This press release is submitted and shown here in its original form, unedited by Countryliving.com.
Even though Houston, Texas, is known for its sprawl, when you’re a seventh- generation Houstonian like Courtney Robertson, you need more land—for parties, holidays, family reunions, skeet shoots—than big-city limits will allow. So, six years ago, the residential real estate agent, wife, and mom to eighth-generation Texans Ellie (8) and Robbie (10) began her hunt for a large plot of land in the teensy town of Bellville (population 4,236), located a “weekend doable” 90 minutes away. “I knew if I bought land any farther, no one would bother leaving home to use it,” says Courtney. After looking at plenty of no-gos—think properties littered with oil rigs and power lines—she and husband James finally laid eyes on 120 lush acres with built-in trails, a perch-stocked lake, and ample room to build a farmhouse (okay, family compound) that could comfortably sleep 27 (!), yet feel casual and welcoming enough to foster familial bonding. “We didn’t want the scale to make things stuffy. It’s about having fun,” says Courtney.
