Cedar Porch Homestead

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Cedar Porch Homestead **Family owned and operated regenerative homestead focused on healthy soil, pastured livestock, and wholesome food for our table. See us in action on YouTube!**

Formerly Metcalfe Family Farm, we loved our time on the farm, but in May 2018, the Big Guy led us to sell and move into town. We landed on a half-acre lot with space for our home, a shop, and our business, Metcalfe Design Co., LLC. At the time, we thought we’d left farming behind… but God had other plans. Prompted to reconnect with our roots and take control of where our food comes from, we started a backyard homestead. Now, we’re raising pastured eggs, chickens, quail, rabbits, and pigs, growing a garden, and even building a 50-acre regenerative agriculture property from scratch—expanding our mission to steward land, grow healthy food, and live intentionally. Follow along for faith-led homesteading, successes, lessons learned, and a little fun along the way—because farming isn’t just a job, it’s a lifestyle!

It might be a little chilly and a little breezy but we’re here with fresh pastured eggs from the farm!! Non-GMO, Non-So...
10/17/2026

It might be a little chilly and a little breezy but we’re here with fresh pastured eggs from the farm!! Non-GMO, Non-Soy/Corn, Regenerative Raised pastured eggs.

10/16/2026

Well, I thought I was being pretty smart. 😂🌱

I broadcast a bunch of seed into some of our sparse pasture areas to get some cover crops growing and help regenerate the soil.

The plan was simple.

Spread the seed, get some rain, and let nature do its thing.

There was just one small problem.

We didn’t get the rain we were supposed to get. 🤦‍♂️

So now my Khaki Campbell ducks have decided they’re the cleanup crew, and they’re out there eating up all the seed I just spent time broadcasting.

Apparently, they heard there was a buffet.

And if that wasn’t enough, I’ve got my Muscovy ducks in another part of the pasture doing the exact same thing.

At this point, I’m not sure if I’m regenerating the pasture or just running an extremely expensive duck feeding operation. 😂🦆

And those Muscovies?

They’re eating me out of house and home.

So here’s the deal. If I’m going to spend all this money feeding ducks with cover crop seed, then I might as well get something out of it.

Keep eating, boys.

You’re starting to look like dinner. 😂🍽️🦆

Just another day on the regenerative homestead, where sometimes your biggest obstacle isn’t the weather, the soil, or the pasture.

Sometimes it’s your own livestock.

10/15/2026

A little advice for all you girl dads out there with a homestead or farm. 😂🐷

Get yourself some KuneKune pigs.

And when those teenage boys start sniffing around your teenage daughters, invite them out to the homestead for a little hands on learning.

Specifically, teach them how to castrate a pig. 😂

Because sometimes a young man needs a little practical education to help him connect the dots.

And around Cedar Porch Homestead…

We play for keeps. 😂🐷

You’re welcome, fellow girl dads.

10/13/2026

Some animals make homesteading easier.

And then there are goats. 😂🐐

We have officially got an escape artist on our hands here at Cedar Porch Homestead.

This morning, during morning chores, one of our goats decided that respecting the electric fence was simply a suggestion.

She escaped once.

We got her back in.

She escaped AGAIN.

All before I could even get through morning chores. 🤦‍♂️😂

So now she’s in lockdown.

Welcome to goat jail. 🐐🔒

I’m not entirely sure how we’re going to reintegrate her into the herd unless she decides that respecting the electric fence is a good idea after all.

But for now, she’s lost her pasture privileges.

And if there’s one thing this little adventure reinforces, it’s that goats are buttheads. 😂

Remember when I told you goats were probably my least favorite animals on the homestead?

This is why.

They eat the brush, help clear our fence lines, and contribute nutrients back to the soil as part of our regenerative system.

They’re useful.

They’re productive.

And apparently, they’re also professional escape artists.

Never a dull moment around here. 😂🐐

10/12/2026

Today was one of the hardest days we’ve had on the homestead. 💔

This is our final update on Mur.

For a long time, we did everything we could to help her. We cared for her, fed her, watched for signs of improvement, and held onto hope that things would get better.

Unfortunately, they didn’t.

Mur continued to decline. She wasn’t eating grass, wouldn’t eat grain, and was barely taking a bottle anymore.

Eventually, we had to face the reality that she wasn’t getting better and that continuing to hold onto hope wasn’t going to change what she was going through.

Today, we made the heartbreaking decision to end her suffering.

This is not an easy thing to share. We loved this little calf, and we wanted so badly for her story to have a different ending.

But this is part of homesteading, too.

We share the new animals, the growing pastures, the fresh eggs, the projects, and all the exciting things happening here at Cedar Porch Homestead. And we love sharing those moments with you.

But not every day is a good day.

Sometimes animals get sick. Sometimes things don’t work out the way we hoped. And sometimes, despite all the time, care, and effort we put into something, we have to make a decision that breaks our hearts.

We believe being transparent about those moments is just as important as sharing the victories.

Homesteading isn’t always sunshine and rainbows. It’s responsibility. It’s sacrifice. It’s caring for the animals entrusted to us, even when doing what’s best for them is the hardest thing we’ve ever had to do.

We wish Mur’s story had ended differently.

Thank you to everyone who followed her journey, offered encouragement, and hoped alongside us that she would recover.

Today, we’re grieving a little, remembering the good moments, and learning to accept that sometimes the kindest thing we can do is let go. ❤️🐄

Rest easy, Mur.

10/05/2026

We’re not buying more cows…

We’re making more cows. 😂🐂

We’re growing our cattle herd the old fashioned way here at Cedar Porch Homestead.

Instead of constantly buying more cattle, we’re building our herd through our own breeding program.

And today, we brought a bull onto the property to help make that happen.

Apparently, he understood the assignment.

He had been on the property for about ten minutes when he found our matriarch cow and got straight to work. 😂🐂

So, as Ashlynn put it…

T minus nine months and we should have some calves. 🐄❤️

Now that’s one way to grow a cattle herd.

Let the animals do what God designed them to do, build the herd one calf at a time, and eventually we’ll have our own cattle genetics right here on the homestead.

The old fashioned way.

And apparently, our new bull is not interested in wasting any time. 😂🐂

10/04/2026

You know you’re a homesteader when you’re on vacation in the Bahamas, headed to the beach…

And somehow you still end up stopping to look at baby chicks. 😂🐔

Apparently you can take the homesteader off the farm…

But you can’t take the homesteader out of the homesteader. 😂

10/03/2026

Day 7 of our 7 Day Regenerative Homestead Series 🐕🌱

We’ve spent the last six days talking about the animals we use to help regenerate our pastures and build a healthier system.

But there’s one group of livestock that often gets overlooked.

Our livestock guardian dogs.

We have two Great Pyrenees, and their job is pretty simple.

Protect the livestock.

And these guys are phenomenal at it.

They are constantly out checking on their animals, patrolling the property, and making sure nothing unwanted gets too comfortable around our livestock.

And yes…

They bark.

A lot. 😂🐕

Especially at night.

But honestly, we don’t mind the barking.

Because since these guys have been on the farm, we haven’t lost a single animal to predation.

That’s a pretty important job when you’re raising livestock on pasture.

Our chickens, sheep, pigs and cattle are all part of the regenerative system we’re building.

But none of that works very well if predators are constantly taking out the animals we’re trying to raise.

So our Great Pyrenees are part of that system too.

They’re not mowing grass.

They’re not fertilizing the pasture.

They’re not eating brush.

They’re protecting the animals that are doing all of those things.

And that’s really what this entire series has been about.

Every animal has a job.

Sometimes that job is producing food.

Sometimes it’s improving the soil.

Sometimes it’s moving nutrients.

And sometimes…

It’s being a big white dog that barks at everything that moves in the middle of the night. 😂🐕

And honestly, we wouldn’t have it any other way.

10/02/2026

Day 6 of our 7 Day Regenerative Homestead Series 🐄🌱

Today we’re talking about three of the biggest animals on our regenerative homestead.

Our Mini Hereford cows.

These guys are 100% grass fed and right now, we’ve got some really good grasses for them to work through.

We move them regularly, giving them fresh pasture and allowing the areas behind them time to recover.

But the cows are doing more than just eating grass.

They’re also fertilizing the pasture as they go.

And we’ve recently noticed something really exciting.

The dung beetles have found them. 🐄🪲

Those cow patties that some people might just see as a mess are actually becoming part of the regenerative process.

The dung beetles get to work breaking down that manure and moving it into the soil, helping cycle those nutrients back down where the soil biology and plant roots can use them.

That’s the part of regenerative homesteading that we love.

Every animal has a job.

The chickens add nutrients.

The pigs disturb the soil.

The goats work through the woody stuff.

The sheep mow and fertilize.

And now our cows are grazing the pasture while the dung beetles help take those nutrients back into the soil.

We’re not trying to make every animal do everything.

We’re trying to use each animal for what it does naturally and put those pieces together into one system.

The animals feed the soil.

The soil feeds the grass.

The grass feeds the animals.

And the cycle keeps going. 🐄🌱

That’s what regenerative homesteading looks like for us.

It’s not about doing everything ourselves.

It’s about learning how to work with the system God already designed.

10/01/2026

Day 5 of our 7 Day Regenerative Homestead Series 🐑🌱

Today we’re talking about one of the powerhouses of our pasture.

Our St. Croix sheep.

These guys are 100% grass based and pasture based, and they are incredibly good at doing exactly what we need them to do on our regenerative homestead.

We move them every 24 to 36 hours.

They come in.

They eat.

They mow down the pasture.

They leave their little fertilizer deposits behind.

And then we move them on.

That constant movement is a big part of how we manage our pastures.

Instead of leaving the sheep in one area until they’ve eaten everything they can find, we’re giving them fresh pasture regularly and allowing the areas behind them time to recover.

And the sheep are doing more than just producing food for our family.

They’re helping us cycle nutrients back into the soil.

They’re fertilizing the pasture as they graze.

They’re turning grass into meat.

And they’re helping us build a healthier grazing system without bringing the animals a feed bucket every day.

That’s what we love about regenerative homesteading.

The animals aren’t just something we raise.

They’re part of the system.

The sheep eat the grass.

The sheep fertilize the soil.

We move them to fresh pasture.

And the pasture gets time to recover and grow.

It’s a pretty simple system.

And when you get the animals working with the land instead of constantly working against it, some pretty amazing things can happen. 🐑🌱❤️

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Wharton, TX
77351

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