Single mom couldn't afford to buy a house—so she built one herself watching YouTube tutorials

While one often comes across inspiring stories every day, some instantly touch your heart and leave a lasting impression. One such story is of Cara Brookins and her four kids, who built a house for themselves from scratch. Brookins was dealing with domestic abuse along with her four children, Hope, Drew, Jada, and Roman, who were aged from 2 to 17 at that time, as per TODAY. This was when she decided to take the bold decision of leaving the abusive relationship and building a new life. 

She talked about the negative impact of the relationship on herself and the kids, "We lost the ability to laugh together. We had spent so long being beaten down." One day, as she was driving her children to a cabin in the Ozark Mountains during the Thanksgiving weekend of 2007, she came across a house completely destroyed by a tornado. An idea then popped into her mind, "I stopped and got out to look at it, and could see inside the walls. I thought, 'I bet I could put this back up if I really tried.'" This idea soon turned into a plan as the children joined in and even "started drawing floor plans on little notepads." The new beginning, while not easy, had finally started as she proceeded to get a construction loan for the house. 

With a full-time job and the bank's condition to finish their house project within nine months, Brookins knew she had taken up a challenge, but there was no looking back now. "We knew it was going to be hard," said the single mother. While the loan only covered the supply expenses, Brookins and her children had to take care of everything else on their own, which meant learning through YouTube tutorials. From the most basic 'how to build a foundation' to checking for various fittings, they taught themselves the skills needed to build their new house and life. Brookins also shared that due to the lack of regular internet access and smartphones, they had to watch the tutorials the night before. "There was a lot of ‘Do you remember how to…?’ the next day," she shared. 

Brookins further talked about the most difficult part of building the house, which was the foundation. "We were so weak then. We were carrying around these blocks and slugging through mud. We didn’t have proper work boots, so we put plastic bags on our feet with old tennis shoes. We were completely unprepared." However, the tough times only brought the family together, Brookins shared, "We gained muscle. We gained confidence. We learned how to laugh. We learned how to communicate." She continued that while they built the whole house, they left a few things to professionals like electrical and HVAC work. Once the 3,500-square-foot house was completed, they lovingly named it "Inkwell Manor."

The new house also featured a beautiful French country decor and items passed down from Brookin's parents and grandparents, giving the house a more cozy and personal touch. She shared, "I kept hearing advice, like ‘just get out of bed, just make a pot of coffee.’ If my goal is only to get out of bed, I’d never accomplish anything." This thought is exactly what kept her going through the tough times. “Set goals impossibly big — look at the big picture," she added.