Hi my name is Karen

I guess its about time I jump in here...My daughters keep telling me to post something, so here goes.



My husband and I live in the middle of a 21 acre piece of Gods beautiful country, (very private and quiet). It has been quite the struggle for the past three years here though. We moved out here after our home burned down, we were living in a mobile home park then. When we first moved out here we lived in a travel trailer and had no water or sewer, there was a two story building that was not set up as a home however.



We had planned to spend our winters in the south as my husband was laid off from his job in the winter months, we went to Texas and Arizona the winter of 2004 and came back in spring, MDH went back to work in April, he became ill in June and went to the Dr. we found out that he had lung cancer. His Dr told him to go on disability for the time he had left, so he did. Well that sorta took care of being able to afford to put a well and septic in our land. So we decided it was still less expensive to live here rather than anywhere else so we just started hauling water in as we needed it, and we collected rain water for whatever we could use it for, mostly for watering the flowerbeds and the vegetable garden.



We used a generator for electricity and after awhile we put a solar panel on the travel trailer. We gradually worked on making the building into a home, when MDH was feeling well enough and we had some spare bucks. We then started to put solar into the building so we were able to get a regular refrig, that little 6 cubic foot one, was just roughing it. Ah how nice to have a regular refridgerator again.



When the fall of 2005 arrived, it was time to move indoors as we live in Wisconsin and one can't very well survive Wi winters in a travel trailer. I rigged up a system so we could have running cold water at the kitchen sink, I had a spare 12 volt pump so I attached a hose to the faucet and the other end went into the 7 gallon jug we used to haul water in. I just had to hit a switch and open the faucet and walla, running water, (at least until the jug was about empty). I did the same thing for a shower although this time we had to heat the water, on the wood stove and then put it back into the jug, one person would turn on the switch when the other needed water to soap up and then rinse ( little bit concerned about water and electric together, even though it was only 12 volts.)



Here we are now June of 2007, it was alot of fun roughing it the past three years, (trying at times) but finally after all that time we now have water and sewer, (for the past 3 or 4 weeks) we also have a water heater and a flush toilet, you can't imagine how appreciative I am for these things.