01/16/2026
Sometimes God tells us to slow down. When we listen we reap the rewards.
This past year, and really a little longer than a year, I had been called to slow down. At first I didn't listen. I know I'm stubborn. But then I was hit with different issues that made me slow down. Through the last year I have leaned on God and although our little farm has majorly downsized my relationship with Christ has blossomed!
God has been opening doors, changing our hearts and our plans for our little homestead. Instead of constantly wishing we had more or better things, I'm now counting my blessings more and being thankful for what we do have! Having a mini farm/homestead doesnt have to look like something out of a magazine or even what someone else on social media has! You make the best of what God has given you and that my friends will look different for each of us! So as I was drowning emotionally trying to "keep up with the Jones" God said, "slow down my child and enjoy the blessings I have given you!" So thats exactly what I have done!
This coming year we have several planned projects around the house. All to help improve what we have. There will be a major clean up outside! Tearing down or atleast changing the uses of some of our buildings, adding onto the barn to add a secure chicken coop area(we lost so many chickens to raccoons this past year), securing our fences, making one of our paddocks an extra garden area, rebuilding our back deck and several projects inside the house!
We have had some very hard discussions the past year and we minimized our animals down to just 2 gilts and 1 boar Kunekune, chickens, and 2 dealings and 1 wether Nigerian dwarf(which we have decided to let go as well). Letting the goats go has been very hard for me. But I wasn't utilizing them like I should have. We got them for the milk and with myself being the only one hand milking them most of the time, that had just proved too much. And the last year I milked them less. So letting them go only made sense because we do not eat them. We have thought about getting mini nubians instead because those are easier to milk so the older kids could easily do that but I have felt led in another direction with life that would leave me being gone at odd times so again that would fall on my family to do when I'm not available. So instead of goats we have been looking into Katahdin sheep. They would be less daily maintenance than goats since we wouldn't be milking them and would be food for our family.
So this coming year may look very different for our family with the focus being on raising more food, both with gardening and animal stewardship, myself finishing up my hebalist schooling, and God opening doors for myself to help women bring precious babies into this world, we will praise him through it all and will be listening to him for our guidance. I'm stubborn, sadly even with God at times, and have learned when we do not listen and follow his plan for our lives then we give in to much more pain, heartache and headaches than was needed!
I will be sharing my journey along the way! It may look different than before but I'm praying that sharing my journey, the good, the bad, the hard and the rewards will help encourage someone!
If you are currently going through the trenches then I pray for you my friend. Pause for a moment, take a deep breath, look around and find the blessings that you have. Focus on them. Lean into the Lord and find those blessings, no matter how small you may think they are, and thank/praise him for them!
