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!