When we first started homesteading, we didn’t even realize we were homesteading at all! While we did many of these things below, I wish I had these first-year homesteading goals to follow.
We were living in a suburban neighborhood and just trying to be more self-sufficient. We were never city folk and always knew we wanted to move to the country and own a good chunk of land.
When my husband got a work-from-home job that became possible! By the grace of God, we purchased our 80 acres in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan right before our first child was born. We moved into a tiny house and began dreaming of all the homesteading potential in front of us!
But, even before we moved we were already learning how to cook from scratch, train livestock guardian dogs, keep backyard chickens and rabbits, start a garden, preserve food, and learn various carpentry skills.
Homesteading is difficult to define because it looks different for every person! You don’t need a huge lot or even animals. You really only need the drive to go back to your ancestors’ roots, learn to fend for yourself more, and create a healthier lifestyle.
If that describes you then start creating your first-year homesteading goals by following these helpful ideas below!
Let’s check them out…
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What We Did In Our First Year Homesteading
If I had to define our first year of homesteading, I would say it began just before the beginning of 2020. We had so many dreams and ideas for our future and just started doing things! I started documenting our journey by posting a homesteading update each month, which I still do!
But, that’s the key – to just start! One thing I did, as a natural researcher, was first to look up our town rules and regulations regarding farm animals, gardens, selling produce, and more.
I also went to the library and checked out several homesteading books. This one was especially helpful to me at the beginning of our homesteading journey! I just started doing everything they suggested. It was as simple as starting to compost and hang laundry outside.
Homesteading doesn’t have to be overwhelming. You don’t have to do it all at once! Consider starting with this list and this book and just picking a few things to do. As you grow in experience so will your momentum!
We are rooting for you!
Related Post: 7 Ways Homesteading Saves You Tons Of Money When Done Correctly
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Begin Raising Meat Rabbits
Check out these blog posts will all our information on how and why we raise meat rabbits! They are an extremely easy animal that anyone can start with. They are also cost-efficient and delicious!
The 6 Best Ways To Advertise And Sell Meat Rabbits To Your Community
6 Reasons We Don’t Pasture Raise Our Meat Rabbits Anymore
6 Super Simple Ways To Make Money From Your Meat Rabbits Today
7 Meat Rabbit Books You Need To Read To Start Your Rabbitry
How To Buy Meat Rabbit Breeders That Are Healthy And Productive
6 Smart Ways To Recycle And Reuse Feed Bags On The Homestead
How Much Does It Really Cost To Raise Your Own Meat Rabbits?
How To Produce Enough Delicious Rabbit Meat For Your Family Each Year
Related Post: 2 Easy Animals Every Homesteader Should Own For Self-Sufficiency
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Start A Laying Flock Of Chickens
Next, if you are able to where you live, purchase a couple of egg-laying chickens. We started with 25, but I suggest starting with only a couple. Don’t jump into meat chickens or other poultry just yet. You can work up to that.
11 Fun Things To Consider When Introducing A Rooster To Your Chickens
2 Easy Animals Every Homesteader Should Own For Self-Sufficiency
6 Extremely Functional Backyard Chicken Dollar Store Items To Save Money
7 Chicken Books You Need To Read To Start Your Own Backyard Flock
How Much Does It Really Cost To Raise Your Own Backyard Chickens?
Related Post: 15 Basic Ways To Become More Self-Sufficient In One Year: How We Did It
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Create A Vegetable Garden
Do you have a garden? Even if you don’t have a large yard you can grow a lot of food in very small areas. You can also grow in containers on a patio or deck, or even indoors! Start with reading some gardening books by experts like these!
The 7 Best Market Gardening Books For The Intermediate Gardener
How To Quickly Create A No-Till Lasagna Garden Without Cardboard
5 Books To Help You Create The Perfect Cottage Cut Flower Garden
The 5 Best Beginner Gardening Books Written By Experts On YouTube
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Start Fermenting Food
Reading these books gave me the confidence to start making my own sauerkraut and other fermented veggies! They are so healthy for you and provide you with skills to heal your body that are invaluable! It is really so simple to start making these first-year homesteading goals, all it takes is one new recipe!
10 Important Food Preservation Items To Own And Use Regularly
The Top 10 Cookbooks Every Homesteader Needs In Their Kitchen
The 33 Best Amazon Products We Own And Use On Our Homestead
The 6 Best Books On Food Preservation For Every Lifestyle
Related Post: My 10 Time Saving Kitchen Mom Hacks I Can’t Live Without
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Learn How To Compost
Everyone can compost because everyone has food waste. Composting does take a bit of knowledge to get it right. Our first compost tumbler was a complete fail. It may take some time to learn exactly how to compost properly. And don’t forget even animal manure can be composted! It is one of the easiest of the first-year homesteading goals.
The Top 10 Most Enlightening Books On How To Homestead
6 Smart Ways To Recycle And Reuse Feed Bags On The Homestead
15 Basic Ways To Become More Self-Sufficient In One Year: How We Did It
Related Post: How To Name Your Homestead or Farm Easily Without Regrets
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Create A Bulk Food Storage (And Learn Prepper Skills)
Buying your food in bulk is a game changer! It means having food stored up for emergencies and being more self-sufficient. Work with your budget to make this a reality and learn how to store food properly.
We recently invested in a freeze dryer and love that it provides us with more shelf-stable food for years! Being prepared for the future and having not just food, but skills for who knows what could happen in the future is invaluable!
My 10 Time Saving Kitchen Mom Hacks I Can’t Live Without
How I Use My Freeze Dryer In The Winter Months So It Stays Running
10 Important Food Preservation Items To Own And Use Regularly
The 7 Best Books For Preppers On Every Preparation Topic
6 More Of The Best Books For Survival And Preppers To Read Today
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Make Your Own Soap
You can ditch the store when it comes to household products and make all of them yourself! I promise it is so easy, and you can start with simply making your own hand soap or laundry soap. By making items yourself at home, not only is it better for your body, but it is also easier and cheaper!
7 More Books On Homemaking You Can’t Miss Out On
11 Natural Household Items To Make Yourself And Save Money
How To Keep Your House Clean With Puppies
Related Post: What Are The Best Things To Sell At A Farm Stand For A Profit?
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Practice Baking Bread
I am still not an expert at baking bread but I wish I was! When I am out of the little kid season of life I plan to invest a lot of time into learning the art of baking bread. Fresh homemade bread is something I want to bless my family with each week.
The 7 Best Homemaking Books For A Cozy And Peaceful Home
15 Basic Ways To Become More Self-Sufficient In One Year: How We Did It
How To Easily Cook Without An Oven At Home Without Compromising
The Top 10 Cookbooks Every Homesteader Needs In Their Kitchen
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Make Your Own Freezer Jam
I remember being so intimidated to make jam for the first time, but once I finally just did it I realized how it was! You don’t even need to mess with canning during your first year homesteading goals. Just simply follow a recipe online and store the extra in the freezer!
10 Important Food Preservation Items To Own And Use Regularly
The Top 10 Cookbooks Every Homesteader Needs In Their Kitchen
The 6 Best Books On Food Preservation For Every Lifestyle
Related Post: The 7 Best Homemaking Books For A Cozy And Peaceful Home
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Line Dry Your Clothes (And Minimize Your Life)
Hanging your clothes outside on the line is so simple, but really connects you to the homesteading way of life! Along that note, also focus on decluttering your clothes and your house. By minimizing the items in your life, you can focus more easily on all these creative first-year homesteading goals!
The Top 10 Most Enlightening Books On How To Homestead
The 33 Best Amazon Products We Own And Use On Our Homestead
Can You Be A Minimalist And Still Homestead? Here’s How We Successfully Do It!
The 7 Best Homemaking Books For A Cozy And Peaceful Home
11 More Unique Things I Have Given Up As A Mom Since Staying Home
Related Post: How To Make Easy Passive Income While Homesteading or Farming
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Start Learning About Herbal Medicine and Remedies
God gave us medicine when He gave us so many beneficial plants to make herbal remedies from! A lot of homesteading is simply just learning from others, whether that is someone local or the books linked here. It just means growing in your knowledge of what the earth can provide for us in your first year homesteading goals.
The 7 Best Books On Home Herbal Remedies That Will Change Your Health
How To Easily Incorporate Essential Oils Into Your Life
11 Natural Household Items To Make Yourself And Save Money
The 5 Best Farming And Homesteading Entrepreneur Books To Succeed
Which of these first-year homesteading goals will you be implementing? Did I miss anything? Let me know in the comments below!
Kelsey at GoodPointGrandma
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