Get Up and Move + A Chicken Tractor

Brett and I finally found ourselves with a beautiful day perfectly designed for us to get something done. I swear it seems as though it has been raining for months but the clouds have cleared and that's just right for getting up and getting out. I have found {and been told over and over like most Southern children} that 'the best way to get it done is to start it'. This week we found ourselves shocked that the summer has pushed on without us getting our chickens as planned. It turns out that the endless list of chores has "Chicken Coop" right at the head of it. Today happened to be the day we started our poultry farm. We just got up and did it. 

The supplies were easy to acquire. Luckily for us, we have a front yard about 20 acres big and it's full of supplies. Actually, the now cleared property was once a forest used to store things. Over 40 years the acres stored 'things' such as vehicles {there was once a Model-T Hotrod built completely of parts found here}, buildings, salvaged wood {of which has become an extremely valuable resource}, and scrap metal... lots and lots of scrap metal. Luckily, it was all cleaned up for me about 2 years prior to my arrival. So now I scavenge the hills and countryside for treasures I have come to adore. I have found a stash of a couple hundred mason jars, enough salvaged wood to build several barns and sheds for the farm, trailers, fencing, clothing {my favorite being a box of perfectly preserved 90's wear, all in my size and fashionably up to date!}, farming equipment, antique farming supplies and what nots... a lot of what nots. Today we were able to gather four boxes I have been eyeing for roosting nests, a few pieces of siding and salvaged 2x4s, fencing, nails, and two "bored" children. Three hours later we had ourselves a 'chicken tractor'.

Today was a big day! I am so thrilled to be set to enjoy guaranteed fresh home grown poultry in just a few months. Brett's placing bets on whether I will be able to part with them enough to actually eat them. I expect it to be hard but we have to eat. An activity I take with much greater indulgent reverence now that my favorite meals are the finish to a start of such deliberate action.

Southern Supper

Menu

Smoked Pork Butt

Caramelized Baked Beans

Loaf Bread

Potato Chips

Country Fried Apple Biscuits

Yesterday, we were invited for a fish fry over at Brett's aunt and uncles home. He just so happens to have a unique apple tree on the property. I was told that this tree is spliced together from two different trees, similar to how they do a rosebush. The apples have produced so fervently this year so many have fallen to the ground. We saw the opportunity to spoil the horses with the bite size apples and I found a way to spoil us after an amazing pork roast, a gift in exchange for a few gallons of our fresh picked wild found blackberries. This roast just so happened to be a gift from Mr. Burke {previously mentioned Gardner Extraordinaire}. He spent hours slow roasted the perfectly seasoned roast over a fire pit in the back yard. I am determined to learn to prepare this so hopefully I will have that information, photo's included, up on the blog before the end of the summer {fingers crossed}!

After this perfectly balanced meal of pork, beans, and bread I had a 'hankering' for something sweet and southern. I am so thrilled with my new found ability to bake biscuits I turned to my Edna Lewis cookbook {The Taste of Country Cooking} and discovered her recipe for 'Country Cooked Apples' was paired with her biscuit recipe in the section of the book marked 'Morning After Hog Butchering Breakfast'.

Everyone should be aware that the mention of 'fried apple pies' sparks stars in the eyes of southern men. It seems so many southern families had that one lady who makes one mean fried apple pie, from scratch of course. I was blessed to be able to learn to make these beauties from Aiden's Great Grandmother DeFoor who at 83 was still picking apples from her own backyard, slicing them, drying them in the barn, and then preparing her treats for a hungry family to be eaten at Thanksgiving dinner. A task that from start to finish took months, simply adding to the anticipation and appreciation for them.

Recipes

Start with fresh made biscuits. This recipe is not particularly sweet, which I prefer because I love adding a sweet whipped cream to it. Follow recipe for Country Fried Apples {via The Taste of Country Cooking by Edna Lewis}. The following photos are of the apples in three stages: started, cooking, and finished. If you care for a sweeter apple pie flavored concoction, I would add more sugar {up to double the sugar} to the apples than the recipe calls for. After they caramelize {turn from their bright white color to a brownish color} simply place a spoonful of the apples on top of the biscuits and drizzled the dessert with caramel sauce right before I served it. Voila! In less than 30 minutes you will have a simplified southern treat.

Country-Fried Apples, via The Taste of Country Cooking

6 apples
3 Tablespoons fresh bacon fat {or butter/lard}
1/3 C sugar

Basically, cut up the apples and fry them in the fat until they soften up and start breaking up. Remove from the heat and stir in the sugar and cook until the liquid is mostly gone from the pan.

Old Fashioned Fresh Blackberry Cobbler

We are reaping in the berries right now. If there were three more of us, we would still not have enough people to pick the gorgeous blackberries and dew berries before they fell off of the vine. I have decided to do my part in making sure that they are not wasted and use them as often as possible. There is not much to do about blackberries now a days. While thumbing through my favorite cook book, The Taste of Country Cooking by Edna Lewis, she says it perfectly, "Everyone seems to have forgotten how delicious blackberries were - if they ever knew." The recipe that follows is for 'Compote of Stewed Blackberries'. Prior to this cookbook, I hadn't ever heard of such a thing. I have not made it yet, that will follow this week though I am sure. About Edna Lewis, if you get a chance take a look at Tony Tipton Martin's post about Edna Lewis on her blog called The Jemima Code. On a side note, I have fallen in love with this blog. I am so glad that information like this is left even after someone decides to move on to another project. I have learned so much clicking through the pages of this blog dedicated to mini autobiographies of African American women chefs.

I did decide to try my hand at her 'Fresh Blackberry Cobbler'. {I really do highly recommend that you pick up a copy of this book.} I am still shocked at how easy it is to cook from scratch. This recipe was ridiculously easy and one I will be ashamed to not keep made all blackberry season. Delicious! Although not at all what I expected... I am used to the super sweet and syrupy open topped 'dropped dough' style cobbler. This old fashioned one used little sugar and so there was ample opportunity to use a sweetened cream whipped topping. This is certainly going to be available at our road side stand as a suggestion to our buyers on what to do with their ABSOLUTELY AMAZING BERRY MIX {this Friday 3 - 6 o'clock in Batesville}.

Fresh Blackberry Cobbler

{my notes}

The cobbler was baked in a large, deep baking pan with a delicious crust made from home-rendered lard and baked to a gold brown, with syrupy juice spouting through the pierced top as the berries cooked. It was served warm with delicious juice from the berries spooned over the top.

Pastry

2 cups sifted unbleached flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup lard

1/3 cups cold water

1 cup crushed cube sugar

1/4 cup light cream {or milk}

Filling

5 cups blackberries {I suggest another 2-3 cups for a thicker filling.}

4 thin slices butter

3/4 cup granulated sugar {My mother suggests 1 to 1 1/2 cups for a more syrupy filling.}

2 t cornstarch

8 x 8 x 2 inch baking pan

Sift the flour and the salt into a large mixing bowl. Blend in the lard with your fingers. When it is well blended and fine grained {like cornmeal}, sprinkle all the water in at once, and draw the dough together quickly, shaping it into a ball. Divide in half and let stand for a few minutes. After it has rested {about 2 minutes}, put one half in the freezer and then roll out the other piece and line the baking pan. Sprinkle 2 or 3 tablespoons of the crushed sugar over the dough, cover with wax paper, and set it into the refrigerator (or freezer) until you are ready to fill it, along with the other piece of dough. {For a pretty cobbler, roll it out bigger than the dish and let the edges hang over the edge. I just rolled mine big enough to fit the bottom of the dish in the photo above. I think it gives it an unmistakable 'homemade' look. Ha!} {Gather the ingredients for the filling and prepare your berries while the dough sits} When you are ready to assemble the cobbler, remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll out the top crust. Remove the pastry-lined pan from the refrigerator and fill it with berries, distributing them pieces of butter and sprinkling over the 3/4 cup granulated sugar mixed with the cornstarch. {I was done here, I am definitely not a pastry chef with patience for 'pretty'.} Wet the rim of the dough in the pan and place the top pastry over, pressing down all around to seal and trimming away excess {like a pie}. With the handle of a dinner knife, make a decorative edge and then cut a few slits in the center to allow steam to escape. Brush the top with a thick brush of cream and sprinkle on the remaining crushed cube sugar. Place in a preheated 450 oven and when the door is shut, turn down to 425 to bake for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and set on a rack to cool a bit before serving.

THEY'RE HERE

Our 40 acres are covered in wild blackberry vines. Mixed in along the ground are runs of extra large and extra sweet dew berries. Dew berries are more plump, sweeter, and less seedy than blackberries. It is hard to keep from eating them as I pick them but I know our buyers will appreciate the candy like sensation of their newly purchased fresh dew berries! It was always a delight to my siblings and me when we found a GIANT BERRY and we often competed while filling the giant metal bowls my Grammy had sent us out to gather with.  

{Note to Self: I must get me a set of those bowls.}

Like 1-8 qt stainless set

and  THESE.

You can purchase these all natural lovingly donated by Earth wild blackberries and dew berries, grown right here in the hills of Habersham County on the Northeast Georgia Locally Grown website below:

I may be able to be talked into mailing them if you HAVE TO HAVE THEM.

That Time The Tractor Went Dead

It was mid morning Tuesday and Brett and I had nothing to do. Having nothing to do on a farm is rare and considering ourselves luckily perched between a full schedule behind us and a to do list a mile long ahead of us, we jumped at the chance to take a leisurely tractor ride around the property. Of course, as {Brett's} luck would have it, we were halfway down a steep hill when the darn thing stalled out. He tried rolling it off but ended up running it waaaay down hill and into a ditch. We bummed around all day until our friend Jacob was off of work. Brett called him with an opportunity to finally use his new wench mounted on the front of his new truck. Twenty minutes later his wife Beth and I were perched in the back of the truck watching a pretty good show starring three men, a tractor, and a wench.

It only took about 45 minutes to pull it out of the ditch with a wench.

Then only 5 minutes to tow it up the hill with the truck.

It only took one person to be a friend.

This just goes to show you one man's mishap is another man's wench dream come true.

Lesson:

Manure happens. When it does, you find out who your friends are.

Linking up here:

Progress!

I have such a list of things to do that I'm considering hiring help. You know, considering it in a way I consider becoming the Queen of England... it's never going to happen. Never-the-less this list is happening and I am more overwhelmed than ever now that the weather is permitting. I find that with lists the visual accomplishments are the most delightful. Take for example my garden. Brett and I have been toiling on this thing for months, which isn't unusual because we 'toil' on everything!

We have two gardens planted now. I decided on two separate spots mainly for convenience sake. The land is literally being cleared as we go. I also wanted to experiment with what we planted where. The dates were left up to accomplishing land prep. Although I have vigorously researched tips on how to grow everything I have planted there is still not a better way to learn than 'the business end of a pitchfork', as we have been told before. Unless you know someone like this guy:

Mr. Burke is a friend of Verner's and was visiting him at the house one day when Brett asked him if he would take a look at our garden. We were preparing the soil for the garden we were planting for bulk canning produce and the vegetables near the well house were already a few weeks along. He commended our efforts and then turned to Brett and said, "Take a ride to the house and let me show you what a real garden looks like." We all laughed and then hopped in the truck and took a ride. Loy grew up farming when his family farmed purely for the sake of feeding themselves. His awareness of GMO's and other evil's of processed food led him to revisit his knowledge and plant a garden of his own in the past few years. He feeds himself and his wife with his one acre plot and various other beds year round. I'll tell you this much, we learned more useful tips from him than we had learned online yet. Word of advice, find a farmer with over 50 years experience and make a friend.

So here you have it:

The Well House Garden

Planted 4/20

The Canning Garden

Planted 5/22

Today I reveled in progress. We have finally come to the point in our garden where we can take a break. The list can wait until tomorrow where we will literally flip a coin on whether to begin fencing the back yard in for the horses or to begin building the chicken coop. Although as I look outside, it appears while I have been blogging my darling husband has chosen for us. There are three fence posts set. So goes it!

Oh! Here is what we did today instead of work on lists:

Much better.

Get It Girl!

We spent days preparing the 'field' for tractor access. We then spent days on the tractor. We then pulled all the stumps, sticks, rocks, and clumps of clay out and got back on the tractor. Three implements and all stinkin' day later I gathered my seeds. Then, Verner told us that we needed to fertilize it. *Sigh* I knew we had to but I had forgotten because I was so anxious to plant... and I was tired. I decided to see how fast it could be done. Not only is it efficient but it makes labor fun.  I clocked my best time at 15 seconds! We use rabbit manure to fertilizer our gardens... talk about 'shittin' and gettin'. Ha haaaa! I need to come up with a list of farmer girl chores that keep me fit, keep it fun, and prepare for our Farm Day this fall. Suggestions welcome! So yeah, stay tuned for more entertaining happenings like this one. <3

Whoopsy Daisy

Driveway Rule #1: Watch where you are going.

Look what I did. It doesn't look that bad. 

Au contraire, Ma' Dear. I was actually on time this particular morning. It was a beautiful Tuesday morning and I had errands to run and the time to myself. I kissed my lover goodbye and watched him and my father in law as they walked down the driveway, headed to the pasture. I jumped in the truck, the 6 day new truck, and instead of looking where I was going I snuck another peak at them. I smiled, pleased with my new memory, and within seconds as I pressed the gas and cut the wheel to back up I heard a terrible sound, "RIGOWHERIUF98ZCH"!!! That really is what it sounded like. 

You know that moment when you realize this moment in time is going to be relayed to every family member over every supper for the next 25 years. I can already hear my Poppa laughing, snickering, and then saying "Goood grief, Ashley Marie," too humored to chastise me. Besides, I am too old for that now. Score! And yes, I just claimed aging as a successful accomplishment.  Through aging, I have realized it is best to approach as many disasters as possible with humor. Laughter heals, People. You heard it here, too.

I did not even turn my head. I was set up perfectly to admire the look of sheer shock as they spun around expecting the worse. I could not help but giggle when Verner wheeled around concerned and then rolled his eyes. You see, Verner Hill drove a truck for quite a few years. At 72, he has seen just about all he could imagine of terrible women drivers but this time caused him to shake his head. Would you like to know how a Southern man treats a lady who has just found herself in a situation unbecoming of a lady? He leaves her the heck alone, solves the problem, and sends her on her way. I love how understanding and permissive of my clumsiness the men in my life are! 

It only took them taking the tractor boom off, turning the tractor around, using the boom to lift the truck up off of said scrape while meticulously pushing-it-in-a-manner-that-would-not-destroy-it-out-of-the-way. No biggie. However, now I was no longer 20 minutes early but 15 minutes late. 

Manure Happens.

Are you Locally Grown? We are!

Even though we do not have anything to sell at the moment, we went ahead and contacted a local online organization that truly is, in my opinion, an asset to not only the modern farmer but the modern family. 

Locally Grown is this online farmers market, basically. The farmer, once inspected and approved, lists the produce online. There are set days the consumer can order from a variety of products from a variety of farms online. The group then contacts the farmer and delivers the 'order.' Then the farmer fills the order and delivers the produce to a pick up location. Ba-da-bing, ba-da-boom. However, they have standards such as no GMO seed produced plants and organic practices are not only required but encouraged. See, if you don't exactly know what you are doing then they will help you figure it out. My two favorite reasons for joining this group are as follows:

1.) Locally Grown supports the local farmer by taking the guess work out of the market. Instead of picking a basket full of produce that sits there waiting patiently and hoping to be bought... but unfortunately just goes bad; now I need only to pick the produce once it is ordered.

2.) YOU do not have to play favorites. 

Well, Chuck called yesterday and asked to come out today. As soon as the boys were off of the bus, we showed off our garden to Chuck and Amy. We were given some quality advice, suggestions of which farms to check out, and WERE APPROVED! Hopefully, as soon as we produce you can find us online at:

http://northeastgeorgia.locallygrown.net/welcome

Sign up! We'll see you there!

You Should Know: The Lone Bellow

According to iTunes and YouTube I have listened to 'Green Eyes and a Heart of Gold' by The Lone Below a lot in the past 3 days. It may be safe to assume that I have found something to connect with within the lyrics. You know after the initial shock of being broke fades away, like most things I find, you sink into being comfortable. I have found a way to be comfortable with a style of living that does not depend on making money. Finally. Life changes constantly and if there is one thing I have been able to get accustomed to in my life it would definitely have to be that no matter how badly I want them to, not one thing will stay the same very long. Nothing. Learning to become accustomed to the ebb and flow of life was one of my crowning achievements in my 27th year. My relationships changed, my children grew {and I acquired more!}, my current career and lifestyle and dreams have barely anything in common with the ones I had merely 3 years ago. I have had a determination to raise my children wholesomely since before I knew I was certain I would even have children. Like most, I have only my instinct to rely on. Fortunately for my instinct it was 'raised right' as far as I am concerned. A combined effort of many amazing people... I was not raised by one or two but several. I have been soul searching for years to discover a way to verse my desire and a way to relay the message to my boys. "...The moneys gone and the house is cold but it's alright..." sums it up pretty well. Not that I do not want my children to have a desire to achieve and be fruitful but in a world where financial stability is seemingly more and more unlikely I hope they are able to live in a world where the most important   parts of their life are the experiences that happen regardless of money. Life goes on no matter how broke you are. Actually, life goes on no matter how rich you are too. Before we get there though, I feel it is in everyone's best interest to know, so they can be reminded if need be, where they came from. It has taken quite a few years for quite a few people to get our family where it is today and I do not expect for one moment for us to shy away from donating our own blood, sweat, and tears for the future of our next generations. I have always had this love affair with being American and could lose myself in the next few hours telling story after story of where I acquire my pride. I think it might be a better idea to spread it out over time. As always my mind can be overtaken with lyrics and emotion will always inspire me to share.
 

North Georgia Skyline

I figure since we tout the beauty of our piece of Heaven it might be time to show off a bit. I moved onto the property, shortly after Declan was born, last year in May. At first, I was shocked at how accustomed to living in town I had become! There was an adjustment period. I mean I grew up merely 10 miles from 'town' and on 13 acres where my siblings and I pretty much had free reign. I appreciated, even as a child, the honeysuckle, bullfrogs, lightening bugs, whippoorwill calls, lizards, tall pines, and the creek. I loved the outdoors. Only like every other wild spirit with no where to roam I ran towards the hustle and bustle and became used to everything being 'right there'. In the past year, I have been witness to some pretty awesome things around here that reminded me why I wanted to raise my kids in the country, just as I had been. I could post hundreds of novice photos I've taken. Here are the best of my favorite shots of my favorite part of living here, the views from around the farm:

sunrise from the back deck

sunset from the back deck the night before the above sunrise was taken

the view of the farm across the valley from the top of the hill

the end of a rainbow, a sight unseen until my 27th year

Gardening: The Beginning

I don't know about you, but we straight up laid up this winter. Not really. However now that it is spring it would be nice to think that we just spent the last several months resting ourselves to prepare for what we have gotten ourselves into! There has finally been enough land cleared to make way for our gardens. Wait, that should definitely be a headline:

"There Has FINALLY Been Enough Land Cleared to Make Way For Our Gardens!!!"

You see, we have a large plowable garden spot down by the creek but I wanted raised beds and I wanted them closer. In my mind I have a garden with adorable pathways and chickens scratching with ducks and peacocks wandering around. Have you ever seen The Secret Garden? Well that's what I want.

I sometimes have trouble getting going around the house. I have so many ideas and so many lists and so many half finished projects that it is hard for me to focus and just get going on anything new. Planning this garden, which I hope to be not only fruitful but aesthetically pleasing, seemed like a challenge and I had no better idea how to plan a garden than a back pack trip across Europe. "That's not true, we did grow up gardening." -says Brett. Well, he did. I grew up weeding the garden... as a treat. My Poppa loved gardening so much he didn't need help. Growing up having a garden seem so precious, I feel as though I have finally come to the point in my life where I can appreciate and properly care for the garden. Raising children probably did that for me. Haha~!

I was surprised when I turned for help how many people were discouraging! We heard about the work, the toil, the problems, were given the blood/sweat/tears speech, and maybe then were told about the joys of gardening. We heard about the fads and the trends... What the heck is 'manure tea'!? {We found out and we love it.} Honestly, we're no stranger to blood, sweat, and tears. Like most Americans, that's how we'll earn our way. So, with all of our experience gathered up, we just started. We keep moving forward, figuring it out as we go. Brett and I have found out how much we absolutely love working outside. I know I personally find gardening to be my dream job. There is constantly tedious labor to be done, I always feel better when I'm a bit sore, and there is no way I can micro manage this thing too much. Though, my favorite part has to be the physical gratification of watching something progress with life that I helped nurture. That's why I call them my "Babies". You all do that too, right?

Day One

Week One

Filling the beds Brett made from reclaimed wood found on the property with fertile dirt snatched from the creek bottoms.

Snow Peas... Boo Ya!

I say we got the job done. It was hard, and took weeks. I am waiting patiently for the horrible part (which is forecast for 100+ degree harvesting in July and August). As far as the aesthetically pleasing part, I have decided to let the organic garden develop, well, organically. I just started with raised beds and keep adding things I like. Every day I make a contribution to the garden and will do so until I run out space! 

Circle of Lettuce

Now we are off to do it all over again down at the bottoms. Even though I expect to be outvoted, I am going to attempt for something like this:

Martha Stewart gardens

So today I am doing my research and development on my favorite blogs and Pinterest. We are expecting rain so that means hours of guilt free internet surfing for me!

Hay Is Definitely For Horses!

"Opportunities are never lost. Someone else will take the one you miss."

From the beginning Brett and I knew we wanted horses.

Honestly I completely under estimated how serious Brett was about acquiring a horse! Before I knew it, he had found a free horse available on Craigslist! That's right, Craigslist. There was an ad for a free 9 year old companion horse. Brett jumped at the opportunity and we inquired. We found out that the thoroughbred gelding was considered a companion horse because he could not be ridden. We were a bit disappointed but we really just wanted to get our hands dirty and knew that our priority right now was going to be learning to care for a horse and not necessarily learning to ride. Then, I was nervous when we found out why he was a companion horse. He had been in an accident and had suffered a knock to the head which left him with nerve damage and he had damage to his spinal column. He was rescued from a kill sale... can you believe that!? I think it is so unfortunate that just because he couldn't be worked or ridden he was sentenced to death... but my concern was how much care did he need and could we provide that? Brett assured me that he was a fine horse and would make a great starter horse for us. After all, he just needed to be kept alive and loved. We went for it. After checking to make sure that our starter farm was suitable we made arrangements for Ferdinand to come home!

To our delight, we were able to adopt another horse from A Pinch of Luck, Inc. Her name is Brighton and she is a 4 year old filly. Besides being physically in tact, she is attached to Ferdinand and he to her. Having prepared to receive one horse, we decided there would not be much more work in preparing for two. I personally LOVED the idea of Ferdinand having someone to keep him company. I hate the idea of a lonely animal. The situation just seemed too perfect to pass up. You can read about her history here.

The day that they arrived we were beyond nervous. I was so worried that our property wouldn't pass as suitable. For the past several decades the property has been used to house tons upon tons of scrap metal. Over the past several years it has slowly been sold and cleaned up. Most recently, the entire property was harvested for hardwood. Now the view of lush forest has opened up to gorgeous mountain views... but the land is full of stumps and is in desperate need of years of landscaping. We're working hard but as Heather said, "Life is a process." Holy wow, she nailed it. Better yet, we passed! We were floored when we saw Ferdinand and Brighton for the first time. "Majestic" is the perfect word to describe these big, beautiful, thoroughbred horses. 

We transformed two stalls in our 'barn' previously known as 'the building' and fenced in approximately two of the prettiest acres on our farm. These particular two run along the 'bottoms' near the creek so the horses benefit from the grass and grain that grow in the fertile soil and have access to constantly flowing fresh Georgia mountain spring water.

I hope that they are happy and will continue to be! I have learned so very much in the past 9 days. My original fear of them, they were after all so SO BIG, was eased by my mom who compared them to 'giant dogs'. That helped put their care into perspective. While fencing in the pasture we had to make do with what we had. They came from pasture so we decided to walk them twice a day to ensure they were given plenty of exercise and fresh grass. We walk them for about an hour and we're too scared to let them go so we are always within three feet of them. Our Ferdinand has OCD, like me. He likes to stand in one place and graze in a circular pattern until he can't reach any further and takes a step to continue his grazing. He also likes to be sang to and really likes to have between his ears scratched. I've grown attached to him and he to me. I coddle him as if he were a child and he doesn't seem to mind! Brighton is a pretty lady and appreciates being treated like one! She demands respect and shows appreciation by nuzzling us. She likes to wander while she eats and really enjoys a short jog every day. Talk about a rush... try jogging beside a 1500 pound beast for 45 seconds! She handles well though and is so respectful of her guide, whether it be Brett or me.

There is a definite learning curve but we seem to be doing alright. We are dedicated to providing them with the best lifestyle possible, and they seem to be happy.

To read more about our adoption story, visit A Pinch Of Luck, Inc. and read all about it!

We Live & Dream!

Hill Manor Farm exists and that's about the most exciting news since the birth of our last child!

We are Brett & Ashley Marie Hill, married on February 14, 2012.

We are raising 3 boys, have began renovating the big house into a home, and
in May we decided to take advantage of the gorgeous property and start a farmstead.

Nestled in the hills of Habersham County Georgia are 38 acres of paradise!

There are two creeks that together border two sides of the acreage.

The house sits on a hill overlooking the grassy knolls, creek beds, and forest that symbolize classic Habersham County.
We get to sit on our back porch and gaze upon the southern view of the Blue Ridge Mountains in the Chattahoochee National Forest.

We are excited about growing and learning. We want to personally be self sufficient and provide our community with quality locally grown livestock and whatever else we can produce!

"Proverbs 27:23 Know well the state of your flocks, and pay attention to your herds."