As a young girl, a whimsical old barn used to fascinate me every time my family and I drove into town from our little farm north of Beaumont, Texas. It was on the right just off the highway and I would sit forward and crane my neck so I could stare at it as we drove by. It was very old and looked abandoned in a large, otherwise vacant lot that surrounded the structure. It exuded charm and I would daydream of it in its glory days with a flourishing pasture and beautiful horses frolicking in the fields. I'm not sure why a ten year old kid was so enamored with the place, but fast-forward 20 years and I'd have to say it was fate surely beckoning me.
In 2010, I met my now husband and fell hard and fast. You can imagine my surprise when I came to know that his family home sat just on the other side of a tree line and was part of the farm that THIS barn I so loved belonged to years before! By then, the barn was long gone, a sad demolition that took place in the '90's due to neglect (that part of the family farm had been sold long before and the new owners never developed nor took care of the historic structure). As much charm that the barn had, the family home had a million times more--and quite the story and history that went with it.
Built in the late 1800's, approximately 1895, the home has been in the family now for six generations. Purchased in the 1920s by Allen's great grandparents (actually by our daughter's namesake, Avie French Walker and her husband, Homer). Then, set on a 90 acre farm, the family grew a variety of fruits and vegetables and raised livestock, including cattle, pigs, chickens and goats. It was known as "the good-time house," as family and friends would gravitate to the home for informal, impromptu gatherings that would regularly take place, especially on the spacious, south-facing front porch that captured the cooler evening summer breezes--I'm sure quite the relief in hot Texas summertime, pre-air-conditioning.
The home has had some updates over the years, but one of the surviving features, heart pine shiplap has been found throughout the home. With 11-foot ceilings and large windows bringing in lots of natural light, the home is truly a dream.
We bought the house from Allen's mom in 2020 and started to work to renovate and bring the house back to its farming roots. We have uncovered as much of the shiplap as we could and gave it a light whitewash to brighten the space and reflect as much of the natural light as possible. We have since been working to meticulously update one room at a time with plans to harken back to the farmhouse aesthetic of its beginnings while also giving the home a modern touch here and there. It's been a big project and learning experience as we have done every bit of work ourselves.
Now that we're raising the second Avie in the home, we definitely feel Grandma Avie's presence as we delight in this beautiful ancestral land and hope she knows how fortunate we feel to do this work and start the next chapter for the home, building our dream of Caralavi Farm.
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