The Simpler Life

I read this quote today, "Going back to a simpler life is not a step backward" by Yvon Chouinard. I loved it! Why do most people think simple is poorer, backwards, or ignorance? I live in a double wide, it needs a lot of work , we recently had a roof put on it, and I have a lot more I need to do , but it is paid for, I do not have a house payment over my head, it suits my needs! The money I save from that can be put to better use , like getting my Nigerian Dwarf Goats, fencing, fruit trees, canning supplies,etc! Simpler to me means less stress, healthier food, and less dependency on government, grocery stores, and other modern convenience items!  I enjoy the satisfaction of growing my own fruits and vegetables, making my own bread and wine, gathering eggs, eating our own farm raised  chickens, and sweetening things with our own honey. Soon, I hope to add our own goat milk and cheeses and bath soaps, and we are going to try our hand at making our own dish-washing and laundry soap! To me, that's not backwards, its smart! Depending on our own resources is an intelligent choice!It gives you such a feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction! If you had asked me about all this several years ago, I would have thought you were crazy, and I would have probably laughed. But I am not the same person I was then, I have gone through my life always depending on someone else to handle things, from my mother and father, to my husband. When things did not go as planned, I could always blame them, or at least know it was not my fault! However, that is just wrong, on so many levels..lol. Now, I make my own path, I am responsible for me, my decisions and my choices. Well, for me that means, being a lot more self reliant and simple! Have a great day!

List!

I always seem to have a list going, a list for what I need at the store, a list for what I have to accomplish in the upcoming week, a list of  appointments or places I need to be. I am always consulting them , marking stuff off , adding to them , and when I do not get everything done, I get frustrated! At the present time I have a list of important June dates coming up, a friends birthday party, Father's day, Dad's birthday, feeding the homeless, and my daughter and grandchildren coming down. I have a list of things I need to accomplish before each of these dates, and errands that  need to be run . I also am working 6 days a week for 3 of the 4 weeks this month. It seems every time I get to mark something off , I think of 3 more things to add!I get frustrated when at the end of the day, I did not get all of it done. My kids say, I try to do too much, that I should take a day to relax, and rest, but when  I try, I feel like I am wasting time. If the list are not completely empty , then I do not need to relax, but the bad thing is , lets face it, the list will NEVER be empty! So does that mean I never get to relax? That would be crazy, so why can't I just chill sometimes? I do not think of myself as anywhere near a perfectionist, but really feel like I have to get this done! Is anyone else like this? So what is the solution? Is it really important to have everything just perfect? I am not sure, but I do know we all need to relax and regroup, and sooner or later if we do not do it on our own, circumstances will see that we do! So , my new goal is to try to relax, try to not get all upset when that list is not completely finished, to try not to drive the kids crazy, with my list and things I need to do! Will it work? I am not sure, but here is to trying!

So, What's your Passion?

 We all have a passion , something you love to talk about, learn about and do! I think our passion is a gift from God. A way to use our knowledge,talents and ideas to help others. I have a sister whose passion is exercise and being fit. She lost a lot of weight, learned about exercise and your health and became a personal trainer! Now she teaches others in a variety of classes. I have a good friend whose passion is helping the homeless. She has helped hundreds of people, feeding them, giving out blankets, helping them get jobs and and a place to live and furnishing their homes. She does so many things and she is always thinking of new ways to help. Her passion has led to establishing and leading  a nonprofit to make a difference! My daughter's passion is cooking and baking, she is always trying new recipes, and baking goodies for others. She loves making others feel good and smile by making a treat or new dish, and the love she puts in to it shows in the taste!For me my passion is homesteading, getting back to the basics, growing and raising our own food and doing what we can to cut dependency on anything but ourselves. I love knowing exactly what goes in to what we use  and eat. I love sharing our bounty with others , and sometimes talking a little too much on the "evils" of commercialized food!I think its awesome we all are passionate about different things, we can learn from each other, and help each other out. So if you are drawn to something,if you have a strong interest in learning something, or an urge to try something new and a little out of your comfort zone..give it a shot, it may be the best thing you ever did! So, I ask you,   what's YOUR passion?

Canning Summer's Bounty

I love this time of year, I know I have said it before , but I really really do! I love growing our own food and preserving it , so we have that fresh taste in the middle of winter.I think canning your own food was a dying art, but it seems it is slowly making a come back! I see more and more folks doing it, and more and more canning items for sell in the stores! There is no comparison  between what we put up, to what we buy at the store!

I always make home made vegetable soup in the fall and winter, hands down it is a favorite of my entire family. It has a little kick to it and it really is good , I learned it from my mother, and made a few changes to make it my own, but on a cold winters day it hits the spot! This year my goal, is to make it with all my own stuff, to use what I have grown or canned myself to make the soup and can it for winter! I want to use our own herbs, and tomatoes and all the veggies, I cannot imagine how much better it will be!It is so convenient too, just pop open a can on a cold snowy day, and it taste like you cooked all day!This is one of those go to meals like I talked about in a previous blog.."Convenience or not?" No need to run out to the store or out to eat, its right there on the shelf! It is so much better for you too, all natural ingredients! 

                                              This past weekend we put up  strawberries, we made strawberry jam,strawberry syrup and strawberry pie filling! To be honest , I am a little tired of seeing strawberries! But , to break out a jar  of my pie filling in November or December , and make a fresh pie.. it will taste like spring!Do you do your own canning? Have you ever wanted to give it a try? Believe me when I tell you I promise it is worth it , and not hard like you might think! You may be surprised at how much better it taste!

Supper from our backyard!

Supper tonight was awesome! We ate chicken, broccoli and rice casserole, green beans and bread. For dessert we ate apple turnovers. It felt great to  see the fruits of all our hard work. The chicken was the chicken that we raised, killed and processed ourselves. We used the first batch of broccoli from our garden and the green beans and apple pie filling we canned the year before. 
This was the first meal that we have had where over half of the meal was grown, raised and processed ourselves. It felt great to see all of our hard work pay off in a delicious meal. This motivates me to soon have a meal where 100% is grown or processed ourselves. After the meal tonight, I can really see that it is an attainable goal. Everything tasted so fresh and delicious.
I loved knowing exactly where the food came from (our backyard!!) and what the chicken was feed and that nothing was sprayed on the vegetables and that they are non-GMO foods. Food cannot get any fresher that that! The best way to know what exactly you are putting in your body is to do it yourself.  At the grocery store there are so many hidden ingredients in foods that are bad for you or foods that are genetically modified that most people have no idea what goes into their bodies. It would be great to know that when the next news article comes out about some food that is contaminated with e coli, or salmonella that I wont have to worry about getting sick. 
We also canned homemade strawberry syrup with strawberries we bought from a local farmer. When we cannot grow enough food to can, it feels good knowing that we can support local farmers and the fruit was picked that day at the field beside the vegetable stand we buy it from! Our goal is to produce everything ourselves, yet until that happens, we love to support local farmers. We do not want to go to the grocery store for anything other than basics like toilet paper.Tonight was a big step in our goal , it proved to us it is possible! 

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Convenience or not?

 I am sure most of you eat burgers...so a question..which is better, say a McDonald's cheeseburger or one you hand patty out and grill yourself? Taking a guess here, that most of you will say the one's you do at home. To me, the taste is so much better , not to mention the nutrition. I think that goes for almost everything , and it amuses me a bit that a lot people give me a strange look when I tell them I am striving for self sufficiency. People comment, "wow, isn't that a lot of trouble?" or " why would you do that, you can get everything you need from the grocery store!" Shopping at the store is so expensive now, and a lot of the stuff, even the fruits and veggies come from other countries. I want to know where my food comes from , what is in it, and how old it is. It is so rewarding to take one of your own raised  chickens, and  bake it in the oven, go out to garden and pick your own peas, or dig up your potatoes and cook then along with a fresh baked slice of your own  bread! The taste does not even compare.. its so much better, and yes it is more work , but so worth it. Even on days I am in a hurry , I go to my home canned goods, to make a quick meal, I still have a long way to go , but with what I save growing and raising  my own, I can afford to buy the locally raised grass fed beef and such. I love going to the store and totally passing by  most of the departments , to just pick up , a few key things..It is like a game to see what I can make and get on my own, or locally  buy. .. I cannot wait until my goats are here and in milk! Fresh cheese, butter, milk and such is another thing I can do myself! So what do you do on your own , do you think it is worth the extra work? You can now leave a comment and not be signed in , so please drop a quick note and let me know your thoughts!

Hey, What's that?"

Last week end we all went to the "Got to be NC" festival in Raleigh. We had a great time , looking around, sampling local food and seeing the farm animals. We met a farmer who raised dairy goats and had a very informative chat!Overall,it was well worth the trip, however one thing disturbed me a great deal. As we were looking at a cow with her baby, a small boy was there also with his parents. This young boy was probably about 5 years old. He looked at the cow , then his dad and said " Hey, what is that?? " I could not believe my ears , this child looked baffled and had no clue what a cow was! I found that so hard to believe and very sad. To many children, and some adults, do not even think about where the food they eat comes from! They go to the store and pick up veggies,milk and eggs.. and don't consider anything but the convenience of it all.I am not preaching here, I just feel we need to get back to some basics, like being able to identify a cow! We need to think of the people who raise and grow our food , and the labor and love that goes into it. I am very thankful  that , while I will never have a full scale farm , I do have my little hobby farm , with chickens and goats and bees ! That my grandchildren will see where their food comes from , how it all works and hopefully  develop an appreciation for the people who work hard to grow it  and the animals too! Just some thoughts.. 

An Experiment

I have a question...look in your kitchen,your refrigerator, pantry,etc. How much of your food is fresh, unprocessed..how much of it do you know exactly where it came from? what is in it? Does it concern you? Does food have to be processed and laden with preservatives to be "convenient"? I have been thinking of that a lot lately. To eat fresh local food takes planning,To put a meal on the table without having to be in the kitchen all evening after work, takes some doing if you are doing it from scratch..Is it a trade off? Do you have to choose one or the other? I know we have been doing a lot better incorporating  fresh foods in our diet , but I also know we eat out way to much! When its been a long day..like today.. if I have not planned ahead of time , it is so much easier to go grab something..and lets face it.. that's no better . than the pop in the microwave meal..or the canned soup that's loaded with salt..So I wonder .. can we actually go a significant period of time not going out to eat , not eating the quick stuff.. and still not be in the kitchen all evening and exhausted..We have done so much better.. but I want to try this.. I would love to hear your thoughts and comments. Just some thoughts....

Reaching Our Dreams

 It started out as a pipe dream! Wishful thinking, living off the land ,of running a farm, and being far less dependent on others for necessities, Day by day,and with hard work and a lot of planning we are getting there. This will be a blog of whats going on. We chose the name "Simply Our Farm,  because of our small hobby farm! We will be raising Nigerian Dwarf Goats (milk) and bees (honey).. Along with these we have chickens for meat and eggs, fruit trees,and  we grow our own veggies and herbs!We bake our own bread and other goodies , and have cut down a lot on processed ,chemical laden convenience foods., We have majorly cut down on fast foods, except for an occasional biscuit we have not eaten fast food since the middle of December! We also did away with our microwave in January and really do not miss it, We want to return to a simpler way of life,Let's see how it goes!
Today we have embarked on a new experiment! We are trying our hand at homemade strawberry wine and mead! We are really excited  and cannot wait to see how it turns out. This week will also be a busy one , we will be making strawberry jam on Monday, We have spinach, lettuce and broccoli to pick ,we need to have a bread baking day and we have to get started on our goat fence for our new babies! Thankfully I only work 4 days this week and then am off 5 days, but I have a feeling I will still be working..lol This blog will just be a way to put down our thoughts and feelings, our successes and our failures, Although I am not a writer per say come along and see how it goes! We would love to have your thoughts and comments on our journey, Until next time...

Our red Nigerian Dwarf ..can't wait until we bring her home!

Our bees

Our first batch of honey from the bees!

Our greenhouse

Our Chickens, actually just a few of them!