meet the very first additions to our farm

We welcomed three precious rabbits to the farm this week. They are all girls (does, in the farming world) but three different breeds (all known for their meat) in three different colors. They don't have names yet, but they certainly need them since they will probably be around for the next 5 years. They are all still young, so we will wait a few months before we get a boy (a buck.) I have enjoyed the past several days, waking up early and going out late after work to check on them. 

It's a pretty good feeling to have something depending on you.

pretty brown lady, she is a Dutch cross

white with grey ears, tail, and nose- she is a New Zealand / Tennessee Redback cross

this fancy girl is a pure Dutch- she is certainly the prettiest

Apologies for the red eyes and low quality photographs,
but I am finding that life is too short for editing.

Until next time, live simply,

Angela and Jonathan

the winter quiet

Winter is settling in. I was bundled up this morning to face the 20 degree frost to feed the animals. Even without livestock to care for, the cats and dogs are still time consuming. Things are relatively slow and quiet now, winters cold does seem to have that affect. With the holidays surrounding us it is a time for family and food, projects set on the back burner. Jonathan and I are both working now, meaning farm projects will be the focus very soon. For now, we just enjoy the cold.

smoke

the barn kitties in training - I'm using a big dog crate for a few hours at a time

compost growing

the trees had their first pruning

the shed (with walls and everything)

my cousin Billy did this beautiful wood burnt sign with a magnifying glass

Zae has been enjoying his trips outside

Roxy is enjoying herself as well, although she is definitely the scaredy one

Trilli is busy, the search for hunting season leftovers in full effect

Live simply,
Angela and Jonathan

the shop

The last month we have been focused on the shop. We gutted the little shed beside the front porch, put up ty-vec, closed in the wall, moved in cabinets, built shelves, and spent not nearly enough time yet organizing the tools from around the property. It has finally come together, despite still needing a bit more organizing (okay, a lot more), but it looks great! Jonathan, my dad and my cousin Billy did most of the work (I helped a little). We used all materials that we already had. This isn't exactly a "farm project", but with this new shop set up we have the larger shed to use as our barn!

Thanksgiving is tomorrow. I am very disappointed that I won't be eating a pasture raised, organic bird that I raised, but there's always next year. Yeah, definitely next year.

Best wishes to everyone!

Angela and Jonathan

construction!

a mess

tools

dad and billy cutting oak boards for the walls

cabinets

Jonathan helping build the motorcycle shack

the men at work

finished, except the wall

the first storm

I'm a little late in sharing our adventures of the first storm of the winter season, but it's better late than never, right? Life has been a bit chaotic; returning home, finding work, and fixing the Jeep have been overwhelming tasks, but we can finally cross them off our list (well, mostly.) Amist all the stress my blogging has been on the back burner, but no longer! The next few months will be busy busy busy with farm projects, and I want to share it with you every step of the way. Now, back to that storm...

the clouds rolled in

then the rain

firewood

the wind took down the pear tree

also, the strawberries (granted there was not much left to them)

soaked.

and very dark

our poor, poor tree

it will heal.

the morning after

the biggest casualty

Live simply,

Angela and Jonathan

progress

japanese maple

It has been a productive week, without a penny spent. 

the shop- after losing a cabinet and creating the tool wall

the transformed rabbit hutch

complete with functioning doors!

the new brush pile

relocated compost pile - dog proof

fresh stain on the front steps

The last week has been busy busy busy working around the house, the future farm, the homestead. We haven't had any money to spend on anything but we have still managed to get a few projects done. The rabbit hutch we were given by a neighbor has been revamped with a fresh coat of paint, new hinges, and now new doors. The compost has been moved, a real pile started. The field has been mowed, the garden marked out. The shop created, organized and reorganized, yet still unfinished. Firewood has been an ongoing chore which will continue at least until the end of the month; it would help if the chainsaws quit breaking. Next week will be productive in outside areas; we are going to stay with my sister's family, something we have not be able to do the entire year. We introduced them to grass fed beef back in May, and in the few short months since they have undergone a food revolution, trading the supermarket for the farmers market, as well as the orchards and an Amish store. I'm excited to visit with them and share our new knowledge with each other. They have thoroughly kicked our butts at connecting with their food.

Live simply,

Angela and Jonathan

live simply, so others can simply live

We have been incredibly productive the last two weeks since we came home. Most of our efforts have been focused on building and organizing the new shop (quite an endeavor), but we did find time to plant garlic we snagged at our first trip to the Grandin farmers market. This morning we harvested the remaining basil to dry. I'm going to paint some pretty glass jars to put it in come spring. Do you think there's a market for organic grown and dried spices in hand painted jars? We also marked off the area of our future garden, which has me so excited to find graph paper and begin planning it out. Our first real big garden. Life is pretty incredible.

planting garlic

garlic point of view

we planted 50 cloves total

mmmm

water them in!

basil drying

the garden to be 

the shop-in progress

Live simply,

Angela and Jonathan

a warm welcoming

our view of fall

Hello there! This a pretty big step, the first post of a real blog, for something tangible. I'm Angela, and my boyfriend Jonathan and I, along with some help from our families, are working to create a beautiful and sustainable homestead in the mountains of Virginia. We just returned home from spending seven months on a livestock farm outside of Richmond. We learned about raising sheep, cows, chickens, turkeys, pigs and rabbits, plus even more about sustainability, taking care of the land, and eating fresh local food. It opened our eyes to the things we eat, and more importantly the alternative choices that are available. Farmers markets are everywhere, it's a little bit more expensive, but the quality is worth it. We love knowing where our food comes from, and even more so eating produce that we grew and meat that we raised. It's an incredible lifestyle, a simple and frugal one, that we have fallen in love with. We want to mold and shape this little piece of land we have been blessed with into a self sufficient oasis, where we can spend our lives. I hope that you will follow along with us as we transform our blank canvas into something great.

shadows

the west

our new used rabbit hutch looks lovely after a little TLC and a coat of paint

Trilli - future farm dog

wood splitting

downing trees in the future western pasture

it's nice to meet you, we do hope you will stop by again sometime.

Angela and Jonathan