We did it! Porky Pastures is MOVING!

Porky Pastures is growing, and it’s all because of this community. We’re stepping into a new property, a new season, and a whole new level of what we can offer you—and today I’m finally sharing the first peek behind the curtain.

The site where our home will one day sit.

Here’s the backstory. 

While the seed was planted over a decade earlier, the heart of our moving story really begins in 2023.

In Maryland, we had a larger farm with multiple barns and outbuildings. The idea of moving it all was overwhelming, and even though my friend in SWVA had been encouraging me to move for years, we kept putting it off. We had careers, family, and responsibilities… and it just didn’t feel right — until it suddenly did.

In the few years before our move, we experienced tremendous family loss, lived through the covid years, and became much closer to the things that truly mattered. The idea of moving began to come into focus and finally felt right.

In 2023, we put our Maryland farm on the market and started searching for farms in Virginia. At the time, there were tons of incredible properties available. We were saving listings in our realtor app and dreaming about life in the rolling mountain valleys. But our old farm was a unique property and took time to attract the right buyer. It was later in the year before we finally went under contract. We had a longer-than-normal closing period, but still not long enough considering the enormity of the move ahead.

As soon as we signed the contract, we kicked our search into high gear — only to find that everything had cleared the market. There was nothing left. Literally nothing. We found ourselves trying to figure out how to make 3–5 acres work with over 150 head of livestock and how to squeeze a family of five (plus businesses) into a tiny home.

We even considered the possibility of being temporarily homeless — renting land, living in a camper, and doing whatever we had to do. We looked far outside Floyd, expanding our search to properties up to two hours away. Time was running out.

Midway through our 90-day closing, our current home finally popped up on the market. It wasn’t enough land. It was farther from Floyd than we wanted. It had zero fencing, no water lines to the fields, and only one bathroom — which, funny enough, was the number one concern for my kids.

We drove overnight to see it (that’s a story for another post), and we secured the property immediately. It was our only option, and we were grateful for it. It has served us well. We’ve also set it up in a way that’s perfect for a homesteader, and it will truly be a dream home for its next family (more on that later too).

Pup approved ✅

We outgrew this farm before we even moved in, but it was like a liferaft in a very scary time. We didn’t know what we would do without a home for our farm animals. For our family, we knew we’d be fine — we could stay in our RV or at the EcoVillage Berm House, which had been such a blessing during our transition. But the animals and all the logistics that come with them felt overwhelming. This place solved all of that.

We thought we’d be here only a few months. This was Virginia — land was everywhere… or so we thought. We were naive to believe it would be easy.

These two years have been wonderful. This place has become home. We settled into routines, made new friends, grew closer to old ones, and rebuilt our farm business in a brand-new town filled with the most amazing people we’ve ever met.

And as for land… two years later, we finally found it!
It was worth the wait. It’s perfect — fields, woods, creeks, and privacy.

As we settle into this new season, we’ll share much more about the property and everything it makes possible—farm tours, hands-on workshops, a small farm store, new animals, and so much more. I’ll also be writing a whole series on the smaller stories within this move—the lessons, the laughter, the chaos, and the little victories. It’s going to be an exciting year, and I’m so grateful you’re here to walk it with us.