Small Scale Life

As a content creator, there are times when we are on a crazy race to put up the next piece of content for our friend, followers and fans. We are in a mad dash to keep the dopamine hits coming and the fans liking our photos, blog posts, podcasts, videos, tweets and pins. At times, we are doing things to just DO things, and we are completely missing out on what is happening around us. Terrance Layhew from the Intellectual Agrarian Blog and Podcast and I had a chance to sit down and talk about this very subject. Terrance called it "living in the analog," and this whole discussion left me with a lot to think about. In fact, based on this conversation, I re-evaluated some of the things I was posting on Instgram and actually scaled back on some of the content there. I discontinued the Black-and-White Photo Challenge as I thought long and hard about the purpose of this effort and once again thinking about the WHY behind it. As you will hear in the podcast, Terrance is a fellow people collector, and he has use

Welcome to Spring, friends! Hallelujah and pass the Dombucha Kombucha; the snow is melting! We have a great podcast lined up for you today, and we are kicking off Spring right by talking urban farming and gardening. I had a chance to talk with my good friend Michael Bell from Dallas Half Acre Farms about what is happening on the farm. While he has been very busy selling and buying a house, moving, teaching and of course being a dad and husband, things are really busy on the farm as well. Michael has made several improvements to the farm including installing new tunnels, increasing the number of seedlings he needs, improving his seedling growing processes and growing easy with GrowOyas! You might be asking: what is an GrowOya? GrowOyas are a method for watering your gardens using a clay pot that looks like a gourd. The water seeps into your soil and the plants get what they need. It is another method to water your garden without timers, hoses, drip tape or other methods. Michael is lining a tunnel wi

For this 133rd Small Scale Life podcast, Julie and I talked about the Health and Fitness Renew You Kickstart with Karen Mangieri. Karen is Julie's sister living in Georgia. For those of you not in the Small Scale Life Facebook Group, Karen was our most active member during the Health and Fitness Renew You Kickstart. In fact, Karen had the title of "Uncrustable Queen" prior to the kickstart, and she has made considerable progress on planning her meals, prepping food and staying consistent using the 24 Hour Plans! We have talked about Karen on previous Small Scale Life Podcasts, so in this podcast, we decided to interview her. We talked about the Health and Fitness Renew You Kickstart, what she learned, what she is doing and give us some feedback about the Health and Fitness Renew You Kickstart. For more on this topic, go to the article titled "Health and Fitness Renew You with Karen Mangieri" at smallscalelife.com! (https://www.smallscalelife.com/health-and-fitness-renew-you/) To join the Small Scale L

In this episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, we are talking about Tipping Points with Nicole Sauce. I had an opportunity to catch up with Nicole and talk about her journey from leaving the city in the Pacific Northwest to rural living. At the same time, we talk about breaking free of the corporate cube world to starting small businesses and becoming self-sufficient. What were the tipping points that triggered those journeys and what lessons were learned along the way? For more information, check out the article titled "Tipping Points with Nicole Sauce" on Small Scale Life.

Are you keeping your New Year's Resolutions? Remember those? How are you doing on them? If you are like many Americans that make New Year's Resolutions, the answer is probably a resounding "no." Statistically speaking, research has shown the following: By the end of January, approximately 64 percent of us have dropped our New Years Resolutions. By March 1st, more than 80 percent of us have dropped those New Year’s Resolutions and goals. Anecdotally, you know it's true because you can see this at the gyms: the crowds that created standing room only and long wait times for equipment have eased up or evaporated completely. The pool is empty, and there is room (once again) for you to roll out your yoga mat (don't worry, grunty-farty guy is still there with you). So, I'll ask you again: Are you keeping your New Year's Resolutions? Are you still following the steps outlined in our Health and Fitness Renew You Kickstart? For more information, please go to the article titled "Four Tips for Keeping New Ye

Old Man Winter has struck back at us meddling kids in the north country with a vengeance. All across the Upper Midwest of the United States, temperatures have dropped below zero, and the wind chills are approaching -50 degrees Fahrenheit. The extreme cold is life threatening, especially to those caught outside unprepared. In this article, I will discuss How to Prepare for the Polar Vortex. While it isn't necessarily part of our Health and Fitness Renew You Kickstart, how to prepare for the polar vortex is first and foremost on everyone's mind in the Upper Midwest. After all, being prepared might just save your life in these conditions! For more information on this podcast, please see the following posts: How to Prepare for the Polar Vortex (https://www.smallscalelife.com/prepare-for-the-polar-vortex/) Winter Driving and Survival Tips – S1E21 (https://www.smallscalelife.com/season-1-episode-21-winter-driving-survival-tips/) * Winter Tips (https://www.smallscalelife.com/season-1-episode-20-winter-tips/)

Today's topic is one near and dear to my heart because I have struggled with it over and over and over again. One of our Health and Fitness Renew You Kickstart participants asked the Small Scale Life Facebook Community how to overcome self-sabotage. I have to confess, I have blown up my "dieting" efforts time and time again due to self-sabotage. After all, I have started and failed with 14 different diet programs. You could say I am an expert with self-sabotage because I have done it so much! I had to do some digging on the interwebs to gather some information. I also talked with my son, Danny Domres, about this subject. Danny is a marathoner, ultra-marathoner and is going to school to become a Drug and Alcohol Counselor. He has done a lot of studying about addictions and self-sabotage, especially to overcome that inner voice that wants him to stop training or running. For more information, including 7 tips for overcoming self-sabotage and food addiction, head over to Small Scale Life for the show n

What a week it's been! Julie and I have been so excited to bring you the Renew You Kickstart, and now that we are rolling down the tracks with the basics, it is time to talk about Leveling Up and Next Steps on this journey. Julie & I discuss tips and ways to continue to improve as you get stronger physically & mentally. For more information on this topic, please go to the article titled Leveling Up and Next Steps at Small Scale Life (https://www.smallscalelife.com/leveling-up-and-next-steps/). You can also join the free 7 day Health and Fitness Renew You Kickstart at Small Scale Life. (https://www.smallscalelife.com/renew-you-in-2019/)

Hey, Lifers! Do you want to know a little secret Tom and I have figured out that is absolutely KEY to setting us up for success to meet our health and fitness goals??? Actually, beyond the 24 Hour Plan and sticking to the basics of drinking enough water, getting enough sleep and doing some kind of daily intentional movement, this is THE most important thing you can do. Yup, you guessed it (really smart of you, based on the title of the post!)....It's Meal Planning and Food Prepping! To get useful tips and information for your Health and Fitness Journey, check out the following articles on Small Scale Life: Day 6: Meal Planning for Success (https://www.smallscalelife.com/day-6-meal-planning-for-success/) Day 6: Food Prepping for Success (https://www.smallscalelife.com/food-prepping/) Feel free to join the Health and Fitness Renew You Campaign on Small Scale Life by clicking the link! Go get em, Lifers! (https://www.smallscalelife.com/renew-you-in-2019/)

It's Day 3 of the Renew You Kickstart (https://www.smallscalelife.com/renew-you-in-2019/), and today's topic is Basic Nutrition. Michael Bell returns to walk us through this topic, and he gives some great advice for folks starting on their journey with the Renew You Kickstart (https://www.smallscalelife.com/renew-you-in-2019/). As Julie and I have been saying over and over in previous podcasts and articles: this is about starting where you are. Some of us have been medicating ourselves with cheeseburgers, fries and beer (or Diet Coke) for many, many years. As we start to pay closer attention to what we are eating, we will find that there are some benefits to eating "what God made," or in other words: "real food." This food is delicious, especially when it is not buried under three gallons of dressing and cheese! For more information, please see the show notes from the article titled "Basic Nutrition with Michael Bell" on Small Scale Life. For the more on the Renew You Kickstart, please see the page on Small

It's Day 2 of the Renew You Kickstart, and today's topic is Basic Movement. As Julie and I have been saying over and over: this is about starting where you are. Some of us live in cube farms and are keyboard warriors; we are not ready for triathalons marathons or lifting heavy weights. To help discuss this topic, I brought in my friend Michael Bell to discuss Basic Movement. Michael is a husband, dad, urban farmer, PE teacher, competitive bodybuilder and a fitness coach. Michael has coached more than 300 people over 20 years, and he spent some time with us to discuss starting a fitness and exercise journey. For more information on Basic Fitness, please see the post at Small Scale Life titled Day 2: Basic Movement with Michael Bell. There is more information on smallscalelife.com In addition, if you would like to participate in the Renew You Kickstart, please click on this link! (https://www.smallscalelife.com/renew-you-in-2019/)

In this episode, Julie and Tom are here to provide you with realistic and doable steps to kickstart your year and set you up to finally achieve your health and fitness goals this year. And it all starts with the 24 Hour Plan. The plan is a one-page document that allows you to plan out: What you are going to eat How you will exercise 3 mediation/prayers 3 things you are grateful for 3 things you want to get done during that day. We complete a sheet before the day begins (night before or morning of), and we will be intentional about all of these items. On the bottom of the plan, there is a section where you can review your day and write what worked, what didn't and what you can improve on tomorrow. Remember: don't beat yourself up! Learn from deviations from the plan and recognize patterns and trends. You will be surprised what you will find out the longer you plan and document deviations. To get the 24 Hour Plan, go to Small Scale Life and download it before listening to this podcast (https://www.smal

Welcome to 2019! It's time to Renew You! In this 122nd Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Julie and I discuss the holidays (including my birthday), the rebranding of Small Scale Life, rebuilding the website and the Renew You Kickstart (https://www.smallscalelife.com/renew-you-in-2019/). Topics Discussed Julie and I discussed the following topics during this podcast: Holiday Update Rebranding and the Website Upgrade Renew You Kickstart (https://www.smallscalelife.com/renew-you-in-2019/) More Information To get more in-depth information, please see the post titled "Welcome to 2019: Time to Renew You" on Small Scale Life. (https://www.smallscalelife.com/welcome-to-2019-time-to-renew-you/) Also, sign up for the Renew You in 2019 Kickstart on Small Scale Life. (https://www.smallscalelife.com/renew-you-in-2019/)

In this 121st episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, Julie and I are announcing the Renew You in 2019 Kickstart! This is a FREE 7-day event that will provide tools, tips and a community that will help get us improving our mindset, nutrition and movement in 2019. Julie and I want want you, the Small Scale Life Community and others, to join us in starting 2019 off on the right foot. With this Kickstart, we are developing a foundation for success to be the best you (and the best us) in 2019. We are really focusing being intentional for three key aspects of our lives: Mindset Movement Nutrition Julie and I will be rolling out a way to join and get access to these tools and tips in the near future. We will have more information soon! Stay tuned to smallscalelife.com for more information!!! (http://smallscalelife.com)

In this 120th Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, I am had a great conversation with my friend Michael Bell about changes at Dallas Half Acre Farms. Michael has been very busy since our last interview, and we will discuss how he is changing his business from a CSA model (weekly box of a variety of products) to growing salanova salad empires in Dallas, Texas. As we discussed recently with Drew Sample, new opportunities and reality can force change, and you have to be ready to adjust accordingly! (http://www.smallscalelife.com/pivoting-business-strategies/) Are your ready to change? For TONS of more information and links, check out the show notes for this episode at Small Scale Life. Click the link for the post titled "Bellcast: Growing Salanova Salad Empire in Dallas, Texas." (http://www.smallscalelife.com/growing-salanova/)

This is the 119th Episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, and in this podcast, we are going to talk with Drew Sample about how he is pivoting business strategies at his urban farm Capital City Greens, the Sample Hour Podcast and his other interests/opportunities. Whether it’s your dreams, your business, your football team or your Army, you need to be ready to change and adapt as the “battlefield” changes in front of you. Some opportunities present themselves, others fade. Are you ready to take advantage of those opportunities? This is critical for our businesses. We have to start pivoting business strategies to make sure we take advantage of those opportunities. For more information, please see the post and podcast titled "Pivoting Business Strategies in 614" on Small Scale Life. (http://www.smallscalelife.com/?p=4022)

Happy Thanksgiving, Lifers! I hope you have a great Thanksgiving planned. If you have been to Small Scale Life this week, you know Julie and I have been busy trying to get recipes posted up on the website to help you with your Thanksgiving preparations. Check out the blog at smallscalelife.com for the following recipes: A super quick/super good cheesy au gratin potatoes recipe (http://www.smallscalelife.com/pressure-cooker-cheesy-au-gratin-potatoes/), How to cook a turkey (http://www.smallscalelife.com/how-to-cook-a-turkey/) and How to cook a ham Thanksgiving should be a lot of fun and bring people together, so we are helping you get ready and get the dinner on the table. It doesn't have to be overwhelming; we are here to help! As you finish up your prep and cooking, I also give a little advice on how to facilitate your family, friends and other guests who arrive at your house. It's life lessons we have learned from experience. I have been there, done that and gotten the t-shirt with some of this! For m

Do you feel stressed out? Does it seem that there is too much noise and information out there? How do you sort through what is important and what is not? In today’s fast paced world, there are incredible demands on our most precious resources: our time, our energy and our money. How do you prioritize your time commitments and focus on what is real and what is important? In this episode, Julie and I discuss how to minimize time commitments while maximizing life. We talk about the following topics: Move-Ember Upcoming Small Scale Life Health Challenge Reviewing the 5 Steps to Building a Simple and Intentional Life (http://www.smallscalelife.com/5-steps-developing-simple-and-intentional-life/) Time Committments - Introduction Dealing with Family Obligations 4 Steps to Minimizing Time Committments and Maximizing Life Slow down and enjoy the eagles; have your eagle moment The photo that is the cover for this episode was taken on County Highway A in Burnett County, Wisconsin. We rounded the curve and there

Do you feel stressed out? Does it seem that there is too much noise and information out there? How do you sort through what is important and what is not? In today’s fast paced world, there are incredible demands on our most precious resources: our time, our energy and our money. As we go through life, we seem to collect more and more stuff. We have closets, basements, garages and storage lockers full of stuff! Do we need it all? How can you decide what to keep and what to give away? In this episode of Small Scale Life, Julie and I work through a number of Decluttering Questions and Answers from our own experience in the trenches of our garage, basement, kitchens and utility drawers. Got junk? Well, its time to embrace that chaos and make some decisions! This podcast will help you on your own path to living a simple and intentional life. For more information and tips on HOW to declutter, please see the corresponding article on Small Scale Life titled "Minimalism: Decluttering Questions and Answers."

Happy Halloween 2018! There is nothing like Halloween: the cool weather, the decorations, the pumpkins, the costumes and all the fun associated with this holiday. We have had a lot of fun on Halloween over the years, especially when the boys were younger and when we participated in some haunted houses in Illinois. For the 115th episode of the Small Scale Life Podcast, I am going to talk about some favorite memories from years gone by and give some tips to creating a cool Halloween scene or haunted house. For more on this episode and some pictures from this year's pumpkin carving and some pictures of us in haunted house costumes, check out the post titled "Happy Halloween 2018: Memories and Stories" on Small Scale Life!