Tag Archives: small town living

All our favorite posts about living in a small Northeast Texas town.

What Working At Home Really Means (And What It DOESN’T)

by Texas Homesteader ~

When RancherMan & I bought this little piece of paradise several years ago, we were still commuting to Dallas every weekday for our corporate jobs. I was finally able to convince my boss to allow me to telecommute three times each week. Sweet

Hearing the radio drone on & on about the horrific traffic jams that were always present in my typical route, I’d simply grab a cup of coffee & ‘log in’ on my computer.

Commute Time: 2 minutes!  đŸ™‚

But I was always super sensitive about the perception to my in-office cohorts regarding my working from home. I went out of my way to make sure my all my work efforts were very clearly visible. Plus I was always instantly available by office video chat.

And I purposely worked many more hours than I was being paid forjust to be fair. Oftentimes I worked well into the night and on weekends too.

Still I felt there was a false perception by my coworkers regarding the time I put in for my employer.

Working At Home often gives others the false perception that you have lots of free time. Whether self employed, homeschooler or stay-at-home parent, it's hard work! #TexasHomesteader

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4 Ways Vegetable Gardening Can Change Your Life… For The BETTER!

by Texas Homesteader ~ 

There are many reasons to garden, but did you know it could actually be life changing?

I’m sharing 4 important ways vegetable gardening can change your life! I plant a vegetable garden every year. Come see why you should grow a vegetable garden too! 

4 Ways Vegetable Gardening Can Change Your Life! Come see why you should grow a vegetable garden too! #TexasHomesteader

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Destructive Pests: Trapping Wild Hogs

by Texas Homesteader ~ 

We have a wild hog problem here in NE Texas. Bad. So bad in fact that there’s no official ‘season’ for hunting them because they’re such an invasive, destructive nuisance.

Their sheer numbers are astonishing. They come through like a cloud, leaving nothing but tilled ground & deep holes behind them.

Terrible! 

So terrible that the game warden says you can hunt them at any time day or night, in any season. 

Wild hogs are destructive & plentiful. But they're just escaped domestic pigs - they're pork! See how we successfully trap them #TexasHomesteader

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The Power Of Love: Helping Our Neighbors In Need

by Texas Homesteader ~

It seems our world is filled with turmoil. Everywhere I look I see dividing lines of “us” versus “them”, with so much anger hurled towards each other that it hurts my heart. Sometimes people have so much passion for their point of view that it almost becomes a shouting match to see which side of the line can shout louder to win the game.

Win the game?

I’m not sure there’s much to be won that way. It seems we all lose when there’s hate, no matter what side of the line you’re on.

But recently I was reminded that it’s not all pushing & shoving in our little corner of the world.  So I figured amid the ugly stories we’ve all been pounded with, I’d share with you something beautiful. A story that demonstrates the power of LOVE!

Amid the ugly stories we've all been pounded with daily, I'll share with you a beautiful story of community love & support. #TexasHomesteader

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Environmental Awareness On The Homestead: No-Spill Fuel Can Eliminates Spilled Fuel

by Texas Homesteader ~ 
*affiliate link

I always cringed when RancherMan would fill my tractor with fuel. He’d try his best to be careful not to spill fuel, but it’s neigh impossible when the fuel lid is on the top of the tractor.

I found this fuel can design solves the problem of trying to hurry & get the spout into the fuel tank before spilling fuel. Love, love, LOVE THESE!

Special design fuel can eliminates spilled fuel when adding fuel to top-fueling equipment. #TexasHomesteader

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Sun Protection: Rigid Canopy for Our Mid-Size Tractor

by Texas Homesteader ~

RancherMan & I work outside every day, rain or shine.  We’re either working cattle or fixing fences.  There’s garden work and tractor work.  Day in, day out – we’re outside working.  Now we LOVE our lives here don’t get me wrong, but sun protection is something we take very seriously.

We’re careful to wear our Sun-Protective Shirts when we’re working outside.  And for my small blue Ford 32 hp tractor, RancherMan made sure I had a heavy canvas canopy to protect me from the sun. But his larger tractor didn’t come with a canopy, just a ROPS (roll bar).

Now I hated that he wasn’t protected and constantly nagged I mean reasoned with him to get something to protect himself from the sun.  But he protested mightily, saying: “I’m having trouble finding one that fits the ROPS on my tractor.  Plus I’d want a rigid canopy. And since I often work around trees when I’m mowing I just don’t know if I should get one for my tractor”

Sun protection is important! See what we did to assure we are properly protected from the sun while on our tractors. #TexasHomesteader

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5 Frugal Things To Save Money This Week – Credit Card Points, Sales Price Math, Efficient Errands

by Texas Homesteader ~

Spring is almost here in NE Texas!  How glorious to see things turning green, colorful flowers popping up and the temps warming.  RancherMan & I have been busy building new chicken runs and preparing the garden for planting.  We’re in Planting Zone 8 so I’m safe to drop the veggie seedlings into the ground around Easter and  I.  Can’t.  WAIT!   But I digress… (eh hemm…)

Today’s topic is saving money, and saving money is important to RancherMan & me – being self-employed means we’re always keeping a watchful eye on our dollars.  Thankfully there are ample opportunities to save some cold hard cash.  C’mon and see what we did this week to save money.

SAVE MONEY! Being self-employed means we keep a watchful eye on our dollars. Thankfully there are always ample opportunities to save! #TexasHomesteader

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