How did we choose? (Final chapter)

General Aesthetics:

We actually threw together a spread sheet to assign a numeric value to factors important to us:

• Cost of Living with a heavy emphasis to state and local taxation,
• Home School Friendliness,
• Proximity to mountains, and
• Four seasons

South Dakota and Wyoming seemed attractive to some adventuresome passion within. The wide open spaces of the west and the ongoing independent spirit that seems prevalent among the state residents remained very attractive to us. Making the transition from the south and especially very far south seemed a bit much for us. We considered both states to have winters that would be too hard of an adjustment for us. Looking around in the fall, it seemed a large number of the residents abandoned their abodes for points much farther south.

Texas, being so familiar to us and having a significant number of family members was tough to consider leaving. We wanted four seasons, however, and only the panhandle area allowed for this. The hill country area allows for some impressive vistas, but we had been weary and leery of influences from the border for quite some time. The ongoing political battles over immigration continue to impact areas that once were dear to us with increasing crime and drug trafficking. We also had lived through many years of watching the state and school districts increasing the property tax burden on residents.

When we learned that property taxes in Tennessee would be roughly 1/10th of our tax burden on comparable property values, that swung our desires to live in Tennessee much more favorably. Coupled with the beautiful mountains from middle Tennessee and continuing to the east, our decision was becoming easier and easier.

So, we began looking at properties in Tennessee, working our way from the northeast tip toward Nashville. On a fluke, we stopped by a property just outside of Crossville, TN and immediately fell in love with it. We made an offer before the end of the day and a few days later, negotiated a final offer. And here we are! Happy to be transplants in a beautiful state that allows us to pursue the various interests that had come to light - rural living with room for gardening and some livestock, in a house with a reasonable amount of space and just so happens to have a history that we love as well.

Recently, I found a video clip on the Grace to You website that expresses our comfort with making an important life decision that is within God's will:

Delight Yourself in the Lord (and Do Whatever You Want!)

How did we choose? (Part 2)

Home School Friendliness:

We have educated our older son at home since preschool. Some 10 years later, we are pleased with his progress and enjoy working with him and his younger sibling. We like the flexibility of customizing their education to meet their needs and pursue resources that present materials in line with basic truths and values for our family.

As we considered how different states might affect our quality of life, the state laws governing our freedoms as parents to educate our children are of utmost importance.

We loved rural New Hampshire and didn't even reach deliberations of the climate before we received news from the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) that the state was headed the wrong direction for home school families. We trust the HSLDA implicitly due to their 25 year track record of work as advocates to defend and advance the constitutional right of parents to direct the education of their children and to protect family freedoms.

So, as our list of possible states narrowed to less than 1/2 dozen, we evaluated this map and the specifics of state requirements:

HSLDA Map of the States

The HSLDA provides a summary of each state's regulations and from that information, it's easy to check with the state websites to verify the current status. Equipped with this information, the states were narrowed down to Texas, Wyoming, South Dakota and Tennessee.

The next step was the least tangible. Our final consideration involved predicting how comfortable we would be in a new or different climate and the general aesthetics of our surroundings. I should also add that this entire process was bathed in prayer, asking God to show us where He wanted us to settle. More on that in the next post!

Encouragement for those sore muscles!

Whew! I'm SORE and TIRED! We worked hard on the chicken coop yesterday - erected the walls and the roof trusses. Rain is in the forecast. We hoped to get the roof on before the rains come, but we're not going to make it. We will put a tarp over the whole building and secure as best we can.

I felt some better after reading Proverbs 6:6-11 in my quiet time this a.m.:

6 cGo to the ant, you sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise,

7 Which, having no 4captain, Overseer or ruler,

8 Provides her 5supplies in the summer, And gathers her food in the harvest.

9 dHow long will you 6slumber, O sluggard? When will you rise from your sleep?

10 A little sleep, a little slumber, A little folding of the hands to sleep—

11 eSo shall your poverty come on you like a prowler, And your need like an armed man.

We definitely were NOT lazy yesterday and look forward to reaping the benefits from this hard work in some lovely fresh eggs! I must admit, I'm not sad about the rain slowing us down a bit to allow some recovery.

I'll add a link for the devotional reading that I'm using these days. I've subscribed to John MacArthur's website so that the day's reading is in my email waiting for me each morning. Works great for me!

How did we choose?

During our last adventure, we specifically wanted to tour the country with two purposes in mind. We wanted to explore each state with our kids and learn about the specifics of the tremendous variety offered within this great nation. We also wanted to explore possibilities for our next permanent home. I'm a native Texan and had limited travel to other states. My husband was born in CA, moved to his family's native state of MO, then migrated to TX for work after college. We had lived under an umbrella of assumption that we would likely live in TX for the remainder of our lives. With my husband's retirement, however, a whole new window of opportunity presented itself. We felt as if we had stepped out of a cave into a very wide world of possibilities with absolutely nothing to limit our choices.

As we traveled, my husband I spent our 'down' time (you just can not sight see every moment of the day and night!) gathering information and discussing our impressions of different regions of the country. We are both engineers by education and experience, so logic comes very readily. We decided upon factors, such as; financial considerations, home school 'friendliness', and general aesthetics of scenery and climate.

Financial Considerations:

Our income was going to be significantly reduced during retirement, but we have several major areas covered in savings (kids' college, emergency contingencies, retirement accounts that will await our age eligibility for access). My husband contributed to his employer pension fund for the duration of his career and it provides a comfortable salary for us. For now, he is covered with the health plan at no additional cost and the rest of the family is covered through our purchase of the same health plan. Financially that health plan has it's greatest level of coverage within TX. We hope in future deliberation so reducing health care costs that state boundaries are dropped so that Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Tennessee will recognize our coverage at the same deductibles and co-pays as Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Texas. Seems silly that they don't already, doesn't it? Ah - bureaucracies - they just add to the sweetness of life, don't they? The bottom line was that TX had an advantage in lower health care costs due to the limitations of our coverage, but all other states were equal in their 'second place' standing.

As we explored states, we kept an eye toward home and land affordability. We knew that we wanted to live in a rural area with a few acres, but likely no more than 40 acres. Our RV life had helped us to adjust to the barest minimum of living space, so we knew that we did not require as much square footage as our previous dwelling (3100 sq. ft).

We found several sources online that ranked states by cost of living factors and we scrutinized them carefully. Those handy articles had taken into consideration taxes (state and local), utility costs, food costs, as well as housing costs.

Forbes: The Most Tax-Burdened States

Taxes by State

Our short list easily became those states that did not assess our retirement income: South Dakota, New Hampshire, Wyoming, Tennessee and Texas.

OK - next blog will address how we took all that logical, numerical information to sort out our future home.

Introduction

Well, here I am at the beginning of a new season in my life. You may have arrived here through our other blog "Yes dear, I'm watching the flare" that documented some of our family's adventures as we toured the country in our RV. Now, we've settled in a new state, purchased a few acres and a 1930's Tennessee farm house. We're basically a bunch of city slickers attempting to pursue a few farming interests. My husband and I wanted to begin this before our kids are entirely grown up so that they can learn along with us.

My history, in brief:

• Born and raised in Texas
• Acquired a BS degree in Civil Engineering from Texas A&M University (whoop!)
• Worked for 13 years at TxDOT as an engineer and manager
• Met the love of my life at work and got married
• Chose to quit working when our oldest son was born
• At the urging of my husband, began home school with our son when he was 5
• Adopted a precious boy from Guatemala about 6 years later
• Upon my husband's retirement, travelled the country for 1 1/2 years, homeschooling the kids along the way

Kind of short and sweet, isn't it? Funny how you can take a few decades (never mind exactly how many)and sum them up like that. Well, now this next chapter involves learning a few things:

• gardening
• caring for livestock (starting with chickens)
• living life as simply as possible

The title of this blog has roots in the history of our house, but I'll save that for another post. We are not likely going to be able to live 'off-grid' as the word homestead implies. I'll document in this blog about our learning experiences and link to sources that help us in our next venture. I'll also share some thoughts as God teaches me. As the 'About Me' paragraph indicates, I am a 'work in progress'. I live my life as a disciple of Christ, completely imperfect in my humanness, completely blessed due to God's faithfulness.