Thirty days in and the homestead is teaching us more than YouTube ever could (mainly that YouTubers don’t mention that most homestead work comes with bruises). There’s dirt everywhere (our nails, on our jeans and our boots, sometimes in my mouth), and new callouses forming. There’s also a growing list of “lessons learned the hard way.” But the air is crip, stars are brighter here and now the sound of baby chicks wakes us in the mornings.
The Wins
The wins have been hard earned and fewer than the lessons learned, for sure! Here’s a quick rundown of what we’re excited to share:
- Big Equipment Arrival: There’s something magical about watching a tractor being delivered. It was like Christmas morning, except this toy requires hydraulic fluid and safety goggles. We also brought home a box blade, and brush hog which led to our first days of clearing 3–4 acres and the removal of several trees.
- Fire Mitigation & DNR Visit: We met with Department of Natural Resources and Bobby encouraged us to continue doing what we’re doing. We’re on the right track to keep our home safe if faced with a fire. As of me writing this, there are at least 2 active brush fires. One is burning along Trent Avenue in Spokane Valley and the other is in the South Hill area near the old Shopko building.
- Shed-to-Shed/Coop Remodel: We made great progress on the shed remodel this month. We divided a 12×10 shed into two parts creating a space for our future flock while preserving space for garden tools. We did decide that we’re going to relocate it, because the space it’s on right now is somewhere we’d ideally like to put a patio or a pool someday. It would be better to relocate it now, before we install a predator-proof chicken run.
- New Baby Chicks: We didn’t anticipate bringing home chicks this month, but when the opportunity presented itself, we couldn’t pass it up. So, now we have 9 baby chicks (3 Black Jersy Giants, 3 Cinnamon Queens and 3 Brown Leghorns). The kids are eager to name them but only a couple are distinguishable to us so names haven’t really stuck. So far, we have Thunder (a white beaked Jersy Giant). There’s been talk of naming them after Marvel characters. If there’s a rooster, let’s hope it’s not a Loki. 😉 We’ll see though!
- Family Time: Our family is in the area, but they’re still about 1-2 hours from our place. Even so, we’ve still managed three family dinners and a camping trip. These have been grounding moments amidst the busy-ness of establishing our homestead.
The Learning Curve
This stuff is hard! Every day we’re up before the sun getting ourselves ready for the day, and we fall asleep almost as soon as our heads hit our pillows in the evening. The work is laborious, which we knew coming in. However, we weren’t anticipating a lower back injury for me shortly before arriving. (I deal with an L4-L5 injury from my time in the military and it’s flared up recently, which has slowed me down some these last several weeks). It’s definitely been a humbling time, re-learning my own limits.
While I said the list of “lessons learned the hard way” is longer than the wins, these are the major ones I think you’ll find interesting.
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- Farm Equipment Learning Curve: We’ve had to learn how to safely use each new piece of equipment we brought home. And you’d think that would be easily done by reading the owner’s manual that comes with the equipment… BUT, NOPE. Most of the equipment was purchased used and a lot of research was done with the help of YouTube. We also ran into an issue with our brush hog’s connecting piece being incorrectly installed (You can read about that in this blog post). Luke handled all of this very quickly! While the pins were easily replaced, the brush hog parts did take a few days to figure out. But, we’re all the wiser now!
Deer vs. Orchard: Our home came with 4 well-established fruit trees with a small makeshift fence around it. While the trees are lush with leaves, I’ve only counted a handful of fruit on each tree. There are 2 apple and 2 pear trees that look like they need a pruning hat’s been eaten so far, your attempts at prevention (or your plan for fencing). To add to the saga of sad fruit trees, we’ve been fending off a little herd of deer, who are totally not bothered by the meek fencing and continue to graze on the trees. I don’t want to hurt the deer, but if they could find a different orchard to graze in, that would be great.
- We’re 35-minutes to anywhere, but 3 seconds to deer in the orchard: In our previous home, we were about 12 minutes to anything we could possibly need. Here, we’re a little bit out there. To get anywhere, it’s about a 35-minute drive. We now do “homestead math” before running errands: is the trip worth the gas, the time, and the risk of forgetting the one thing we went for?
This has changed how I view things like doctor’s appointments, grocery shopping and fun outings. It’s also affected how I meal plan/prep for the week. There have been a few times where I’m missing 1-2 ingredients for dinner, and we just do without – and it’s been just fine.
We did find that we can get things delivered here quickly. So, if I’m willing to wait a day or so, I can have things delivered by Amazon and that’s been awesome!
What's Next on the Homestead
Our goals over the next 30 days include preparing the ground for the new coop, garden and orchard. We plan to relocate the coop and build out the run. And, finally, we want to fence out the orchard. These all feel like a bit of a stretch, but we’re aiming high here!
Reflections
This month was a milestone for our family; there’s no doubt about that. We have been praying for this for the last 3 years and we’re finally here. But, the month leading up to our arrival we lived in 3 different hotels and 4 different camp sites while we moved across the U.S.. Arriving here was a dream come true, and we know it’s going to take work to keep the dream alive. This month’s events and accomplishments are definite lessons on perseverance, patients, sowing and reaping and stewardship.
This all feels very much like a Proverbs 24:27 process. This scripture says, “Put your outdoor work in order and get your fields ready; after that, build your house.” This scripture advises a practical approach to life, urging Christians to first secure their livelihood and then focus on building their home. In a lot of ways, it feels like this is how we’re approaching things on the property.
Progress happens one step at a time. One delayed project at a time – delays are practically the homestead’s mascot. The lessons come through the delays, challenges and we’ve found joy and fulfillment in the process, not just the finished work.
If the last 30 days have taught us anything it’s that the homestead is a mix of grit, grace and gratitude. Here’s to the next month of broken shear pins, deer proof fences and snuggles with baby chicks.
What have been the lessons you learned the first 30 days into a new huge project? I’d love to hear about your challenges, lessons learned and any advice you may like to share with me. Also, if you loved this post, please consider subscribing to receive more updates on our journey here, or share with someone you know who would love this too.
Until next time, be blessed.
LOVE this beautiful look into your family’s BEAUTIFUL story unfolding in His eyes 💗
Thank you, Katherine. You know better than some, the wait was worth it! Huge thanks to you and Teresa for your roles in getting us this treasure.