Our Background
In 2009 we moved from an apartment in a small city to a 7 acre property in a rural part of the county where I work as a paramedic. Originally we were just wanting to get out in the country and one day possibly have a horse or two. As we continued enjoying our new property, slowly cleaning it up and reclaiming a lot of overgrown areas, we started developing an interest in living a more sustainable lifestyle. Our interests grew from just simply having horses to having cattle, goats, chickens, a garden, and possibly a dairy cow. With my wife being a stay-at-home mom, who is busy homeschooling our two children, and only having one income we decided that we wanted our farmstead to grow and become more self-supporting.
We are taking it one day at a time and easing into expanding our farmstead. We currently have a herd of goats, two pigs, and trio of breeding rabbits, and a flock of chickens with many more to come.
We also have 5 large guard dogs and a small herd (or clowder if you are of a technical bent) of barn cats to round out our little farm family.
We hope to continue adding animals and growing various sources of income to make our farmstead more self-supporting. We sell eggs locally for consumption as well as hatching eggs from our mixed flock of Lavender Orpingtons and various Easter Egger crosses. We are working on building a sustainable garden with raised beds due to poor soil conditions where we are and we hope to add a root cellar at some point in the future as well to help preserve our harvest. We have a small greenhouse which we built completely from recycled materials that we gathered until we had enough to build the greenhouse.
The Current Blog Format – We are not currently following a specific format due to seasonal workload but when we do, it closely fits the list below.
Manna Monday’s – On Monday’s we share a scripture that we feel God has led us to share. Manna Monday’s are as much for us as for others but we share them because we felt led to do so. We believe that everyone is at a different point in their own spiritual lives and so the things that touch us may just be what you need to hear as well at that point in your life. Here is the story behind Manna Monday’s.
Original Posts – On Wednesday’s we publish our original posts. We cover a wide range of topics from building structures, to gardening, to animals and animal care. There are so many aspects to homesteading that we can’t possibly cover them all, but you can be assured that if it is something we are doing or trying we will share it with you. Including the good, bad, and the ugly.
Recipes – When we try new recipes around the house and we find them particularly tasty we share those recipes with you on Thursday’s. This isn’t a regular segment like our others but is shared just when we find a new recipe we think you might enjoy.
How to Follow Us
We post regularly to various social media including Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Google +, and Instagram. You can find us on social media by clicking on the various social media icons at the top of the right hand column on any page on the blog. You will find the sign up for our e-mail newsletter right below that. Our newsletter contains summaries and links for all of that week’s blog posts (during regular posting times) so that you don’t miss anything. If you find an article on our site that you would like to share to any of the various social media outlets all you have to do is click on one of the silver icons above the posts and you can share the article with the world which we appreciate greatly as this helps us to grow as well. We promise not to spam you and only use our mailing list to share our content and content we think you will find especially helpful.
Our Purpose
We are sharing our journey with others in the hope that they will be inspired to undertake their own journey of self-sufficiency. We would love to hear from you and we always find others experiences, tips, and suggestions helpful and insightful. We hope you enjoy the things you find here and please share us with friends, family, and like-minded individuals. Thanks for coming along for the ride!