Easy Isn't the Answer

(Photographs courtesy of Isaac Gunn)

When things get so busy on our little homestead, I need to remind myself of why our family has chosen the life we lead.  I need to remember that freedom from being tied down, freedom from the rat race, and free to make our days as we choose are invaluable.  Sometimes I think that my life would be so much easier if Mike got a regular job and I didn't have to figure out how to juggle children, housework, cooking, a very busy business, homestead, and husband - oh and maybe, just maybe a little creative time thrown in for myself.  But then I just reflect back on all of the steps we have taken to get where we are now and why we chose this life.  It may very well be easier if Mike did get a "regular" job.  But you know what?  Easier is seldom ever better.  Easy rarely accomplishes goals.  Easy seldom equates living ones values.  It's hard work.

Food Budgets

As I was making lunch yesterday, Nolan walked through the kitchen and asked what was for lunch.  I replied, "Soup and just made bread."

Nolan (age 14) responded with, "That's it?"

Sarah (age 6), listening in the other room,  chimes in, "Nolan, we are on a budget you know."

The truth is, we really don't have a food budget.  I do my best to balance our financial capabilities with buying healthy and as much organic food and also as local food as possible.  Of course during the growing season, we eat all our own veggies and I preserve some food.  With our garden expansions each year this should increase, possibly even enough to sell a bit again.    Our goal is to add two goats to milk.  I moved the chickens from the barn to the smaller coops yesterday to bring us one more step closer to this reality.

But the truth is, we generally eat simple, healthy foods and still spend much more than I would like.  I make soups and cook  from our store of potatoes at least twice per week now.  We also eat pasta with vegetables, rice with vegetables and very occasionally organic, local meat.  For lunches we often have grilled cheese on homemade bread with pickles (that I have canned from our gardens).  Breakfast is either pancakes (usually without syrup as it is just so expensive), organic oatmeal with raisins, or Cheerios(started this habit almost 17 years ago with #1) with bananas (the last nonlocal fruit I buy on a regular basis to help with the children's nutritional needs).  For a family of eight, we nearly go through one pound of butter each day, nearly one gallon of milk, 1/2 gallon of juice (we do each have one cup of juice with breakfast), and about 1/2 - 1 pound of cheese each day. I generally buy monterey jack, non organic as the organic is still so much more.  (The goats should help with this too.)

Including dog and cat food, the few non food items we do buy (toilet paper, toothpaste, dish detergent), and then the food items, I  have estimated that we spend about $200.00 per week (a family of eight).  As we work toward making more of these food and nonfood items ourselves, I hope this will slowly go down, not just for financial reasons, but also to meet our goal of being more self-sufficient and living lightly on the earth.  Each packaged item purchased at market or the natural food store contributes in some way to pollution or the depletion of natural resources, even if I recycle every bit as recycling uses energy too.

What is your food budget, how much do you have to buy outside of what you grow and how many in your family?

Innovation

When our family decided to take the road less traveled, we knew that our income would be less than if we had continued on with our life centered on career goals and the demands of my husband's job and the self inflicted pressures of living in suburbia.

Selling what we create with our hands, eating and selling some from what we grow on our homestead, and the occasional odd job have given us enough income to eat well, have a simple shelter (home), be clothed, educate our children simply, and provide the occasional extra.

A concern that often creeps up, probably far too often, is the worry that we are not providing our children with all the tools that could enhance their gifts.  I think of the instruments for the musicians, art supplies for the artists, science kits for our scientist, and movie making equipment for the future director.

As the oldest boys are now nearing 15 and 17, they have been called on often by neighbors to do odd jobs such as stacking wood, raking, taking care of animals, etc.  In addition, they have been able to earn money helping us with our business as it has grown.   As a result, they are saving to buy themselves the tools they need to work toward their goals.

Thomas is an excellent keyboard player but he has always wanted to play drums.  While living in our off grid mobile home, a drum set was not an option.  However, in our home now we could make it work.  (I cringe a bit thinking of the noise, however.)

In the interim, while he saves, I was inspired by this temporary set up ~

Sorry for the blurry picture - He used the top of our oil lantern on his microphone stand, and I think you make out the rest - even the drum sticks are branches.

My hope is that his creativity and innovation will be carried with him throughout his life.

Warm wishes, Tonya

Simple Lives Thursday - Family Work

On our journey toward a more deliberate life, one of our goals is to include our children in our work. To be home more, to be with them more, and to give them the opportunity to share in our work. Our handcraft business has grown in leaps and bounds over the past couple of months and we are excited that we are at a place where we can pay our teenage boys an hourly rate. Even Sarah, at six years old, asks to help. This picture is her helping Mike make the lacing set pieces by putting one piece at a time in the clamp for her father and then putting them in the bucket once the hole is drilled out of the middle.

No workshop for us yet, it may have to wait until next year. But it is amazing what can be done just making do with what we have.

The message is that if you wait to go for your dream until everything is in place, you may never get to that perfect place "first". For example, if we had not begun our business in earnest until we had all the best equipment and a workshop then we would still be so far from our dream or deep in debt (which we deliberately avoided while building our business - we never borrowed money, nor did we have start-up money). Taking small steps and working hard while keeping our thoughts on our goals has worked for our family.

Warm wishes, Tonya