The Jason and Gwen Dougherty Langley family see a fourth and final house in their future. They built their first DeQuincy home in 2001, the second in 2010, and the third, the house in which they now live, in 2014.

“We’re on a ten-year plan,” said Gwen Langley. “In twelve years, I’ll have 30 years in with the schoolboard and can retire.”

Her retirement will come a couple of years before her husband’s. Lest he forget, she reminds him often.

Next up home style for the couple: a barndominium.

A Barndominium is a Metal Building with inside living quarters. Barndominium homes are affordable, have very low maintenance, and are energy efficient.

They’re looking to the future she said, rural living that’s somewhat secluded, less square footage, yet plenty of room to create the perfect haven for visits from future grandchildren. Gwen’s already found a photo of what she wants.

The Langleys have been gradually downsizing acreage-wise. They started with ten acres and a traditional red brick house. They sold it and five acres, and they built the Mediterranean-style house on the remaining five acres. When a two-acre lot became available nearby, they purchased it and built a French Country style home.

Each time, they hire a builder to black in the house. From that point, Jason serves as contractor.

Jason Langley is the son of Kenneth R Langley of Sulphur and the late Eva ElDeen Langley. He grew up in Eunice. Gwen is the daughter of the late Sam and Bobbie Burke Dougharty of DeQuincy. People who know her parents might say inherited traits account for a home perfectly in order and clean to the point that it looks brand new.

She said her desire for clutter free living is probably due to living in an era different from the one in which her mother grew up and started housekeeping.

“My mother had lots of knick knacks and doilies, she said. “

Less decorative items make the Langley house easier to clean. Gwen also sayss the ceramic floor that looks exactly like hardwood is easier and faster to maintain than the previous house’s wood floors.

The family’s schedule doesn’t leave a lot of time for dusting knick knacks. Her husband works full time at Sasol. She considers him the real cook of the family. She works as a primary school assistant principal. The family is active in their church, The Pentecostal Church of DeQuincy.

Why build more than one home? Gwen said they enjoy the process. Her husband recently told her he walked into a house and the smell of fresh paint reminded him how much he enjoyed building anew. So, new house fever could be the culprit.

When the Langleys have moved, Gwen has started fresh, choosing new furnishings and décor. She sells décor and furnishings from the previous home. This time around, it was her husband’s choice to keep a large traditional rug from the second home. It was more of an investment than the couple usually make. The rug will always be the perfect size, color and style for any room in any house.

Colors for walls always work well together from room to room, even though the rooms aren’t all painted the same color. She favors the shades from in nature. She loves flea market finds, and especially enjoys the Canton Flea Market. She is not overly sentimental. She has keepsakes, but doesn’t display them. For instance, when her mother died, she saved the pink skirt her mother always wore when working in the yard. Singing in the Kitchen, a cookbook compiled by First Apostolic Church and dedicated to Gwen’s mother is displayed – and used – in the kitchen. On the day of the interview it is turned to the one dish the family always knew they would have for Christmas: Bobbie Dougharty’s recipe for Broccoli Casserole.

Building each house provided certain lessons for maintaining the same quality at a cost savings in the next house. Jason and Gwen took on the landscaping in their last two homes. They are proficient do-it-yourselfers. Each headboard in the new home is their handiwork. Jason crafted the sheet metal shelving in his son’s room. He also built the wrought iron fence around the pool and the decorative ironwork on the front of the home.

Jason and Gwen prefer closet built-ins to dressers and chests in the bedrooms. They continue to appreciate the carpentry of Allen Siglar for cabinet work throughout the house. They learned about tiling and flooring from Stacie St. Amant of Sulphur Flooring & Design. Lana Bodin of Moss Bluff drafted the house plans.

The Langley children miss the features of the pool at their previous home. Gwen likes the open floor plan she has now because she enjoys having people over, but she admits she misses some of the dedicated spaces she enjoyed in the last house.

The Langley’s three houses are all nearby the Calcasieu/Beauregard parish line in Beauregard parish. It is a rural; however, many homes have been constructed in the area since 2001, when the Langleys built their first.

Gwen said she remembers her husband commenting on the ease of the building process in Beauregard parish, especially in regard to permits. She thinks the area is popular because it is “rural yet provides homeowners with the subdivision feel,” she said.

Each house feels like home to the Langleys. “Home is the memories that you make and the presence that others feel when they come in the door,” she said. “A home is more than just walls.”

The current Langley home is located on Cooper Road in DeQuincy in Beauregard Parish. (Rita LeBleu / American Press)