There are a lot of memories and nostalgia surrounding a farmhouse, since for generations your family gathered there. Our house is 145 years old, and my kids are the seventh generation in our family to live in it. My great-grandma was born in it, my great-aunt got married in it, my parents improved it, and now it houses three teenage boys who jump to hit every door frame each time they go through a door.
What people often don’t talk about is that, along with the happiness, there are also issues.
Critters – One of my main goals in living here is making sure we five are the only ones in it. When we first moved in, a bat found its way into our house. Anyone who says they like bats has not been woken up by the sound of wings flapping in their bedroom. We had our house sealed up, and it stopped being a problem. Since then, we’ve been surprised by a garter snake in the basement, a bird in the kitchen, bugs of all kinds and, recently, squirrels. I told my mom I could hear squirrels in the (non-usable) attic, and she said, “Yes, we used to hear those when we lived there.” So I’m dealing with the descendants of my parents’ squirrels? Turns out we’re not the only multigenerational family here. We had the house sealed again, and they’re gone. I see them in the yard and pound on the windows, yelling at them loudly. They ignore me, knowing their squirrel children will move back in someday.
History – We have the original knob-and-tube wiring for our electrical system, and I’d like to salute the electricians of the 1800s, since we’ve never updated it. Sure, our lights flicker on and off and we blow a fuse every now and then, but no complaints here. I don’t fear a fire because our walls are three bricks thick, covered in lath and plaster. This means that if you’re going to put a nail in the wall, you’d better be committed because you need a drill plus a good drill bit. As a result, I have very few items on my walls. We did hang a shelf with hooks on our bedroom wall, and my mom said, “Don’t put anything too heavy on those hooks. I redid that wall and it’s mostly spackle.” The spiders also work overtime to help support it all by building intricate webs to hold it all together. We have lovely hardwood floors, oak woodwork and children who I am continually telling, “No one has ever had three boys in this house. Please stop wrecking it by playing basketball in the living room.”
Amenities – We have what’s called a Michigan basement, which means "might as well be outdoors." We share one bathroom, and our bedrooms have closets that I’m sure held all the clothing needs of the 1800s modern farm family. However, the closets of today would laugh at the closets of yesterday. When we moved back to the farm, my parents were living in this house. They asked where we wanted to live – did we want to buy a house near the farm, build one or live in the farmhouse? We weighed the options and chose to live right on the farm. My parents, however, built a new house down the road. Do you know what new houses have? They have more than one outlet per room. They have doors that lock. They have finished basements and multiple bathrooms. Oh, past me, you didn’t even know then how much you could stuff in a closet.
Noises – Our house is really loud. It creaks and cracks. I don’t mean just when you’re walking on the stairs or on the floor, though it does that too. The other night, my son Max and I were sitting in the living room reading quietly, and the wall cracked like someone had slapped it. We looked at each other and just went back to what we were doing. The furnace, refrigerator and microwave are all 30-plus years old and, although faithful and I’ll be holding their hands until the very end, they make a lot of noise. Almost as much as the kids.
However … there’s no place like home. Cattle pastures surround our house, and looking out at this is one of my favorite sights. I love being able to see the barns from our windows. The yard is perfect for kids to play, to teach swimming lessons and to have friends hang out. I love the character and history we have here.
Although we all have memories about our farmhouses, it’s really the people inside of them that matter. It doesn’t matter whether a house is brand new or ancient because the memories we have of the people we’ve spent time with is what is most valuable. All of us are building these memories on the farm, in our houses. No wonder the squirrels want to get in here. It’s a great place to be.
