Hey there, fellow and aspiring homesteaders!

What a week it's been on our little slice of the homestead! We've delved deep into the heart of homesteading and sustainable living, exploring not just the how-tos but the incredible whys behind this fulfilling lifestyle. If you've been with us from the start, you've seen the seeds of inspiration we've planted together. If you're just joining, welcome to the family! Let's take a stroll through our week's journey, shall we?

Homesteading isn't just a trend; it's a return to roots that many of us didn't even know we had. It's about building connections—not just between us and the earth but within our community of like-minded souls eager to reclaim a bit of control in our fast-paced, digital world. We talked about the empowerment that comes from growing your own food, the peace found in the rhythms of nature, and the satisfaction of DIY projects that turn a house into a sustainable home.

We also uncovered the layers of benefits that...

As winter blankets the landscape with snow and frost, our homestead comes alive with the beauty of the season. Despite the chilly temperatures, there's still work to be done, especially when it comes to caring for our cherished flock of chickens. In this blog post, we invite you to join us on a heartwarming winter adventure as we navigate the challenges of tending to our feathered friends in the cold.

On a frosty morning, my youngest son and I bundle up in our warmest coats and boots, ready to brave the elements and tend to our chickens. Armed with a bucket of kitchen scraps collected from our daily meals, we head out into the snow-covered backyard. As we approach the chicken coop, our feathered companions eagerly greet us with excited clucks and flaps of their wings.

With laughter in the air and snowflakes falling gently around us, we pour the kitchen scraps into the chicken feeder, watching as the chickens eagerly peck away at the delicious treats. Despite the cold, their...

At our homestead, we're no strangers to hard work and the simple pleasures of farm life. From tending to our crops to caring for our animals, every day is a new adventure. But recently, something extraordinary happened that added a dash of flavor to our homestead journey—the discovery of a truly delicious recipe that became an instant hit!

 It all started with a desire to create a meal that would not only nourish our bodies but also warm our hearts. After some experimenting in our farmhouse kitchen, we stumbled upon a recipe that ticked all the boxes—simple, wholesome, and bursting with flavor.

 Our recipe journey began with gathering the freshest ingredients straight from our garden and farm. The scent of freshly harvested herbs, the vibrant colors of our homegrown vegetables, and the rich flavors of our farm-raised poultry set the stage for what would soon become a culinary masterpiece.

 With anticipation building, we plated our creation and gathered...

We are excited to take you on an exciting journey through our kitchen remodel project. Today, we are thrilled to introduce our stunning open shelves made from exquisite Russian olive wood. These shelves have been meticulously crafted to perfection, adding a touch of unique character to our farm-inspired, rustic, and industrial aesthetic.

Our process begins with carefully cutting the Russian olive wood to the ideal length, ensuring that each piece is tailored precisely for our kitchen space.

Next, we embark on the intricate task of sanding the tops, meticulously smoothing them to perfection. This attention to detail ensures that your precious dishes will rest on flawlessly smooth surfaces.

To further enhance their charm, we employ our skillful technique of scorching the fronts of the shelves. This process gives them a distinct burnt appearance, adding a captivating element of character to our overall design. The scorched look of the shelves beautifully complements the sleek...

Every year Brett and I sit down and take at least 2-3 hours to reflect on what has happened in our lives over the past year, and what we look forward to in the New Year. We do this because it's amazing to see what God has helped us through, accomplish, and or where we can improve.

No matter where you're at before New Year's Day, try to take the time to do this! Currently, we are in the middle of a kitchen and entryway revamp (not remodel). We're moving a couple walls to accommodate more people in our home, but it's tempting to keep going and not take the time to do the process below. 

We thought it might be helpful to share with you our New Year's Resolution Process. It's simple, not overly complicated, and we haven't changed this process in the 11 years we've been married.

We always love hearing what other people do to take on life in inspiring ways, and we hope our process sparks some ideas for your household.

STEP 1: REFLECT ON A...

On the Homestead we go through about two sticks of butter or half a pound of butter per week (at least).

Thankfully we have a jersey milk cow who is sharing her cream with us. If you don’t have a family milk cow simply use heavy whipping cream for this recipe.

You only need two ingredients for this butter:

• 4 Cups Cream
• 1/4 tsp salt

This recipe will make 1/2 cup sticks of butter.

There are a couple tips we want to share for keeping your butter fresh longer.

1. Drain/press as much buttermilk out of the butter as you can. This will help your butter from suffering too quickly.
2. After making your butter put it in the freezer until you know you’re going to use it. Butter will last up to a year in the freezer! 

We would love to know what you think about this recipe or if you have any tips for your butter making please share!

Every year it seems we struggle with our tomatoes ripening before our first frost hits. We pick them even if they are still green and let them ripen inside cardboard boxes. 

When the tomatoes turn red we take them and cut each end, squeeze out the seeds/guts and throw them in a freezer bag until we’re ready to dehydrate them for making paste. 

This is the easiest way we’ve found to store and keep our tomatoes year around for pizza sauce, spaghetti sauces and more! 

We thought we had the perfect milking setup...well we didn't. So we used our head catch while we built another one. 

For the past three months we have been milking our Jersey cow Noel. It has been a VERY interesting experience to say the least. Below are our top recommendations for beginner milkers out there. 

#1 Have the right stanchion setup. 

We started off milking Noel in the stall you see below, however, the bar we installed on the bottom did not detach and I couldn't milk her. So we put her out in our head catch where we brand and tag our cows outside. This worked for a while but I was eaten by flys and mosquitoes and really wanted to be back in the barn. 

Our wonder friends who live down the road sold us a 100 year old industrial milking station used for assembly line milking cows. This was a great idea, but it turned out, it wasn't strong enough to hold Noel so we had to think of plan "D." 

Brett was able to integrate the milking stall from our friends and our old milking setup he welded by using the head catch portion from one and the side rails from the other. So...

This simple yeast bread recipe is one that we go to often, even our five-year-old can make it!