Debbie's House

My friend, Debbie, lives about 20 miles out further than we do. In the country. With the cows, horses, barns, & beautiful scenery. I love their farmhouse.
It's not old (about 5 yrs.), but it has such a picturesque look out here in the country. Looks like it has been here for a long time. I'm helping her with some of her decorating & we have had a lot of fun with it.
This is the view from their back deck. Could you stand this every morning? A pond in the backyard. Debbie has a riding lawn mower & she & her husband fight over who gets to mow the grass....cause they both like to mow! And, do they have the grass or what? Although lately, with the weather as hot as it is, I think Debbie is rethinking that! And a sweeping field that goes on forever. There's a little river out beyond that tree line. They have a 4 wheeler & have a blast on that thing. Debbie took me way out there next to the river one time & it was so much fun.
Looking to the right of the house. Her husband's siblings all have houses nearby too. It's a family compound. It just seems to be such a wonderful, peaceful place to live. So quiet & away from it all.
Here's the breezeway. Isn't it so pretty? She just got these cushions done & I love how it turned out (I helped her pick out the lime green). Check out the porch swing. She said she spends a lot of time out here & it really does have a breeze, like a breezeway should. I just love this space!

Another view of the pond from the deck.
Across the street is a horse pasture.
More horses.
Down the street. I love this red barn. Red barns just say country, don't they?
An old homestead on the way to Debbie's house. I perked up when I saw this for the first time. When I stopped that day to take a picture, I saw a marker that said 1861. What a cool house....it's empty too. I would love to go in here & look around. Wouldn't it be neat if someone fixed this place up?

Just thought you'd enjoy a little more of country living in Alabama. I love going out to Debbie's house. It's so peaceful & serene.

Horse Farms & Alabama Countryside

Horse farms on a state road in Birmingham. Click to open all the pics for a larger view.

One of the things I've really enjoyed about living in Birmingham is the horse farms that still dot the countryside around here. We used to have that in Atlanta too, but those have sadly been taken out of the picture in the last 25 years or so, as suburban sprawl & land developers have taken over Atlanta completely...and I mean completely!

Above is farm #1. I recently did a volunteer day back out at The American Village, (for those who missed this post in May, it's a beautiful house, so you might want to take a look at my previous post), which is down in Montevallo about 45 minutes from us. I typically take the back state roads as much as possible, since the scenery is so much more enjoyable than interstate travel. So, go with me and take a look at the Birmingham countryside...horse farms, rural homes, & just plain beautiful scenic sites. I love it! All of these pics (except the first collage pic) were taken on my way to American Village. Not a bad way to travel, don't you think? Farm #2
I stopped across the street from this farm to get up close & personal with these horses. I'm sure they must have thought I had some food, because they came right over to the fence as soon as I walked up. Farm #3

Once they saw that I had no food, it was back to grazing for them. They were friendly guys though.
Another farm just down the road from the others. It's amazing how many of these horse farms are around here. Farm #4
I can only hope they will stay like this & not sell out to developers who will swoop in & build countless homes in place of these beautiful pastures.

This is The American Village from a distance. You can see the President's House is the red brick house right in the center. They have an absolutely gorgeous piece of property.
Rolling hills surrounding The American Village.
Again, American Village countryside.

I love this farmhouse (with an antiques store on the property too) on the way & fell in love with it on my first drive out there.
It's surrounded by a huge stand of pecan trees.
More pecan trees
Edge of the farmhouse property.

We live in an area that's really growing with lots of new shopping & homes going in, but there are still lots of rural state roads around & when you drive them, you still see plenty of pretty countryside. I hope it stays like this for many, many years!

Hope you enjoyed the Alabama countryside with me. We're going to GA this weekend for my dad's 80th birthday party. Have a great weekend!