Making the Switch from City Living to Living Off the Grid

What is it REALLY like to live off grid? And what, actually does living "off-grid" mean? Find out about the challenges and joys of moving from city living to being off the grid----

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistOctober 18, 2017off grid living, off grid homestead, from city to off grid system, solar power, septic tanks, using propane instead of natural gas, self sufficiency, self sufficient, self reliant, off the grid Comments

HELP! My Chickens are Going Bald! (What to Do to Help Your Hens Get Through Their Molt & Why on Earth Does a Chicken Molt?)

Seeing a sweet chicken during its molt can be traumatic and worrisome! They're so....bald! And it looks like it hurts! Here's what you need to know about what happens during a chicken's molt, why the molt occurs in the first place, and finally---what you can do to help your chicken during the molting phase.

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistSeptember 29, 2017what is molting, what is a molt, why do chickens molt, molting, molt Comments

Ways to Save Money NOW! 50 Things to Do if Your Money is Tight

We all go through through seasons in our life. If you are in a tight financial situation, I've got 50 money saving ideas you can do right now to help your finances improve. Save money while living well.

Health Rebel, PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistSeptember 25, 2017how to save money, money saving ideas, improve your finances Comments

Homesteading: My 10 Truths About the Homesteading Life

Homesteading is hard to define. It means different things to different folks. Here is my definition of homesteading. What is homesteading? How do you do it? Where can you homestead? Find out my truths about the homesteading life!

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistSeptember 8, 2017what is homesteading, how to homestead, city homesteading, homestead life Comments

Confessions from My First Hunt: A Female View of Hunting and Taking the Shot

The first time you kill something for food is a huge deal. Here are my innermost thoughts about my first hunt. Surprising confessions about my first hunt. Hunting pronghorn for the first time. First time hunt.

Health Rebel, PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistSeptember 3, 2017hunting, first hunt, female hunting, antelope hunt, feeding the family Comments

Preserving Peppers: My Three Favorite Methods (And Canning is NOT One of Them)

Have Peppers and wondering what to do with them all? Here are my three favorite ways to preserve peppers, and canning is not one of them! Find out how I preserved my peppers!

Preparedness, FermentationHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistAugust 29, 2017preserving peppers, preservation, food preservation, food storage, dehydration, dehydrating peppers, fermenting peppers, freezing peppers Comments

How to Keep Your Homestead Animals Healthy (Chickens, Rabbits, Goats)

Homestead animals require some different kinds of knowledge, awareness, and supplies to be sure they stay healthy, and most veterinarians don't work on these animals, as I found out. Here's advice from some experts on how to keep your goats, chickens, and rabbits healthy and things you should have on hand.

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistAugust 17, 2017homestead animals, chickens, goats, rabbits Comments

What I Wish I Had Known About Goats Before Getting Them (But I Wouldn't Change a Thing!)

What everyone needs to know about getting goats. What you should know before you get goats. Things I wish I had known before getting our goats.

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistAugust 11, 2017Goats, what you need to know about goats, is it easy to raise goats, how to raise goatsComment

Make Dehydrated Apples--Plain and Cinnamon! (Super Healthy, Super Fun, Super EASY!)

Have you ever thought about making your own dehydrated apple snacks? It's so easy to do. Don't waste those fresh apples! Here are simple directions for dehydrating apples, even if you don't have a dehydrator. I've also included my recipe for cinnamon apples too---Find out how to dehydrate apples for healthy snacks for your kids and you, too!

Recipes, PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistJuly 26, 2017how to dry apples, how to make dried cinnamon apples, how to dehydrate apples, how to make dehydrated cinnamon apples, how to peel an apple, how to core an apple, what to do with too many apples, how to preserve apples Comments

How to Make Goat Milk & Honey Hot Process Soap (A Quick & Easy Tutorial & Recipe)

Find out how to make natural goat milk and honey soap! This is a cold process recipe I adapted to the hot process method, and it turned out GREAT! The recipe is from Kelly Cable's new book: The Natural Soap Making Book for Beginners, and it's a resource you need to have if you are interested in making soap!

Natural Body & Home, Preparedness, Soap MakingHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistJuly 10, 2017How to make soap, how to make hot process soap, directions for hot process soap Comments

What to Do With an Egg-Bound Turkey Hen...A Real Life Learning Tale

We had a tragedy the other day. I especially felt the pain of it, because I had allowed myself to become so attached to Little Mama. She is one of our turkey hens, and she became egg-bound---a very dangerous condition. Here is what we did.

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistJune 16, 2017egg bound turkey hen, egg bound hen, egg bound, sick turkey, homesteading with turkeys, animal harvest philosophyComment

How to Clip a Turkey's Feathers...and What to Do if You Mess Up

We didn't want to...BUT we had to clip our turkey's wings to keep them safe from predators. Here's how to clip a turkey's wings...and if you mess up--what to do about it!

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistJune 10, 2017how to clip a bird's wings, how to clip a turkey's wing, why to clip a bird's wing, anatomy of a bird's feathers, how do birds fly, turkeys, turkey wingsComment

Why You MUST Keep a Seed Bank---Things to Consider

Given the just-right devastating crisis event, food storage and the ability to grow your own food may become more valuable than precious metals! Every responsible person should be thinking about learning how to garden, getting even a small one started (even if only using containers on a balcony--like I used to do when I rented), and of course, having good seeds set aside for current and future use. Right now! Here's more about what to consider and how to get your seed storage going!

Gardening, PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistMay 18, 2017seed starting, seed kits for survival, what should a seed kit have, how to buy a seed kit, seeds in shtf, seed saving, being prepared Comment

Our Search for a Forever Homestead & Survival Property: Our Plan to Get Out of Dodge

Mr. V. and I have decided it's time to start searching for a "forever" homestead & survival property. Essentially, it's time to "get out of Dodge," so to speak! Here are the whys and hows of our decision to make this huge life change.

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistMay 4, 2017finding a homestead, how to locate property, why to move, survival property, finding survival property, finding a good home for survival, survival home, homestead Comments

Bringing Home Ducklings and Adding Them to Your Flock!

About a month or so ago, my husband and I were at our local feed store to pick up a few things and hopefully purchase a few more chicks to add to our layers this year. Sadly, they were out of chicks that day---EXCEPT for these four sweet little yellow ducklings peeping away! Oh. My. GOSH! I fell in love! So we ended up bringing all four of them home. Yep! All four! Now, I didn't know a lot about ducklings, and I'm going to share with you the things I wish I had known! Their addition to our little homestead has been successful so far, but things might have been a little easier if we had been aware of a few things!

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistMarch 21, 2017how to bring home ducklings, ducklings, how to raise ducks, how to take care of ducklings, what ducklings need Comments

How to Stay Warm in Winter: Clothes You MUST Have for Winter on the Homestead

How this cold person learned how to stay warm in winter, even on the coldest days! Find out the tips and tricks for staying toasty warm on an icy cold day. What clothes you should wear to stay warm, how to wear your clothes, and what are the best boots, gloves, and hats!

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistJanuary 25, 2017clothes for winter, winter clothes, clothes to keep you warm, warm work clothes, warm outdoor work clothes, clothes you need in the snow, insulated clothes for cold, insulated clothes, winter gloves, winter hat for extreme coldComment

How to Get a Small Homestead Ready for Winter Freezes...Are You Ever REALLY Ready?

I love that saying "Winter is coming," from the show, Game of Thrones. It sounds foreboding, doesn't it? Well, when you have animals to care for, and it's your job to protect them from the elements, it sure can be a foreboding and stressful feeling. You need to be sure shelter, water, and predator control is in place. Although we are new homesteaders, just under four years, we have learned to start thinking about the upcoming winter in June or July! And still----we are never really ready, it seems.

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistDecember 27, 2016getting ready for winter, animal shelter in winter, homesteading in winter, how to keep your home safe in winter, animal shelters, horse shelter, dog house in winter, how to keep chickens warm in winter Comments

Thankful Thoughts from 9 Amazing Homesteaders

I have loved getting to know fellow homesteaders! Here are some thoughts about gratitude from nine of them!

PreparednessHeidi Villegas, MA, CA, HerbalistNovember 23, 2016Thanksgiving, Things we are thankful fo, things we are thankful forComment