Hi, I’m Ann Marie! 

I am a mama of four and a grandma to eight! This page is all about me!

I am Yankee born, 200 years too late, with an instilled love of southern traditions. I enjoy old-fashioned skills and ideas but have a modern sense of thinking. I love animals, anything old and antique, canning, gardening, cooking, being outdoors and anything country.

I am a “from-scratch”, old-fashioned, crafty, do-it-yourself country kinda gal, that will save just about any animal and has a vision for an off-grid homestead that provides food on my table, fresh herbs, free range chickens, grass fed beef, all while living a self-reliant life. I enjoy my kitchen the most as it is where I spend most of my time gardening in my food forest, baking homemade bread, canning and cooking for my fiance and my mom and I.

I was homesteading, along with  my fiance, Lance, on 15 acres in beautiful and sunny Central Florida. We left the tiny house that we built ourselves and moved into a bigger home on the property. We were almost completely off-the-grid and almost satisfyingly self-sufficient.

We had everything from a wonderful lake, to wooded areas, to open sunny fields. What more could I ask for? My homestead is home to over 40 chickens, 8 roosters, 1 turkey, 1 Guinea Hen, 4 Pekin Ducks, 1 pot-bellied pig, 3 Yorkshire pigs, 4 Berkshire pigs, 7 Razorbacks, 2 mini pigs, 5 cats, 6 dogs, 2 Khatadin sheep, a flying squirrel, and 2 Mississippi Map Turtles. Plans were made to add some goats, a few alpacas, and 2 cows this year!

However, you know what they say about the best laid plans. Things can change in an instant and we are now proof of that. Due to unforeseen family issues we found ourselves uprooted and replanted in Pennsylvania. A different climate, different growing zones and different soil. But we were not worried. We had the skills and knowledge to homestead anywhere we go.

Homesteading is hard work, long hours, and not a lot of sleep. It can be overwhelming too, trust me. It is all about having a plan and allowing for changes. But once you have it figured out the benefits far outweigh the hard work. 

When we finally started getting settled into our new location, my family crisis continued as my mother was diagnosed with stage 2 colon cancer and off to Florida we went.

Now we are back where we started once again and starting over rebuilding our lives, our homestead, and our dreams once again. Except this time it is with a much clearer vision of a self-sufficient life.

Our goal for this homestead and this website is to teach you how to use old-fashioned skills and eliminate the modern conveniences of today to start a successful journey towards complete self-sufficiency.

Now my days can be filled once again with clean air, healthy food, and a great lifestyle that allows me to work from home amidst my family and my animals.

Come enjoy our journey as we teach and share with you everything you need to start your journey towards self-sufficiency.

You can also find me on our other site Road to Reliance where we share our journey towards self reliant living!