OUR STORY
The Dieffenbach Family
Michael & Jessica
"The Sugarplums"
Dwellings Farms began with a love story in Farmville, Virginia, where Michael attended Hampden-Sydney College and I (Jessica) attended Longwood University. As tradition would have it, the HSC boy married the LU girl. After getting married in 2014, “The Sugarplums”, a nickname that has stayed with us since our dating years, moved to Michael’s hometown of Virginia Beach.
Having grown up in Moseley, Virginia, a rural area outside of Richmond, I wasn’t quite accustomed to city life in Virginia Beach. As a compromise, we planted our roots in the Pungo area, where we found the perfect balance between country living and coastal life.
In 2016, we welcomed our first son, Michael Wayne, and around the same time we stepped into the real estate industry. Michael became a home builder, while I became a Real Estate Agent with Keller Williams Town Center in Virginia Beach and a home staging professional. Because of our work in real estate, we were constantly searching for land and opportunities. One day, while Michael Wayne was asleep in the car and I wasn’t quite ready to head home to toddler duty, we decided to drive around a little longer. That drive led us to what would be the first property of Dwellings Farms, now known as The Barn on Baum Rd.. The moment I saw it, I knew this was where I wanted to raise our family.
We purchased the property in 2017 and slowly began clearing the land and building the dream we had envisioned; a barn and pastures for our farm critters. Our second son, Thomas, joined the family in 2018, and our third son arrived in 2020. Along the way, we also added chickens, goats, cows, and pigs to our growing crew.
As our family grew, so did our vision. In 2021, we acquired waterfront farmland less than a mile away on Ansell Road, known as Ansell Acres, and together the properties became what is now known as Dwellings Farms. Since then, we have continued expanding, adding farmland throughout southern Virginia Beach and Chesapeake. Preserving and protecting agricultural land and fostering responsible development has become one of our greatest passions, and today we have acquired approximately 100 additional acres devoted to the cultivation of crops and the future of farming in our community.
We are proud to support and collaborate with local farmers by leasing portions of our farmland for agricultural use, helping keep farming active and thriving in our area. Over time, we also began receiving requests from people who wanted to enjoy the beauty of the farm for gatherings, celebrations, and unique outdoor experiences. As a result, we obtained Conditional Use Permits to host events at The Barn on Baum and Ansell Acres, allowing us to thoughtfully expand into agritourism while preserving the character and purpose of the land.
Today, Dwellings Farms is a place where people can slow down, reconnect, and enjoy simple moments, whether that means farming, working, celebrating, riding trails, tending to animals, sharing pizza nights on the porch, or enjoying a picnic under the open sky. There is something truly special about this place, and it has a way of putting a smile on your face.
That is why we decided to open Dwellings Farms to others. We love this land deeply, and we hope everyone who visits will love it just as much as we do.