Meet Liza
I remember telling a friend of mine that Nick and I were leaving Sarasota, where so many of our friends and family lived, where my business was, to start a homestead in North Carolina. After a long period of silence she looked me and asked very calmly “Are you crazy?” I confirmed that I must be. Most people were shocked to find out what we were doing but more on that later.
Born and raised in Michigan, I grew up in a small town on some land. I could not wait to leave! I never fit in in my little town. I became a hairdresser at 16, loved fashion and wearing all black. I wore big black movie star sunglasses and bright red lipstick everywhere I went. It was my signature. I loved to travel and was committed to living by my great grandmother motto:
“Never let the dust settle under your feet””
I always knew someday I wanted to be a business owner. My parents were business owners and from the time I was young I was always starting little businesses. I’d make jewelry to sell, cards, one time I even collected frogs and tried to sell them as pets. But for the time being I was content exploring and experiencing life. I moved countless times, living in five different states over the course of five years. After living in Florida for about a year and being a hairdresser for close to a decade, I finally felt like I was in the time and place to open a salon.
About six months into salon ownership I got set up with Nick. As our relationship progressed, for the first time maybe ever, I felt settled. My business was a success, Nick and I were starting our life together, life was good.
Then great gram got in my ear…. “Never let the dust settle under your feet”. I started to get the itch not to move, but to start another business. I tried a few things but nothing felt quite right. So for the time being I just positioned myself to open to whatever God had for me and waited….
You’re probably thinking “well Liza, this tells me nothing about how you found yourself in a farmhouse on 8 acres in North Carolina starting a homestead” , I know I know I know, but you’ll have to keep reading to find out how it all comes together… (It’s worth the read, I promise)
follow along
Meet Nick
Hello world, I’m Nick and I’ma Sarasota, Florida native through and through. I’ve maybe lived in 3 different zip codes for 34 years until moving to North Carolina.
I never thought I would leave Florida but I have always wanted land and livestock. Florida was becoming incredibly expensive plus I loved the idea of finally being able to enjoy all 4 seasons! I grew up with some friends who grew up on acreage and livestock, grandparents with a garden and property that I would spend summers at tending the garden and making homemade wine, sausage, and tomato sauce.
I am very much a people person who always wants everyone around I loved the idea of a homestead on acreage. I love the idea of knowing where all my food comes from, learning old and new ways of farming the right way and living much closer to God and my community. That being said I also love that we don’t have neighbors!
Meet Jazz
Hi there, I’m Jazz. At least, I think that’s my name. Sometimes mum and dad call me Jazzy J, Jazz the spaz, Muffin or even Aunt Nancy. They said “Aunt Nancy” is when my ears make me look like I have a bob… Whatever that is. Anyways, I answer to most of those names, or sometimes none of them if I’m distracted. Mum says I have ADHD like her.
Mum surprised dad with me for Christmas when they were dating. What’s funny is dad was trying to surprise mum with a puppy that same year! Can you image, I was almost a twin!
My favorite things are:
- Being with my people. ESPECIALLY my grandpaw-rents because they spoil me
- My new kittensister and brother, Chicken and Waffles. Mum and dad say they have to stay in the barn but I love playing with them every chance I get.
- Sunday’s because I always get a pig ear. (Ask mum about how she freaked out when I ate the whole thing because she thought it was a chew toy, that was SO funny!)
- And my MOST favorite thing EVER… WATER!!! I LOVE WATER! I love drinking water (my paw-rents call me a water-holic) I love ice cubes, I love standing in the rain and I LOVE jumping off the boat or into a pool if I can find one.
I also love meeting new people ( mum says I get THAT from dad) So if you ever come to the farm for a visit be prepared to be my new best friend!
Meet The Carden’s
February 20, 2020
This is the day it really all began. Marrying my best friend. That date may seem pretty familiar to you because it was about a month before the whole world shut down. Whatta way to start a marriage! But it was right around this time that we began thinking “Hey, I kinda want to spend every moment with you.” Having been an entrepreneur for 5 years, I was itching for a challenge and loved the idea of starting a second business (remember, I told you it was going to come full circle, we’re getting there). We weren’t really sure what but it was a dream that was laid on our heart. For now, it just marinated there.
Over those next few years we faced a battle so many people know. Infertility. While we were both fairly health conscious (or so we thought) we began diving deeper into what is really in our food and where it was coming from. And wowza, it’s a doozy. We built a 20 x 20 raised garden bed in the back yard and really fell in love with gardening. Nick and had some experience growing up gardening with his Nonna and Papa but it was a whole new world to me. I may have grown up in the country but that was the extent of it.
Then the real gateway drug entered the picture….Chickens!
Start Homesteading
It all begins with an dream
The older I’ve gotten the more appreciation I had for the small town I grew up in. Never in a million years would I have thought those words would come out of my mouth. I grew up riding horses, spending time out on the lake, looking at stars and having plenty of space to play out in the woods.
While Sarasota may not have been a “small town” in Nicks lifetime it certainly wasn’t what it has become. Advertised as the top beach in the country, host of reality show, year round traffic that will make a 5 mile trip take 30 minutes. No, there use to be space, there use to be farms, there use to be sleepy seasons.
We both began to ache for a slower pace of life. That, along with the combination of our garden and chickens, a.k.a the feathered ladies, we began to dream about the some day of starting a homestead. We “knew” it wouldn’t be any time soon, it was just unrealistic, but after three years of infertility as began to pray asking God “what’s next”.
The more we prayed the more started dreaming about what that someday homestead would look like. How could we merge of dreams of entrepreneurship and homesteading? Well, we knew we wanted to produce the majority of our own food; not just a garden but with livestock. Surely we will have more than enough and/or other products we will be able to produce. Let’s have a roadside market!
If there is one thing I have learned as an entrepreneur through 2020, it’s the importance of having multiple streams of income. So we kept digging, what else…Gosh, I just love having fresh flowers every day. U-pick flower farms are really popular. Maybe we can have U-pick flower farm!
When we got married we originally wanted to get married in a barn but we had a VERY small wedding (12 of us including the officiant) and the barns were way too big. But hey, maybe we could have a small event small we could rent out and then we could also host events on the farm like worship night or farmers market for small local businesses.
Then we started thinking, wouldn’t it be cool if we could stay someplace like this? We want to homestead and it would be so neat if we could visit and stay at one. We have stayed at some pretty cool airbnb’s. Lets put an airbnb on the property!!
The more we prayed the more peace we got.
Someday this dream would become a reality.
As we prayed we started thinking, how can we take a small step towards making this a reality. So we began looking for lots for sale. If we could find a lot for cheap we could put a tiny home on it and slowly build out our dream until one day, 5-10 years from now, we could make the leap. Then when the time is right we will build a barndominium and the tiny home will become the airbnb. It’ll be perfect!
Nick and I both prayed so intently, really and truly trying to only hear His voice in our next steps. We had the vision He gave us and began looking for property. In addition to the businesses we had planned we also wanted to be a reasonable distance to a cute town, not completely removed from civilization, near water (Florida boy, remember). While we originally thought we would remain in Florida we quickly realized that wouldn’t be in our budget. Plus, my Florida boy kinda wanted seasons. So we opened up our search, fairly disconnected to where we landed, as long as we could drive back to see the salon and family within a days trip.
For months we searched, scouring the internet. If we thought we found someplace promising we would pack up the truck and drive through the night. No one knew we were doing this and because we didn’t even know if anything would come of it we chose not to share it. So through the night we would drive, look at property and then turn around and drive home. sometimes 14 hours one way. We kept our vision front of mind and before we would get to our destination we would pray “Lord, make it a clear yes or a clear no”. Boy, did he. We went to properties with such inclines you’d never be able to put a house; properties that the only way you could have an airbnb was if you zoned the property for a neighborhood; properties that were so far from the Zillow listing we would think that surely we had taken a wrong turn. Clear no’s. While we were bummed, we continued to pray.
His timing, not ours. His plan, not ours.
We both felt so clearly that this is where God was leading us that we just continued. When the time is right He will bring us the perfect place. Then one day I offhandedly say to Nick “The only thing that could talk me out of our plan to find land and build a barndo would be if we could find like a REALLY old farm house.” Up until then we had only been looking for vacant land but we decided to open up our search in case by happen stance we should stumble upon such a find.
Well, I don’t remember the exact time frame, but it was not long after that we found a house on Zillow. As house on 8 acres, in North Carolina, that was built in 1790. Yes, 1790, the same 1790 that George Washington was elected president.
It had previously been used as a homestead so knew it could support our dream of livestock so we decided to take a look. When we arrived at the property we almost immediately looked at each other with a “clear yes”. The house was beautiful, with an open air barn ready to be fixed up to the perfect event space. A small out building that was designed to be a market to sell products from the homestead. Another barn that hadn’t been used for much that could be converted to an airbnb. A large garden. A large portion of the land that really hadn’t been used for much that could beautifully be transformed to a U-pick flower farm. 30 minutes from an adorable town and the water. God fulfilled every vision He had placed on our hearts.
Just one problem. This was in fact a house, not bare land, and with that includes the price tag of a house. There was no way we were going to be able to keep our house in Sarasota and buy this house to someday live in 5-10 years from now like we thought. We continued to pray.
His timing, not ours.
We asked for a clear yes and we got it. The Lord brought us this far, how can we not trust Him to provide. So we went for it. We put in an offer and put our house on the market all within a matter of days.
Now the task of telling our family, our friends and my team. To say people were shocked is an understatement. Heck, we were too. But when you ask God a question, you better be prepared to listen to His answer.
This is our journey. We are figuring it one day at a time. I travel back to Sarasota once a month to be at the salon. We watch A LOT of Youtube and read a lot of Joel Salatin. We are not only starting a homestead but starting a business. Like any business it doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time, it takes trial and error, it takes grit and dedication. God has brought us this far and we are so excited to see all that He has in store for us.
Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is at work within us. Eph 3:20
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