Category: homesteading

I love soups! I have always loved soups. Especially with a larger family… Want to make it bigger for more people, just add a few more things into the pot! We double and even triple this recipe – You will need a HUGE cooking pot to do this with. We…

I have searched high and low online for a copy of the freeze-dry cheat sheet. And I couldn’t find a print copy. So here is one that our family will add to as we gather and research more. Come back often to see if it has been updated! – (Last…

Did you have any idea that you could make healthy dog treats and food in your freeze dryer? I am here to tell you! Yes, you can!! We like to make our dogs healthy and “raw” treats and food when we can. Over the last few years, I have been…

Welcome to another video using freeze-dried foods from our Harvest Right Freeze Dryer. Here is a summary of what we thought of this batch: Frozen Peas – rehydrated in boiling water – taste just like frozen peas. Mangoes – eaten dried – kids gave 2 thumbs up as a fruit…

Every week, we have new items in our freeze dryer for storage and for snacks for the kids. I love having freeze-dried fruit on hand for the kids so that they can have fruit available even if it is days away from grocery day or even the wrong season. Today’s…

Saving Food by Freeze Drying 2-1/2 years ago, our family took the plunge and purchased a Harvest Right Freeze Dryer. I wasn’t certain if the price = what we would save. Well, I can honestly save that after 2-1/2 years I LOVE my machine and I think that I have…

Kunekunes are an AMAZING breed of pigs that we have had on our homestead for over 5 years now. We use them often when people request us to come and share our animals as part of a “petting zoo program.” Mama Pumpkin is one of our most requested animals to…

The obvious answers are that I love the lifestyle. I love the fresh veggies. I love the fresh meat and knowing where my food comes from. I love the sweat and tears. I love the animals. I love the time that I spend with my family while we are working…

Throughout our lives as homesteaders, I wanted to make sure that my family were able to know all about the animals that we have, both large and small stock. Last night, we were honored to be a part of a local jackpot show. We are proud members of the Chino…

It is that time of the year. The summer for public school kids in our area is coming to a close. I love that we have a bit of freedom in our homeschooling. We have a handful of projects to still get worked on our homestead for this summer season…

Spring is here and so is the arrival of new baby kunekunes. They will be available for their new homes at the end of July 2019.

If you haven’t already organized… now is the time. Get those seeds organized and ready to plant. If you haven’t already seen our organizing tip video on your seeds, check out this post: https://krisandlarry.com/2019/01/25/seed-storage-and-other-tips-to-start-your-garden/ This week, I went onto Amazon and picked up empty planting 6-packs (Amazon Link). I picked…

https://outschool.com/classes/homemade-cheese-the-basics-to-soft-curd-goat-milk-cheese-class-1-9x7okyJw#usCGc3YJOv Description The student will learn how to make two different homemade simple cheese recipes using vinegar and lemon juice. The student will learn and decide on what (optional) additions they can add to their cheese. The teacher will demonstrate how to create 2 soft cheeses from scratch. Students can…

20 years of researching has led me to the conclusion that you can homestead on truly any size property. You just have to have GREAT organizational skills on smaller properties to streamline what you want to accomplish. Here is a link to homesteading.com and 15 homesteading ideas for your property….

Download the 2019 Yavapai County Planting Schedule [download id=”6261″] Over the last 20 years, I have been able to streamline how we store and use our seeds for our gardens. Check out the quick video below!

Our baby “War Pigs” have grown up and that includes Haka, the littlest runt from the litter of December 2017.  If you were at the Heights Church for the Christmas Eve services in 2017, you were able to see a litter of 3 day old baby kunekunes. (I added a…

The Benefits Of Raising Mealworms Mealworms are an ultimate healthy snack for chickens, ducks, geese, and quail. They are jam packed with protein and something that your critters absolutely love. We raise our mealworms to feed to our hatching babies in the house. We raise (Grand Champion) Quail. The babies go…

My children know that when they are starting to feel yucky, they can just go into the fridge and get out the elderberry syrup. And all they need to do is to take a spoonful. We have been making this for years.  Ingredients 3/4 cup dried elderberries (There are many…

Have you met a Muscovy Duck? Muscovies are not related to any other duck, in fact, some believe they are possibly descended from geese rather than ducks. They are amazing additions to any homestead or farm.  Muscovies are a silent duck (Yes, you read that, they.do.not.quack) and they have amazing…

Here is a download of this oathkeeper class if you want it as a printout: [download id=”5488″] Learning different techniques to get that heat and/or cooking first started can be a matter of life and death. Here are a few tricks for fire-starters to get you started on some survival knowledge….

By day 3, you should have 2 trays with sprouting seeds and another soaking. Little roots are starting to sprout out of the seeds and a network of roots will begin to grow and intertwine together over the next few days.  This morning we put out tray #3 with seeds. We…