One Year in Our Farmhouse Rental

November 17 2017, Thats when we moved into this little house on an Avocado orchard farm. I remember David and I always dreaming about living on some kind of farm property and having mountains and trees to look at everyday. It might have taken years to find just the right place in the right location but we waited in God's timing and now we're here! We've moved 6 times in the 7 years we have been married. There's many reasons for why that's happened but I'm glad we have made it through the toughest of the moves. One involved living with our parents for a few months and one involved living to a brand new county and David commuting 2 and a half hours for work. And the last little stretch before we found this little house, I lived with our three boys at my Dad's house for 5 weeks while David stayed with his mom so he could go to work. That was probably the hardest move to endure of all. Although we rent ( no shame in it) it opens our eyes to what a blessing owning our own home will be and it also helps us see the things we would want in a home of our own.

We are definitely in no place to purchase at the moment but we are taking notes and focusing on our goals of becoming debt free and having a good credit standing before we take on something so big and life changing. We talk about it all the time and even though the popular thing is to go into full debt to purchase a home, I want something more secure than that. I want to know we can afford what we are getting ourselves into.  It's something we pray about daily and we will wait on God's timing for. 

With every place we move into, it's become like a sort of project to me. I love to decorate and make our place feel like home. And although our budget is super tight, I find ways of managing to pull of a look I want for each space of the house. About 95% of our place is Thrifted, Hand me down and even Free! Yes free! 

I'll have to make a separate post showing this current place we're in and how we've decorated but for today I wanted to take a trip down memory lane at our past homes/apartments.

Bakersfield, CA 1940's house (lived there 7 months)

 

our room

My favorite was the updated kitchen. We've never had such a beautiful kitchen to cook in and I certainly appreciated have a dishwasher in it! Life saver when you have kids! 

Another favorite was the nursery. This room in particular had so much character! A fireplace, a door leading into the boys' room and a beautiful built in bookshelf with glass doors.

That house was a dream. Just in the wrong location. =( 

Camarillo, CA 1970's 2 bedroom apartment  ($1,250 a month)

Looking back at this little apartment, I think we didn't appreciate it as much as we should have. We moved in with just Noah and it was perfect. The location was amazing! We were in the heart of Camarillo and we did and could walk to literally anywhere. It was fun. 

 I think the turning point for me came when we miscarried, just months after moving in. We were so happy and so excited to be here and when we miscarried, this apartment felt like a cluttered dark hole and I couldn't breathe comfortably in it. I don't know if I'm making any sense, but that's just how it felt after going through such a traumatic experience.

I did however find my passion for refinishing furniture here and turning them into something new. I would do all the work in the little dining area space and I'd make a good little profit for us. Couch was a free find as was the coffee table. (now currently in my mother's apartment.)

The kitchen... Oh the kitchen. So outdated but still functional. I just remember it feeling so cluttered all the time.  We also welcomed our little Levi while living in this apartment.


Fillmore CA, Restaurant Apartment ( 1 Bedroom $750)

$750 a month with utilities paid?! How did we leave this Luxury?! hahaha. Oh to be young and scared . This little place was the perfect opportunity for us to become financially independent and ahead and and and... If we could go back in time we would come here and just deal with life instead of running and thinking we could not afford it. From here we gave our notice and moved into my in laws because after I quit my job to stay home with Noah, reality hit and we could not afford to live here on one very low income at the time. We did however manage to pay off both of our cars while we both worked and lived here and we really should have just stuck it out and handled it. Oh well. 

David's dad and stepmom were gracious enough to let us live in their home for 7 months until we were able to get caught up and find a place of our own again.

Theres definitely nothing to brag about decor wise, but it was very organized and clean all the time... I mean.. pre babies, that's easy. We welcomed our first born son Noah into this apartment.

Fillmore, CA "The Yellow Cube" ( 1940's studio apartment $625 a month)

Our first place together! Oh my goodness. It was the tiniest studio I had ever seen! Maybe barely 400sq ft all together on the upstairs left side of that yellow house building. Originally, David had moved into this studio all on his own. He was making minimum wage at the time working part time. Things happened at home and I couldn't live there anymore and he offered for me to move in only one or two months of him living there. At the time I was doing great financially, making good money working a good job and going to school full time. 

This place was tiny but it holds a special place in our hearts. A lot happened here. We got married, got a dog and began our lives together in this teeny magical space. We planned our future here and it was so fun! It felt like a sleepover with my best friend every single night. 

I'm not even sure how we lived here for as long as we did ( I think it was about a year here) but we made it work with the space.

I didn't include the two times we lived with our parents since it was just one room but I hope you enjoy a trip down memory lane of where we've lived and grown. I can't believe how blessed we have been as a couple and as a family. Just when it feels like we can't or we won't make it, God provides. And although we are now living in a bigger place with bigger bills and it is terrifying at times, God has and will always be here to make sure we are okay. We are never left in need.