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Simple Country Living

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6 Ways To Live The Country Life… Even If You’re Not In The Country!

A lot of people tell me that they would love to move to the country. The allure of the lifestyle is hard to deny, but the reality is that most people can’t just pick up their lives and move to a small village and start living the country life. But not living in the country doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy the best bits of the lifestyle. Here are some things that you can do anywhere, if you would like to live the simple country life.

Grow your own food

Now I’m not suggesting you start ploughing up your entire yard, or popping a few pigs on the balcony, but whack a few herbs in a pot, or a couple of tomatoes and lettuces in the backyard. The taste of home grown food is so much better than anything you can buy.

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Make your own meals and snacks

Home grown food tastes good, and so does homemade. Start cooking more and buying less pre prepared foods. Your tastes buds, wallet, and health will all thank you. Once you get into the way of it, cooking your own food becomes quick and easy. You don’t need to be roasting a leg of lamb or slow braising your shanks every night. Stir fries, chops and vegetables, soups etc. are all quick to make.

Eat seasonally

Food always taste best when it is fresh. Embrace that freshness by eating the fruits and vegetables that are in season. Not only do they taste better, seasonal food is usually cheaper too. Stone fruit, tomatoes, corn, and berries all summer, apples, pumpkins, and quinces now. You will find that if you concentrate on the fresh treats of the season you won’t even miss those fruits and vegetables you don’t have. So leave those tasteless tomatoes, and floury apples when they are not in season, and enjoy what is in now!

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Buy local

Of course it’s not possible to grow or make everything you need, but it is possible to support other local producers or farmers. Head to your local farmers market for fresh produce and homemade treats, and when you are in the supermarket buy products made in Australia, preferably by Australian owned companies. Doing this helps keep farmers and local producers in business.

Get involved in your community

Small communities rely on people knowing each other, and getting involved. In our village we have a church, a memorial hall, a school, a rural fire brigade, and a recreation ground, all of which need committee members. It is hardly surprising that many people are involved in several groups. Get involved in your local community by joining a local club. Go to the school parents association meetings. Organise a street BBQ to get to know your neighbours. I love that our kids feel connected to their community, and that there are people who we can rely on should we ever need to.

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Let Your Children Free Range

No I’m not suggesting you treat them like chickens, but don’t supervise your kids every moment of the day. Set some sensible boundaries about where they are allowed to go unsupervised, and then leave them to it. Our kids know to let us know where they are going if they head out of the yard, and not to go near the dam. The fun they have and skills they develop when they have to solve problems independently is incredible. Even when we lived in the mountains, we were very keen to let our kids play independently. Let them climb trees, dig in the dirt and build cubbies.

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Pick one or two ideas, or take all six. If you’ve ever thought about moving to the country and living the country life, why not start living it now. Right where you are!

 

What parts of the country life would you most like? What would you struggle with?

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Comments

  1. Caitlyn Pither says

    April 19, 2015 at 3:34 am

    Hi Jo, this is a great post! I originally grew up in the country, but moved to the city. Now my husband and I have just bought a new property in the city and will move after a few years. We have been doing some of the things above and I think they're spot on! Thanks Caitlyn

    Reply
  2. Jo@Countrylifeexperiment says

    April 18, 2015 at 2:29 am

    Thanks Alyson. Living in the country really is just about location, rather than lifestyle… though perhaps it is easier to adopt the lifestyle out here? Chicken and egg stuff!

    Reply
  3. Alyson Hill says

    April 17, 2015 at 10:22 pm

    I do live in the country and this post is spot on – these were all the things I did when I lived in the city, and eventually, I realised I wanted to do it all on a bigger scale…and here I am! Love your photos! X

    Reply

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Hi, I’m Jo

I'm a city girl turned farmer's wife, school teacher, ideas woman, and mum to three country kids. Country Life Experiment is all about simple country living, growing and making our own food, and life on our family farm in rural Australia. Join me as I give country living a try. Read more...
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Summer holidays seem a million years ago already. Summer holidays seem a million years ago already. It’s all systems go here as we try to get our rhythm going. School and work are busy, community events are coming back, and our harvest is in full swing. It’s a lot to manage. No matter how busy we are, I’ve been prioritising my evening walk. Sometimes C or the kids come with me and we talk and make plans, and sometimes I go alone, with a podcast for company. Either way, the golden hour is always breathtakingly beautiful and I snap way too many pics. None of them ever fully capture the magic, but I can’t help myself. I mean look!!! 😍
The kids have been wanting to build a raft for the The kids have been wanting to build a raft for the dam for a while. They collected some old barrels and pallets, and got some rope to lash it all together. This morning they put it together and floated it out into the middle of the dam. Plenty of magical days to be had playing on the dam ahead of us!
The orchard doesn’t stop. We’re getting basket The orchard doesn’t stop. We’re getting baskets and baskets of fruit each day and I’m running out of things to do with it all. I’ve taken quite a few to work to give away. I’ve made jams and pastes and chutney. I’ve cooked and frozen apricots and nectarines for fruit crumble this winter and dehydrated plums and apples for lunch boxes. The pantry and freezer are filling up.
I woke up yesterday and it was raining - a perfect I woke up yesterday and it was raining - a perfect time to deep clean. I dusted, de-cobwebbed, sorted, wiped, scrubbed, vacuumed and washed. Of course it will stay this way for 34 seconds, but it’s nice while it lasts.
We’re slowly (verrry slowly) getting back into t We’re slowly (verrry slowly) getting back into the swing of school and work. I think C might secretly be glad we’re leaving him each day so he can get through the many jobs that he always has at this time of year. He’s fencing and slashing thistles and drenching the lambs and a thousand other things that need to be done to keep the farm ticking over. In the evenings he often joins me on my walk and we talk about our plans for the garden and farm. We’ve had a lot of rain over the past few days and the air is so clear and the evening light is amazing. I keep stopping to take photos.
Late summer harvest is coming in. I’ve got tomat Late summer harvest is coming in. I’ve got tomatoes, stone fruit, corn, and even early apples sitting on my bench needing to be dealt with. I’ve got a big pot of tomato passata on the stove (I need to make at least 50 jars this year) and I went through our jams and pickles and made a list of what I need to make this year. Next week I will get out the dehydrator and start drying fruit for snacks and muesli. It’s all systems go!

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Hi, I’m Jo

City girl turned farmer's wife, school teacher, ideas woman, and mum to three country kids. Country Life Experiment is all about simple country living, growing and making our own food, and life on our family farm in rural Australia. Join me as I give country living a try. Read more...
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