Eek! Moving to the country jitters!

[CntryBoy777]

If ya are concerned so much about snake bites and such, just research how many have died from them. It is a rarity these days and times, the native snakes in the US will not kill in just minutes. That is unless a bite goes straight into the vien back to the heart, and enough toxin has to be injected. It is true that it may take a bit longer to get to treatment for anything, but having a plan ahead of time can make a big difference. The best first aid treatment for such bites is a restrictive band and ice. You don't want to cut all flow off as with a tourniquet, but just slow it down. There aren't any deadly scorpions that are native here either, but can make ya sick like wasp or bee stings. Things are going to happen, but most certainly are not everyday occurrances. I taught my daughters to drive at the age of 12, just in case of an emergency and there was a need to get to treatment. There are things ya can do to optimize the options available. Other things are much more likely to be encountered like ticks, wasps, bees, yellow jackets, hornets, chiggers, and poison ivy/oak. Just stress to the kids the importance of knowing their surroundings.

 

[Reindeermama]

As far as using gray water, our house was built like that. Depending on where your washer is in the house you buy it might be easy to do that with the washer also. For the rest of the house you would need to do a plumbing reroute, which could be expensive. Regardless, you will need a plumber. Even our old house had the washer water routed into the yard, but they usually don't do that anymore because of codes. Some of the newer houses being built outside of city limits are now choosing to do that with their plumbing.

I would think, but I don't know for sure, that putting in a water catchment system would be cheaper. Our was $8000.00 and would overflow both storage tanks that had a combined total of 6500 gallons. Ours was a 680 sq. ft. house. 1 inch of rain on 1000 square foot roof will produce 623 gallons of water. You can run this from the tanks with pipes or a regular type of sprinkler system. We used ours for drinking. We had a filter, including ultraviolet light to sterilize it. It might be a little more, because we already had a pump and pump house on that property. We had used a water delivery with the 1500 gallon storage tank prior to the water catchment system.

On the bleach you leave it on there for about 60 seconds, and then rinse it off.(for the scorpion or wasp bites)

I would always have a landline. Radios are great. You can get them at Academy, or even Walmart. If my husband is off in our Polaris at the back end of the property he can call me if needed. They are fun too.

We have a Polaris Ranger that sits up to six. I love it. It is not a necessity, but you can travel all over your property with it or down to the mailbox. That is one of fun things to do...ride the range in the Polaris. The kids love taking trips in it to see the pastures. It is just fun.

Next up a once acre pond. My sister-in-law has one. They stocked it with catfish. Now they have a fishing hole. I want one too. It is really fun. We are going to stock it with catfish, perch, and bass.

 

[LMK17]

If ya are concerned so much about snake bites and such, just research how many have died from them. It is a rarity these days and times, the native snakes in the US will not kill in just minutes. That is unless a bite goes straight into the vien back to the heart, and enough toxin has to be injected. It is true that it may take a bit longer to get to treatment for anything, but having a plan ahead of time can make a big difference. The best first aid treatment for such bites is a restrictive band and ice. You don't want to cut all flow off as with a tourniquet, but just slow it down. There aren't any deadly scorpions that are native here either, but can make ya sick like wasp or bee stings. Things are going to happen, but most certainly are not everyday occurrances. I taught my daughters to drive at the age of 12, just in case of an emergency and there was a need to get to treatment. There are things ya can do to optimize the options available. Other things are much more likely to be encountered like ticks, wasps, bees, yellow jackets, hornets, chiggers, and poison ivy/oak. Just stress to the kids the importance of knowing their surroundings.

Oh, I'm not paralyzed with fear over the thought of snake bites. And it's not even the threat of death that worries me the most about them. It's the very real possibility of irreparable tissue damage (in the case of the pit vipers). Death from a snakebite is quite rare in the US; I know that. However, it's not unusual for a rattlesnake victim to, say, lose the finger that was bitten or to suffer lasting nerve damage. That's what I'm most concerned about. Mostly, I'm worried about the diamondback rattlesnakes. We've got 4 venomous snakes in my area: western diamondback rattlers, cottonmouths, copperheads, and coral snakes. The rattlesnake is most aggressive and doesn't always rattle a warning. The copperheads are considerably more docile, and their venom is weaker. The coral snakes need to stay latched on and kind of "knead" with their fangs to inject venom, so most people yank them off before that happens, but they do have strong neurotoxic venom, and no one is making the anti-venom any more. The treatment is just supportive, which would be scary as all get out if one of the kids were hit by one. I'm not really sure about the ins and outs of cottonmouth bites, but it's still the rattler who worries me most.

And yes, it is good that the striped bark scorpions we have in SA aren't deadly. Still don't like the little buggers-- They're even creepy just to look at! Actually, I think DD was stung by one when she was about 3. We were at a friend's house, and the kids were jumping on the trampoline, so they weren't wearing shoes. DD started screaming that something in the grass hurt her, and she kept screaming and crying for more than 45 minutes, which really isn't like her. The only visible injury was a little raised welt on the side of her foot. My best guess is scorpion, although I didn't actually see it.

I do stress to the kids that they need to be aware of their surroundings. Still, they don't always listen, of course! (Then again, which adults are always as careful as we should be?) Accidents will happen, and they already have around here. I just really find the nearby presence of the ER to be a big comfort!

@Reindeermama Thanks for the tips! And it sounds like you have a great place!

 

[Reindeermama]

You are welcome. I know you will find your dream country home and love it. Your kids will love it too. It is a little bit of adjustment, not being able to run to the stores on the spur of the moment, but it helps the budget.

 

[Latestarter]

You know, it's not like you're moving to Antarctica... (reading my first statement... kinda sounds snarky but isn't meant that way) I moved to a nice 19 acre country setting maybe 8 miles outside a small/mid sized town. My nearest "large" city would be Texarcana at 60 miles to my NE, or Dallas 2 hours to my west. It takes me maybe 20 minutes to get to a wally world, and the hospital in town (which I would have to drive through to get to it) might take 30-40 minutes (speed limits). I mean, if you're buying a place that's an hour commute for hubby to get to work in/near/just outside SA, you must be within relatively close reach of SOME thing(s)... You've posted properties in Floresville and that's only like 10-20 miles or so from the center of SA... I mean, I know that's not like living "down town" or anything, and stuff might not be in walking distance, but you won't be out in the middle of nowhere. In reality, once you get to checking out the local area where you end up, you might find you can get to where you're wanting to go faster as there will be less traffic to deal with... even during "rush hour". Least that's been my experience here.

Another thing I've discovered is the farther out you move, the more you can get for less $$. I guess it's all about trade offs... Luckily I'm retired and don't have to work and do a daily commute anymore. So I wasn't restricted to a specific distance or location. Also, my kids are all grown and gone, so though I have to be aware for my own protection (poisonous snakes) I only have to really worry when the grand kids are here. And we have the same ones here that you worry about down there. Anyway, I hope you find the ideal property in the perfect time to make everything fall into place for you! I've looked at some of the ones you've posted and they look pretty nice. My budget wasn't quite as large as yours is

 

[LMK17]

@Reindeermama Thanks again! I'm sure with patience we'll find exactly the place we're meant to have... Wouldn't mind the process being sped up a bit, though! LOL

You know, it's not like you're moving to Antarctica... (reading my first statement... kinda sounds snarky but isn't meant that way) I moved to a nice 19 acre country setting maybe 8 miles outside a small/mid sized town... You've posted properties in Floresville and that's only like 10-20 miles or so from the center of SA... I mean, I know that's not like living "down town" or anything, and stuff might not be in walking distance, but you won't be out in the middle of nowhere. In reality, once you get to checking out the local area where you end up, you might find you can get to where you're wanting to go faster as there will be less traffic to deal with... even during "rush hour". Least that's been my experience here.

Another thing I've discovered is the farther out you move, the more you can get for less $$. I guess it's all about trade offs...Anyway, I hope you find the ideal property in the perfect time to make everything fall into place for you! I've looked at some of the ones you've posted and they look pretty nice. My budget wasn't quite as large as yours is

LOL, No, I didn't take it as snarky at all. And you're right, of course. We won't really be all that far away, just father away than we are now. Unfortunately with traffic, it could take a long time to get from, say Floresville, to parts of SA, but that will likely be more my husband's problem than mine. And he says the commute won't bother him.

And, yes, I feel blessed to have as large a budget as we do! Still, it's surpringly hard to find what we want. I wasn't prepared for that!

 

[Reindeermama]

Land is expensive, especially if it is closer to a city like San Antonio. Just keep looking, you will find it.
We took a less expensive route by being willing to remodel the house. Not the kind of house we are use to, but it had great bones. Would I have build one, if we had found the perfect land, yes. I have been through that, and there are days when building one can be a pain, but you have every choice available. Remodeling one is not bad either.
We had looked for about 4 months, and I was about to give up. Then my husband found it on Lands of Texas. Don't forget to look on there too.
If you keep looking, you will find it.