“We bought the farm!” This tongue-in-cheek announcement from Kathy Bintz comes with a chuckle. Being married to a retired Air Force pilot, she knows the origins of the phrase are often traced back to aviators describing a final (and fatal) descent. Thankfully, her husband Don is alive and well, and “buying the farm” was far from the end of their story. In fact, purchasing the 160-acre family property was the beginning of a new chapter of their life — albeit one that took two decades to unfold.
The Bintzes purchased the land from Don’s mother in the year 2000 in the hopes of putting down roots in the small Wisconsin town where they had fallen in love as high school sweethearts. It would be the perfect place to build their forever home. Soon after the purchase, Kathy began taking drafting classes at a local community college and became hooked on the look of timber frames. “I designed the house we wanted, and kept the plans for years,” says Kathy. “I knew someday we would build it.” The plans traveled from Michigan to California to Nevada before “someday” came — in the form of Don’s retirement.
