I Just Found Out I'm a Homesteader

I knew having a garden was going to be great, but I really never knew how great it would be.  In my mind, it was all about the food, nutritious, pesticide-free, cheaper than a grocery store, etc., etc.  I never stopped to think how it was going to give my kids such purpose for living!  It has become the new "fun zone" at our farm.  I look out our window now and regularly catch our kids (and cats) wandering around, picking peas, beans, tomatoes, carrots, lettuce....

Yesterday was a holiday, a day off.  Most regular people go to the beach or hang out at a park.  We love to do those things, too, but we also need those days off to catch up on things around the farm that never seem to get done like fixing broken machinery which there never seems to be an end to. So, though my kids would have loved to do that, you just can't sometimes.  And don't try to spring that on Daddy when he had a plan on how he was going to spend his day! He can be spontaneous for sure sometimes, but most times, he likes to plan getaways instead of waking up in the morning and saying, "Let's go to the beach!"

So yesterday's plan was fix the skid steer - a huge monumental task as we didn't know what was wrong with it.  That was his job, but what about the rest of us.  How do you keep kids happy when they would rather be at the beach?  What we've discovered is kids really need purpose for living, just like an adult.  They need tasks to do that aren't contrived, but actually contribute to the family's welfare.  This is where the garden comes in.

But first, the big boys were given the task of taking down the old eavestroughs as they have to be replaced as the siding is slowly going up.  This was no small job.  It required muscle and some real thinking. Dad showed them what he wanted, then left it up to them.  Later that day they had to put more hay into the barn - never a fun task.  Then finally into the garden.

What boggles my mind is that they don't seem to mind weeding.  My oldest son spent a very long time weeding.  He is starting to see all his seeds that he planted produce massive amounts of squash, zucchini, pumpkins, watermelons and even cantaloupes, so I think that is what is motivating him. My next son jumps at the opportunity to pick beans and peas.  The third son loves bringing in all the lettuce for the daily salads we are making.  The little boys run through the garden like it's a playground.  The corn stalks are way higher than they are and they play hide and seek!

Meanwhile, the girls and I, are being overrun by herbs.  They are taking over our lives.  I've taken to pureeing the basil and cilantro with a little olive oil and then freezing them in cubes.  This way it will last way into the winter.  My oldest daughter loves pesto and I don't think she realized it doesn't grow on trees, you have to make it.  I didn't think I would attempt this as I knew how expensive pine nuts were, but we simply replaced the pine nuts with sunflower seeds.  I forced my daughter to help as she isn't as much into the garden as the others.  I could have done it easily without her, but I wanted her to see how great it would make her feel to make the pesto and learn a new skill at the same time.  She was amazed.  Mission accomplished.  She started putting pesto on everything.  It was so delicious!

By the end of the day we had done so much, but no beach.  I was curious how the kids would reflect on their day.  Everyone was so happy!  When I reflected on how this was possible, I really think it was because they had had, as I said at the beginning, purpose for living!  Each one had contributed to the family economy doing significant things that really helped us.  Our youngest children pretended they were colonists and Indians preparing for winter, as if their lives depended on it, gathering sticks, making pretend fires, knowing over a hundred years ago, that's what it really would have been like. But, watching them play their little game struck one of my older children - that's really what we are doing!  We really were preparing for winter.  She suddenly saw the bigger picture....if we freeze this now, we won't have to buy it in the winter!  YES!!!  YOU GET IT!  YOU UNDERSTAND!!!  The garden has given our kids a bigger life picture.  They are starting to make connections.  We aren't just planting a garden because it's fun, though it is that, too.  We are planting a garden because it is wise! It will not only save us money, but it will keep us alive!  And not just alive, but healthy!  We'll be eating really good food in a few months that we can pick out from our freezer!

Having a garden is a very "homesteader" thing to do.  We watched a homesteading-for-beginners video a few weeks ago.  I never thought of myself as a homesteader.  I read the blogs of true homesteaders once in a while and I never think of myself as "one of them".  But after I watched the video, I realized, I am a homesteader!  Short of butchering my own meat (which I'm sure we'll do one day), we were doing everything on the video they were doing, the main thing being... growing a garden. That was very exciting for me to realize!  I never thought I was because I have electricity, a whole host of modern conveniences, etc., but you can still have those things and be a homesteader, just a faster and easier homesteader!

The other thing our garden has done for us, which I think I saw and appreciated the most yesterday, is how it kept the family together, enjoying one another.  I'm always amazed when our older children don't mind being with us!  I treasure that so much.  They enjoy being with one another so much, too, which also amazes me.

Purpose for living, food for the winter, potentially greater health, saving money, friendships and relationships amongst family members, a new play area, a beautiful greenspace to admire, the ability to share food with others....the list goes on and on.  All this from a garden.  I'm so grateful.