What is Homesteading and am I Doing it Right?
I’ve been thinking a lot about homesteading lately and what that means—and if I can even call myself a homesteader!
Growing up I dreamed of marrying a rancher and living on a homestead. Funny enough, my hubby dreamed of BEING a rancher. But that lifestyle is pretty impossible to get into unless you have family land or something pretty sweet like that. Plus, my hubby got a job in Alaska which is a pretty intense place to start that lifestyle. However we did manage to raise chickens and bees on our 2.5 acres up there. We figured we’d just have to be content with chickens and bees for awhile, but then life happened. We left our beloved Alaska much sooner than expected and moved back to our home state of Montana.
Fortunately we were able to purchase 32 acres where we are building a house. Hopefully we will be able to move in by the end of the year! As we wait we have again acquired chickens and bees. The goal is to eventually add cows and pigs. Along with an orchard, a vineyard, an herb garden, and maybe a flower farm. I kid. I’m pretty sure all that is NOT going to happen. But a girl can dream!
Anyway, as we wait for the house to be finished, I’ve been thinking about what I want our future “homestead” to look like and have questioned myself on whether or not we can even call it a homestead. Here’s what I came up with.
The true definition of homesteading according to dictionary.com is
1. a dwelling with its land and buildings, occupied by the owner as a home and exempted by a homestead law from seizure or sale for debt.
2. any dwelling with its land and buildings where a family makes its home.
3. a tract of land acquired under the Homestead Act.
4. a house in an urban area acquired under a homesteading program.
We are not trying to recreate the life our great grandparents led—that would be pretty impossible. I really like electricity and running water. But we are trying to get back to our roots just a bit. Learning to be a teensy more self-reliant. Raising animals, gardening, foraging, hunting, making our own cleaning products, body care, herbal medicine, and all that good stuff. Do I always make everything from scratch? Heck no! I have a job, man! But I do make quite a few things from scratch, and am constantly teaching myself how to make new things.
So yes, while we do live a bit of a self-reliant life I am not naive enough to believe that we are actually true homesteaders. When I think of a homesteader I think of someone who makes absolutely everything from scratch and/or trades those goods for other goods. I think of someone who’s sole job is to put food on the table by working the land and raising animals. When I think of a homesteader I think of someone who makes lye from ashes and sweeps a dirt floor with a handmade broom.
And if that is what a homesteader was/is then nope, I am not one! However I do want to be like a homesteader in the fact that I have the skills necessary to make basic necessities and feed myself off of the land. Albeit with way more modern conveniences and access to ingredients and supplies. To me it’s not about doing all the things true homesteaders did—it’s about learning how to do the things so I am capable of doing them if I so choose.
Here’s the thing. Today’s world of homesteading, farming, sustainable living, self-reliant lifestyle or whatever the heck you want to call it, looks vastly different from one person to the next. It's not a one-size fits all lifestyle. And it shouldn't be! So wherever you are in your "homesteading" life--I encourage you to not compare yourself to ANYONE ELSE. If you are growing herbs in your windowsill, go you. If you have 10 cows, 4 pigs, 22 chickens, and an acre garden, go you. My intent with Mossy Meadow Farm is to share what we do for "homesteading" in our own simple way. So pick and choose the things here on the blog that look most appealing and doable to you. Trust me, the self-reliant lifestyle is addictive and you’ll keep learning and doing.
So am I doing homesteading the right way? Probably not in the technical sense of the word. But hey. I’m gonna go with it. And as far as am I doing it right? Sure! For our lifestyle we are doing it exactly the right way. Now go out there and learn some skills like a true homesteader. Maybe milk a cow or something. Make some soap. Or you can come clean my chicken coop. That’s always an option.