OUR VISION: What motivates us?

On April 4, 2020April 14, 2020 By Shari SnyderIn Family, Lifestyle, Tiny Living, WellnessLeave a comment

The PROBLEM gives birth to the DREAM…

Fourteen years ago, I was a burned out entrepreneur, a stressed out mommy, and struggling with my health. Although I achieved a high level of success in my company and attained a yearly income less than 5% of Americans ever earn, I felt empty and dissatisfied. I represented a wellness company and yet my body was showing the results of neglect and imbalance as I rarely took time for healthy meals, proper exercise, rest, and play. Climbing to the top and looking around at my marriage, my 3 children, and my other family relationships did not produce more JOY! Those relationships were not thriving and I felt guilty.

My Saving Grace…

My saving grace came in February, 2006, at a business conference, where the speaker was totally reading my mail. She had been in my shoes and found a better way. My whole life was turned upside down as the revelation of the life I really wanted flashed in front of me. I humbled myself, forgave all those who had hurt me in the past; I forgave myself and finally, I forgave God. It was the beginning of a whole new life of freedom, peace and joy, emotionally and spiritually, and I wanted everyone to experience it. Shortly after that, our company flew Todd and I to San Antonio, TX, for a leadership retreat and training with the top income earners. They had hired a caricaturist to draw our dream at the end of the three days. Somehow I knew this was my chance to ask BIG! I had achieved all the dreams on my vision board and quit dreaming. This was my chance to breathe life into my future. What did I want to do for the rest of my life if I could do anything and KNEW I could not fail?

“I want to create a healing center and wellness retreat where people can experience the kind of love You’ve shown me and I want miraculous healings and transformations to occur so people all across the globe will hear of Your power and goodness.”

Our JOURNEY…

What I now call “Selah Oasis” was birthed out of that. Fast forward to 2016, when we sold the “big dream home” our family had spent the last 3 years tearing apart and remodeling together. People couldn’t understand why we would make that sacrifice that to move in to a tiny home. I wanted something more than that Big Dream House; I wanted my Big Dreams to come True! Having absolutely NO MORTGAGE was our reward and the freedom we gained was worth it!

Our VISION…

Our vision is to create a flourishing, joy-filled wellness community that attracts the attention of the world to duplicate this model. We define a wellness community as “a group of individuals working toward a common goal of nurturing our bodies and our relationships to bring joy, a sense of belonging, and purpose through meaningful contribution”. We believe an authentic community of wellness offers almost everything our heart has been asking for all along. At the core of our being is a longing to belong and contribute our unique value to the greater good. Without “holistic wholeness” in body, soul and spirit, we cannot accomplish this. The goal is to make wellness and a simplistic luxury lifestyle affordable. Our core values are: freedom, wellness, simplicity, and sustainability.

A Tiny House Wellness Village…

We’d like to offer agri-tourism for guests, featuring unique tiny enterprises all run from a tiny house and focused on wellness. “Selah Oasis” will have tiny houses for tourists to come in and experience our wellness retreats. This could be duplicated all over the state and then into other states and even worldwide.

WHY US…

We’re willing to do the hard work, work long hours, live in the village, and serve every day. Our faith, passion, and “get’er done” track record make us qualified to tackle this project and see it to completion. We are a Texas family owned business in the hill country. We have just got to pursue this, step out on a limb, give it our best shot and trust GOD to fill in where we lack. And so the journey begins…

Testimonials from Pocket Neighborhood Homeowners

On February 20, 2020February 12, 2020 By Shari SnyderIn Family, Lifestyle, Tiny Living, Tiny Town TexasLeave a comment

What homeowners say about Bigelow Neighborhoods and Homes…

“We really love our home and the neighborhood. There is a very warm feeling when you enter the subdivision. Our lot is perfect. Even our friends have commented that there is a good feeling in the neighborhood.”

– Michael & Verna B.

“We love our house. It is above and beyond our expectations. The quality of the construction is better than the homes twice the price across the street. Thank you Bigelow Homes!”

– F. Mulligan

“I believe that the HomeTown subdivision is one of the best I’ve seen. It is so inviting to everyone that visits me. They always ask, “are they still building and can I see a model?” The neighborhood is beautifully arranged with landscaping, the pond, the ducks, and the friendly atmosphere.”

– J. Club

Beautiful, built extremely well from slab up, and I feel blessed to have an energy efficient, quality home in a unique spot for a great price!

– Gwendolyn K.

We are extremely pleased with Bigelow Homes. We’ve been recommending you to friends and family and even blogged about your great work. The home is beautiful and as we expected.

– Eugene E.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

On February 15, 2020February 16, 2020 By Shari SnyderIn Family, Lifestyle, Tiny Living, Wellness1 Comment

In February 2011, we were living in Michigan. After a brutal winter, I wanted sunshine! Todd was reluctant to leave. After 3 months, he came to me and said, “Okay, baby, I’m up for any adventure with you!”
Within one month, we were touring The great state of Texas and four months later, we moved in to our first house in Kerrville, Texas. Fast forward six years when I asked Todd if he would build me a tiny house to live in full-time. He waited six months to concede because he wanted to make sure it was what I really wanted. And so began our romantic Tiny House adventure. As they say, the rest is history… #tinyhouses #tinyhouse #tinyhome #tinyhouseonwheels #tinyhousemovement #tinyhousenation #tinyhouseliving #tinyhouselife #tinyhomes #tinyhouselove #tinyhousebuild #tinyhousedesign #tinyliving #tinyhousebigliving #tinyhousecommunity #tinyhomeonwheels #cabinlife #tinyhouseideas #travel #tinyhouseproject #tinyhouseblog #houses #tinyhouseswoon #livingtiny #tinyhousedesigns #tinyspaces #tinyhousetalk #tinyhousebuilder #hgtv #bhfyp

Night to Shine Community Event

On February 8, 2020February 20, 2020 By Shari SnyderIn Family, Lifestyle, Tiny Living2 Comments

I’m so proud of Andrew and his friend Salem, two 14 year old boys, serving at the Tim Tebow event for special needs kids to be king and queen for a night!

They were the youngest volunteers and worked harder than anyone else at registration and food service!

If you ever get a chance to serve, you will be blessed indeed!

nighttoshine. #timtebow #community

The Joys of Becoming Minimalist

On February 6, 2020April 1, 2021 By Shari SnyderIn Design, Family, hgtv, Lifestyle, Tiny Houses, Tiny Living, Tiny Town Texas, WellnessLeave a comment

Trading Ordinary Space for Extraordinary Adventures

by Shari Snyder

Two years ago, our family designed and built 384 square feet of “tiny luxury on wheels” to replace our 4 bedroom/2 bath “forever home”. Our “why” was to realize our family values and mission, living in a real house, without a 30-year mortgage haunting us. We didn’t want to be a slave to debt and experience the pain of regret. Having two children leave the nest and a 12 year old still at home, experience told us you can never go back. Relationships produce the greatest joy in life. As pioneers and business owners in the tiny house movement, our journey has not been easy, but we can honestly say the adventure, simplicity, freedom, and family closeness, that tiny living has brought us, are worth it!

Trading Stuff for Adventure

Since becoming minimalists, we have found many unexpected joys and adventures. We have found the joy of collecting memories, not stuff! Life is short. You only live once. Why not go on an adventure, take a risk, and try something new? We have launched two companies, been featured on HGTV, Daily Mail, The Sun, New Atlas, and travelled the country in our tiny home. Doing the things that awaken passion and make you feel alive, is an adventure worth pursuing!

Trading Space for Freedom

We traded unused space in our big house for more time and freedom. We have the power to choose where we want to live, what we want to do, and how we want to spend our increased free time. Every day is a new adventure full of new choices, including our career paths. We are passionate about building environmentally healthy tiny home communities for families to thrive in. We are on a mission to pay it forward and help others discover adventure, freedom, and simplicity, through tiny house living. Our motto is, “Shrink your house, not your dreams.”

Trading Stress for Simplicity

Live MORE by owning LESS! Less stuff equates less stress, plain and simple. We had no idea how heavy the burden of financial debt was until it was gone. Being debt free and mortgage free cannot be underestimated or understood until one experiences it! To kiss our debt good-bye after 23 years of marriage, is priceless! The weight of all our possessions was keeping us from a life of true freedom. Instead of spending 3 ½ hours cleaning, we are done in 30 minutes. We don’t have to maintain a big yard, clean the pool, or fix things around the house. We have claimed back our weekends for hobbies, fun, and family adventures!

Total Wellness

As a wellness lifestyle coach for 17 years, I have helped hundreds of clients improve their physical, environmental, financial, and personal health and wellness. My passion to achieve total wellness for body, soul, and spirit, was a perfect fit to embrace minimalism and tiny living. I’ve already shared some of the benefits for financial and personal health and wellness. Let’s review some of the mental and environmental health benefits we experienced too.

Mental Health

Clutter in my physical environment created chaos in my mental state. A lifestyle of minimalism, began to replace the stress and anxiety with more clarity and focus, resulting in more peace. Having a place for everything and everything in its place, simply helps you function at your best. We have found so much joy in living with less. We don’t collect things that don’t add value to our lives.

When I was downsizing, instead of asking, “What can I live without?”, I began to ask, “What do I need to live?”. The mindset of simplicity transformed our shopping habits and carried over into every area of our lives, including how we operate our companies.

Environmental Health

Of course, the actual build process is environmentally friendly and the ongoing costs of utilities are about 70% less, but the choice of materials we build with also promotes environmental health. For example, we use Rockwool insulation, a wool like material that is mildew and fire resistant, has a R value of 15, is very economical, and also deadens sound. We install a fresh air ventilation system and whole house water purification to promote wellness as well.

Why you want environmentally healthy products

These are the wellness products you will find in our tiny home

In addition, we use and promote a line of eco-friendly cleaning products that are up to 12 x concentrated. This saves an enormous amount of space inside, as well as plastic for the environment, and makes the air inside the tiny house free of outgassing and polution.

In an unprecedented study, PhD student Maria Saxton looked at 80 people who downsized to tiny homes to quantify whether their environmental footprints really got smaller. She reports an 86% positive effect on environment and a reduction of 45% in carbon footprint. In the final sentence, Maria says, “In sum, I found that downsizing was an important step toward reducing ecological footprints and encouraging pro-environmental behaviors.” Read entire article here.

Hi! I’m Shari.

On February 5, 2020November 4, 2020 By Shari SnyderIn Design, Family, Lifestyle, Tiny Houses, Tiny Living, Tiny Town Texas, Wellness1 Comment

I am an advocate for wellness, people, and community building. As a wellness lifestyle coach of 17 years, my focus is on total wellness for body, soul, and spirit. That includes physical, environmental, financial, and personal goals. As the Chief Hope Giver of Tiny Town Texas, my mission is helping people trade ordinary space for an extraordinary lifestyle

We are Tiny House Dwellers, Designers, and Builders. After downsizing from the large 4 bedrooms, a 2 car garage, and in-ground pool home, to live in the 390 square feet we built on HGTV, we are now educating the world on this high-quality, low-impact lifestyle. As pioneers of this movement of minimalism and tiny house living, our motto is: “Shrink your house, not your dreams”.

What’s NEXT for the Snyder Family?
Our vision is to be a part of a community of likeminded people working towards a common goal of creating and sustaining meaningful relationships as part of a holistic lifestyle. Follow our journey as we design and develop beautiful inspiring communities for families to thrive in for years to come. We call it Tiny Town Texas, more than a place to be ~ a place to belong.

The Pocket Neighborhood Difference

On February 4, 2020November 4, 2020 By Shari SnyderIn Design, Family, Lifestyle, Tiny Living, Tiny Town TexasLeave a comment

Hill Country Tiny Houses has partnered with the founder of Bigelow Homes to create an extraordinary solution for affordable housing in pocket neighborhoods that can be duplicated across the country. Stay tuned…

FEEL THE DIFFERENCE

Imagine for a moment that you are in your new home. You step out your front door onto a large porch and look out to see children playing catch in a spacious green park or trying to climb one of the many beautiful trees. Your neighbors across the park wave hello from their porches while the scent of roses from the park drifts over to you in the breeze. Your friend next door steps out to walk her dog and you invite her to sit with you for a cup of coffee. You enjoy the friendly conversation while the sound of children laughing, chatter from other porches and the wind in the trees melds in the background.

BIGELOW’S POCKET NEIGHBORHOOD *Used with permission from Bigelow Homes website

At Bigelow Homes we don’t do typical neighborhoods. You won’t find garage fronted houses facing high speed, unsafe streets with sidewalks that are unable to be walked on because cars are parked across them. Instead, you’ll find a real neighborhood that has been thoughtfully designed so that each home faces a welcoming and beautifully landscaped pocket park with a front porch that is meant to be lived on and enjoyed, making them the perfect place to work, play, and relax. We believe that neighborhoods are a way of life, not just where you go to sleep every night.

Bigelow Homes has been building neighborhoods for 40 years and was honored to receive the most prestigious award in the housing industry, the National Builder of the Year Award. We became the nation’s first developer and builder of highly energy efficient homes in the early 1980’s. Our emphasis on energy conservation naturally led to an interest in cultural and social sustainability. This interest became a deep rooted passion and has resulted in the following practices applied to each neighborhood we design.

Neighborhoods that encourage the residents to be as friendly with neighbors as they would like.
Neighborhoods where the streets and sidewalks are safe and enjoyable for pedestrians, without the worry of fast driving cars.
Sidewalks that are walkable and safe for children to play on.
Homes facing pocket parks.

Hometown Kerr Project

On January 28, 2020November 4, 2020 By Shari SnyderIn Design, Family, Lifestyle, Tiny Houses, Tiny Living, Tiny Town Texas, WellnessLeave a comment

Todd and I are buried in work, meeting a deadline to submit a pocket neighborhood Proposal to the city! The City came to us about a year ago to help with their housing crises. We have assembled a winning team of consultants and developers! Now to gain their approval for all the unique pieces this project will require…

Stay tuned…

We are honored to partner up with Perry Bigelow, Founder of Bigelow Homes, as our chosen Developer for this project. Video above explains how he built healthy communities.

Armed with blueprints and Slide Deck — Mayor Blackburn

Our proposed project is a cottage-type neighborhood design that has every modern comfort with a little Hill Country flair.

Mr. Bigelow himself. His reputation and legacy for doing good by doing right is an honor to partner with.

A pocket neighborhood is essentially a cluster of homes gathered together around a shared open space that affords residents the chance to get to know their neighbors and be a part of the community.

(Think of a cul-de-sac, but with parking behind the homes and instead of facing concrete, picture a beautiful green space.)

It’s different from a traditional neighborhood because there’s a function: The front porch has to be big enough so you can sit on it on a Sunday morning as your neighbor walks by. Most of the pocket neighborhoods are groups of up to 12 homes and act like villages within towns.

They share a lot of the same traits:

They participate in common goals and practices
They depend on each other
They make decisions together
They identify themselves as part of something larger than the sum of their individual relationships
They commit themselves for the long term to their own well-being, to each other, and to the group
These type of neighborhoods started in Denmark and were introduced here in the 80’s but it took them a while to get a head steam

The 2 main books Mr. Bigelow used for 40 years to develop healthy communities across the U.S.

What homeowners say about Bigelow Neighborhoods and Homes…

“We love our house. It is above and beyond our expectations. The quality of the construction is better than the homes twice the price across the street. Thank you Bigelow Homes!”
– F. Mulligan

– J. Club

Beautiful, built extremely well from slab up, and I feel blessed to have an energy efficient, quality home in a unique spot for a great price!
– Gwendolyn K.

We are extremely pleased with Bigelow Homes. We’ve been recommending you to friends and family and even blogged about your great work. The home is beautiful and as we expected.
– Eugene E.

www.bigelowhomes.com

Journals and Miracles

On January 26, 2020February 12, 2020 By Shari SnyderIn Family, Lifestyle, Tiny Living, Wellness1 Comment

Just finished journaling day 25 of 40 days of miracles for 2016. When I was a young mom, I quit reading and journaling like I had before. I regret this and see less growth during those years. Pick up your journal today and create the life you were meant to live, the life of your dreams. My journals are full of ups and downs, but mostly prayer letters to God. He is so faithful to hear my cries and answer me. I know he will for you too!

journalforlife, #miracleshappen, #anythingspossible

The Magic of Minimalism

On January 17, 2020February 10, 2023 By Shari SnyderIn Design, Family, Lifestyle, Tiny Houses, Tiny Living, Tiny Town Texas, WellnessLeave a comment

My remodeled big kitchen — My first tiny bathroom

I’m launching ? an exclusive premiere course the end of February! (limit of 23 Founder’s Group spots)

The Magic of Minimalism:
Shari’s “Downsize NOW Method”. This course empowers people to make space for more JOY, productivity, meaningful relationships, and quality of life.

Is this course for me?

? I want to trade ordinary stuff for an extra-ordinary lifestyle!
? I am sick of the energy-zapping stress of overwhelming clutter?
? I am ready to divorce clutter and chaos
? I want to marry peace and productivity for my future life
? I want MORE…
? emotional and mental peace
? quality of life

***Note: Although Shari downsized her family from 2,600 square feet to a tiny home of less than 400 square feet, the method works wherever you’re at right now.
www.magicofminimalism.com

WHO THIS COURSE IS NOT FOR:

? tire kickers

? Curious stalkers

? those who are unmotivated to change

? those who are fearful of change

If you are accepted, do you promise to complete the homework before our first day together?

Do you promise to participate and bring value to this exclusive group of like-minded world changers?

DO NOT SHARE THIS EXCLUSIVE INVITATION!

There are only 23 spots for this live premiere launch program so you will want to secure your spot BEFORE we launch it the end of February. That’s when we will open it to the public including our 37,000 followers on social media.

(after you go through it, you may share it with your friends and receive referral benefits, but subsequent courses will be pre-recorded, not LIVE!)

NEXT STEP: request to join the private facebook group “The Magic of Minimalism“, answer the questions. Only people in this group can apply to be a Founder’s Group Member.

3 motivations to downsize? take poll. not burden my children with all this stuff. get control of my life. 3?

Must answer questions before you can be invited. To be invited does not mean your application will be accepted. We have limited access to this first program to just 23 people.

POLL: What is your biggest challenge to downsizing your belongings? Multiple choice: Emotional attachment, family members, no extra time, no motivation.

How did Tanya lose 20 pounds in 20 days?

On January 9, 2020January 9, 2020 By Shari SnyderIn Family, Lifestyle, WellnessLeave a comment

Tanya is a woman on a mission! She started her wellness journey in August. Using Peak Performance Vitamins** and Fiberwise, she lost 20 pounds her first 20 days! Now she’s on a mission paying it forward.

Tanya is the chief assistant to the Mayor in North Vernon, Indiana. We met during my trip to Indiana this summer, through a mutual friend. She went on to share the products with 8 friends and received a bunch of free products, prizes and cash! She then achieved another milestone of Director II by helping more people shop to enjoy better health and more savings! I am so proud of her!

She has been married to Kevin for 28 years; they have 3 children and two grandchildren. She loves taking missions trips overseas with her family. Her WHY includes reviving businesses and families in the life of her small town, Dupont, Indiana.

She plans to buy and remodel a very old building to use for a non- profit community building, helping local single moms get more training and skills to create a better life and future.

She was my partner for a company challenge and we won awards and prizes together and received recognition at the January launch! I couldn’t have done it without her.

*Photo and story used with permission.

**see www.peakperformancepack.com

Tiny House on Airbnb from Netflix

On January 8, 2020March 22, 2021 By Shari SnyderIn Airbnb, Family, hgtv, Lifestyle, Tiny Houses, Tiny Living, Tours, TV ShowLeave a comment

Watch the Tiny House Nation episode on Netflix. The family hired our company to build the shell on a trailer with the two slides and then finished it out on Television.

ATTN: Those of you who have been wanting to try out a tiny before deciding if you want to buy one! A client of ours was featured on Tiny House Nation and has listed their tiny house on Airbnb in Magnolia, TX. Check these gorgeous photos out on Airbnb!