We were in our 50s when we decided we wanted to "rightsize" our lives. We sold our big house and invested the profits in ourselves: we quit our jobs, hit the road for a while and then did a lot of research before designing and building our 250-square-foot house in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia.

We started this blog to record our build and share our journey. August 1, 2022, we celebrated our seventh year living in the house. We're still working on projects, expanding our garden and musing about sustainable living. We love to share what we've learned—both here on the blog and in person at conferences. Please contact us with any questions. --Jody and Bill

The Design

We thought about the way we live and designed our space to fit our own particular lifestyle and aesthetics. Some of the things important to us: clean lines, lots of light and air, multiple doors, open spaces, a ground floor bedroom. We try to be thoughtful about what we bring into the house: form and function have to be in harmony. You can take a video tour of our house, courtesy of AOL's "Dream Big, Live Small" channel.

The build

It's not for everyone, but we loved the idea of building the house ourselves, from start to finish. We did the framing, roofing, doors and windows, plumbing, electrical, insulation, floors and all the rest. What we didn't already know from renovating the traditional houses we'd lived in previously, we learned along the way. So we can say with conviction: Yes, two people can build a house—even several of them...

The Projects

In addition to the house, we also built a screen house for open-air (and bug-free!) living three seasons a year. We constructed a wrap-around deck, raised garden beds  and fences (out of shipping pallets!), stone retaining walls, tables and cabinets, a wine rack, storage ottomans—and more. Most recently, we built our "Clubhouse" (office space/guesthouse/happy hour spot) and a tool shed.