Harvest Of Joy Homestead

Today I'm talking with Joy at Harvest Of Joy Homestead.

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00:00
Did you know that muck boots all started with a universal problem? Muck? And did you know that it's their 25th anniversary this year?  Neither did I. But I do know that when you buy boots that don't last, it's really frustrating to have to replace them every couple of months.  So check out muck boots. The link is in the show notes. The very first thing that got hung in my beautiful kitchen when we moved in here four and a half years ago was a calendars.com  Lang calendar.

00:26
because I need something familiar in my new house. My mom loves them. We love them. Go check them out. The link is in the show notes. You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, the podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters and topics adjacent. I'm your host, Mary Lewis.  A Tiny Homestead podcast is sponsored by Homegrown Collective, a free to use farm to table platform, emphasizing local connections with ability to sell online, buy, sell, trade in local garden groups, and help us grow a new food system.

00:56
You can find them at homegrowncollective.org. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like, subscribe, share it with a friend, or leave a comment. Thank you. Today I'm talking with Joy at Harvest of Joy Homestead. Good morning, Joy. How are you? Good morning. I'm good. How are you? I'm good. You said you're in Mississippi when we were talking before I hit record. So  what's the weather like there today? It's very cold today. Really?  Yes.

01:23
Like how cold? Because like I said, I'm in Minnesota. I know what cold is. See,  we don't really know what cold is. Like y'all, it's like 60 here. So it's cold to us.  Oh, you would not be enjoying this morning.  I don't think it's freezing yet. I think we're still below freezing here. Oh, wow. Yeah, we don't know what cold is here.  Yeah, I absolutely know what cold is here.

01:48
People assume that I don't know what really hot is, but I can tell you from first-hand experience, two summers ago, we had a day that hit 101 degrees and the humidity was at the tropical level. So I do understand heat too. Yeah. we can be anywhere from minus 30 real temperature in January to 101 and tropical humidity in July. So. Wow. That's insane.

02:18
It kind of is. That's why we all have lots of clothes here.  We have, I don't do this. My mom lives in Maine. I grew up in Maine and it's cold there too in the winter.  She actually has summer clothes and winter clothes and she packs away the summer clothes  in  November and she pulls out the winter clothes and then she packs away the winter clothes in April and she pulls out the summer clothes. I don't even bother. I just have all my clothes available and that way if I need 17 layers, I have them. Yeah.

02:49
So,  I always start the podcast with the weather, well, almost always because it's just a good way to break the ice and it's nice to know what's going on in the world on the day I talk to people.  tell me about yourself and your homestead, please. Okay. So, my name is Joy. I go by Joy. I'm a homeschooling mom  and  I'm an  urban homesteader in...

03:13
I run a Facebook of  Harvest of Joy Homestead for our homestead that we just started this year.  And I also run a Facebook group for Journey to Joy, Faith Family and Life Lessons for moms out there like me that has kids and just started homeschooling. And we just need a little compassion and upliftment and encouragement from each other. That's awesome. I love that.

03:40
And I'm so glad that you just started your homestead this year because I don't usually talk to brand new homesteaders who are just building it. So tell me about that. I actually have a license in veterinary technology and so I've always loved animals. Well, I have four kids. I had twins in 2021. One of them ended up having Dandy Walker and they thought I was going to lose both of them. So I ended up having to quit my job to

04:10
care for them. And so  the journey kind of started then where God was putting it on my heart to, you know, get your chickens, get what you can. Even though you live in city limits, you can do what you can.  And I kind of just like brushed it off, brushed it off. And last year  I started just getting little things and putting it as a hobby and part of our home school. So now we have  Brahma chickens.

04:38
We have  just regular egg layer, barnyard mixes. We have rabbits for meat.  And we also have quail and just got into ducks.  Oh, I have a question real quick about all of that.  If you're in city limits, are there regulations about what you can and can't have, or is it just a complaint-based thing where if somebody complains, then they're like, what are you doing? So for here, it's a complaint thing.  But  we have a fenced-in backyard.

05:08
And also  we are very kind with our eggs, so I think that helps.  Yes, yes. Kindness goes a long way. Yes.  Okay. So the Brahma chickens, are those the ones that are small? No, those are bantams that are small, which we also have those. I forgot to add them. But Brahmas are kind of like an uppity breed around here. They have the feathered feet and kind of grow big.

05:35
Okay, I'm not familiar with the breeds, I thought I would ask.  So you said you have a fenced in backyard, so I'm guessing your chickens don't fly the coop as it were, or maybe they do and people bring them back to you.  I've actually  ordered like a metal coop off  of Amazon and I just use it. I secured it with hardwood cloth and I put

06:02
wood on the bottom and use it as tractor so they never get out but they move daily. Nice.  Awesome.  How big is  your lot? It's about an acre.  Oh, so it's a good size city lot. Yes, ma'am.  Nice.  The reason I ask is we  now live on three acres. We used to live on a tenth of an acre in town, in a small town in Jordan. And we had four chickens and we had a coop for them.

06:32
And they never got to get out because there was just no place for them to get out.  So we put in like a screen door and  like screen windows for the chickens. So we'd open the coop doors and then the light would pour in so they would have some fresh air and some sunlight. Because I felt terrible at the idea of just having them be in a big box,  know, with no fresh air and no sunlight. Because I wouldn't want to live like that. Yeah. Okay.  And you said you have rabbits for meat.

07:02
And I know you have baby rabbits, because I looked at your Facebook page yesterday. I was like, oh, I'm so jealous she has baby rabbits.  Yes, ma'am. And I'm loving it. I'm loving it so much.  Aren't they the sweetest thing ever? are. They run to the gate.  When they see me coming, all of them run to the gate, because I always have some treat for the day. Yeah, they're very food motivated.  think all baby things are food motivated. They're like, hey, that's new. Let's go try that.

07:31
Couple, well maybe three summers ago, we had gotten rabbits with the plan of  having them for meat.  And  I've told the story a billion times on the podcast, but I haven't told it to you. They did not get the memo that they were supposed to make more rabbits.  And we got  one  litter out  of a year of having meat rabbits, and I was like, I'm done, this is dumb. We're feeding these guys and they're not earning their keep.  But the one litter,

08:01
ended up coming into my house in  a clear bin with mama because it got so hot for about four days in June that we lost some of the babies to heat. And  I was not going to let the other six die, you know, from being outside  in the hut. So I got to have baby rabbits in my house for like three weeks on my table in this bin and it had holes drilled in it so they had good air.

08:30
And every morning I got to go and say hello to these baby rabbits and pick them up and hold them and talk to them. And it was so fun. Yeah.  My dog really wanted to be friends with them. But  what I discovered is  obviously rabbits are a prey  animal. Yes. And my dog, who's an Australian shepherd, is a predator animal.

08:55
And I didn't think anything about it until I was holding one of the babies and my dog wanted to see it. And I put my hand down and my dog was just very gentle and trying to sniff the bunny. The bunny screeched like, oh, that's a bad thing. Get that away from me. Yeah. So you don't want to introduce baby rabbits to predator animals because they just know. Yeah, it definitely has to be slow. Like my dog is always around, so they kind of know him. But at first they was like, oh,

09:25
Yeah, it's crazy how they know what's a danger to them and what isn't. Because they didn't scream when we would pick them up. They were fine. But the minute that baby rabbit smelled my dog on the air, she was like, no, they know. Yeah, it's crazy.  I'm so impressed with the way that Mother Nature designed everything because  it's it's literally  a dog eat dog world.

09:53
And the animals that are not capable of defending themselves  know how to keep themselves safe. Yes, ma'am, you're right.  So it's just amazing.  OK, so you said you have chickens, have rabbits, you have kids. Yes, ma'am, I do. Yeah, twins and then two more. Yes, ma'am, have an  older son, the twins, and then I have a daughter.  OK, cool.

10:22
And you said that one of your twins had something and I didn't catch what it was when they were babies. He was born with dandewalking and hydrocephalus. Oh, okay. I don't know what that first thing is. It's actually something that you really don't hear. we had to go to a specialist because doctors didn't even, like half of them didn't even know what it was.

10:43
It's something like a missing part of the brain. And so it's a part where fluid's supposed to pump through, like your brain pumps the fluid through and out.  And here's this missing,  and just a little side note here. They actually told me that he wasn't gonna make it and that if he did, he would be a vegetable. He went to the doctor last year and they said if they didn't have his chart, they would never even know anything was wrong.

11:13
I am so glad. That's amazing. Wow. anybody I talk to and they ask me about him, I always tell his testimony.  Uh huh. Yeah. And that's a good thing because you're giving hope to other parents who might be going through the same thing. Yes, ma'am. Wow. Okay. So do your kids, are your kids in on the raising the animals too? Or is it just your, your bag mom?

11:38
Um, my daughter isn't cause she's just too young right now, but the boys they love it and they actually just got some chicks the other day that they're, um, that they're helping raise up.  Nice. Nice. And they know all about being gentle and sweet with the babies. Yes, ma'am.  Uh huh. Yeah. It always scares me when I see a toddler grab a baby animal because I'm like, either it's going to bite it  or

12:05
the toddler is gonna squeeze too hard and it's gonna hurt the baby animal. And honestly, toddlers understand gentle. We have been gentle with our babies all along, so they do know what it means. It's just about teaching them. Yeah, yep, exactly. I can remember when my youngest son was probably two. He was outside and I went out to check on him and he had a toad, know, not a frog, a toad, in his hands.

12:35
And I was like, be careful, because he was holding it real tight.  And apparently he had just started holding it really tight because it peed on his hand and he dropped the toe.  And I said, OK.  I said, from now on, if you're going to pick up something smaller than your hand, you have to be soft. And I took his hand and I put it in my hand and I pressed on his hand and I said, does that hurt? And he said, no.

12:59
and I squeezed a little harder and I said, does that hurt? And he said, no, but it's not as good as the first one. I said, the first one is gentle touch. And from then on, he's been  so gentle with every little tiny thing  and he's 23 now. So. Wow. That  was a pretty good lesson. I could use that.  Yeah. He did not appreciate a frog or a toad peeing on his hand though.  He jumped as it did it and dropped the toad. I was like, oh no, here we go.

13:28
So yeah, you can teach your kids all kinds of things like that that seem really  abstract, but there are ways to illustrate it for them so they can understand what you're saying.

13:41
So,  okay, so do you grow a garden on your acre or not?  This is my first year actually trying.  So I pretty much just only growing what the rabbits like,  like radish and  I did do spinach for us and the rabbits kale. Yeah. And I also dabbled in  onions this year and they're growing pretty good. So I'm surprised.  I'm not.

14:08
Onions really, really don't like having their feet wet. And I'm assuming that Mississippi  is warm all year round. I mean, you said it's cold there, but 60 degrees.  So I'm not surprised that they're doing well. Good job. Thank you.  Yeah. I don't know. Do you like tomatoes or cucumbers?  I do. I plan on... So  we're doing buckets right now because...

14:35
We're planning on expanding and growing from here. Yeah. So we're not really digging in the ground or tilling anything. So I'm doing a bucket method. And so I'm planning on doing tomatoes and  cucumbers and the bush beans. Yep. Okay. Good. Cause really if you're going to be a homesteader, ma'am,  gardening is really important. Plus  not only are you feeding the chickens, you're feeding you  and you need to be fed too.

15:05
Yeah. So, okay.  So, you sort of touched on why you started doing this at the beginning, but  can you tell me whether you were brought up around people who did this or if it was just something you got interested in?  I wouldn't say I really grew up around it.  My granddad had cows and things, but I was never old enough to

15:33
By the time I got old enough to know about farming and stuff, they didn't do it anymore.  My daddy would raise pigs and butcher them, but it was never like we had our own pigs. He would go buy a pig, raise it a little bit more. So it was kind of, for my family, it was kind of unheard of. So I'm kind of like the crazy chicken and animal lady in my family. No, you're the smart chicken and animal lady in your family. Yeah.

16:01
I want to take that crazy word off the front of things like that because  it's not crazy. It's smart. Yeah. It's not crazy, but it seems like around here, everybody is like, wow, you're doing that. Like, yeah, it's feeding my family and we know our food, their love. I know it sounds weird to other people, but their love, we take care of them, but we know where they're coming from. We know what they're eating. Yeah.

16:29
Yep. And that's why I want to take that crazy word off the front because I want people to understand that just because they don't raise their own food doesn't mean it's crazy to raise your own food.  It bothers me, you know, I've heard it forever. I've heard it mostly with crazy cat lady or for people who have lots of cats. And yes, there can be mental illness associated with people who have too many cats or dogs or I don't know, whatever pets, but

16:58
When you are doing something that is positive and it is improving your life, I don't think it's crazy in the least.  So that's what I'm saying. I don't want crazy associated with Homestead anymore. I want it to be smart because I think it's smart to Homestead. And you know what? I really needed to hear that. I really did.  Yeah. It's really hard when people don't, they don't understand or they don't appreciate what you're doing. And

17:26
Like you said, you said you're giving your neighbors eggs  and so people are okay with you having the chickens. And it  takes people like us to do what we're doing.  Share the rewards of what we're doing with the people who aren't doing it for them to realize that it's a good thing. Yeah, I agree. We did that back when we lived in town.  We dug up our whole backyard and put in food we could eat. We grew food we could eat.

17:55
And of course we grew more than we needed. So we took bags of tomatoes and cucumbers around the neighborhood and asked our neighbors if they would like some. And then we didn't seem quite so quote unquote crazy because everybody loved it. So  if you can, if you can share the bounty,  it really does bring people on board with what you're doing and they don't think that you're nuts anymore. Yeah, I call it abundance of blessings. That's what I call it. Yes, exactly.

18:24
When we have an abundance of blessings here now on our three acres, we take lots of stuff to the local food shelf because  we want people who can't buy good stuff at the grocery store and can't find it sometimes to be able to have  good homegrown produce from our garden.

18:44
And the guy that runs it is a friend of ours. And  when we asked him if he wanted tomatoes for the food shelf, he said, sure, how many you got? And my husband said,  boxes  of them. Wow. His face lit up. He was like, bring all you got. Everybody wants tomatoes right now. And it was so fun, Joy. Like, your name is Joy. There was so much joy in bringing this stuff to the food shelf because we were like, we have had to use food from the food shelf before we know.

19:14
that when you're in a hard place, it's important to be able to get good food at the food shelf, not just macaroni and cheese from a box.  It is.  I believe everybody's been there.  And I think it takes having to be there to know how to help others and like what's needed. So that the end of the day, money is not important. It's the help and the love and the brother and sisterhood that's important in that.

19:44
pushes you through.  Yeah, um, speaking of that,  one of the times, well, my husband volunteered at the food shelf in the town that we used to live in.  And there were times when we needed help too, cause people go through that.  And some of the ladies who were part of the board for the, the food shelf had put together the blankets that are like fleece and you just put two pieces together and tie them, you know, they have like a fringe all around the edge.

20:13
When I went down to pick up my husband from the food shelf when he was volunteering,  one of the ladies who happens to be our neighbor said, do you want one these blankets?  We made too many. We have like a hundred of them. And she had one that no one wanted and it was sage green on one side. And it had like these button designs on the other side against a black background.  And I said, I would love to take that one if nobody's, you know, said anything about wanting it.

20:40
She said, it's so funny. Nobody wants that one. They think it's ugly. And I was like, I think it's beautiful. I'm gonna take it home with me. I still have that blanket. I use it every winter here. Wow. Yeah. And just because nobody liked it, nobody wanted it. So I guess the point of my story, cause we're talking about food shelf stuff, is sometimes you find things that you don't expect and it really is a gift that you did not know you were going to get. Yes. Yes.

21:10
So,  okay, so are you enjoying your foray into urban home setting? I'm loving it. I'm really loving it. It's like my quiet place, like  life getting too hectic or it's a hard homeschool day. It's just good to know I have my own oasis to go to. Yeah, yep, exactly.  And  when you do...

21:39
when you go to that oasis after a hard homeschool day,  do you just like stand and look around and think, wow, look what I'm building? Or do you just listen to the chickens talk to each other and just breathe in and out?  It depends on the day. Some days I'm out there and I'm like, wow, like  I  see growth, even though we just started, I'm already seeing growth of what we didn't have and where we at. then some days it is like,

22:07
Let me go hold a rabbit and breathe.  huh. Yeah. Yeah. And I'm sure that you have days where you enjoy homeschooling your kids, but I'm also positive you have days where you're like, what am I doing? Why am I doing this? Anybody with kids on the stage.  Uh huh. Yeah. I, I have a lot of respect for moms who homeschool their kids because I did it with my two youngest boys.

22:33
And I was lucky I used the online platform so I didn't have to develop curriculum.  And even that was hard because my oldest was a senior in high school of the two. And he was doing pre-calculus.  Wow, yes.  I took pre-calculus in high school. Do you think I remember any of it? No, I do not.  I also think it's a useless math.

22:58
class to teach a senior in high school who's not going to go on to become a mathematician, but that's just my opinion. And he would get so frustrated and I would look at what he was doing and I didn't know how to do it. Like I did not have the background to help him.  One of the most frustrating things of my life was that class with him. And so when  we moms take on the education of our kids, even if it's through an  online platform for homeschooling,

23:26
It's a lot of time and it's a lot of patience trying to help your kids through it. Yes, you definitely have to pray and grow in patience.  Yes, you do.  And the  mantra in my house was, your grades do not define you.  Amen.  That's what I tell my son. Because in public school, I've been there. That's where I went. It's kind of like you get it or you don't.

23:54
and we don't have time to stop on you.  At home school, it's tough and you might not remember how to do it, but it's always some way,  some always shows that whether that's a person or a YouTube video or something that helps you help your child.  Yep, exactly. And  like I said, my oldest with the pre-cal, he was really getting depressed about it. Yeah. And I emailed the advisor or whoever it was that was

24:24
you know, the boss or whatever of the class.  And I said, he's really struggling, like he's not sleeping. And the guy was like, I don't know what to tell you.  I can't  give him a pass. And I was like, I'm not saying give him a pass. I'm saying help him.  He says, I need to talk to you during office hours.  Don't just be like, read the book. He needs help.  And he never got it. He never got help with that.

24:54
And it made me crazy.  anyway, I don't want to get too far down the rabbit hole on homeschooling, but I respect what you're doing, Joy, because I've done it and it is hard work.  so  are you going to continue doing the urban home setting or do you have hopes of getting out of the urban setting and more into the rural setting? I'm hoping to get more into the rural because I just, I want a lot of things.  I want goats. want

25:24
Maybe. So I want our own little beef cow, maybe even a beef and milk cross. Nice. That would be great. Is there, this doesn't sound like a stupid question, but here in Minnesota right now, well for the last couple of years, there haven't been a lot of small acreages available for sale because during COVID everybody moved to the country who could.

25:52
And so a lot of the small acreages got bought up and everybody is kind of sticking there. So is, is there, are there small acreages around you at all? What do you count as small?  Like under 10 acres. Oh, so it is a lot of like,  um, country, we call it country land around here.  It is a lot of country land for sale, but it's kind of like the prices are like crazy. Cause I guess they know people are looking for that.

26:21
So we're just trying to wait it out and build and we're telling and speaking into each other that God gonna give us exactly what we need when we need it.  Speaking it into existence, yes. Yep, exactly.  And in the meantime, you can be honing your home setting skills where you are and then you're ready when you make the jump. Yes, ma'am. And  one of the things I would suggest if you don't already do it, I'm making an assumption here.

26:50
is if you don't cook from scratch, learn how to. I've actually started baking. Good. it's pretty fun. It depends on how the kids are feeling,  if it's fun or not, because I try to incorporate them on things like that. So they're already learning without realizing they're even learning.  And so that's also one of reasons I got the duck eggs, like the ducks for eggs, because I heard with bacon, it's amazing. Yeah.

27:20
I keep hearing that too. I haven't done it. But I keep hearing that duck eggs are richer and they're better for baked goods.  A friend of mine has ducks and she keeps saying next time she comes over and we haven't set up a time yet that she's going to bring me some duck eggs so I can bake with duck eggs and see what everybody's talking about.  It's good to have friends who have things that I haven't done before who want to help. is. It is because it's like I have  a friend that

27:48
I actually got my first rabbits from her and  she has chickens and pretty much everything that we want to one day have, she's already had.  We had a fox attack  last week, like literally last week. And I was just, I was battling flies and maggots and trying to figure out what is going on. And she really helped me. So it's always good to have a friend that's an elder in the game of homesteading.

28:18
I'm so glad you said that. I'm glad you shared that story because it really is good to have people who are doing it, who are willing to help. And I call them Homestead mentors. You know how you would have a mentor in school?  I didn't really have a Homestead mentor when  my husband and I started this back 20 years ago, learning about this stuff. I just watched YouTube videos or  went to blogs and read things. And I was like, I can try that and I can probably do it. And then I would do the one thing.

28:48
and I would figure it out and I would master it and I'd be like, what's next? What else can I learn? So there are ways to do it, but having a person to show you the ropes really is  fantastic in a way that  reading about it or watching a video is not. It's very different. Yep, I agree. I'm so excited for you. You're at the very beginning, Joy. You have so many cool things coming down the road for you.

29:15
Yes, ma'am. And it's just fun. The reason I created the Facebook for the homestead is not even to like  make money or anything, but it's just to show like you don't need what you see on a lot on YouTube. It's like the big beauty and everything. It doesn't have to be perfect. You do what you can with what you have. I love it. I say that all the time. Do what you can with what you have where you are.

29:42
I am so glad you came to talk to me today, Joy. Thank you so much for your time. Thank you for inviting me. I was so nervous, but you are very welcoming. I really have enjoyed myself.  I'm glad. you have, you have absolutely illustrated my point that you can do this,  even if you live on a little tiny lot of property. If you can put in raised beds or bucket gardens or  have a space for a chicken coop, you can do it and you're doing it. So thank you for sharing.

30:13
Thank you. All right. Have a great day. You too. Bye.