The other day while checking out at Aldi an older gentleman ahead of me in line was commenting how expensive eggs are right now. I told him we have chickens to which he replied "awe, smart."
I knew right then this was a story I wanted to preserve in our scrapbook.
For the most part I agree with him. But honestly farm fresh eggs are nowhere close to free. We have the cost of feed, bedding, equipment, etc. Yes free ranging them helps with that, but then they're more susceptible to predators and you may have to go on an occasional egg hunt to find that days bounty. A coop with a run works well for us for now. But, I've got plans (yes big plans baby) for this Spring. ;)
Raising & hunting for your own food isn't necessarily about cost savings. It can be; but for us it's more about knowing where our food came from and how the animal was treated. It's about knowing that once you pull that trigger the work part of the hunt is just beginning.
Honestly, we're nowhere near as self sufficient as say my grandparents where. But to not have to go to the store for ALL of our food is a win to me. Don't get me wrong I love me some Aldi & seriously can anyone even live without at least a little bit of processed food these days? Well, probably yes but we're not there yet. We really don't buy meat in the store other than say bacon if we run out of our own. The occasional package of hot dogs for over the camp fire. (Seriously the only way those things can be consumed. Barf.), and things like shrimp, etc for special occasions.
I found this "quote" on Pinterest (of course) & the link doesn't take me anywhere so I'm not sure where it originated. But I loved it. One, because "SELF SUFFICIENCY" plays right into my 2023 word : SELF.
Photo: Megan Klauer Photography Quote : Unknown
GROW YOUR OWN FOOD :
- Lawd, I try. Every year I have visions of a beautiful weed free garden. Pretty much what I always remember my parent's garden looking like. I swear my dad gets up with the sun just to be out in the garden with a hoe before the weed fully pops thru the perfectly black soil. I don't remember ever being forced to work in the garden other than if it was potato digging day. Dad ran the pitch fork and we'd be behind him retrieving them from the freshly turned dirt. But the truth is in my own garden I'm more like an old hippy who could care less because the weed that took over might just produce a beautiful flower that's beneficial to pollinators. Plus it's now July and hot as hell. I don't care if there's weeds between the rows. The truth is, if we get enough tomatoes or green beans for us to enjoy for the season plus maybe put a few in the freezer I'm happy with that. Don't get me wrong, my seed order has already arrived for the year & I pretty much know what I'll be looking for at the first FFA greenhouse sale. Goals. It's good to have goals.
PRESERVE YOUR OWN FOOD :
- This we've gotten better at! We may still freeze many things rather then water bath them to put them in the pantry. But, come winter when life slows down we pull the frozen whole tomatoes out & make ketchup, use the chicken carcasses & ox tails to make broth, and warm up the chunky applesauce to go with supper. This we're getting better at! My mom taught me how to make grandma's tomato juice and I make sure and do at least a little bit of that every year. Add flour, butter, & milk to create a thickener & you have the most amazing homemade tomato soup on a cold winter day. We also process most all of our own meat. This is 100 percent because Aaron has been willing to learn how to do it over the years. Hogs, meat chickens, wild game; we all jump in as a family and do it. Aaron loves to smoke, grill, and generally cooks every meal we have so that helps too. The man has more smokers than I have pairs of boots; for reals. Going back to the whole "eggs ain't free" thing, neither is processing your own meat. We've invested a lot in equipment over the years but it's been so worth it for us. We have a walk in cooler, meat grinder, commercial grade chicken plucker, etc. It's not all perfect or pretty, but it's stuff we have invested in because it's how we want to live our lives. Chicken butchering day ain't for the faint of heart & believe me you just want to order a pizza at the end of the day, but man nothing beats that farm raised meat!
TRADE & BARTER :
- This is something that I think is going to be even more important and necessary in the coming years. It's a scary world we live in now. Get to know your neighbors and trade some eggs for milk. Whatever it may be, make sure both parties feel satisfied with the exchange and you'll have a relationship that's life saving. I once traded a senior session for a hog. Not lying. I literally "brought home the bacon". LOL I recently exchanged homemade soap for a bag of home grown red potatoes from my sister. A friend shared a flat of strawberries with me so I shared the strawberry jam I made with her.
THESE TYPES OF THINGS NEED TO BECOME NORMAL AGAIN.
COOK FROM SCRATCH :
- This one almost makes me laugh because the first thing that comes to mind is bread making. It's like my freaking arch enemy. I can kill yeast faster than anyone I swear. I'll keep trying & we'll keep choking down hard flat bread until I get it right. On the flip side Aaron makes amazing homemade beer bread, so there's that. I tried the whole "sour dough" thing and lets' just be real we have 3-5 kids to feed on a given day. I don't have time to worry about feeding the yeasty monster growing in my frig, Maybe someday.
- Really though we aren't terrible about this one. Although "from scratch" sometimes means a box of Mac & Cheese. I added milk damn it; it's homemade!
- I truly NEED to be better at this. Like those three rotten bananas staring at me on the counter begging me to become banana muffins before they all out die. I just need to do it.
SAVE YOUR OWN SEEDS :
- Well I have pumpkin & sunflower seeds saved to plant from last years garden. If only I could remember where I put them. ....
That was a whole lot of rambling and I am in no way trying to say how we do things is the correct way or the best way, but it's what works for us during this season of life.
I'd love to hear what you grow, preserve, or cook from scratch. Do you save your seeds each year or buy new? What's something you've traded in the past? Help us become more SELF SUFFICIENT!
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