We're Really Doing It - A Country Education

Just over a week ago another winter storm rolled through the area and coated our house and hills with a few inches of snow. Today the high was 71. Go figure. Exactly one week ago we adjusted our clocks for daylight savings time and I guess that was nature's cue to hit the "spring" button, because the days are suddenly longer, sunnier and warmer. I'll take it. I am in hog heaven.

Bird's nest I found on the ground in our yard last week

 We spent this weekend buying and planting berries, more seeds/starts for the garden, and fruit trees for our South pasture. We spent the majority of today - at least 9 hours of it - outside. Gardening, weeding and occasionally (I won't lie) drinking a beer on the porch. And through each step of this new life we're living we are learning - A LOT. For example, I created my own sourdough starter last week and let me tell you there is a huge learning curve with that in and of itself. It's like an art form and a science, all rolled into one. I am overwhelmed and scared of messing it up, but equally excited about the challenge and soaking up as much reading and as many YouTube videos as I can handle. I also think I would give my left arm to be able to have bread for the rest of my life, so I'm pretty ecstatic about the possibility of making my own sourdough creations whenever my heart fancies it.

Garden bed plan

Growing plants in our garden room

We have starts!

Sourdough starter - monster & masterpiece

 About 3 weeks ago or so, our neighbor's goats started having babies. They are the CUTEST! We've been visiting them and snuggling them to make sure they're properly socialized. It's a hard job, but somebody's gotta do it😉It's also great therapy. If you haven't ever snuggled a baby goat, I highly recommend adding it to your bucket list. They are sweet, so soft and love the warmth of being held. We even held a baby goat that was only one hour old. He was so fresh that although he had already been cleaned and dried, you could still see some of the birthing "extras" protruding from his mom when we arrived...

Meeting the baby goats for the very first time with Troy & Mili - 5 days old

Little sweetie

Curious little dude - about 2 weeks old. At this age they're bucking and getting into mischief at every opportunity...

Being out here in the country really puts you back in touch with nature - and with life, and what's important in it. And as Jeff & I tirelessly read books and the backs of the seed packets, trying to figure out how to grow veggies, we're constantly asking ourselves "WHY weren't these things taught to us in school?" What could be more important than knowing how to grow your own food? Why is there such a disconnect from the natural world to the lives of so many people on the globe on a daily basis? And we can't seem to find the answer. With all the luxuries we are afforded in the first world, I do think some of our conveniences come with sacrifices, and I would argue that being more disconnected from nature is one of them.