This month we are talking with Annette from Azure Farm! I've been following her on her amazing Instagram for a while now, and it is so much fun to see what goes on at the farm! Keep reading - I'll let her tell you more about herself and how she practices intentionality in her life.
First some easy stuff: Tell us a bit about yourself. What is your work, your passions and interests?
Hi friends! I am Annette and I live on a tiny homestead in Georgia. I am an ICU nurse a few days a week and the rest of the time you can find me on the farm caring for our animals and pulling weeds in the garden. Being a homesteader and taking care of animals is quickly becoming my favorite thing. I am so passionate about gardening, learning to live off the land, and caring for animals. Being in nature and surrounding myself with it has been such an amazing learning experience.
Apart from farming and animals I love photography, traveling, spending time with my family, and eating yummy plant-based food!
I love that your blog is about your exciting farm life! How did starting a blog come about and what were your goals for it? Has that focus shifted at all and where do you see it going?
When we moved to the farm I wanted a way to document what we were doing. I felt like others would benefit from seeing our journey and hopefully learn something along the way. Capturing life and God’s creations has always been my goal. I have been great about documenting our farm journey on Instagram, but when It comes to the blog I have been a tad slow on posting! There is so much more I want to post and do! Coming soon I will have tutorials on how to garden, tips on homesteading and resources for those wanting to learn. I hope for the blog to one day be a true wealth of knowledge for those wanting to live in the country.
As someone who has so much going on, what does your typical day look like? How do you make time for all of your responsibilities?
I definitely have busy days! A typical day involves me spending about an hour or more doing some sort of chore on the farm. Whether its filling water troughs, pulling weeds in the garden or cleaning the chicken coop. I usually plan out my day the night before so I know what to expect. I also have specific chores assigned to different days. That way I’m not scrambling to accomplish certain tasks. For example, On Fridays, it’s clean the chicken coop day! On Tuesdays and Thursdays, I fill the hay bins. And so forth. I have to be intentional and make time for what’s important and matters most.
What is one other specific area in your life you find that intentionality is absolutely critical? How do you exercise mindfulness in it?
Being intentional is so important. The older I get the quicker time passes and I want to hold on to every moment. I have learned to be very intentional with family time and taking one day a week to rest. This day is Saturday for me. It's my family and church day. On Sabbath, I don't do work. On that day I just feed the animals, but I leave all other chores aside. It’s a day to breathe deep and reflect on the week, spend time with God, and family. I have to be mindful and specific on Sabbath and truly live in the moment and not let other things in the world and life take over my thoughts and plans. Being present at the moment so your family has your undivided attention is so crucial. I have come to truly love this day so much and it re-charges me and gets me ready to start another busy week.
If you could give one piece of advice about giving undivided attention to someone who struggles with it, what would you tell them?
Stay off your phone when you’re trying to be intentional and are with others. Don’t let it distract you and interfere with being present and available to others. This is a hard one and I struggle with this myself. Trust me though, you’ll be happy you did.
