Roloffs Online

Kevin October 15th, 2009

Last weekend my family and I flew up to Portland to visit Roloff Farms. We lucked out with beautiful weather and some amazing scenery up in Portland this time of year. The mix of evergreens with splashes of red, gold, and orange from seasonal trees was quite the show from mother nature.

We spent almost the entire day Saturday (Oct 10th) at Roloff Farms. One thing that surprised me was just how close to the city of Portland the farm is. From watching the show, the surroundings seemed to indicate they were in a rural farm area … maybe an hour outside the city. However, the farm is actually only about 20 miles from downtown Portland. We were driving along the freeway, when the landscape switched pretty abruptly from urban to open fields and a more rural feeling. The Roloffs actually live in Helvetia, a suburb of Portland.

After reaching the farm, we all picked up a Roloff Farms sweatshirt or t-shirt from their gift shop. They were selling all sorts of stuff such as water bottles, key rings, Roloff Farms dirt in a jar, family pictures, coffee mugs, sweatshirts, t-shirts, Little People Big World DVD’s, Matt’s book “Against Tall Odds”, magnets, fleeces … all sorts of souvenirs!

We then bought a combo ticket to go on both rides for $10/person (it was $6 separate if you only wanted to go on one). One ride was a scenic tour of the entire farm, the other was a ride out to Western Town where we got to get off the trailer and tour the town for about 5 minutes. The one thought that kept coming back to me as we toured the property was just how nice everything looked. It was quite an amazing piece of land, and all of Matt’s projects, along with all the landscaping really made it something special. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t just a tad bit jealous by the time we left

The day we were there, a TLC crew was there filming the show. The topic? Matt organized a contest - a fort building competition between three teams of local kids. They were all building their forts as we toured the farm, and the cameras were rolling. You can see the crew in some of the pics we took.

We saw everyone in the family except Molly, who we were told by Papa and Honey (the grandparents) at Western Town that we had JUST missed her by 5 minutes - she had to cut out to attend a surprise birthday party. We actually met and got to talk with both Amy and Jeremy. Amy was super friendly, so was Jeremy. It actually surprised me a bit just how down to earth they all were. Jeremy had more than a few girls swooning over him.

All in all it was a very fun trip. The farm was everything we had hoped it would be, and more. If you’ve ever considered going, I’d highly recommend it. Our entire family loved it. Thanks Roloffs for letting us visit your farm

You can view the hundreds of pictures we took at the farm below. Enjoy!!

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• Farm Projects , Peggy , Jacob , Jeremy , Zach , Roloff Farms , Pics , Amy , Matt
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Kevin October 3rd, 2008

Viking Pools, who installed the new pool at the Roloff home, posted a portfolio of their work up on flickr. The photos are meant to showcase the pool, but a few of the pics show the new, remodeled home in the background. I’ve gotta say the new pool and home are beautiful, and flow together very nicely.

You can view the full album here, or view several of the photos that show the home below.

Congratulations Roloffs on a beautiful home!

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• Farm Projects , Pics , Roloff Farms
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Kevin October 29th, 2007

What can five days of round-the-clock work, and $75,000 get you? Well, in this case it got the Roloff Family a new hot tub and 16-by-40-foot heated pool. Virginia Beach-based The Pool Guyz Inc. flew out to Hillsborough and did the install, which will be featured on an episode of the show later this season.

Ric Reineke and The Pool Guyz Inc. made a big splash recently at Matt and Amy Roloff’s 34-acre farm, the setting for TLC reality show “Little People, Big World.”

Reineke, president of Virginia Beach-based The Pool Guyz, flew to Hillsborough, Ore., at the request of manufacturer Viking Pools to meet with the Roloffs.

Reineke was joined by Brent White, his vice president of operations, and installation team leader Nakia Shawha n to build the family of six an in-ground pool and spa.

The three men worked in 15-hour stretches alongside the Roloffs’ local electrician and masons an d TLC’s non-stop television film crew.

The team installed a hot tub and 16-by-40-foot heated pool in five days. The project was valued at $75,000.

“They were like a SWAT team, ” Matt Roloff said in a phone interview. “The most powerful part of the experience was their ability to step in at the last minute.”

His physician had prescribed more cardiovascular exercise, which can be difficult for Roloff, a little person who partly relies on mobility assistance from crutches and a scooter.

“Swimming is ideal,” he added. “I’ve increased my lung capacity in two short weeks (since the install). Now I’m swimming the entire length of the pool.”

The Roloffs left most of the design ideas to Reineke and his men. However, they did request customized steps with a shorter rise and plenty of patio room with low-texture, stamped concrete as opposed to the more dramatic, high-texture design that Reineke typically recommends.

Other custom touches included an automatic pool cover and fiber-optic-colored lighting.

Reineke assisted Roloff in incorporating boulders he’d collected into the surrounding landscape. That bonding experience, Reineke said, was one of the highlights.

“What a really, really cool family,” he said. “They’re hard workers and so appreciative. We got to hang out with them for the week, and we had a blast.”

The Pool Guyz, headquartered on Viking Driv e, builds about 130 pools in Hampton Roads each year. It s next cross-country venture takes place on the set of “Extreme Makeover, Home Edition” in Seattle.

Roloff was thrilled with the experience.

“We felt like we had the best in the world out there,” he said. “We’re loving the pool.”

He s aid it’s one thing the whole family gets together for these days.

The project will be featured this fall season, probably mid- to late-November, Roloff said. A schedule has not been set.

[Via HamptonRoads.com]

• Farm Projects , The Show , Roloffs In The Media
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