A Family Homestead.

Amerisa

My husband and I were sitting outside for a few minutes last night as he was finishing up some chores around the property.

Our daughter, who is 2 1/2, was singing, playing with a Pig figurine we got her at Tractor Supply earlier that day, and sitting in our laps, all within the span of like 5 minutes. LoL

My husband and I were briefly discussing what we'll need when it comes time to slaughter our pigs, namely some big vat/tub thing for scalding them.

We realized that this, and other conversations we've had would likely seem out of the ordinary or at the least put a lot of other people off just to hear it. Truthfully, it's odd for us - because it's new. We have only owned our own chickens for the past year, and have already killed two batches of chickens, cleaned them, rendered them, etc. There are some still in my freezer as I type this.

We will have only owned our pigs for a year this coming April. Of course, they aren't quite ready for becoming meat yet, and we aren't in any hurry - but I married a man who knows how to plan and is always thinking ahead (for which I am incredibly grateful).

He is always thinking about what needs to be done, and how to do it. This is why I have personally never really felt like I needed anything for the 15 years we have been married. That's not to say I felt that way as a kid - 'cause my parents somehow always made things work for me and my 4 siblings, but I didn't realize what all that took and the miracles God worked for us when I was a kid until I was grown.

And the same happens even today, where I have just as much evidence that things CAN'T work out as I ever have, and yet, somehow, they do.

Of course, it's not fair to do that, because my sweet husband and I do indeed work hard, plan, try, fail and succeed. That alone should at least make me feel like things will work out some of the time.

I am getting better about that, thank God.

And overcoming that more and more every day, keeping in mind that failure is part of success and that our hard work isn't for nothing.

As Anthony and I were discussing what we'd need for slaughtering the pigs, he wondered out loud what all that will be like for Amerisa as she grows up. Will she think it's weird? Will it mean nothing to her? Will she continue in this lifestyle when she's older? Will it just be normal to her?

It's still not normal to us, but it's who we are and want to be, and we want that for her as well - to be as self-sufficient as possible, to stand on her own two feet, to know that she is able to do much more than might be expected of her.

As we learn this for ourselves, we hope to teach it to her as well.

Thank you for joining us on this journey toward becoming self-sufficient here at Forever Homestead.

More to come!