Several years ago, while living in the city, my husband and I realized that our lives were empty. While we had a good life and great children, there was something missing; some basic instinct that was pushed down so deep, ignored so completely that it had almost gone silent. We were tired of chasing the dollar and aquiring materialistic baubles that served no purpose. The constant sirens were a sign that too many people lived in one place, and that violence and injury were all too common. It seemed odd to be spending time mowing the lawn rather than growing food. We were fed up with neighbors so close that they knew our every move, rather than having open space and the privacy that comes with it. It all just felt unnatural.
Once we realized that what we were missing was that connection to the land, and our food that comes from it, our choice to pack our family up and move to the country seemed obvious. Finalizing our decision to leave our familiar surroundings, and finding the right property, took several years, but we are finally here. We purchased 25 chicks last spring, received 27, and one died due to shipping stress. The girls and I had a solemn little chicken funeral, complete with prayers and flowers. That was our first experience with losing one of our animals; I'm sure there will be more here on the farm. Those chickens are now grown, and are dutifully laying eggs and scratching the earth that we now call home. We have since gotten ten ducks, seventeen guineas, and two sheep to go along with our two dogs and seven cats. We will soon be aquiring ewes for our East Friesian ram and will begin to make cheese from their milk and yarn from their fleece, and soon after that a milk cow and her calf will join them in the barn.
We have planted a small orchard and have tripled the size of the garden, which will soon be coming alive with the arrival of spring. We have also increased the size of the pond, and have plans to hook up our existing windmill to a new well that will feed the pond so that we can stock it with fish. Can you tell that there is really no end to all of our plans?? Stay tuned and keep reading for updates from all around the farm, and make sure to check back frequently to see just what is growing at our new Food Farm.
Once we realized that what we were missing was that connection to the land, and our food that comes from it, our choice to pack our family up and move to the country seemed obvious. Finalizing our decision to leave our familiar surroundings, and finding the right property, took several years, but we are finally here. We purchased 25 chicks last spring, received 27, and one died due to shipping stress. The girls and I had a solemn little chicken funeral, complete with prayers and flowers. That was our first experience with losing one of our animals; I'm sure there will be more here on the farm. Those chickens are now grown, and are dutifully laying eggs and scratching the earth that we now call home. We have since gotten ten ducks, seventeen guineas, and two sheep to go along with our two dogs and seven cats. We will soon be aquiring ewes for our East Friesian ram and will begin to make cheese from their milk and yarn from their fleece, and soon after that a milk cow and her calf will join them in the barn.
We have planted a small orchard and have tripled the size of the garden, which will soon be coming alive with the arrival of spring. We have also increased the size of the pond, and have plans to hook up our existing windmill to a new well that will feed the pond so that we can stock it with fish. Can you tell that there is really no end to all of our plans?? Stay tuned and keep reading for updates from all around the farm, and make sure to check back frequently to see just what is growing at our new Food Farm.
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