Honest Work of Our Hands: What Homesteading Means and How To Start
As I am writing this, it is early summer 2020 on the homestead. We had an extremely long, cold spring, so it’s a relief to finally see our gardens taking off.
Maybe you’ve noticed that I recently started calling our space a homestead? You may be wondering where I live, if I recently moved, and why I’ve decided to call it that. Nothing has changed in terms of my living situation, but my family and I decided to officially call what we are doing here “homesteading”! Because, well, that’s what it is! We recently realized that we have been technically homesteading for quite some time now. My mom longer than I, but I eventually became interested as I got older while watching her grow in these pursuits. I think there’s this misconception—which probably comes from social media more than anything— that homesteading means having a ton of land and animals, which is sometimes the case! But is certainly not the requirement.
homesteading is not where you live, but how you live.
I’ll share a little bit of our story with you—right now, my family and I live in a small suburb and we have gardens in our front, back, and side yards, as well as access to many local farms, markets, and CSA programs. It is a blessing because we know that it is more than most have, and we are very grateful. But every year we still feel the pressure of not having enough space to grow all the food that we need to be “self-sufficient” (I prefer calling it God-sufficient because, well, He sends the rain and provides the growth). Where we are now is certainly not our forever homestead and we wait and pray in expectation for the day where we can expand with more acreage. But for right now, we are trying to be faithful in the little so that we can be faithful if and when much is given to us (Luke 16:10).
I know that if we had jumped into a large amount of land and animals the moment we realized this dream in our heart, we would be absolutely overwhelmed and probably would have wasted a lot of time trying to figure everything out. Of course, God’s plan is always greater, and we are thankful for His perfect timing. That land has not yet been given to us, but we know that these years we have spent cultivating our skills and growing our business have not been in vain. We have learned how to garden, how to preserve, how to sew, how to make our meals from scratch, make income from home, and so much more! We were homesteading before we even realized we were and it was honestly a relief to find out we were doing what we wanted to do all along! Without all this time to learn those oh-so important skills, we would have been absolutely lost with newfound country life had we jumped right in. While there will always been more to learn, we aren’t stuck feeling like we have to have a certain set of circumstances or the perfect land to pursue that tug on our hearts towards homesteading.
So, by Pinterest definition, I’m probably not “homesteading” in the sense that I have the idyllic country land away from neighbors and noise. For whatever reason it’s not our time yet. We only see things through a dark lens now, but I trust God’s full-picture view. Fortunately, we don’t have to have it all to homestead, and neither do you!
The definition of Homesteading
The noun homestead by definition according to Merriam-Webster is “the home and adjoining land occupied by a family.”
The verb homesteading by definition according to Wikipedia is “a lifestyle of self-sufficiency. It is characterized by subsistence agriculture, home preservation of food, and may also involve the small scale production of textiles, clothing, and craftwork for household use or sale…Homesteading is not defined by where someone lives, such as the city or the country, but by the lifestyle choices they make.”
Does it matter where you live?
The beauty of homesteading is that contrary to common belief, it can be done by anyone and anywhere. Now maybe not at full scale for everyone, depending on where they live or their financial situation, but to some degree, we can all take steps to live a more simple life, “minding our own business and working with our hands so that we may be dependent on no one” (1 Thessalonians 4:11).
For example, I can’t keep chickens per my city’s ordinance, but I can grow my own food, preserve it, make my own bath and beauty products, support my local farmers, and run a profitable business out of my home. This way of life is not about checking off a list but rather living purposefully, producing what is needed for our families by virtue of hard work. It means sometimes doing things the old fashioned way, the slower way, but at its core—the simpler way. It is always my goal to make this lifestyle approachable for anyone who desires it, no matter where they live or how much money they have. Maybe you can’t do it all yet, but you can do some! Homesteading is not about where you live but how you live.
I believe God has given me a heart for this way of life for a reason, and my family’s story of how we cultivated a homestead out of little is a testimony to others, which is why I’m sharing it with you. Your own homesteading journey is not something you have to wait around for— it’s something you can pursue now. Urban homesteading, suburban homesteading, country homesteading— it’s all been done and is being done! Don’t let preconceived requirements stop you.
Why Homesteading?
Reasons for homesteading may be different for everyone, and that’s okay. For my mom and I, we believe our desire for this way of life has been planted in our hearts by God. It is an irresistible pull that we couldn’t avoid if we tried. I don’t think homesteading is for everyone, but I do believe—especially in our tumultuous times that will only get increasingly harder for the Christian—we all should brush up on basic homemaking and survival skills that they unfortunately stopped teaching in the homes and the schools so long ago. We are only a few generations removed from knowing how to grow our own food and provide for ourselves. I’m certainly not trying to romanticize the hardships that the pioneers of the 1800’s went through. I’m not a doomsday prepper, and I’m not a predictor of the end times—no one knows the day or the hour of Christ’s return. But I do believe that our culture’s reliance on convenience will play a huge part in the downfall of the last days and will be a stumbling block for those reliant on corporations for their basic provisions. Not only that, but our disconnect has already impacted us negatively as a culture now. The consistent rise in illness, disease, depression and anxiety in our culture today is not unrelated to our way of life; our choices and environment are more often than not the source of it.
Like I said, not everyone is called to this way of life, but I think many are craving a return to our roots—honest work of our hands to provide for our families, living aligned with the seasons—whether this desire is connected to your faith or not.
You don’t have to have a profound reason as to why you are interested in homesteading. Maybe you just want to save a little bit of money by preserving your own food for the winter and making your clothes instead of buying them. Maybe you want a new hobby to get into. Maybe you love animals and have always wanted to raise them! Whatever it may be, it’s a lifestyle that is fruitful and rewarding.
How do you start?
Right where you are. You need nothing more than willing hands. Even if it’s just one potted herb on your kitchen windowsill that you water every morning and add to your dinner every night. A patio garden. Renting a plot in your community garden. Digging up your whole yard to plant vegetables instead of grass. Decide what is doable for you—your season of life and finances— and start there. Even if the steps you are taking are seemingly small, you’re still moving away from reliance on convenience.
In my blog post, Ways to Live Simply and Traditionally, I provide over 50 ways—some small, some big— in different areas of life that get back to the roots of a simple life. If you’re feeling overwhelmed or confused on where to start, I recommend checking out that list and picking one or two activities from each area that interest you and begin there.
In my humble opinion, these are the top 4 things I would recommend beginning with:
Cooking food from scratch
If you don’t know how to already, I would recommend starting with the art of cooking from home. Not only is it cheaper than eating out, but it’s healthier for you to. When cooking from home you get to choose exactly what goes into your meals which is then what nourishes your body. Start simple by picking a few of your favorite meals and find a recipe that you love for each of them. It may take practice to get things to taste the way you like them, but once you do you’ll have a recipe to keep for the rest of your life! Trial and error will be your best teachers when it comes to cooking. The satisfaction of enjoying a meal you took the time to prepare is like no other. I know for some reason recently it’s portrayed as “funny” and “cute” to not know how to cook but it truly is possibly the most important skill you can have, and is certainly quite a gem to find in a woman these days.
Make traditionally fermented sourdough breads
Learning how to bake your own bread, specifically traditionally fermented is such a wonderful skill to have. Not only is it extremely cheap to produce one loaf, but it’s so much healthier to have homemade bread from 3 ingredients rather than store-bought that has 17 different chemicals and preservatives. Wild yeast breads, also known as sourdough, are long fermented and made without baker’s yeast that you would purchase at the store. Baker’s yeast was created to speed up the bread making process, but I’m sure as you can guess, in doing so, quality was sacrificed along the way. Right now we’re seeing an increase in gluten-intolerances and celiac disease, and it’s no doubt that the alteration done to wheat crops over the years along with the lack of fermentation in our grains has played a huge role in that. Faster is not always best. Craft over convenience will win every time. But even still, a simple yeast bread is less intimidating and a great place to start if you are new to bread baking. Start small and see where it takes you!
Grow basics in the garden
If you’re new to gardening, I recommend starting with the basics such as potatoes, onions, garlic, winter squash, and tomatoes. These are easy to grow, preserve, and store for the winter months. Herbs are also fairly easy to grow and can be cut, hung to dry, and stored in jars for cooking, teas, or medicinal recipes. As I mentioned earlier, if you have limited space or no yard at all, renting a plot in a community garden or even a friend’s backyard is a great way to begin your gardening journey.
Learn how to preserve and store the foods you grow
Up until a couple decades ago, every generation spent the spring, summer, and autumn months in preparation for winter. There was much to enjoy in the warmer months and the abundance of fresh foods were a luxury, but the winter months always had to be in the back of their minds or else they wouldn’t have survived. We see this thoughtful preparedness throughout the Bible as well, but specifically two verses come to my mind—the Woman of Excellence in Proverbs 31 and the ants in Proverbs 6.
“She has no fear of winter for her household, for everyone has warm clothes.” (Proverbs 31:21)
“Take a lesson from the ants, you lazybones. Learn from their ways and become wise!…They labor hard all summer, gathering food for the winter.” (Proverbs 6:6-8)
For many areas, winter was not a growing season. Therefore, food must be stored and preserved and fermented for those long months. In our modern culture, we can buy just about anything we’d like at the grocery stores during anytime of the year. Yup, even corn on the cob or strawberries in the stark bareness of February! While this may seem like normalcy to many, a few generations removed would have never even been able to comprehend the convenience we have now. Convenience is faster but it doesn’t mean better. The way we approach our food through conventional grocery stores actually creates a major disconnect and ultimately makes food less exciting when it does come around in season, and less nutritious. You can learn more about that in my guides to eating seasonally.
Choosing to intentionally reconnect with the process of preparing for winter by putting up food takes more work and more forethought, but it’s worth it. It moves you toward more homemade and less store-bought, more craft and less convenience. Even if you don’t have the space to grow enough to sustain your entire family all winter, consider supplementing what you need from a local farmer. You can order a bushel of apples in the fall to can applesauce, or stock up on well-cured pumpkins and squashes, storing them in a cold place and roasting them throughout the winter. In the summer you can go berry picking at a pick-your-own farm, enjoy some fresh, and also freeze or can some. And again, you don’t have to do it all. Even if you put up just a few jars of tomatoes from your garden or the farmers market—opening those preserves in the dead of winter and having the smell, sights, and taste of summer quite literally captured in a jar…your life will forever be changed!
Be a student
No matter where you are in your homesteading journey, there is always something new to learn. Whether it be from books, blogs, or fellow homesteaders, it’s important to continue gathering knowledge on the subject of self-sufficiency. Here are some resources that you can check out:
Books:
The Homestead Canning Cookbook
The Homesteader’s Natural Chicken Keeping Handbook
Homesteading: A Backyard Guide
Back To Basics: A Guide to Traditional Skills
Podcasts:
Old Fashioned on Purpose with Jill Winger
Solutions for a Simpler Life by Lehman’s (my favorite store!)
Simple Farmhouse Life with Lisa Bass
Pioneering Today with Melissa K Norris
Pinterest is also a wonderful search engine when looking for specific homesteading topics. One quick search will find you plenty of articles from fellow homesteaders graciously sharing their trials, errors, and wisdom through it all.
Joining a homesteading Facebook group—whether it be a local one or just general—can be a great resource to connect you with like-minded folk and a forum to ask questions and learn from other’s experiences. Often times local garden centers or nature centers will offer free classes on survival, homesteading, or gardening which is also a great way to learn and connect with other homesteaders.
this lifestyle is about getting back to the roots of growing our own food and enjoying what each season naturally has to offer.
I’ll be honest, I’ve spent a lot of time frustrated that we’re not where we want to be yet. I’ve spent a lot of time being unfaithful and ungrateful in what I’ve been given, and thinking that God would just give me more anyways. But through sanctification and God’s good grace, I am now grateful for what I have, what I can grow, and I can look to the future in excitement instead of annoyance that I’m not there yet. I’m sharing this with you because I want to encourage you to do the same.
Ultimately the goal of this lifestyle is to get back to the roots of growing our own food and enjoying what each season naturally has to offer. It may not be of interest to all, but for those of us that feel the pull, we know we can’t resist it.
I’d love to hear how you are implementing the lifestyle and mindset of homesteading in your modern life! I’m also curious to know if there are any homesteading/homemaking/traditional living topics that you would like to see me dive into in-depth here on the blog…please let me know! Looking forward to chatting with you in the comments below :)
Until next time,
Kaetlyn
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