As we started to get settled at our new house-sit, it took less than an hour for Pete to make the statement that I knew was coming:
“You should do some baking.” (He may be the chef, but all pastry goodness is my specialty).
I understood immediately from where this comment came, as we found ourselves inside a cozy log cabin, complete with warm lighting, a wood-burning fireplace, and a purring ball of fur waiting for love. All that was missing was the smell of baking bread or luscious apple pie.
As perpetual world travelers, ‘home’ is a tricky word. In an abstract sense, it’s at once the place we grew up or where our loved ones live now; or it can be any location, really, as long as we are together. But at the very least it must be a place where we feel completely comfortable. Thus, even with several random definitions, feeling ‘at home’ is not an easy feat.
But here, we think we’ve found it. If even for just a few short months.
We are not city folk, we enjoy the serenity and seclusion of the wilderness. We love a well-stocked kitchen and to spend hours in it crafting meals from scratch. We relish fresh air, lichen-covered trees, kayaking on the lake outside our door. If we could design our perfect ‘home’, this cabin would be pretty close to it. (It’s just missing a teleportation chamber such that we could easily satisfy our travel hunger.)
For all those who said to us: “Wisconsin? Why on earth are you going there?” We answer, because of this:
Any more questions?
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Is that chocolate chip banana bread?!?! nom nom nom!
It is! And we’ve gone through three loaves already! 🙂
That looks absolutely lovely.
We did a similar thing last year in Newfoundland. We got a place in St. Johns and settled in and “hibernated” for the winter. It was quite lovely to cook food at home, have some cozy evenings watching movies and going for walks in the snow. In a life of perpetual travel it’s totally fine to take breaks for a few months in certain places. After three months we were itching to get back on the road!
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We have been absolutely hibernating, and in the three weeks we’ve been there, have only ventured out a few times! I do believe that at the end, we will be raring to go and see something else again. This is *perfect* downtime for us. :0
I’m living on a Caribbean island and have to say, I don’t know how you’ve done it but these photos made me homesick for chilly fall days in Canada! I never thought I’d say that 🙂
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Haha! Well, we spent 6 months living on a Caribbean island, and we were homesick for chilly Canada after that – it was TOO hot there! 🙂
Oh that looks like an amazing place to nest!
We are snugglin’ in here, pretty good!
We admit that it looks like a nice spot!
That looks absolutely perfect!
Thank you for posting this! I *may* be a bit biased here (being a Wisconsinite and all) but it’s moments like this post, that I fall in love with Wisconsin all over again 🙂
PS.. if it ever snows, you are going to have a great view of it from those windows! And wood burning fireplace… JEALOUS!
You have a gorgeous home state. With great beer! Win win! 🙂
This is EXACTLY how I’ve been spending a lot of my time and I do so love it. But you’re view is WAY better than mine!
Looks absolutely stunning guys! Hope ye have a ball of a time house sitting there.
What did ye use to create the 3 in 1 photos in this post by the way?
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I think for that one we used an app called ‘Photo Grid’.
Nope, wait, it was called “Photo HD Grid”.
You guys should really check out Minnesota while you’re in Wisconsin. It’s awesome here!
I’ve actually been to Minnesota many times before, that is a gorgeous state as well! Even considered a move to Minneapolis when a job was on the table…!
It looks like a wonderful place to stay for awhile, cute home. I would love to stay there for awhile and hibernate.
It is the *perfect* spot to hibernate. 🙂
I think if I was a gazillionaire I would live in a log cabin.
Happy nesting!
I WOULD TOO. I’m all about the log cabins.
Love it! Hope you enjoy Wisconsin, especially this time of year. It’s beautiful (and cold!).
Thanks Liz! Our only wish was that we were here a couple of weeks earlier to take in all the fall colors, but we’re still really thrilled to be in the area.
I am tremendously jealous! Our latest dream is a ranch somewhere out in nature – just…away! We had Wyoming in mind but I wouldn’t mind a lake like this. Beautiful…Wisconsin – who knew?
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There are SO many lakes around here (and so many “for sale” signs too!) Wyoming might end up being a little warmer than Wisconsin, but it’s pretty nice here too!
That looks amazingly cozy and relaxing! As much as I love cities, the idea of cuddling up beside a fireplace with my Kindle right now sounds soooo good!
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It is a great *escape* to do just that! So happy that we are getting almost three months of it. 🙂
I’ve never considered traveling to Wisconsin, but admittedly that looks pretty stunning!
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OooH, we’ve got much more to share, to show you how beautiful it is here.
Have ye ever had the situation arise while on a house sit where the wifi/internet has stopped working or there has been some difficulties with it? Reason I’m asking is because, say you were house sitting in a foreign country and you’r working online(business or whatever) and the internet suddenly doesn’t function as normal.
Thanks.
Carlo Cretaro recently posted..Weekly travel photo: Death valley sand dunes!
Good question Carlo – when we’re in a location that doesn’t have English as the first language, the home-owners will usually connect us with at least one of their friends in the area who speaks English AND the local language, so that in a situation as you described (or others), we’ll have someone to call for help. We have had to call on these “friends” before for various issues and they have always been happy to help. 🙂
Cool. Yeah that is one of the first things that sprung to mind while reading your house sitting adventures. But that’s a very simple solution to the problem for sure.
I’m looking forward to getting your ebook and using it to help find something suitable for my girlfriend and I when we head away next year.
Regards.
Anytime Carlo! Good luck!
Amen, sista! This is why I’ve been a proponent of slow travel….to capture those comforts of home on the crazy road of full-time travel…
For us, it is an absolute necessity! Gives us some down time so that we can get our travel mojo back for the next burst of travel! 🙂
Looks like an amazing spot to be guys. We are currently doing the same in Amsterdam, and even though it is rainy and days are short and dark, the coziness of sitting on the couch and staying warm with a glass of wine is the reward. And all the baking and cooking of course.
A home in another home is a good thing to have on the road sometimes! 🙂
I am loving your new place guys. It’s so lovely. Great spot indeed. How long are you planning to stay there? Is it house-sitting as always? You can bake, wow, maybe I can pop in and grab a piece of the cake sometime :). Enjoy yourself!
We are here for another couple of month. We aren’t always house-sitting as we like to fit in some bursts of “rapid” travel as well, but we do sit still the majority of the time.
It looks like a beautiful, cozy place to spend the beginning of winter.. even better if you can be warmed by freshly-baked goods!
Now I just want to see a thick layer of perfect white snow on the ground, to complete the picture. 🙂
That looks lovely. I have been SO craving a home lately, I think it is the change of seasons (in the U.S., though it is warm as ever here in Peru), the holidays, and just months and months of roaming. I’m ready to settle down for a bit. I want to bake bread!
I think I saw a house-sit advertised for Brazil the other day! You can bake some Brazilian bread (whatever that is – ha)!
<3
Yeap, Wisconsin sure looks nice 🙂
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Let me know if you ever require a stand-in. My house-sitting skills include cooking without melting plastic onto a stovetop’s burner (learned that lesson), vacuuming (via Roomba), and sitting (usually on comfortable couches, but I can also do floors with thick rugs). By the way, last house I held down… teleportation chamber. (Thought it was a walk-in closet.) Great pics and cool book.
Ha! Thanks Noah – those are some impressive house-sitting skills you’ve racked up. 🙂
I would love to live in that cozy log cabin with a view for a couple months. Enjoy nesting!
WONDERFUL! nothing like the upper midwest for coziness, esp in fall and winter. i’m so happy for you!
Enjoy, looks like heaven!
Wisconsinite here…..people really under estimate Wisconsin, don’t they? :0)
Having traveled around most of the state, I have found it absolutely gorgeous, any time of year. Love your view of the lake; and that fireplace…enjoy your stay and try lots of handcrafted beer.
Judi, I believe your state is VASTLY underestimated, at least by the people we know! Hopefully we will be encouraging more people to discover it. 🙂