A Tiny Homestead

Homesteading In The City with Elizabeth Ries

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Today I'm talking with Elizabeth Ries at Home To Homestead. You can follow on Facebook as well.

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00:00

You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, the podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters. I'm your host, Mary Lewis. Today I'm talking with Elizabeth Ries at um three different places, I guess. Well, four actually. You've got Twin Cities Live, you've got My Talk 107.1, you've got...

00:22

HomeToHomeStead.com and you've got bestofthenest.com and Elizabeth is in Minneapolis. So good morning, Elizabeth. How are you? Good morning, Mary. It's nice to be back with you today. Thanks for asking me. You're so welcome. I loved our chat back in March of 2024. That's how long it's been. It's been a while. Yup. And I was really nervous because I'd only been broadcasting for like six months at that point. And I still had no idea what I was doing. And I listened back to it I was like, God, I'm so glad I'm more comfortable now.

00:50

It is, a lot of it is just getting the reps in.  I think that that is a huge thing with broadcasting or interviewing or asking questions. It's just the more you do, it's just like anything.  It's a skill  and the more you do it, the better you get at it. And I hope you look back on those early days fondly and think about how far you've come because I thought you did a great job that time. So I can imagine it's only going to be better today.

01:15

Thank you, and I do look back. I went back and listened to the very first episode of, I can't think, a Tiny Homestead podcast. And it wasn't awful. Like when I listened to it back the first time, I was like, ugh. And I listened to it back about six months ago, and I was like, you know, it really wasn't that bad. People learned things, it was a fun chat, I'm okay. So, I don't want to get too far into...

01:42

what you do because  you did a huge intro on the episode that we did before.  And if people want to know all about Elizabeth's professional life, you can go listen to the original episode. The OG.  Yeah, exactly. The OG Elizabeth Ries  But you are the co-host for Twin Cities Live.  You and Marjorie Punnett do a show together  on  what station is it? Well, we had a radio show together on MyTalk107.1. uh

02:11

for a couple of years. And then um we both ended that because we moved on to different things. Oh, you're not doing that anymore. Right. And then the podcast is called Best to the Nest. So Marjorie and I teamed up for the podcast and we kind of joke that it's like the show within the show. It's the conversations that we were having during the commercial breaks about  life and home and family and relationships and all those things that then we brought into the podcast. But I do still get to fill in over at MyTalk.

02:40

pretty regularly and it's always fun to show up. They just got new studios, so now I really like going over there. uh It's all bright and shiny in there. It's nice. Okay, so I want to, I got questions about your homesteading stuff in your city  home, because you don't have a homestead. You live on a city lot, right? Yes. Yes, I do. I am on a city lot. on about  about a third of an acre in the city of Minneapolis.

03:07

Prior to living in this house, we've been in this house for six years. Prior to that, we were on 0.13 of an acre in the city of Minneapolis and really did a lot of the same things  that we do  here. Yeah. So did you do a garden this year? I did a garden. I have the garden going.  And um I have four raised beds in the backyard. Two of them are like four feet wide by, um I think they're 10 or 12 feet long.

03:37

however long my husband made them.  And those are wooden raised beds. This year I added an arched,  a cattle panel arch trellis between the two of them, which has been really, really fun. And I'd wanted to do it for a long time. And then finally, you know, spent the $75 and has sent my dad to tractor supply with his pickup so that he could make himself useful during retirement and bring me the cattle panels.  then- That's what dads are for. That's what dads are for. That's why dads get pickup trucks. That's exactly it. And then um

04:05

I have two of the, like they're those Veggo garden raised beds. They're that metal and I've really liked those too. Those are really easy to put together. And then I do a lot of trellising. So I have trellises kind of growing up everywhere so that I can maximize my space. So it's definitely not huge. It's not overwhelming, but it's amazing how much food you can get out of a small garden.

04:35

Sure. And growing up instead of out is so efficient on a small piece of property. Yes. And it's just easier and it's pretty. That's the other thing I like about it. It's just,  you know, I don't have a picture perfect manicured garden. um But when you grow up and you have things kind of, you know, I don't know, climbing up to the sky, there's something really magical about that. So I really encourage,  even if you have little pots to

04:59

put some kind of little trellis in it so you know, your mint in a pot can grow up. I just think it looks really lovely. Yeah, and it supports the plants. I mean, pretty and supportive is always good. Yes. Yes. Do you still have chickens? We do have chickens. Yes, we have chickens in the backyard. We've had chickens. I think I've had chickens for almost 15 years. So I have been a crazy chicken lady for a long time and we have a little coop in the backyard.

05:30

that is currently overrun by squash vines. I maybe overplanted the squash situation and it's taking over everything, but it's very fun. No such thing as overplanting squash.  They're everywhere. They're escaping into the alley even, which  my neighbors are finding to be quite entertaining  as they walk back there. But yeah, we have the chickens um and the chicken coop is located close to the garden too. So I do kind of have to shoo the chickens out of there. um

05:59

And because I can't bear to keep them in the coop all the time, I let them loose. So I have to use different,  you know, little things to keep them out. Chicken wire and,  you know, all sorts of stuff. But it's an adventure and it's definitely my happy place. I have a little table and chairs out in the garden too. And I love to just bring coffee out there, sit out there. Sometimes, you know, if I'm on calls for Twin Cities Live or whatever, I like to just do that from the garden. It's definitely my happy place.

06:27

Yeah. And being outside is so good for everybody. get the vitamin D from the sun. You ground your feet in the grass or in the dirt. It's just good for you.  And, uh, I love that you don't like to keep your chickens in the coop. We actually just let our 20 chickens have full run of the property for first time since spring because the garden is pretty much done. We don't want them in the garden, so we don't let them free range all summer. They have a run, you know, we don't keep them in a box, but they,

06:57

They now have full run of the property.  And my husband stepped outside on the cement pad in front of our house this morning  and there were two chickens over by the useless garage.  The useless garage does not get used for anything. It is ready to fall down and we just haven't.

07:13

pulled the trigger on taking it down. just pushed it, you've pushed it over yet. No,  we can't actually push it over, it's not that bad, but I would not want to try to park anything in there.  But there were two chickens over by the garage, digging in the dirt right around the edge of the foundation. And then two more over by my peony bushes. And they all decided to come gather around my husband's feet. And then the barn cat, the youngest one, came over and was trying to get pets. And I was just watching and I'm like, oh my God, this is why we live here.

07:42

Yeah. I think that is so fun. I I know there's different schools of thought with chickens and I definitely understand keeping them safe from predators. uh We live right by the Mississippi River, so we have quite a few birds of prey around. So I've got fake owls strategically placed all over my yard. how  I really look at it is I know how chickens want to live. Chickens want to be outside scratching and pecking. I know you've talked with Joel Salatin and

08:10

you know, again, letting a chicken express the chickenness of the chicken or the pigness of the pig. You know, that is such an important tenet  of his animal husbandry philosophy. And that is something that I really take into consideration too. I mean, we have a fenced in yard. We have this understanding that at some point, and it has happened before, we've lost a chicken to a hawk or to an eagle or to an owl. But, you know, I say to my kids,

08:38

we want to provide them with the best life possible and however long that life is then. And of course we  lock them up at night. So we're protective in terms of like, we're not just letting a raccoon get in there at night or things like that, you know, and the coop is secure.  But as far as being out in the day, I just want them to be out living their best life for as long as that life is.  And  you know, chickens, I mean, they're fragile. one  can...

09:05

you can look at it wrong and one of them could keel over.  you got like,  you just have to understand that you're giving them the best life possible. You're so grateful for what they give to you in return. And then, um and then just understand that that's how nature works.  Absolutely. And honestly, if you put a human in a cage for no good reason,  they would not live very long either. So,  um, so I've said this on the podcast quite a few times since spring, but we got 26 chickens back.

09:35

last spring, you know, this year.  And we lost four to, um, raccoons,  raccoon family,  mama and three babies show up.  I mean, trash pandas, but boy, are they cute, cute little faces on those guys. Holy  man. The babies. Oh my God. So sweet, but so bad.  And so we lost four, we lost five, but

10:00

But we don't know if the first one was taken by those raccoons, but we're pretty sure the other four were taken by the raccoons.  And then apparently we lost another one because I asked my husband the other day, said, do we still have 21 chickens? And he said, no, we have 20. And I didn't even bother to ask. I'm like, okay, that's good.  But we have barely been able to keep eggs for us because we purposely bought a bunch of chickens to be able to sell eggs in our farm stand this summer because eggs were so expensive back

10:29

this spring. And people have just been buying them. We put two dozen out in the farm stand a day and they're gone by three o'clock in the afternoon. And it makes me so happy that we're helping because our eggs are $5 a dozen. And I feel like that's a little expensive, but it's really not. Oh, listen, I think you should up it to seven today. Nah, nope, I'm not doing it. Oh, gosh. know, but you know what?

10:58

people are, if you go to the grocery store to buy past your raised eggs, that's how much they're $9 a dozen. That's what they are. And so know, I don't want to, I want to stay at five. And I had talked to my husband about upping it by a dollar and he was like, no. And when he says that I go, okay, I agree. But why? And he said, because we're trying to help our neighbors.

11:26

He said, if we need more money, we will up it, but we don't desperately need that extra dollar. He said, I want to keep it at $5 a dozen. All right. also selling duck eggs from a friend of ours that has ducks. And that's been fabulous because we, I posted on Facebook and I said, we now have duck eggs from our friends at O'Connor Family Acres, or I think that's what their name is. And we're selling them in the farm stand. So if you want duck eggs instead of chicken eggs, come on by.

11:54

And it's so funny, people will come and buy two dozen duck eggs and two dozen chicken eggs at the same time.  So we really tried to set ourselves up to have eggs that were good for us. And  we maybe have French toast once a month. So I'm like, hey, can you hold back 12 eggs, please, for me so I can make French toast?

12:15

And my husband's like, yep, I'll bring you in a dozen. I'm like, thank you. Oh my gosh. And I've got  my 23 year old son convinced to help me make baked goods so we can keep the farm stand open through December. And we're going to  use some of the eggs that we're going to keep back to make baked goods so that people have cookies for Thanksgiving and Christmas. That's great.

12:37

Because I don't know if you've noticed, but in the last three years, a lot of stores are no longer doing the  assorted varieties of Christmas cookie trays. They're just selling cookies.  And I miss those assorted trays really bad. That's so fun. So I've got my kid convinced that he will help me make, know, I don't know, five days a week in the morning, we'll get some recipes and make  a batch of

13:03

five different kinds and put together cookie trays and put them out in the farm stand for people.  They're going to sell like hotcakes. Absolutely. That would be really fun. That's so fun. I love seeing the success of these farm stands.  And um I just love seeing  the hunger for real food that is really happening. That has definitely been, um you know, I've been focused on really the quality of what I eat since I was about 20.

13:33

you know, that's 20, almost 25 years now.  And  I just really,  remember feeling like I was very alone and nobody really cared like I cared. And I think the progression of seeing people really start to realize, oh man, you know, I feel better when I eat better. I feel like I can tell the difference. I can tell the difference in  eggs that were raised.

14:01

from happy chickens, the flavor. My kids are so funny because they've been raised on um pasture raised eggs from our yard. then usually I have to,  I've got a lot of people in the family. So sometimes I'm supplementally buying eggs,  but I always buy pasture raised eggs from a local farm. um if we go to like a restaurant or like a hotel and they have just like generic eggs, they go, mom.

14:29

this doesn't even taste like egg. Like, what is this? This doesn't taste like egg. And I  love that so much because,  you know, everything that we eat should taste like what it is. That should be like the very basic, um you know, and when food is well raised, you can absolutely tell a difference.  Yeah. When we got our chickens this past spring, we hadn't had our own chickens for like five months because we called the older ones to

14:59

two falls ago, so a year ago. And I was avoiding eating eggs from the store because I knew they weren't great. And my husband bought some eggs from the store for something and I scrambled a couple because I wanted scrambled eggs. I hadn't had scrambled eggs in months. And I bit into this and I was like, this doesn't even taste like egg and it's rubbery. I don't like this. I'm not eating this. And I dumped them in the trash. That's how gross they were. Isn't that sad? And then we got our first eggs from our chickens, the ones we bought.

15:28

And I was like, okay, I really could go for some scrambled eggs.  And I scrambled up a couple eggs and I sat down to eat them and they were silky. I never realized that good eggs are like silky on your tongue. That's great. And I must have made a yummy noise as my dad says, make a yummy noise because it tastes good. And my husband looked at me, he said, what? And I said, these are really great eggs. And he said, they're eggs. And I'm like, no, you don't understand. Yeah.

15:56

And I explained the same to him that I just told you. And he was like, oh yeah, he said they are, they're silky. They're very smooth on your tongue. And he said, I hadn't even thought about it until you mentioned it. And I was like, uh-huh. Yeah. It makes such a huge difference. People ask a lot, know, okay, what's the difference between an egg you raise at home and an egg you buy at the store? And I'm like, okay, imagine the difference between a strawberry that's been shipped in from Mexico in the middle of January compared to a strawberry that you pick.

16:25

fresh off of the plant in season in Minnesota. And they just get it. And they're like, oh, or a tomato  that's been shipped in from halfway across the world um in the middle of winter or a tomato that you pull off the vine and eat. It's just,  it's the essence of what it is, is absolutely tasted when you eat it.  Yeah,  absolutely.  I agree completely. oh

16:53

I had one of those over 50 moments this morning. was grabbing some frozen ground beef out of my big freezer in my kitchen and I opened the freezer and I saw something that looked like strawberries in my freezer and we have no strawberries in the freezer. I know this. And I was like, oh man, we have strawberries. And I was like, no, we don't. have tomatoes that are cut up to can in October because it looked exactly the same in the plastic bag.

17:20

I had that moment of,  number one, my brain is not working.  And number two, boy, I wish those were strawberries.  I think, yeah, that idea of  buying fruit in season  and  then just freezing it is  such a hack. The deep freezer is like the greatest invention. The next thing that I upgrade in our house, though, is going to be uh

17:44

a stand up deep freeze in the basement that I open with the handle and has shelves versus like the chest freezer because we have a hand-me-down chest freezer from my parents from years ago, which  is super useful and great, but I like lose things. Like we moved to this house and I finally cleaned out the deep freezer and found zucchini that I'd frozen shredded in bags in the bottom from 2015 from the garden. I mean, it's pretty easy to lose things down there. So  that'll be

18:13

be the next one. But I'll try to buy. I do um a big order  through my local farmer  of  Colorado peaches. And then  I just slice them up. I don't even take the skin off. I just slice them up. I lay them on sheet trays on parchment paper and then um freeze them and then pop them off and put them in um freezer bags. And then we've got

18:39

frozen peaches for smoothies all year round or for whatever kind of baked thing or making jam or whatever.  And I'm trying to get better about doing that with as many fruits as possible because even just avoiding recalls of when it's like, okay, this bag of whatever from Costco is being recalled. It's like, oh gosh, you can avoid that if you're the one really processing your own food. Yep, for sure.

19:04

I love talking to you because you have all these things that I do or used to do. um Now that we only have the one kid at home, we don't stock up quite as heavy as we did when we had four kids at home.  But this actually helps me out a lot because I finally got my Patreon started. Do know what Patreon is? Yeah, I've heard of this. don't use it.  I finally got it started and I have been adding  PDFs of hints.

19:33

of things that you can do to get started on the gardening or homesteading or cooking. I know you're a bone broth girly, right? All the time. Listen, I'm big on broth. We eat a lot of soup in our house. I'm lucky to be married to a man who believes that soup is a meal. Some men don't believe this, Mary. Some men are like, I don't want soup as a meal. But if you make them like I do, I think they're very hearty.

19:57

As long as we've got some sourdough on the side and some good butter, then soup is absolutely a meal. So I  make broth all the time.  I think if you can, that is like a fundamental thing. If you can get into the groove of making your own broth, particularly if you can make your own chicken bone broth,  beef bone broth is really easy to make too. But I do a lot of chicken bone broth and  it takes your cooking to an entirely new level.

20:26

There  are a lot of store-bought broths that I think do a good job. There are none that do a great job. It cannot compare to what you make at home.  Absolutely. I used to roast two chickens, whole chickens,  in my big  turkey roaster thing. You plug into the wall. Yes, the electric roaster.  My parents have one of those. love it. Used to do two of those at a time. And with six people eating, one chicken would be demolished, of course.

20:54

And then we would rip up the other chicken, freeze the meat. And I would take the stock from the pan, you know, the roaster. And then I would also put the rest of the chicken into another pan and make more bone broth. making a soup with that chicken stock was  unbelievably yummy  and  rich and deep and layered. And  I keep telling people,

21:20

all the time, whether it's on podcasts or people I know or people I talk to on the phone or in messages, learn to cook. It is the most important skill you can have. I totally agree. Yeah, I completely agree. think, you know, the nice thing too is when you are investing in really good food, you know, we in the United States, we spend a lower percentage of our income on food than many other nations. And

21:49

It shows because the quality of our food is not great. We are accustomed to cheap ultra-processed food.  you know, I always make the argument that cheap food does not come without a cost. We're paying for it somehow.  There are myriad ways that we're paying for it in terms of, you know, exploitation of farm workers, in terms of, um you know, just  raising crops that are nutritionally void  and um

22:16

and then also the healthcare costs that are attributed to our lifestyle and our diet. But when it comes to investing in real food and great food,  you're going to want to maximize what you  buy because it's expensive. And so when I buy a whole chicken from the farm,

22:36

um I'll also buy an eight-piece cut up chicken, which I do like to do because it's really easy. It's a little easier to roast on a weeknight. um I can just put the pieces on a sheet pan if I'm busy working. That's a nice little shortcut. But I save all of the bones  from everything that we eat. I throw it in a freezer bag. I do the same with the ends of onions, the ends of carrots. And so I've got kind of like a veggie bag going, the ends of celery, things like that.

23:05

So I a veggie bag going and a chicken bag going. And then once they're full, I take my giant pot  and I put the chicken carcass, then the veggie scraps, and then I'll add some peppercorns, um a bay leaf. I'll add um usually some other sprigs of herbs from the garden. If it's in the winter, then I just add some dried herbs and then uh some salt, a little splash of apple cider vinegar or a squeeze of lemon.

23:32

then I just simmer it for 24 hours. I put it on low on my stove and let it simmer for 24 hours and then I strain it and put it in wide mouth glass jars and freeze it. The hands-on time is 20 minutes because even to package it up at the end is very, very easy. Then you end up with this amazing broth. When you're looking at buying organic pasture-raised bone broth at the store,

24:00

know,  it can be 12 bucks a quart, easy.  so when you're buying a chicken that is going to cost significantly more than a Costco rotisserie chicken, you want to make sure that you're getting every ounce out of that food. And so that's a real example of, I think, being thoughtful about what you're purchasing, making the most out of what you're purchasing and showing respect for the life that was taken in order to sustain yours. And that respect is important.

24:29

Yes, it is. um The other thing I would not suggest is that people try to do this with Costco rotisserie chicken. Do not do it. Thank you, Mary. Thank you. Too much fat in them and it will ruin it. And it's not good for you anyway. Yeah. And the bones are really brittle. And I mean, that's the thing. want to be, you really want to be thoughtful m about  what you're eating. And I have found,  you know,  really through this

24:56

a sort of evolution over time though, that  when you're eating this way, and by this way I mean nutrient dense with a focus on regeneratively raised products where you're looking at traditionally prepared grains, all of those types of things when you're eliminating ultra processed foods. think when you're eating this way, um

25:22

Sometimes people get overwhelmed by going, oh my gosh, how do know if I'm choosing the right thing or whatever? What I have found is that it's actually incredibly liberating  because when you're shopping, it cuts out 90 % of the options. You know what I mean? When I'm going to go buy pasta, pasta is always a great example. I am only going to buy pasta that is non-GMO, organic, that is slow dried and bronze cut.

25:51

That means that when I'm at a store, if I'm at like a regular grocery store, there's two brands that I'm picking from. And then that's it. I'm picking from those two brands versus when you go into a mainstream American grocery store, there could be 18 brands of pasta sitting right there that you're choosing.  when you eliminate some options, it's actually very freeing. I think we have this idea that having unlimited options is good for us when I think it's often

26:20

it's brain paralyzing, you can't make a decision, and it's all kind of the same junk where what you're really looking for is the ultimate quality, nutrient-dense, amazing product that you're going to love. Yes. And in Minnesota, we're really lucky because there are so many people who are growing their own food, whether it's animals or produce or fruit.  And food is produced, but same diff.

26:48

that you could literally spend a weekend shopping at farms instead of the grocery store  and come home with everything you needed for the week  for food. Yes. Oh, absolutely.  I think, you know, and I always, think grocery stores are important. They play an important role. I'm, you know, I shop at my local co-op. There are a lot of, there are local grocery store chains that really do uh a good job focusing on local.  And, um but at the same time,

27:17

in order to really financially support farmers, we have to find ways to directly buy from them.  And that because it just takes out the middleman.  And if you can, if you can  do that, it really makes a huge difference. So I have a couple different farm. I mean, I live in the city and I have farm delivery services that deliver to me that I buy directly from the farm  and they drop them off, which is amazing because I'm able to buy direct from them.

27:47

And I think thinking about those types of like even your farm stand or other small farm stands, if you're going and you can go, I'm going to get my few things from there, adding in that extra stop to go directly to a farmer makes a huge difference. And of course, one of the easiest ways to do it is to get yourself a giant freezer and then buy, you know, a half a hog, buy a quarter of a cow, you know, finding farmers who will do that where you're really

28:14

maximizing the transaction for them because every transaction also requires the effort from the farmer. So if you can say, all right, I'm going to spend a thousand bucks  on um a ton of meat, beef for the year and I'm going to go do one transaction, give them a huge chunk of money and then I'm going to have it in the deep freeze and I'm going have it ready for the year, that's a really  great way to maximize everybody's time.

28:38

Yes. And the other thing that's interesting about buying a quarter or a half or a whole beef, depending on how much room you have,  is that you're paying a certain amount per pound for  all the meat. It's not, it's not the same as when you go to the grocery store and they want $25 a pound for filet mignon  and they want $10 a pound for burger. Right. And I love that. We just haven't been in a position to buy a half lately. So.

29:08

It's so hard right now. I was listening to uh a podcast from another friend of mine yesterday and I literally was incensed and  sad at the same time because her guest said that on average in America right now, if you are a couple with four children and you are making at least $85,000 a year,  it's still not enough. Yeah. Yeah. And I just wanted to cry and scream at the same time because this is not okay. No.

29:39

So if there are ways to bring down your costs of living and costs of eating and help out your local producer and make that food go further, I say do it. Yeah, I think you're right. I also think we are living in a world where we just

30:05

we waste a lot of money on a lot of stupid stuff.  I say this a lot um and everyone's financial situation is different and my financial situation has certainly been different in different times of my life. um But if  you're getting your nails done, you have money for grass-fed beef.  This is what I said. It's expensive. It's a lot to go and do those types of things. think even like

30:33

subscription services to uh different TV things. And I work in TV. I love TV, but you can also get over the air free TV, which is where Twinsities Live airs.  So there are real opportunities.  think sacrificing food should be the last resort because food is so important when it comes to everybody has to make priorities. Everyone has to shift their priorities, but sacrificing the quality of the food that you eat at home

31:03

ah I would hope would be the last resort for most people. And then there, you know, there's of course different levels.  we're talking about  poverty or homelessness, we're talking about a completely different situation. I'm talking about for the  average American.  absolutely.  And  I am so concerned for the people who are under 25 right now, who are just, just starting out their adult lives in this, I don't know, climate, this

31:31

economic craziness that's going on and how in the heck they're going to make it, you know? Yeah, it's an interesting time and an interesting shift. think it feels to me like  there's maybe a realignment on the horizon.  I'm hopeful about that. um I think as a  nation, we've been living beyond our means for a long time  and it's not sustainable.

32:00

and it never has been sustainable. And now we're sort of seeing that and the consequences of that long time lifestyle really come to fruition. I think what a lot of us look back at maybe, you know, how people came together during World War II and grew victory gardens and how, you know, a more modest life was appropriate. Now it's, mean, so many people are swimming in debt.

32:27

There has been this pressure to kind of keep up appearances no matter what  and there's been plenty of credit card companies willing to let you  just create a giant balance and not really pay the price for that except for in stress.  And I think  both ways, we need a systemic review and then we also need on an individual basis, a review of what's important. How can we understand that?

32:55

cutting back, that not needing  a new car every three years.  This kind of  new and constant  is not sustainable. It's not, and it's going to kill us all. It's just a bad plan. Yeah. Okay. So I appreciate everything you said about your growing things and your  take on how to  help out the local farmers and help out yourself in doing so.

33:24

But I have to tell you, I have been listening to best the nest. Basically since I talked to you in March of 2024, because I didn't even know it existed until then. And I love what you and Marjorie are doing with that. It is so beautiful and so helpful and so fun and sometimes so sad. Yeah. But everybody has so many different emotions that it's all going to come up. Thank you.

33:53

It's  probably my favorite project that I do out of everything that I work on. The podcast is, we call it the podcast that brings you home. And it really is focused on  making a daily practice  of creating a home that you don't need a vacation from, creating a home that reflects you, creating a home that reflects your values and that is a sanctuary and is a place where you can be your best. And then you go out into the world with that.

34:23

safe place to land. And so we always say it's a journey. It's not like either of us have arrived at that. And part of life  is grief. And a big part of  the sadness that you're referring to uh is my co-host Marjorie Punnett lost her husband uh almost two years ago now. And it was very unexpected. And he uh declined from a quick illness. he,  was very close to me and my family. We're very close with Ian and Marjorie. And so uh

34:52

walking through that grief has been  difficult and kind of figuring out em where Marjorie goes from here and  how  this is a universal experience though. It's a universal human,  part of the human experience to love and then to experience loss. And so those conversations have  been really great. And we integrate a lot of conversations about

35:17

um food, because food is so much at the heart of the home. So we talk a lot about food, we talk a lot about being intentional about the things that you're bringing into your home. um We talk about that with regards to textiles, with regards to, you know, all sorts of different products. And so it's, um they're, they're really fun conversations. Yeah,  it is. It's really fun to listen to. And I love it because I will pull it up on Monday.

35:42

when I know it's there. And I will listen to it while I'm doing dishes because I always have dishes to do. My hands are always in hot water. Isn't that strange?  You would think after getting three of the four kids out of my house, I wouldn't have as many dishes to do. But no, there's always dishes.  Or I listen to it when I'm folding laundry, which I think is funny because it's called best to the nest. And where do you do laundry and dishes? In your nest.  I get so much done when I'm podcasting. Audiobooks like save me with laundry. They make laundry.

36:10

It's like meditative. don't have to think, but I'm still accomplishing something while I'm listening.  Thank God for earbuds. Yeah.  I could not do it without the earbuds because I can't have uh a cord attached to headphones to my phone to listen. It just doesn't work. ah But I was very excited and very pleased when I listened to your episode yesterday. I think I listened to it yesterday  that Marjorie can talk about Ian without crying now. That is growth. Yeah.

36:39

She's, so proud of her and she's really, I think she's really known that the only way is through.  You can't get around, you can't go above it, you can't go below it. I mean, the only way is through and that um life looks different now, um but the only way is through.

37:04

And she's doing a really beautiful job navigating that while experiencing all the feelings that come along with it.  Absolutely. It's so hard and it's so,  it's one of the worst growth periods of your life when you lose someone that you love.  And I've said this before and I will die on this hill  when people that you care about  die. It's not that you're grieving the past. It's that you're grieving the future that could have been. You're right.

37:33

It's so frustrating. hate that part. ah But I love you guys and I am so tickled that you do this together because you guys have such a loving friendship and  I think people need to hear and see that. Oh, thank you. Thank you. We'll just keep on going. We keep on recording episodes.  Please do that. And  I always have to laugh when you say  our podcast is the best podcast in the world because I'm like, excuse me over here. Hi. uh

38:01

I'm a good one too. A little bit of shameless self-promotion never hurt anybody. You know what?  If you're not going to pump your own tires, who's going to?  Every time you do it, I just laugh out loud. My son looks at me he's like, what? And I'm like, you would not understand. Just let me laugh. It's fine. um So I'm going to go back to the Patreon thing for a second because I'm obsessed with it. I have been trying really hard to put something together for a couple of years now that isn't just a podcast because the podcast is like

38:29

the tip of the iceberg with hints and tips and tricks and what people are doing in this. And I was like, where can I put stuff where maybe I could make just a tiny smidge of money and give people value that actually matters. someone said to the other day, why don't you just set up a Patreon because people can subscribe and then you are going to save them at least double what they pay to subscribe to it.

38:56

by all the things that you teach them to do. And I was like, Oh my God, I'm so dumb sometimes. Why have I not done this?  And so today I'm going to be adding the  whole, how do you, how can you completely use a whole chicken?  Like break down the chicken, cook the chicken,  put the, whatever you don't eat. Once you've done all that stuff, that's food, put that in compost. Cause then that goes back into the ground and you have more dirt  to make more bugs  and plants feed your new chickens.

39:26

the whole cycle and things like that. And I just want people to know that this is here because half an hour is not long enough to really give people the nitty gritty of how they could be helping themselves. It's just kind of like a teaser. That's so smart. And I think there's such an appetite for that type of information. And when you find community, it makes you feel less alone. So when you're understanding that people are doing

39:55

people are integrating these principles of homesteading in all sorts of different ways.  I always say that you're a gardener if you're growing a plant in a pot. It doesn't matter.  People are growing things at different scales. You could always look at some Instagram influencers, beautiful, massive homestead with picturesque goats and 50 acres in the middle of nowhere and think, oh my gosh, I'm not even making a dent in it. But the whole point

40:25

of even what I share on my little decidedly non-fancy blog called Home to Homestead is about homesteading principles. Now, the principles of homesteading can be applied to any home that you're living in. mean, I would grow

40:41

herbs and tomatoes on a balcony of my apartment in Green Bay when I was 25, you know, and working early in news and I bought cheap pots at Target and some soil and a couple of tomato plants and I was able to grow tomatoes and it was really fantastic. And so that, I think that feeling and that, that sense of pride and accomplishment that you get when you grow something, when you produce something is just, we've become so detached from that.

41:10

And I think it's a cultural crisis because our bodies and our minds and our hearts and souls were designed to work along with nature, to be part of nature  and to not feel separate. And I think that separation from nature that we found ourselves in and even, you know,  the that idea of we have to save the environment, I think was like a misguided  way to have that conversation because

41:40

We are the environment. We have to save ourselves. We have to be  respectful of  our bodies, of human life,  of  the creation that we're in. And when we lose that connection and that respect, we find ourselves just  untethered  and  unable to make the right decisions because we're not connected to the thing that's the most important.

42:07

Yeah, I thought on mord, but untethered is the same thing. We find ourselves on mord. We're not, we have nothing to hold on to. You're right. You're right. Yeah. And I think we're seeing that a lot. You know, I mean, the news has obviously been very heavy lately, but as I sort of critically look at the mental health crisis that we're in, the sort of identity crisis that we're in, um the like frantically searching for some sort of tribe to belong to that we're in.

42:37

I think that those are reactions to a collective disconnection from our environment and our faith in something bigger. Yes, the news lately has been incredibly heavy and I don't even want to talk about it because it's been just so  hard to try to find words for everything. And I don't even know if it's worth words right now.  I think it's worth

43:04

thinking about what  we ourselves are doing in our little part of the world and trying to do something good to counteract the bad as often as we can.  And so  I keep telling people just do something nice for somebody. Just once a day, find  something nice that you could do and do it because positive energy does counteract  negative energy. And if we all do something good,

43:32

It may not change the bad, it might improve things later. Yeah, I think you're right. was thinking about this a little bit last night. I was actually running to the co-op in my neighborhood to get uh a couple of ingredients for a segment this morning. And this  gentleman was walking towards me, and I was walking towards him because he was walking out of the store and I was walking in. And then we sort of did that funny dance where like,  tried to get out of his way, but I went left and I should have gone right. And then he went.

44:00

the same way. And then we were like, and then we just both started laughing. Like we were just laughing because it was just such a funny, awkward interaction. And we'd both been kind of had sort of like serious faces on because I was thinking, okay, I've got just like 15 minutes. I got to run in here. I got to get this stuff. I got to get home to the boys and make dinner and blah, blah, blah, you know.  And I'm sure he had things on his mind, but we just like we had did this awkward dance in the parking lot and then just started laughing. And I thought  I just was thinking about that as being such a sweet, funny interaction.

44:30

that if  we took  some of these awkward moments and just made them funny,  how much lighter the world could be. Because then I went into the co-op feeling just like a little bit lighter because I just laughed with this person. It was very interesting.  I love that. Yeah, I call that the zigzag dance at the grocery store.

44:51

We were in the parking lot. I was like, oh, what's happening here? And then we were just both, we were both just cracking up. And it turned out he had a big, great smile. And, you know, I got to see it because we had that awkward interaction and we decided to laugh about it.  Yeah. And that's, that's the other thing. When I moved here,  God, a long time ago  from New England,  Minnesotans back when were very to themselves. That was the take I had.  I went out of my way.

45:19

when people made eye contact with me to smile. Yeah. If not say hello. Yeah. Because I just, it was so weird for me because back home in Maine and New Hampshire and Massachusetts and Vermont,  the four New England states I've been in,  people talk like they get in line behind you or you're in line behind them and people just start out these, start up these random conversations about whatever.  And Minnesotans don't really do that. I know, I know. And I got

45:48

I got very strange looks at first. And I just made it my mission that I would have uh a positive interaction with someone when I went out in public because I had to do it. Yeah.  And I've noticed since COVID people are a lot more willing to start up conversations because they had, you know, a year and a half of not really being around anybody. Yeah, they realize you realize what you miss out on when it comes to social interaction and connection with people. And, you know, I think it's also just a reminder that

46:17

It's very easy to get in  when you're looking at social media or you're looking at the media in general and you're kind of seeing the extremes of different sides  of, you know, the ways of looking at the world that  it's easy to think like, oh, everybody is against this or for this. And the reality is, is that most people are really in the middle and most people, if you have a nuanced conversation with them, um you can find out that most of us want the same things and

46:47

value the same things and uh might just not know how to get there.  Yeah, I think every human being wants shelter and food and water  and rest. And if they can get that in some way that keeps them healthy and strong, it makes them better people. Therefore, they can go out and spread good in the world.  The problem we have is that not everyone has enough  of the things that they actually need to be a good human.

47:16

Yeah. And beyond those basics though, I think so many people are just searching for something on the outside to fill them up and not looking for what's inside because the reality is that having those basic needs met  is very important. The vast majority of people have those basic needs met. There certainly are people who don't and that's an important problem to solve. But the vast majority of people have those needs met and it's just there are

47:45

There are holes in people's hearts that make them feel like,  if  I get this, if I'm just this, if  I have that, that then I'll be happy. And that is never going to work.  It's just  never gonna work. You're never gonna find something on the outside of yourself  that you have accomplished or obtained or achieved that will bring you happiness.

48:12

It is a completely different process that fulfillment and confidence and enjoyment of life has to come from within and has to come from a creative expression of who you are. And that's what I'm saying also by being unsustainable. mean, we're looking at now, I don't know, really since like, I would maybe say the 1950s of just like this

48:40

The, m I think advertising has changed now, which is good, but you look at like  so much of the early advertising was really about your life isn't great. If you have this, it will make it better. And we've internalized that message. And I think that message is problematic. Yep. I agree. But I also think that the three or four things I mentioned, that's a good start. Great start. So that you can look inside yourself because you are

49:08

you are healthy and you are rested and healthy and rested are two of the key cornerstones of having the room to dig inside yourself and figure out what it is that you need or you want or how you can help.  Yeah. And what it is that your gifts are. What are your gifts? What are your unique talents? What are the things that you are able to bring to the world because everybody has them  and, um you know, not subscribing to this idea that success has to look a certain way. Success

49:38

is,  I think, when you're able to fully express who you are. It's funny because now we kind go back to the beginning  of the conversation where we're talking about the chickens expressing the chickenness of the chicken.  Humans, I think, are a little bit more complex in terms of we have many ways to express our humanness, but it's because we are such a diverse species. But how

50:04

could you look at how do I express the Elizabeth-ness of the Elizabeth?  How does Mary express the Mary-ness of the Mary?  And thinking about what are your instincts, what are your gifts, what are your talents, what are the things that you gravitate towards, what are the things that really light you up in finding a way to express that on a daily basis, um I think can help us on that path to finding joy and fulfillment.

50:31

Absolutely. I've said absolutely a lot this morning. That's good. That must mean we're on the right track. I think so. I hope so.  All right. Where can people find you, Elizabeth?  Oh gosh, all sorts of places. You can watch Twin Cities Live. um I have been on Twin Cities Live now for over 17 years. um And  we like to think of it as your bright spot in the afternoons. If you're in the Twin Cities, it's on from 3 4.30 on um the ABC affiliate in Minneapolis. Also,

50:59

on WDIO in Duluth and ABC6 in Rochester. And then you can stream us on TwinCitiesLive.com.  And  I co-host that with my friend Ben Lieber, who is a former NFL linebacker. If you're a Vikings fan, you probably know him and love him. played for the Vikings for many years.  And then uh the podcast, Best to the Nest, is available wherever you get your podcasts,  Spotify,  Amazon, all the things. And then uh

51:27

The blog is called Home to Homestead. I always warn people it's a non-fancy blog. You're not going to find like,  you know, 85 stunning pictures, but it's really just a little bit of a recipe journal. I talk about, you know, the garden and the chickens, and hopefully it inspires you to just, as Mary said, get cooking because it is really, I think, one of the most valuable skills. And I think it's something that you learn to love the better you get at it. So I challenge people who say like, oh, I hate to cook or I'm not a good cook.

51:57

um I think you are. I think you can be. think it's in your bones. you just have to  start small.  Start by learning a couple of things. I started with soups.  mean,  when I got my first apartment um in college my senior year, I got a slow cooker and I started making soups in the slow cooker. And like my roommates  would love it.

52:26

The guys who lived down the hall loved it. They would come up, know, everyone who would come and grab some soup. And um I remember finding that so rewarding and thinking like, okay, I can do this. And soups are very forgiving. They're also  very adjustable in terms of, um you know, ingredients that you like or maybe don't like.  And  they really, I think, help somebody build confidence in the kitchen, which is super important.  And you're Elizabeth Reese on Facebook, right?

52:54

Elizabeth Reese on Facebook and Elis Reese are IES um on Instagram. And Instagram is another fun place if you want to see, you know, my chicken propaganda. You know,  I'm trying to get everybody to get a chicken coop.  When I run for president, when I'm school president, student council president, everyone will have a chicken coop  and everyone will have a sauna. It'll come with your house.  Nice.  It's a free gift with purchase. do think um

53:23

It, that  those investments have been really great. The practice of chicken keeping is just  good for my soul.  Um, even though it does sometimes drive me crazy that they poop on the sidewalk, Mary, like then I got to dodge the chicken poop on the sidewalk, but it's a small price to pay. Well, it's kind of like when we have our, we have our dog and she goes potty in the yard. Cause that's where her run is.

53:48

husband stepped out this morning and tried to get her to come in because she was being a brat and didn't want to come in. He was in bare feet and I was like, be careful of the uh deposits. His  hands were like, eh, it washes off. know, but it's a gross feeling to step in it.  mud is better than  that. That is absolutely true.  think, and getting outside and  getting those bare feet in the ground, um those things are life-giving.

54:18

then you just can't, I don't think you can overestimate the power of just the small choices  that you're making and the little inputs um in your life. But I love that tip too of roasting a couple of chickens. I think doing that once a week or once every couple of weeks is a genius idea.  It helps, especially when you're raising four kids on one income, which is why I did it back then.

54:43

This winter, I'm hoping to get back to that because some chicken soup and some chicken salad sounds really good. Just always so good. You know the other thing too, I've been brining my chicken. Do you brine your chicken  before you roast it? I usually melt like half a stick of butter and pour it over it. That's a great idea. And then I just, what is it when you stick the ladle in the broth and pour it over the chicken? Oh yeah, like a basting. Thank you, yes, basting. Yeah, so I have been making a really simple brine.

55:12

with some sugar, some salt and some seasonings and then you dissolve that in water and then you put the chicken pieces or the whole chicken in it and let it sit all day in the fridge brining and then pull it out. And then I do like a compound butter with some garlic, some herbs, some lemon zest, stuff like that and rub it on the inside between the skin and the chicken meat and then on top and then roasting it. I think

55:38

Especially if you're making the transition into pasture raised chicken, which pasture raised chicken can be, ah because they're just not bred the same  as conventional chickens.  Some people can think that it's like a little bit tougher or a little bit drier, but it's really about  how you treat the bird. And I think brining has made a big difference for me. So if you've ever struggled with a pasture raised chicken, that has been a great solution.

56:04

Listen to Elizabeth. She knows what she's talking about because I've never brined a chicken in my whole life.  have brined a turkey. So I'm it's the same. And this is why I thought of it, Mary, because I'm like,  so you do that for a turkey.  Why couldn't you do it for a chicken?  And a lot of times when you have really great chicken at restaurants, they're brining it. And I think  that can be a key to making it better. We have a lot of chefs on Twin Cities Live, so I get lucky. I get to pick up some good tips and tricks from them. It must be so fun. uh

56:34

So thank you so much for your time, Elizabeth. I really have, I really love talking with you. You're so fun. I agree. The feeling is mutual. Thanks for having me. It's a joy to get to chat about all my favorite topics. You're welcome. I really enjoyed it.  Um, so as always, people can find me at a tiny homestead podcast.com  and go check out my Patreon. It's patreon.com slash a tiny homestead. Cause you will find all kinds of hints like what we talked about today.

57:03

Thank you, Elizabeth. You're so welcome. Bye.

 

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A Tiny HomesteadBy Mary E Lewis