Sunday, May 26, 2013

Why I Think Country Living Is So Important & Somethin' Special

giveaway winner!

***Giveaway is over***

Well, it's about time we had this discussion.

I promise I won't be long about it because after all, you and I have A LOT of work to do.

I want to tell you for a minute why I think country living is so important. I grew up farming and at the time I didn't much care for it. I didn't see the importance of raising animals, breeding livestock, tending a garden, and just plain workin' hard day-in and day-out. I just wanted to be like all the other kids who got to go to Disneyland and play every Saturday. Instead I got to clip hooves, fix fence, weed the garden, and when a day of hard work was finished, go swim in the creek. Oh, that was great fun! We were blessed to live on a creek and get to go fishing whenever we wanted and we could swim until we felt like we were fishes. I truly do have wonderful memories growing up.

Looking back, I am SO thankful for all the skills I acquired from our lifestyle. I mean how many people can say that they could pull a lamb if they had to or that they got to go check up on the cows with their dad on horseback? Probably not very many. Now I know some of you may be about to say that not everyone should or has to be a farmer. I agree, but I do think that all of us should have a certain set of skills when it comes to self-sufficiency.

There's a lot to say when you know that you can plant a garden and actually have it produce food for you and your family. We may have our disasters here and there, but it's a great thing to have a good knowledge about plants and such. It is a great thing to know about fruit trees, berry producing bushes, and herbs that can heal, and grasses that can feed your livestock. It is also wise to know how to raise chickens, care for sheep, or even butcher a cow. All of these skills are of benefit to every person.

Are you wondering why I think this way?

When you get down to it in order to live on this amazing earth we need just a few simple things. Food being pretty much first on the list. And friends, farming is about food. It's not about animals or growing plants for the fun of it. Farming in all seriousness is about food, plain and simple. So I think it safe to say that everyone should probably get friendly with their inner farmer.

We all gotta eat, right?

I know that I'll probably never get to meet most of you, but I'm not gonna let that stop me from helping you out in your farming journey. And so, in an effort to give you that extra nudge towards self-sufficiency and find your inner farmer rogue I am doing a giveaway.

Oh yeah, I'm giving away this awesome book to one lucky reader!

Country Living 1

Are you excited yet? I hope so, because I can't wait!

In the Encyclopedia of Country Living you'll find everything you need to get started on your journey. I absolutely LOVE this book and I feel like I haven't even scratched the surface of it's contents. You'll know why if you win this...it's HUGE!

Here's a quick glimpse of what you'll find in these pages:

  • Live Simply

  • How to Buy and Save Seed

  • How to Grow Grasses, Grains, and Canes

  • The Secrets of Making Pickles

  • Herb Gardening

  • How to Prune Bushes, Vines, and Trees

  • Food Preservation

  • Animal Husbandry

  • How to Hatch Eggs

  • How to Milk Cows, Goats, and Sheep

  • Beekeeping

  • And Much, Much More!


This is just the tip of the iceberg friends when it comes to what this book contains. There are almost 1,000 pages!

I know, just incredible.

The author Carla Emery, made this book her life's work and so it grew as she grew in knowledge. She wrote the first copy in the 1970's and remained a dedicated advocate of self-sufficiency until her death in 2005.

Carla_Emery

Alright here's where it gets fun.

Enter to win below. On some entry's you can enter them on a daily basis. If you keep comin' back you'll increase your chances! Spread the word and I hope you are as excited about this as I am!

The contest starts today (obviously) and ends Sunday night which is June 2nd. I'll announce the winner Monday morning, the 3rd of June.

a Rafflecopter giveaway


***If you are the lucky winner, you have 3 days to claim this giveaway item. If you do not claim it within 3 days then a new winner will be picked.

55 comments:

  1. I can't believe I have NEVER heard of this book before! Even if I don't win, I am still going to buy it because all of the bullet points you mentioned are things I want to accomplish (or at least begin) on our property. Of course I secretly hope I'll be the winner! ;)
    But still, thank you for sharing it with your readers!

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  2. I would LOVE to win this book! Thank you for offering such a great giveaway!

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  3. We too are trying to build up our homestead. I would love this book!

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  4. Love the book, thank you for the chance to win it.
    Keep the Faith

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  5. I would love to win this book. We have just got enough land cleared in our backyard to have a true garden this year, and any more knowledge on how to advance would be great!

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  6. You are most welcome!

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  7. Maybe you'll win! :)

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  8. This looks like a fantastic book! Thanks for the opportunity :)

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  9. I would love to Win this book , would be so usefull around my little "homestead" <3

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  10. Looks like a wonderful resource! We moved onto 5 acres last summer and are just beginning our journey of country living.

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  11. I've been thinking about buying this book, but how much better to win it!! :)

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  12. I was blessed to be raised on a dairy farm. There are skills & memories that will last me a lifetime & then some. My ultimate goal is to get back to self sufficiency and raise my daughter in a slower paced world.

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  13. I just borrowed this at the library! I cant wait to read it, and I hope I win, I love reading about homesteading ideas.

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  14. I just found your website! While I never lived in the country, I lived in a small town that doesn't exist anymore, it was an old coal mining town and we had our share of small town fun and excitement. Like the time one of the trains derailed with watermelon and we were able to get as many melons as we could since they couldn't be sold at stores because of the wreck!

    You sent me down memory lane and I'm grateful for that. Thanks!

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  15. Oh, your welcome! And that sounds pretty cool about the watermelons. My son would have been all over that...he LOVES watermelons. :)

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  16. I hope you achieve your goals and then some. :)

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  17. It's always better to win it. Maybe you will. :)

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  18. That sounds so cool! (Well, not for those producing/selling the watermelons.)
    But it definitely seems to be one of the few things that happens in small towns and leaves lasting memories. :)

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  19. Just stumbled across your blog and love it...!

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  20. Oh, well thank you and welcome!

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  21. This looks like a GREAT book!!! I would LOVE to win it!!!

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  22. I love this book. I had a copy but loaned it out and well you know how that goes. :)

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  23. Would love to win this book. We have begun country living but still have so much to learn.

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  24. I would love this book! I would love to be able to have my own self-sufficient farm when I am older (I'm only 19). Sustainable, self-sufficient living is one of my passions!

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  25. This would make a great addition to my resource library! We have goats, chickens & a garden so far and I'm always looking for ways to make things better at our little starter homestead.

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  26. I would love to win this because I have been looking for a book that covers all that you cover! We want to learn all that we can and this books looks like a wonderful resource to have! Thanks for the opportunity to win!

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  27. This would be a fantastic addition to my dad's library at his Ecuadorian farmstead!

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  28. This is a great book. I just got it from interlibrary loan, but would love my own copy!

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  29. I'm praying that in the future the Lord might give me the chance to live a life of simplicity, out in the country some where. I don't need a real fancy house, or a lot of land. Just enough to satisfy our needs. But who knows where I'll be in the future. I live in the suburbs, and try to live as self-sufficient as I can. I have a small garden of my own, establishing a perennial garden, learning good home cookin', and making our own products. I'll be making our own laundry detergent this week! Cheap, and supposed to last us quite a while!

    I've been itching to get my hands on that book for quite some time. Every time we go to a bookstore and I see it, I finger through it and absorb what I can. I just love it!

    I appreciate some insight from someone who's live the country life for their whole life. ;) Thanks for sharing your wisdom!

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  30. I have heard do many great things about this book! We are beginner homesteaders and we would love to win this book to have in our homestead library!

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  31. I had Carla's first book from long ago. I gave it to our daughter and her family a few years back.
    I have wanted to get another every since then. :^D The book is full of all kinds of useful information
    and Carla's writing style is so entertaining! She had a wonderful sense of humor and playfulness in her writing that turned a book full of facts into FUN! Thank you for this give away! I hope I am entered properly! I would greatly appreciate winning this fine book! Blessings! <3

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  32. I'd like to win it because we live in the country now but don't know much about country living, though we're trying to learn with the help of the internet! =) This book would be helpful.

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  33. I grew up on a small farm. Miss it very much.I really what to buy another one now that I am adult. It would be great to read up on things I don't know and read the things I do know. It would bring back great memories. Thanks.

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  34. I want to learn about bees and more to make me live without the government !

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  35. Not sure why the widget wasn't working right, but I couldn't input an answer for the riddle....an PIG!

    I've always wanted this book! Great give-a-way! :-)

    Shalom!

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  36. Would love to win this! Thanks for the opportunity!!

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  37. Love the book, I have an older copy from the library that I am reading now, It is a weath of information. Just found your web site tonight and it is amazing. Thanks

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  38. I am interested in a more simple life

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  39. I would like to have a copy of this book for my personal learning and to teach the next generation to be self-sufficient.

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  40. The hubby and I have been working this last year to achieve a more simple and self-sufficient life. Like others, would be interested in buying this book even if I didn't win it.

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  41. We are all ready to win this one! Thank you!

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  42. This is a MOST wonderful book...I was able to borrow it and never was able to get through all of it. I would love a copy of Carla;s book...she was an awesome person.

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  43. I'd like to win this book because it looks like it contains in one place 'everything I always wanted to know about country living but was afraid to ask'. :)

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  44. My brother owns a copy of the Encyclopedia of Country Living. It is a wealth of information and I would love to win a copy for myself. Thanks for the contest.

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  45. My Library has this book & it is checked out most of the time .... sometimes I let other folks have a turn reading it. ;^) P.S. : It's a great giveaway!

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  46. Thanks for the chance to win. My mom has this, but she's 8 hours away, and doesn't always have time to run and look things up for me - even though she does love me.

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  47. I would absolutely love this book.

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  48. We are trying to build our homestead....would love this book to help with knowledge of what to do. I find it hard to find "old timers" that will share their knowledge. This book looks wonderful.

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  49. I couldn't figure out where to put the cloven foot answer. Think I messed it up. Love your blog and excited about the give a way.

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  50. I just found your blog today - I am loving your posts. I would love this book. My husband and I currently live in the city but are wanting to move some where we can have land - I would like to have my own little farm. I grow food in our garden but would love to make it more than that. I love to learn and this book sounds like it would teach me so much!

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  51. I would love this book. Looks like a wonderful resource abt. country living

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Have a seat, enjoy the conversation, and welcome to the farm.