Years ago, low freezing temperatures and stinging wind chills prompted me to seek facial protection that wouldn’t fog up my glasses with each breath. Pictured here is one of my wintertime hacks. And it’s cheap and easy. This dust mask still covers my nose, cheeks and chin while allowing my … Continue reading →

Robert Thompson arrived right on time at 8:00 am. The 22-degree temperature did not deter him from taking down our dying ash tree which we hired him to do. Normally we would handle such a job on our own, however, this tree was too close to some out buildings to … Continue reading →

Deer season has come and gone; however, the memories it brings back remain. Thirty-four years ago, Don harvested his first deer from our property and has continued to fill his tag(s) year after year. Truth be told, when we purchased the land in 1991, Don harvested the majority of our … Continue reading →

You might live a country life if you take off your belt, empty your pocket and the counter looks like this.

After reading articles in homesteading magazines, an idea began to evolve. Create my own instant potato mix which would include dehydrated potatoes and spices of my choice. We won’t be harvesting potatoes from the garden until late summer or early fall, but as luck would have it, our local grocery … Continue reading →

Two of my goals for here on the farm are to make do with what I have and to keep my country life simple. During this same season, but a few years back, Don and I went to help family with an outside project. They briefly stared at me with … Continue reading →

We are ready to heat our home and dry our laundry. It’s a good feeling to have a full woodshed. Yes, we have a propane furnace and cutting, splitting, hauling and stacking wood takes time and work, but wood heat feels so good. Once the stove is stoked and loaded … Continue reading →

On October 16th, a hard freeze spread across mid-Missouri. The evening before, we did one last garden harvest of anything ripe enough to store. This included a quantity of watermelon. What a treat this turned out to be. All nine were around 20 pounds of sweet deliciousness. Because of their … Continue reading →

For whatever reason, a few skunks decided to make our yard and garden their home. Most likely they were attracted by all the moles. However, when they took shelter in the crawl space under our house, it was time for them to go. The trap we purchased worked well. We … Continue reading →