- Surrender to making something out of nothing, over and over again.
- Never give up.
- Don’t name your animals!
- Don’t try to do it all at once. Add something new only after you’re comfortable with what you are already doing.
- There is no end goal. There is no perfect plan. There is no one that is doing this exactly the way you will, and there is no reason to wear yourself out to the point of exhaustion and burn out. It must be a mix of effort, perseverance, humility, and enjoyment.
- Start small and research as much as possible.
- It’s worth the time and money to do it right the first time. Buy cheap materials and you’ll just be redoing it in a year or two, which is not really saving anything… ie fencing, coops, cages, etc
- Patience.
- You’re going to fail a lot.
- Lots of things depend on you, so don’t neglect taking care of yourself.
- Don’t underestimate how much firewood to put up for winter.
- Think outside the box. Way outside the box.
- Motivation is essential.
- Babies are born at night and you’ll take a big risk of losing mom and/or baby if you sleep through it.
- You know less than you think. You can do more than you believe. Your older than your mind tells you, but younger than the mirror says. Drink more water – then drink some more.
- Learn from your mistakes.
- Break large tasks down into small tasks.
- Schedule time to rest.
- The simple life is a LOT of work.
- Don’t pretend to know everything, people will see through you.
- Set goals – 6 months, 1 year, 5 year, 10 year, etc.
Maple Creek Farm PNW 