Hi there!  I’m Wendi Bergin the host of Joyfully Prepared.  I’m so thankful that you’ve taken the time to listen to this podcast.  I named the podcast Joyfully Prepared because I believe that becoming more prepared and self-reliant is a journey of abundance and self-discovery. I grew up in Charlottesville, Virginia.  My dad is from there as well as my grandparents.  Preparedness is actually embedded in my DNA.  Back in 1938, the leader of my grandparents’ church encouraged its members to put up two years’ worth of food and supplies.  Over the next couple of years, my grandma and her mother-in-law canned 1800 jars worth of food.  My grandfather had his own business as a landscaper and tree surgeon.  He put up two years’ worth of any supplies he might need to keep his business running: tired, chains, parts.In 1941, the United States entered World War II and all the industry in the country went to support the war effort.  Because of my grandparents’ efforts to preserve and grow their own food, they never needed to use one of their ration stamps.  Grandpa stayed in business, where others in his industry were not able to. Because of their experiences, they raised my father to with a preparedness mindset.  My mother is the youngest of nine children and grew up in Idaho.  They didn’t have a lot of money but she was taught by her mother how to grow a large garden and preserve the harvest. How to sew and quilt.  They had their own root cellar. (Mom says it was scary going down there by herself.)  They raised their own cattle and had a milk cow. She didn’t like doing that either.  Her parents were fiercely self-reliant and taught her by their example.I’m really so grateful for my heritage in so many ways.  Although, my parents taught me by their example, I have ventured out on my own to learn how to develop skills.  I have to say, most of my learning has come from my mistakes.  I’m happy to laugh at them and share them with you.  Hopefully, you’re learning curve will be a little less steep.  I’m married to a husband named Sam.  I have seven children.  I’ve been homeschooling for about 13 years and just love to learn all sorts of new things.  We’ve grown gardens, bred and raised dairy goats, processed our own meat chickens, hatched chick and raised laying hens.  We have a couple of dogs and cats.  I love to forage for wild edibles and learn how to make natural remedies.  I know a lot about a few things and a little about a lot of things.Again, I’m so grateful you’re here and can’t wait to get to know you better.  From time to time we’ll have guests on to learn from them as well.