From Essen, we moved onto our next housesitting assignment in the South of France; a small town called Bagneres de Bigorre.
Over the past few months we have used Trusted Housesitters.com to find different places throughout Europe to take care of pets while owners are away on their holidays. So far we have done housesitting in Ireland (cats), London (rabbits), and most recently France/Switzerland, (dog). But this time, we are going for the gusto – we are going to become farmers!
The Bramble cottage is a 35 hectare/86 acre property in the Pyrenees Mountains and is owned by British expats Kim and Steve. The couple used to vacation in the area and fell in love with the country and the culture. Six years ago they made the decision to move and lived in town for a few years while they found a more permanent place to live. We can certainly see why would select this place as the scenery is spectacular!
The farmhouse is renovated and is beautifully decorated by Kim who is an interior decorator. Every room looks fantastic and the small details make the place look incredible, such as fresh flowers, the placement of pictures on the walls and knick knacks on the shelves. We quickly fell in love with their home!
Steve is an electrician and works long and hard hours throughout the area. His skills have come in handy as the couple live off the grid and only use solar to power their home and the animal pens.
Yes – this brings us to the animals we are taking care of for the next two weeks.
There are:
- 10 sheep
- 8 pot belly pigs
- 6 chickens
- 4 goats and
- 2 dogs
Of course the girls were ecstatic when we were accepted for the job and are super excited to take care of all of these animals. Twice a day we feed them and make sure they are all safe in their pens. We wear farmer clothes and big boots – we’re very cool!
As we walk, Oliver and I can’t help but sing the song from the TV show “Green Acres”! We’ll keep you posted on how this adventure goes. On this global fieldtrip every experience is a learning one!
Comments
15 responses to “Green Acres is the Place to Be!”
Love the catchy titles. Sounds like a great adventure. Can’t wait to hear more and …….. See a family photo in farming attire! Such a beautiful setting!
Teta Jill
xo
HI Jill,
We had a lot of fun on this farm….we learned a lot about animals and ourselves! The farm reminded us a lot of Canada – it was just a beautiful space.
Cheers,
Kat:)
That seems like a great job to try out and in such a beautiful part of the world!
Harriet
Hi Harriet,
We were just so happy that Kim and Steve took a chance on us! It was such a fun opportunity that we had to go for it! And you’re so right…you can’t go wrong with such a beautiful place.
Hi, Katina, to see this posting first thing in the morning sure made me smile. We are looking forward to your adventures and maybe new recipes from “Green Acres” aka Bramble Cottage. Did you and the girls name the animals? Lots of Hugs
HI Oma,
Mik and Zoe are writing about the animals in the next couple of posts so you’ll get to meet the whole gang!
Cheers,
Katina:)
Looking forward to seeing how the family adapts to THIS particular scenario! Enjoy!
Hi Herta,
We can do anything for 2 weeks! Let’s see how these city dwellers do on the farm – and on their own too!
Cheers,
Kat:)
Well this post brought on a big smile and a chuckle! What you described is my idea of perfection !! Tell them I will come over and do the same anytime. Mary Ellen has also said that she wants a hobby farm and she has promised that I can build my own off grid straw bale house on her property and tend to the gardens and animals while she goes off to work. This would be good practise for me (And M.E.)
Z and M will not want to settle back on Rougemount nor settle on just a dog upon your return!!!
Hi Gail,
We thought of you when we were learning about “off the grid” living. You would love it here. Kim and Steve want to be able to take holidays, so they are looking for people to help when they’re away….it’s a great way to have a vacation and live a different life! Mary Ellen would love it too. The animals are so much fun! And you are so right….the girls have a list of animals they want to get when we return….I wonder if the city of Pickering would allow us to have sheep in our backyard???:)
Hi Kat,
I really love the scenery! It looks so peaceful and serene. The animals look so comfortable in their surroundings, and no wonder, it is so lush! It was great that all of you got a chance to enjoy this experience! Love, Mom
Hi Mom,
It was great fun being farmers in the South of France – the scenery was spectacular!
Cheers!
Kat:)
Hi Kat, Amanda and I thought that this must be the biggest adventure yet for you!
Scott
HI There,
You know me too well! It was lots of fun to watch the girls take care of the animals and Oliver wrestle with a goat during mating season! I’m more of the manager – just made sure everything was done properly!
Cheers,
K:)
Fantastic photos. Love the Green acres video 🙂 Thanks for doing such an excellent job of looking after our home and farmstead, you have definitely earned your farming badge (not sure if the scouts had/have a farming badge, but they should have) x Kim