Uncategorized Archives - Page 2 of 6 - Our Homestead Adventures

Naturally Decorated Easter Eggs

Decorating Easter eggs is a family tradition, we experimented with our farm fresh eggs this year and the results were beautiful. Easter eggs, in our house, had always started off as the white eggs we would buy at the store. But as our diverse flock (Rhode Island Red, Barred Rock, Buff Oprington, Black Australorp, Silver…

Farm Eggs vs Store Bought Eggs

Yes, you can taste the difference between farm fresh eggs and store bought eggs. We’re asked all the time whether we can tell the difference between the eggs from our chickens and those bought at the grocery store. They come from chickens, how different can they be? Oh… there’s a difference. Since building our coop…

Dandelion Jelly Recipe

Dandelions begin growing here just before we are about to get serious with the spring garden. They take all of the built-up cabin-fever energy and beg to be picked before the lawn mower hits the ground. There is a large space on our property where we haven’t had much success with growing anything but green…

Ms. Olivia’s Sweet Peaches

A peach buzz began to swirl. There was a buzz among the locals that a peach truck was scheduled to deliver in our small town. There is nothing like access to good foods that aren’t typical of your area. A friend called to let me know it was coming and we started thinking about all…

Dog Training on the Homestead

Progress, not perfection: Farm dog training When we moved to our homestead property, we talked of getting a family dog at some point. Both my husband and I had had dogs growing up and into adulthood (our Black Lab, “Pelé” was our first dog as a couple) but we’ve never dealt with a situation that…

Cinnamon Rolls with Chestnut Jam and Eggnog Icing

Here is a little spin on your classic cinnamon rolls. These cinnamon rolls truly ring of the holiday spirit. They have such a warm and inviting aroma. There are a few cinnamon roll recipes out there that are pretty good. All of the recipes are basically the same. For years, I would hand-knead the dough…

Chestnut Jam Recipe

When life gives you chestnuts… you make chestnut jam. When you have more chestnut trees than you can easily count, and they produce an abundance of chestnuts, you find a way to use them, unless of course, you are only using them to feed the local deer and squirrels. Since we have enough nuts to…

Chore Charts for Children

We want more but do we want another chore. With the New Year, we’ve started dreaming of adding more to our homestead. We want to grow more food. We’ve been pondering raising other farm animals too. While these thoughts have been exciting, they have me thinking, “How is this going to happen when it was…

Homegrown Thanksgiving Success

Thanksgiving unlike any before. We sat at the table, a bountiful Thanksgiving feast laid out in front of us. The amazing spread of food was more than a reason to give thanks… it was the culmination of a year’s worth of work, sacrifice and commitment. It was a meal to feed the soul as much…

Sweet Potatoes Sunday

Hunting for sweet potatoes on a sunny Sunday. Sweet Potatoes are one of Amy’s favorites. The kids like them too, especially with a little cinnamon. Our summer crop yielded a handful of the red-orange beauties. Most of them were found peeking above the heavy clay soil (we mixed in a heavy dose of compost this…