For some, life in the city is a dream, but for the Reiman family, their farm is the perfect canvas to bring to life all of their hobbies and whims.
Adeline “Addie” Reiman lives on the edge of Brandon with the youngest three of her five children—Mateo, Antonio, Peter, Luke, and Stella.
“When I get out here, I can step out of corporate America and into the country,” said Addie, whose coworkers refer to her as the “Corporate Cowgirl.”
Throughout the property, lovingly named the Highroad, the family looks after two dogs, three horses, 15 goats, 11 hens, one rooster, one duck, and two turkeys.
“My son went to pick up a couple chickens for me and also came home with two turkeys. It’s a joke, but they’re named Thanksgiving and Christmas. I’m not sure he’s on board.” -Addie Reiman
Inside the family home, Addie, Peter, Luke, and Stella sleep upstairs, as the ground floor has a special place for hobbies and antics.
The great room has vaulted ceilings and a large footprint, which Addie says makes it just the right spot for the kids to play basketball, practice gymnastics, and more.
Fact
Addie works as a Benefits Consultant for Gallagher and is the Heartland region Vice President.
Addie’s favorite part of the room is the first thing you see as you enter: the fireplace.
“I love a wood burning fireplace,” she said. “I cut down wood in the forest and stack it through the summer. The wood burning fireplace in the winter is where we go all the time and hunker in.”
Because of the fireplace and the other activities in the space, the great room is one of the family’s favorite spots in the house.
“When people ask what happened to me during COVID, I tell them COVID got me with fainting goats. We just like to have baby goats because it’s fun to have babies. I donate them to schools for 4H, or I sell them. They’re awesome weed control. I love it.” -Addie Reiman
“My other favorite place in the house is probably my bedroom. It’s my sanctuary,” said Addie. “I put all the things that mean a lot to me in that room. I love sentimental stuff.”
Around the house, she has artwork from her children framed and a large wall full of various photos of key moments in the family members’ lives.
“My bedroom has the best view of the land,” said Addie. “Sometimes when I work from home, I’ll sit in my bed and work because I can look out the window and see my horses.”
Addie built a spot to read—a net suspended above her bed.
Outside, Stella and her mother love to ride around on their horses, Skip and Reba.
“Poppy is our safe horse for friends to ride with us,” Addie said about her third horse.
Her sons also have their fair share of fun around the property, too. In the winter, they build a terrain park for skiing and snowboarding.
“Every year, the winter terrain park has gotten bigger. We’ll use hay bales or those spools. My son, Luke, has built rails,” said Addie. “There’s a little playhouse down there they can use as a warming house. Now they want a chairlift, and I’ll figure out a pulley system for that before winter.”
She Shed
In the shed behind the house, Addie has set up a sitting area where she likes to spend time with friends and family.
Last summer, they set up a shallow pool for wakeboarding. Now that spot has their large above-ground swimming pool.
The oldest in the house, Peter, enjoys trapshooting off of the back patio, practicing with clay pigeons.
Overlooking the pond, Addie built a patio where the family loves to spend time at any time of day but especially as the sun sinks below the horizon.
As night approaches, rays of sun cast hues of pinks, oranges, and reds across the land.
Must Read
Addie says “The Energy Bus” by Jon Gordon is a reminder to approach life with a positive attitude to feel great and be successful.
“We put a firepit up there so we can watch the sunset,” said Addie. “It’s beautiful as it sets back over the back pond and pasture.”
In the morning, Addie does her best to make time to read, and she loves to do that right out on her front patio, where the sunrise is just as beautiful. Though her kids like to tease her, Addie says she enjoys watching birds perch near her garden while she reads—and she knows the kids secretly do, too.
No matter the season, the family is always moving, making their hobbies and dreams come to life all in their own yard.
