Not sure where to post this - long

First thought to come to mind was "Cut WAY back, and STOP being the neighborhood/church food bank."

With six acres, your livestock, and your abilities, you have the potential to make a satisfying lifestyle for yourselves. Cut way back on the livestock, keeping only what you need for yourselves. The daily chores will become less of a grind, and you'll actually have a chance to ENJOY your animals. Your feed bills should go down, and you should have more time to rediscover what it is you like about your lifestyle.

Please take care of yourself and DH, and make the changes you know you need to make.

Sending positive energy your way.

NeHi

LOL, I was thinking the same thing I've got three teenagers who can be put to work--at this point, we'll go wherever

Wishing you all the luck in the world--I know homesteading isn't easy

I would love to be able to get home fresh eggs and, yes, pay a little extra for them knowing they didn't come from a "factory farm". We have to get our rabbit from a local mom and pop frozen, but it's still pretty good. I've never had chicken fresh butchered, but there's always a first time for everything. I do know that not everything looks like how you buy it in the store :P

Two years ago, we purchased a share of a steer--1/6 (100 lbs) at a reasonable price--prepared and all. I'd do it again if I had the opportunity.

Just hang in there--I can't give too much advice on homesteading skill other than a farmer's market since I don't homestead yet, but step back, take a deep breath (throw in a prayer, too ) and reapproach things in a new light. Good luck!

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"Nothing else matters in the whole wide world, when you're in love with a Jersey Girl..." --Tom Waits, 'Jersey Girl'

Location, location, location. Like any business, success in this type of farming - direct to consumer - is heavily dependent on your location and market. It may be that your local market simply does not have the means or desire to purchase farm fresh products at the price you need to sell them at. It IS more expensive to purchase off the farm rather than at Wall-Mart or Safeway. You need a market that has plenty of disposable income and the desire to spend it on fresh food. The bigger and wealthier the area your market is in, the better the chances of selling your goods are. We are just outside 2 major cities and 2 medium cities. Lots of disposable income, plenty of desire to eat local and organic. Joel Salatin writes a lot about making all that money selling chickens. He doesn't sell them locally. He has Washington DC and very wealthy DC suburbs as a market for his goods. I would reconsider your farm plan and determine if it is truly feasible to make money doing this in your area. If you think it is, try a different marketing approach.

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Ultra Lord is not afraid of chickens!

I agree with everyone. I quit my job to farm full time. The only reason I make any money is because it is a commercial operation. I have a company that I raise the chickens for .They sell the eggs. It is so much better not working in a job I hate. Not much spending money but I get to stay home and work. I understand medical bills. That can be very stressful and draining personally and financially.

Ever thought of getting a web site set up for your farm?? Marketing is everything. I have boer goats and don't sell many. The lady down the road has the same blood lines and has a web site and can't keep up with the buisness.I am looking into creating a web site for my farm. Maybe one of those young people that likes chicken and eggs knows something about this.

I have tried the live on the farm help and have not had much luck.Seems around here the only people looking for that type of work are trying to stay under the gov. radar for some reason. The last couple I had were both on medicare for disability and didn't want the gov. to know the could work and make money on their own?? Wanted me to pay cash and not tell. Nope!! If I have to work to live and pay taxs so do you!!

Don't give up!!You are getting lots of food from your farm. That is worth alot of $$ in todays economy. Not to mention you know where it comes from and how it was raised. Scale back and get some marketing in place and the expand if you see the need.

Chris

Why would I buy your meat or eggs if you'll give it to me? Dosen't make sense to pay for something you give away at church.

I am so sorry your family is going through such a rough spell. Don't you just hate Growth Opportunities?

While reading about all the people to whom you give your product, I wondered, "Do those folks even know how bad it is for Dunroven and her DH right now?"

Have you shared your struggles with your congregation, or are you putting up a good front? People aren't mind readers, and sometimes, the things you think are obvious are lost on them. Further, it has been my general experience (there are exceptions) that the Folk of the Flock really do want to support their pastor and his family as much as possible.

All this to say, just in case you haven't let people know that you need help, now seems like a real good time to share with them -- very specifically -- what your struggles and needs are. Give them the opportunity to support and care for you.

It's not fair to keep giving and giving without allowing others the chance to reciprocate.

Just sayin'.

God is with you -- even if it does not always feel like it.

Pony!

Most everyone has said what I would but...not sure where you are in IA? There is this place Rutledge, MO...BIG sale place one weekend a month. They sell everything. Also for help, have you tried contacting the Ag teacher at local HS. Some HS require volunteering (community service hours) and there might just be a student willing to work.

Sorry things aren't going well for you. Here is a link to a list of all the farmer's markets in Iowa. Check out the market gardening section on the gardening board here. Those folks have lots of good ideas.

http://www.localharvest.org/search.jsp?st=17&ty=1&nm=

It breaks my heart to read posts like this. And I rarely respond to them as I'm usually not real good at giving electronic hugs, but I have at least a hint of a personal connection here - hope I don't screw this up.

V, I'm really sorry to read these words. I just want to jump in my truck and come plow the garden under (except the asparagus, of course - it's my favorite veggie!) and plant a fall garden for you guys. Having your own business comes with a number of benefits. The most important to most folks is the independence that it can provide. You get to meet a lot of people and gain the satisfaction of providing a product or service that people can use and benefit from. But it doesn't usually come without a price tag, and unfortunately for most people part of that price tag is an emotional and psychological cost. I've spent my share of nights lying in bed wondering if I was doing something right or if I was crazy for even considering it - both here with the farm and other businesses. Fortunately, the things I've done right have worked well enough to offset the things that I was crazy for considering. I understand the disappointment and anxiety that you're feeling, and wish I could help you fix it. Maybe I'll take you up on that trailer option if I sell my property soon enough, LOL...

Chin up, kid...
Bill

First of all, I want to pray for you. Father, please be with this family and give them peace in the midst of their trials. Lord, they need a miracle and You are the only one who can give them that. Lord, I pray that you would give them Your strength to get through the days, that You would provide their every need down to the last penny for their medical expenses. You are Lord and You alone are worthy to do over and above what they expect from You.
I am a pastors daughter. My dad taught school, ran a go-kart track and pastored a little country church part time. Our church had about 20-25 people on a good Sunday. So I know what the part-time pay is like. Yet you still do almost as much as a full-time pastor.
I wish we lived closer to you. I would buy the eggs and around tax-time we would buy meat from you too. Please keep your chin up. Things will get better.

The only thing I could add is: Instead of raising what you want and trying to find a market, figure out what the market is and raise what our market will buy.
The advice to cut back is good, and except for a few charitable donations or church events, you might want to stop giving it away.
If you serve it like at a church supper, people wil see what they've been missing with their store bought chicken/beef/whatever and come to you.
That'd be the only time I'd give it away tho, consider it advertising.

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Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to pause and reflect.
Mark Twain
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Enforced tolerance is oppression

ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ

I appreciate the information from everyone. Let me say I am very thankful for my friends here who give me (as Bill says) electronic hugs. I feel them.

The church we pastor, as I said is very small, most of the people there are 80 to 90 years old. When we first started there almost 4 years ago, there were no kids. Now we have about 35 kids but their parents don't attend. They won't even drop their kids off. Our church picks them up and takes them home, so I believe we are more of a babysitter for an hour each week for these parents.

Most of those parents are single (mothers) and one lady has 6 of those kids. We have been giving the eggs to these mothers. The problem also is that they won't even save the egg cartons for us. We have decided the eggs will not be going to these homes anymore, even if it is for the kids. We are scrounging all the time trying to find egg cartons. What a hassle.

I have an ad on Local harvest and I know about several of the farmers markets. The problem is this. I am a medical transcriptionist and I work from home. No cost of gas or clothes for going to this job. I can even work naked (NO WAY) if I wanted to. I make more money at this job on a bad day than any job I could get anywhere else. I have now done it for 18 years, so I'm very proficient at it, but I just hate doing it anymore. I can't afford to go to a farmer's market where I may or may not make anything when I could easily come and sit and type and make $25 per hour. And that's the real bad thing about this. Even at $25 per hour, we're not making it. We have about 13 years worth of medical bills, (just for instance, 9 years without any type of medical insurance when I was an "independent contractor"). My husband had a kidney stone, a cardiac catheterization, a fall where he hurt several disks in his back and now has degenerative arthritis there and went thought several epidural steroid shots. He fell 7 years ago and suffers constant headaches because of the fall but they can't do anything about them. I was thought to have uterine cancer, so I had all kinds of tests, and Pap smears and trips to the doctor, and then was diagnosed with gastroesophageal reflux disease after an upper endoscopy, and then was put on Nexium for 2 years at a cost of nearly $400 a month, and just this year, hubby was in the hospital 3 times in 3 weeks).

Our wonderful church members did help a bunch during the time he was in the hospital. They gave us a donation of $2500, but that was gone in just about a week, paying for bills, medicines, etc.

We are going to pare down a long way. One calf went to be butchered today and as I make the money, the other 2 will be going over the next 4 to 6 weeks.

Thanks for listening to me everyone. I am going to keep some of the critters, but I guess we just aren't going to try to make a living here, other than a living that would be realized by not having to buy our food. We'll have to pass on the garden for this year, but Bill and Ruby Jean, if I could have you 2 here, I bet we could shake something out of this garden and all those critters!

Well, I better get to work for the day. Thanks everyone again! You are all very much appreciated.