Hello from Elysian Farm, Joe, Kim, and the critters. For many years Joe and I lived in Minneapolis and owned a retail business. During that time we became interested in herding with our aussie. We went to several clinics, lessons, and trials. During this time we enjoyed the fresh air and being able to see the stars in the evening. We decided we wanted to enjoy this every day with our own land. Not to mention our dogs loved the space and working with the livestock.

Of course wanting land and purchasing it are two different things. We looked for 2 years before deciding on our "farmette". When we first pulled into the driveway it was an eyesore! There were 18 different cars scrapped out in various conditions, two busted up campers, trash, Christmas ornaments, and what looked like a decapitated dune buggy scattered about the property. The inside of the house wasn't much better. Have you ever seen an orange kitchen or a neon blue bedroom? Yuck! It had been on the market a long time for very obvious reasons.

Joe and I saw passed the junk. We saw a home that started out special and with a little love and a ton of elbow grease could be the grand farm house it had started out as back in 1919. We saw what could be "our own little bit of heaven", Elysian Farm.

It hasn't been easy; we are definitely weekend warriors, since we both have regular jobs. We could not have accomplished what we have so far without the help of some very special people in our lives: Joe's parents- Butch and Roseanne, my parents- Jeff and Kathy, and our friend Todd and his beloved bride, Patty. She graciously let Todd come and "play" with us instead of working at their home. Todd is also the inspiration for the website. Without his much needed pushing and prodding we never would have set it up. Of course it helps that Patty and him are wonderful with computers and designed this site for us!

We hope that you enjoy the site and learning more about some of our favorite activities and animals. If you have any questions please feel free to contact us.

Happy Herding!

Joe and Kim