The 6 Best Reasons to Homestead

While there are SO many reasons to homestead, and reasons that are unique to each person or family, there are 6 reasons that we think are our personal BEST reasons to homestead. You might be new to the idea, or have been thinking of homesteading for quite some time – YAY! – we are glad you’re here! This list isn’t an end-all-be-all to why you should, however, these are reasons that are dear to our hearts that we want to share with you!

Scott and I are just starting on our journey of homesteading. We have talked about it for the majority of the time we’ve known each other (which isn’t too long at this point)…but we both knew going into our relationship that the idea of being self-sufficient and living off of, and working the land we live on, was a place we wanted to eventually be. Together, we are making that dream come true, one step at a time.

Our Best 6 Reasons for Homesteading

1. Self-sufficiency – Scott and I enjoy being able to walk out to the chicken coop and gather eggs that we can eat the next day for breakfast. This small act of self-sufficiency gives us the ability to not rely on store bought eggs, and of course, taste WAY better! Nothing like a fresh egg!
   
   While we might not yet be where we want with being more self-sufficient in providing the food and resources we need, we are starting with what we have and working to make more strides in being self-sufficient.
   
2. Connection with Local Community – This reason is close to our hearts because we know life is better with community. We also have a heart to share what we do learn, and also to learn all we can from those around us. We aren’t afraid to ask questions about ALL the things we don’t know, and hope that as we learn, we can share that knowledge with othesr too! We want to see everyone succeed and grow — we can all benefit from that! :-)
   
3. Enjoyable! – Even though we are learning how much hard work it takes to make these self-sufficient homesteading dreams come true…it also gives us a sense of accomplishment as we tackle and learn new things. Both Scott and I enjoy the reward and satisfaction of working really hard and then seeing and enjoying the fruit of our labor. Nothing like it!
   
4. Save (or properly allocate) money – We already notice the money we do save from eating food from our own land – and then being able to put that money toward other things we hold value to; whether that be savings, giving to others, or making our next project dream come true. Neither of us think we will run out of the “next” thing to do anytime soon – which is exciting!
   
5. Be Outside in Nature, more! – Scott and I already enjoy the outdoors, and homesteading is just a beautiful excuse to have to be outside. ;-) Obviously, living in Ohio, we lack the Vitamin D we probably need – and to boot – not only is being outdoors good for our health, being outside is great for our mental health too!
   
6. Always Learning & Growing – There is no shortage of new things to learn, try, fail at, try again, and maybe again, and then celebrate getting it right, with homesteading. We are constantly learning new things and having opportunities for growth – which keeps us active and challenged, both individually and as a couple. We are enjoying learning and asking questions about things that we have never done before – which excites us and makes getting up in the morning EVEN more motivating.

While this by no means is an exhaustive list, it’s our first one. Ask us in a year, and our reasons might look different. Who knows? That’s exciting too, right? So many wonderful unknowns and adventures to be had. Let’s GO!