The Little House Made Of Straw

A few weeks ago we headed up to County Fermanagh to do a bit of housesitting, except this was no ordinary house. The family that live here built the house themselves and it is completely “Off Grid” so there is no electricity, no gas and no running water. They also have animals: chickens, geese, ducks, goats, dogs, cats and a couple of ponies. So this was a little bit different from how we would normally live but Matt and I jumped at the chance to unplug and get away from it all. I admit I was a little nervous to be responsible for this house and all those animals but it was actually a very laid back easy few days.

Eve loved feeding the chickens and the ducks, she’s always been fascinated with animals so she had no fear at all and jumped right in. Boomie the big Bull Mastiff became her best friend.

The house is so beautiful and cosy, we drew water from the well outside and heated it on a big stove to wash. The loo is a compost toilet outside and it was probably the source of most concern for me when we agreed to go. It was in fact very clean and not in the least bit smelly. Steve Flynn from the Happy Pear was with us too and he laid on the most delicious meals every night, we spent most of the afternoon preparing and cooking our big meal with all natural, fresh ingredients. It was a proper event. Then when the sun went down we’d light candles and read or chat until bedtime.

When the time came to go it was a wrench to leave. For all that I enjoy technology and the internet and everything that comes with the modern world, I’m more than happy to leave it if I can. In fact, tomorrow we’re going camping in Northern Ireland for ten days. I have no idea if I’ll have any access to the internet to update this blog. I can’t wait to just unplug and go sit in a field!