One Family Embraces Life, Love and Work Down on the Farm

Sherri Mahoney-Battles and her husband Bill Battles had often talked about selling their home on Cape Cod one day, maybe after their daughters had graduated high school and were out of the house, or perhaps when they were getting ready to retire. But when the family saw an expansive, albeit imperfect lot in Westport eight years ago, they quickly agreed this is where they wanted to be.

“We had just a half acre lot on the Cape where we lived, and drove through Westport and our daughters wanted to move now,” Sherri laughs. “I was surprised because one was in high school and the other was in middle school at the time.” The girls weren’t just thinking about themselves though. Both equine enthusiasts, each had a horse they loved but that also had to be boarded because their property on Cape Cod didn’t offer enough room for the horses to roam. “And boarding the horses was a real expense,” explains Sherri.

Though the 25 acres were plentiful and private, they were also in disarray. “It was a gravel pit,” Sherri puts simply. “It was gravel and stumps and debris, and they were all like ‘We can do this! We can do this!’” She was skeptical, but onboard. “Through the first five years, we were still clearing the land. It took a long time,” she says. But it was worth it, and they are proud of what Stone Pony Farm is today.

Bill and Sherri chose a modular home to best suit their needs. “There are a lot of advantages to modular homes. When you stick-build a house, you’re at the mercy of the elements,” she says. “You can’t do things because you get rained on, the snow.” Modular homes are built in a factory, impervious to the elements, and building crews can stay on schedule. “And everything is even tighter because it has to travel over the roads. They’re also super well insulated.” In fact, the family travelled to Canada together to tour the factory where their new home was being built. “It was really fun,” shares Sherri. She explains that while modular home models come standard, there are many ways to customize and enhance a home to make it your own. The couple put heavier plywood on the roof to protect the home from the elements, had a central vacuum installed and added recessed lights throughout. “In our case, we wanted a rough shell so we could do a lot of the stuff ourselves,” she says. “My husband is very particular. He wanted radiant heat and specific bathroom fixtures. We moved walls which let us do whatever we wanted.” Bill, who owns Village Plumbing in Westport, was able to do much of the work himself.

Both Bill and Sherri love to cook, so the couple created a kitchen that inspires them to pursue their passion, including top of the line appliances and an expansive island that measures 9’ long by 3’ wide that allows guests to comfortably gather while the Battles entertain. “It’s really big, so people can be all around while we’re chopping and cutting,” she says. This time of year, the wide open spaces are especially essential. “It’s really open, so when we have Thanksgiving, everyone is around the kitchen, and the living room is right there with the open plan.” Adopting a French Country aesthetic, the kitchen is awash in bold reds, blues and yellows. “I appreciate all white or monochromatic colors, but I would never want to come into a gray house. I work with numbers all day, so I like lively colors.” To that end, all of ceilings throughout the home are painted a light blue to create dimension. “In certain light you don’t even realize it,” she says about the subtle touch. “It’s called Polar Sky.”

Sherri, an Enrolled Agent who built her own tax services and accounting firm, Tax Matters, had originally planned to scale down her business after moving to Westport. She had an office in the home that served all of her needs. But in a twist of fate, her business grew, so the couple built a detached office building on the property. “It’s great. My commute is a walk across the driveway,” she says. She counts many of her clients as friends, and one in particular, an interior designer, was instrumental in helping Sherri pull together the home’s aesthetic. Because the couple loved the look of their Cape home, the interior designer suggested using some of same colors and wallpapers from the old house. It made the move easier and pieces that the couple had invested in being reupholstered were repurposed in new spaces. Some pieces were hand-sewn by Sherri as she patiently waited for the home to be completed, creating an entirely new look in a room. “We were living at a rental house for seven months collecting rugs and sewing curtains, and it made it a nice transition. I love decorating. I love seeing colors that work together and beautiful fabrics,” she says. “If I didn’t do accounting, I would be an interior designer.”

There’s another critical component on the property: the farm. Sherri and Bill had planned on building the barn within a year of the home being completed, but when one of their daughter’s horses had a foal much to the family’s surprise, they knew the barn project had to be completed right away. They bought and built the barn via a kit and erected the structure quickly so they could protect the young foal from predators and the elements. Today, the farm boasts two dogs, two horses, three goats, two cows, two sheep, guinea hens, heritage turkeys and chickens. “We have a menagerie out there,” Sherri says. “It’s one crazy family.”