I fell in love... twice.

Some stories take years to develop & tell. 

Here's just the beginning of one of mine.... 

I fell in love....twice.

The first time was with the absolute love of my life, my husband Tony! A true love story with God's hand at work from the very beginning and throughout our marriage.  It is a cool story, but not the one I was going to tell today.

The second time was with a house, a barn and a 10 acre plot of land with an overgrown orchard. Yes, just a place of sticks and stones, but I was smitten and consumed.  See, when Tony and I were engaged, we looked for the perfect barn setting for our wedding day. Though we searched near and far, our search was in vain. As it turned out, the Ada Covered Bridge and Frederick Meijer Gardens were absolutely perfect for our special day. 

After we had been married for a bit, we decided to sell the house that I had bought prior to meeting Tony (picture above).  We talked about taking our time and finding the perfect farmhouse and barn setting. There were not many options in our ideal area available at that time.  We found instead, a red brick ranch style home on almost 3 acres in an area that I loved and always drove by growing up.  (Though my eyes were always on the 2 farms across the street).  Here is just one of the views across from our house...   Just love it!~

Sometimes, when I would question why were were in this particular house, which was not the style I had dreamed of, I'd hear a small whisper in my heart, "because you love it".  I'd argue with God over it, but that too, is a story for a different day.  As we worked to make a brick ranch our own (like Tony building the most amazing sunroom where a deck used to be), I began growing flowers, selling bouquets at the local farmer's market, attending craft shows with our handmade botanical products and getting many requests for wedding floral work.  It was just the beginning of what we call Forrester Farm.

Working in the garden was amazing for therapy, inspiration and prayer time (if I could keep my 3 favorite flowers and gifts from God busy and happy at the same time - rock painting by the garden was a great go to for the kiddos). Just in case you are wondering, we all look quite different now....

With Forrester Farm growing, literally, Tony and I agreed that we would again look for the perfect farmhouse and barn setting to potentially host weddings. Truth be told, it was more my search with Tony being a silent supporter.  I searched high and low over the course of a couple years, with budget and location in mind.  There were only a couple that I had him look at and this one that I found in the early spring of 2011, though not in the ideal location, I was convinced, was the one....

With the southern charm porch, the amazing huge barn (that caused tears to flow down my face when I first stepped in because it was so perfect), the overgrown orchard that was just waiting to be trimmed and loved, the curve around the house driveway, the space in the house that was just waiting for my attention.... I was lovestruck, could barely breathe, head over heels in LOVE!~

.... to be continued....