In case you’re merely tuning in, this is usually a recurring assortment throughout which I doc each month of our lives out proper right here on our 66-acre Vermont homestead. After leaving metropolis Cambridge, MA in May 2016 to chart this wholly utterly completely different life, we’re experiencing a seamless finding out curve of exploration (and a great deal of foolish novice moments). Attempt last month’s installment proper right here.
November scuttled in with brisk wind, misplaced leaves, and a semi-frozen pond. We talked about goodbye to fall and cozied in for the chilly. However, as we’re finding out, local weather is simply not linear and we had loads of sunny, warmth days pop up all by the month. And we now uncover ourselves inside the depths of…
Stick Season
So named on account of the timber all seem like… sticks! Aside from the softwoods in spite of everything, who shimmer with pleasure this time of yr, their effervescent needles poking by the in every other case dreary palette of browns and grays.
November moreover launched additional frequent snowfall and a gorgeously white Thanksgiving. Curiously, as I write this, I’m staring out at a yard just about solely devoid of snow. I assumed we wouldn’t see the grass as soon as extra until spring, nonetheless how mistaken I was to presume to know what nature intends.
On a hike the other day by our snow-covered land, Mr. Frugalwoods and I remarked to at least one one other that definitely this need to be in all probability essentially the most beautiful season. It’s a gift to remain someplace that has a knack for year-round picturesque-ness. The riot of fall colors was beautiful, nonetheless the simplicity of these stark wintertime timber is an equally divine balm for my frenetic ideas.
Metropolis Meets Nation (and seems ridiculous)
In what can solely be described as a ridiculous occasion of city-meets-country, I started taking our hand-me-down Bugaboo stroller on our every day walks by the woods. I completely perceive how ludicrous it seems to wheel a supremely expensive stroller–designed for posh sidewalks–by wooded trails, however it actually works pretty successfully.
It might’t traverse our largest/rockiest hill, nonetheless for our flatter trails, it’s first price! I beforehand babywore (fancy method of claiming ‘carried in a supplier’) Babywoods, nonetheless at one yr earlier, she’s getting heaving on my once more. I gotta let you already know, I’ve carried this little one for a yr and I’m in a position to push a wheeled contraption.
Plus, she loves looking on the panorama from her stroller perch. The issue now’s discovering one factor that’ll skim by the snow with ease. Try as it will, this stroller does not do snow. I’ve my frugal eye on the used market for this very good stroller that converts from wheels to–look ahead to it–SKIS! Genius.
I’m hoping one will current up on Craigslist for a cheap value. Having enjoyable with our property is a chief intention of ours and I don’t want little one conveyance factors to face in our method of snowshoeing and winter mountaineering.
Native Meals at Thanksgiving and Previous
Each month of this main yr on our homestead, Mr. FW and I contemplate new points to indicate our consideration within the route of. We have a masterful grand plan in our minds of what our homestead is probably in 5 years or 10 years’ time, nonetheless we’ve realized that these initiatives and these changes will come about slowly. As I discussed in depth last month, we uncover ourselves with additional points undone than completed and we’re finding out the grace of accepting the restrictions on our time.
In November, I began the strategy of sourcing additional of our meals regionally. And by regionally, I indicate hyper-locally. In Mr. FW’s phrases, “it’s meals that will’ve walked over to our house.” This quest, however, is simply not as straightforward as a result of it seems. Throughout the metropolis, all I wanted to do was pop over to a farmer’s market, or be part of a CSA, or hop on the ol’ internet.
Out proper right here, however? Cheap native meals comes by the use of phrase of mouth. There are a variety of farm stands, which we’ve frequented, along with a summertime native farmer’s market. Nonetheless for each little factor else, we’re finding out from the perfect provide of all: our neighbors.
This month, I managed to purchase flooring beef from neighbors 3 miles away, exhausting cider from our neighbors who keep 4 miles over, and a Thanksgiving turkey raised a mere 2 miles away. I’m joyful to report that the turkey made a merely divine Thanksgiving feast and that we ate every last bit. Mr. FW then made stock from the carcass and we fed the leftover tidbits to Frugal Hound. The cider moreover made an look on Thanksgiving and was met with frequent approval. Really delicious, and made by native people from native apples with native parts! Yay. I’m persevering with my quest and hope to look out native eggs, milk, and rooster subsequent.
We moreover realized this month that our very private land proffers pretty only a few edibles, due to a guided hike by thought-about one among our new mates who’s an expert naturalist/wild forager. Who know chances are you’ll eat lots stuff from the woods?!
No Animals in 12 months One (apart from Frugal Hound)
I’m successfully acutely aware that roughly 45,097 of you may comment that “chickens are very easy to spice up!!!!” and that we should all the time elevate them ourselves. I’ve heard this refrain 408,973 events and I take into consideration chickens will definitely come to roost with us someday.
However. Mr. FW and I made an settlement (additional like a marriage pact) sooner than looking for our homestead that–no matter how tempting–we wouldn’t deal with any animals (farm or house) in our first yr. We actually really feel it is likely to be unfair to us and the animals to subject them to our novice ministrations. Although I’m all for going at life full throttle–we did, in the end, buy our homestead the week our first toddler was born–I’m moreover one for understanding my limitations. As a result of this truth, I’m content material materials to help my neighbors’ farm labors this yr.
This Month’s Wood Lesson: How To Retailer Wood
Are you ready for this month’s wood lesson? I do know I am! I’ve been so excited to let you already know about this all month prolonged. Might hardly comprise myself. On account of this month, we’re discussing the place my strengths and wood overlap: group!!!
In earlier months, I discussed the cycle of buying firewood from the timber on our land. You’ll be taught all about how Mr. FW fells, bucks, skids, and splits wood. Now that we’re burning wood every day as our solely heat provide (look at our great atmosphere pleasant woodstove proper right here), the group and transportation of talked about wood is our chief wood-related concern.
After splitting the wood into sections that slot in our vary (woe betides the wood splitter who does not first measure the vary and subsequently has wood that’s too prolonged), Mr. FW stacked it into two prolonged rows atop pallets (scavenged for gratis), lined by galvanized steel roofing (some scavenged, some purchased). The rationale for this system is that wood should dry or “season” sooner than it is burned, and in order to dry, it needs sunshine and airflow. Due to this fact, an enclosed space (equal to a barn) is simply not conducive to seasoning wood.
Whereas these two prolonged stacks–located between our house and barn–had been very good for the seasoning course of, they’re not very good for procuring every day wood… significantly with quite a few toes of snow on the underside.
And so, Mr. FW constructed a wood rack for our once more porch. We’re blessed with a big, lined porch all alongside the once more and side of our house, which is a premiere spot for wood to hold round earlier to burning. On the porch, the wood is protected towards snow and rain, will get good airflow, benefits from morning sunshine, and crucially, is adjoining to the house.
Using leftover wood scavenged from spherical our property, he authentic a rudimentary–nonetheless utterly environment friendly–wood rack that holds 1.5 cords of wood. The rest of our break up wood stays out on the pallets inside the yard and can in all probability be cycled in as wished. Being a planner, Mr. FW correctly stacked the wood from oldest to youngest since you want to burn your oldest–or most seasoned–wood first.
Conveniently, we have French doorways predominant from our lounge (the place the woodstove is located) onto the porch (the place the wood rack is located), which makes the wood path pretty transient definitely. We initially thought-about storing dry wood inside the basement, the place there’s a great deal of room, nonetheless had been cautioned by neighbors that bugs residing inside the wood can reanimate when launched indoors and subsequently may populate our basement in droves. Eek.
Since we don’t want to usher in just one or two logs at a time, the wood strikes from the pores and skin wood rack into our indoor wood discipline. Conveniently, that’s an earlier discipline that we current in our barn–hey hey hey–and it seems to be like like one factor Restoration {{Hardware}} would happily price you $300 for. Together with its rustic hipster look, our wood discipline has the advantage of holding 3-4 days’ worth of wood. Heck certain.
For only a few weeks, Mr. FW toted wood using this convenient wood tote (which seems to be like prefer it may double as a greyhound tote, merely saying). Then, a smart neighbor commented that one may merely affix wheels to 1’s wood discipline and–presto–wheel a full wood discipline into the house in a single fell swoop. Genius.
Mr. FW ordered these casters, screwed them onto our free discipline, and is now rolling wood with ease. The wood discipline dwells inside the nook subsequent to the wood vary and from there, the wood makes its closing growth into the vary (aided by Mr. FW’s palms, in spite of everything).
Huge due to our neighbors for all of their suggestion on retailer, stack, and transport our wood!
Want Additional Fotos?!
Whereas I solely doc homestead life as quickly as a month proper right here on the weblog, I put up images to Instagram and updates to Fb with lots larger regularity–usually every day! Be part of me there if you want additional of our frugal woods.
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Onward to December frugal comrades!