Have you just stepped off on a new homemaking adventure? Have you been at it for a while now? Readers would love to hear from you. When people are considering making major life changes, the stories of others on similar paths can be extremely helpful and deeply inspirational. Tell us how you came to this path, the challenges you’ve overcome, the changes you are bringing about, the impact you feel you are having. Please be sure to check back to answer any questions folks may have for you!
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I was raised in the “big” city and was content to stay the course until I lost my health. As I started researching ways to address my health issues, I was horrified at how the food we ate, the water we drank, the clothes we wore and the homes we lived in profoundly affected our health.
After a few years of in depth research, we decided to pull the plug on rampant consumerism and learn to do things like our grand/great grandparents did them. Cooking from scratch is now such a part of our lives that we don’t even think about it. Going out to eat just isn’t an option anymore. Why pay twice the money for half (or less) the quality.
We moved to a rural area, found a home where we could have chickens, orchards, garden, etc. got in touch with local farmers, learned to knit, can, make soap, and a hundred other things that our ancestors accepted as everyday living. Our children are better for this lifestyle and we feel we are healthier. Instead of sitting, planted in front of the TV we spend time watching our chickens, working in the garden, exploring the river, really living kind of things.
It has been difficult, two steps forward-one step back, but we would never give up this life. Each year we look forward to learning new skills and have networked with those who can teach and guide us. We are very fortunate to live in an area which offers such rich opportunities for self-sufficiency.
Shannon, biggest congrats on your new book! I traded my business suit for an apron to work on my Cook for Good project, which helps people save money, eat delicious food, and make a difference. We can help ourselves, our families and community, and our planet by buying sustainably grown food and eating with the seasons.
For more than two years, I’ve been tracking grocery prices and developing recipes, menus, and cooking plans. In November 2009, my average meal per person cost $1.07 using thrifty ingredients and only $1.73 for the “green” plan, which uses mostly sustainably grown and organic ingredients. (It’s all vegetarian, but helps those who want to afford meat from kindly raised, grass-fed animals.)
At first, I ruined several batches of yogurt, baked flat or odd bread, and stayed up late waiting for food to cool. But now that I’ve figured it all out, it’s a snap. The food is scrumptious, our health is excellent, and we get some peace of mind knowing that we are making a real difference in our local economy and global environment. My husband and I both work at home, enjoying lunch together nearly every day and glad to be out of the rat race.
So glad you are helping to bring back the nearly lost art of homemaking. … Linda
Wow! New sisters! Yesterday when I was feeling a tad lonely, Shannon’s email about her book showed up. It was perfect timing as we are contemplating the possiblity of my returning to paid work….. I have a Master’s degree in nursing and lots of work experience in hospice, cancer nursing and geriatrics. But that was over 15 years ago! Now college expenses are looming on the horizon, so I am wavering. Been home raising two awesome sons during that time (now 16 and 18) and got seriously into beekeeping, raising chickens for eggs and gardening. Just got elected President of our county beekeeping club and now care for over 20 hives and 40 chickens. (All on 4 acres in the suburbs!) Ours is definitely the “different” house, but the neighborhood kids flock here. They ask why I hang my laundry out on the clothesline, “can I see the chicks?” and a million other questions. I have NO regrets. Every moment spent outside is worth it! The slower pace is healthier and the time invested in being there for my family is bearing fruit in our sons and marriage. The best part lately has been finding local farmers and their awesome food! The Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture has been a great resource here outside of Philadelphia (www.pasafarming.org). As more farmer’s markets and CSA’s open it will be easier for folks over the next few years to find these foods than it has been in the past 5 years when I began my searching! Shannon’s Grassfed Gourmet book is a true inspiration and has really helped my know how to prepare these great foods. I highly recommend it! Can’t wait to get this new book and correspond with all you like minded homemakers! I’d love to offer encouragement (and get some too) with this “radical counter cultural” group. Sign me up!
Thanks so much Shannon. This revolution has been going on quietly for some time now but honestly, it has more power and meaning when it is named and claimed.
We live on a small farm we call Bit of Earth Farm http://www.bitofearthfarm where we raise cows, chickens, turkeys, bees and produce.
We’ve been going our own way in for a long time, sharing our path quietly when asked. We homeschool, eat locally as much as possible, live gently, practice mirth and don’t take ourselves too seriously.
I teach non-violence classes and write when I’m not making cheese, sewing with repurposed materials or causing a ruckus. My book Free Range Learning explains how natural education can, and is, changing rigid structures around us.
I welcome conversation on farming, sustainability, education and more. Visit me at http://www.lauragraceweldon.com
Thanks again Shannon. I keep rolling around the term Radical Homemakers. It says so much.
I grew up in a farming community but it wasn’t really part of my life. When I took a job working in public relations for an international relief & development organization, I began to realize that what we eat has an impact on the world around us. Around the same time I decided to do something about my weight, and learned a lot about needing natural foods to be healthy. So glad to read about this book – it comes at a good time in my journey.
You can read more about me trying to cook locally and in season at http://thelocalcook.com
Holy Smokes! How am I just now finding this site???? The internet is a strange and complex maze….
Instead of sharing my story here (I’m much to wordy) please visit my blog and read my about page Cowgirl, Renegade, Cookie Baker at
http://apronstringz.wordpress.com/cowgirl-renegade-cookie-baker/
I am so excited about this site! and am off to order the book post haste. I’ve been calling it “revolutionary housewifery,” but radical homemaking is maybe better. the gender neutral-ness is good. But, being the feisty little scrap that I am, i couldn’t help but want to dredge the word “housewife” out of the mud, where anyone and everyone has been tramping on it, and flaunt it in the face of Progress.
Ahem.
Glad to meet you, friends!
I just discovered this site today by reading an article in Simple Living News and it couldn’t have come at a better time. I’ve been married for 20 years now and have 3 children. I started married life in the work force. When I got pregnant with my second child I opted out to raise my kids. After a time, I was bored and went back to work. Then our third child came along. Again, I opted out and raised my babies but eventually went back to work again. I just couldn’t find my place. Then, health issues arose so I was out of work again. But I didn’t want to be bored. Sitting around watching soap operas and cleaning house just wasn’t doing it for me. So, I started watching hgtv to learn ways to make my cleaning chores easier. Around about the same time I started seriously getting concerned about the environment and healthy living. Even voluntary simplicity was of interest. My family thought I was nuts so I let it go but stuck with trying to make my chores less mundane. I also started really learning how to cook instead of just mixing up a box of something. It had been a struggle to find things to keep me busy. Then I learned cross stitch. That helped and consumed much of my time for many years. But still I felt cluttered, stressed, bored and lonely. When my oldest daughter reached 5th grade I decided to homeschool my kids. Suddenly I had PLENTY to keep me busy. But, in educating my children, I didn’t want to just teach them what the schools did. I wanted to teach them practical life skills. So we cooked. We made things. We gardened. We learned together. Oh, I’d dabbled in each of those things here and there over the years but we REALLY got into them. My oldest daughter is now graduated, married and a licensed massage therapist. She’s loving her career and works for a great spa. My son is now in college learning gaming and is well on his way to his dream career. My youngest opted to go to high school at a public school and was recently accepted to the academy of her choice. She’s well on her way to her dream career as well. However, me no longer homeschooling freed up a huge chunk of my day and I was beginning to feel the sting of too much free time on my hands. I’m a busy person in that I need occupations to feel fulfilled. I’m just not the couch potato I used to be in my younger days. I’ve been struggling with this for a few months now and can honestly say it was getting the better of me. I’d been led back to the voluntary simplicity movement for several reasons. It appeals to the eco-geek in me on every level. It makes life less cluttered as well. Plus, I’d read 2 things that really struck me. There is a Shaker philosophy that hit home of “Never make anything unless its both practical and necessary. If its practical and necessary, make it beautiful.” Wow! Suddenly I was opened up to the world of crochet and sewing and the simple joy of finishing something beautiful and useful. Another was the basic tenet of voluntary simplicity “Get rid of everything that doesn’t matter to make room for what does.” Aha! So that’s what I’d been doing since last year when I’d been going through everything in the house and clearing things out. That’s why my home has been a revolving door of freecyclers and I’d spent more on gas to drop things off at the thrift store than trips to the store to buy new things. I recently purchased a deep freeze and started stocking my pantry and freezing leftovers (so I wouldn’t have to rely on processed or fast foods when in a time crunch) in an effort to ensure my family’s food supply is cared for. I’ve even started a container vegetable & herb garden to provide for some of our food needs. “Charity begins at home.” I’ve heard that so often but added, “So does everything else!” Environmental stewardship, family, personal accountability, education, even my personal spiritual path is tied up in hearth and home, simple living and being environmentally responsible and sustainable. But, as I said, this site (and the book I’ll soon be ordering) couldn’t have come at a better time. To be honest, I was feeling as if there was still something missing. Like there was some key element that wasn’t there to pull everything together for me. Like I wasn’t doing enough for the greater good. Now I see, just by reading what I have on your site. What was missing was a proper attitude and understanding of what I was/am doing and of who I am…a proud Cottage Witch and Radical Homemaker! Thank you SO much! You really have put things into perspective for me. With my path once again clearly defined, I head to the kitchen to try that new recipe for biscuits since I didn’t like the one I tried yesterday. Hmmmm….I really need to find a good pattern to make myself a proper apron!
Oh! I forgot to add, please visit my blog at http://jennascottage.blogspot.com/ . I’m journalling about my experiences there. I’ll definitely be adding a link to this site in my blog roll!
Excited to buy the book and read and learn. I set aside my Real Estate Appraisal business to be at home with the family grow a garden, sew, knit and aim toward being self sufficiant. I have a lot to learn, but I think this is going to be a very exciting adventure!
After living in the city for five or so years, my husband and I returned to where we met in college in the Hudson Valley to buy a house and have a baby. Being at home with my son is, I realize, what I am destined to do, and need I mention that it’s volumes more worthwhile than the many office jobs I’ve held? Good on you for bringing attention to the need for validation of this kind of lifestyle. I garden, preserve, bake and cook and never tire of it, but it makes a difference when there are reminders saying: this is worthwhile! I blog a bit at http://whatjuliaate.blogspot.com and that keeps me attached to a lively bunch of people with similar ideas and passions.
Not much of a story here, but I just wanted to take the moment and congratulate you on your good work!
More than five years ago, I decided to learn a new homemaking skill a year. It started with soap making and from there: knitting, gardening, canning, composting, beekeeping and this year {hopefully} making cheese. We are hoping one day to move out of the suburbs and onto some acreage. My blog goes into our adventures: the suburban road less traveled
I had to post because I too get neighbors asking me why I hang my laundry. One neighborhood boy asked me “Why? It’s not Earth Day today.” I went on to tell him that every day is Earth Day at our house.
For now, I’m in school hoping to major in sustainable agriculture. I’ve realized that other “radical homemakers” are my favorite people to meet. So willing to share their knowledge & ask for help learning something new.
Thanks so much for promoting a lifestyle that I am happy & proud to be a part of!
I have been a radical homemaker for nearly 25 years now. My high school friends all wanted to run off to explore the world and everything it had to offer, while I was content to stay behind, find my soul mate and raise a family in the suburban house with the white picket fence.
I did find my soul mate, and we’ve been together 31 years now, married 28. We raised two sons, I was a home school mom when it wasn’t popular, in fact I was the second home schooler in our area. We forged the path for those who would come in the future, and come they did! We raised hens for eggs and meat, bees for honey and pollinatio,n and grew large gardens of vegetables, herbs and edible flowers. We also planted plum, apricot, pear and apple trees in addition to blueberry bushes and grapes. A mulberry tree grows across the street from our driveway on a bit of no-mans land, and we harvest the berries from it, too. When we bought the home, we had 5 big maple trees we would tap for syrup. Storms have taken out 3 of them, a turned over winter salting truck killed one, and one tree remains. But we still tap it along with a few neighbors’ trees, to get about 2 gallons of syrup. In fact, my two sons (25 and 23) tap the trees and boil down the sap.
My eldest son keeps the bees and makes wine from the mulberries and many other fruits. He even made wine from spearmint, which I thought would be just awful but to my surprise, it is delicious!!! We grow a large garden of tomatoes, peppers, summer squashes, winter squashes, eggplant, cabbage, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, onions, carrots, green beans and cucumbers. Our hens (affectionately known as ‘the girls’) are happy and healthy and provide in abundance. We have truly been blessed with the work of our hands. Plenty for us and plenty to share. We are constantly aware of our place on this planet of ours, and do our best to make our little 1 acre plot of land a paradise. I am incensed when I go to the market, and, understanding the need to watch our carbon footprint, I am unable to find a single piece of produce grown in this country, let alone my locale. Granted, it is winter, but this is a big country and it isn’t winter everywhere. Everything comes from Mexico or Chile. My response to that is grow it in the summer, can it or freeze it and eat it all winter.
Shannon and Bob and all,
I just read Peggy Orenstein’s NYT mag piece on femavores, and it was definitely worth having to read her describe her chicken-keeping-stay-at-home-mom friends as “precious” so that I could find out about Shannon’s new book. I can’t wait to read it!
I’ve always been a gardener, but it wasn’t until I kind of accidently became a part-time-working, mostly-staying-at-home parent that I really got into urban homesteading/revolutionary homemaking. Since I enjoy my life now and have mostly come to terms about what I’ve given up to get here (a job as a tenure-track professor), I hadn’t realized how amazing it would feel to have some outside affirmation about my choices. Just reading the blurbs on the cover of your new book made me feel great, though, so I guess I was looking for some affirmation! I look forward to reading it.
One thing that I especially enjoy is doing this work within the context of an urban neighborhood; it’s fantastic to walk down an alley in my neighborhood and hear someone else’s chickens calling– it’s like hearing our secret password to a new world. I’ve also gotten so much out of neighborhood-wide projects and workshops on topics like gleaning, seed saving and exchanging, bee keeping, etc. It’s great fun and important work to do this stuff in my own household, but it’s the connections with others doing similar things that keep me going and growing. Thanks for this connection!
Goodbye big business BS. I just bought a farm. Hello Earth.
I have been raising kids, grade dairy goats, Pyrenees dogs, ducks, and chickens in a 1/5 acre lot in the middle of a small town for a little over a decade. (the city counsel hated it, but I was grandfathered in so there. ;-P )
I have learned to make my own cheese and bread, sew, crochet, spin and weave. We finally made the jump to the farm from the town house a little under a year ago. We now live in an owner-built house here at Welcome Home Farm, and here I thought I was a throw-back because I chose to be a work at home farm mom…I’m an alternative feminist!
Thought I was living the “hippie MBA” life but perhaps I’m a radical homemaker at heart. Left a marketing career of developing “not so good for you” products for big brands to start a nonprofit featuring “NOURISH Farm to Table Tour.”
The NOURISH tour experience starts with a volunteer group and a NOURISH tour guide. We meet at a local organic farm where everyone rolls up thier sleeves and harvests vegetables for that night’s dinner. Next we load up the vegetables and drive to a homeless shelter where a volunteer chef teaches the volunteers & the homeless how to prepare dinner using the freshly harvested vegetables and other ingredients. Dinner is shared family style.
I’ve never been happier, my kids are definately happier (and for teenagers that’s no small feat). Though the words “career suicide” come to mind more often than I’d like to admit.
I left these comments as a review on Amazon, but, really, this is a Thank You letter to the author of this book, so…
This is a very subjective and emotional review, admittedly, BUT I just wanted to thank this author for lifting the monkey of guilt off my back…the one that’s been living there, whispering little nasties in my ear, ever since I left my Ph.D. program, abandoned my dissertation, shocked my fellow feminist academicians, disappointed my ambitious father, and exchanged the career track for two decades of living simply, raising my daughters, and doing our little part to save the environment.
Back in 1991, when my second daughter was born, my husband and I had no “manifesto” to explain our decision to scale back our lives. No one had attached a “name” to the conclusion I reached–after an ordeal of soul-searching, self-doubt, and even recrimination–that staying home with my babies, scaling back our ambitions and our lifestyle, and throwing my energies into raising our own organic food, becoming caretaker to a large flock of (although we didn’t call them that at the time) natural, pastured chickens, of spending many, many hours volunteering with other like-minded women in our community health food cooperative, of devoting time and effort to various environmental organizations and causes, working for politicians who had believed as we did, and–most importantly–unschooling my two girls so that the world became their classroom and their minds were not limited by pedagogy or ideology, was THE most worthwhile use of my time, my passions, and my talents.
Nope. It was just a bizarre detour from my carefully laid, feminist plans. This was a life choice my husband and I HAD to make, because in our hearts we could accept no other, but society (and my own critical, Intellectual Self) sneered at our rusticity, our modest income, my domesticity, our family-centered existence. And I never, ever was able to dispel the vague shame that I had somehow, some way, failed myself and my feminist beliefs.
It was a lonely row to how, back then. My colleagues went on to professorships, acclaim, even some modest fame. I collected eggs, read to my children (and then taught them to read) picked and jammed strawberries, marched in parades for liberal politicians, stuffed envelopes for “good causes” and made ends meet. By conventional standards, I had “wasted my valuable education” and yet–when I looked at those healthy, happy, flourishing faces smiling up at me like sunflowers, when my Little Family paused at the end of a quiet, green, sunny spell of learning and playing and experiencing the day ON OUR OWN SCHEDULE, when I saw the stress that eroded the contentment of so many of my contemporaries–the rushing and dashing and scheduling and conflicting desires–our choices seemed right for us, and no waste at all. But…how I wish I’d had a greater sense of community! Of someone else to say, “Oh, yes…we reached the same conclusions and made the same “sacrifices” and we don’t think you are nuts.”
THIS book is that long-awaited community, that absolution of the last vestiges of guilt (”quitter…quitter”..taunted the little voice in my ear) still remaining, 20 years later. For publishing this, you have my deepest, most heartfelt gratitude.
Shannon,
Your book is a gift, and will be for countless souls. I left an unhappy, unhealthy marriage and gilded cage to lead a more simple and true life. After leaving my career, I stayed home with my children then. I stay home with my children now. But now we are happier, healthier. Even our dogs are more well adjusted. We live on 1/4 the income we used to. Financial support from my childrens father, random money making endeavors of my own. We have more money in the bank then we ever did when i was married. Because we are not spending it. Because we are growing our food, playing at home, spending time with friends, making stuff, building stuff, walking in the woods, being content. Our life is so sweet here, I dont want to go out and buy things. I want to stay home and play in the dirt, build fairy houses with my children. Im working on a friends organic farm in exchange for vegetables, knowledge, experience and community. We shop in thrift stores and do clothing swaps. For two weeks I kept a box of clothes in my house and in my car that friends could ’shop’ in or add too. Seven of us ladies got something fabulous and new to us. The first year after I left the marriage, my two children and I led a beautiful, rich life on $15,000 while i took care of a dying friend. Our total income that year was $30,000 but i put that other half away. Im a big fan of enough. Peace and beauty abound in this life if only we take the time.
My feminist mother worked. I was a ‘latch key’ kid from 10 on. And though I learned from her and admire her strength, I always promised myself I wouldnt do that. Somebody should be home for the children. So the criticism that rains down on us, and the voice of self doubt that sometimes chimes in, oh well. Im doing what I truly believe is best for my kids, my self, the community and the earth. Leading a gentler life.
Rock on.
Hello there! Wonderful book–thank you. I thought y’all might be interested to read my comment on Peggy Orenstein’s troubling piece in the NYT Mag last weekend:
http://southernurbanhomestead.wordpress.com/2010/03/17/urban-farm-feminism/
After pouring ourselves into a franchise business money pit and my husband traveling 25 out of 30 days of the month. Something had to give…it wasn’t the marriage or the kids, it was the 5 bedroom house, 3/4 acre lawn and all of our “stuff”! We downsized into a 28′ travel trailer rv and began to travel with my husband’s work as a family on the road http://www.familiesontheroad.com . The freedom of not having mountains of laundry, a huge house to clean, clutter and too many kid activities has lead to a simpler way of living and being. Every day is an adventure as we explore different aspects of the US. As a result of our journey I am helping to found a holistic sustainable living retreat & educational center where we will honor authors and books just like yours!
I week ago I reapplied for re-addmission to Graduate School. I have been a homeschooling mom with advanced degree for over ten years. My husband and I and our three kids “farm” a good portion of our 1/2 acre yard in Memphis, TN. We can our produce, we make preserves from our fruits, we make our own wine, we raise chickens, we have rainwater collection and we reuse and reduce as much as possible. My Graduate School application was rejected, because, as the woman with a Doctoral Degree told me, I didn’t have “professional” references, instead had other community organizers write my references. I have been feeling angry and disrespected. A friend told me about your book. I didn’t know we were a part of a movement, we just thought it was called doing the right thing. I am ordering it today. Thanks for immediately making me feel better.
Michele Mazzu
Memphis, TN
Michele – I deeply empathize with your frustrations. I was rejected from Cornell University. Three times. The final time it happened, I contacted a professor who I had really connected with while visiting, gave him the news, and explained that I was certain there had been a mistake. Apparently my GREs and connections were not adequately prominent. Since I knew this professor was working with sustainability issues in New York State, and I was a lifelong NYS resident with an ag background and ample qualifications, I made the argument that I was entitled to an education from our State’s Land Grant College. It worked. I was also able to get a working assistanceship for the entire time I was there. It turns out that some professors need grad students with street smarts about how to get work done efficiently and effectively while maintaining good relationships with coworkers and community…they don’t always need philosophical wizards with the gift of pontificating . Please, take heart. Sometimes programs are worth being rejected from. Sometimes it is worth fighting for admission. With a rejection letter in your hand, there is certainly nothing to lose…except making them aware of your interest and dedication. Universities must remember that dedication to community is a primary obligation.
Finishing up the book from over the weekend! Hooray! Hooray! Hooray! Shannon you have so beautifully and succinctly tied together all the issues: food; societal, cultural, academic! Thank the Lord, we’re not the only ones! We are currently in our suburban plot counting down the days until we are on our piece of land. We have been doing organics, raised bed gardening, recycling, freecycling and thrifting for about the last five years. Each year we try to cut back a little more and a little more.
I have four children ages 22, 16, 7 and 3. I had to be a working single mother with the first two and it was so hard. We are blessed and lucky that I am able to stay home and homeschool my younger two. My husband and I are so on board with your book and your ideals. I’m so glad you tied it all together in such an intelligent way. I always felt we “threw the baby out with the bathwater” with extreme feminism. I was raised by my depression era grandmother, and in my youth it just wasn’t cool to “stay home” and be a mom, we were always supposed to be “striving” and “doing something more.” And after all that time I spent trying to get away from that little rural town and life, I now at 41 can’t wait to get back to it. The truth is, we as women, whether as mothers of our own children or “mothers” of our communities are doing something everyday, a very important something! We are raising the next generation of people. And even if we dont have the time or energy to “do big things,” the little things are equally as big. Being there for a new mom so she can take a hot shower while you watch the baby, bringing over a pot of soup to a sick neighbor or picking up a few extra groceries for them, picking up their mail while their away, helping each other. You can’t do that unless YOU’RE AT HOME and available! And what do most of us really remember about our childhoods? What brings us back the warmest memories? Probably not our “enrichment” lessons (if we had any) but those times of nurturing and warmth right in our own homes. My best summers were spent at Camp Grandma, and she was the best nurse, chef and minister of fun on the planet. I’m so glad I wasn’t thrown into day care, before school and after school care and “vacation” care. I would have been if it weren’t for my grandparents as my mother was a single mother as well. My eldest two daughters did have to go through that, and my sixteen year old is glad that for the last 9 years of her life I’ve been able to stay home and we are no longer getting up at 6 and getting home at 6 only to collapse after a rushed meal and bath and then bed, only to get up and get back on the wheel again in the morning.
Building and maintaining family (whether given or made) is so important. Now, all in my family have passed away, and we altered our thanksgiving holiday plans to happen the day after thanksgiving so we could have it with our closest friends and neighbors without their having to sacrifice their family committments. Last year it met everyone’s needs so beautifully, we’re doing it again this year.
Thank you Shannon for all your hard work and spreading the word!
Dear Shannon,
) and liked it very much. I wished I could live like that!!! I live in downtown Orlando and hate it here. I wished I lived in Vermont on a farm. Both my husband and myself are engineers and we make a lot of money. But, we have no cable or network tv, and I cook food every day from scratch just about. I often buy clothes from the thrift store. We live in an average size older house that is almost paid for and have no other debt. We have 2 kids, one is 18 and just moved out, and the other one is 12. We give some of our money away, save some and spend a lot on trips ( like skiing in Stowe). I am happy on those trips, but not the rest of the year. I feel like I am trapped here.
Just read your book ( got it at the local library
There is no way to live like you in Florida. It’s just too hot. You’re just stuck inside of the air conditioned buildings for ¾ of the year, or drive from place to place in your air conditioned car. I don’t mind my job most of the time, I do like building things, but I hate sitting in the office. I hate it more that my husband works 50 hours a week or more most of the time and has a long commute on top of it. I wished we could live a simpler life up north preferably in New England somewhere, but don’t know how to do this. I don’t even know where to start. Plus most of our friends live here and I would miss them. That is probably one of the biggest obstacles.
Just wanted to let you know I liked your book, and it gave me some ideas.
Sophia
Sophia – It seems like putting your thoughts in words is a great starting point to making the changes you want to see. Sometimes these things take time…chin up! shannon
Shannon, thank you for your inspiring book. I’m an urban homesteader in Oakland, CA. I have about 1,000 sq. feet of land with a husband, 3 yr old, 5 chickens, 1 beehive, and lots of veggies. We try to grow as much of our food as we can. This summer we’re installing a greywater system, and will be getting goat’s milk from a local neighbor’s goat. My other life is as a full time teacher and artist, but I fantasize about figuring out how to pay off debt and do the farm part full time. (You can read more at my blog listed below.)
Your book is a wonderful reminder to everyone about how to figure out what is enough, how to live more closely to our ideals, and how to not get caught up in the race to consume and have more. It’s also inspiring to read so many other stories by wise women here on your site. This is truly a movement – hooray for everyone involved!
In August last year, I went on maternity leave to have my 3rd (and I am convinced ….final) child. Being at home with a baby, especially a very small one, sets some interesting constraints around you. Firstly, you spend a lot of time at home just doing baby-related things. Secondly, you equally spend a lot of time waiting while someone sleeps, home-bound, with the ability to plan being at a minimum, and the need to just ‘go with the flow’ at a maximum. Also, you find that the income dries up, so you have to start to live even more consciously. Sounds like a blast!
When not on maternity leave, I have been playing the role of working full-time mum. I find myself pretty busy in my day time job, and as I walk out the door my mind switches over to my ‘other’ full time job. My train ride home is spent contemplating what to cook for dinner while I have my face crammed into someone else’s sweaty armpit. When I get home I find myself to be fairly busy in every spare minute – picking up kids, dropping them off, picking up toys and books and dirty washing, doing dishes, making lunches, reading readers, listening to how everyone’s days have gone.
We live across the road from a large supermarket, and about 20 metres from a whole host of restaurants, and these are all very tempting conveniences – and when you are very busy they seem like a God-send, and very justifiable. At the end of the day you fall into the couch exhausted, spent, and you feel that cutting some corners is your right.
So – how does a woman like me all of a sudden find herself toying on the skirts of being, dare I say it, a ‘radical homemaker’. We are not just talking about ’stay at home mum’ stuff here, but something a bit more than that. Someone who starts worm farming, mulching, recycling, trying to reduce the plastic in our home, making my own bread, pasta, yoghurt, and growing some of my own food, networking with my local permaculture group, and even more surprisingly, blogging about it. I would never have guessed this was going to be me, and what’s more, I am loving it.
What caused this change? Well time certainly does have it’s benefits – being on maternity leave is a blessing, and such a nice change from normal hectic daily life. It is a pretty special time (and challenging too) being at home with a precious bundle.
But aside from the bundle, and the time, the other thing that has caused me to take on these new challenges is that I realised how much I value my own health and the health of my family, and how central food is to this. I know so little about the true origins of my food when I purchase it, and when I choose convenience, I choose to be disengaged from the process of growing, storing, cooking, making it. This is fine when you are busy, as you don’t really have a choice, but when you aren’t, being engaged in growing or making my own food, sourcing it from people who care about how it has been produced, using the best ingredients, is a nurturing process. It not only brings me a sense of confidence that I can do these things for myself, but also brings satisfaction.
I also noticed that the food we make at home seems to be better than most food I buy. Not all, but most. So after a while, it becomes pointless to look elsewhere, when you enjoy your own far more.
Next week I am back to work – full time. I have had a taste of radical, and I like it. I like it so much I wish I could do this as a full time job. However, unless you already have the farm, animals, orchard and a husband who brings home more than just the bacon, you are probably just another dreamer like myself….maybe one day. Till then I have to work and save and hopefully one day will have enough to get started.
I will keep blogging…and I think it will be interesting to see what I can sustain from now into crazy hectic life. Will I get lured back into convenience world? I hope not. Will keep you posted on http://www.gettingrerooted.com
Geri
I am a radical homemaker although i didn’t know it until I read one of Shannon’s articles.
I live in Australia and have been writing about our family’s attempt at living a more simple sustainable life since 2007.
I follow the wisdom of my Grandmother when trying to map out this style of living. She raised her family with no electricity, no running water, cooked everything from scratch, grew all their food and made their clothing. I wondered why I couldn’t live a life like hers given that I have so many labour saving devices!
In 2008 I gave up my job as a lawyer to really focus on our chosen path. The results have been fantastic. Our family is now well settled, we grow our own vegies, have chooks and make lots of things from scratch.
Drop by and have a look at what we are doing. http://www.avisionsplendid.com
I would love to hear from other ‘radicals’ lol
Michelle in Australia.
Great to hear from you, Michelle…Finch publishing should be releasing Radical Homemakers down your way this coming December. Meanwhile…pardon my linguistic ignorance, but what are “chooks?” Would that be chickens? sh
Shannon what an inspiration you are. I had a much needed nervous breakdown after reading your book. I cannot wait to start my new life. Thank you, I feel free.
I am a “Happy SAHD” in Minnesota, a stay-at-home-dad and freelance writer who has been at home with my daughters since our first was born in 2004, so just over six years. It has been tough sometimes living a “simplistic” (it doesn’t feel simple!) lifestyle when the rest of the world is “go! go! go! get! get! get!” but my wife and I are dedicated to living simply in a small fixer-upper house and to raising what may be among the last of the “free range children” who use the great outdoors and their imaginations for play.
God bless my six-year-old who has bought into the idea fully. She loves the Betsy-Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace and we live next to those historic homes. I like to remind people who keep telling us “you’re going to need a bigger house” because we have a three-bedroom home and a third daughter on the way that “Tacy’s” family was 11 strong in a house smaller than ours a couple blocks away. More people have been raised happily in less space, and there are worse things in life than making sisters SHARE A ROOM — OH NO! Their mother and I do it, and our room is the same size as theirs!
One of my biggest concerns was that I would not have the strength or energy or health to keep up with my kids. Over the years I was getting sicker and sicker, with abdominal pain after most meals. Working with a doctor and dietician eventually revealed that my system could not handle anything with corn byproducts, particularly high fructose corn syrup. That accounts for 90% of the supermarket, possibly including the building itself. Switching to locally grown organic food has been a godsend. I dropped down to my college weight and feel great most days.
People think my kids are “missing out” somehow, but I think they have more. We have pizza night every Friday, too, but the kids get to make their own at home, with whatever toppings they want. They make the dough with me, the sauce, and pick their own toppings, and it tastes great! We have grilled cheeseburgers using grass-fed beef that is so much better tasting than fast food.
So far, the only real drawback is that we can’t bribe our kindergartener with allowance or money for extra chores because she doesn’t want to buy anything. She says she has all she needs!
Sophia,
I also live in Florida even further south and through several life changing events I realized that life can be very short , you can make small changes one step at a time and what joy you will receive from them . I have never had a garden, but now I have started one in a 4×4 wooden box ( from HD)with tomatoes , green peppers , basil .I also have several cement blocks that I wasn’t using so I converted them to containers and in just a week they are ready to divide up into other containers – squash, cantaloupe, peas, beans, zucchini, lettuce -marigolds ( for insects repellent) . I just got potting soil, planted the seeds according to the back of the package watered and put a little fertilizer on and God did the rest . I am so excited ,I look at them several times a day and see progress!!!!!
useitup
I’m in the process of reading your book, as I’ve been for around a month. I have a six-month-old and a four-year-old, so really, everything is taking much longer than usual. I’m writing to say that your book is vocalizing every single thought I’ve had for the past year or so–that our economy should become home-based, that homes should be units of production rather than consumption. My husband and I are in the process of selling our home and finding our happiness, whatever that means — however that happens. We’re young parents and not yet settled into any pattern of living. My husband is looking to get away from having a full-time job and my goal for us is to have some kind of home-based business where we can share in the homemaking (and homeschooling, too). So my concerns are all about, how can we enable my husband to share in this joyful life, rather than dump all our moneymaking needs onto his back every day. I suppose it would be different if he loved his job–but he doesn’t. We are happiest when together anyway. I’m still learning about all this from your book.
Otherwise, I’m all about the practicality of being a homemaker, AND being debt-free. Homekeeping skills-growing your own food and medicine and so on–obviously contribute, but you still have to pay property taxes and whatever form of housing payment you choose. So that’s another area we’re thinking about. Oh, and I’m also motivated by peak oil–I’ve been reading lots about that lately, and I believe that now is the time to learn to live off-grid, which really implies homemaking. I’m kind of excited to leave our washer and dryer behind when we sell our home and learn to wash using a washtub! No electricity necessary.
THANK YOU for this book. I count it as one of the most influential I’ve ever read.
Thanks for your note, Jess…I must say, handwashing your clothes? Wow! That takes some fortitude, especially considering the exhaustion that plagued pre-industrial homemakers. I hope you won’t think me a sloth when I confess to gratitude for our washing machine! — shannon
Ha ha. Perhaps I will relent after trying it. I’m not sure we’ll have much of a choice, eventually–after peak coal and so on. I think John Michael Greer’s books are an excellent resource on this topic, if you are interested. I do not think of any homemaker as a sloth
I finished your book about a week ago, Shannon, and it’s been the inspiration I needed to keep my nose on the path that I sometimes veer from, to greater or lesser degrees. We have chosen to live in a master-planned community in the Phoenix-area, where we are raising our 2 preschoolers and my husband is able to ride his bike to his work nearby, and I am able to work from home as a practitioner of acupuncture and nutritional consulting. Since completing your book, I’m finding that my thinking on behalf of our time- and financial-resources is peppered with the wisdom shared in the pages of Radical Homemakers. In many ways, this is just an extension and continuation of life experiences and choices we’ve made up to this point, but I am very glad to have found the compilation of stories and examples you share as a structure and template as our family moves forward in life. No livestock in our yard, but we have started a compost bin, we sprout beans and legumes, I culture raw goat dairy I buy directly from a local farmer, we make our meals from scratch using whole-food products, we are an active and (I think) important part of the weave of our community and we keep making changes to become more self-sufficient (learning to garden organically in this environment is a big learning curve for us right now–but if we could get a portion of what we consume in meals and in juicing from our yard, I’d think that was great!) Thanks so much for doing what you do, Shannon, and for giving folks like me a touchstone.
I left my professional career in health care 3 years ago and have never looked back. Four degrees and a profitable career have never made me feel as good as being home and raising my children. I now work from home part-time, home school, and have over the last year revamped our lifestyle in almost every conceivable way. We paid off huge debts over the last year and now see life in an entirely different way. Our garden is underway, canning jars are being readied, and green living is a way of life. My career driven and consumer motivated friends call me “Amish”. That is just fine with me. I now realize I am not alone in leaving all that behind. My children know how to do things they never would have otherwise, school is not a constant disappointment, and we are no longer worrying about how to make ends meet.
Our children now say “let’s make…” or “let’s build…” instead of “can we buy…”
As I devoured your book as soon as you sent it, this is long overdue — (it was delicious, by the way). I’ve been so busy preparing for the arrival of our Orpingtons (hmmmm, this coop design from Sap Bush Hollow Farm looks interesting)… A voracious reader, never before or since have I seen my philosophy, values and world-view articulated so well, or reflected so thoroughly on paper.
We raise our children, Ian 9, Leif 5 and Fiona 3 on my husband’s salary of $33,000 per year (..no shortage of curmudgeons who deem that “excessive”) on an acre alive with fruit, vegetable, vine and soon, chickens. (Shetland sheep and pigs remain a possibility for this year, but may wait until next…). A Culinary Arts instructor, my husband has periodically taken on second jobs only to remember the wisdom of focusing his energy here at home, in which he is ever more deeply invested (…especially since “Food Inc.”, which has REALLY sparked his interest in farming — we may have livestock sooner that I thought!)
Since our community’s tiny, multi-age school closed, we’ve struggled with our decision to send our children to public school. The State has decreed our rather disadvantaged, consolidated school a “reading first” institution, which means eliminating science and the humanities in favor of bludgeoning them with phonics. (A good student, the line connecting those silly tests Ian has to take is always steepest between Spring and Fall.) Of course we delight in teaching those lessons here at home, while we embrace their natural curiosity and cultivate their ability to “self-educate”. . Though unfazed by criticism of our Birdsfoot Trefoil “lawn alternative” (compliments are ahead by a wide margin), use of a clothesline within sight of passers-by (ladies of a certain generation here have stopped to admire the diapers flapping in the wind), I must admit the occasional sting of those who subscribe to a more corporate-shaped view of how things “should be done” and unfathomably attempt to impose, intervene, invade… …just one small, of many reasons I am grateful for your work. I hope our children come of age in a world shaped by the values that you describe so well, that I wholeheartedly share, and strive to live. Thank you again!
We left Seattle behind in 1989 to move to the fertile Willamette Valley of Oregon with our infant daughter. We had no jobs and no friends here (Note to Sophia in Orlando: It is possible to pick up and resettle in a new location and life will be just fine!). Two years later we bought a run-down house with .4 acre, walking/biking distance from downtown (50,000 people), and have spent the ensuing years improving the property. Painting houses with my husband keeps me from being a full-on gardener (summer is our busiest season for work), but I retire in 2 years 10 months, so I’m already excited about what I will accomplish in my little slice of paradise. In the meantime, I cook from scratch (second only to not having a TV as my greatest gift to my daughters) and try to keep learning. Last year was fresh pasta (manually) and pickles. This year is cheesemaking. We joined a CSA years ago and shop at the two wonderful farmers’ markets. We buy tofu made by a local man and eggs from a neighbor. I have put in fruit trees and olives (still not sure if they’re going to make it here), raspberries, rhubarb, and blueberries. We have built a community with our neighbors, swapping power and gardening tools, plant starts, recipes, baby-sitting, the food you just discovered you forgot to get at the store, etc. When my oldest was homeschooling, I taught a cooking class to five home schoolers, followed by a gardening class. Yes, Shannon, the world IS changing. And by starting at home, we lead by example. I look forward to reading your book–I have it on hold at the local library. Jeannie
I have raised four children, now adults. My oldest is graduating from San Francisco Law School May 18th with a doctor of jurisprudence, in public interest law. Believe me it fits her. I could not be prouder of her and of all of my children. I am especially thankful to their step father. I can’t find your book anywhere. It so fits into my raising of my children. Much love to you and your family.
I have ‘haus frau’ (German for house wife) tattooed across my knuckles. A male friend of mine asked if I thought my ‘haus frau’ tattoo contradicts my feminist principles. No, I don’t, as I believe a woman can both a feminist and a homemaker be! (Men too!) My best friend and I have conversed for years over the taboo of aspiring to be homemakers–feminist at that–in a society that champions financial wealth and increasingly emphasizes quantity over quality.
I had a bit of a crisis two years ago when I graduated college (at age 26). I thought I would pursue a PhD in Comparative Literature and Cultural Studies at a somewhat local university. But a year before graduating, I spent a semester abroad (in Germany) and realized that I was focusing not on what I wanted, but on what I felt pressured to want. [I snapped a self-portrait to remember the moment. My Mother maintains that it's the saddest photo she's seen of me, but I disagree!]
I’ll be 30 this August. And I”m still focusing not on what I want, but on what I feel pressured to want, as what I want for my life contradicts what I’ve been taught (mostly by society) to want. I’m trying to figure out what the hell I want to do with myself AND wondering why it is that I’m supposed to DO something with myself? Why spend my precious time in an attempt to accomplish one degree after another, to move up the career ladder, to live up to standards that aren’t my own, to make more money, to save for a bigger and so-called better this or that? I DON’T want my well-being or my self-worth to depend on my haves and have-nots, my income. It’s not that I cannot compete, but simply that I DON’T WANT TO. I want OUT of the rat race, as I’ll NEVER be fulfilled until I steer from our consumer-driven disposable society toward a productive, creative life . But HOW???
When I “came of age” in the 70s, feminism was taking hold in the US. Women were limited as to what careers they could/should/ought-ta follow (teacher, nurse, secretary come to mind) if they didn’t choose to be Mrs. John Doe. What evolved from the dialogue of feminism was that women were free to choose the path that suits them, to pursue a career in whatever fields they had talent and passion. And in the ensuing years I have seen women follow their own paths. However, if we let the advanced degree/career professional path keep those of us who want to follow the homemaker road feeling guilty (I personally don’t), have women fallen back into the same trap we were in before the 70s?
i am a single, full time working mom of a four year old son. We live in a 1912 era bungalow near downtown calgary, alberta. last year i dug up more of my land, planted wheat in the driveway, planted three apple, two pear, and ten saskatoon bushes to create a food forest. I also had a carpenter build a fenced in area for chickens. Now my son and i take care of four chickens in a city where it is against the bylaw to have them. we grow most of our own food on a 30feet by 125 foot lot, i preserved alot of it last year, we went to u pick farms for the berries to make jams and my mother came over to help can tomato sauce. It gives me a thrill to be able to do this right in the city. You don’t have to move to the country to be a radical homemaker or to live a more natural lifestyle.
I feel like the biggest obstacle to being able to fully embrace the “radical homemaker” life, and one that doesn’t seem to be an issue for many of the people in your book, is housing. If you don’t have a family farm to return to, or an inheritance that has made a down payment possible, if what you are doing is working in order to pay rent without being able to save, this is really, really, REALLY hard! (I choose not to say impossible, but lately that is what I am starting to think.)
We live in Boston, which is wonderful in that we have only 1 car, have family nearby, and a plot in a wonderful community garden. My husband’s school-teacher salary is higher than most other places in the country, but would it allow us to buy something – I mean a small something – with a yard? No way! Are there cheaper places outside of the city? Sure, but then you lose the job, family, have to buy a second car, and can’t afford it after all.
People who are making it work in more than just the fits and starts that we are, seem to have the housing part of the equation taken care of, which then makes $40,000 a year for a family of 5 (such as ours) eminently doable.
Am I wrong? I am certainly not trying to be negative, because this is what we aspire to and we are really trying to examine all of the angles…I just don’t see our way out of this – and we don’t even have debt…
Anyway, feeling a bit hopeless today…
Hi Tania – thank you for your honest letter, which reminds us that Radical Homemaking is a path, and not a destination. RH-ing in the city is the exciting frontier that many of us rural people can sit back and marvel at….country folks like me have a lot of resources to fall back on, if not a lot of $$. That said, we’ve all been in rough spots. I was in grad school w/my grad stipend supporting my student housing when we bought our place. We counted on Bob’s income to get the mortgage. Two weeks later, when the first mortgage bill came, he was canned. We made the payments selling homemade jellies and soap, and relied on the kindness of friends and neighbors for support.
People have definitely had to overcome obstacles to step on this path…I think that is part of what makes it an exciting and rewarding challenge. I’ve learned about city people on the path while living in basement apartments, young families chosing to live with older relatives to share resources more effectively, and communal living arrangements. For the record, kids were part of the scene. Not everyone comes from a financial resource base. What these folks often share in common is an acceptance of the importance of interdependence over independence. In the United States, we commonly think that the only path toward any sort of self-reliance is to hold a steady job, borrow money from the bank, and then put the down payment on the house with the yard that will allow a garden. That is one way. It is not the only way.
In the book, Sylvia Tanner worked with her neighbors and friends in order to build her home and help care for her son while she made the transition. When Kelly Robideau found herself split up from her husband and pregnant, she moved in with her parents while she started her family. Stormy McGovern explained that she didn’t feel land ownership was even a requirement for the RH lifestyle. She bartered her skills for her housing, and helped fellow radical homemakers on their path while providing for her own food and housing needs. Nance Klehm squatted in abandoned buildings in Chicago until she scraped together enough money for a down payment. That may not be the best option with children…but it sure shows that anything is possible.
It is hard to know what will open up for you. There is simply not a blueprint for this lifestyle, and the urban folks, in particular, are coming forward with lots of exciting innovations and ideas for making their lives work. This movement is pretty new on the urban frontier, and the folks on this path right now are the pioneers. While that may be exciting, there are certainly harrowing moments. Chin up. You aren’t in debt, and it sounds like you and your husband have your goals in mind. Try to remember that the path for you may not look exactly like what you are imagining…but many have found their way through seemingly impossible circumstances, and you will, too. Good luck! -sh
I became a “radical homemaker” in 1979 with the birth of my daughter, a special needs child. My family members wanted me to give her over to the day “experts” so that I could take a job, but did the world need one more cashier/retail/secretary/warehouse worker more than my child needed me? Yes, it was hard, but for me it was harder to leave her in the care of those who were doing their job for a paycheck, not for the quality of life of my child! Don’t even let me get into her prospect for primary education…that situation was even more disheartening! I ended up home schooling her and her older brother. (BTW, her older brother is now a computer design engineer, known to his college professors as the kid who didn’t go to ‘school’). They said my daughter wouldn’t go past her times tables in math…her last math class in junior college was Business Calculus…she earned a B. I walked away from the ‘system,’ no regrets, even though it is socially quite isolating. Even the Church wouldn’t include her in their private schools because “there are special schools for kids like yours.” My daughter and I became focused on nutrient dense, local, sustainable food/farming quite early, (I started with Adele Davis when she was born). Today, we use no Rx’s, eat whole foods, shop at farmers markets, grow our own herbs, veggies, and have connected with several regional farmers that supply us with pastured meats and raw milk. We make kefir, yogurt, kefir water, fermented veggies, and lots and lots of chicken/bone broths; we preserve/can foods, and grocery stores are looking more and more alien. “Health food” stores carry specialty items we can’t grow/provide for ourselves, but it is evident that even they make their profit on ‘supplements’ rather than whole foods. I want to thank Shannon Hayes for her book on this subject, Radical Homemakers…she has validated many of the choices that I made over the last 30 years and I do have her grass-fed meat cookbook along with Sally Fallon’s “Nourishing Traditions.” I am now approaching the big 60, and plan to be around for quite some time, but I will approach my last breath with confidence and dignity…knowing that celebrating/supporting/caring for life is far more soul-fulfilling than living for worldly materialism.
I guess I have been doing this radical homemaking thing to an extent in our suburban home in Canada. But after I got a hold of the Ringing Cedars Series of Books (who talk about how to create your space of love on about 2 acres with a garden, fruit tree, bees, etc.) I want to take it to a whole other level, a level that many of you describe in your posts. Where I am now is my husband is not ready for this lifestyle and after many years of struggle in our relationship we have decided to part. We have two beautiful boys that I have been home with and don’t want to leave, but as I am about to be a single mother this dream of mine is seeming much more challenging.
I am determined as so excited to see Shannon’s book, I can’t get it into my hands fast enough. I have been feeling that my calling is to bring this message to others, that we can go back to the “old” ways of living, living off the land, in harmony with nature and with ourselves and each other. It’s also what I believe mother earth wants.
I have to be honest and say I feel overwhelmed right now with wanting to do this so badly, but feeling fearful as I will have two little ones under 4 with me. Can we do it? Of course, but if there is anyone out there who is in similar shoes or has any supportive words please do share.
Thank you everyone for your stories
I am on the same track as everyone here, but I have found a way to radical homemaking by becoming a childcare provider in my city. I recieved Montessori Training and it taught me all I need to know about raising children in the home. I get to cook and garden. I think we will be joining the farmers market. This will advertise my childcare wonderfully! I get to work on my home with children. I have to slow down to show them steps to completion but I love to teach and these skills will be foundational for life. I have 3 teens who are 18, 20 and 22…lol I forgot they are older…lol I have been showing them for the last 3 years what it means to raise children and letting them see other parents. It opens a door of teaching on a young adult level. They know that children are a great wonderfull responsibility to be taken seriously. My childcare site is linked up to my “Montessori Cafe” site.
I want to echo those above who express how wonderful it is to have a name for what is driving me, and feel part of a community. Don’t get me wrong–it’s not that I don’t know anyone else doing this–I live in a reasonably progressive college town, with a vibrant arts and sustainability culture (maybe subculture is more accurate), especially in regards to non-motorized transportation and sustainable and urban agriculture, but still, for my age and demographic, I felt really different.
I read your book a month or more ago, and have been reading it aloud to my husband, to help him understand what drives me. It’s slow going, though–we mainly read at bedtime, and only after he has already done our traditional family read-aloud, so he doesn’t stay awake very long–not a reflection on the book at all!
I would say I have been gradually finding my way down this path for the past 10 years or so. Big influences were, that my family of origin were quite environmentally minded, and my mom did some things back in the 70s that surprise me in retrospect–made her own yogurt and bread, even taking us along to a friends house to grind the flour; we didn’t have a TV for many years, so I never developed the taste or habit for it. Another influence was that our annual family vacation was, and still is, to a little cabin in northern Minnesota, with no electricity or running water (well, it ran, but you had to pump it into a pressurized tank by hand, first!)–and it was the most joyful part of my life. That helped me see that good time with family and simple pleasant meaningful work had great value. Then, after I married, we spent 3 years in my husband’s native England, and partly because I wanted to, and partly because it wasn’t easy to slot into the medical system there, I stayed home and had and cared for our 2 children, now 15 and nearly 14. This showed me 2 things: I loved being home, and we could be happy in a smaller home, with more public space, than was typical for an American household ( we lived in about an 800 square foot Victorian row cottage, that was 100 years old the day we moved in).
Still, when we came back to the USA, my first job as a doctor was in our first truly auto-dependent suburb. Boy, did we discover right away, especially after having learned how wonderful it was to have only one car, and walk to everything the kids and I needed, that this was not for us! We couldn’t even safely walk the dog without first putting him in a car and driving to a park! We tried to meet our neighbors, but we almost never saw them. Everyone left by car, came back by car, drove into their garages, and never appeared again! Ack! But it was good, because I think it may have really started us down this path.
So I haven’t done the full thing–my kids are in public school; I work part time, and my husband more than full time (he has a career promoting alternative transportation, so it definitely is meaningful work, but it doesn’t always pay well. Some years it doesn’t pay at all!). But I have been gradually adding skills and sorting out priorities. I’ve always had an interest in gardening, but have gotten really serious about it lately. This year I helped campaign to make chickens legal in our town. We did it, and I have 4 beautiful, entertaining pullets who should begin laying in a few weeks. We had a root cellar built, and I have learned to can. I’m trying to learn to knit, but seem to have no aptitude! We plan to get a solar water system installed soon. Oh, and I’m learning to play the banjo. It’s funny–I felt that this was so important, but couldn’t say why it fit with the other things we are doing, until I read your book! Also, in the past 10 years, we have reduced our car usage from a minivan and small car, totalling over 20K mile per year, to one smallish car, with less than 10K per year on it, and this is with two teenagers, who still do lots of the usual stuff–marching band, dance, boy scouts, music lessons etc, It’s just that they have learned to use the city bus, and ride their bikes to many destinations. It also includes the 1600 mile round trip to Minnesota. We would take the train, our favorite way to travel, but it doesn’t go anywhere near there.
I would love to stay home all the time, but I am too frightened by 2 things you mention in the book: health insurance and college education. I know lots of other people here rely on healthy food, exercise, and herbs, but what can I say–I’m a doctor. I see lots of people who do thing right and still have BAD things happen. I’m not dismissing those things–we, too, eat local, organic food, and emphasize exercise and wellness; but sometimes you need more, and it is very difficult without insurance. As for college education, while I think it is to some degree over-rated (that is, there are lots of skills and jobs that I think would be better learned through apprenticeships or trade schools), there are some careers that really do require college education, and I don’t want my kids, if they pursue one of those, to start life saddled with a huge mountain of debt. In medicine, I can tell you first hand, that the unbelievable cost of undergraduate and then medical education plays a big role in what careers people choose, and many who would like to be in primary care, or serving underserved communities, or working part time, fell trapped by the debt load.
I was inspired to come to this website after our local paper carried an article featuring your book this past week (and I recognized at least one commenter above in the article, too). Overall I thought it was good–it emphasized rural retreats over those of us making changes in our suburban and urban environments, but they did quote you on that, Shannon. The one piece I thought was critical, and missing was that this isn’t only about self-sufficiency–it’s also very much about interdependence and community, or at least that’s the way I see it.
Anyway, I’ve gone on long enough. Thanks for giving this a name and a sense of being a movement, or at least a community.
I am slowy embracing and learning old-fashioned, sustainable homemaking skills. I used to work full-time as a preschool teacher, which I loved, but it left me no energy to devote to homemaking! I would barely keep up with the dishes and laundry, and we would be constantly stressed because of clutter! This winter I cut back to working part-time at a preschool (my husband works full-time), and I spend the rest of my time cooking from scratch, cleaning, and trying to learn how to garden! This will be a slow process for me because of some health challenges I have, but I am sure that one step at a time I will learn and embrace better health. I am focusing right now on getting rid of all unnecessary clutter, and getting our stuff organized! My long-term goal is to grow most of our own vegetables and fruit. I love being a homemaker – a much simpler, quiet life – where your job is to reduce stress for yourself and your family, instead of creating by staying in the rat-race! One of the best parts is less fighting because of less stress and more time to actually have meaningful communication with my husband. Also, we get to have our friends over all the time, and I feel for the first time in my life like I am part of a community (that I get to help create and sustain!)
I love the title ‘Radical Homemaker’. Over here in the UK someone coined the phrase ‘New Victorians’ to describe the growing number of educated couples and young families shunning the money driven, ‘have it all and who cares about tomorrow’ attitude of previous generations in favour of a more home based, long term, mindful existance. I much prefer the Radical Homemaker to the New Victorian!
I chose home over career from the outset of my parenting adventure, and although sometimes it would be nice to have two large salaries I know how much we would all loose out as a family. We live in a battered and unloved old house in rural Devon, Uk. It needs a lot of work doing on it and there is almost no outside space but due to our lifestyle choices we were lucky to buy at all.
I teach Natural Active Birth classes, and have worked as a birth Doula before our youngest was born. I teach in the evenings and at weekends when my husband is around so I am always there when my children need me. The women who attend my classes are very often just at the point of embracing the way of the Radical Homemaker, and I am endlesley observing the wrestlings of balancing wants and needs and feelings of career importance and financial stability. I watch women talk in early pregnancy about maternity leave and already thought through childcare arrangements, and see how the changes in their body and hormones of pregnancy slowley bring up conflicting feelings and thoughts. I constatly return to the conviction that this is what we are designed to do. Nature did not intend for us to abandon our children into childcare so we could nurse our second income.
We muddle through as best we can. I grow cucumbers and tomatoes and peppars in pots in our tiny yard, and swap work for veg on neighbours large plots. I make as much as I can and assess our needs and wants in terms of our ability to fulfil, not in terms of importance. Its still ok to want something you dont need as long as you can make it yourself.
I believe greatly that the universe provides you with what you need, and am constantly amazed by how frequently this happens. Skips and free-cycle are great. The boys and I recently pulled a wooden climbing frame, small wooden teddy bed and covered sand pit/ paddling pool out of our local schools skip, just as the summer started.
Im no martyr though! I just happen to genuinely prefer sewing to watching tv. I can’t bear doing nothing, and I’m so not interested in the latest this or the must have that. And the idea of going and spending a weeks food bill on a night out just revilles me! I’d much rather spend a evening out on the beach with a bag of chips and a shared flask of tea!
The end result, the point we are heading for, is to have somewhere we can grow most of what we need and keep Alpaca’s. For my husband, it also has to include working less hours for others and more for us. We no where near yet, but we are going in the right direction, and living as we go.
Our blog is http://www.boysinthewoods.blogspot.com for photos of wild boys and crumbly houses!
For the past several years, I have been getting more and more interested in making and doing things myself. Especially when it comes to food, I love food preservation and making things from scratch as much as possible. I have spent time working on farms and my husband and I hope to have land of our own in the next few years.
Just a few weeks ago I was thinking about all of these things that I love to do and have as part of my life and I was thinking about my foremothers and how I ended up at this point despite or because of the choices and conveniences that they had in their lives. Then, I discovered Radical Homemakers, picked up a copy and devoured it in two days. Its fascinating to read and to find many of the thoughts and ideas that I have be articulated as a movement. I find it so exciting to be part of this and to realize the possible life- community- and world-changing potential of Radical Homemakers.
I also find it interesting to approach all of this as someone who has traveled, worked in various places and learned many of these skills but never really been career or money oriented. My husband and I have some financial needs and we will both be working for the time being, but my real devotion is to the daily practices and creative pursuits that are part of the rhythms of my life. Without knowing it or trying to be part of a movement we have made decisions like only having one car, biking and walking mostly, eating local, making things ourselves, and pursuing our creative interests. Reading Radical Homemakers, though, was really helpful for me to realize that we can stay on this path, we don’t have to get sucked into mainstream approaches to money and consuming, and it is possible to sustain the family we want to have on a reasonable income.
We are still just starting out in our life together, we’ve just moved to a new city for a job, but reading Radical Homemakers was both reaffirming of our choices and inspiring to know all of the possibilities and approaches that people have taken. Thanks Shannon, for the inspiration and information!
I keep track and write about some of my making, doing and learning at http://roadtothefarm.blogspot.com If you are interested.
I have delighted in reading the many radical homemaker stories on this site… what a
contribution to your readers, and the movement that is taking place in our country. Thank
you for giving us a sense of connection, and a chance to share a little bit of what we’re doing
My husband & I live north of San Francisco near scenic wine country. Instead of traveling
abroad, thereby lessening our carbon footprints we’ve enjoyed exploring our picturesque
area. However, during the past 20 years we’ve come to deplore the fact that many fruit &
nut bearing trees have gradually been replaced w/ vineyards. Acreage where fields of
veggies once grew are now covered by grape vines, as well.
The gradual disappearance of locally grown “real foods” has led to a progressively active
interest in cultivating organic produce, right in our own backyard. We have an apple, a
plum, and a lemon tree, along w/ a wild blackberry bush that has taken over the northwest
corner of our large suburban lot. The wild berries, plus our cultivated strawberry plants have yielded a delicious sweet harvest through spring & late summer… nothing like fresh
berries for breakfast al fresco!
In our veggie garden we’re harvesting curly leaf kale, leeks, broccoli, green beans, yellow
& butternut squash, tomatos, and lettuce. Sharing our goodies w/ family, friends, and FISH
a community organization dedicated to feeding those in need has been a continuing source of gratification. And we’re always amazed at how much we’re able to grow in a 300 sq. ft. space.
I also enjoy growing & drying herbs, which includes basil, tarragon, thyme, parsley, savory, & oregano. Unfortunately, we lost our rosemary bush to heavy frosts last winter.
This fall, in order to remedy further losses my husband is going to build a greenhouse
(covering half our plot.) This should provide more protection, while extending our growing
season.
Raising earth worms has been a top priority. Last year my husband built a state of the art
worm bin, using a raised bed kit, which he modified to suit our needs. It’s both attractive &
easy to use. Along w/ feeding our soil w/ worm castings, we have our garden soil tested
every couple of years to make sure it has the proper balance of life giving nutrients. Healthy soil makes growing organics so much easier, and no pesticides means having
a healthy habitat for garter snakes, lizards, frogs, and a variety of dragonflies, butterflies,
and birds. We’ve come to deeply appreciate our symbiotic relationship w/ nature, again
right in our own backyard.
“From the garden to the table” keeps me busy throughout harvest time… making & freezing
pasta & pesto sauces, applesauce & lemon curd is a yearly ritual I wouldn’t miss, either.
Drying provence rose buds & blossoms, and lavender for potpourris & sachets has also become a favorite pastime. Now, because of inspiring websites such as yours, we’re seriously thinking of canning more of our veggies & baking breads. The how to’s of raising
chickens for eggs has also been a major topic of conversation lately.
These rad homemaker activities sort of grow on you, don’t they?! Thanks everyone… it’s
good to be connected with the earth & people of like minds. Please feel free to contact us
at: provencerose.cam@gmail.com