Since we have moved out to the country about six months ago and have a little more land, we have also started the process of becoming a little more self-sustainable, and much more simple. I love the idea of wasting nothing and being able to provide as much as we can for our family off of our own property. You will be seeing more of what works for us and how we got started as spring rolls around, but for now I’m here to share with you how we simple prepare our home and property for winter, so that we can enjoy the season with our family, without worrying about things.
At the bottom of this post, there will be a free printable for you to use as a checklist – I would stick it in your home binder for a guideline to follow each year.
Now, we don’t have the time or space (yet) for livestock / meat, but we do have chickens who provide lots of eggs and eventually meat, and we buy a lot of our other meat from local farmers. And since we moved in mid Spring, we didn’t get a chance to get our garden in this year, but are planning it for next Spring. So, this post is just kind of a generic list that we use – you may need to add things, or ignore things depending on your home.
First, we’ll start outside, before it gets too cold.
OUTSIDE: Do one last fall clean up – make sure the lawn is mowed, the leaves are cleaned up (I recycle a lot of them into our garden and compost), and pick up any large sticks / branches. For us fall clean up also means check the gutters and powerwashing the house! Go ahead and winterize, or set a date on the calendar as a reminder to undo hoses and cover any outside water spickets.
Give the gardens and landscaping one last “weeding”. If you have a vegetable garden, this is the perfect time to prepare the soil and garden space for the spring, if you aren’t fall gardening. Start your compost collection, repair fences, and give it one more good tilling if you don’t have a raised bed.
Stack / collect any firewood that needs to be seasoned. Move any usable / seasoned firewood closer to the house (but not against the house, you don’t want to attract bugs) for convenience during the cold. And collect kindling.
Make sure the animals are taken care of – Make sure any outside animals have plenty of cedar / warm bedding on hand, and a way to keep water from freezing. For our chickens, we completely clean the coops out and make sure if they need a warming light, that it’s set up. It’s not a bad idea to stock up on cedar bedding and a little extra feed incase you can’t get out when you need it.
INSIDE: Wash those winter blankets, and cozy up the house with them – keeping them close at hand and adding a little winter charm to your home. I add a few extra throws to the bed and keep a basket full in the living room and guest rooms just to make sure everyone is comfortable.
If you’re feeling froggy, make sure there are no cracks in caulking or air getting in windows, doors, or from other areas (sometimes even from electrical outlets). Check the insulation in your attic as well. Reverse your ceiling fans to keep warm air circulating.
Vehicles: Check your tires – you don’t want to go through the wet winter with bad tires. Also make sure your oil is good and that you have extra oil, antifreeze, and windshield washer fluid on hand! I like to keep extra blankets, flashlights, matches, first aid, snacks, cell phone chargers, and toddler entertainment in a basket in the car in case of emergencies.
PREPARE: Stock up on water and a few non-perishables incase of a bad storm. I also make sure we have plenty of candles, matches, flash lights, and oil for the lanterns. If you don’t have a wood-burning fireplace / stove, you may want a kerosene heater or a generator. (one of my winter projects is to get all of this mess organized and into a designated space)
BORED: Use the winter’s inside time to plan your spring garden. I also like to use this time to get the inside cleaned and organized, so that I can spend as much time outside come warmer weather. Go through those closets and drawers and “clutter” spaces. Organize your bills and other paperwork, and start thinking “tax season”.
Get the printable list here.
Please leave any additional ideas or comments to share below.
