*I do not accept friend requests from people I have not met, and I do not respond to random messages with no information in them.*

Hello! I'm Jennie, and my partner Chantelle and I - along with our dog Stella and cat Salem - recently moved from the US to Ireland (though Chantelle is originally from Scotland). It's a relief to be back in Europe, and even more so to know that we'll be here long term. We're seeking more peace, slowness, and connection with the land. We dream of building a homestead that includes a garden to provide an abundance of fresh food, a flower farm to support the native insects and provide product for our floral design business, has a couple of children running around, has space for short and long term visitors, and so much more. We expect to be floating around without a home base for at least a few months, so it seemed like the perfect time to return to Couchsurfing for hosts or just local connections.

This account was originally just for Jennie when traveling with friends years ago (before Covid).

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Unfortunately we cannot host others at this time, though we are eager to begin as soon as possible.

Every member we've met from the Couchsurfing community has reminded me of the kindness and generosity that still exists in this world. Couchsurfing simply attracts the kind of people that we want to meet and the friends we want to have. We also love being able to see a new place through the eyes of locals, as it gives me a better feel for life in that area, rather than just the quick tourist experience.

I (Jennie) used Couchsurfing at least 10 times during the cross-country roadtrip with my friend and many more times while traveling Europe as a student. I hope it will continue to be a paramount piece of our ongoing travels.

Interests

• culture
• childrens rights
• gardening
• homesteading
• music
• outdoor activities
• camping
• teaching
• volunteering
• child development
• floral design
• trauma healing

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: Sammy Rae and the Friends, Julien Baker, Norah Jones, Lady Lamb, Lake Street Dive
Movies/TV: Dumplin, Gilmore Girls, Grey's Anatomy

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

We decided to move from North Carolina to Ireland and made it happen in less than 90 days!

Teach, Learn, Share

We're always learning! We're particularly eager to learn more skills for building our homestead - construction, preparing the land, maybe raising some animals, sewing and upholstery, running a farmstand, and so much more. We also want to deepen our spiritual connections to the land and people around us through somatic experiences, music, women's circles, energy healing, and plant medicine.

We can teach all about dried flowers, from which kinds dry best, to how to work with them to create wedding florals, weaving wreath bases, etc. Jennie's expertise is in the early childhood years with particular interests and experience around emotional regulation, play-based movement and music, and babywearing.

We're eager to learn what we can from every interaction, but we value fact-based information and we believe in the merits and authority of science.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Conversation, curiosity, and understanding. Trustworthy helping hands, whether that's in the garden, cleaning the house, minding children, etc. We can also contribute to cooking.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, England, France, Germany, Ireland, Norway, Poland, Scotland, Spain, Sweden

Countries I’ve Lived In

Denmark, Ireland, Netherlands, Scotland, United States