As much as I would love to have Chad and his family living near me, there’s never been much hope that they would move to Texas. Nicole’s family is all in Missouri (grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, sister). Nicole’s parents have a good chunk of land and are about 2 hours from where Chad and Nicole live. Her parents welcome them any time .. even in the middle of the night after Chad’s worked a late shift. Nicole’s mom lets Chad take over her kitchen and Nicole’s dad lets Chad have his way with his shop. Nicole’s parents are the best grandparents! They do all kinds of things with Addie and I’m so glad she has them for grandparents!
Chad was hunting in northern Missouri this weekend and I got this text from him:
“Y’all should buy me a farm in north Missouri. This area is beautiful. It’s everything good about Missouri and every bit as scenic as Kentucky. Rolling hills, large farms and big timber. The soil is black as coal.”
After I stopped laughing at the “Y’all should buy ME a farm in north Missouri” part, I laughed on several counts.
First, when we moved to Missouri, Chad was not happy about that move. We had thought for a month or so that we were moving to Louisiana and he was pretty happy about that but once we made the choice to go to Missouri instead, he was not happy. When we got to Nevada, MO, Chad said “Please tell me we’re just stopping here for gas and this is NOT where we’re going to live!” Nope. . this is where we’re going to live!
Who knew he’d end up with a wife from Nevada and Chad would be trying to figure out how to get back there after having moved away for a few years.
And another funny thing — when we lived in Kentucky, Chad couldn’t believe some of his friends actually drove pickup trucks and helped on their family’s farms. He called them “red necks kids from Kentucky”. He was real proud that even though he lived in rural Kentucky, he felt he was a city boy! Now, he drives a pickup and is saving every extra dime so he can buy a farm. He’s talked Nicole’s dad into letting him put some cows on his land so in the spring, Chad plans to buy three cows. He loves Missouri and as much as I miss them and wish they were closer, I’m so happy he loves the area where he lives. That means a lot.
It’s been 7-1/2 years and a whole lot has changed, for the better, for Chad. But, I hate to be the bearer of bad news . . we are NOT buying him a farm in north Missouri. He may some day inherit a little farm in central Texas but other than that, he’s on his own!
Teri Jordan says
It never hurts to ask……LOL
CindyM says
We moved from Texas to Colorado when our daughter was 15. She begged and begged us to let her live with friends for 3 years in Texas to finish high school there (she’d live there since she was 3). She went through a couple of years of personal hell (so did we) as she was thrown into a clinical depression no one saw coming. Now she’s 28, and has sad for many years that she never wants to move out of Colorado and she can’t believe she ever liked Texas! (don’t mean to diss your peace of heaven, but our family has found it in Colorado!) It’s funny… I grew up in Iowa, lived in Kansas, back to Iowa, then to southern Illinois before moving to Texas, then Colorado. When I was in my 20s and 30s, I never felt a strong connection or disconnection to where I lived.
Sherrill says
Cindy, it’s true there’s someplace for everyone!! We moved from TX to SW CO when my son was about 14. He didn’t want to leave TX and was NOT happy in CO. We wound up going back to TX (CO was beautiful as was our 3 acres and log home with stunning views of the mountains) and I’ve never missed CO much (but it was BEAUTIFUL! LOL). I don’t like the cold so I fit right in here. However, NOW my son would love to live in the cold so we’ll see where he winds up. HA
Sherrill says
Wonder if he’d asked for a farm in central TX would you have been so quick to dismiss his request?!!! HAHA You probably would’ve had to think long and hard about that one!
Dar in MO says
I’m delighted that your “city boy” turned country MAN has his priorities right. I’m ready to take up a collection to help him get his beautiful farm in Missouri. Where should I send my donation? smiling
Eva Lyn says
He’s right though! Northern Missouri is beautiful. Before my husband’s RA went into remission, we rented out our home in KC to keep from losing it and moved up there. We found a 4 bedroom farmhouse on a well for $75/month! This was in the mid-80’s. That’s where I learned to garden, can and freeze all in my first summer up there. I bought my sets from the Amish in Jamesport and oh my, I had beautiful cauliflower and broccoli! My 1st garden was a half acre! Next we bought four calves and four piglets. We were given a goat – who thought he was a dog – and had a cat, a Newfoundland and a Shepherd. The kids were young and it was like living “Little House on the Prairie” only we called it “Little House on the Farm”! We eventually moved back to the City, but my son is still a country boy! Deer is much better from up there – smaller but better tasting. Chad’s text brings back many good memories – thank you so much for sharing.