Tag Archives: small town living

All our favorite posts about living in a small Northeast Texas town posted on TexasHomesteader.com

Whispers of Past Lives… Digging Up Old Glass Jars

14 Replies

by Texas Homesteader ~

One day RancherMan took my hand & suggested we enjoy an unseasonably warm day & take a walk around the homestead.

As I often do this time of year when the poison ivy and snakes are (for the most part) dormant, I found myself once again at the location where the previous owners used to take their household discards.

Although our barn and some of the barbed wire on our property dates back to the 1880’s, the last residents before us had their house burn down because of a lightening strike sometime in the late 1950’s.

So this area where they tossed their no-longer usable household items so long ago is like a mini time travel for me and I love it!

It seems I can learn about those inhabitants from so long ago from what they left behind, a broken child’s die-cast car, broken household trinkets and glass jars.

I've been digging up old glass jars. The previous homesteader's home burned down back in the 1950's, but I can read their stories by what they left behind. #TexasHomesteader

Continue reading →

Come With Me For A Day At The Homestead

17 Replies

by Texas Homesteader~

I’ve had many people tell me they wonder what a typical day at a Texas ranch might be like.  So last year I published a post detailing a day in our lives here in our NE Texas paradise.  But that was during the heat & drought of summer, a very different kind of day than in the cold of winter.

So I thought it would be fun to let you walk around with us today to see what a day at the ranch is like when it’s c-c-c-cold outside!  C’mon, put on your mud boots, bundle up in your heaviest coveralls, grab your gloves & follow me – it’ll be a blast!

Walk around with us today to see what a day at the homestead is like! Put on your mud boots, grab your gloves & follow me - it'll be a blast! #TexasHomesteader

Continue reading →

Safety From The Storm – Part I: Seeking Shelter

22 Replies

by Texas Homesteader

When RancherMan & I built our home here on the homestead, I was pretty adamant that I wanted an underground storm shelter.  I mean, I was born in & spent much of my childhood in Central Oklahoma.

Although I loved it there I considered it tornado ally.  I remember many stormy tornado-warning nights that my parents would awake me and my siblings and place us in the hallway for safety from the potential hazards should a tornado come too close.

And it’s funny how those emotions carry with you into adulthood.  Even today although I absolutely love the rolling thunder and am awestruck by thick dark clouds. But when the wind kicks up I nervously pace.  And if it kicks up a lot I’m almost inconsolable.

Thankfully RancherMan can soothe me most times. But when you hear your tiny city mentioned on that radio followed by the words “Take Cover IMMEDIATELY”…   Well, I needed more than soothing – I needed SAFETY from the storm!

When bad storms hit I needed SAFETY from the storm! So we bought & had installed an underground storm shelter. #TexasHomesteader

Continue reading →

Wordless Wednesday: COWopotamus

19 Replies

by Texas Homesteader 

 

While strolling through the pastures RancherMan & I discovered a new form of life - a hybrid hippo & bovine - COWopotamus! #TexasHomesteader

While strolling through the pastures RancherMan & I discovered a new form of life – a hybrid hippo & bovine – COWopotamus!

~TxH~

C’mon by & sit a spell!  Come hang out at our Facebook Page. It’s like sitting in a front porch rocker with a glass of cold iced tea – lots of good folks sharing!  You can also follow along on Pinterest, Twitter or Instagram.

If you’d like to receive an email each time a new blog post goes live it’s EASY to Subscribe to our blog!

 

Save

Failed Fences, GOOD NEIGHBORS!

27 Replies

by Texas Homesteader 

Panic sat in when RancherMan came rushing into the house saying he found the pasture gate open and the two weaning heifers were missing. 

We frantically searched the barn paddock and the south pasture, tree lines, creeks, etc. but they were nowhere to be found. Apparently they had nosed the chain enough to unlatch the gate. Then they simply walked down our driveway, out to the road and disappeared.

With our hearts pounding we jumped in the car and started down our county road, quickly looking in the open pastures as we drove along. As my head throbbed, visions of potential outcomes were going through my mind.

What if they went toward the highway? Or they got hit by a car? What if someone got hurt? Where do we even start to look? What if we can’t find them?

Good neighbors come to your aid in times of need. Read what happened when we experienced Failed Fences But GOOD NEIGHBORS! #TexasHomesteader

Continue reading →

Use What Ya got – MYO Tractor Canopy Cover

13 Replies

by Texas Homesteader

We have two tractors, a 55 hp Mahindra for the big jobs and an older and smaller 32 hp Ford 1910 tractor for mowing, disking, etc.  RancherMan usually hops on the newer big-boy tractor with the higher horsepower and front-end loader to do the rough stuff. And I happily allow him those tasks. 

My preference is Ole Blue. She’s a 1983-built tractor that purrs like a kitten & is as reliable as the day is long. 

Recently our Mahindra dealt us an unpleasant blow by having a deteriorating gas tank, rendering it USELESS.  So much for the reliability of a fancy-schmancy tractor that’s only 5 yrs –OLD! 

(Mahindra’s certainly seen the last of us as future customers) 

 So RancherMan went to work playing tractor mechanic for the Mahindra. But it was the ever-faithful Ole Blue Ford tractor that pulled the load on the Homestead.

My tractor canopy material was shot so I needed to come up with a solution. I say "Use What Ya Got"! See what my solution was. #TexasHomesteader

Continue reading →