Simple & Quiet

The Bible talks about living a quiet life, working with your own hands  and minding your own business. What a great philosophy for life!

Sometimes, a simple, quiet life sounds dreamy … but it appeals to me. I’m not one for fancy schedules, zooming here or there, going to the latest activity that’s popular or signing my children up for over-scheduled programs …

{sisters, soaked and muddy, after jumping into a creek}

We have enough to do around our little home – there’s always a project that needs tackling! Minding my own business takes up my day! 😉

Plus, it’s cozy here. We like it. We’ve tried to build a simple life for raising up family.

  But a simple life is not always …  simple. And not always quiet, although I suppose it is compared to some busier lives. I think, over the years, without realizing it, we have found little ways to increase the simplicity of our life. That does not mean it is less work, in fact it is probably more work, but that’s okay.

Here are some of the ways we have made it ‘simple’:

 

– It seems minor but having our own source of eggs is an amazing blessing. You can do so much with eggs and you can very little without them (baking, for instance, is always put on hold as soon as eggs are scarce).

-Having a huge supply of baking supplies such as sugar, flour, oats (which we purchase from a Mennonite store in bulk) is also a great blessings as it means practically anything can be baked or cooked or created whenever it is needed – you just have to plan a little.

-Our kitchen is busy, busy, busy in the late summer and fall as the canning and preserving time becomes top priority. I personally find it very satisfying to reach into the pantry or cold cellar and grab a jar of homemade preserves in the dead of winter. If you have not tried canning, you need to start this year! It is not as hard as you may think it is.

 

 

 

– We purchase our meats {chicken and beef} from a local farm in bulk so we do not need to buy meat at all during the year. This year, we are raising our own turkey for Thanksgiving and Christmas and our own meat chickens, as well. This is a first for us so we have lots to learn but are hoping it is worth the time.

 

– Having a vegetable garden is a great way to provide your own food. We do not have a garden big enough for all our vegetable needs (although that could be a goal of mine one day), but it certainly helps. My parents are big veggie gardeners and so are my husband’s – it’s wonderful to grow your own supply of vegetables! This year, Abby helped break up ground so I could double the size of our garden. He also put up a lovely fence around it to discourage our dog from entering. 🙂 I am hoping and praying we have a good harvest. While it will not be enough to be our only food source, it is a start.

 

-Our grocery store runs are very simple and short listed as we try not to buy too much from the store. Somethings are necessary to buy, obviously, as we cannot grow or make everything in the pantry. (Did you know you can make your own brown sugar? Yes, I meant to do a post about it but it’s so simple – just molasses and regular sugar mixed together. There. One less thing *you* need at the store!*)

 

And just lately, we have added goats.

And while it has been a real adventure and, hmmm,  not simple at all (my husband would shake his head and tell us to sell them all still) and we still have a lot of challenges to work through, we really do love our goats. And by we, it means me and the girls. As mentioned, my husband is not sold on them yet. [So, if I post in a month that there gone, please know it is only to save my marriage!]

But there is a reason for these goats….
MILK!

 

If we could be supplying some of our milk for our family’s dairy needs instead of purchasing milk so often, then we  are just a bit closer on our way to that simple life.

 

So, now, we now have two does – we were told both are pregnant but I am so unsure with one of them as she is hyper, not docile right now, and just does not appear pregnant to us. {But what do we know? This is our first year with goats!}

 

{I am really hoping this all works out – I have read so many stories of goats NOT working out (they are more work, say, than a mini horse) and have met so many people that sold all their goats when they were exhausted and not longer wanted to keep them. I can see myself building up a tiny herd of these lovely goats, but I know it will take work and determination – to be a stubborn as these goats, that’s what is required. 🙂 Other than their incessant escaping, the goats are just lovely. Each daughter has a favorite goat right now and it’s wonderful to see the interaction between child and animal.}

 

All this to say, the simple life is not always simple in the process – it is a lot of work, sweat and often tears! We go to bed exhausted at the end of the day (however, I don’t think that is a bad thing…)
But I do think it is worth the time and energy involved…. especially if it means one less trip to the grocery store.

 

You will eat the fruit of your labor; blessings and prosperity will be yours.
Psalm 128:2