At Ease Homestead

At Ease Homestead At Ease Homestead, a small veteran managed homestead. Two old Marines At Ease living our best lives! Leonard has been our home for just over ten years.

Hello and welcome to the At Ease Homestead (previously known as Clucks and Quacks)

Iā€™m Toni and along with my husband Bob we have a small homestead in Leonard, Michigan. Prior to that we lived in Oxford for thirteen years. We're both from the east coast. I'm from NJ and he's from PA. The Marine Corps brough us to Michigan in 1995 where I completed my last tour of duty. We have two grown children

and two beautiful granddaughters. The eldest makes occasional appearances in my posts. I love gardening, food preservation, cooking and raising poultry- chickens, ducks, guinea fowl, turkeys and a sole goose. I have a running joke that after becoming an empty nester I had to find a different kind of nest. I started raising poultry in 2017. A dozen birds has grown, and I have loved every minute of it. In 2022 we added forest raised pork to the homestead as well. We thoroughly enjoyed having pigs and plan to continue raising them seasonally. Eventually we plan to add dairy goats and other small livestock. Here you will find posts and updates sharing critter shenanigans, a bit of gardening, home food preservation and pantry stocking information along with general small scale homesteading that prioritizes stewardship. The At Ease Homestead is our little holding that sustains our family, provides us an opportunity to learn as we grow and connect with simple things that bring us joy and a bit of good healthy dirt under our nails.

Setting up tomorrow's paddock. The piggies have cleared most of the current paddock. They'll be thrilled to munch on fre...
05/30/2026

Setting up tomorrow's paddock. The piggies have cleared most of the current paddock. They'll be thrilled to munch on fresh forage tomorrow!

Tonight we have salad (and maybe tomorrow too!).
05/30/2026

Tonight we have salad (and maybe tomorrow too!).

Eight pints of homegrown pinto beans and seven quarts of bone broth made from scrap bags cooling and then headed to the ...
05/29/2026

Eight pints of homegrown pinto beans and seven quarts of bone broth made from scrap bags cooling and then headed to the pantry.

One and a half dozen available (bonus fairy egg included šŸ§šā€ā™€ļø).
05/29/2026

One and a half dozen available (bonus fairy egg included šŸ§šā€ā™€ļø).

This month's co-op order. Hands down the best tasting sweet potatoes ever (Japanese sweet potatoes), baby watermelon for...
05/29/2026

This month's co-op order.

Hands down the best tasting sweet potatoes ever (Japanese sweet potatoes), baby watermelon for my grands, beets (I am looking forward to roasting beets and topping with goat cheese).

Convenience food-a plethora of tortillas. I typically make my own but these are nice to have on hand after a long gardening day. There are no options to buy organic tortillas locally so I allow myself this "cheat".

Last month my favorite blue cheese was sold out and I always keep Nancy's sour cream on hand.

A few pantry staples and unpictured odds and ends.

I've been ordering from Azure Standard for nearly a decade now. It's been my main option for pantry staples and dairy, household cleaning and hygiene products. I buy garden supplies, human & livestock supplements and canning supplies from Azure. I also source a good deal of my non toxic kitchen cookware from them. It's been the most economic way to purchase high quality organic items and support a company who line up with my values.

https://www.azurestandard.com/?a_aid=kJSqWb2JUm

05/28/2026
Today I have two dozen chicken eggs and one goose egg available. We are likely in the last week of goose egg season unti...
05/28/2026

Today I have two dozen chicken eggs and one goose egg available.

We are likely in the last week of goose egg season until next year. They have been going out as fast as Gunny lays them.

Two dozen available (including an Eleanor egg).
05/26/2026

Two dozen available (including an Eleanor egg).

I haven't made soup in a bit. My scrap bags were starting to take over the lower section of my kitchen freezer. I tossed...
05/26/2026

I haven't made soup in a bit. My scrap bags were starting to take over the lower section of my kitchen freezer. I tossed all of them with a handful of chicken feet, two quarts of frozen parsnips, bay leaves and a hearty glug of my crab apple vinegar into a roaster. Sometime this week I'll make a pot of soup and pressure can several quarts of bone broth to add to the pantry.

The babies are getting big! These littles are our next generation of laying hens.
05/25/2026

The babies are getting big! These littles are our next generation of laying hens.

Address

5395 Rochester Road
Leonard, MI
48367

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm
Saturday 9am - 5pm
Sunday 9am - 5pm

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