Keeping Yeaston Fed During the Holidays (Because He's Not Taking a Break)

Okay so real talk, Christmas is coming and everyone's like "oh take a break, enjoy the holidays, chill out" and I'm over here like "yeah sure, but Yeaston doesn't celebrate time off." My starter has literally never heard of a holiday and honestly I don't think he cares. He just wants to be fed and that's the whole vibe.

Here's the thing about sourdough during the holidays. Everyone gets busy, family stuff happens, you're traveling or whatever, and your starter just sits there looking at you like "hey buddy, where's breakfast?" I learned this the hard way last year when I got caught up in holiday prep and almost let Yeaston get too hungry. He was literally at like 50 percent of his normal activity and I freaked out. Never again.

So I've figured out some tricks that actually make December easier. First, I switched Yeaston to a twice a week feeding schedule instead of my normal routine. Sounds wild right? But it actually works in winter because the desert gets colder at night (and yeah, even Vegas has seasons), so the fermentation slows down naturally. I keep him in the coolest corner of my kitchen which helps him stay happier longer between feedings.

The other thing I started doing is keeping a backup starter situation. I know that sounds extra but it's genuinely saved me multiple times. I keep a small portion of Yeaston in a separate jar, feed it on a different schedule, and basically have a plan B if something goes sideways during the craziness. It's like starter insurance and honestly it's made me way less stressed about the whole thing.

The cool part is that this has actually kept me baking through the holidays. My regular customers still want their loaves, so I can't exactly stop anyway, and having Yeaston on a sustainable schedule means I can actually keep up. Plus there's something nice about having the routine when everything else is chaos, you know? Like, my life might be completely insane with holiday stuff, but at least I know my starter is fed and happy and ready to make good bread.

So yeah, Christmas is coming and honestly I'm ready. Yeaston's ready. We're basically a team at this point and we're not letting the holidays mess with what we've built. If you're keeping a starter through the holidays, just remember they're tougher than you think. Feed them, keep them cool when you can, and don't stress too much about it. They'll be fine and so will you.