Since moving to a more rural area, our family has truly learned the value of hardwork. Without many of the luxuries of the city, we had to make adjustments to our basic way of living. Some adjustments are easier than others, naturally, but all provide valuable learning experiences.
Our city life led us to watch TV or be on our devices most of the day. Now, in our new country life, we save watching programs for just an hour before bed. We also use our devices a fraction of the time, outside of work related needs. We use our time better with spending it outside enjoying the beauty of the land, and what the natural wonders have to teach us.
Before the move, none of us were early risers and tried our best to justify staying in bed a little longer. Now, we all wake up within an hour or two of sunrise, without alarms set. The best part is that we mostly feel rested when we wake up. Whereas, even staying in bed longer in our old house never made us feel rested.
Getting up early is critical on a homestead, especially one with animals. At a minimum, the chickens need to be set free every morning no later than 8am, which is not a simple task.
Once the birds are roaming, the next task varies depending on if it is a weekday or weekend. Weekdays I log in for my eight hour work day, and the kids do their homeschooling. Weekends we run errands or find a fun adventure, as long as there are no big chores to complete.
Outside of the normal grind, we still have to ensure the coops are cleaned regularly, the chickens have enough food and water, and they are not overheated. In addition, we have hauling, chopping, and stacking wood in from the woods for campfires and stocking up for winter warmth.
We recently added a worm farm to our collection of chores. This requires care and feeding, just as our other animals need. The worms require a certain temperature range, and amount of compostable material for food every so many days.
Before our day ends, there are smaller chores, like baking bread and making dinner, to ensure we get the sustenance we need to keep us going. More energy spent requires more food intake, which means more cooking.
Once our bellies are full, we chase chickens for about 30 minutes to tuck them in for the night. Talk about a full body workout.
After the flock is locked up, it is time for the nightly bedtime routine. Showers, teeth brushing, and storytime help us wind down after a full day of activities.
Right now our responsibility list is small, but it is full of new things we did not experience in the city. We plan to take on more over the next year or so, such as gardening and building things in the workshop. Eventually, we might even look into getting other animals, such as pigs or goats.
No matter what tasks we take on, we will do so with dedication and perseverance. Most work worth doing is hard, but hard work makes us better and stronger.
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