At the time we were living in a subdivision, so we started with only 6 chicks and raised them in a small wooden box in our garage. When the chicks were fully feathered, we put them into a homemade chicken tractor and moved them around the yard every day. It was so much fun watching them grow and getting our first eggs. Our children loved holding the chicks and the neighborhood kids were constantly
visiting us to see our new “pets.” Needless to say, we were hooked on chickens! As time progressed we desired to grow and provide some of our own food. So, we set about planting a series of small raised beds with various vegetables and several grape vines. Much to our surprise, we were able to provide nearly all the veggies for our family of six for the entire summer. This small success ignited a fire! We were getting fresh eggs every day and now vegetables too. What more could we do? We thought it would be nice to add a small orchard to our lot. Luckily we had 5 acres of land – which is quite large for subdivision standards! After some research, we planted a variety of apples, pears, plums, peaches, and cherry trees. In only 2 years, we had our first plums! Each spring we added more chickens to our layer flock. As a result, we eventually had 60+ laying hens and more eggs than we could possibly consume. So, on weekends, our kids would sit road side at the entrance to our subdivision and sell fresh eggs. We had no idea there was such a market! In just a few hours, all the eggs would be sold. Then, people starting dropping by our house to buy eggs during the week. In just a few months, we were selling 12-15 dozen eggs per week, as well as providing all the eggs for our family. This small extra income basically covered the costs for all the feed our laying hens needed. In 2013, as concerns about the economy increased, we decided to try raising several goats and turkeys for meat. A close friend suggested a local breeder of Myotonic goats (i.e. Tennessee Fainting goats). Raising them was fun. They are very easy keepers and they don’t challenge a fence like some other goat breeds. But, when it came time to butcher, we didn’t know what to do. We never butchered a goat (or any type of animal) before. While we both were raised in the country, all our meat came from the grocery store. Our parents never butchered anything – except maybe for an occasional fish. This type of knowledge was completely lost between our grandparent’s and parent’s generation. With our grandparents gone, we turned to a friend from church who was an avid deer hunter. In return for his time teaching us, we gave him a Thanksgiving turkey. It was at this point in our lives that we realized homesteading was for us. We strongly desire to raise our own food and to live more independently. We want our children to grow up knowing where their food comes from. With this in mind, in late 2014, we purchased a 35 acre farm in Moseley, which we named Pleasant View Farm. When you come to visit, you will immediately see why the name is so fitting! To be clear though, we are not farmers. We do not have the know-how or machinery to provide food to the masses. However, at various times during the year we have more than we can consume or need. It is these excesses that we offer to you and your family. You can be sure that anything you purchase from us has been raised and treated humanely. If you buy frozen poultry, it was processed right on our farm – so it was not subjected to a stressful transport prior to packaging. We have fresh brown eggs most of the year. Between February – June we have baby chickens and turkeys. If there is a specific breed you want, let us know and we will see if we can get it for you. In early April, we also have various vegetable plants (tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, squash, melons, etc) for your garden – all started from seed in our greenhouse. In the spring and again in the fall, we sometimes have weaned baby goats. Between July - August we have frozen whole chickens and turkeys for sale.
