A New Era

Hello followers!!
Quimby Farm has become even more official! You can now keep up with the happenings of the farm on our very own published website.

Please visit www.quimbyfarm.com to follow along with us! Feel free to drop in a line and let us know what you think.
Thanks for following in our journey as we explore many more facets of the farm life!
Blessings

It's Not Easy

Many people (myself included) like to use the phrase I married my best friend. And while it's a lovely thought, I think there's two real meanings to that phrase.

There is a difference between marrying your best friend and being married to your best friend. Many people know that I was married once before. I met a guy and fell in love when I was 18 years old. We had a semi- long distance, short relationship/engagement while I finished school, and shortly after moving home we got married (not even a year between starting to date and being married). Cody was a friend to me for a while before we dated. He was my rock when I was in an unfamiliar town, pushing through my school work, and away from my family and friends. He made the 1 hour trip daily like it was nothing just to spend time with me.
He was my only friend. And he was my best friend. Cody and I had a friendship like none I've ever had. The way we were together was unlike any relationship I'd experienced. We were such good friends before we ever started dating that we had such a solid foundation of friendship built before we made it more than that. We knew everything about each other.
Cody and I share something special that I've never shared with anyone. And although our marriage didn't work, our friendship never failed. Through the hardest time in both of our lives (yes, it was our fault), we still counted on each other.  There's a familiarity there that will never change. And it's a friendship that lasts forever.

Marrying your best friend is a good idea, so they say, but make sure you're ready.

We were babies when we got married and we just weren't ready. That's not to say we didn't love each other. That's not to say that we didn't want things to work. They just weren't right.
I'm a firm believer that God orders your steps. It's in the Bible so it has to be true (Proverbs 16:9) But he also gave us the option to choose His path or our own. And you're fully capable of taking a step off that ordained path. I truly believe my marriage with Cody was a step off the path. We were not ready to get married, and we knew that. We made the relationship about emotions, and God wasn't the foundation of it. I believe that had we committed to working through our issues, and put God back in the middle of it, He could have made things work. But instead we quit. We were frustrated, discouraged, and just plain done. Divorce shouldn't ever be an option but we let it become one. And because of that, there are consequences.
There's a reason God hates divorce. He says ONE man and ONE woman. Marriage is something so sacred and beautiful that it's to be shared with just one special person. Two people become one, no matter how short or how long your marriage is, you're one with another person. And that's a big deal.

When you're best friends first, and then you fall in love, it's important to realize the difference between marrying your best friend and being married to your best friend. In Cody's case, I married my best friend. And best friends we were. But we weren't ready to grow up and melt two lives into one. Could we have been ready eventually? Probably. But we didn't look past the beauty of a solid friendship to see that it's not just about having fun and spending time together. It has to be about God. It's about having a foundation on God, and building from there. It's about a life together. It's about bringing two different, imperfect people together into one. That's not easy. Especially without God.

Being married to your best friend happens a little differently. With Grant, we were best friends (obviously the person you date becomes about your only friend), but we had such a different relationship. We weren't necessarily friends first. We almost immediately went from being acquaintances to dating. And we were married fairly quickly. (That happens when you're a Christian, and there are certain...things...married people do that dating people don't. So you try and get married quick. If you catch my drift.) Through 2 years of marriage we have become the best of friends. We had a solid foundation on God, each of us our own foundation before we were together, that destined our relationship to be Christ-centered. God has to be your best friend first, then your spouse, for a marriage to work. Grant has become my best friend. We have grown together since we started dating, and have begun to build a life together. Grant was the one God intended to be mine. I believe that. He's the strong Christian leader that I needed, and had I waited for God to bring him into my life, I would have avoided some heartbreak. But that divorce was a lesson that has become invaluable to me, and going through that strengthened me more than I realized initially. I learned so much, not only about myself, but about how to have an effective, working relationship. My relationship with God grew immensely during that storm, and He forced me to come to terms with my salvation.
I've realized my marriage with Grant is more of a relationship with God, with Grant being the side bonus. :) And that's how it's supposed to be. That's what works. I didn't marry my best friend, but now I'm married to my best friend.

If you don't know who you are IN CHRIST first, then you can't become one with someone else. It can't work. You have to be confident in who you are, and WHOSE you are. You have to have a full understanding that you are in fact fearfully and wonderfully made, by yourself with God, and you don't need a man to tell you that. Think about putting two puzzle pieces together. If one of those pieces is torn, and not whole, no matter how right it is (you know that piece has to fit there), no matter how hard you try, those pieces won't fit together correctly. There will still be a hole between the pieces. You have to have two whole people to make a marriage work. And the only filler for that space in between is God.

When things with Grant seem to start feeling rocky, the first place I look is my relationship with God. It's directly related to my relationship with Grant.  And if I start slacking on my prayer life, my relationships struggle. My lovely attitude comes out, and I have to get myself back in check.

All that being said, I encourage you to not only marry your best friend, but be married to your best friend. Let God bring that person into your life, and then make the most of it. Keep God in the center of the relationship, and it will work out. Divorce doesn't have to be the end of everything. It may be the end of a marriage but it doesn't have to mean the end of a friendship. When you're married you share a special part of your life with someone, and no matter how it ends, a piece of your heart, and a part of your life, will always belong to the other person. You wouldn't ever marry a person if you didn't love them right? Marriage requires a lot out of two people. And it's hard work.

The most important thing I got out of my divorce? God forgives. Through all the criticism and backlash I got from being "in church" and getting divorced, I learned that all sin is equal. God can forgive any sin, regardless. If your heart is right, God can restore you completely and give you back more than you thought you lost. He's good. And His mercy is new every morning. 1 John 1:9 says If we confess our sins, HE is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us from ALL unrighteousness. I don't see a "but" in there. He says all unrighteousness.

No matter how broken you are when you come to Him, He can (and will) make you whole again.

Living The Blessed Life

My life is precious.. Could I ask for any more? 

I love being able to work with all my animals. I love my horses. I love my chickens. Gathering eggs in the evening, feeding the horses, loving on everyone. It keeps me going after a long day at work. I'm so blessed to be able to surround myself with what I love. Some people can't believe we have so many, and I always hear "That must be a lot of work". And it is. But it's my passion. I wouldn't change a thing. I love my crazy, beautiful farm. 

Nando and the puppies are good. We had to put Grant's dog Roxie to sleep a few weeks ago due to health issues. So we are down to just three boys now! 

(sharing a popsicle in the picture below)

My chickens are doing well! Growing bigger still and laying more consistently.

We get a colorful batch of eggs every day!

We have had Dallas for almost 6 months now and he has come along wonderfully. He still has some weight to gain (mostly muscle) but he's doing well, both physically and mentally. He's not flighty like he used to be. He seems to be more confident. I'm loving his progress and he will be saddled next month! 

Sire can't take a decent picture to save his life.. Goofball always has his tongue out.

The animals know how to make Grant feel better after the loss of his dog! A few days after it happened, we went out to see the horses and laid in the round bale for about an hour just loving on the horses. They were so gentle and careful. Precious souls, all of them!

The newest addition to the farm is the chicken coop in the barn. We are getting a group of chickens to free range down in the barn and clean up after the horses. The coop if finally finished and has been dubbed the "Chick Inn". Cheesy right? But it's beautiful! It adds character to the barn!

 I live a blessed life. We may not have all the money in the world, but we are rich with blessings!!

My heart is so happy in my sanctuary!

Here's What You've Missed

Taking a break from social media has affected me so much more than I thought it would. I finally feel like I'm at peace again. I don't worry about anything anymore and I'm really back to enjoying life again. But...here's what you've missed.

The horses are doing great. I will tell you there's a reason people make money selling and making round bale feeders/hay rings. Because if you don't, you're horse that thinks he is a big dog (Sire) likes to try and climb on top of it. They destroyed the bale in about 5 days, and now have decided it's the best of both worlds to sleep in it and eat it. Goals for 2016: Buy a round bale feeder.

The weather is doing some funky stuff. Just 1 week ago it was 20 degrees and we had 4 inches of snow. Now it's 70 and sunny. Lovely Indiana. Lovely. (But really, I love the warm weather. Spring can hurry right on over.)

From last Sunday ^

Dallas is doing wonderfully. I want to see about riding him but EVERY TIME I go out thinking I'll work with Dallas, Sire is just irresistible to me. I love that dang horse so much, I can't imagine riding anyone else. Sire is my main man. And speaking of Sire, he was an angel today. Grant and I finally got a decent day to ride, and the boys did great. It was the first time since December that we have had a chance to ride and they were fairly well behaved. 

February is the worst month, in my opinion. Although it is the shortest month (in days only), it seems to drag on relentlessly. So to get myself through this month, I started another project. 

I have been tossing around the idea of having a small flock of chickens that free range in and around the barn to clean up after the horses. Plus I just like my chickens and they lay good eggs. 

So the "Convert a horse stall to a chicken coop" project began. I'm proud to say that aside from buying the hardware cloth and screws, all of this was done with scraps of wood from around our place (and some from my brother). I'm so crafty. 

Here's the before picture. A dirty 8x10 horse stall. 

Here's the after picture. An almost finished cute coop!

My cute nesting boxes with curtains. You can't tell but they have little roosters on them!

With all the time I've had now that I'm not wasting it on Facebook and Instagram, I'm spending lots more time getting myself back on track with the good Lord. He has proven himself so much the past 2 weeks. I normally struggle with headaches and stomach issues. I constantly have to take Ibuprofen and Prevacid and such. But I really have been praying that God bring back a true peace to me. 99% of my health issues are because of stress. I just don't handle it well..but then does anyone really handle stress well? 

I'm happy to announce that the past 2 weeks, I've not taken ANY medicine.. None. I really am feeling truly relaxed and at peace for the first time in months. I'm enjoying life. I'm enjoying work. I'm feeling my attitude change. My lovely, patient husband even noticed a difference in my attitude. It's great that God can really bring a true peace when you get rid of the distractions and allow him to work. 

I'm thankful for fun evenings at Jiffy Treat with some of my favorite people too. I love that Grant and I can hang out with my brother and sister in law (and MASON! too.) We always have a blast and God has certainly blessed us with a great friendship. 

We also were lucky enough to celebrate 2 very special birthdays. 

Nalen Pie Quimby and Tuff Puppy Quimby. 

They turned 1 year old TODAY!!! So happy birthday kiddos. You two are infuriating but adorable. If you weren't so cute we would have taken you back to the shelter already, you filthy dogs. But mommy and daddy love you both so much and we think you are growing up to be super great dogs!

Overall, things are going really well. Life feels like it has settled down tremendously. Grant and I are happier than we have been. We are seeing God's goodness fulfilled in our lives every day. 

Psalms 118: 14 "The Lord is my strength and my defense. He has become my Salvation."

Goodbye until next time!

A Picture's Worth A Thousand Words

In an ideal world, I wouldn't be a Vet Tech. I love my job, don't get me wrong, but it's not what I want to do.
For many years I've wanted to be a photographer/photo-journalist. I want to write for a magazine and take photos of the things I write about. I LOVE catching moments on the camera that make people smile. It's so satisfying to be able to look back at a picture and vividly remember the exact moment, as well as the feelings and sounds associated with it. Now that life is right where I want it to be, I am finding it easy to look around and see moments that I want to capture, and I'm so thankful for that.

That moment when you're spending time with your horses after a long work day.

That moment when you scan your property and realize just how good you have it.

That moment when after working for 3 months on a stupid chicken coop, it's finally done.

BEFORE

After

 That moment when you realize you married your better half

When a moment comes that you feel like you never want to forget, capture it. You won't be sorry.
 

Quimby Farm

Months and months since I've written. Life is finally settling down, so here it goes.

About 4 months ago I was convinced I wanted to move. I wanted a different job, we didn't have a good solid church to attend regularly, I hated renting our house in the neighborhood, and Grant didn't have a job.
I did as much as HUMANLY possible to fix things myself, and one day God finally said Hey..let me handle things. So I did.
Once I stepped back and handed over the reins, God took us out of our "miserable" situation and worked absolutely everything out perfectly. More than perfectly.
NOW Grant has a job he enjoys (most of the time) that benefits us (farm store discount!!), and he is the pastor of a beautiful church family that has blessed us immensely.

We have a great house and property that we can grow up on together, and life is right where I've been dreaming it would be for years.

"In his heart a man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps." Proverbs 16:9

No matter how hard I fought to get my way with things, it wasn't working. Letting go of that control scared me. I felt like if I quit trying to get things to work out, that we would be stuck forever. I never could have imagined things would be the way they are.

Since I was a little girl I've dreamed of having horses, my own horses. I had them growing up, but for many reasons we got rid of them and it had been almost 12 years since I had my horses. Many girls like horses growing up, and for some it's a phase. But for me it's a passion. God has answered prayers and I have a great horse to love on now. And a pint sized friend too!!

Our house is beautiful, and the perfect property for having my "farm". With my mom and dad's help, we have converted a burned up nasty shed in the pasture into a chicken coop for my chickens (when they grow enough to go outside). And I'm thrilled with the progress. It's gonna be awesome when it's finished.
Before pictures:

After (almost done) pictures:

Overall, I'm finally at peace. My heart is full and happy.

And then there's Grant. :)

Still the best husband in the world. Sweet and HANDSOME!! He's letting me pursue my dreams and supporting me (most of the time) all the way. He's patient with me and takes good care of me. We aren't perfect, but we are learning how to live with each other and work as a team. I love you Grant Allen. You're the best thing that's ever happened to me. You're funny and cute and impossible. You have my whole heart for my whole life and I love you to death. I'll make a horseman out of you eventually. Maybe. ;)

Life is good.