It's been said that there's no great loss without some small gain, and I suppose that was true with the home-building project. Multiple delays gave more time for more research into the systems that would go into their "Forever Home".

There were strong winds at the building site, so they chose sturdy ICF walls. Those well-insulated concrete-filled forms would protect them from strong winds, summer heat, and bitter cold, keeping heating and cooling bills low for a lifetime.

They opted for a walk-out ranch design, with the "long wall" facing south, large south-facing windows and a narrow deck that ran the length of the building. This passive solar design bathed their home in winter sun, while blocking out the harsh summer rays.

An unused spot under the front porch was transformed into an old-fashioned root cellar, and a retaining wall near the front door became the back wall for a small attached greenhouse.

The thick walls had high thermal mass, which paired well with in-floor heating. A rustic masonry stove was nestled in the heart of the home, giving them options for warmth (two is one, and one is none, as the old preparedness saying goes).

Wide doors, lever handles, and other accessible design features made it possible for them to accommodate aging loved ones - or injuries or mobility issues as they themselves aged.

One by one, the pieces came together to make a practical, unique home that would adapt to their family's changing needs.

This is Part 2 of Letters from the Homestead, a special six-part series about how we built our homestead, what we learned along the way, and why those lessons eventually helped inspire the Resilient Living Summit.

Looking back, many of the choices we made while building weren't about preparing for one particular disaster. We simply wanted a home that gave us more options — a home that could adapt when circumstances changed.

I've come to think that's a big part of resilience. We can't know exactly what life will throw at us, but we can learn, adapt, and make choices that leave us better able to handle the unexpected.

And sometimes, the unexpected changes the direction of our lives entirely.

That's certainly true of my next guest in Stories of Resilience, Wardee Harmon. A health challenge in her young family set Wardee on a path she never could have predicted — one that ultimately changed how her family ate, where they lived, and the work she would eventually share with others.

Stories of Resilience: Wardee Harmon

For this installment of Stories of Resilience, I sat down with Wardee Harmon of Traditional Cooking School by GNOWFGLINS.

Wardee's path toward a more resilient life began with something she never expected — health challenges with her third child. Searching for answers led her family to traditional foods, learning new skills, and eventually making some pretty significant changes in how and where they lived.

But our conversation goes well beyond food.

Wardee shares some of the challenges of raising and homeschooling three children, building a business while caring for a family, navigating her own health struggles, and learning that resilience doesn't always mean pushing through and doing more.

Sometimes it means resting, accepting help, leaning on the people around you, and taking care of yourself so you have something left to give to others.

We also talk about faith, family and community, and how small changes made consistently over time can take your life in directions you never imagined when you started.

Watch my Stories of Resilience interview with Wardee Harmon →

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I think you'll enjoy this one — especially if you've ever had life send you down a completely different road than the one you had planned.

Preparing for What We Can — Adapting to What We Can't

Looking back at the choices we made when we built our home, there's a common thread running through many of them: options.

More than one way to stay warm. A home that could make use of the sun. A place to store food without electricity. Spaces that could accommodate us if our physical abilities changed.

We couldn't know exactly what the next 20 years would bring. We still can't.

Wardee's story illustrates the other side of that equation. Sometimes life changes in ways we never anticipated, and resilience means learning, adapting, asking for help, and finding a different way forward.

Those same ideas run throughout the Resilient Living Summit.

We'll talk about preparing your family for emergencies without living in fear, strengthening your home for extended power outages, becoming more self-sufficient one step at a time, growing and preserving food, caring for yourself and others when health circumstances change, and adapting our homes and lives as we age. We'll also look beyond individual preparedness to the importance of family, practical skills, relationships, and community.

No one can prepare for every possibility — and I don't think we should spend our lives trying.

But we can give ourselves more options.

If that sounds like something you'd like to work toward, I hope you'll join us for the 2026 Resilient Living Summit, September 14–19. It's completely free to attend, and each presentation will be available free for 48 hours after it goes live.

Reserve your FREE Resilient Living Summit pass →https://resilientlivingsummit.com/summit-registration/​

And next Tuesday, I'll be back with Part 3 of Letters from the Homestead — and more of the story of what happened after we moved into the home we'd spent so much time planning.

Talk soon,

Laurie