October is a significant month for the Snyder family. October, 1995, Todd declared his love for me. October, 2008, we had the vision for what we now know as Tiny Town Texas. October, 2011, we moved our family to Texas. October, 2015, was our miraculous marriage makeover and second honeymoon (exciting story I’ll share with you one day). October, 2016, was The Big Reveal for the birth of Hill Country Tiny Houses. (see https://sharisnyder.com/) October 8, 2017, was the maiden voyage of the Vintage Retreat to Arlington, Texas, for the National Tiny House Jamboree October 20, 2018, REVEAL of the TV series coming soon called Tiny Town Texas
What surprises will October, 2019 hold for our family?
https://youtu.be/bhXJnC5c70M
Follow our journey on FB and IG for live videos and clues to guess what it is. We will send a free t-shirt to anyone who can guess our secret before it’s revealed.
Tiny Town Texas is a type of miniature utopia where dreams are big and houses are small. Inside this tiny house wellness village, brave pioneers are showing Texans that bigger is not always better. Since 1990, housing sizes have doubled and prices have quadrupled, leading to the nation’s “affordable housing crisis”. According to CNN Business, more than half of Americans would like to downsize and live in 600 square feet or less. The growth of this movement is stunted by the banking industry and zoning and planning laws inside cities. 68% of tiny house owners today have no mortgage, which is great, but those who need financing find it very challenging. There’s a big movement to #legalizetiny across the nation, but until then, the best solutions are tiny house communities.
What makes Tiny Town Texas unique? The top three features are: a deed to the land is issued so owners can secure a loan package with park model tiny homes (those not on wheels) at the mortgage industry’s best rates. Secondly, the internal focus on wellness and holistic wholeness is threaded throughout the very fibers of this village, including amenities and tiny enterprises. Many of the top diseases killing people today are proven to be preventable, including diabetes and some forms of cancer and heart disease. Cancer is expected to affect 1 out of 2 people by 2024.
WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? APPLY TODAY!
What if wellness was affordable, attainable and sustainable? Imagine a lifestyle of wellness, freedom and simplicity with a tribe of likeminded people. Lastly, the tiny enterprises (owned and operated by community dwellers) offer wellness goods and services, including organic gardens and farmer’s markets. And finally, all of this creates an ideal live-work-play environment and creates a self-sustained economy.
REQUEST A FREE APPLICATION TODAY TO SEE IF YOU QUALIFY. EMAIL INFO@HILLCOUNTRYTINYHOUSES.COM
Now THAT’S a mobile home! Jaw-dropping two-story house complete with wide screen TVs and a jet-spa bath can be TOWED behind you (and you can snap one up for $98k)
Todd and Shari Snyder, from Hill Country, Texas, built their ‘tiny home’ from scratch in a bid to live debt free
The 384 sq ft home, which can be towed on the road, includes two bedrooms, living rooms and a loft space
Couple have converted the project into a business, with similar models selling from $68,000 (£50,000)
Bigger model costs $98,000 (£73,000) and buyers will need a one-tonne truck to take it on the road
PUBLISHED: 05:58 EDT, 7 December 2017 | UPDATED: 07:15 EDT, 7 December 2017
A resourceful couple have created their very own home on wheels in the form of a 40ft custom-made trailer.
Todd and Shari Snyder, from Hill Country, Texas, ditched their spacious conventional house for the stunning compact home they can take anywhere.
The luxurious family home has two bedrooms, a kitchen, living room, a bathroom and 384 sq ft of living space – and it’s proved so popular, they are now selling identical models for just $98,000 (£73,000).
The kitchen boasts a full-size fridge-freezer, a Belfast sink, hob, oven and dishwasher with a small table and two stools that roll out from under the counter.
The Snyders made space for a 55in TV in the living room and a 32in TV in the bedroom and is a washing machine and tumble dryer in the bathroom along with a full-size jet-spa bath.
The couple can increase their space with sliding doors between the bathroom and bedroom and Andrew has his own room in the loft space.
All the mod-cons! The kitchen has a full-size fridge-freezer, a Belfast sink, hob, oven and dishwasher with a small table and two stools that roll out from under the counter
Spacious! The couple also built in two 9ft wide by 4ft recess areas which house the sofa and bed which can be tucked away when not in use to give extra floor space
Compact: The couple can increase their space with sliding doors between the bathroom and bedroom and Andrew has his own room in the loft space
Shari said: ‘I had been searching for a business my husband and I could do together that would utilise both our strengths when I came across the tiny house movement.
‘I realised that the best builders and designers of tiny houses are those that live in them and I wanted to be the best so we dove in head first and put our dream home on the market.
‘I designed every square inch of the place to be livable for three people. I thought of all the little details like where would the bin go, and dirty clothes – everything is so functional and yet beautiful.
‘I wanted all the luxury and appliances so I was not missing any of the creature comforts.
‘We probably downsized all our belongings by about 50 per cent but I probably should have got rid of more.
The bathroom. Speaking about the ambitious project, Shari said: ‘I had been searching for a business my husband and I could do together that would utilise both our strengths when I came across the tiny house movement’
Speaking about how compact living has changed their lifestyle, the couple revealed: ‘You just have to adjust your lifestyle, it makes you do chores straight away instead of putting them off’
Meticulous planning: ‘We made it as big as we could because we run two businesses from home and home-school our son so we needed all the space we could get,’ the couple said
Spreading the word: ‘We’re now on a mission to get other people interested in it,’ said the couple. ‘We’ve seen how it strengthens families and eliminates debt and allows you the time freedom to invest in the things that really matter in life’
‘But we made it as big as we could because we run two businesses from home and home-school our son so we needed all the space we could get.’
Creative input: When it came to the interiors, Shari, 45, took over with the interior design, making sure she had space to fit in everything she needed and the home was livable for three people
Getting off the ground: ‘It takes a long time to pack it all up with the decks and the slide-outs,’ says Shari. ‘Moving from one park site to another across town, packing up and setting it all out again takes about four hours’
‘It’s not really designed as a travelling trailer but it’s a trailer that can travel,’ the couple admitted. ‘We’ve moved it a couple of times, the longest trip we have taken is about 300 miles.
The bathroom. Speaking about the ambitious project, Shari said: ‘I had been searching for a business my husband and I could do together that would utilise both our strengths when I came across the tiny house movement’
Ambitious: The project took five months with Todd, 49, who has been building and renovating houses for 15 years, custom-making the trailer from scratch and building their home with the couple’s son Andrew, 12, this summer.
Speaking about how compact living has changed their lifestyle, the couple revealed: ‘You just have to adjust your lifestyle, it makes you do chores straight away instead of putting them off’
Meticulous planning: ‘We made it as big as we could because we run two businesses from home and home-school our son so we needed all the space we could get,’ the couple said.
Ongoing project: The couple have called it the Vintage Retreat and are now making similar models for other families through their new company, Hill Country Tiny Houses
Cheaper than a house! The homes cost $98,000 (£73,000) and buyers will need a one-tonne truck if they want to take it on the road. A a smaller model for a single person starts from $68,000 (£50,000)
‘You just have to adjust your lifestyle, it makes you do chores straight away instead of putting them off.
‘It has paid off though, we went to a show in Texas where we were up against 50 other builders from around the US and we were voted best in show.
‘We are the only company that have slide-outs on a tiny house.
‘We’re now on a mission to get other people interested in it. We’ve seen how it strengthens families and eliminates debt and allows you the time freedom to invest in the things that really matter in life.’
by Christianna Snyder, guest blogger (my daughter)
Yesterday was an extremely difficult day for both me, my family and many others. 10 days shy of being 74, my wonderful grandfather passed away. My grandfather was an incredible man who touched so many people in his life, especially his wife, 9 children and 26 grandchildren. He never turned away an opportunity to share the love of Christ with the people that he met. He was such a loving and caring man, he had an extensive list of people that he prayed for daily without fail despite his pain. Even through the years of excruciating pain and several near-death experiences, he remained strong in his love for God and he was a beacon of love and truth for those around him. As a young girl, I would fiddle with my fingers during his morning devotions, aching to be running outside with my cousins. This was my reaction up until recently, in fact, as I wasn’t as focused on what truly mattered as I should have been. Now, however, I can look back fondly on those wonderful times when our whole family was gathered around his lazy-boy chair as he read from his worn and tattered bible or talked to us about salvation, taking the time to ask each and every one of the people gathered around him about their salvation. Now, I can appreciate all of the time and thought he put into ensuring that he never let his family forget that Christ died for us and he loved us. There are literally hundreds of questions I wish that I could ask and hundreds of things I wish I knew about him but I thank God that his pain is gone and he is now where he most wanted to be, in heaven. Right now I can’t imagine a time when his memory cause my eyes to burn with tears but with those tears comes the knowledge that he is finally free and that one day, I will be able to see his beautiful smile and feel his strong arms envelope me once again. One day, I will be able to look him in the eyes and thank him for showing me the love of Christ every time I saw him. One day, I will be able to show him that his sacrifices were not in vain and that the years he spent teaching me were worth it. Even as I lay to rest the dream that he would be one of many in the crowd of faces smiling on my wedding day, or the dream of handing him my newborn child, I smile because I know that he will never be forgotten. He will live on forever in the hearts and minds of all those he touched.
Our family’s been designing, building, and remodeling houses since 2003. Todd and I have decided to join the Tiny House movement ourselves so we can be a product of our product. Since both our girls have flown the nest and we have just Andrew, it’s a perfect time for a new adventure! I have this romantic idea of a little house on the prairie lifestyle with me and my man raising (they grow so fast!) Time is the most precious gift we can give them. golf outings, travel together, spend more time with our daughters and family! We are excited to help others create options for themselves as well!
Our next big undertaking is creating an entire Tiny House Wellness Village in the hill country. It will be a strong community focused on total wellness for spirit, soul and body. A successful model like this can be duplicated world wide! That’s the legacy we strive for.
We recently sold the 2200 sf home our family remodeled together the last 3 years. We transformed her from the ugly duckling to the darling of the neighborhood. In the fall of 2016, we became mesmerized by the romantic tiny house movement and the idea of simplicity, freedom, and adventure! My friends would have voted me least likely to convert, however, when our two girls went off to college, I looked at my husband and said, “WHY NOT NOW?”
In an effort to try and win at the game of montage debt, we bought a fixer-upper, and did all the work ourselves, teaching our children to work alongside us every weekend and summer. But still, we had a mortgage that felt like a ball and chain around our necks dictating our future choices and keeping us from the lifestyle of freedom we knew we were meant to enjoy! When this life is over, how and who we invested our time in is really all that matters.
We spent the following summer with our 11-year-old son building our own 384 sf tiny home on wheels. Because of homeschool and a home-based business, we can live anywhere our tiny house takes us. Tiny House Living opens the door to DREAM BIGGER because time and money no longer dictate our lifestyle! We are mortgage free and lovin’ it!
Surely, it will be an epic journey of romantic adventures and whimsical minimalism.
WHAT MOTIVATES US?
MISSION
Helping people experience the joys of simple living and financial independence by building dream tiny homes.
VISION
Transform the landscape of the housing industry through tiny house villages duplicated world-wide so people can enjoy financial independence, joy-filled relationships, and peace of mind.
MOTTO
The joys of simple living
TAGLINE
Dreaming BIG in a tiny house
CULTURE
Provide security and joy in the chaos of life by embracing family and community while we build tiny houses and tiny villages to make the world a brighter place.
We all take great pains to make sure our clothes are clean and fresh, but, ironically, the very detergents that we use to make our clothes “clean” may actually be leaving them worse off than they were before we threw them in the wash. That’s because most commercial laundry detergents, the common brands you find at grocery stores, are loaded with potentially toxic chemicals that could harm you, your family and the environment.
Residues of these chemicals are left on your clothes and possibly absorbed by your skin and evaporated into the air where they could be breathed in.
A Typical Laundry Detergent
If you take a look at a bottle of laundry detergent, you’ll find that the ingredients are rather vague. One popular brand listed, for instance:
Cleaning agents (anionic and nonionic surfactants)
Buffering agent
Stabilizer
Brightening agent
Fragrance
From this list, it’s hard to tell what, exactly, is even in the detergent, so we broke down some of the more common laundry ingredients out there.
Linear alkyl sodium sulfonates (LAS): These synthetic surfactants are commonly listed as ‘anionic surfactants’ on labels, and are one of the most common surfactants in use. During their production process, carcinogenic and reproductive toxins such as benzene are released into the environment. They also biodegrade slowly, making them a hazard in the environment.
Petroleum distillates (aka napthas): These chemicals have been linked to cancer, lung damage, lung inflammation and damage to mucous membranes.
Phenols: According to the National Institutes of Health, phenol is toxic and people who are hypersensitive to it could experience death or serious side effects at very low exposures. Plus, it is rapidly absorbed and can cause toxicity throughout the entire body. Typically, death and severe toxicity result from phenol’s effects on the central nervous system, heart, blood vessels, lungs and kidneys.
One common surfactant in U.S. laundry detergents is nonyl phenol ethoxylate (this chemical has been banned in Europe, and was found to slowly biodegrade into even more toxic compounds). Studies have found that this surfactant stimulates the growth of breast cancer cells and feminizes male fish.
Optical brighteners: These synthetic chemicals convert UV light wavelengths into visible light, which makes laundered clothes appear whiter (although does not actually affect the cleanliness of the clothing). They’ve been found to be toxic to fish and to cause bacterial mutations. Further, they can cause allergic reactions when exposed to skin that is later exposed to sunlight.
Phosphates: These chemicals are used to remove hard-water minerals to make detergents more effective, and to prevent dirt from settling back onto clothes during a wash. A major problem with them is that, when released into the environment, they stimulate the growth of certain marine plants, which contributes to unbalanced ecosystems. Many states have banned or restricted the use of phosphates for this reason, and you may see laundry detergents advertised as “low-phosphate” or “phosphate-free.”
Sodium hypochlorite (household bleach): This is a chemical precursor to chlorine, which is highly toxic and involved in more household poisonings than any other chemical. When it reacts with organic materials in the environment, carcinogenic and toxic compounds are created than can cause reproductive, endocrine and immune system disorders.
EDTA (ethylene-diamino-tetra-acetate): EDTA is a class of compounds used as an alternative to phosphates to reduce mineral hardness in water, prevent bleaching agents from becoming active before they’re put in water and as a foaming stabilizer. EDTA does not biodegrade readily and can re-dissolve toxic heavy metals in the environment, allowing them to re-enter the food chain.
Artificial fragrances: Many of these can be made from petroleum (see petroleum distillates above), and do not degrade in the environment. They’ve been linked to various toxic effects on fish and mammals, and often cause allergies and skin and eye irritation.
This story was featured in March 2010 Leadership in Action Magazine! We received a Delivering Wellness Award from our company this month for having one of top 8 businesses in the world powered by Oligo!
Shari Snyder is so convinced about the power of Oligo that she encourages all of her potential customers to try the vitamins powered by Oligo.
“I am so confident they will see a difference and love Oligo that I want them to try it immediately,” Shari says. “We feel Oligo is the core foundation of the products and our business.”
If people aren’t taking the vitamins powered by Oligo they are just wasting their money, and Shari has noticed that nine times out of 10, the customers will switch when they try it. “I lay it out on the table,” she says. “I feel very strongly about Oligo not only because we have the science to back it up, but because of my own story:
“I was tired all the time. I had to take a nap every day just to keep up with my kids. Six weeks after I started taking the Vitamins, I had more energy to play with my kids and six months later, my husband noticed I was happier and less stressed. I went from needing 10 hrs of sleep a night to eight and didn’t need a nap during the day!”
After seeing a huge difference in her last pregnancy and delivery of her son, Shari is convinced Oligo is the only way to go. “I had a better pregnancy and labor when I was taking Oligo than I did with my two daughters,” she says. “Even my midwife noticed a difference.”
Since joining this company 7 years ago, not one of our 5 family members has been to the doctors for sickness; that is nothing short of amazing and has saved us a TON of money esp. since we don’t have health insurance!
And it’s not just Shari noticing improvement in her health. “My organization (currently over 1100 customers) uses Oligo, and they have their own success stories to share,” she says. “My whole organization is doing an outstanding job in their posture with Oligo. Our retention rate has jumped from 94% to 97.38% since Oligo was introduced. We want to share it with everyone! We’re just enjoying being healthy and encouraging everyone to take the 90-Day Challenge. You have nothing to lose!”
Do you ever feel overwhelmed? Then you can relate to my 4 yr old son today. His playmate came over and their idea of fun was to take every book off the shelf, every cd out of its case, every piece of clothing out of the drawers and pile it in the middle of the room. After his friend left, I discovered this and told him to go clean it. He said, “I can’t; It’s too much!” I made him recite this verse he’s been learning: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me”. It came out so wimpy, I said you sound like a mouse. Say it again, this time like a Lion. Well, this time he sounded like a little dog. “Again”, I said, “like a lion”. He did great and I could see the power of our words and the tone that makes us believe, truly believe! We broke up the room in small tasks. He first put all the books back by himself, I came in and praised him and gave him the next task and with a little help from his sister at the end, it was back in shape. Try it yourself, it’s very powerful to say that verse OUT LOUD when you feel overwhelmed! “I can do ALL things through Christ who strengthens me!”
