Farm- Update and thoughts.

February 1st was a special day, we did some bartering. My husband Ike has struck a fancy for the wood lathe and turned some beautiful bowls. Then we were able to use those bowls to barter for a few ducks. The only thing is we got more than a few. We got twenty-something. SWEET! All we had to do was drive for an hour and a half and we had ducks. And with the good mileage we get it was amazing. On the way there I decided I really enjoyed when I had a farm blog. It made me feel like we were actually accomplishing something with the homestead. I have been focusing so much of my energy into doulaing, and illustration that I have totally pushed self-sufficiency aside. I don’t like it. So today I want to start a farm blog again. I don’t know what the name of the farm will be. I have changed it quite a few times. So for now it will just be our farm.

I really did not like the way that my blog was going. With alias' and to much random stuff being posted, always worrying about how many views I am going to get. So I am stopping. I am going to stop trying to be something I am not. I am trying so hard to stop comparing myself to others. This is my blog I am a farmgirl and DANG IT I am going to be proud of it. Even if I get a city slicker doula client, who thinks I am  poor and dirty, they may be right but  I am going to be proud of it.   I am Sara Carlson. I am a mom, a wife, an artist, a working illustrator, a doula, a farm girl and a Mormon.  My husband’s name is Ike, he is our only handyman and mechanic, he can fix or build anything, he has started to awaken his artistic side with the wood-lathe. So far, even the stuff he doesn’t like is beautiful. And then we have my little man, Orion. He is 4 he is active and he is home-schooled. It won’t be long and he will be reading.  He loves to learn and spend time at the Children’s Museum. We  currently are living in the same house as my parents. Not exactly fun but it is a place to stay. We have plans to change the barn into our house. We also have a 1/4 acre garden that has expanded about another 1/4 acre that will be all raised beds. Fun! I try to preserve most of what comes out of our garden except a lot of it never makes it to the house. We practice organic gardening and animal husbandry. Our animals are free range for the most part. Some days they can not come out because it is too far below zero. But that happens when you live in Wisconsin.

So this blog is getting one final makeover, a make over that is me. I am tired of hiding who I really am and what I am interested in because I am afraid someone will look down on me. From this day on I am me. 

Field Trip/ Farm Friday

Well, today Orion and I went for a small field trip to Champney Park. We went on an acorn hunt, since A is for acorn don't ya know. We baked the acorns at 220 for about 2 hours. We had to kill all the nasties in side of them.  Orion was not to thrilled with the acorns after he had collected them. So maybe I will have to use them in a sensory. once I get a few more things.

After we got back from our acorn escapades we went out to the garden. We harvested our corn. Oo roughly 15 ears. I feel so bad about not tending the garden. I hope they will dry properly and I will be able to plant them next year and have them grow. I told Ike that I am planning on using raised beds next year. Ike is not amused. He wants rows. I want raised beds. We will have to see what works out. I am not giving in about raised beds. I think I will be less intimidated when I look out at the garden and say I need to weed the peas and instead of seeing 2 sixty foot quadruple rows of peas I will see  2 or 3 4x8 raised beds. It is a more focused area I think. Last year we had some raised beds, but they didn't have any sides on them. Next year I will be installing permanent raised beds. I just wonder if I will actually be able to have a fence around my garden.

Hoping for something like this...

I eventually I will rid this property of "lawn". I feel it is pointless. I hate having to mow. I mean I would still like Orion to have a place to play. At least we have free range chickens, geese, and rabbits on the property so they are using the land that way. I just feel it is totally ridiculous. We have 4.5 acres here and maybe 1 or a little more is buildings, everything else is over grown grass, or lawn, or our 1/4 acre garden. I am hoping to add my raised bed garden into that mix. Maybe the things that are in our other garden will be potatoes, corn, sunflowers, melons, squash. Mostly things that take up a lot of space.

I may have plans laid out for next year. We are starting to put the garden to bed now. :)