Start Where You Can — Even If It’s Not Perfect

Right now, the barn is still about 1 month out from being built — and we really need it before we can buy our tractor. The tractor is essential for clearing and prepping the land, but we can't use a tractor we don’t have, and we don’t want to invest in equipment with nowhere to store it. It's a bit of a circle of dependencies.

But here’s the thing: you can’t let those kinds of roadblocks stop your momentum. You just have to pick a place to start and go from there.

For us, that starting point was soil testing. All we needed was a shovel — and a little guidance from our local Ag Extension office, who once again came through with support and advice. Lean into your local resources — they’re there for a reason!

We also didn’t let the lack of heavy equipment slow us down. Last week, we rented a mini-excavator from a local equipment rental company — and wow, that thing was a powerhouse. It moved massive logs and old timber with ease, giving us access to parts of the property we hadn’t even reached before.

To keep things moving efficiently, we made another big decision: we’re hiring the grading crew who will prep the barn site to also clear the areas where we’ll be planting blueberries and flowers. Once the barn goes up in the fall, we’ll be racing the clock to get everything ready for planting in February. Having the team tackle that work while they’re already on-site not only saves us money — it saves time, which is even more valuable.

Of course, we’d love to do everything ourselves. But part of this journey is being honest about what’s realistic — especially when you're working toward a dream with a timeline.