Our garden this year had 4 little rows of sweet corn. The barn cats loved hiding in the stalks. If you couldn't find the barn cats you knew exactly where to find them. Our garden definitely flourished this year, it's our 3rd year here and this was the year of the great garden expansion nearly doubling in size. Which is why we were able to plant so much sweet corn. It was ...
Why don’t homesteaders use vets
One thing you don't realize when you bring home farm animals, is how much you'll have to vet them yourselves. You bring home some cute cuddly goats, and you're not thinking about checking their poop for parasites and worming them. You better believe that's what you're going to be doing though. You'll have to research and learn so many things, that you probably didn't want to ...
The secret to the best pie crust
I've figured out the secret to the best pie crust. Every year on my birthday we would celebrate by heading to the same orchard we've been going to since we were kids. We would always get caramel apples and their iconic apple pie with the best pie crust you've ever tasted in your life. We would pet and feed goats, admire chickens and play at the farm. Tomorrow I turn 33 ...
Horrible reasons to switch homeschool curriculum
Horrible reasons to switch homeschool curriculum Horrible reasons to switch homeschool curriculum, we’ve all been there. Let’s talk about it! As a homeschooling mom there are so many options out there for how to teach my kids. It’s overwhelming, and every season we wonder if what we’re doing is good enough or if we should go straight back to the drawing board. It’s ...
Common mistakes with meat chickens
We just butchered our first ever group of meat chickens, the process overall went pretty good, but there are definitely things that we will change next time. Here are some common mistakes with meat chickens. This year we had 37 cornish crosses that we raised in a chicken tractor for 10 weeks. We ended up with an average of 3-4 pound birds, so there's room for lots of ...
5 things you need to know before getting chickens
5 things you need to know before getting chickens Baby chicks are adorable, and we all know egg prices are unpredictable. So it might be tempting to pick up some chickens when the farm stores are full of those fluffy little chicks. There are some things you should know before becoming a full on crazy chicken lady like me, because those little balls of fluff cost a lot more ...
Is raising meat birds gross?
We have raised laying hens for the past 3 years, we're no strangers to the process. You place them in a brooder, it gets smelly and full of poop, you put them in a coop when they're old enough, that'll get smelly and full of even more poop. How much worse can meat chickens be, right? Is raising meat birds gross? It can't be as gross as they say, right? Is raising meat ...
Best DIY chicken coop ideas and materials to use
If you're thinking of building a DIY chicken coop but don't want to break the bank, there are several cost-effective options to consider. We're homesteaders on 3 acres, now we raise goats, pigs, rabbits, but it all started with chickens! They're the gateway animal for everyone's homestead. Here are some tips to help you build the best DIY chicken coop on a budget: Use ...
Everything bagel seasoning hamburger buns in 40 minutes
We make our own bread, biscuits, pancakes and all of our other favorite carbs, but we were still buying hamburger buns at the grocery store. So this summer I made the best ever hamburger buns and haven't looked back since. We use these for cheeseburgers, epic breakfast sandwiches, and the best pulled pork sandwiches you'll ever have. I top these with a generous amount of ...
From scratch pancakes recipe
From scratch pancakes recipe Pancakes are definitely something that tastes better from scratch. We try to make as many things from scratch as possible on our homestead, and this is one of them. This is one of those recipes that my husband knows by heart, probably because he makes them at least once a week. We love topping them with local syrup, or sometimes we'll make ...
Biscuits and sausage gravy
We love making biscuits and gravy for breakfast, it's really simple to whip up! Well, it would be more simple if I didn't have to make biscuits from scratch, but it works equally good with leftover biscuits. So if you're making biscuits for dinner you should definitely double the recipe so you can have biscuits and gravy for breakfast. Here's my from scratch biscuit ...