Why "Homestead Jenn"?

I may have jumped the gun on this whole "I'm a blogger now" thing! Apparently there are new phrases like "pinterest photo" and "blog hops". There's a way to make a posted photo be "pinnable" - another word I just learned! haha I'll have to save the learning of those buzzwords for another day! I did learn how to add the social media icons to my blog and to Rent The Chicken.com! If you need to learn how, be sure to read Christina's igottacreate! blog!

Before I describe to you how I became "Homestead Jenn", it's best to back up to tell of how "Homestead Phil" came about. Good ol' Homestead Phil has always been a dreamer and a visionary. When we were planning to transition from life in the city to life in the country, he had big dreams of a large garden, raising meat rabbits for food, and having backyard hens for eggs. For as much as he is a visionary and a dreamer, he doesn't always envision the steps it takes to get to the dream. That's where I come in! I'm the planner, the list maker, and the "what do we have to do to get to the dream?" of the team. Before we even moved, I put my foot down to say "You can pick two things of the three!". Needless to say, my foot didn't stay down very long! Phil was listening to pod casts and watching youtube videos on homesteading preparing for the next stage of our lives.

Once we moved from outside of Baltimore, Maryland to the country in Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, Phil started to convert into Homestead Phil! He studied the seeds to buy for his garden. He researched the best meat rabbits to buy and breed. One random day when I thought it was far too cold to buy baby chicks, he said "I'm going to buy baby chicks. I'll be back after bit." (Notice: I didn't say he researched! haha) I think he said it when he was going out the door so I couldn't give a rebuttal! We had ZERO supplies for chick raising. We did EXACTLY we don't recommend for people to do when getting into backyard chickens. Phil started calling himself Homestead Phil. He created a Homestead Phil email address and even posted to a YouTube channel for awhile until we shifted social media to focus on Rent The Chicken. I ultimately did not get crowned with the Homestead Jenn title until we hatched Rent The Chicken.com! So apparently, I'm "Homestead Jenn" by association. :) Each of the families that offer Rent The Chicken from their farm/homestead are also called Homestead So-and-so! You can read about all of them on my favorite section of Rent The Chicken.com: The About Us Page.

So here are some flashback photos of the start of Homestead Phil! The chicks that started the vision for Rent The Chicken are being inspected by Givi Kitty! There were no chicks harmed in the snapping of this photo. haha The baby rabbit was our first ever breeder rabbit, Fiona. The sprouts are cucumbers growing inside. Eventually when the weather broke, they were transplanted into the garden. Rabbits love to snack on cucumbers! As much as Givi Kitty loves having me around, she is truly Phil's kitty. She will pick his lap over mine almost every time. She likes to sleep on me at night though so it all evens out! :)