2012 Update

Sadly, we haven't posted in almost an entire year. Our journey of being more self sufficient has not progressed as far as I thought it would have when I started this blog in 2009. Even so, we are still working toward our goal.

About a year ago we got chickens...this experiment actually went very well. Abigail, though very skeptical at first grew to enjoy the experience. We ate a lot of eggs throughout the summer and fall. Right before winter we decided that we were likely going to put our house on the market in the spring. Rather than keep the chickens throughout the winter (when their egg production would be down) we decided to donate them to a friends farm and then get more chickens when we get to our more permanent location with more land. We do miss our chickens and our fresh eggs.

The last three years we have slowly been converting our garden to the sq. ft. method. Since we are planning on moving (and we want to take our garden boxes with us) we decided to only plant in 2 4x4 beds this year. It's sad to see so many boxes being wasted, but it's what we have to do this season.

Here are some pictures from the 2012 garden:

Just Starting Out

Over the past few years I have been extremely interested in the subject of personal self-sufficiency or sustainability. It seems that this was something that our great country was founded on, but sadly this idea has been lost in the airwaves of time.

Here is the Wikipedia definition of self-sufficiency:

"The term self-sufficiency is usually applied to varieties of sustainable living in which nothing is consumed outside of what is produced by the self-sufficient individuals. Examples of attempts at self-sufficiency in North America include voluntary simplicity, homesteading, survivalism, and the back-to-the-land movement."

From everything I have read on the subject, becoming self sufficient is a grand task. It takes time, money, and a lot of research to survive, especially if you are a city-boy like I am.

This blog is dedicated to that move toward a more simple life. It will highlight my families journey to find it. The founding fathers knew that a self-reliant people was the only true way that our democratic republic can exist. It's obvious that they were right. Our hand-out country is falling apart in it's own gimme gimme hands. We have decided not to contribute (unless of course they re-instate the homestead act :) )

I hope to point out many of the positive things that a self-sufficient life can bring to your life. Maybe we will discover some negatives as well. We will just have to wait and see.

The first two items of the year are:
1. Vegetable Garden
2. Chickens and Coop