If you’ve read my latest blog posts, you can probably tell exactly how we spent last weekend…
Processing meat birds.
It was a full family effort with messy hands and a lot of hard work, but we love being able to fill the freezer, and even more so, we LOVE knowing exactly where our food came from. It’s not always a fun part of homesteading, but it’s on of the most important.
If you missed those posts, you can catch up here:
How We Process Meat Birds
Homemade Chicken Stock
Each time we process birds, there’s always something to learn, something to improve, and something to be thankful for.
Three New Little Oinkers
As if processing chickens wasn’t enough excitement for one week, we also added three pigs to the farm!
This makes our fourth round of raising pigs for butcher, and every time it feels a little exciting all over again. If you ask me, it’s always fun bringing a new animal to the farm!
Also, who doesn’t love the sounds?
Their little grunts and squeals have had us laughing. It’s funny how quickly farm noises become part of your normal soundtrack with goats hollering, chickens fussing, ducks quacking, and now pigs grunting their way into the mix.
We’re looking forward to watching them grow and, eventually, stocking the freezer once again.
That’s the rhythm of homestead life.
Celebrating the 4th… or as I Call It, the 4th of Juliza
Tomorrow is one of my favorite days of the year, Independence Day.
Or as I like to call it…
The 4th of Juliza. If you’ve been to the parties, you know.
It’s a day that always feels extra special and full of excitement!
Our daughter will be starting the day by riding in the town parade with her gymnastics team, which we’re all excited to watch. Small-town parades are the best, with flags waving, kids smiling, candy flying, and everyone showing up to celebrate. Patriotic spirit is strong in the area where we live. I can’t wait to see all the red, white, and blue at the parade and feel the gratitude for freedom in the air.
Later in the evening, we’ll be gathering with friends, soaking up the sunshine, and ending the day watching fireworks over the lake.
You better believe Toby Keith’s Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue is already queued up and ready to go tomorrow. Let’s be honest, if you’re not listening to that song, are you even celebrating correctly? Better yet, are you even American?
Grateful for Freedom
As we head into the holiday, I’ve been thinking a lot about the blessing it is to live in this country.
No, America isn’t perfect.
But as Charlie Kirk said:
“America is not perfect, but it is the greatest nation in the history of the world.”
And I believe there’s truth in that.
We’re incredibly thankful for the freedoms we have, the sacrifices made by so many to preserve them, and the ability to raise our family the way we do here on this little piece of land.
Tomorrow we’ll celebrate freedom, family, friendship, and all the blessings God has given us.
Happy 4th of July from our homestead to yours.
-Eliza
“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.” — Psalm 33:12