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Nature's Edge Homestead, Tillamook, OR (2026)

06/17/2026

Homestead math is weird. 🍊🤣

At first, we had a box of oranges.

Then we ate oranges.

And ate oranges.

And ate some more oranges.

At some point the family collectively looked at the remaining oranges and said:

"If I have to eat one more orange, I'm going to become an orange." 😂

The problem?

The oranges weren't going away fast enough.

And I needed that space for the next wave of incoming produce because apparently I've accidentally turned my life into a game called:

"How much food can fit into one homestead?"

So it was time for Operation: Use Up The Oranges.

Results:

🍊 2.5 liters of fresh squeezed orange juice

🍊 1 gallon of orange peel vinegar for cleaning

🍊 Orange scraps for the goats

🍊 Orange seeds saved for planting because... why not?

Listen.

Will the seeds grow?

Maybe.

Will they eventually produce oranges?

Possibly.

Will I be retired by the time that happens?

Also possibly. 🤣

But I already have random fruit trees, random berry bushes, random grape vines, random flowers, and approximately 47 other projects going, so what's a few experimental orange trees?

Future Me can deal with that.

Current Me is just happy nothing went to waste.

The goats were thrilled.

The vinegar is brewing.

The juice is delicious.

And somewhere on the counter is a little pile of orange seeds waiting for their chance to become tomorrow's questionable gardening decision. 😂🌱

So tell me...

What's the weirdest thing you've ever done because you had too much produce?

Or am I the only one over here turning fruit into six different projects because I refuse to throw anything away? 🤣

06/13/2026

This morning's view across the canyon felt like nature's version of the weather forecast. 🌿☀️

Foxgloves in the foreground.

Layers of green rolling across the canyon.

A blanket of coastal fog draped over the ridge on the other side.

And above it all? Nothing but deep blue sky.

If you live on the Oregon Coast, you know exactly what that means.

The fog is about to lose that battle. 😂

And apparently it's going to lose it dramatically, because yesterday barely hit 80° and today they're talking about 100°.

One hundred.

On the coast.

Excuse me while I go check if the forecast accidentally added an extra zero. 🤣

The funny thing about living out here is that the landscape tells you what's coming if you pay attention.

The fog.
The breeze.
The smell of the air.
The way the morning looks across the canyon.

Long before smartphones, weather apps, and meteorologists, people watched the land.

And this morning the land was basically saying:

"You might want to find some water later." 😅

So if the forecast holds, today might just turn into a creek day.

Cold water.
Cool rocks.
Bare feet.
Kids splashing around.

Honestly?

That sounds pretty perfect to me. 💙

Now if you'll excuse me, I have approximately 37 homestead chores I should probably be doing...
..but a creek is making a very compelling argument. 😂🌲💦

06/09/2026

Have you ever seen one of these before? 🌸👀

At first glance it looks like an ordinary foxglove...

But look closer.

That stem isn't round.

It's wide and flat, almost like several stems decided to merge together and become one super-stem. 🤣

Naturally, I stopped whatever I was doing and went down a rabbit hole.

Apparently this is called fasciation, a rare growth mutation that can happen in all kinds of plants. Instead of growing a normal round stem, the growing tip gets a little confused and creates a flattened, ribbon-like stem.

Which honestly feels relatable some days. 😂

From what I've read, fasciation can be caused by genetics, insect damage, injury, bacteria, environmental stress, or sometimes no obvious reason at all.

So now I have questions:

🌸 Have you ever found a fasciated foxglove?
🌸 Have you seen this happen in other plants?
🌸 If I save seeds from this plant, do you think I'll get more weird foxgloves?

The homesteader in me is fascinated.

The gardener in me thinks it's beautiful.

And the collector of oddball plants in me is already wondering if I can accidentally create an entire patch of mutant foxgloves. 🤣🌸

Tell me I'm not the only one who gets excited about weird plant genetics.

06/08/2026

Sometimes I wonder what my ancestors would think if they could peek into my kitchen for five minutes. 😂

Would they be impressed?

Concerned?

Confused about why I have seventeen different fermentation projects going at the same time?

Honestly... same. 🤣

Currently bubbling, brewing, fermenting, or otherwise doing mysterious science experiments around the homestead:

🥬 A quart of fermented greens
(Sliced Brussels sprouts, beet greens, garlic, onion, peppercorns, topped with grape leaves and weighted down.)

🍐 A gallon of pear scrap soda

🌲🍊 A gallon of spruce tip & orange soda

🍐🌲 A half gallon of pear & spruce tip soda

🫐 A half gallon of blackberry wine

🍐 A gallon of kombucha that's ready for secondary fermentation (pear this round!) so I can get the next batch of tea started

Phew.

At this point, every flat surface in my kitchen either contains a fermentation project or is waiting for one. 😅

The funny thing is that younger me would have thought this looked like some kind of woodland witchcraft.

Current me knows it's mostly just:

"What can I make with what I already have?"

There's something deeply satisfying about turning scraps into soda, berries into wine, tea into kombucha, and garden odds and ends into ferments.

It's a little bit homesteading.
A little bit ancestral skills.
A little bit kitchen alchemy.

And a whole lot of me walking through the house muttering:

"Now what exactly is in THIS jar?" 😂

The season of abundance is sneaking up fast around here, and I'm trying to stay one step ahead of the produce.

So far the produce appears to be winning.

Anybody else have a kitchen that currently looks like a cross between a pioneer pantry, a science lab, and a slightly questionable potion shop? 🤣🌿

06/07/2026

I found these little native starflowers growing alongside our driveway the other day. 🌿✨

Tiny things.

Easy to miss if you're focused on getting somewhere.

But once you notice them, they stop you in your tracks.

Delicate white petals.
Perfect little stars scattered among the greenery.

Naturally, I assumed they must have some grand purpose.

Maybe they were used to make tea.
Maybe medicine.
Maybe some forgotten pioneer remedy for one of life's ailments.

So I looked them up.

And while they have a bit of history, the truth is they're mostly just... beautiful.

They're mostly just there to remind us to slow down and notice them.

And honestly, that feels like enough.

The last couple of weeks have been hard.

The kind of weeks that leave your heart tired.

The kind of weeks where you're trying to help someone you love, advocate for them, worry about them, hope for them, and somehow keep putting one foot in front of the other.

The kind of weeks where there aren't easy answers.

One thing I've learned as a special-needs parent is that the worry doesn't magically disappear just because your child isn't living at home.

People sometimes assume it gets easier.

Sometimes it does.

Sometimes it doesn't.

Sometimes your role changes from hands-on parenting to phone calls, advocacy, meetings, waiting, hoping, and loving from a distance.

Sometimes you know exactly what your child needs and you can't make it happen.

And that's its own kind of heartbreak.

As I stood there looking at these tiny flowers, I realized maybe that's exactly why they matter.

Not because they're useful.

Not because they're productive.

Not because they solve anything.

But because they invite us to pause.

To notice something small and beautiful in the middle of everything else.

Maybe that's their job.

Maybe that's enough.

So today I'm grateful for starflowers.

For quiet moments.

For beauty that asks nothing of us except that we notice it.

And for the reminder that even during the hardest seasons, there are still small things worth stopping for. 💛🌿

06/04/2026

One of my favorite traditions in our family started years ago with my mom. 💙

Instead of filling the grandkids' lives with more stuff, she started giving them experiences for their birthdays.

Now, my mom has 10 grandkids, so that's a whole lot of adventures, memories, and grandma-powered logistics. 😂

This year, my youngest turned 12.

His birthday was a few months ago, but let's be honest...

Deep sea fishing in June sounds a whole lot more fun than deep sea fishing in February. 🤣

So he waited.

And yesterday was finally his day.

He got to head out on the ocean with Grandma for his birthday adventure, and judging by the smile on his face and the fish he caught, I'd say it was worth the wait.

And can we talk about this picture for a second?

There he is in the daily fishing report, proudly holding up his catch like he's been doing this his whole life. 😆🎣

What I love most isn't even the fish.

It's the memories.

Years from now, he probably won't remember every toy he ever received.

But I bet he'll remember waking up before dawn, heading out on the ocean with Grandma, feeling that tug on the line, and posing proudly with his catch.

Those are the gifts that stick.

And honestly, now that I'm a grandma myself—with three grandbabies so far—I'm starting to realize my mom was onto something.

The problem is...

How am I ever supposed to compete with this? 🤣

"Here's a toy" doesn't hit quite the same after Grandma takes you deep sea fishing.

At this rate I'm going to have to start offering things like:

🦀 Grandma crab adventures
🦃 Turkey-chasing experiences
🌲 Secret forest expeditions
🫐 Berry-foraging treasure hunts

And maybe, if they're really lucky...

A chance to help clean out chicken coops. 😂

(Okay, maybe not that one.)

Thank you, Mom, for all the years you've spent investing in experiences instead of stuff.

And thank you for continuing to make memories with all ten of your grandkids.

That's a pretty amazing legacy. 💙

Special thanks to Dockside Charters Sportfishing and Whale Watching for all the fun my kiddo had yesterday.

🎣💙🌊

06/02/2026

🌲 Homesteading Lesson #27: Before you buy livestock... figure out who your veterinarian is.

No, seriously.

I'm not joking. 😂

When we started this homestead journey, I researched gardens, chickens, fruit trees, fencing, canning, food preservation, soil building, livestock feed, and approximately 47,000 other things.

Do you know what I didn't research?

Whether we could actually get veterinary care.

Oops. 😅

The reason this is on my mind today is because our oldest boxer, Dandelion, recently developed a corneal ulcer.

And if you've ever dealt with eye injuries, you know they don't really fall into the "we'll keep an eye on it for a few days" category.

Eyes are emergencies.

Thankfully, because we were finally able to establish care, we got her seen quickly and got her started on treatment.

But that experience reminded me just how much relief I feel knowing we finally have a vet to call.

Real talk for anyone dreaming about moving to a rural area:

Before you buy the animals...
Before you build the barn...
Before you order the chicks...

Call the vets.

Actually call them.

Ask if they're accepting new patients.

Ask how far away they are.

Ask what emergency care looks like.

Because one thing we learned the hard way after moving to the rural Oregon Coast is that shortages are real.

Veterinarians.
Doctors.
Dentists.
Eye doctors.
Pharmacies.

They're all harder to access than we expected.

For the last four and a half years, every time we've called veterinary clinics within reasonable driving distance, we've gotten some version of:

"Sorry, we're not accepting new clients."

Over and over.

And over.

And over.

The closest clinic that was accepting new clients when we finally got in? Almost an hour away.

And honestly?

I was thrilled.

I think I was more excited than some people are when they get concert tickets. 😂

Because when you have five dogs, ten cats, goats, chickens, turkeys, and all the other assorted homestead creatures...

Having a veterinarian you can actually call is a HUGE deal.

The clinic told us they'll work with us to establish care for the rest of our homestead animals over time, and I cannot adequately express how much peace of mind that brings.

Don't get me wrong.

Over the years my "homestead veterinarian" skills have improved dramatically.

I've learned wound care.
I've learned parasite management.
I've learned nutrition.
I've learned basic first aid.

I've become significantly more capable than I ever expected.

But here's the thing:

No amount of homestead confidence magically creates prescription antibiotics when you need them.

Sometimes you need a veterinarian.

Period.

When we lived in the valley before moving here, there were veterinary clinics everywhere. We had a primary vet, but if something came up, there were options.

Out here?

That's not the reality.

So if you're in the dreaming and planning stage of homesteading, here's my word of caution:

Don't just research the land.

Research the infrastructure.

Where's the closest vet?
Doctor?
Dentist?
Pharmacy?

How long are the wait lists?

Because those practical details can impact your daily life just as much as your acreage, your garden, or your livestock plans.

I still wouldn't trade this life.

But if I could go back and give Beginner Homesteader Me one piece of advice, it would be:

"Call the vet before you buy the chickens." 😂🐓🌲

What's a lesson you learned the hard way after moving rural?

P.S. Here's a picture of my sweet Dandelion from the other day. While I was over here stressing about corneal ulcers and veterinary care, she was pretending she was a cat and playing in a cardboard box. Thankfully, she's feeling much better... and apparently still convinced she's a 10-pound kitten. 😂🐾💛📦

06/02/2026

Yesterday afternoon, the kids were off helping a neighbor clear brush on a steep mountainside.

Which is parent code for:

"Please go burn off enough energy that bedtime becomes a formality." 😂

Up and down the hill.
Dragging brush.
Working hard.

Meanwhile, Andrew and I found ourselves with something we don't get very often:

A couple hours to ourselves.

Well...

A couple hours to ourselves and our almost-11-year-old boxer, Dandelion. 🐾

So we snuck away to a beach that my adult daughter and her family love, but that we had somehow never visited ourselves.

And let me tell you...

Dandelion was THRILLED.

This dog has gray on her face, creaky joints, and approximately three remaining brain cells when water is involved. 🤣

The second her paws hit the sand, she transformed from "senior citizen" to "chaos gremlin."

One minute I was taking a peaceful stroll.

The next minute I was being towed through the shallows by 65 pounds of pure boxer enthusiasm.

If you've ever seen someone waterskiing behind a speedboat...

Picture that, but less graceful. 😂

And while Dande was dragging me through the surf, splashing like she had personally discovered the Pacific Ocean, Andrew quietly pulled out his phone and started recording.

And honestly?

That might be my favorite part of the whole day.

Because there I was, laughing, getting soaked, being pulled around by a dog who refuses to acknowledge she's getting older...

And there he was, seeing the moment and deciding it was worth keeping.

No posing.

No "smile for the camera."

No planning.

Just a husband seeing his wife and his old dog having fun and thinking:

"Yeah... I'm gonna save this one." 🥹💛

Life is funny that way.

When we're young, we think the memories will be the big things.

The milestones.
The celebrations.
The grand adventures.

But more and more, I think the good stuff is this.

A random afternoon.

A quiet beach.

An old dog with the heart of a puppy.

A husband who still notices.

And a moment that probably looked ridiculous to everyone else but somehow felt absolutely perfect to us. 🌊🐾💛

Also, for the record, Dandelion slept like she had worked a double shift at the factory when we got home.

Mission accomplished. 😂

06/01/2026

Yesterday the homestead got a visit from some of my favorite little people. 💙

My daughter, her boyfriend, and my grandsons came out for the afternoon, and it was a pretty special day around here.

Most exciting of all?

It was Baby Gael's very first visit to the homestead!

At just 9 days old, he made the journey out to the forest to inspect the property. 🥹

I'm happy to report he was adorable, smiled for Grandma, and seems generally pleased with the accommodations. 😂

His big brother Gabriel, on the other hand, is already a seasoned homestead professional.

He's been here enough times to know exactly what matters:

✅ Climb on the excavator
✅ Eat cookies
✅ Eat chips
✅ Feed some of those chips to the dog
✅ Investigate turkeys

Honestly, it was a pretty successful day from his perspective. 😆

The turkeys were out wandering around the yard (and by "yard" I mean our ongoing experiment involving grass, dirt, and optimism), so Gabriel got to spend some time visiting with them too.

But one of my favorite parts of the day was just getting to sit and visit with my daughter.

I honestly cannot believe she had a baby nine days ago.

She's up walking around, chasing a toddler, caring for a newborn, breastfeeding, laughing, and somehow making it all look easy.

Not that it is easy—but she is handling it with so much grace.

There comes a point as a parent where you look at your grown kids and think:

"Wow. You are doing an amazing job."

Yesterday was one of those days.

And when I asked her boyfriend how paternity leave was going, he admitted he misses being at work...
..but he absolutely loves getting this extra time with the boys.

And Gabriel? Total daddy's boy. Not even a question. 🥹💙

So yesterday was full of baby snuggles, toddler adventures, family laughter, and one very proud grandma sitting back and soaking it all in.

The homestead can wait.

These are the days I'll remember. 💛🌲

05/28/2026

Ladies and gentlemen… may I present:

✨ my first teeny tiny baby artichoke ✨

LOOK AT HIM. 😭🌿

This thing is approximately the size of a large marble and yet somehow carries the emotional weight of an entire future Mediterranean-inspired homestead dream.

For anyone new here—my bestie over Pearls & Jade started these artichokes from seed last year and gifted me the plants, which honestly feels like the kind of friendship our ancestors would deeply respect.

Like:
"I grew you food with my own hands. May your descendants thrive." 😂

And now here we are…

One tiny spiky little artichoke entering the chat.

I swear artichokes are one of the funniest plants because they somehow look ancient and dramatic right from the beginning. Like this tiny little bud already looks like it has wisdom to share.

Historically, artichokes trace back to the Mediterranean and have been cultivated for thousands of years. Ancient Greeks and Romans considered them both food and medicine—which honestly feels believable because eating an artichoke already feels a little ceremonial.

Like:
Step 1: Peel leaf.
Step 2: Scrape tiny amount of food off leaf with teeth.
Step 3: Question your life choices. 😅

But somehow they’re worth it.

And if you let them bloom instead of harvesting them? They turn into these absolutely stunning giant purple flowers that look like something a fairy blacksmith would grow.

So yes… today it’s one tiny baby artichoke.

But in my heart?

This is the beginning of future overflowing artichoke patches, giant purple blooms, and me wandering around the property acting like a woodland peasant who accidentally discovered Mediterranean cuisine. 😂🌿

Nature's Edge Homestead

06/17/2026

06/13/2026

06/09/2026

06/08/2026

06/07/2026

06/04/2026

06/02/2026

06/02/2026

06/01/2026

05/28/2026

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