Living in the city isn't really where I want to be so planted a meadow of poppies and bachelor's button (and others) in my front yard.

I grew up in a small town on the East coast but moved West and lived in a little city in WA state- and found my dream home (remarkably in my small price range) in the country. That was it for me- the moment we pulled into the driveway, I said "This isn't in our price range, there's a mistake- it can't be. This is my house, this is what I want, this is it for me- my forever home ". A farm house on an 1 acre and 1/2 with room for animals and children. But with impending layoffs for the hubby and four fabulous little people to feed, we moved into the city in exchange for a smaller mortgage and less time in the car.

The house we bought in the city was lacking in appeal in many ways. We worked hard to make it lovely, to take mundane and make it magic and I think we did.

And yet, every window has a view of a neighbor, every word or temper tantrum is public knowledge even with the window down and every siren or racing car can be heard at night- and you can't see the stars. Those celestial messengers that keep us tuned in,- they are almost invisible.

My soul has become so desperate over the last four years for land and space away from the chaos that it screams for it at times.

So we plant: a vegetable garden, a fig tree, a two-tree apple orchard in the front yard and now elderberries- food and medicine grown from our tiny plot.

I make do with the livestock I have.

I dream of a little plot of land, just a wisp- 1 acre, maybe 2- where I can have my nubian goats again and get up early and milk, tend a giant garden, can in an old farm kitchen and have enough room for the children to really play.

Over the last 4 years, we have worked hard to create an urban farm- not because it is cool and hipster in this overly-hipstered city but because we miss our farm and this plot of 5,000 sqft is what we have to farm and so we try to make it work.

If we could lift up Noisy Cottage and place it gently down on an acre somewhere, our souls could breathe again- without exhaust and noise and chaos, we could do what we were meant for.

But for now, we plant, we tend and we cuddle our children- and our clutch of livestock- and hold on tight to our dream of land and that elusive farm life we hope to find again soon.........