Tag Archives: Small Town Living

Meal Ideas When Bringing Food For A Family

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by Texas Homesteader~ 

Whether mourning a death in the family, dealing with illness or even just feeling overwhelmed by the responsibilities of a new baby, those going through hardships are comforted when others bring food.

There’s just something about others caring enough to bring a meal to your family, ya know?? A meal you won’t have to worry about planning or cooking. It not only offers nutrition during a very trying time, but it’s like a warm hug from those around you.

But I’m always in a quandary when knowing what meal to bring to another family. You too?

Well you’re in luck. I’ve made a list of easy-to-prepare options that I revert back to when deciding what to bring. These easy yet delicious meals are sure to nourish, as well as comfort heart & soul.

The Gift Of Food: Meal Ideas When Bringing Food To Families #TexasHomesteader

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How To Paint A Texas Flag Gate – A Fun, Quick Project

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by Texas Homesteader ~ 
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RancherMan & I painted one of our 16-foot long gates in a Texas Flag pattern to show our Texas pride. I think the gate looks awesome.

Many were interested in how we did it – paint color choices, metal star size, etc. So today I’m happy to share how we did it.

How To Paint A Texas Flag Gate. It was a quick and enjoyable project. And I love the way our gate painted in a Texas flag design looks. #TexasHomesteader
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Want A Glimpse Into Our Texas Homestead?

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~by Texas Homesteader ~ 

Years ago RancherMan & I started down this winding path to voluntary simplicity. Now I enjoy writing about our lives here on our beautiful NE Texas Homestead. There’s always something going on here!

On any given day there may be garden planting or food preservation tasks. The joy of a brand new baby calf, or the fun of dealing with our quirky free-range chickens.

There’s cooking healthy meals from scratch and especially being careful with our precious natural resources. We’re doing so much more with less!

And of course RancherMan’s filled with inventiveness as he figures out different ways to keep our monthly expenditures low.  Oh, and I love to share the beautiful views around our homestead too.

My hope is that with this site I can inspire others who are also on a simple path.

Won’t you follow along with us?

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I love writing about our lives on our NE Texas Homestead. My hope is to inspire others also on a simple path, won't you follow along? #TexasHomesteader

~TxH~

What Working At Home Really Means (And What It DOESN’T)

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by Texas Homesteader ~

When RancherMan & I bought this little piece of paradise several years ago, we were still commuting to Dallas every weekday for our corporate jobs. I was finally able to convince my boss to allow me to telecommute three times each week. Sweet! 

Hearing the radio drone on & on about the horrific traffic jams that were always present in my typical route, I’d simply grab a cup of coffee & ‘log in’ on my computer.

Commute Time: 2 minutes!  🙂

But I was always super sensitive about the perception to my in-office cohorts regarding my working from home. I went out of my way to make sure my all my work efforts were very clearly visible. Plus I was always instantly available by office video chat.

And I purposely worked many more hours than I was being paid for ‘just to be fair‘. Oftentimes I worked well into the night and on weekends too.

Still I felt there was a false perception by my coworkers regarding the time I put in for my employer.

Working At Home often gives others the false perception that you have lots of free time. Whether self employed, homeschooler or stay-at-home parent, it's hard work! #TexasHomesteader

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5-Minute Beehive Stand Using Cinder Blocks & Posts

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by Texas Homesteader ~ 

Sometimes you need a quick hive stand that you can construct in minutes. Maybe you’ve captured a swarm and you need a hive stand NOW!

Our apiary started out with two established single-deep beehives. They overwintered just fine and the next spring we split them into four hives.

But several swarms were caught & added to our fledgling apiary. They were coming in faster than we can build stands to hold them. Beehive Stands Put Together In 5 Minutes? YES! We're Using Concrete Cinder Blocks & 4x4 Posts. Come See How Easy It Is! #TexasHomesteader

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Destructive Pests: Trapping Wild Hogs

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by Texas Homesteader ~
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We have a wild hog problem here in NE Texas. Bad. So bad in fact that there’s no official ‘season’ for hunting them because they’re such an invasive, destructive nuisance.

Their sheer numbers are astonishing. They come through like a cloud, leaving nothing but tilled ground & deep holes behind them.

Terrible! 

So terrible that the game warden says you can hunt them at any time day or night, in any season. 

Wild hogs are destructive & plentiful. But they're just escaped domestic pigs - they're pork! See how we successfully trap them #TexasHomesteader

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The Power Of Love: Helping Our Neighbors In Need

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by Texas Homesteader ~

It seems our world is filled with turmoil. Everywhere I look I see dividing lines of “us” versus “them”, with so much anger hurled towards each other that it hurts my heart. Sometimes people have so much passion for their point of view that it almost becomes a shouting match to see which side of the line can shout louder to win the game.

Win the game?

I’m not sure there’s much to be won that way. It seems we all lose when there’s hate, no matter what side of the line you’re on.

But recently I was reminded that it’s not all pushing & shoving in our little corner of the world.  So I figured amid the ugly stories we’ve all been pounded with, I’d share with you something beautiful. A story that demonstrates the power of LOVE!

Amid the ugly stories we've all been pounded with daily, I'll share with you a beautiful story of community love & support. #TexasHomesteader

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When Unexpected Company Comes…

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by Texas Homesteader ~

I’ve mentioned before that RancherMan & I keep a ‘tidy’ house. The bed is made every morning, the supper dishes always cleaned, surfaces relatively cleared of clutter, etc. 

So it’s baffling to me why I go into a break-neck panic when RancherMan casually announces the impending arrival of an unexpected visitor.

I look with panic at the accumulations of projects I have going on in the kitchen – making bread at the same time I’m dehydrating tomato leather, dealing with produce from the garden, and fermenting a batch of Haymaker’s Punch.

I also notice every little piece of grass on the wood floors that our mini-Schnauzer Bailey has drug in. I’m suddenly painfully aware of the thick dust that comes from living off a dirt road.

And of course the stay-at-home outfit I slipped on to just deal with cows/chickens/chores is certainly not acceptable for company!

Do you feel panic when unexpected company shows? I polled our followers to see if they felt the same. Their responses were hilarious! #TexasHomesteader

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