The Great Phytic Acid Debate
For those of you who bake breads from scratch, you may have run across the phytic acid debate in your search for methods and recipes that make for healthy food for your family. If you're like me, you...
View ArticleAre Your Fruit Trees Surrounded?
Last spring we planted twenty-something fruit trees from Stark Brothers, and placed the trees up at the front of the property, which was an otherwise useless space. I admit that I wasn't the best...
View ArticleI'm a Mama Hen Again
But at least I didn't have to sit on any eggs. Take a peek at our new peeps:Barred Rock. We have 31, and two are probably roosters. We find that the hatchery always sends a couple extra. These will...
View ArticleHomestead Where You're Planted
I think about ways to save money a lot. It's one of the reasons we're doing what we're doing. But truth be told, there are a lot of ways out there to save money, couponing being one of the most...
View Articleso much depends...
upon a red wagonthat used to carry childrenand now carrieswatertoysgarden toolsbranches for the goatsbuckets of weedschicken feedandkelp for the cowsHow do you haul?Rural Thursdays. Check it out here....
View ArticleScissor Truss Eggmobile, Part I
After much blood, sweat, and trigonometry, we are ALMOST done with our modified version of the Polyface scissor truss eggmobile (i.e., portable hen house). Click here to see a video of Joel Salatin's...
View ArticleLet Them Eat Toast
I need catharsis right now. Or maybe just some sympathy.I made this recipe for spiced pumpkin muffins with a streusel topping. I highly recommend it, as it's been a pleasant part of my venture into...
View ArticleScissor Truss Eggmobile, Part II...and a Short Break
You've probably noticed that my posts have been spread a little thin these days (or maybe that's just my modus operandi?), so I wanted to let you know that while I have several ideas for posts swimming...
View ArticlePerspective, A Couple Weeks Later
I mentioned in my last post that life had become rather overwhelming. For a couple weeks, I ran things alone here while Byron was chaperoning a student trip to Europe. I went to Europe in graduate...
View ArticleGot Drought?
Every year, I begin a garden with visions of bushels of tomatoes, beans, corn, and squash making their way into my kitchen mid-summer. Enough to can or freeze, and enough to share with friends....
View ArticleA Very Small "First"
We've experienced a lot of "firsts" in the past year. Byron and I didn't grow up homesteading/farming. Heck, I don't even think I had a garden until I was married! We've raised chickens for meat and...
View ArticleReclaimed Projects
Since we put hardwood floors in the back of the house in April, our renovation has been somewhat on hold. I won't bore you with the details as to why, but if you've ever worked on your own home...
View ArticleTable, Farmhouse Style
A couple weeks ago I donned one of those heavy-duty air filtration masks that made me look like a cool chick on a DIY show (minus the designer jeans that never seem to get dirty). I wish I had a photo...
View ArticleWake Me Up When September Ends
Maybe by then the dust will have settled a bit.But in the meantime, here's a small peek into what we've been up to:Making applesauce. I think I had the heat too high in the pressure canner for this...
View ArticleIn Which I Make a Trendy Wreath
The primary reason for making a trendy wreath is this bizarre need I have to create things with my hands. It's not pretty when I go for long spells without making anything. Oh, sure, I make meals...
View ArticleThere's No Place Like Home (Processing)
Even if, at our best, we only processed six chickens per hour, it was so good to be home!Over the past couple weekends - and a couple evenings during the week - we processed our last batch of broilers...
View ArticleUpdates
Yes. I'm into creative titles these days.I can't believe my blogging has precipitously dropped off these past few months. When I was homeschooling both kids, I would oftentimes take a few minutes in...
View ArticleNew Arrivals
No, I didn't have a baby. In fact, I don't have a legitimately valid excuse for being such a slacker for the past two months, except to say that we've undergone some major changes as a family. For...
View ArticleWho Needs Video Games?
"When I was kid, all I needed to entertain myself was a stick and a string!" Maybe my kids really will use that line on their grandkids. Check out their most recent creation, made in the dead of...
View ArticleFrom Hens to Hay: Why I Love Multi-Purpose Structures
Remember the hen house we built last summer? You know, the one I neglected to post final photos of? Well, here it is, six months later, and filled with...Hay. (Yes, we cleaned it out!)The side...
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