A Creek Runs Through It

Life Changes

My husband and I have always wanted to build a house on a lake, and at this stage in our lives we figured it's "now or never." After spending a couple of months in search of the perfect place to build our house, and after considering several options, we came across what we think is as close to perfect as we can find.

This past week we closed on the purchase of a 5.5-acre lot on a lake in Madison County, Mississippi, which is north of Jackson. There were three key factors which helped us make our decision:

Location, Location, Location! It is located about 20 minutes away from where our daughter, son-in-law, and granddaughter Avery Grace live (versus an hour from Vicksburg, which is where we currently live);

The 80-acre lake is a "trophy bass lake." Of course, my husband was sold from the start when he heard those three little words ... trophy bass lake; and

The lot is covered with huge old hardwood trees, and it even has lagniappe in the form of a creek running through it. Now, I ask you, can it get any better than that?

My husband always tells me to be careful what I wish for, because I just might get it. I have to admit it's scary, and building a house is always stressful (this will be our fourth) ... but I couldn't be happier, and look forward to the experience of not just building a house, but building a new life style for us and our family.

I plan to chronicle our "journey," and have created a new blog especially for that purpose called, "A Creek Runs Through It."

In the meantime, I'd like to share a few pictures of our new "sanctuary." Perhaps you'll be able to see why it was love at first sight.

View of the lot taken from the road looking back toward the lake, which doesn't show in this picture.

This picture was taken standing in the middle
of the lot looking back toward the lake.

The Creek

Sanctuary Lake,
also known as the "Trophy Bass Lake"

The next three pictures are panoramas I created. You can click on the images to enlarge them, if you'd like. The first shows the house site.

View of what will be our "front yard"

View of future "back yard"

I'm looking forward to our house-building adventure, and I think that word describes it perfectly. According to Webster's, the word adventure is defined as: (1) An undertaking usually involving danger and unknown risks; (2) An exciting or remarkable experience; (3) An enterprise involving financial risk. If you've ever built a house, you know that the experience includes one, if not all, of those factors at one time or another during the building process. And, of course, your emotions come into play, too, as you get involved in all the decision-making that goes into making the house your home.

I have often thought that building a house is very similar to having a baby. It requires your attention almost every waking hour of every day, and there are always unexpected complications that arise and emergency "on-the-spot" decisions that have to be made ... which all add up to stress. But when the house is finally completed and you move into your new home, the labor pains experienced during its creation fade away and are replaced with pride and satisfaction in having created a house that is uniquely YOU.

I look forward to the memories that are going to be made during our building experience ... and the memories yet-to-be-made in the years to come in our house on Sanctuary Lake.