Alternative mobile home underpinning | A Life Of Contentment

Who says the good old days are gone forever? For centuries our relatives have depended on their land, their family and their faith in God to get through this thing called life. Today we rely on big box stores, modern technology and cheap overseas labor for everything we need. But are we really living the good life?

My name is Barb, and in June of 2006 I quit my job to become a stay-at-home mom. My husband and I and our children decided to change our entire lifestyle – to live simply, naturally, and frugally like our grandparents did. And so began our homestead. We raised chickens and grew our own vegetables, fruits and herbs on our 1/3 of an acre "farm" in the middle of (a 40,000 population) city in the Carolinas. We made many of our own cleaning products, outbuildings and even some toys for the kids. We tried to live in an environmentally friendly way in order to be good stewards of what God had given us. Life was great and we were happy.

But life is full of twists and turns and ours was no exception. In early 2010, I found myself raising my children alone. My orderly little life was over and before long we lost our home to the bank. The kids and I ended up moving in with friends in a beautiful, tiny, country town (population 1,300). Today we are starting over and working towards building a new homestead – from the ground up. My first step was to get a job, then to get a piece of land, then a house, and now to make our new place into a brand new homestead. In today's economy and considering what a small town I now live in, finding a job proved to be difficult but I now work for a hospital in a nearby city. We now have a small piece of land (almost two acres), and a tiny, single-wide mobile home built in the 1970's. We spent a lot of time (with the help of friends) making it livable and were able to move in during the spring of 2012 - without owing the bank a penny! We are still working, one step at a time, to make our new homestead. It's a long, hard process, and working full-time while raising two boys on my own means it's a slow process. But Rome wasn't built in a day!

In order to move on with my life, I felt I had to make a conscious choice. Instead of dwelling on life’s twists and turns, I have chosen to be content with my life. I believe that contentment isn’t something that either comes to us or doesn’t. It’s a decision - a commitment I must make and act upon. Some days I fail at being contented, but God always forgives and tells me to start over. Although I don’t yet know God’s plans for me, I know I have a destiny to fulfill. Recent events are but a stumbling block on the path I have to follow. I have faith that God will continue leading me. And as He does, I will lead “A Life of Contentment.”

As the apostle Paul told the people of Philippi, “I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength.” Philippians 4:11-13

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Alternative mobile home underpinning

In order to get the power turned on, we were required to have the Manor inspected. In order to have the Manor inspected, we had to have certain things. One of those things is underpinning. Brick or stone was way out of the question because of the price, and vinyl was going to end up being more than I could hope to get anytime soon.

My "adopted" father, Buck, is really good at coming up with ways to do things cheaply, and he came up with the idea of using tin as underpinning. Not only that, but he found a man in a nearby town who sells reclaimed tin, and he bought it for me. I love this idea. Using recycled products keeps them out of the landfills and is better on the budget as well - a lot better.

Cutting a hole in the tin underpinning for a vent. The sparks were flying as the metal was cut, and we didn't realize until we saw the photo that there was a full gas can close by.

On top of that, I think the tin was a better idea for another reason. The dogs will be in a fence right off the back of the manor. They would have broken vinyl underpinning in a matter of weeks, but the tin is strong and will hold up. It will also hold up much better against the weedeater during the summer. And at any time later, if I want to paint it, I can.

The tin came in 20-foot sections, and we simply bolted them on. Easy peesy. We cut out access doors and holes for the required vents, and viola! Simple is better!

I am linking this post up to Simple Lives Thursday.

2 comments:

Patty Sumner said...: I love that idea. I also love all your frugal and simple ideas in your new "manor" of a home. Blessings and it will be worth the journey you are on in the end.; January 12, 2012 at 2:11 PM
Rose Petal@LiveReadyNow.com said...: I love it Barb! We've done similar things here in our tiny house (trailer). It's so much fun seeing how nice we can make it using recycled things and spending little.; January 12, 2012 at 8:34 PM

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