nine year old son and a fourteen year old daughter and a precious bundle in my belly.  What was this lonely mama going to do?  The reality was, my children needed me to be the best mama that I could be, no matter where we lived.  With that thought, it was only a matter of time before I found myself embracing the quiet.  We were presented with an incredible opportunity to raise our children in this environment that was, yes, overwhelmingly new, yet spectacular!

It didn’t take long for me to realize I didn’t miss hearing train whistles, horns honking, brakes screeching, or any of those other annoying sounds from the city. What I came to enjoy were the sounds of birds chirping, the leaves rustling on the trees from the south Texas wind, and a quietness that I could absorb straight into my soul.  I cannot forget the laughter of the kids playing with the dogs in the yard or the anxiety-filled shrieks as we came face-to-face with our first black snake.

Snakes aside, there are some wonderful benefits to living life in the country.  We’ve learned so much about nature and the animals around us that we had no knowledge of before.  It has been the perfect place for homeschooling and has made our journey that much more unique.  Need to measure and walk-off the actual length of a blue whale?  Where’s a better place to do that than out on an open country road? Oh? And how great is it that I don’t have to worry about anyone seeing me as I run through the yard in my nightclothes and rubber boots trying to save a baby bird from the dogs…yes, true story.  I never did figure out what type of bird that was with the long, narrowly pointed beak and webbed feet like a duck?

Our country/homeschool life has so many fun stories and I cannot wait to start sharing them with you.  I have been quite amazed to learn that so much drama can happen in a place that feels so far away from the rest of the world.

So tell me?  Are you a city girl or a country girl?  I’d love for you to share your story.

Until next time,

Pam