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Maddie
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| Posted: Oct 18 2006 at 8:33pm | IP Logged
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Dawnie wrote:
Seriously, how do those of you who are homesteading fit everything in?? Do you just let some things go? Do you only sleep 5 or 6 hours a night? How did Ma Ingalls have time to sew and knit in the afternoons??
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Well, we're still novice homesteaders, (dh still has to work outside the home, we are praying for a miracle to bring him home full-time-I'd gladly give up most comforts to have him be home while our children are still at home, anyway...)
I think caring for animals is so much easier when you have older children who are enthusiastic about it. My oldest 3 do most of the chores and I inspect periodically. The biggest problem is when I have to remind them to pick up the pace as they always find something interesting to do in the barn other than their chores. 
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Kelly
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| Posted: Oct 18 2006 at 9:18pm | IP Logged
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Oh yes, I'm definitely a homesteader at heart, always yearning to build a Root Cellar or an Ice House (a la Monticello), and raise chickens and so on. Now, have I done those things yet? Well, no  , but I read the books avidly and long to make a go of it.  We actually have a family wheat farm in Nebraska that was homesteaded by my great-grandfather---the farm is still in the family, still being worked by one of my brothers and a tenant farmer. My brothers all grew up going out to Nebraska (from Florida!) to work the harvest---a very exciting time! I really want my dc to have such experiences, but have to realize our limitations: a dh who just doesn't have time to indulge such a fancy as he's out working to pay the bills. That being said, I think he really harbors a deep yearning for such things, too, and our baby-steps in that directions are precisely threefold: I grind my own wheat and bake our own bread; we sporadically keep more and more ambitious gardens (about to graduate from earth boxes to a Real Garden); and my dh, on a whim, blew his nestegg and bought a 200 acre farm where we buy and sell horses.
This step has involved a huge change in our lives, albeit a positive one, though it leaves zero free time. Our days essentially include homeschooling in the morning, and doing the horsey thing in the early afternoon. We have "working students" who live at or near the farm and help run the place---I don't think we could pull it off without the help-it is a huge time committment, even with the blessing of adequate financing AND helpers! That being said, the pros are great: the comment about the teepee outside your kitchen really strikes a chord-having that room to run definitely fosters a creative spark in the children and is a wonderful blessing. One of my dc has a great desire to be a blacksmith and is constantly after me to "build a forge" !  In the meantime, he and his sisters have created all manner of forts and build benches and tables and have a marvelous time. All the dc help out around the barn, but we don't have a regular chore schedule (and boy do we need one!) But where do the hours go? There's hardly time to sit down and MAKE a schedule, and we're so busy, who has time to KEEP a schedule!?! Every day there's something different going on. The one constant is that I try to hs in the am. Hsing in the morning seems to be the only way to go, but there are times when I simply can't get it all done and get out to the barn. To make it all even more difficult, we don't live on the farm...yet...and we have to drive about 25 minutes each way. Aaagh.
All this is a really long way of saying, yes, yes, YES-love the homestead mentality, love pecking away at achieving such a lifestyle, and am ultra-frustrated at how difficult a farming lifestyle and self-sufficiency on even a SMALL scale is to achieve, especially on a part-time basis! It's sort of like homeschooling---I like to have as much overlap in our subjects as possible, a la unit study style, do it all at once-likewise I'd ideally like our wannabe farm lifestyle to incorporate our curriculum-teach and do the horse/farm thing all at once, does that make sense? If that could be achieved, I suspect things would be less frenetic. Until then (or until we cut loose completely and follow Theresa to Alaska ) I'm...
Kelly, Runnin' on Empty (but loving the process) in FL
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chicken lady
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| Posted: Oct 19 2006 at 9:24am | IP Logged
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We live on a hobby farm, and I think it is wonderful. Dh has to work, and we try to homestead, however I find that our culture is so anti this life style it takes a long time to get back to nature and this type of living. I am finding, like most things you can't have it all, it is either the luxuries of town living ie quick trip to the store, library, or the lifestyle of homesteading. I think the problem lies in the attempt to have modern busyness and the slow pace of farming. Although we are not attempting a "farm", we are raising fiber animals, and our dc have their keeping as part of their "school" days. If I can use "school" in reference to our lifestyle For us tending to the chickens, ducks, and goats is a major part of our day. not to mention the bread making, and canning. It is soooooo rewarding though, when last week we took a meal to a new mom and my girls told her how most of the meal came from our land (chicken, and veggies) we were met with such admiration, the girls beamed all the way home. They are planning how we can do "more" of growing our own food.
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lapazfarm
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| Posted: Oct 19 2006 at 9:44am | IP Logged
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I think the main benefit of a homesteading lifestyle is the intimate connection to the natural world. In order to be a farmer, whether one has the attitude of working "in concert" with the land or "subduing" it, one has to be very familiar with it-cycles of weather and seasons, soil nutrients and texture, bugs (pest or beneficial?), fungal diseases, weed control and soil conservation, water use and quality issues, etc etc. When you throw animals into the mix you have another whole level of knowledge that must be integrated to get the most productivity and/or enjoyment. You need to be able to look at a herd of cattle and spot the one that is not feeling quite right before it gets too far along, you need to know how to balance proteins and fiber in feed rations, understand fermentation as part of digestion... REAL working knowledge of the things of this earth.
When folks say homeschoolers suffer because of a lack of connection to the "real world" I just laugh. These are the things that are REAL in the truest sense of the word. Far more real than the latest TV show or video game or fashion.
OK. Off my soapbox. I know I am preaching to the choir here!
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Theresa
us-schooling in beautiful Fairbanks, Alaska.
LaPaz Home Learning
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Taffy
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| Posted: Oct 19 2006 at 10:28am | IP Logged
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Theresa and all...
Please go back on your soapboxes, I'm enjoying this conversation immensely! 
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Susan
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Kelly
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| Posted: Oct 19 2006 at 11:08pm | IP Logged
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[QUOTE=molly] We live on a hobby farm, and I think it is wonderful. Dh has to work, and we try to homestead, however I find that our culture is so anti this life style it takes a long time to get back to nature and this type of living. I am finding, like most things you can't have it all, it is either the luxuries of town living ie quick trip to the store, library, or the lifestyle of homesteading. I think the problem lies in the attempt to have modern busyness and the slow pace of farming."
Touche, Molly. Very well put. And the concept of a hobby farm certainly describes the actuality of our personal farming experience, more than homesteading per se...though it's the self-sufficiency of homesteading, that "homesteading heart" mentioned at the outset of this thread, that holds the most appeal for me, anyway. Sigh.
Kelly in FL
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chicken lady
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| Posted: Oct 20 2006 at 8:37am | IP Logged
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Kelly very well stated...the homesteading heart. Can we have that regardless of where we live? How can we cultivate the homestead heart in mainstream America?
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Tina P.
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| Posted: Oct 20 2006 at 12:39pm | IP Logged
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lapazfarm wrote:
If only because of the price of land these days! Who can afford to quit work and farm when you have such outrageous payments to make? That is why we lost our farm awhile back. Just couldn't make ends meet and had to cut our losses. Some day we hope to have another, but the cost of land is prohibitive right now.
This is one reason why were are considering Alaska, as it seems like the only place where land is affordable anymore. That and the amazing bounty of natural resources to take advantage of (Salmon and other abundant fish, plentiful hunting, tons of berries to pick) make homesteading in Alaska more realistic than many other areas. |
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Oh my word! We are closer soul sisters than I thought! We bought this nice, big house in Utah only to find out that there's land in them thar hills. There's a valley in the mountains that houses spacious land, gorgeous views, and farms. Ack!  Our timing was off. Now, just the land costs $500,000. And then a house large enough to house a large family? And then the barn? The animals? Ouch.
Yes, I'll stick with homesteader at heart for now.  We're going to get chickens next spring, does that count?
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Tina, wife to one and mom to 9 + 3 in heaven
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Tina P.
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| Posted: Oct 20 2006 at 12:46pm | IP Logged
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My parents have 20 acres of what we call "Up North" in mid-Wisconsin. When we went there, our nearest neighbor was 0.5 miles away. At first we just camped. But then my dad built a cabin. He bought three sheds. Two of these he connected with a large floor. He built up from the floor a two-story, one-room-on-each floor house. We helped to frame it, insulate it, and hang the wall-boards. I'm sure my brothers and sisters did a whole lot more than I did. I was only about 6 or 7 when this was all taking place. Finally (and I mean finally), my dad added indoor plumbing. Since I've been an adult, there have been many changes to the inside buildings. I'm longing to see it again. I'd like to take the kids there to explore. But we're so far away. I know this isn't exactly homesteading, but I guess that was as close to really making things from scratch as I'll get.
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Tina P.
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| Posted: Oct 20 2006 at 12:49pm | IP Logged
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lapazfarm wrote:
| This is one reason why were are considering Alaska, as it seems like the only place where land is affordable anymore. That and the amazing bounty of natural resources to take advantage of (Salmon and other abundant fish, plentiful hunting, tons of berries to pick) make homesteading in Alaska more realistic than many other areas. |
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I guess you're wondering why I said you and I were soul sisters. I didn't explain very well in my last post. We'd love to live off the land in Alaska. It just didn't seem feasible with 7 children and dh having to actually work for a living. 
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Tina, wife to one and mom to 9 + 3 in heaven
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lapazfarm
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| Posted: Oct 20 2006 at 1:46pm | IP Logged
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Tina, you are cracking me up.
When my dh and I first married, land was cheap, especially here in NC. I guess we thought it would always be that way, but now it is way out of our price range, especially good farmable land (which is in short supply in the mountains). Too many people have grown rich selling off their homes in S. Florida (where prices have really skyrocketed) and come here to either retire, or have second homes. They think nothing of paying $30,000 per acre when they are used to paying 10 times that for a tiny lot! So it's no wonder mom and pop are selling off their land! Problem is, now young people grow up, get married and want to start a life here, but are forced to move elsewhere to find affordable housing. We are left with nothing but retirees and summer residences left empty half the year. It's so sad, really. Dh and I know we will have to go elsewhere to find affordable land and we both really just fell in love with Alaska when we visited there. Either that or give up the dream entirely and go with plan B (the boat)which doesn't seem half bad right now considering our miserable weather this week!LOL!
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Theresa
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Maddie
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| Posted: Oct 20 2006 at 1:58pm | IP Logged
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The UP in Michigan goes for about $1000 an acre. Every once and a while we talk about moving up there but it seems to risky not to have a city around where you could get work if you needed it. (sigh) We sold our land for $75,000 an acre (imagine the taxes we paid!)and bought our 10 acres here at $3,000 an acre.
I wish we could do what our Amish neighbors thought to do 10 years ago, that is, they bought hundreds of acres around here and parcel it off to their children as they marry and start lives for themselves. How ideal! Our ten acres would look like a small town if we divided it between our children.
A Catholic community would be so awesome, but then there are all those pitfalls to deal with called human nature. I've read about a few and they seem a bit to radical for me...ie. end of the world thinking, etc..
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Wendi DeGrandpr
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| Posted: Oct 20 2006 at 4:32pm | IP Logged
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I think the homesteaders heart which we share is all one needs. I believe it is about doing what we can where we are - whether that is on 1/2 acre or 500 acres. It is about our attitude toward the land and the gifts that God has given us. Do you desire to raise some veggies and have "only" a backyard patio or even an apartment balcony - then garden in containers and freeze or can your harvest. Support your local farmers market - buy items to eat and can or freeze. Are you blessed with hundreds of acres and the desire to farm it - than great. This can apply to many different homesteading ways - knitting, sewing, cooking from scratch. These are things you can do in the middle of the city while appreciating the countryside. I am not terribly good at expressing my thoughts in writing so I hope you get the idea.
I am really enjoying this discussion!!!!!
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Wendi
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"We can do no great things - only small things with great love." Blessed Mother Teresa
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Kristen in TN
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| Posted: Oct 22 2006 at 10:11pm | IP Logged
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We need more Catholics in Middle southern TN, where land is still reasonable!!! Come on down!
We now have a home on 55 acres with a lovely barn and 3 bay equipment shed. If it be God's will, our house in VA will finally sell and we can purchase an additional 7 acres and barn. Right now the only animals we have are 3 cats and a dog, but we would like to have horses and eventually sheep for the wool. However, I would first like to take our dream vacation of RVing to California, and soon before all the older relative die! Who would we get to take care of a farm if we were gone for 3 weeks or a month? We'll see what happens.
This summer we did have our first garden. Although I still have a ton to learn, it was a real learning experience this year. We also had a seperate small pumpkin patch and managed to grow a pumpkin that was about 50 pounds and almost 25 others.
We are also not too far away from a large Amish community, and my brother lives next door to a nice family with 11 children who have been very friendly to us. We learn plenty from them as well. When my husband asked "Mr. Pete" if he was having problems with skunks, he said he was. My husband asked how he took care of them. Pete got a big grin and said, "Shotgun."
OK, enough from me.
God bless,
Kristen in TN
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Kim F
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| Posted: Oct 23 2006 at 6:49pm | IP Logged
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We have 73 acres in central CO. Sounds like a lot but its high desert so it isnt tillable. VERY hard to eek out a garden for instance. We don't have a lot of growth to bother us though since we are pretty far out. Dh still works too but we do what we can with the goats and chickens. Pigs are our next project.
I think one can 'homestead' in this economy but 'farming' maybe not. If you start out with a homestead idea and pay as you go, raise what you need and a bit more to sell then its viable. If you try to compete with crop or livestock sales with the factory farms you are really in for an uphill battle. Couple that with the investment needed for equipment etc and its almost impossible.
We still toy with starting over and building from scratch where we could avoid the mortgage. Sorta got into it late for that though since you can't easily put 11 people in a camper for any length of time. <g>
Kim
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St. Ann
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| Posted: Oct 24 2006 at 1:40am | IP Logged
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Wendi, thanks for posting your thoughts about the "homesteading heart".
This is an encouragement for a family who rents and lives in town.
I too am enjoying this discussion.
Stephanie in Germany
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Wendi DeGrandpr
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| Posted: Oct 24 2006 at 8:37am | IP Logged
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Just wanted to share - our dairy goats arrived on Sunday - actually we have one (who is expecting in March) and the other is still waiting to be bred. We have a "loaner" goat to keep ours company until her permantant companion can join us. It is so fun to have them here. Just their presence and the fresh milk twice a day are so exciting. Makes getting out of the bed in the dark a joy. Hopefully it will remain so in February.
I received my yogurt maker yesterday in the mail - wish me luck. 
I am hoping for at least a financial "break even" when I weigh feeding etc of the goats with the decline in grocery purchases of yogurt & 1/2 & 1/2 while also being able to sell the eggs I was bartering for milk.
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Wendi
Mom to four blessings
"We can do no great things - only small things with great love." Blessed Mother Teresa
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marihalojen
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| Posted: Oct 24 2006 at 9:59am | IP Logged
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Wendi,
Try making ice cream from the goats' milk. It is fabulous! What type of goats did you get? I had a Nubian who was bred to a Saanen (sp?) and the kids were fawn colored with airplane ears - they stuck straight out! Too cute.
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The Mari Hal-O-Jen
SSR = Sailing, Snorkling, Reading
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Wendi DeGrandpr
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| Posted: Oct 24 2006 at 10:33am | IP Logged
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Jennifer - we got Lamancha's - the loaner we have is a Nubian. Both breeds are so sweet - the Lamancha is definately quieter. I love the Nubians and started there but fell in love with the Lamancha's and their milk is great!! I will definately try the ice cream - I am sure my family will be excited about that! Thanks for the tip!
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Wendi
Mom to four blessings
"We can do no great things - only small things with great love." Blessed Mother Teresa
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chicken lady
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| Posted: Oct 24 2006 at 11:16am | IP Logged
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Wendi we had Nubians, I agree they have great milk, however they are so loud. I'm considering going back to Togenbergs? Any opinions? We also keep Angora goats, that I shear and spin their wool into wondeful Mohair.
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4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: Is there a bit of a homesteader in you?
