Our Goals
Our main goals are to be completely financially stable and as self-sufficient as possible while remaining environmentally friendly. In 2017 we purchased an old farm out in the country with space to be able to have a working hobby farm. We are going to start small and build up as we can.
We would like to grow our own fruits, vegetables, and berries, learn to can, pickle, freeze, and dehydrate, and lessen the amount we have to purchase. This will also assure that our produce is healthier, organic, and pesticide-free. We're hoping to plant a wide variety of common and not-so-common vegetables, herbs, and berries. We had limited space outside when we lived in the city (on .16 acre which included our house, garage, bunny barn, kids' playset, lilac bush, and three trees), but we had installed an in-ground garden, two raised beds, and started growing in containers and using the winter sowing method. We are very excited to have several acres to work with now!
We currently sell on eBay, RedBubble, and Mercari (for handmade items). The selection is always changing so please bookmark and check back often! Amanda is crafty so her handmade items from crocheted hats to jewelry to painted artwork to reclaimed and upcycled projects, and more can be found in the Mercari shop!
In the future we'd like to work more with animals. We used to breed/raise mice, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, chinchillas, and rabbits (not all at once of course). We were also involved in rescue work for a long while (1992-2013). Right now we're focusing more on family, developing a self-sustaining lifestyle, and trying to gain a good grasp on our finances. Most of 2023 and the foreseeable future will be spent adjusting to recent changes and exploring additional income options. The kids are excited by the prospect of growing our own food, expanding our animal collection, and being more active with friends in the future.
We would like to grow our own fruits, vegetables, and berries, learn to can, pickle, freeze, and dehydrate, and lessen the amount we have to purchase. This will also assure that our produce is healthier, organic, and pesticide-free. We're hoping to plant a wide variety of common and not-so-common vegetables, herbs, and berries. We had limited space outside when we lived in the city (on .16 acre which included our house, garage, bunny barn, kids' playset, lilac bush, and three trees), but we had installed an in-ground garden, two raised beds, and started growing in containers and using the winter sowing method. We are very excited to have several acres to work with now!
We currently sell on eBay, RedBubble, and Mercari (for handmade items). The selection is always changing so please bookmark and check back often! Amanda is crafty so her handmade items from crocheted hats to jewelry to painted artwork to reclaimed and upcycled projects, and more can be found in the Mercari shop!
In the future we'd like to work more with animals. We used to breed/raise mice, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, chinchillas, and rabbits (not all at once of course). We were also involved in rescue work for a long while (1992-2013). Right now we're focusing more on family, developing a self-sustaining lifestyle, and trying to gain a good grasp on our finances. Most of 2023 and the foreseeable future will be spent adjusting to recent changes and exploring additional income options. The kids are excited by the prospect of growing our own food, expanding our animal collection, and being more active with friends in the future.
Our Family
Amanda (mom) is an animal expert, gardener, and an artsy-fartsy person. She enjoys doing arts and crafts and spending time with her kids and pets. She used to love digging through random boxes of stuff (bought at local auctions to re-sell), dump digging, and baking, which she unfortunately rarely has time for anymore. She is rediscovering hobbies like metal detecting, painting, and crochet.
#1 is my oldest child (21). He loves Japanese anime, K-pop, and reading books and fanfics. He enjoys writing stories, chatting with friends, cosplay, and swinging (on a swing-set). He'd like to learn how to ski, and would some day like to have his own chicken and a horse.
#2 is my second child (20). He's a very smart young man who enjoys playing games (both card and computer), and likes Blizzard games, Steam games, Supernatural (tv show) and Doctor Who (he says the Ood are his favorite). He's a Dungeon Master for D&D with his friends.
#3 is my middle child (18). She's very creative and loves to do arts and crafts. She likes giraffes and the color blue. She's off on her next adventure in college!
#4 is my youngest daughter (14). She likes just about every kind of animal. Her favorite color is purple. She is excited at the prospect of planting her very own flowers. She has recently discovered the joy of painting her nails and exploring the world of make-up.
#5 is my youngest son (9). He likes to play. His favorite things are snuggles, playing video games, playing outside, building forts, swinging, and using his imagination to play games. He mastered the rock climbing wall on the swing-set at 16 months old and can beat Mario Odyssey in a day just for fun. He's learning coding while playing Minecraft.
Our Dogs
Toby joined our family in May, 2019. He was born in March 2019 and was adopted from a local shelter. He was supposed to be an Olde English Bulldogue / English Setter cross but as he's grown we are fairly certain Jack Russel Terrier / Pointer is more accurate. He's full of energy, plays hard, chews on everything, and has a high prey drive. He loves to give kisses and snuggle and just generally be near people all the time. He has major joint issues in his hips occasionally and randomly goes lame.
Remus joined our family in July 2021. He was adopted from a local animal shelter and is being trained in as our new service dog. We're not sure what breed mix he is, but he has long shaggy black fur that sticks up in places. He reminds me of a large ungroomed schnauzer. His birthday is February 2021.
Merlin joined our family in September 2022. He is a red dapple wirehaired miniature dachshund. What a mouthful for such a little dog! He was born 4/22/22. He is remarkably snuggly and quiet for his breed. He is currently working as an emotional support dog.
#1 is my oldest child (21). He loves Japanese anime, K-pop, and reading books and fanfics. He enjoys writing stories, chatting with friends, cosplay, and swinging (on a swing-set). He'd like to learn how to ski, and would some day like to have his own chicken and a horse.
#2 is my second child (20). He's a very smart young man who enjoys playing games (both card and computer), and likes Blizzard games, Steam games, Supernatural (tv show) and Doctor Who (he says the Ood are his favorite). He's a Dungeon Master for D&D with his friends.
#3 is my middle child (18). She's very creative and loves to do arts and crafts. She likes giraffes and the color blue. She's off on her next adventure in college!
#4 is my youngest daughter (14). She likes just about every kind of animal. Her favorite color is purple. She is excited at the prospect of planting her very own flowers. She has recently discovered the joy of painting her nails and exploring the world of make-up.
#5 is my youngest son (9). He likes to play. His favorite things are snuggles, playing video games, playing outside, building forts, swinging, and using his imagination to play games. He mastered the rock climbing wall on the swing-set at 16 months old and can beat Mario Odyssey in a day just for fun. He's learning coding while playing Minecraft.
Our Dogs
Toby joined our family in May, 2019. He was born in March 2019 and was adopted from a local shelter. He was supposed to be an Olde English Bulldogue / English Setter cross but as he's grown we are fairly certain Jack Russel Terrier / Pointer is more accurate. He's full of energy, plays hard, chews on everything, and has a high prey drive. He loves to give kisses and snuggle and just generally be near people all the time. He has major joint issues in his hips occasionally and randomly goes lame.
Remus joined our family in July 2021. He was adopted from a local animal shelter and is being trained in as our new service dog. We're not sure what breed mix he is, but he has long shaggy black fur that sticks up in places. He reminds me of a large ungroomed schnauzer. His birthday is February 2021.
Merlin joined our family in September 2022. He is a red dapple wirehaired miniature dachshund. What a mouthful for such a little dog! He was born 4/22/22. He is remarkably snuggly and quiet for his breed. He is currently working as an emotional support dog.