Today we’d like to introduce you to Leah & Michelle Svensson
Leah & Michelle, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
We are sisters, Leah and Michelle. We grew up in Milford, OH, but in 1998 we, (along with our single mom Jeanne) moved to Oklahoma where Leah attended Bible college (to become a minister). From there, in 2003 we sold everything we owned and took a phenomenal 3,000 mile bicycle trip across the country. We camped along the way, and each carried about 60lbs of gear on the back of our bicycles. This trip was very transformative and made us realize just what life is really about- interacting with new people- sharing, and receiving kindness. We realized that God created us to need far less than modern America tells us we do. For a few months, we only had a few changes of clothes, a few dishes, a light-weight pot, and often cooked over a fire at the end of a 75-100 mile day of riding the beautiful countryside of the US.
After that trip, we moved back to Milford, lived with our grandmother, and became full-time caretakers for her and our uncle. This was our mother’s childhood home, in suburbia—a cape code style home on 1 acre, we call it “God’s Little Acre”. The yard was very overgrown and in disrepair, so we began to clear it. Hundreds of honeysuckle bushes, dead trees, invasive ivy… and we reclaimed the beautiful land. In the beginning of this project, a family member heard what we were doing and dropped off a tiny 14″ electric chainsaw and a maddox- he called it a “stump remover.” We quickly discovered that our arms and backs were the actual stump removers, this thing was just a tool. Our retired neighbors got such a kick out of our projects; they often set out lawn chairs and just watched. We dug a creek to drain the swampy backyard and planted a massive garden. We learned so much.
In 2008 our grandmother passed away, and we purchased the home St. Patrick’s Day, in 2010, which was fitting because our grandmother was Irish. The year we bought the home, we took our adventures indoors where we began to remodel everything. We completely gutted the entire upstairs down to the studs. We learned how to frame out new windows, run electrical and lighting, hang drywall, hang insulation, trim, and refinish floors. Of course, we ran into unforeseen issues, like an infestation of ants in the walls. Our entire lives, it had always just been the three us. We had no men in our lives to rely on, so we had to teach ourselves everything. However, during our remodel process we were blessed with some wonderful mentors who taught us the basics so we could move forward on our own. We wouldn’t have been able to do it without them! After remodeling the upstairs, we moved on to the bathroom and kitchen… taking out a cast-iron bathtub with a sledgehammer is not for the faint of heart- but we got it done and felt like champions! We learned how to run plumbing and solder pipes, hang concrete backer boards, tile, install new toilets, move a gas stove, install butcher block countertops, new cabinets, a dishwasher, and so much more. Each accomplishment felt like a new plateau. Around this same time, we launched our pet care business, Heavenly Petsitting, which we still run and operate to this day.
In the spring of 2015 our family friend Matt built us a beautiful chicken coop in the shape of a church/chapel, we call it the “chicken chapel”. The year we added chickens to our lives our home started to truly become a homestead. We added a vineyard that yields a good crop every year, and as part of companion planting, we also grow onions, garlic, brassicas, kale, blackberries and raspberries there. They say that chickens are the gateway drug to “farming”, and that statement is certainly true for us. In addition to our egg-laying hens, later in 2015 we also added two Berkshire hogs to the homestead that we raised for meat. The following year, we added four heritage hogs called Kune Kunes, three gilts for breeding and boar. We’ve had many litters of piglets on the farm over the past ten years and have two on the way as we speak. While we aren’t able to take these little bundles of personalities out on pasture (heritage hogs are designed to be raised on grass), we bring the pasture to them 7 months out of the year by bagging our mowed grass. It’s so satisfying watching them chomp on freshly cut grass!
Also in 2015 we started raising out chickens for meat- 50 chicks arrived, and we ran them in a chicken tractor, moving it daily for 10 weeks. We butchered them ourselves for the first time ever right here at God’s Little Acre. We have raised a batch of meat birds every year since then and hold an annual instructional workshop for butchering that is widely popular. We also raise out a hog or two for meat every year or two and are now holding annual hog processing workshops on our homestead as well.
One of our favorite additions to the homestead has been honeybees. We’ve raised them on the homestead for 9 seasons, and on a good year are able to harvest about 5 gallons of honey. You would be amazed at the personality a honeybee hive has, and it’s always a sad day if you lose one or more coming out of winter. But despite the emotional roller coaster, they are so worth the time and effort. I love seeing our bees out pollinating our tomatoes or fruit trees.
Speaking of fruit trees, we grow pears and peaches quite well here, and are still working on our apple trees, but they’ll get there! We also get a very large crop of red raspberries that we turn into a phenomenal jam every year! Canning is another thing we have learned- it can be quite daunting the first time, but we had a good instructor—and now we keep a large pantry stocked with jams, jellies, fruits, tomatoes, salsa, veggies, broth and more! Two years ago we also added dehydrating to the list, which adds a deep flavor to the preservation process.
We have added so many skills and projects here to God’s Little Acre, including our friend Matt’s sawmill. It doesn’t come all at once, but you have to start somewhere. We were city girls in 2003, now, 22 years later, still in suburbia, on the same acre, we proudly call ourselves homesteaders. We raise, grow, or trade for about 65% of all of our food- all on one acre. There isn’t a feeling like it in the world. Matt built a bicycle attachment for our grain mill where Leah “bicycles” to grind our flour- which brings us back to the beginning. Freshly ground flour is one of the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet, and you can freeze it to lock in those nutrients. If left unfrozen everything good in it dies within days.
We often give tours of our homestead to strangers who pull in the driveway, and we can often be found working in the garden or in the kitchen. If I can’t find my mom in the spring, summer or fall, I know she’s either in the greenhouse or out in the garden!
In an effort to live as clean and chemical free as possible we make many of our own products including dishwasher and laundry detergent, lye soap, lotions, bug spray, toothpaste, deodorant, tinctures and more. But we don’t just do it to live clean; we do it because it is so very satisfying! We live unconventionally—a multigenerational home, with our mom and uncle and family friend Matt, but there is nothing we can’t accomplish together. We believe God intended for us to live in community, not isolated. Independent in the sense that we can do so much on our own, but dependent on each other and the people God has blessed us with.
When we started our “projects” in 2010 we chronicled much of our journey on a Youtube channel that is sadly gone now, but it evolved into a variety show we call the Resistance Chicks that was launched in 2017. Why the name? Because “resistance to tyranny is obedience to God” and because the Bible says that if “we submit to God and resist the devil, he will flee.” Our show covers everything from current events, to the Bible, inner healing, and of course homesteading. We live stream 2-4 hour programs 5 days a week, in addition to several other shows where we will pop on to showcase a project we’re doing like drying garlic or talk about a breaking tragedy such as Hurricane Helene. We have hosted and been a part of several events and conferences and often do public speaking about any number of topics that God has blessed us to have in our toolbox for life. We created our first documentary last year and launched our first on-line store with our homemade products that we have made available for our worldwide audience.
What does God have in store for us next? Horses, cows… you never know, but whatever it is, we’re ready and excited for it! We often get asked “is there anything you don’t do?” or “how do you find the time?” First of all, many hands make for light work, but secondly- you don’t start juggling by throwing all the balls up at once; you add them one at a time, and the rhythm just starts to flow. But most importantly, it’s only by God’s grace alone. He has blessed us with everything we need for “life and godliness” (2 Peter 1:3) and we try to make the most of it. It hasn’t always been easy but God has made it “possible”, as it says in Matt 19, “with God, all things are possible.”
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
We have definitely had struggles along the way—the primary one that comes to mind is the challenge to be able to keep our pigs and chickens. We qualify under an Ohio exemption for all townships from the Ohio Revised Code 519.21, which essentially enforces that anyone in a township who doesn’t live in a subdivision can do anything as far as agriculture is concerned without being subject to zoning regulations. Nearly all of our neighbors were supportive of what we were doing but we had one in particular who wanted to sue us. We had to stand up for our rights, even with the township and county being sent to our property countless times; however, it was eventually proven that we not only have a God-given, but legal right to live this way and we haven’t had any issues in many years.
And of course, you run into the standard farming challenges, such as hawks killing your chickens, the loss of piglets, garden pests, flooding, and drought, but each challenge teaches you. Show me a successful farmer or homesteader, and I’ll show you someone who has suffered a lot of loss and faced countless challenges. We learn by overcoming in spite of loss.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
We own and operate a pet care business- we go into client’s homes when they are on vacation or out of town and care for their beloved animals. We have done this for 20 years, 15 of those professionally as Heavenly Petsitting. We also often keep animals here in our home where their dogs become part of our family, even with full privileges of sleeping in the bed! As I sit here and type this, I have a client’s dog, Rocky, a Weimaraner mix, laying at my feet, patiently waiting for me to be done and give him cuddles. What sets us apart is that regardless of whether we are taking care of an animal in a client’s home or their pup is with us, we treat them as if they were our own. We also develop a wonderful relationship with our clients, many of whom have become good friends over the years.
Our life has us wearing many professional hats. As our podcast program is part of our job, we put as many hours into it weekly as we do our pet care business. The difference is, we count the podcast as a passion and a privilege. What sets us apart in that is that we don’t do it for money; we do it because we love it, and we have the greatest audience in the world.
Now that we have added our online store where we get to make and ship our homemade products around the world, we have converted our enclosed front porch into a manufacturing and shipping shop! Each order that goes out gets a handwritten thank-you card with a prayer/blessing and word of encouragement. All of our products are free from chemicals and made with natural ingredients designed to benefit the body holistically.
Lastly, while our homestead doesn’t produce a monetary income aside from the sale of our piglets, we count it as part of our work because it benefits our food and health budget greatly! It’s value is incalculable!
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
Absolutely! Our number one mentor has been our mom! She has been with us every step of the way! Not only telling us that there is nothing we couldn’t do, but also she has been right along side us DOING the work. She is always in the garden, helping with projects, and even helps us with social media on our podcast!
Our family friend Matt came into our lives in 2012 and has done a lot of the heavy lifting ever since! He has built our pig pens, chicken coop, chicken tractor, and so much more! He does all the “big jobs.” As much as we have grown to be independent, strong women who can use a chainsaw to cut down a tree and run electrical wiring, God gave gifts to both men and women and we would never have been able to do what we do today without him.
Our uncle Jac- he may be disabled physically, but before Matt, he has always been there telling us “how” to do something- whether that was changing the breaks on our car or soldering copper pipes to fix the plumbing!
Our family friends Tim and Mark taught us so many important skills for construction- always telling us that we could do it, even if we were girls.
Our family friend Janet who has stood by our side, no matter what, knowing us since we were children- she’s always encouraged us to do what we felt called to do, even if others thought we were crazy!
Lastly our audience that we call the Resistance Chick’s family who have been our greatest cheerleaders along the way, encouraging us, thanking us for what we do, telling us to keep going and praying for us!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.resistancechicks.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/resistancechicks/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ResistanceChicks
- Twitter: https://x.com/LeahSvensson
- Other: https://rumble.com/c/ResistanceChicks
