These Free-Range gals are happy, roaming their chunk of the Ozarks, eating whatever they forage underneath the leaves, seemingly without a care in the world. I wish it were that peaceful all of the time. Like, I REALLY really wish it could be. But the not-so-glamorous side to free-range chickens is when you’re painfully reminded of Mother Nature’s foodchain. Chickens …

There’s more to homesteading than raising a small army of dinosaur-descendants and collecting pretty little eggs – though that’s arguably one of my favorite parts. Being sustainable is huge, reconnecting with and supporting local businesses & artisans is paramount, and I’ve always felt that cooking can do both of those things better than almost anything else. Plus, cooking your own …

Let’s talk about egg cartons. We go through a ton of them, right? So which do we pick? After doing a decent bit of research, I settled on using the slightly unpopular option of plastic egg cartons. I chose this for one main reason: I can quickly & easily disinfect the cartons that I collect and reuse. To disinfect plastic …

This is Dottie & Maude, our Icelandic hens, or “Icies”.Technically, Icelandic Chickens are a landrace and not a true breed, so they come in all different color/feather/comb combinations. They’re relatively rare in the USA, though there are a few breeders dedicated to preserving the Icelandic stock. Which is great because Icelandic Chickens are unique & they’re a perfect homestead breed. …

Carrot & potato peels, onion heads, parsely stems, celery butts, tomato stems, dried out garlic cloves – Most people throw out their vegetable scraps, but these are like gold in our house. These “scraps” all get tossed into a gallon-sized freezer bag until the bag is full, then it goes into a large stockpot filled with water, some salt & …

Did you know that freshly laid eggs will stay fresh out on the counter for up to a month?  This is because eggs naturally contain a protective cuticle, called the “Bloom”, which is a layer on the outside of the shell that prevents bacteria and oxygen from passing through the porous shell. As long as that layer doesn’t get washed …

  Let’s talk about roosters, since it’s Monday morning and mine has been crowing since about 4am. Throughout our 2 year homestead adventure we’ve had anywhere from one trusty rooster (pictured above), to 10 young & wild roosters. Whenever there is more than one rooster residing in our flock, chaos ensues and the poor hens get tormented by all of …

I recently discovered something called Willow Water, essentially a SUPER easy & natural alternative to “rooting hormone” used for the propogation of plants, and that’s super exciting! First off, some plants are ridiculously easy to propogate unassisted, like ivy. You literally just cut the stem, take off the leaves on the bottom inch of the stem, and pop into some …