So much has happened this year and this past month especially...

First, I want to wish you all joy and peace and to wish you all a Merry Christmas (or whichever Holiday you chose to celebrate) from our homestead to yours.
Yes, that's a lot of stockings- only 4 are for us the other 5 are for our dogs.
Courtney and I share alot of the same ideas and opinions about homesteading and self-sufficiency. She is also skilled in canning and preserving harvests and is quite crafty. I will be sharing some of her projects with you this coming year.
We have already completed one fairly involved project an emergency repair to the water supply line and completed a pantry build. We also have a new chicken coop/run and raised bed garden construction started.
Speaking of chickens and their housing, I have some sad news to share. In the interest of presenting the honest, whole picture of homesteading and not just the good news, during the move which has taken longer than I planned, I left the chickens at the old property and was feeding and checking on them daily with the help of the landlord there. During the last two weeks, a predator has repeatedly gained entry to the coop/run despite every efort to reinforce it and decimated the flock. I have 13 survivors left and the girls will be coming over to their new property tomorrow(today by the time you are reading this). They will be kept in the shed until I can complete the coop this weekend. We plan on rebuilding the flock and adding a rooster after the first of the year and also a couple dozen meat birds and a couple turkeys as well. Yes, I said rooster- I am no longer inside city limits and am allowed a roo under county and state ag laws as a commercial enterprise.
Thanks for dropping by and spending some time with me!! I can't wait to share more of the journey with you!
Merry Christmas and I hope 2017 is an amazing year for you and your family!!
Best wishes always,
Doug