Our barn and corral
This is a different type of post for me. I've never written a top 10 list before. But here goes! The top ten reasons I love to live on a farm!
The General Store where we hold our "gatherings" and we do some cooking and canning
1.
It is quiet. We live a half mile off the road, and our nearest neighbors are at least a half mile away in any different direction. So that lends itself to quiet living. Quiet, that is, if you don't take into account the roosters, guineas, and peacock. The cows who MOO every time they see the pick up truck, and the sheep who love company. But people noises, we don't have a lot of that.
GrandBoy moving a "brand new" just born goat! He is so proud.
Our "girls"
2.
There is plenty of room for any hobby or activity your kids want to pursue. Our daughters are all grown up now. But we are starting on the next generation! GrandBoy wants to be a tractor driver when he grows up. I remember when we first moved here, the girls all took up special hobbies and interests. Daughter #1 decided to raise goats, and she called herself the "Goat Queen"! Daughter #2 bottle fed a Brahman bull calf one summer. That bull recently sold for $1,700 at the cow sale. And our youngest daughter decided one day that she was going to find out how the chicken laid an egg. She stood by one hen for a couple of hours, pulling her rear up off her nest, until she finally saw an egg. From then on, she was convinced that eggs came out of chickens!
GrandBoy making juice with our fruit press. Pappy is helping.
3.
There is always room for a large garden. We plant a ton of stuff each summer. By the end, I'm pretty much ready for the garden to be done. But we eat organic and try to produce as much of our food as possible. We (I should say I because the girls are grown and don't help much any more) can and freeze as much of our food as possible. Daughter #1 and Pappy are mad at this statement and just reminded me they canned peaches last summer! So I'm thankful for our garden.
Pears waiting to be canned
4.
We have plenty of fruit trees and berries. The first summer we were here, we started planting fruit trees. This year Pappy is planting blackberry and raspberry patches. We have peaches, grapes, apples, and pears. Blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries. So it's nice not to worry about what has come in contact with our food.
Just bottled wine
Within hours the balloons inflate, and you know it is working
5.
We have learned to make our own wine. When we moved here, I found the Welch's Grape Juice wine recipe on line. I made wine, and we enjoyed it with our friends. When Pappy retired, he started making wine out of our fruit juices. People still love it, and we do this every year. Some flavors are better than others, but we live and learn.
One of my favorite quilts on our "downstairs" clothes line.
The front yard clothes line. This one gets used the most. But some days call for both.
6.
We have room for a clothes line. Actually we have two! I like to save on the utility bill anyway we can. Most of our tenants' utility bills are higher than the one we get for the whole farm, farmhouse and all. We try to conserve where we can.
Some of our Black Angus herd
Sheep and goats
7.
We raise our own meat. I just asked Daughter #1 what her favorite thing about living on a farm was. I was actually afraid she would say, "nothing". But she said that her favorite part was having our own food and meat. We are beef cattle farmers. We take at least one cow to the processor each year. This year Pappy ended up processing a cow that went down while calving. She was paralyzed, and if a cow can't walk, the processor can't take it. We also raise our own chickens, rabbits, sheep, and goats which are all used for meat. Occasionally the hunters who park here while hunting, will bring us some venison. And most years we buy a pig from the processor. We are very well stocked for meat, and Pappy gets mad at me if I buy any.
More cows!
8.
We have our own goats' milk, and may be expanding to cows' milk soon. We have had dairy goats for a few years now. Probably about four. But last night Pappy told me that a friend had bought a herd of miniature cows, and there were a few jerseys in the mix. So we may be getting a dairy cow. And if so, I'll never buy dairy products again. That is really what most of my grocery budget is for. Dairy, produce, and bread. When I retire, I am going to go back to making my own bread like I used to when the kids were small. We make some of our own cheese now, but its hard to get enough goats milk for much cheese if you want to drink any. Most of our goats are meat goats.
A friend from church
9.
If someone is coming down the long, dusty driveway, you know they must want to see you! You will know long before they get to the house, and can come out to greet them and see what they want. I say that but there was a time when we had three teenage girls and Pappy worked third shift. I swore I was going to buy a drive way alarm system. I found out that teens had been up and down our drive one night, and a wrecker even came and picked up one girls' car! But that is the exception, not the rule. At least, I hope so!
Independence Day!
10.
We have lots of "Gatherings". Friends are always wanting to meet and spend time with us on the farm. They want to bring their own company to meet us and see our home. We are like a tourist spot! Pappy's Police friends are always "gathering" here to rest, relax, and spend time enjoying each others company.
New baby goats
Meat Rabbits
11.
This one is a bonus, but we meet lots of people who drive down that long driveway to see if they can bring their kids to see "real" farm life. When I had a Child Care Center, we brought the children here each Spring. Now families come around Easter to buy rabbits. Home school families stop by and say they have heard about us and will be back. All year, people knock on our door, and ask what we have for sale!
Stop by soon to see us! We can't wait to see you!
