this whole homesteading, home cooking, homeschooling and hobby farming is actually funny if you think about it. if you know me, that is.
we were visiting a couple of friends of ours and we joked at how surprised we all are at the idea of this life i’ve created. i’m this homeschool mom trying to live as natural as possible, trying to start a garden, breed my goats for milking, a milking cow on the way, raising chickens for eggs and meat and so forth. I’ve mentioned it before, but I would’ve described myself as the least conforming person on the planet. not a single fiber in my body wanted to be domestic in the ways i’ve become domestic today. and what’s even funnier about this whole scenario i’ve created is the simple concept of growing a plant would’ve made my internally gag 😂 plants are for girlie girls ew.. and now in my house i’m trying to find more places to squeeze plants!
here’s the catch.. as much as my desires have changed, and I find myself thriving with this lifestyle.. I SUCK AT IT.. so many people message me or make comments about how they wish they were doing this too. they wish they could cook like me, or they wish they could decorate like me or do school activities with the kids like I do. they wish they could somehow grow a garden full of fruits and veggies. it kills me when these comments come up because my response in my head is ME TOO..
I can’t cook to save my life people.. when a recipe finally works, it’s usually the 3rd try and i’ve already wasted a plethora of ingredients. my activities with my kids? if they didn’t happen to be conveniently in the curriculum for that day, odds are I made up the idea on a complete whim, and because i’m a complete child at heart, I probably came up with it because I wanted to do it for myself. turns out the kids like that stuff too HA! win-win.
i’m not good at this you guys. i’m two years in and I still 9 times out of 10 don’t know what the heck i’m doing. but my personality is, despite not fully knowing what i’m doing, i’m going to do it. i’m not going to wait for anyone to tell me I can. i’m not waiting for permission. I very rarely put things in my way. and when I fail, I learn. in fact I find that’s honesty the BEST way I learn, personally. I’m aware that’s not how everyone functions and that’s completely understandable. but I thrive on throwing MYSELF to the wolves and learning by being physically IN IT.
today, we are sowing seeds. this is the 4th year in a row I am attempting to grow produce. a lot of people would probably give up after 3 years of failure. I sound dramatic when I say “FAILURE” but listen.. i’m not just talking subtle misfortune ending up with only a few fruits or veggies.. no no no… 3 years of planting seeds and spending over $100 every year on supplies only to have nothing grow, sprout then die, grow several inches and die after transplant etc.. in my lifetime, I have grown a single carrot and 4 green beans (not bean stalks.. single green beans).
I like to think of myself as Rogue, the X-Men super hero girl with the cool hair. Anything she touches, she absorbs it’s life, energy, and powers and it then dies. yep, that is what happens when I touch plants. only I can’t seem to figure out how to absorb it’s energy and powers. working on that. so for now, only the hardiest of plants can stand a chance against my deathly powers- succulents.
this is my year though. this is my year to actually grow food for my family.
as stated before, I go big or go home. so following suit, i’m shooting for the stars. I spent several hours last night researching all the plants i’ve purchased- when to start some inside, when to plant in the ground, the depth to sow the seed, the row spacing of each individual plant, the compatibility and incompatibility of certain plants with others, ideal placement and locations, recommended number of parallel rows for best production, dating when to sow vs when it is ripe for harvest.. the list goes on. to the best of my ability, I think i’ve planned and prepped for the best possible outcome. i’m sure i’ll lose a bunch of plants. i’m sure i’ll manage to kill something or ruin it.. but today i’m confident!
i’m in this to succeed, just like every other crazy, wild, and adventurous endeavor I put myself (and subsequently my family 😅) through. we are learning together, planning together, growing together and succeeding together. I couldn’t ask for a better life than that. ❤️🌱🍓🍅🥦🥒🌶🌽🥕🥔
