Gleanings From March
Gleanings is my monthly “link love” post where I share some of the interesting articles I’ve come across the past month.
A very happy March to you, my friends! (You know, March- that month when spring officially comes even if the weather doesn’t want to consent. I don’t care what the mercury is reading, you can feel it coming in the rays of the sun!)
It’s about this time each month that I share a handful or two of articles I’ve come across the past month and think you might enjoy as well.
If nothing else, read this article and especially listen to the correlating podcast on pretty much the same subject. There has been quite a bit of food for thought for us there and we feel that our homestead just might be on the path of destruction.
• 5 Reasons Homesteaders Fail
Having spent my life in the rural areas, making a living farming and homesteading, I have seen many people come to the country with big dreams of living the homesteader’s life. Some people make a go of it and some don’t. I’ve watched enough people fail at it that I thought it might be helpful to share some observations I’ve made. Here is an opportunity to learn from other people’s mistakes.
•Homesteading vs. Small Scale Farming
• 2015 Born Again Farm Prayer Day
As born-again farmers we are very aware of our dependence upon God for our provision and livelihood. We can’t make seeds sprout, cause rain to fall, enable animals to conceive and give birth, or make people buy our produce. God is the only one who can grant us success. One of the primary ways we can show our dependence on God is by praying and asking for His blessing and provision upon our farms. And I believe that God listens to the prayers of His people.
• Homesteading with Purpose: Making a Home Wherever You Are
Thus, I declare that the new homesteading requires a new definition. Here’s my definition — please share YOUR definition in the comments below!
Homesteading (v): the intentional act of creating a sustainable life wherever you may be and celebrating a simple, wholesome, intentional way of life.
By this definition, things like intentionally not buying vegetables that have been shipped from around the globe, growing your own food (be it a kitchen pot of basil or a one-acre garden), purchasing locally produced food, making or using eco-friendly personal care products and household cleaners, canning or fermenting summer bounty, or even choosing to line dry your laundry are all acts of homesteading.
Whether you’re on 100 acres in Montana or living in a walk-up in Brooklyn, you’re creating a meaningful, intentional way of life right where you are.
•Why Moms Should Do It With A Smile!
They are more than dirty diapers and spilled milk; they are gifts that keep on giving, even beyond our lives on this earth.
Truth is, when we limit children, we don’t insure our own happiness, but we limit God’s finest way to bring about His ends in our lives.
• Why Your Children Annoy You and Homemaking is Boring
But something looms dangerously familiar, now, even in homes where for a time, women had returned as stout, home-builders. I’m seeing it over the Internet, I’m hearing it from young mothers around me: “This job is hard. Too hard, in fact, and I don’t think I’m where I’m supposed to be. And Jesus would want me to be happy, so that settles it.”
We have an old problem with a new enemy.
•How Growing a Garden Nourishes the Soul
I’m reminded of all that God created when I’m outside, with the rush of air over my skin, the warmth of the sun, the chill of the rain, the sharp jut of mountains against the sky. All of these wonders came to be by His word. It leaves me in awe.
This can be applied to many areas of life besides motherhood… including homesteading!
• I Signed Up for This
Everything that I was whining about was something I had plunged into with my eyes wide — okay, mostly wide — open. I chose to pursue motherhood. I chose to forego a career and become a stay-at-home wife and mom. I chose to homeschool.
So why in the world was I acting surprised every time my kids ate and the kitchen table was covered with food and sticky fingerprints? Why did I sigh every time we decided to go somewhere and I had to pack diaper bags and load car seats? When was I going to stop talking about how many (or how few) hours of sleep I had received the night before? How long was I planning on exclaiming over how many times a day I had to sweep the kitchen floor?
•8 Ways to Use Chickens in the Garden
In this article, I’ll explore eight different ways you can use chickens in the garden. You’ll discover how you can put chickens to work by providing nitrogen for your compost pile, replacing machine tillers, fertilizing your garden, turning compost, spreading mulch, disposing of your garbage, controlling pests and sanitizing your orchard. Let’s go…
•How to Build Your Own Curriculum Without Being A Rocket Scientist (defunct site)
When we started out designing our own curriculum 20 years ago we were not at all impressed with the track record of the public school system. After some research we decided that the culturally accepted “philosophy of learning,” was the problem. Schooling in America is based on the Greek idea that “knowledge “ is everything and the humanistic notion that children are no more than material beings without souls. This is why content continues to be stressed as the most important element of an education, with success tied to prestige and wealth, when instead we should be stressing wisdom and understanding, which are linked to selflessness and eternal values.
In Part 1 of Food as a Ministry, I shared: 1) why ministering to our brothers and sisters in Christ with food is a great way to use our passion and gifts to cook tasty food, 2) things that hinder us from doing this type of ministry, and 3) practical reasons why you should start or join a meal ministry in your local body (or homeschool group or other group).
In Part 2 (this post), I’m going to discuss the steps to getting a food ministry up and going, as well as some funny, but realistic, scenarios that can occur when there’s no one like you to take the lead. I’ll also share some of the ins and outs of communicating with the families in need as well as your team to keep things running smoothly.
•Do you have chicken syndrome?
Diversify and get out of your chicken rut. Add in some wild fish or grass-fed meats to mix things up.
When you do eat chicken, eat exclusively chicken from pastured birds (that means birds allowed to roam around and peck at grubs, eat grass, roll in the dirt… do chicken things the way chickens do), prioritize dark meat, and don’t throw out that skin!
•15 Unexpected Benefits of Big Family Living
Life as the mother of many has been every bit as blissful as I imagined. Sure, there have been lots of unexpected challenges, but there have also been plenty of unanticipated rewards. Here are a few of my favorites:
•Disney’s Progressive Agenda: Should Our Kids Be Watching Disney Flicks?
•This episode of Christian Farm & Homestead Radio on husbandry had to be the best I’ve listened to yet. There’s no doubt I’ll be listening again… next time with a pen in hand instead of an iron.
Here is The Deliberate Agrarian’s thoughts on the episode:
Scott Terry, Husbandry, And Christian-Agrarianism On The Internet
•Lost Art of Husbandry
•When my children are grown, each morning when farm chores are done, I’m going to drive to town every day despite my aversion to being there so I can continue to cuddle babies.
Cuddling Babies: Hospital Volunteers Show the Power of Human Touch
•I’ve always wondered… and now I’m convinced of it’s benefits, but sadly that still doesn’t mean I can afford it now. But when I can, I’ll make the switch!
Cacoa vs. Cocoa: What’s the Difference?
•The Plow Boy and the Delivery Boy
American writer Wendell Berry in his essay, “God and Country” once opined about the “tacit alliance” between the organized church and the economy. This alliance, he argued, manifests itself in the way that many denominations view the country church. He wrote, “The message that country people get from their churches, then, is the same message they get from ‘the economy’: that, as country people, they do no matter much and do not deserve much consideration.” He further adds, “According to the modern church, as one of my Christian friends said to me, ‘The soul of the plow boy ain’t worth as much as the soul of the delivery boy.’” Is that really the case?
Minimalist living is counter-cultural. It is contrary to every advertisement we have ever seen because we live in a society that prides itself on the accumulation of possessions.
But there is far more joy to be found in the pursuit of fewer possessions than can ever be discovered in the pursuit of more. Consider just some of the benefits of living with fewer possessions.
•Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus
I’m confounded and I’ll tell you why.
Because there is an epidemic of death and contagion sweeping across the farms of this country that is barely getting a mention in the mainstream media. If you ask me it should be front page news.
And I’ll wager that unless you live in farming community or you are a commodities trader or you are involved in some way with the pork industry, you don’t know what I’m talking about.I’m talking about Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus or PEDV for short.
PEDV is a disease that has killed over 5 million pigs in the United States since last May. In the month of January alone, about 1.3 million pigs died. PEDV has been confirmed in over 27 states and is spreading like a prairie wildfire.
My favorites and yours from off the Pinboards and around the web…
(The secret to eggs in the winter is to get a few production hens to carry you through because the heritage breeds simply aren’t going to.)
The Child Housekeeper – A free ebook-“Written by two women who clearly understood and loved children, each chapter covers a different aspect of housekeeping sweeping and dusting; cleaning; laundry work; mending. Each lesson includes general directions on how and why the task is done, and is accompanied by songs, stories, bits of science and history, and play to reinforce the lesson.”
Handy.
Identifying a cows health by their swirls and coat
Treadle Sewing Machine advice
I’m on the lookout for a new sewing machine since mine is on it’s last leg. I’m seriously contemplating one of these and never having to buy another sewing machine again.
Balsamic Vinegar and Honey Pulled Pork Sliders
Now that I have some pork roasts in the basement, this will be on the menu!!
Baling Hay by Hand – Great idea for small scaling hay-making like in the orchard!
Lasagna Raised Bed Garden- love the wattled sides for a potager!
My poor willow tree will have no branches left by the time I’m done with it!
Wood Cooking Stove. Envy.
No electrical components on that to get fried up while you’re in the middle of making spaghetti & meatballs.
Jean Skirt Refashion – I have quite a few leg-less jeans stored up, so this would be a great way to use repurpose them.
15 Foods You Can Regrow From Scraps
Make an Elderberry Spile for tapping trees – This is how we tapped maple trees this year for free! It would need to be done every year, but it seems to be working great!
Growing New Grapvines From Pruned Clippings – Next dry day, I’ll be heading to the orchard to do the annual pruning and since 3 of our grapevines have been mown over or weed-whacked down, I’m going to attempt to propagate new vines before investing in some from elsewhere.
Espalier Pruning – I’d love to try this someday.
Homemade Laundry Deteregent- Not having found a homemade detergent I like yet, might as well give this one a try. I will say this much- it is the first liquid detergent that gelled up for me. I’ve only been using it for a few days, so we’ll see how it goes.
-For those looking to learn to cook from scratch…
“The Granny Plan” isn’t about specific recipes, or must-make-dishes and exactly how to do them. Sure we’ll cover a few basics here, but for the most part I’ll be directing you to try some of the recipes you have stashed away that your family will like, or to make something you already make more often. We’ll be working on the routines that keep you ready to cook mostly. And routines that make the family happier with that cooking.
-Loved this story…
The Boy Farmer
He told us he ran this barn we were standing in mostly by himself, with the help of a friend who came after school. He wasn’t boasting. It was just a matter of a fact thing and he was glad about it. I looked again at the long rows of heifers and cows and young bulls. He told us how he was sending the bulls back down to Virginia to put out to pasture, raising the heifers to milk and was milking nine cows by hand twice a day since the milking equipment in the old barn had never been put right. How they planted two hundred acres of corn and beans and for every acre they planted way up here in NY, they got twice as much product as the red clay Virginian soil would offer up. He gestured with small man hands, leathery and dark with grime from doing a man’s work. When Sean asked his age, he said he was fourteen and that he was schooled at home.
-I always knew that breastfeeding was beneficial, but many of these benefits surprised me…
The Risks of Not Breastfeeding for Mothers and Infants
Health outcomes in developed countries differ substantially for mothers and infants who formula feed compared with those who breastfeed. For infants, not being breastfed is associated with an increased incidence of infectious morbidity, as well as elevated risks of childhood obesity, type 1 and type 2 diabetes, leukemia, and sudden infant death syndrome. For mothers, failure to breastfeed is associated with an increased incidence of premenopausal breast cancer, ovarian cancer, retained gestational weight gain, type 2 diabetes, myocardial infarction, and the metabolic syndrome. Obstetricians are uniquely positioned to counsel mothers about the health impact of breastfeeding and to ensure that mothers and infants receive appropriate, evidence-based care, starting at birth.
-Hope to see many more stories like this in the future…
Syngenta Charged for Covering up Livestock Deaths from GM Corn
Syngenta’s Bt 176 corn variety expresses an insecticidal Bt toxin (Cry1Ab) derived from the bacterium, Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) and a gene conferring resistance to glufosinate herbicides. EU cultivation of Bt 176 was discontinued in 2007. Similar varieties however, including Bt 11 sweet corn are currently cultivated for human and animal consumption in the EU.
-This is so important! We can’t just pick and choose which parts of the Bible are true. It’s all true and to do so discredits our testimony and robs God of His glory…
Noted Apologist Calls Out Evangelical Leaders Who Undermine the Word of God
“Many Christian leaders today will say ‘who cares what Genesis says and what does it matter about the age of the earth as long as you trust in Jesus. We need to go out there and preach the Gospel,’” said Ham. “But the point we need to understand is the Gospel comes from this book called the Bible and if generations of people have been led to believe they can’t really trust the Bible or lead to doubt that you can trust its authority or doubt its history – eventually they will reject the Bible and won’t listen to the Gospel.”
How about you? Found any gems on the internet lately?
I’m very interested in the Majestic brand wood stove you have pictured here because I have one exactly like it that I’m restoring. I’d like to contact the owner about restoration resources and specifically about where to obtain the paint/enamel in those colors, so I can do spot repair. I hope you can put me in touch. Thanks!
Hello Sharon. This is something I found on pinterest. I love the look of the stove and would love to have one like that one day. If you follow the link in the pin, you might be able to track down the owner.