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SUSTAINABLE LIVING

The Life-Changing Magic of Self-Sufficiency

Lehman's
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The day we installed our brand-new Baker’s Choice wood cookstove was the day our lives changed dramatically for the better. I mean that literally. Living in the far north, wintertime heat is no small matter. For the previous fifteen years, our sole source of heat was a small inefficient woodstove located in an inconvenient corner of our house, which left the rest of the house hovering in the low 50s during cold weather. For years, we’d fantasized about having a proper cookstove in a more central location. Specifically we wanted a Baker’s Choice. Why this model? Because it’s part of a line of Amish-built cookstoves (Pioneer Princess, Pioneer Maid, Baker’s Choice) that apply the principles of airtight combustion to wood-fired cooking, and represents a huge advancement in wood cookstoves (possibly since the introduction of cast iron). After watching a neighbor’s stove in action, we knew this would be a wise tool for self-sufficiency. [caption id="attachment_35130" align="aligncenter" width="800"]

Baker's Choice Wood Cookstove is available at Lehmans.com or in Lehman's retail store in Kidron, Ohio.[/caption] And so it proved. Suddenly, rather than huddling the winter months away around the tiny corner woodstove, our home was comfortable and warm throughout (and we used less wood!). I can dehydrate herbs, cook dinner, bake pies, and dry laundry – all thanks to this stove’s efficiency. I like to call it the “life-changing magic of self-sufficiency.” This wood cookstove is one of the best tools we’ve found on the road to independence. It’s no secret Lehman’s has been swamped over the last few months due to uncertainty on many fronts (medical, economic, societal). When times are tough, people instinctively know they have to become more independent. As the premier mercantile for self-reliance products, customers know where to find the tools they need for their own “life-changing magic.” A wood cookstove was not the only game-changer for us. Nearly 30 years ago, the purchase of a pressure canner forever changed our relationship with food. Suddenly we were able to preserve the abundance from our garden and take advantage of bulk purchases of things we didn’t grow. Over the years, we’ve put up thousands of jars of meat, fruits, vegetables, and sauces. Not only has this helped our grocery bills, but we know exactly what goes into each jar. Our grain mill allows us to take our home-grown wheat and turn it into bread. Our kerosene lamps give us light during power outages. Our clothes racks allow us to dry laundry for free. Our garden tools allow us to grow hundreds of pounds of organic fruits and vegetables. [caption id="attachment_32327" align="aligncenter" width="374"]

Non-electric lighting ensures that you'll always have dependable light even during a power outage.[/caption] Yes, self-sufficiency is a type of life-changing magic. It’s addictive. The more independent we become, the more we want to learn. Why are we so interested in self-reliance? Quite simply, it’s because we like making sure we – not someone else – are responsible for providing the necessities of food, water, lighting, and warmth. The proper tools make this more possible – tools for gardening, for preserving food, for raising livestock, for heating our home. Lehman’s has the tools for self-sufficiency. Trust me, they can become life-changing magic.

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