Thankful for the blessings in 2021 and excited for the possibilities in 2022!
Wow, what a year it has been! I'm sure many can agree that it was a roller coaster of ups and downs!
For my family and me, we were truly blessed with many more ups than downs. For which I am forever grateful! Amidst it all, I have seen God's hand leading in every situation and am so honored and grateful to share our experiences with you.
So many wonderful, and sometimes scary, things happened this year. Down below are some of the highlights and blog posts that I think are very resourceful!
Ava turned two! In the blink of an eye, she was not my baby girl anymore. She has grown into this bubbly toddler that loves to explore and homestead, just like her mom. I love including her on the farm and in the daily chores.
Here are a few ideas to get your kids involved in the garden and on the homestead:
I also left my nursing job after 15 years to stay home and focus on being a mom and full-time homesteader. I wanted to take the plunge for such a long time and this year was finally able to.
Being a mom and homesteader, investing all my energy and time into what I love doing, allowed me to grow even more and discover a whole new side of myself. Don’t get me wrong, I loved nursing, it was just time to open a new chapter!
Once I had more time (not that there's much left when you have a toddler!) I had the opportunity to focus on some dreams and goals that I wanted to achieve. This included launching a gardening course and publishing a cookbook.
My passion for gardening runs deep, and I wanted to share what I have learned over the years with others. This led to the creation and filming of a garden course we launched in May. It was such fun! You can have a look HERE :-)
Our garden thrived this year and seeing the fruits of your labor is so rewarding and fulfilling. If you’re new to gardening and would like to learn more, here are a few of my favorite garden blog posts from this year that could help you get off to a good start in 2022:
Organic pest control in the garden
Your guide to ordering seeds online and seed starting basics
Another big passion of mine is healthy eating, cooking, and inventing yummy recipes! Homesteading allows us to eat fresh from our garden and cook healthy, plant-based meals.
I also love to can produce from our garden. If you want to learn more about canning food, THIS blog post explains how to can food in 10 easy steps.
Again I wanted to share with the world how eating plant-based can have a significant positive impact on your health and that it doesn't have to be boring!
So one thing led to another. I paired up with Angela from Axe and Root Homestead, and we decided to publish our very own Harvest Table cookbook, inspired by homestead gardening!
It involved months of planning, designing, frustration, and hard work, but finally, it paid off and we launched our cookbook in August. What an exciting journey and experience it has been!
We are immensely proud of our achievement and believe it will provide so much value to anyone wanting to follow a plant-based lifestyle and learn more about homestead cooking. You can order the cookbook HERE.
One thing that I was very excited about, and I think even more so our flock, was the arrival of our beautiful new chicken coop! It's been due for a long time and finally arrived in the fall. Now it comfortably fits our whole flock, and it looks super cute too!
If you're thinking about getting chickens yourself or expanding your flock, here are a few very helpful blog posts:
Our farm animals are such a huge part of our life and family. This year we, unfortunately, lost one baby alpaca. However, we added some guinea fowls to our flock, and a few new barn cats made their appearance!
Our goats, donkeys, and alpacas are living their best lives and are all happy and healthy! I love tending to them every day and it’s a privilege being able to keep animals.
It's a huge blessing raising Ava on the farm, where she gets to spend time outside with the animals and in the garden.
If you want to learn more about keeping goats, donkeys, and alpacas, have a look at these blog posts:
Looking back, 2021 was a good year! As the new year approaches, I am looking forward to what's to come.
My greatest takeaway would be to take the time to be intentional with those around you. Don't leave a word (or act) of kindness for tomorrow. With these uncertain times, it might have been too late.
Live your life to the fullest every day. Make your dreams a reality and do the things you always wanted to do. Sometimes you need to take the risk to reap the rewards!
Do not let the influence of others be your voice. Speak your truth and live your life the best way for yourself and your family. Not how you see others do on IG or tell you to live. Your uniqueness makes you great!
Enjoy the beauty of nature whenever you can. Take time to breathe the fresh air and reflect. Spend more time outside discovering the miracles of God’s creations and mother nature. They are great teachers!
If you want to homestead, start right now, don't wait for the right time, or to move to the perfect place. Grow herbs in your kitchen, make one meal from scratch a week, or get a chicken or two. Go outside for 10 min a day and get your hands in the dirt. Do just one thing to be more self-sufficient.
My prayer is that I can laugh more in the next year and let go of the things that don't matter. To love fiercely and instill all the courage I can into little Ava, so she can grow up to know she can accomplish anything.
I am incredibly grateful for all the support you give Azure Farm each day. Every time you read a blog post, share a post, like, comment, listen to a podcast, or support our shop. It makes a big difference!
You have allowed me to stay home and do what I love. Thank you! I hope 2022 brings all of us unexpected joy and kindness and ways to spread it to those around us.
What are your dreams and hopes for the new year? I would love to know!
Wishing you a happy, prosperous new year!
Annette xx