The state of the homestead… it is a mess! Another year has come and gone and to be honest it was an odd one for us. We did not do lots of things we normally do. However, there were some unexpected benefits as well. So, before we look to what we hope 2022 will bring,…
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Return From Oblivion; A Quick Catchup After Our Hiatus
Well, it has been a minute. Alright, it has been more than 164,000 minutes since our last post. Our hiatus has been too long and was largely caused by stress and frustration. I genuinely enjoy writing down the stories of what is happening here to share with you all. However, remodeling the mother-in-law took its…
Trees are sprouting and booming as brooks babble
Posted on Author SpencerPosted in 2021 landscaping, 2021 To Do List, Animals, Chickens, Forest Management, Gardening, Orchard, Projects, Stories2 Replies
This week the landscape has changed again as the snow has melted. The runoff has transformed the dry creek beds in the ravines into lovely babbling brooks. This evening Sarah and I heard the first chorus of spring peepers marking the arrival of spring. With spring here we have a lot to do, we have…
Escaping the unusual temperature swing
This week has rocked the nation with an unusual temperature swing. When I wrote last week’s post the temperature was in the single digits and falling. Now it’s in the mid-40s with warmer weather fast approaching! However, people all over the south and midwest found themselves trapped in their homes (ourselves included) for most of…
Winter Bares its Teeth as we Prepare for Spring
Posted on Author SpencerPosted in Forest Management, Gardening, Mother-in-law house, Stories2 Replies
This week winter decided to bare its teeth. We’ve had freezing rain, snow, and the coldest weather we have seen since we moved to Missouri. The cold has taken its toll on the homestead. Despite the winter bearing down though we have started to prepare for spring. Little Kittens With additional family and animals, moving…
Slow and Steady: Real Life Jenga for Keeps.
This week on the homestead we made some slow and steady progress on the mother-in-law house. For part of the project, it almost felt like we were playing Jenga on a large scale with much higher stakes. Pull one board out, put another one in, wait to make sure nothing goes wrong… But, it feels…
Something lost, something gained, and a light at the end of the Crawlspace
This week on the homestead we continued our mother-in-law house repair. We can finally see the light at the end of the crawlspace! However, to break things up a bit, I will share some other news. We have had sad and exciting happenings here while I have been stuck beneath a house. Something Lost About…
Breaking Into the Void with Friends
Last week we dropped the floor in the mother in law house to start fixing. We were hoping to quickly fix it up so that our relatives, Abby and Keanu, could move into it and finally remove it from my to-do list. We were severally disappointed in our hopes. This week we go into the…
It is Always Worse than you think
You know how when you start a project and you think you know how what it will involve. Then you get into it and you find out you vastly underestimated things. Well, this week I experienced that in a big way, and I was reminded that when it comes to home repair and maintenance it…
State of the Homestead Address: 2021
This time of year is often a time of reflection on the past and planning for the future. Since we moved to the homestead a lot has transpired. We have learned a lot, accomplished a few things, and started laying the groundwork for our homesteading dream. This is a cliff notes version of what we…