Home Sweet Home. Finally feeling more settled and comfortable. We moved from a little under 3 acres to 10 acres. The solitude is bliss. Today’s post is just going to be me sharing our new home with our readers. It’s breathtaking.
We have two ponds on our property (hubby calls them lakes). One pond is entirely ours, and the other we share with a very select few. I love to sit and watch the water when it rains. Watching the lightning behind the line of pine trees is mesmerizing. I’ve never really been drawn to bodies of water and I particularly dislike the ocean. I do find quite a bit of solace wandering the perimeter of our bodies of water though in our backyard.
Happy caterpillars enjoy their do nothing but eat stage of life.
Our animals are enjoying the extra space as well.
New life was celebrated on the new homestead. We moved the animals on May 5. Lyris gave birth to two healthy polled bucklings the same day. It is her first time being a mama. She didn’t know what to do so I had to stay home an extra day to teach her how to nurse patience since she didn’t want to sit still while the kids greedily ate. She finally accepted that she had to take care of these babies, not run away from them nonstop.
There was not a barn on the land, so we had to add that before the animals moved. It has come such a long way.
The house itself is gorgeous. Very little actually needs to be done do it on the inside. We’re told it’s a French style home. Whatever it is, I am in love with the brick and the trees on the driveway.
The treasures we find in the yard are priceless. The magnolias are intoxicating and the wild mushrooms are mystical.
I cannot get enough of how much the animals love it here. Our family is adjusting nicely to the isolation. It’s really not the bad though. We’re about 20 minutes from town, which is great. It’s so quiet and I’m really learning to appreciate that quiet.
We’re slowly, but surely, creating a paradise at home.
My husband grew up in close proximity with Amish communities. He was exposed to good food and understanding where food actually comes from. He did not personally work a farm the way that we do now as a family. I grew up with a family dog and store-bought food. We did grow our own vegetables and dabble in herbal medicine, but that was it.
The choice to switch to a homesteading lifestyle was based on our children. We wanted them to eat well, learn empathy, and work hard. When my children talk about their home life in school, the common reactions I hear from other adults range from “That’s amazing” to “That sounds like… a lot.”
It is a lot. And it is nonstop. My daughter failed one of her first small social studies assessments because she argued that people do make their own food today, not “long ago.” The teacher told her that people do not make their own food, they buy it at the store. My daughter was pretty adamant that the teacher was completely wrong. We both had to explain that the general population buys eggs, chicken, and other dairy products from the grocery store. Not everyone makes it or trades with other farms. Despite the fascination or harsh judgements made by other people, our children are growing into–we hope–healthy and enlightened individuals.
Talking about homesteading life often sounds less desirable than it truly is. There are bad days. There are horrendous days. There are scary days. There are breakdown and cry all day while you’re still working days. But most days are good, happy, and fulfilling.
I am going to showcase a compilation of what homesteading life looks like on the best of days because I feel those don’t get talked about enough.
Homesteading is about more than one family sharing space.
Homesteading is good food.
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I didn’t grow up on a homestead, but we’re very thankful for the opportunity for our children to live this way. They help every way they can. There is a lot of hard work, but there is plenty for them to thoroughly enjoy as well.
I visit various areas of solicitude when my mind wanders. When I reflect on our state as a society I come across several areas of concern, one of them being society’s attitude and handling of food. The need for instant gratification combined with a lack of knowledge–or caring in some instances–on where food actually comes from in today’s world creates a battleground full of controversy and ill-informed decisions made with good intent.
Ask a young child where food comes from and, for the most part, you’ll find the answer revolves around a grocery store. Further probing may reveal that the child knows meat comes from animals, eggs from chickens, milk from cows and goats, fruit and vegetables from plants, etc. And even the ones that know this, may not understand this. The two don’t always coincide, even with adults.
Ask a young adult where food comes from and they answer with a little more confidence, truly believing they understand the whole concept of a farm growing produce and raising animals. Because really, the image they have of a farm probably reflects our farm on a larger scale.
In reality, the majority of our food comes from factory farms. Clever advertisements on some of the products these companies sell depict houses sporting the stereotypical farmhouse or fresh green pastures. Happy animals are seen on logos, sometimes outside in said green pasture imagery.
Visit a chicken factory farm and you find close quarter living arrangements. Chickens end up with little room to wander and forage as nature intended, which also means chicken waste ends up on other chickens and in their living space. This results in birds that suffer from respiratory infections caused by injured mucous membranes. Injured mucous membranes (caused by the ammonia the chickens can’t escape) makes it easier for bacteria and viruses to enter the chicken’s lungs and air sacs. Chickens poo everywhere. It’s not so much of an issue if there isn’t overcrowding and they’re pasture raised. Take a factory farm setting where there’s barely room to move and you get some pretty sick poultry. Which is why we see an increased level of antibiotics being used, overused, and misused. It’s more profitable than to house chickens correctly.
Some factory farms are partaking in “movements” by opening windows to the barns the chickens are housed in, or making sure the lights are out at night. That’s a start, but the birds need to be out. It’s in their nature to scratch and forage for food. That brings me to another “improvement” where many companies boast about their feed. Again, great, but access to fresh grass and produce is vital, too, as well as bugs. I’ve seen my chickens eat small snakes even.
This is not something that can easily be done. The demand for food is partly responsible for the birth of the factory farm. So even large-scale farms don’t have the room. Be wary of your labels; if it says free range, that’s SOME outside time–in pens with several other chickens. An improvement, yes, but still unacceptable.
All of our birds are pasture raised and are socialized with people. They are not afraid of were they live and have access to forage all day, take dust baths as they see fit, and socialize. Yes, the birds socialize. They have their own group of friends they even hang out with. This is how domesticated chickens (and other birds) should live.
This background information leads up to my actual rant about food contamination. These birds are living in the very thing that is responsible for outbreaks of salmonella, Listeria, and e. coli. Poop. Your meat chickens are living in it. Your egg laying hens are sitting in it. Our chickens naturally do not lay eggs where they use the bathroom. They have the space to lay, roam, forage, and do their business.
The big foodborne illnesses we hear about on a consistent basis lives in the gut of these animals. If they’re not allowed the space to respond to nature’s call, contamination and harsh cleaning processes take place, neither of which are beneficial for anyone.
Dairy and other cattle factory farms are not much different. Antibiotics are the response to overcrowded living conditions instead of happy, healthy environments. In fact, over half of the antibiotic use is for agricultural purposes. The antibiotic use is abuse (I understand that’s technically my opinion) because it’s used as a preventative, which is not the intended idea behind the antibiotic. So even families who actively make it a point to avoid overusing antibiotics for something like the common cold, are still being exposed to the overuse of antibiotics into their systems. Cows are also given Bovine Growth Hormone to produce even more milk (even though the cows are kept pregnant, birthing, or milking with little to no break in between).
We do not have a cow (yet). Once we expand more we will be looking into getting a cow. Right now, we do have have a herd of miniature donkeys and mixed breed goats. They are pasture raised as well. We have grown to have two males for breeding and two different milking pairs. One pair will be pregnant and lactating, while the other pair will have a break so their bodies can recover. Antibiotics are only used if the animal is sick (we wait for it to be out of their system before milk is used) and no growth hormones are added. They’re social animals so they’re also allowed the right to socialize, grow, and spend time with their family (human and animal alike). This is how it should be.
With all of that information, it’s no wonder we get so sick. That’s not the surprising part though. What’s surprising is more foodborne illnesses come from fresh vegetables. I think this is a really big eye opener for how our food is handled. Our meats are exposed to the same contamination (Listeria, salmonella, e. coli), but the antibiotic “preventative” and harsh cleaning procedures hide this. You’re eating dirty meat that has been washed with chlorine.
So, why vegetables? Well, in an attempt to be healthier many people are seeking fresh produce. Makes sense as quite a few veggies are healthier when consumed raw and salads are a great way to pack in essential nutrients when you’re being health conscious and are short on time. It makes sense. I get it. Although fresh produce is also washed with water and chlorine, the leafy greens you’re hearing about on the news likely wasn’t cooked. Because who cooks their lettuce? Water that is contaminated and used to wash vegetables could be a source for foods carrying these bacteria, especially if it’s exposed to any fecal matter or fertilizers. Which also means water used to clean your chicken could also be contaminated, but heating foods to proper temperatures can sometimes help with that nasty fact.
A clean environment is the best preventative to these illnesses. Our hydroponic produce is separated from our animals and clean water is used on them.
It is near impossible–unless I’m not seeing it–to break free from this. Growing your own food and raising small family homesteads is becoming a lost art and we can’t let people starve. The best way to avoid this is to have your own garden and your own meat, but that’s not a viable option for everyone. Your next best bet is purchasing locally, a little easier to do with produce than meat. Check out local markets and talk to vendors. There are smaller establishments that make sure their animals are living healthy and happy lives.
We’re not meant to be cooped up, although many people force themselves to live like some animals on these factory farms: eat, sit on the couch all day, stay indoors, sleep. It’s not good for us. It makes sense that it’s also not good for these animals and it affects our food. Factory farms are in this for profit and to fill that high demand. People don’t realize that’s where their food comes from. And it gets worse. Any meals, canned soups, processed foods you purchase at the store get their meat and produce from these factory farms.
Grow more edible plants at home if it’s possible. Shop local. Take baby steps. We’re trying our best as well. We just got to where we have a pretty steady meat source for us. I cannot remember the last time we went to the grocery store for meat or produce. What we don’t grow, we purchase or trade from local farms. We’re taking baby steps, too, but we’re getting there.
What steps do you take to truly know the source of your food? What do you recommend for other people looking to educate themselves in food handling and appropriate animal raising?
This Spring weather has been insane! I moved to Florida when I was 6 years old and I just loath the cold. I understand it is much more bone chilling elsewhere in the country, but I just can’t.
So naturally, being the wimp to cold that I am, I was pretty worried about our first time mama geese. I was initially unsure if they would even go broody to begin with, but they did. I wasn’t sure if they could actually keep their nests warm enough to hatch though. One day it was 80 out, the next day was 60. I understand that it is colder other places. I also understand that geese still hatch eggs in colder weather than ours. I couldn’t shake the Floridian feeling though. I mean, I bring a sweater to Disney World in the summertime because I freeze inside shops and restaurants (don’t judge me).
My husband, who moved to Florida at a much older age than I, laughed at me. It was uncalled for. Rude.
Anyhow, after being ridiculed for voicing my uncertainty, I came home from work and heard that glorious gosling beep! My excitement was soon followed by panic because I knew hearing any baby animal from this distance was a cry for help. I ran to the back of the property and nearly died laughing. This teeny tiny gosling, it appears, imprinted on one of our goat kids. The kid was completely unaware and just kept running and playing around. Whenever this gosling came near one of our ducks, the ducks would run in terror. Papa goose, from afar, just kept watching. He was being such a good daddy (the fathers aid in rasing the babies). I have seen this goose pick up our largest rooster and throw him. He is the sweetest goose towards humans food givers, but he protects his whole flock of geese and ducks. Unless he’s being fed. Then he’s like What flock?
I went to grab this little guy, thankful Goofy (our male) didn’t mind me handling his son. I brought the little one back to the females. They hissed at me. I told them to cut it out. Then I noticed a sister hiding with the females. Two goslings when I expected none. I was happy and excited. Geese are some of my favorite animals.
We have only ever hatched young from an incubator. So, I was like a paranoid first time mother, checking on this nest every couple of hours. I couldn’t help it. I wasn’t ready to see how well my geese trusted me with touching the goslings, but we do have a pond. Believe it or not, ducklings and goslings do drown. Watching it is terrifying and I’ve seen people watch it unaware that it’s happening. They are babies and they do get tired. If they don’t know how to escape the water, they drown. If the water is cold enough, their bodies stop working almost instantly. One year, we had ducklings find the pond in 60 degree weather. I watched one duckling just stop and start floating around the pond like a dead body, calling for help as best as she could. I scooped her out and put her in the lid of a small cardboard box. I boiled water and put two mugs of hot water beside her and made a tent out of a dish towel. At this moment, she wasn’t making any noise. After thirty minutes, I heard her chirping. I gave her some food and a little bit of cayenne in water. Within two hours she was up and escaping from her heat tent, so I returned her to her brothers and sisters.
My side story has a point. I promise. Because the day after our goslings hatched, I came home and the boy was missing again. I found him in an area our goat kids often play in and his neck was caught in the fence. He wasn’t moving and I was certain he was dead. Upon closer inspection I saw he was breathing, trying to call out, but no noise could be produced. I initially thought it was because he was caught in the fence. But he was breathing without struggle. I was still certain there was a neck injury. My husband got the gosling out and told me the neck actually looked fine. Holding the gosling, he informed me boy was very cold. I recreated the same heat tent and within 45 minutes, he was beeping and moving his head. No apparent neck injury. I told my husband we have to bring them in. I wasn’t risking losing them while at work, knowing I may still lose the one fighting for his life.
We set up a heat lamp and brooder in the barn. We put the male in and I put gloves on and went to fetch his sister. The female geese nipped at me, but the gloves helped. They stopped biting when they realized it wasn’t doing much good and I was taking the baby anyway. Goofy, our male, didn’t even hiss at me. I brought the girl in to be with her brother. Within two hours, both were up and happy. We are very thankful.
It’s certainly never a dull day. We were exhausted ourselves when everything was said and done. The most common response I get when I replay these stories out loud with people is, “I don’t know how you can deal with all this.”
