Episode 186 — Beltane: From Planning to Producing

I asked you to send in your stories about how you're ditching the store, and one person did. So this week we hear hers, plus a few real people from around the world who are breaking up with the supermarket in their own way. A jar of hot sauce, fourteen garden beds, a city balcony. Different starting points, same direction. If you've ever looked at someone else's homestead and thought "that's not me", this one is for you.

Picture your weekly shop with half the items in the trolley, half the bill at the checkout, and half the time spent on the whole process. That's what this episode is about — not giving up the supermarket entirely (we are never, ever giving up shop-bought toilet paper), but cutting it back to just the things that are genuinely too complex to make or grow yourself.

⚠️ THE 7 BIGGEST MISTAKES NEW HOMESTEADERS MAKE (AND HOW TO AVOID THEM)G'day everyone, CJ here, and welcome to episode 183 of Ditch the Store! Today I'm walking through the seven biggest mistakes I see new homesteaders make. I know them all because I've made every one of them, some of them twice. For each one I cover how it happens and, more importantly, how to avoid it. As the sign in my kids' bedroom says, mistakes are proof that you're trying.In this episode:Farm update: weaning Loki off his bottle before the move to the big boy paddock (Doogie is not impressed that the "baby" still gets milk), and getting the Angoras shornMistake 1, too much, too soon, too quickly: bread, ketchup, yogurt, goats, chooks and an orchard all in one week is a recipe for burnoutMistake 2, buying the gear before the skill: why I'm still canning in a $40 Big W pot instead of a $600 US (1,000+ AUD) pressure canner. Also, how an ordinary bowl and tea towel make a perfectly good proofing basket, and why you should borrow or buy secondhand firstMistake 3, animals before infrastructure: the potty calves we brought home with nowhere to put them, why a predator-proof run comes before the chooks, and how having spare hives ready meant we could catch a swarmMistake 4, underestimating the ongoing cost and time: real numbers from our farm. That's $22 a bag of chook feed, $220–250 a round bale, around $30–37 a bale of lucerne, and sick goats that can turn into $2,000 vet bills. Plus why someone has to be there every day, even ChristmasMistake 5, growing what you think you should, not what you eat: the 40-zucchini problem, and why your supermarket receipt should decide what goes in the gardenMistake 6, no plan for the hard stuff: if you have livestock, you'll eventually have dead stock. Know your vet, set aside an emergency fund, and decide before it happensMistake 7, doing it alone and comparing yourself to the highlight reel: nobody posts the gel soap, runny yogurt or rock-hard bread, and I don't milk in a Laura Ashley dress eitherWhy community matters, and where to find mine🔗 JOIN THE CHALLENGE (FREE) Skool community: https://www.skool.com/ditch-the-store-6174/about The October 5-Day Challenge starts Monday 12 October (12–16 Oct)📖 GET THE BOOKS Eggs Without Cartons (Paperback): https://link.amazon/B09pwYzr6 From Brooder to Plate (Paperback): https://link.amazon/B080SYcCL🔗 FOLLOW ALONG Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mojohomestead Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mojohomestead/ Website: https://www.mojohomestead.netNot the Farmer's Wife: https://www.notthefarmerswife.com

🧾 THE DITCH THE STORE METHOD: A SIMPLE FRAMEWORK TO STARTG'day everyone, CJ here! Before you watch this one, do me a favour: go and find your last supermarket receipt. It might be in the car or the bottom of your handbag. Don't guess what's on it; get the real one. Today I'm walking you through the exact method I use to start breaking up with the supermarket. It's the same one we used in the 5-Day Ditch the Store Challenge in my Skool community.And let me be clear: this isn't an overnight thing. I still shop at the supermarket (we are never breaking up with supermarket toilet paper in this house). The goal is to spend less there, one small swap at a time.In this episode:A farm update: weaning Loki off his last bottle, his new "big boy paddock" with the waterfront apartment on the big dam, and false spring hitting the Southern TablelandsWhy you need a real receipt and not your memory (26 years in law enforcement taught me that memory is the least reliable witness there is)Looking at the health cost of what you buy, not just the dollar cost, and why the meat pies on my own receipt made me stop and thinkThe four categories: a pantry staple, a fruit, veg or herb, a protein, and a cleaning productWhy you only work on two at a time, not all four at onceMy four easy starting examples: sourdough, potted herbs, backyard eggs, and homemade laundry powder (which cleared up my son's eczema and mine)Picking with your gut: choose the item that makes you wince every time you pay for itPlan first, replace later: how planning around your real life (holidays, a new baby, caring for someone) stops you giving upStacking a new habit onto one you already have, like the watering can next to the dog's food bowlWhy the 5-Day Challenge now runs every month in Skool, and the upcoming dates🔗 JOIN THE CHALLENGE (FREE) Skool community: https://www.skool.com/ditch-the-store-6174/about Next rounds: likely 12–16 October (final dates posted in Skool) and 23–27 November📖 GET THE BOOKS Eggs Without Cartons: https://link.amazon/B09pwYzr6From Brooder to Plate: https://link.amazon/B080SYcCL🔗 FOLLOW ALONG Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mojohomestead Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mojohomestead/ Website: https://www.mojohomestead.net Not the Farmer's Wife: https://www.notthefarmerswife.com

🌱 WHAT WE LEARNED FROM THE FIRST DITCH THE STORE CHALLENGE (and what's coming next!) Hey everyone, CJ here. Last week we ran the very first Ditch the Store Challenge on Skool, and today I'm recapping how it went, what surprised me running it, and — the big news — where this goes from here. In this episode: What Skool actually is for anyone who's never heard of it, and why I like it a lot more than Facebook for building a genuine, supportive community A personal update: two months into a keto/carnivore way of eating, the weight loss, and the mental clarity that's made a real difference to how much I get done A farm update on Loki, our baby buck, as we start weaning him off the bottle What running the challenge taught me — including the live-call feature on Skool I didn't even know existed until a member went looking for me Why the challenge works just as well self-paced as it does live, and where to find the 180A–E mini-series if you haven't caught them yet The community update: over 60 members on Skool and a combined email list of nearly 250 The big announcement: the 5 Day Ditch the Store Challenge isn't a one-off — it's going to run every month from here on, living permanently in a Skool classroom so you can do it whenever suits your life Confirmed dates for the next two rounds: 19–23 October and 23–27 November Why it's staying free-first rather than becoming a paid course, and what's coming next week (episode 182 — the Ditch the Store Method) Missed last week's challenge, or couldn't make it work with your roster, your kids, or your farm? That's completely fine — there's always another one coming. JOIN THE CHALLENGE (FREE) Skool community: https://www.skool.com/ditch-the-store-6174/about Eddie Abbew Crew on Skool: https://www.skool.com/abbewcrew/about?ref=e31882b2226844c093df8c88e1ee1852 (yes it is an affiliate link, 🙏🏼) GET THE BOOKS Eggs Without Cartons: https://link.amazon/B09pwYzr6From Brooder to Plate: https://link.amazon/B080SYcCL FOLLOW ALONG Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mojohomestead Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mojohomestead/ Website: https://www.mojohomestead.net Not the Farmer's Wife: https://www.notthefarmerswife.com