Welcome back to the blog book experiment! Today I give you:

         Chapter 4: The Ritual of Harvesting

  For a few months now we've had rogue roosters, they appeared one day and liked the food. Over time we have had to dispatched of them if they were mean. Today while feeding one of the invaders tried to attack Tumbles. 

  A little about Tumbles, so you can be equally horrified at the prospect, she was born tumbling out of her dam, rolled down a hill and landed with a thud. Her dam decided she just needed to pee really bad and walked away leaving the squishy tiny blob behind her. So, I cleaned her up brought her inside and bottle fed her. She is the sweetest smallest lap baby goat on the property. So when invader roo jumped at her face his time was up obviously. 

  There is a ritual that goes with harvesting or dispatching animals here one that always happens and is one of the most witchy things I do here. First the animal is caught as quickly and in the least scary way possible. Then they are petted and loved on even invader roosters. All lives are important and are sacred. They are then apologized to, yes, I am sorry every single time an animal dies regardless of what they have done or whatever the reason is. The life of dinner is every bit as important and meaningful as the life of a pet; they should be treated as such. Once the time has come, they are dispatched in the quickest way possible to have them feel the least amount of fear and pain possible. Even in death their bodies are respected. 

  Harvesting time is bittersweet as it should be. Taking a life is not and should not ever become a happy task. It does become easier over time though. You may think you could never but here we live by the motto if you can't kill it, you shouldn't eat it. Why is a factory farmed cow or chicken's life worth any less than the one you raised and petted. The emotional attachment is the only difference there not the fact a life was taken. I wish I could give ways to not have that attachment, but I believe it is important. The animal should know love. It will be giving up its existence to nourish your family. 

* Being wasteful is the bane of a homestead. Once you've cooked a chicken you have given your time and love to honor it further by using as much of it as possible. One way to do that is with bone broth. 

Roast the whole chicken. Remove the meat from the bones. In a crockpot or instant pot add the carcass, left over vegetable pieces, and seasonings of your choice. Cook this for 10-12 hours in a crockpot or 2 hours in the instant pot (high temperature for either one). Once done the bones will crumble between your fingers and the broth will be a dark honey color. Strain out everything. I cool then freeze mine. 

Earthing/ No Gloves in the Garden

  As a child I was always barefoot, and about a quarter of the time dirty from head to foot. As I grew into adulthood the amount of time lessened, as did the amount of time I spent barefoot. Studies are showing Earthing to be beneficial in many ways, from reducing inflammation to aiding in cardiovascular health. While those are great reasons to get outside barefoot, let's talk about the connection to Mother Earth, and how this small act can help you along the crooked path of Paganism. 

We have all probably heard of grounding, but many may not know what it means or how to do this.  By simply standing on the Earth with nothing between you and Her you are forging a connection. Your energy is intertwined with Her energy effortlessly, but to make a bigger impact try focusing on a give and take happening. I like to use colors for this. What comes out of me can be any color I am feeling at the time, usually blues or reds, if I am unsure of why I need to ground I use brown. What color comes back to me is the usually the color I feel I am lacking and when unsure it is green. These colors are JUST colors I use to help me visualize and really have no bearing on what energies are actually coming or going. The Earth knows from your energy and vibrations what you need to have more or less of visualization just helps with you releasing that energy, as many of us are taught to bottle the or guard our energies. 

 How does this Earthing stuff have anything to do with homesteading you may be wondering right about now. Consider this, the more time we spend with our feet on the ground the more grounded we should be right? As homesteaders we our hands are literally IN the Earth, holding mounds of dirt letting it sift through our fingers, exchanging energies. As Pagan homesteaders we are adding our energies and intentions into the Earth we are working. At times it can be willing a cucumber to grow, at other times it can be working out a hard situation with our hands and sweat. We always leave our marks on our little plots of land so try hard to make it a good one. 

 * Gifts for Gia-- after each session of leaving negative energy for the Earth to transform into positive energy leave a gift. This can be as small as adding eggshells to your garden for the calcium or working your compost area. Any act that gives something back to the Earth counts. In my own practice I leave areas of my land untouched completely. No matter the size of land I am living on I do not cut, trim, or plant, on that section leaving it completely wild and untouched by human hands. I also give offerings often but by not willing the Earth to be what I want it to be in that section I am honoring Her. 

~ Moon~ 

The Back Story

   Growing up we didn't call this way of life homesteading; we called it survival. We grew a huge garden, had chickens, goats, cows, and hunted. With grocery stores miles away and most everyone being poor there was nothing trendy about it. We canned everything, had a root cellar, and we made do. 

   After transplanting to North Carolina, it was a culture shock, one I wasn't prepared for. I was in elementary school, but it was so huge the change was not missed on me. Grocery stores were everywhere, and very few had a garden. While getting takeout used to be for the rarest of occasions, here there were at least 5 restaurants within walking distance. I lived that blissfully ignorant life for around 15 years. 

  My husband and I bought our first real house in 1997, this was around the time I discovered that green peppers didn't taste like they used to. So, I bought a couple pepper plants on clearance and planted them in the corner of our tiny city lot. My poor husband thought I was crazy until I picked our first green pepper and made him taste it right there in the back yard. If you've never tasted a pepper straight from the plant, warm from the sun, they taste crisper, brighter, and have this tang to them that no store bought one can ever have! 

    Fast forward to some years later, we had lost my mama, we'd lost our home to a fire, times were tight, and we'd found ourselves on food stamps. One morning while filling out the paperwork for our renewal for assistance I said to my husband, " I don't want to do this anymore.". Now you should know, when we lost our house, we used the insurance money to buy a double wide on an acre of land.  Not long after The Witch's Way Homestead was created, and the rest is not yet history!  

   ** It's not too late to taste a homegrown pepper, warmed by the sun, and grown by your own hands and intentions! Even if you only have a tiny yard in the city, or a pot on an apartment balcony! Pepper plants not only thrive in pots they can grow for a couple years if brought inside over the winter! They like the sun and need to stay moist but not drenched.  Pro-tip: save your seeds from the peppers you buy at the grocery store by laying them out to dry on a piece of paper then plant at the appropriate for your area. After that save your seeds from your own homegrown ones the same way! 

Introduction: It's Nice to Meet you!

     Ever since I was a small child, I always felt the Magick in flowers and plants. One of my first memories of my grandmother involves the morning glories, she allowed to grow up her porch rails. She used to tell me not to touch them, they were poisonous. I loved them so much I would still touch them from time to time. Forever the rebel, she says as she drinks watered down iced coffee, wrapped in a plush Hello Kitty blanket!

*I know this is a rose, but I don't have a picture of a morning glory*

   Years later as an adult I was tasked with finding my Magickal name ( it's hard to believe that was at least 15 years ago now), the memory of those flowers and her warning came rushing back to me. I knew I could never be a morning glory, rising with the sun sounds like a torture sentence to me and not at all Magickal. I come alive around 4pm, though I do start my day long before then. The moon calls to me like Moana and the ocean, it gives me clarity and strength, unlike the sun which wilts me quickly. After many days of struggle and study, MoonFlower was born. 

  I wear many hats around here, I am Nan, Mom, wife, the Witch of the homestead all wrapped in one Magickal Being. I've been a Witch for over 25 years and a homesteader for around 15 years. After I began homesteading did, I realize the great connection between the two parts of me. So come on over I'll make up some tea, have a seat on one of the cushions I've made, and hopefully learn you a bit about working with Mother Earth, to bring you closer to the Divine within yourself as well as around you. 

-As Above, So Below-

Why Buy the Cow When You Can Get the Milk for Free...

         A few months ago, I decided I would start the journey into authorhood. I was going to write a book about what I know, being a witch and homesteading. I began writing, happy with each word ready for the next. As I wrote, I thought of others reading my words, sitting in their pj's, with a warm cup of tea, soaking up my good vibes on paper. It was exciting to say the least. After a few chapters I put the thoughts to the side as I jumped into kidding season with both feet. 

 It's funny when things slowed a bit and I was ready to resume writing I didn't like the idea so much. That isn't right it wasn't the idea I didn't like it was the fact that I didn't want others to have to pay for the information. I remember starting out all those years ago, we were broke, there was no money for a book I may have wanted no matter how helpful it could have been. Let's be honest here the odds of a library picking up a witchy homesteading book by an unknown author are very slim. To say my genre is niche is an understatement. While I am more than okay with that, I still want others to who may be interested to have the opportunity to read my words. 

  That brings me to my announcement! I will be using this forum for my 'book'. Yes, blog posts a book does not make but it's free (for me and you) and accessible to those who look! I am super exciting with this change of direction! Excited to share our world with those who come along! All are welcome here, there is a way to ask questions or get clarification if needed, I love that it feels more personal, and we're saving trees. All of these are wins in my book! 

  I am so hopeful others find us here, please feel free to share with your friends as we embark on this together! Love and Light yall!!

  

Garden Thoughts Lead to Ducks

  While others are planning their fall gardens I'm planning for next Spring already. Today we went to the new old house for a few short moments. The house we live in right now has some soft spots in the floor that need to be fixed before we try to move heavy items over them, so we made the journey to the house to get some plywood. 

  As I wandered around what will be our garden area it hit me... we should have raised beds and allow the ducks to live in the garden! We have so many and I really don't utilize them where we are, while they give me happiness we can't just be feeding freeloaders. Adding ducks to the garden will help keep away nasty bugs, that want to eat our vegetables, and by using many raised beds we will be able to keep the same vegetables safe from the ducks when they are smaller seedlings.

   Another bonus of the ducks in or near the garden will allow for the use of their nitrogen rich wastewater to be used in watering the plant life. If you have ducks you already know they are pretty gross little cuties that are not afraid to use the pool as a bathroom. If you don't have ducks it is my humble opinion you should for various reasons beyond the use of pool water! 

 Pictured here are our Pekin x Runner combo we have purposefully bred to have the heaviness of the Pekin and the hardiness of the Runner. As time has gone by the Runner genes have won over the Pekin and they are not as meaty as we would have liked yet are far healthier than the beginning Runner ducks we started with, surprisingly. 

  I simply cannot wait to share pictures of the garden this Spring or to eat fresh vegetables we have grown! Love & Light yall!!

It's been so long and yet I tend to come back to this when there are too many thoughts in my head. Right now, its my health. In 2019 I was doing yoga daily weighed 175 and working nearly every day. Welcome to 2024 I'm 60 pounds heavier, a stay-at-home mom who's heart beats too fast. Inappropriate sinus tachycardia is what the cardiologist called it. I call it a speed bump in my life. Do I heed the call of the speed bump to slow down yep sure did which is how I am now in the mess I find myself in. 

 This week has been starting over week, I do that every couple of months, like most overweight people I want to believe. I hate the thoughts that I am alone in not having my life together. I've eaten healthier than I have in a long time, walked more than I have in months and added yoga back into my life. Every night is a reminder of how much I have forgotten myself, to get my license, to be a good worker bee, to run the homestead, to do everything and anything I can do besides carve out a little time to do something good for me and my body. Perhaps it became another chore to add to my list. How odd to think of yourself as just another chore. 

 

  Here we are starting over one more time again. This time I feel like I really have to make the changes and stick with them, I am not getting any younger and my body hates me almost as much as I dislike it. Wish me luck and strength and all the good vibes, please! 

  This I hope is the first of many pages I write about my quest for health but also I really want to teach others and to talk about homesteading and being a mom and Nana. I want to talk about Magick and the way homesteading brings me closer to the divine and to share little nuggets so that maybe the baby witches out there who happen upon me can learn from an old almost Crone. Love and Light yall !