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Hi There!
We are Pete and Natalie Riley-Morgan and we own Treehouse Flower Farm in Naselle, Washington. We are in our third year of growing and selling fresh cut, organically grown, beautiful, put a smile on your face, flowers!
Our market currently consists of our local community and communities that are within a 30 mile radius of our farm. Some of our services include, specialty bouquets, flowers for DIY brides, we have two roadside flower stands that are filled with fresh flowers all during the growing season, we also offer flower subscriptions for local businesses, we sell flowers to local florists and this summer we will finally be opening up our U-PICK option here on the farm, so that folks may come and pick their own flowers and greenery.
In June of this year, we will have completed the build on our first treehouse guesthouse and will be opening this charming, luxury hide a way for guests to enjoy on the weekends and week days all summer and into early fall. Guests who stay with us have full farm access, a home cooked breakfast made with farm fresh eggs and local specialties. Treehouse accommodations include hot and cold running water, a kitchenette with mini bar, gas fireplace, lounge area, free Wi-Fi, a sleeping loft with fresh linens and a 24" Smart tv. There is a wonderful private outdoor shower with hot water and plenty of private dressing space and towels are provided.
The treehouse is truly a one of a kind experience here on the farm and we hope that it is only the beginning of many more to come and who knows, with your help, we may even be able to turn our treehouse into a bridal sweet during those types of special events!
Yes, we want to turn Treehouse Flower Farm into a local wedding venue and destination venue, but in order to do that, we need a facility that can accommodate at least 100 guests at a time.
We have always imagined the big trees down by the river wrapped in fairy lights while live music ripples down to the lower property from the musicians playing in the barn above. Couples holding hands while wandering the grass pathways between the rows of flowers that have been adorned in loosely strung Edison lights. There will be a bar in one corner of the barn and a large dance floor where a father can share one last dance with his little girl. Toasts will be made above mason jars filled with fresh cut flowers that stand in the glow of candlelight on tables dressed with crisp white linens. A beautifully decorated cake stands on a rustic table waiting in the corner to be shared by all. Smiles and the sound of laughter trickle in through the open doors of the barn from the wedding party outside, who are playfully readying the get away car. Bellies are content as their plates are cleared and the toasting begins. Later in the evening the entire room is dancing and laughing away the night!
So many wonderful celebrations yet to take place here on the farm. Like fundraisers for youth programs, family reunions, 50th wedding anniversaries, birthdays, community Easter egg hunts. Picnics and potlucks, friends gathered around the big open campfire sipping wine while enjoying each other's company. Private campsites will dot the landscape where tents glow in the night like multi colored lanterns.
We are so close to helping build unforgettable memories here on this farm, now all we need is that big old barn! A place where we would be able to hold receptions, rehearsal dinners and maybe even the ceremony itself, on a rainy spring day. A place to help our guests stay warm and comfortable in the Pacific Northwest's sometimes unpredictable weather, a place to celebrate life and all of it's possibilities, but we can't do it alone, we need your help to bring all of those possibilities into reality.
The structure will be designed as a 24' x 44' building through post and beam construction with cedar siding, and double doors on all sides. There will be an upper loft area, a bar, restrooms and storage area for tables and chairs to be stowed away when they're not being used. A small prep kitchen for local caterers to utilize or for folks who want to cook their own meals and a large storage fridge to hold plenty of delicacies for those DIY Brides that want to save a little money by catering themselves. Of course we have a stage design in mind that can either hold a live band or a DJ to spin to his hearts content. When the barn isn't busy hosting gatherings, a portion of it will be utilized as a processing, storage and shipping area for the flowers as they come in from out in the field.
We purchased the plans for the barn two years ago hoping that by now we would have been able to break ground on the build, but with the cost of building supplies going higher and higher every year, it will be a long time before we will have enough money saved to even begin that process and so we are reaching out to you. Our neighbors, community members, friends, family, co-workers and folks who just may want to utilize this" barn/event center" in the future. Your financial support is the most important part in the effort to see this project's completion by the end of this summer 2019.
It has been a long road to get here and now I'd like to share a little of that story with you, so that you might have a better understanding of who we are as people and what we're trying to accomplish as entrepreneurs . . .
A Long Row to Hoe But We're Almost There
In 2002 my husband and I decided to sell our house in the suburbs and purchase some acreage in the country where we could begin to pursue our dreams of building our own home, farming and hosting events as a way to make a living while enjoying the country life.
There we were, two inexperienced young people romping around in the middle of nowhere trying to make something special out of our rain forest's jungle. While Pete enjoyed clearing the underbrush with the help of our little tractor, I diverted water by digging ditches and built pathways and bridges using hand tools.
Other "fun" jobs involved latrine duties by way of a post hole digger and a shovel and toting in 5 gallon buckets filled with water. It took a few months before we had water and power brought into the property from the main road, so until that time, we utilized a gas powered generator for power and heat. Eventually I had found a way to collect rain water off of a tarp that drained directly into the holding tank on the trailer rather than toting in 5 gallon buckets every week. We wrapped a chain link dog kennel in tarps which became our tool storage shed that sat just outside the eighteen-foot single wide monstrosity that had become our temporary home.
Most nights after a long day of working at clearing brush and trying to figure out the logistics of where the house would be built, we would sit outside by a fire and enjoy the freedom of the night air.
The discovery of the old growth Cedar tree that now holds our treehouse was an awesome find, as when we purchased the land, we were told that it had been cleared of all of the big trees by a logging company ten years earlier. Pete's great moment was in finally breaking through the underbrush and finding the river and with it all of the old growth trees that were and still are standing down on the lower property.
I'll never forget, it was a hot and humid August afternoon when we finished loading the last of our belongings into that used eighteen travel trailer, hooked up to a friends pickup hitch and headed across the Columbia River by way of the Astoria Megler Bridge and into the other "green state". We got so sick of living in it that trailer that we ended up building an octagonal wooden yurt to live in during our final year of building the house. That small, sturdy structure held a king size bed, a desk, a computer, a chair, a TV and a phone, but the best thing about it was that it had a solid wood door with a deadbolt! That little yurt still stands today and soon it will become part of a new treehouse design here on the farm.
We still cooked and showered in that trailer, but once we were able to connect the toilet in the main house it sure made the roughing it lifestyle much easier.
Talk about dedication and devotion, we were both still working our regular full time jobs while we were developing the property. My commute was an hour and a half each way. I worked the night shift at a restaurant in Cannon Beach, Oregon.
Pete was lucky, he was working as a substitute teacher during that time and his commute was only thirty minutes from the property, he also coached high school football in Astoria back then, just as he still does today in Naselle, but those away games would have him arriving back at the property at two in the morning some nights.
As I look back and ponder all of the progress and all of the problems that we had encountered along the way, it amazes me that we actually made it to where we are today. Just the two of us and our four hands with the help of a few good friends and family members, a few tools, a tractor and no real building skills to speak of.
Now we're proud to say that we live in a home that we built with our bare hands and it's fun to get a chuckle or two from folks when we tell them the stories about why we built that yurt or how a giant fireball jumped into the sky on the day when I blew up the generator or how the dogs reacted the first time a black bear meandered by the trailer.
The wildlife that inhabits this 80 plus acre peninsula of which our 5 acres is just a small portion of, has always been endearing. We have seen link, mink, bobcat, cougar, blacktail deer, bear, snow owls, great horned owls, eagles, falcons, hawks, tanagers, grossbeaks and numerous colored humming birds.
Once while we were asleep in the yurt, we were awoke at around two o'clock in the morning by the sound of a massive heard of elk as they rumbled by. We had an eight pane window above the head of our bed and we got up on our knees and peered out while shining a spotlight beam through the panes of glass. It must have been a migration as we'd never seen so many elk in one place at the same time and it took quite a few minutes until they disappeared into the darkness and then we could hear them crossing the river down below us.
We also raised an orphaned fawn for a period of time. Her mother had been killed, so we brought the little fawn back to the house and raised her until she was about 4 months old. It was such a joy to go out on the porch and call her name when it was time for her feeding. She would come running, kicking her heels up and mewing like a kitten, then she would latch onto that nipple and suckle with so much force that it was hard to hang onto the bottle.
Over the course of the last 6 years, we have learned to raise chickens and ducks for the benefit of fresh eggs and keeping the slug populations down in the flower field.
We tried turkeys once, but quickly decided that we will never have turkeys again, ever!
We have seen river otters, raccoons, coyotes with their pups, possums, squirrels, bats and mice. We have raise chocolate labs, German shepherds and even a pair of mischievous goats! And when I went back to work as a veterinary technician we did our fare share of rescuing special needs cats and kittens.
During the course of the seventeen years that we have lived here, we have also built and finished the big deck then added more smaller decks. We built the hen house and put up 440 feet run of cedar fence along with a chicken run. We built the sauna and an outdoor bar, a woodshed, and the treehouse.
Pete’s first experience with a chainsaw was chopping up a 100 foot tall Sitka spruce with a 5 foot in diameter base that had fallen during a wicked wind storm back in 2005. From that he fell and processed more trees that we had turned into firewood (our only source of heat) and biochar to use as a soil amendment.
We plowed the pasture under and put in the flower rows and with the flowers came the necessity of a propagation house, then a little greenhouse and then a big greenhouse. Then more trees came down and we planted a lot of grass then built a pretty grand fire pit down by the river and a nice water feature plus a couple of ponds for the ducks.
So you can tell by the stories that we are hardworking, devoted, talented and caring people when it comes to our property, our farm and our future. It's just that at this point, we could really use some financial assistance to get through to this next phase of our plan.
Of course there are still dreams of a fresh water swimming pool, a giant tree swing, a fishing dock perched over one of the best fishing holes on the Naselle River with canoe and kayak rentals. Oh and of course more treehouses, but all those will hopefully follow along behind the barn as the business grows. For now we need to focus on financing the barn and getting it built if we want to continue growing our business.
The above drawing shows the existing layout as to where the barn will be located for ease of access from the flower fields. This area covers a little under 2 acres, leaving the other 3 & 1/4 acres of our farm that is not pictured in the drawing. This drawing is not to scale.
I guess in farming terms folks, it's been a long row to hoe, but we're almost at the end of it. Of course we could continue as we have always done by moving along and building things as we can afford them and have the time, but that would mean that it would be at the very least, another ten years before the barn would be completed.
So we considered the fundraising angle, after all, part of what we want to do here on the farm is to host fundraising projects for other organizations, so why not try it for ourselves? Your financial support would be greatly appreciated. Whether you buy a raffle ticket in the hope of winning that romantic getaway for two or you simply share our story to someone that you think might be interested in our campaign and may be able to help, please know that, WE APPRECIATE IT!
Thank you so much for taking the time to read our story and if you decide to help us out, again THANK YOU!
All the best to you.
Pete Riley & Natalie Morgan-Riley, Owners of Treehouse Flower Farm
Perks
A $100 donation will enter you into the raffle to win a romantic getaway for two in our luxury treehouse guesthouse. Stay includes 2 nights with a delicious farm cooked breakfast delivered each morning and fresh baked cookies each afternoon. There will be a gift basket awaiting your arrival filled with local delicacies and a bottle of wine to share. Our treehouse is situated in an old growth cedar tree on the farm. The treehouse amenities include hot & cold running water, a kitchenette with free access to the mini bar, lounge area, gas fireplace, free wifi, a sleeping loft with a comfortable bed dressed in fresh linens. Enjoy the back outdoor seating deck perched over the creek or the view from the entry deck that looks over the flower field. Enjoy the private hot outdoor shower, towels are provided. One winning ticket will be drawn at the Barn Dance/Grand Opening and the winning number will be posted on our Facebook page.
Donate $50 to help us finance and build our event barn and we'll place you and one guest on the VIP list to come and help us celebrate at the Grand Opening Barn Dance. The celebration will include, live music, dancing, food, fun and an open bar featuring some of the best microbrewries from Astoria, Oregon.
Highlights
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A $100 donation will enter you into the raffle to win a romantic getaway for two in our luxury treehouse guesthouse. Stay includes 2 nights with a delicious farm cooked breakfast delivered each morning and fresh baked cookies each afternoon. There will be a gift basket awaiting your arrival filled with local delicacies and a bottle of wine to share. Our treehouse is situated in an old growth cedar tree on the farm. The treehouse amenities include hot & cold running water, a kitchenette with free access to the mini bar, lounge area, gas fireplace, free wifi, a sleeping loft with a comfortable bed dressed in fresh linens. Enjoy the back outdoor seating deck perched over the creek or the view from the entry deck that looks over the flower field. Enjoy the private hot outdoor shower, towels are provided. One winning ticket will be drawn at the Barn Dance/Grand Opening and the winning number will be posted on our Facebook page.
Donate $50 to help us finance and build our event barn and we'll place you and one guest on the VIP list to come and help us celebrate at the Grand Opening Barn Dance. The celebration will include, live music, dancing, food, fun and an open bar featuring some of the best microbrewries from Astoria, Oregon.
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