Is There A True Definition Of Homesteading?
Short answer is yes. Homesteading as defined historically in the dictionary is: “1. a house, especially a farmhouse, and outbuildings. 2. Law: a person’s or family’s residence, which comprises the land, house, and outbuildings, and in most states is exempt from forced sale for collection of debt. and 3. Historical: (as provided by the federal Homestead Act of 1862) an area of public land in the West (usually 160 acres) granted to any US citizen willing to settle on and farm the land for at least five years.
Is This Definition Used Today?
Kind of. In my experience, each and every homesteader that I have talked to, researched, listened to, or gotten comments from, has defined it differently. So while the basic tenants of “homesteading or being a homesteader” remain the same, there is a lot of personal interpretation and that is what makes it great.
People are now choosing to be urban or suburban homesteaders. While many of them are using their urban homesteading situation as a stepping stone to move to a more rural location, some are content with bringing as much of a piece of the homestead life to the city of suburb they are located in. Other homesteaders are more purists. Choosing to locate themselves in a very rural or secluded location.
I believe the main idea of this lifestyle is to simply be more self-reliant or self-sufficient. This is the common thread throughout the majority of the homesteading community.
Why did we decide to become "Homesteaders"?
This is a huge question to answer. There are many reasons all of which we won’t get into in this article. You will have to stay tuned and keep reading our future posts for all the info.
In a nutshell, we were tired of the rat race. The hectic city/suburban life took its toll on us.
A brief history. I am an architect and my wife a nurse. After I had been laid off numerous times while living in Washington DC, we decided to move to a place with a more stable economy. At that time in 2011, Texas was the place to be. So my wife found a job at a hospital in Houston and we packed our bags.
We were so blessed to be in Texas. Less expensive housing (waaaay less), lower food costs, lower transportation costs, no state income tax…..ahhhhhhh, I could go on. We were very happy.
I was able to find a job at a great firm. My wife finished her Masters degree and quickly rose up the ladder at her hospital. After a while I was talking with my firm owners about future partnership. We had a cute little girl, a nice house, nice cars, fun friends, a great restaurant scene. What more could one want?
What changed?
We changed. Driving an hour+ to and from work. Racing to pick up our daughter from daycare each day. Entrusting our daughter to someone else who was essentially raising her. On the brink of hiring a housekeeper and a lawn service to maintain our home because we did not have time.
Sigh. Why? What is the point?
We had enough. We decided to leave it all and move on the outskirts of a much smaller city, cut our income by more than half, raise our own food, commune with nature, strengthen our faith, and de-stress.
So here we are 2 years in with an 8 acre plot of land and 1 neighbor with some cows to look at. We couldn’t be happier.
If you are interested in following our journey on video. We have a YouTube channel here.
