Was I inspired by them or inspired to be them? Consumed. A few months after starting Brie & Blondie homestead my message inboxes on social media were getting really busy. The blog was growing just like I hoped and dreamed for.. Right? I poured hours of effort into well thought out posts and crafting beautiful imagery. I caught myself spending an abnormal amount of time on Instagram posting, reading messages, following, posting, liking, consuming, internalizing. Comparing. … [Read more...] about An Awakening.
Fire on the Homestead
"It's all gone. The garage is gone." I was 3 hours away on a 2 day trip flying puppies for my puppy business, planning on coming home that afternoon. Tuesday, June 16th, early morning a fight broke out in the hallway of my hotel that was across the street from the Minneapolis-St.Paul Airport. I called my husband, he didn't answer. I nervously watched pushing, shoving, name calling, door slamming right outside my door wanting so bad to load up and leave but feared what danger this would … [Read more...] about Fire on the Homestead
How to make Butter
Healthy & homemade.. In our house, we look for all the opportunities to make room for our favorite guest at the dinner table- BUTTER! This being said we have it stock piled in our freezer and lathered on just about everything, one of our favorites being homemade bread. After all it is a health food. It's actually true! Butter is a healthy source of: saturated fat (that has a protective effect against heart diseases and stroke), Vitamins- A, D, & K-2, and rich in fatty acid … [Read more...] about How to make Butter
But first, Coffee.
C is for Car and F is for F-it Gosh so my avid friend ADHD is always faithful to make sure I'm aboard the crazy train at all times- which turned me into a dog breeder. Long story short, Copper B Farms has blessed me with an abundance of new friends across the U.S. anddd one more thing to tend to. We are now up to 4 breeding dogs and with the stud dog (old papa bear the baloney pony) located a solid 3 hours away, I'm spending countless hours driving the pavement with a hairy/ready to get some … [Read more...] about But first, Coffee.
Handling Raw Milk
Steps to safely handle and store raw milk. And just when your fingers are about to fall off after a 20 minute milking session, back to the grindstone ya go! Having a dairy animal is -yes- a lot of work to milk but rewarding if you can put the milk to full use (cheese, butter, yogurt). You can check out how we prep and hand milk our family milk cow here. Now, lets get this milk to the house! Place a milk filter into your strainer. Place the strainer on your jar and pour the … [Read more...] about Handling Raw Milk
How to Milk a Cow
This is either going to make you quit drinking milk or buy a cow. This is Barley, our 2nd milk cow on the homestead. She is 5 years old- a 3rd time calving Jersey cow. After milking our first cow, Brie I'm growing to love the challenge of identifying what each cows quirks and preferences are for milking. Brie was very spoiled, demanded grain in her face thee entire time. If you took too long she would kick the bucket. Barley is a pain to move, it's all that hornage, horning up into my … [Read more...] about How to Milk a Cow
MEET BARLEY
Getting a new teat job. We had our first milk cow Brie for almost a year. I was SO obsessed with her- such a honey. Great with kids. Deep brown baby fawn eyes. What can I say, I have the hots for blonde bovine. Unfortunately...she ended up being open. Open- means the cow is not pregnant, open uterus & open for bullish business if you know what I mean. I get this question quite a bit- "Do cows always have milk?" The answer is no...just like humans and other mammals, our bodies … [Read more...] about MEET BARLEY
Treating Pasty Butt – Naturally!
And just when you think you're off butt wiping duty, you open the chicken coop door and there's a bunch of raw poultry rears gazing up at the stars. Here's my disclaimer: Visuals ahead may be graphic, proceed with caution. There, I covered my bases. Good grief, a days work for a mother is never over is it? We've had our chicks (Broilers- meat birds, & Pullets- egg layers) for 3 weeks. We've had laying hens in the past and they seemed pretty low maintenance- so this situation is … [Read more...] about Treating Pasty Butt – Naturally!
Celebrating Spring
We are celebrating Easter weekend on the farm with weapons for the kids and cheap decor for mom. Easter traditions are looking different for us this year- probably like most of you too. After loosing my shizzz with homeschooling this week I offered up a game of hide and seek to avoid the last journal entry for the day until dad got home. Not sure how my 6 year old thought he would fit in there, but he seemed to investigate my swim suit drawer as a possible refuge. Amongst the sun … [Read more...] about Celebrating Spring
CRUSTY HOMEMADE BREAD
A fluffy warm blanket. In Christianity, bread is one of the most powerful symbols in the Bible. It's filling, sustainable and comforting- like a big warm blanket in your mouth that moves down to rest on your waist. None the less, a gift from God. Thanks God..(that's me holding my love handle with one hand and saluting to You with the other). Since biblical times, bread was is an item humanity gathered around. It is a symbol of peace, a host of grace that manifests relationships. … [Read more...] about CRUSTY HOMEMADE BREAD