It’s crunch time! At this point, we are taking advantage of every nice night/weekend that we have! It has rained every weekend since January (which is problematic when you are building a wedding venue), so when the sun comes out-we are out. We are so blessed that we have friends who just want to help us. I’m not sure if they just feel bad for us, or if they actually like to do this work (I’m telling myself it’s the second one).

IMG_2806

Meet Lauren and Jesse.

Chad and I have known Lauren for over 10 years. We first met in UT’s marching band where we poured blood, sweat and tears. Recently, we got to meet Jesse and have instantly all clicked together. It helps that Lauren and Jesse own a gym (aka-they are super strong and are up for any project) and want to help us!

IMG_2803

When they came over, Lauren and I started painting the chicken coop while the guys moved some railroad ties and did various other things. In addition to this progress, Chad’s dad took the remaining pieces of vinyl siding off of the top floor of the house.

IMG_2787

We also have another friend who is helping us out. We call him, “Mr. Hardin.” His first name is Chris, but as someone raised in the South, I call him by his last name. Mr. Hardin has done a lot for us, but during this weekend he:

  • covered up the ditch that he dug for the sewer line
  • spread the crusher run gravel in front of the barn
  • dug out a new wedding ceremony site that we are working on

A few days later, we got guttering put on the barn. This was a huge deal with all the rain we’ve been having! We decided to go with black guttering because it would look best on the barn and the porch.

IMG_2835

At this point, we are feeling very blessed to have all the help that we’ve been given. On a daily basis we feel that we are walking in the will of the Lord and are doing what He has called us to do. This knowledge makes everything different. When we spend all our money on gravel, we know we are walking in God’s purpose-when all of our nights and weekends are spent working on the barn, we know we are walking in God’s purpose-when you feel overwhelmed at everything you have to do, we know we are walking in God’s purpose.

When you know, without a shadow of doubt, that you are doing what God wants you to-you don’t mind doing it. I never thought that I would enjoy shoveling mulch and gravel for hours and hours, but because I have God’s peace in it all-I don’t mind. I actually really enjoy getting to work on the property…whether that is picking up sticks around trees, or buying light fixtures, the joy of the Lord is in all of it.