Working. Homesteading. Mothering.

If I had a dollar for every time someone told me "I don't know how you do it, you are superwoman" when I tell them I am a mother of 4 (2 with special needs and behavioral issues), I am a wife, I work full time Monday to Friday in a management position, and I run a small homestead with a growing population of self sufficiency animals and a sizeable garden.... I could probably buy myself even more land to be this alleged Superwoman on! So here are a few tidbits of information that I try to keep in mind as I push myself through each day - even when I feel like giving up sometimes.

The biggest piece of advice I could give someone who wants to live this life is make a schedule and stick to it! More importantly, do not allow anyone convinced you that you cannot do it.

Schedule your work-life balance to fit mainly your life, not your work. You can always find a new job, but you cannot find new memories to have with your family and your children. When you are off the clock, you are off the clock - disconnect your work tasks from your personal times and utilize that time for you and your recharging. Your job could replace you within a day if they truly wanted to, being present for your family where you are irreplaceable is the key. Any employer who disagrees is not an employer I would want to work for.

Teaching my kids how to life a more outdoors, animal-filled, and "natural" lifestyle that I had growing up has been the best thing I could have done. YES - they still get screen time here and there, YES - they still attend public school and have the influences of other children and their accesses, YES - they are still begging for all the coolest new tech their friends have. But on top of that... YES - they know the value of hard work, YES - they know that they can explore, get dirty, and learn new things, YES - they know the satisfaction of not giving up when something gets tough, physically or mentally. And don't you worry, NO - my children are not perfectly behaved, or perfectly respectful, or well-rounded. As I said before 2 of them are special needs, 1 more than the other is extremely behaviorally challenged. Luckily enough for us, heavy work helps him expel his anger and makes him use his body in a healthy output rather than the negative and destructive ways he prefers. It is all a balancing act - day by day, they all get better and better and improve in areas they were struggling before. Their confidence grows, their strengths grows, their resilience and problem solving grows. It will not happen over night, but it will happen so long as you let them learn new things each day.

Set up a "Chore List" for your family to ensure not only are all the personal/household needs met, but the animals and property needs are met as well. Ensure there is a full home understanding of when animals need to be fed, when they need to be watered, when their shelter needs to be cleaned, and when they just need to have time spent with them to show they are loved and valued. Pick a different person each day for certain chores - age and supervision appropriate of course. But make the whole family pitch in. We all live here, we all eat here, we all clean here, we all take care of the here and those within it! Offer up the ability to 'chore-swap' when someone just isn't feeling up to their tasks - things still get done, but people still feel in control and feel the ability to maintain only what they can handle for that day. Everyone has days that are more difficult than others for many reasons, as Mama I will often pick up the slack for the kids when they need it, or even for my husband when he is having a tough day. Is it busy and exhausting? Absolutely. But do they also pick up the slack when it is needed for me or for others? Absolutely.

Never forget to also make time for yourself, and for one on one time with the members of your family as well. It cannot be all work, no play. It needs to be some work, mostly play. So long as the key items are done, get out there and enjoy your life. That load of dishes can wait a few more hours so you can go do a lunch date with one of the kiddos. That pile of laundry can wait until the next night so you can go have a date night with your husband. Never feel like you have to be a slave to your home and your property, this will become a breeding ground for regret and resentment towards what you have built. Work together, find time to unwind, make time to take care of you and yours. This dream will come to fruition better and better, one day at a time.

I believe in you. You should believe in you too! Trial and error is bound to happen, it's how many times you keep moving forward that will decide how quickly you succeed.