The Land

When I was in high school I had a very specific vision of my future. When I grew up I wanted to be a stay at home mom, have a huge garden and be independently wealthy. I planned to marry my high school sweet heart, buy land and make a homestead. I figured the money would some how materialize. My wish did come true, but not at all how I thought it would. Be careful what you wish for because you just might get it.

I was with my high school boyfriend Ian for a total of 7 years. We shared a dream with his brother Colin and Colin's girlfriend CC.  This dream was to buy property and start a permaculture farm, which is a type of sustainable agriculture combined with a sustainable lifestyle.

When I was 17, the 4 of us drove to Mendocino in search of our future home arriving at dusk in the beginning of a snow storm. After driving on countless back-roads with our Topo map, we realized we were lost and it was getting dark, cold, and slushy.  Luckily, a man named Pete came out and explained to us where we were and how it is best to travel to the property in the morning. He so graciously offered us his guest bedroom instead of our tent. We stayed with Pete that night and shared a lovely dinner. The stars were aligned and we had not even seen the land yet.

In the morning we said our good byes to Pete and arrived at the amazing 29 acre parcel of raw land which had all of our criteria. Our property needed to have water, be south facing, have a flat site for building a home, and have a mostly drivable road.  It was everything we wanted, almost too good to be true, almost...

After much time and thought we made the decision to purchase the property by pooling all of our savings.  Part one if my dream was completed. Ian and I were still in college so we would make weekend trips up to "the land" when we could. Colin and CC moved up there soon after and build a hoop house to store their stuff and lived in a tent. We put in a garden and planted fruit trees.

In our senior year of college Ian and I went our separate ways.  You would think that would be the end of the story, but it was just the beginning. You see CC and I were best friends and I was also very close to his brother Colin. I continued visiting them every year on my own. "The Land" as we called it was like a sacred refuge to me. I could get away from the fast paced life I lived and live simply when I was there.  Colin and CC were my heroes because they were living the lifestyle they believed in.  They never passed judgment on others who lived a less earth conscious life, but they did their part. Living in Santa Cruz I hear so many people preach about treading lightly but it is so rare to actually see someone practice what they preach.

Over the years they put in a large pond, finished the road, and built their dream house. They built their home themselves using much lumber and mud from the property. The materials purchased were sustainably harvested and recycled. They have since had two amazing little girls, Coruna and Celena,  who are like cousins to my girls. Ava looks forward to our annual summer trip to visit our Mendocino family. She says it is her absolute favorite place to go to. She says she would rather go to Colin and CCs house than to Disneyland.

You may ask how this story relates to my dream coming true?  My original life plan did happen but through a twist of fate. Somehow my dream did materialize. I married my soul mate, had beautiful children, and have an awesome garden. I still am working on being independently wealthy... "The Land" was the first chapter in this story and I am so grateful for our decision to follow our dream and buy this property.  I recently read a quote that inspired me and it said - "What would you do if you could not fail?" I dont want to sound like a super Santa Cruz hippy, but I think we should all follow our dreams because they will most likely come true!


Colin, CC, Ian and Myself 1998



The main flat area which will soon be full of lush gardens 1998

Building the road

The Cabin is being built and the early garden 1999

Ava, Coruna, and Celena - Cute Cousins 2008

Me, Ava, and Coruna 2009

The cabin where the 4 of them lived for many years
until they built their dream house 2008




Years later, their cob/straw bale home is finished 2010

Colin, CC, and Scarlett 2010

Coruna, Ava, and CC milking the goat 2010



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