FARMWIFERY

The Summer in Pictures

2011-09-12T07:38:00.000-07:00

Summer has come and gone. With all the activity at the farm along with birthday parties, Uncle T's wedding, new puppy, farm camp the farmwifery blog had a summer vacation. Beatrice is now a first grader and Baxter and I look forward to settling down for the fall.

Late Spring

2011-05-14T08:20:00.000-07:00

Early spring had us out on all kinds of adventures. The farm, the woods, wetland or camping....so many adventures, so little time. Baxter's favorite place in the world is sitting and "driving" our kubota tractor.

Beatrice had a rope swing in the greenhouse - before the tomatoes were planted. An aspiring acrobat if ever there was.

Baxter had a weaning party at 25 months. We celebrated with a cake and a new baby doll. Of course he'd rather sleep with his wooden tractor than any baby or soft cuddly animal.
We dusted off the bike trailer for our first ride of the spring. Our road, though impassable most times for cars is just the right ride for Beatrice on her bike. There's always good exploring in the wetland for little ones.

Seeds Arrive, Spring Enters!

2011-03-02T11:57:00.001-08:00

The farming season has officially begun. We placed our seed order a bit later than we usually have in the past so we were especially eagerly awaiting the arrival of our seeds. Any day now Dan would say. Until finally two nights ago Dan announced that UPS would be showing up with a big box from Johnny's. Beatrice excitedly awaited the delivery, peering out the window at supper. UPS comes late in the day to our house and Bea and Dan had just climbed the stairs for bedtime when they saw the lights of the delivery truck. Beatrice ran down the stairs exclaiming, "the seeds are here, the seeds are here!" They opened the door as the UPS woman was about to leave, saying "Thank you!" They pulled the boxes inside and Bea asked to open them. Dan refused saying it was bedtime and they climbed back up the stairs for a bedtime story. I listened to all of this from behind the door of Baxter's room where I was nursing him to sleep. I smiled to myself and counted my blessings as my daughter showed such delight in the beginning of spring.

Change of Seasons

2010-10-14T05:51:00.000-07:00

We've been having absolutely beautiful fall mornings. Golden sunshine comes over the mountain lightening upon the orange leaves contrasted with blankets of fog in the valleys and crispy white frosts on the ground. We relish these fall days and are outside as much as possible still - cleaning up the children's garden, raking leaves from the maple tree in our yard and collecting all sorts of beautiful trinkets - colorful leaves, acorns, feathers and the like. We are just at the brink of a much anticipated rest as things start to slow down at the farm. Still there are many projects to see to. The projects that we didn't really have time for during the season. These are mostly household chores that need attention and might actually be accomplished now that our time is a little bit more free. And with the school year now in full swing our days will still be full. But we start to shift our attention back to the home and look forward to getting into the groove of fall rhythms.

Down to Earth Summer Camp Part II

2010-07-11T16:31:00.000-07:00

What an amazing week at the farm. It was so wonderful to have this bunch of moms (and dad, Evan) and the kids at the farm for the whole week. On day three the children collected rocks from the children's garden, washed them and painted them! The little ones used tempera paints and it was fun to have an all out messy day. Actually we had two great messy days as day four's task was staining our picnic table with beet juice and painting decorations on top of that. But really, where is it more approriate to have messy days than on the farm?

For our final day we focused back on the firepit preparing our finale feast. The children chopped zucchini and put them on skewars and we cooked hotdogs over the fire as well as baked apples! What a feast it was. Here are a random assortment of pictures from the week.

Down to Earth Summer Camp

2010-07-06T17:29:00.000-07:00

Yay! Our first ever (first annual?) summer camp is underway. The brain child of our dear friend Rachel, the camp is a small gathering of families working together to give our kids the time to explore the farm a bit, participate in artsy, earthy, innovative projects and also the ever important free space for just being kids. I'm blown away at the collaborate effort of the parents involved and really excited that other kids can spend a good chunk of time at the farm. It really is a special place - and so filled with wonder for the little ones.

Here's a recap of the first 2 days:

Day one: The big activity was building a fire pit (for our big last day cookout). Little hands got down into the dirt, digging, moving earth and rocks with their little shovels and a whole crew of pint sized wheel barrows. The older kids went to pick peas for the day's snack before getting their share of rock moving. I think all the kids would have been in seventh heaven doing this task all morning. But alas...every one needs snack time. A simple game of leading a partner (with eyes closed) to a special surprise rounded out the morning and was followed by a picnic lunch.

Day two: Big kids learned that you could use the sun to cook food! when they made their own solar ovens. Fresh goat milk and eggs were shaken up into a simple custard and left to cook. Unfortunately they weren't ready for lunch, but we can't wait for snack time tomorrow. The Little ones trekked out into the fields to dig carrots for snack time. We dug oh so carefully with our shovel to just wiggle those carrots around gently before pulling them up. The children were really delighted with all their "finds". Our bunny was then treated to a delicious meal of carrots tops. After such a hot and busy morning we all cooled off after snack time in the sprinkler before lunch.

We'll be exploring different places on the farm but our home base is a shady section of recently grazed cow pasture. Lots and lots of pictures coming soon!

Garden Progress

2010-06-13T05:06:00.000-07:00

Beatrice is excited that the marigolds are blooming in the children's garden. The garden is coming along nicely and is almost all planted now with pole beans, yellow pear cherry tomatoes, all red potatoes, herbs, flowers, lemon cucumbers, popcorn and broom corn. We're still planning to put in a little carrot patch as well as a bed of mixed greens. We also have some white clover that we are going to seed for ground cover in a few cozy spots.

Baxter in our silo garden inspecting the mint. He's taken quite well to the garden and hasn't scooched over to many plants. He's a big help especially when water is involved. Ah, the mud pies.

Chubby Bunny Children's Garden

2010-05-25T22:32:00.000-07:00

I have wanted to do a children's garden at the farm for a couple of years now and finally this year it is beginning to take shape. One of the most wonderful things about farm life is seeing our kids feel at home in the fields. There is a sense of freedom, confidence and wonder in the children as they run along the lanes, help out the farm crew or even just sit in the dirt and dig. It is so great to see so many members bringing their kids to the farm. We want them to feel at home here, just as our own kids do. We are creating the children's garden so they have a special place on the farm they can explore and have a real hands on experience. Children are welcome to help plant, weed, pick cherry tomatoes, taste the different herbs, smell the flowers, hide in the pole beans or popcorn, walk through the sunflowers.... or just hang out. The garden is right behind the barn so kids can check it out during CSA pick up without a big trek into the fields. We hope you'll visit!

Saturday Slow Time

2010-05-22T11:15:00.000-07:00

It seems like there is never enough slow time, especially with our growing season about to kick it into high gear with Friday & Saturday markets and CSA harvests, too. So I'm relishing the last weekend before we are market bound (although we do enjoy our markets too). I wish I could say that we were just spending the day playing but we have plenty of household projects to work on. But for some reason a Saturday seems slower and Saturday chores can be fun when you aren't rushing around to do them. Today's shed/garage/barn (or whatever that thing is next to the house) cleaning project was fun, thanks to my dad helping out and interesting - you never know what you'll find in a heap of rubbish, and even a little inspiring - ah, now we can actually store stuff in here - bikes, outside toys etc. instead of having them all over the yard and the porch. My next slow house project is to give some much need attention to our perennial beds and maybe even do a little planting. A kitchen herb garden and some flower starts that we have kicking around the farm.

But for now, back to household chores and supper with friends.

Simplicity Parenting

2010-04-11T17:44:00.000-07:00

engrossed in the moment

Beatrice and her new bunny, Butterbean. Finally the farm has a bunny again. While it would great for Butters to live at the farm so all the children could visit and play, we are trying to keep her up at the house - mostly so I am not continuously asked to go to the farm to see her. So for any readers who don't know, we do not live at our farm, but a half mile up the road. Not a terrible distance to walk or bike you might say - but for about 10 months out of the year there is a wetland that floods the road between our house and farm, creating a 6 mile commute. The complexities that arise out of this circumstance are a topic for another time. But here I am getting to my point. Simplicity. I feel like I am ever striving to simplify, simplify, simplify. While living at the farm would be more simple, it just isn't an option so one of the things I'm trying to keep in mind is trying to limit the number of times I get in the car during the day to go down to the farm. Since it is spring and Bea is in school this is fairly easy to do. But I'm already thinking about summer when we'll be there more and more, yet needing to come back for nap, lunch, oh I forgot sunscreen again and I have to make that phone call etc. While this is one example let me step back into the more general picture.

Lately I've been reading Kim John Payne's book Simplicity Parenting which extols the virtues of downsizing our stuff and our schedules in order to give our children the time and space they need to be kids. He writes, "Imagine... appreciating the pleasure of the ordinary." This profoundly struck me, as I watch the children doing exactly that in every moment, the little buddhas that they are. As adults we strive for such awareness instead of multitasking and always thinking ahead to the next project to prepare for or chore that has to be done. And herein lies the magic of rhythm. I think I am setting a good example for the children when I adhere to our family's daily rhythm, but I'm also making my life a lot less complicated by taking out a whole host of variables and choices. It is so freeing! And so I'll keep striving ....

Chicken Hearts or Our Little Omnivore

2010-02-28T16:41:00.000-08:00

Okay, I'm not really one for puns but Dan must be rubbing off on me. This post might not be for the faint of heart, nor do I wish to alienate anyone but this was what was happening this week on the farm.

Our good friend farmer Paul came up this week with the last of his old laying flock - eight hens he was going to put into the freezer for stew. Last year we bought a chicken scalder so our apprentice, Alissa, could use it for her pastured-poultry project. We also have access to our neighbor's plucker. This makes the prospect of slaughtering a few chickens a pretty quick project. Dan decided they'd make a morning of it and he could do the 5 or 6 extra roosters in our flock.

But let me back up a bit. After our laying flock was decimated last winter and spring we decided to start fresh. In the summer we ordered 2 batches of layers in the mail from Murray McMurray Hatchery. It is hard to resist the excitement of day old chicks coming in the mail. On the anticipated day of their arrival we wait for the phone call from the post office and rush of, usually first thing in the morning, to pick them up. Beatrice was very attentive to the little chicks and saw that they were settled in and well looked after. She has watched them grow through the summer and fall. Now they are starting to lay eggs and she loves to collect them. Imagine an Easter egg hunt everyday! (Not all of then hens have discovered the nesting boxes yet.) But true to farm life, there is a season .... Beatrice is very familiar with the cycles of life and death on the farm. She's seen chicks and chickens of all ages come and go by predators and the knife. She loves bacon and knows exactly where it comes from. Frequently, she'll be eating a piece of bacon and say, "this is good pig!" Last summer when the day came for Alissa to slaughter her first batch of broilers Bea was intrigued and wanted to see every aspect of the process. It is so interesting to see life through a child's curiosity. Bea is 4 and interested in everything on the farm. She's not squemish or jaded, just open to whatever is happening. In our home we eat meat. We eat the meat that we raise or that our friends raise. Just as we eat all the vegetables, fruit, milk and eggs that come from our farm. She knows where her food comes from. And she has learned that we respect and care for our animals. In fact, we probably wouldn't have the animals at the farm and hence no real meaningful relationships with such animals if we didn't raise them for meat.

So back to this week.... Unfortunately the guys hit some glitches as it took a long time for the

scalder to heat up- the scalder is a big basin of hot water. After the chickens have been killed you dunk them in the hot water for a bit and this loosens the feathers so they can be plucked easilty, by hand or by a plucker. Eventually things got going and the mission was accomplished. No, that night we didn't have chicken. They all went into the freezer. But Dan did bring back some of the hearts and he cooked them up with onions and greens. Beatrice, as game as ever, was ready to help.

Family Cow Forum

2010-02-26T07:58:00.000-08:00

Ever wanted to know more about keeping a family cow? Here is a great opportunity to learn about all aspects of keeping a cow from barns to equipment to bovine health. Check out this fun and informative event put on by Motherhouse:

FREE Family Cow Forum on Saturday, February 27. Share stories, tails, ruminations, favorite resources, farm moos, and moore with fellow family cow keepers:

…Home Cow Health Care with Dr. Angela Greco.

…Training Oxen and Their Trainer by Chuck Duncan.

…Building a Dream Barn: Efficient Use of Space by Brigitte Ruthman.

…Panel Discussion of Family Cow Keepers.

MotherhouseMarket.com will have stainless steel milkpails, non-electric yogurt makers, Debra’s favorite fencing supplies, milk filter disks, glass milk bottles, resource books, and udder handy items there for sale.

… 10:00 a.m. – 2:00p.m. at the UCC-Cornwall, CT Parish House. There will be hot drinks and fresh bread starting at 9:30 and a noontime pot-luck lunch. Bring a dish to share and your own place setting. PLEASE LET US KNOW IF YOU"LL BE COMING! by contacting Debra@Motherhouse.us or by calling (860) 672-0229 and/ or get in touch for moore information.

Welcome Back

2010-02-22T18:14:00.001-08:00

Well almost a year later, here I am again. I have to say for much of the year I was virtually blogging - in my head - telling you all about the sweet moments that happened. The playgroups that Bea had with her friends last summer were a big highlight which included her first big bike ride on the Copake rail trail and having her buddies come to the farm to pick raspberries and watch us milk Patches. That seems like ages ago now...

But already spring is just around the corner once again. Just the other night it seemed like I could smell the snow melting. Soon we'll be in the greenhouse again soaking up the magnified rays of spring sun and surrounded by the smell of fresh earth.

Baxter is one now, a cherub of a little boy, holding on to his gummy smile. His first teeth are about to pop through. Bea is of course as sweet as ever, loving her little brother and always ready for an adventure.

Patches is actually bred now and due in July. Thanks to a mini-Jersey bull who stayed the winter with us. I have to admit that Dan has become the dairy maid. My grand plans of being in this role have been subsumed first by pregnancy, then caring for an infant along with farm logistics. I actually milked this past weekend for the first time in ages and it felt so good to get back into the farm chores. I spend so much time nursing Baxter and in the first year our nursing relationship really has defined my existence. Ah there's that sisterhood with Patchy. In a month or so we will dry off Patches so she can have a well deserved rest in the last months of her pregnancy. It means we'll be without milk for a while but I suppose that is just a part of eating seasonally.

There really is too much to say after a year long haitus, so I'll just keep this short - a nice brief welcome back. I have a feeling it is going to be a great, big year!

Striving to be a Domestic Goddess

2009-04-08T16:52:00.000-07:00

No, I'm not cooking my way through Nigella Lawson's book, but we just got a Dyson! Wow, what a difference it makes in our house. Our house gets so dirty, so fast... with real, actual dirt. Now I just wish I had the same kind of tool for our laundry.

The cycle of life is always before our eyes at the farm. This week we said a sad good bye to Moe and Maude, the geese. Unfortunately something of the canine variety found its way through or over the electric fence and met Maude one night and Moe the next. I've heard of geese being mean, but these two were real sweet. Probably from being raised so lovingly from chicks by our neighbor Greg. At least we got to enjoy a few weeks of their wonderful eggs.

Today, on the other hand, we welcomed 4 new piglets to the farm. Lulu is showing them the ropes I suppose.

Speaking of Lulu.... This is so cute I have to mention it. Bea has been loving the swing that Dan made her so much that he put up a swing for her in the greenhouse. She can keep Lulu company. If you look closely at the picture you can see a little bell on the fence. Bea can hit this with her feet while she's swinging and ring the bell. Lulu gets excited and runs around.

Can You Say "Supercute?"

2009-04-03T17:32:00.000-07:00

Baxter Lee is Here!

2009-03-16T07:40:00.000-07:00

Finally, here we are to announce the arrival of Baxter (born Jan 26th 9:30pm), now that he is about 6 weeks old. (I guess this is our cyberspace version of the old-time practice of "churching" or bringing the baby out after 40 days). I had started on his birth story but I finally realized that was going to take a while to finish so I should keep on posting in the meantime. Also, our camera is unfortunately our of batteries so we are low on pictures. We're working on that - for our friends and family who are still waiting to see how cute he is.

I won't go into the whole story now, but his birth was a bit of a challenge in the sense that it was a lot of hard work - 9lb baby boy from little 5 foot me! Yikes! The labor was about 9 hours, pushing for 3.5. Uhg. Powerful stuff! I was so glad to be home and had the wonderful support of my midwife Elayne, our doula Sarah and friend Rachel... and of course Dan and Bea. Baxter is a hearty, beautiful little guy.

So now we have pretty much adjusted to life as a family of four and spring is on it's way. Hooray!

Still Waiting....

2009-01-21T14:08:00.000-08:00

This little boy sure is cozy in there. After the inauguration yesterday, I feel a certain sense of relief. Now it seems the world is more of a sane, compassionate, hopeful, intelligent place to be born into. What a good way to start the new year, to start a new life.

I've been trying to walk a lot to get this baby moving. Lately my favorite walking music is Leo Kotke & Mike Gordon. It was pretty chilly today but I went to the farm to walk anyway. (Of course I would have much rather walked to the farm, but alas our road between the house and farm is still flooded. There is a chance it may be frozen now, but it wasn't as of last week.) I was pretty chilled so when I got back to the farm I warmed up in the sunny greenhouse and got a nice dose of vitamin D. It was even warm enough to get some sun on my belly.

Bea's just come in from helping Dan make dinner with a snack of red peppers and endive. Time for supper....

Waiting Here in Limbo....

2009-01-14T14:17:00.000-08:00

Well, my due date is 2 days away. With Bea I was 2 days late. Not too bad. I am definitely ready to burst. We are all organized, no lose ends that I can think of so it really feels like I am sitting around waiting. Wishing I had some crafty projects to work on, but of course I don't really want to start on anything new right now. (Right now Bea is telling Dan that at school she and one of her friends played that she was having a baby!)

I'm also at a loss for good books to read. Some good reads about midwifery are Ami McKay's The Birth House and Peggy Vincent's Baby Catcher. The Birth House is historical fiction set in Nova Scotia around WWI. It follows Dora Rare, a young midwife, working in her small community while a physician of "modern" obstetrics arrives to try to change the traditional birth practices.

Baby Catcher follows Peggy Vincent's journey from delivery room nurse to childbirth educator, to a licensed midwife. The book includes lots and lots of birth stories and insight on how every woman births differently. Also she writes about issues facing midwives in and out of hospital settings.

So with only a handful of days to go I should be savoring this special time with Bea. We have been out sledding and walking in the snow everyday and that has been really nice. I'll try to come up with some more special projects for us over the next couple days....

Beatrice's Birth Story

2008-12-31T06:22:00.000-08:00

Many folks know that our beautiful little Beatrice was born at home 3 and a half years ago. I've been meaning to share her birth story here as we prepare for our second homebirth. You don't hear much about women giving birth at home anymore, but a few of us still do it. ( I suppose you don't hear much about people growing their own food anymore either.... but that is another topic.) I really need to share our story because I feel like the power of birth is like a secret that isn't shared, but should be every woman's birth right. Birthing is so intrinsic to our deepest nature and is one of the most powerful physical, emotional, mental, spiritual events in our lives. My birthing of Bea at home was a wholistic process. I felt safe, comfortable, supported, strong and loved throughout the entire labor.

Here is our story. My labor began around 12:30 at night. Dan and I had gone to bed around 10 or so. My water breaking woke me up and I went to the bathroom to see if there was any more to come. When I came back to bed I told Dan what had happened and we called our doula, Isa. Her calm at being called at 1 in the morning was amazing and she assured us she was on her way. We tried to go back to sleep, but I don't think we slept very much at all. The contractions came right away. Honestly, I don't even remember what they felt like. I did spend a lot of time on the toilet. I later told my brother that giving birth was like trying to poop out a bowling ball, because it does feel like the baby is coming out your bottom. Hence, the toilet seemed like the most comfortable place to be. By morning I had dilated almost all the way and we called the midwife, Joanne, and we all thought the baby would be coming soon. We had the birth tub (a 150 gallon stock tank from Agway) set up, but didn't think we'd need it. Joanne arrived and when the baby didn't come right away, I decided I would get into the tub. Meanwhile it had turned into a beautiful July Sunday. Once I was in the tub I couldn't imagine getting out again. The tub was amazing - the water was comforting and I found I could press off the sides of the tub with my legs, arms, back. I was pushing with every part of my body. I started pushing when I got into the tub and ended up staying there for about 5 hours! At one point the midwife asked if I wanted to get out and walk around, but I couldn't imagine leaving the comfort of the tub. Everyone was cool as a cucumber and I really had no idea that my situation was a little unusual. I was pretty much pushing continuously and thought, wow I could really use a break and also that it was "hard work". (At the time George W. was using that phrase a lot and I couldn't believe I was thinking about our president during my labor) Bea was crowning for what seemed to be a long time, but no matter how hard I pushed, she wouldn't budge. There were no signs of fetal distress, so I just kept plugging away. Finally she started moving down more and it was a tremendous relief to push her all the way out. Joanne put her right onto my chest and I fell in love with my daughter immediately.

I got out of the tub to deliver the placenta while Dan sat beside me holding Bea. Soon we were all snuggled up in bed. I ate a good meal and Bea started nursing. I should have been exhausted but I was on such a high, my body coursing with hormones. I was elated and in love and overwhelmed with being a new mother.

Only in hindsight did I realize just how lucky I was to have been home. If I had been at the hospital, chances are good that there would have been some kind of intervention - because my waters had been broken for over 12 hours or because I pushing for so long (5 hours). I thank God for the wisdom of my midwife and doula, for their experience, strength and belief in my ability to birth my baby. Not to mention the chance for Dan, Bea and I to bond undisturbed in our own home.

So that is my personal story. While yes I am a little atypical, some might say a crunchy organic farmer or whatever, but I am not flaky. Nor am I naive. My own miscarriage and the loss of a good friend's full term baby have made me painfully aware that things don't always go according to our expectations. Nevertheless, the facts are plain and simple about the safety of midwifery care. For more info please check out this recent piece from the LA Times by Jennifer Block, author of Pushed: The Painful Truth About Childbirth and Modern Maternity Care.

Hello Baby... book, not peanut

2008-12-20T16:05:00.000-08:00

No our little peanut hasn't arrived early, rather Hello Baby is the title of a wonderful book depicting a wintery homebirth. There couldn't be a more perfect way to introduce Bea to what actually could happen on the day peanut comes out into the world. The mom takes a walk in the woods, the midwife arrives with her gear, the soon to be big brother helps his dad bring in fire wood for the cold wintery night.... even one of the big sisters is named Bea. The illustrations are beautiful and convey so much love. The mom walks around the house during labor with the dad holding her during contractions. The three older children get to see their little brother being born and even get to check out the placenta. In the evening the whole family camps out in front of the fire. I first read the book to Bea soon after it arrived in the mail. She was engrossed and I couldn't hold back my tears. Later that evening Bea was showing Dan the book at the dinner table, he started reading and started crying. He really hadn't expected to be so touched. I think this was an "aha" moment for him when he was reminded of the emotions of birth and the reality that we are all going to be back at that special place soon. It was so funny. We were both crying, laughing and trying to explain to Bea the strange phenomenon of crying when you are happy. On Bea's request we are now reading Hello Baby at least once a day.

Bea is very excited to be a big sister and is becoming very interested about the birth. "How is the baby going to come out of your vagina?" If every thing goes according to plan, she will get to find out!

Pregnancy & Chocolate

2008-12-10T13:12:00.000-08:00

Ok, after a long hiatus, I'm back. What has torn me away from the computer for so long? Not much, just the usual love/hate relationship with the computer world and lack of energy at the time of day when I would actually have the opportunity to sit here and type away. Maybe I should blog at night around 2am, when I am usually wide awake, eating a bowl of cereal.

We've officially entered what we call "staycation". This is the time of year when we are relatively free of the usual farm obligations. Instead of going away on a vacation we stay around home, leisurely milking the cow and taking trips up to Berkshire South Community Center, visiting friends, etc. Some of my personal highlights of the last 2 months have been: making 2 little quilts with 30s reproduction fabrics for the silent auction at Bea's school, making her a waldorf doll (a new baby of her own) for Christmas, seeing Coleman Barks read Rumi at Kripalu and simply having lots of family time with Dan and Bea.

Chocolate, as well as an ever growing list of things I mean to mention here, has brought me back to the blog. (Also thanks Sarah M. for blog inspiration!) Although this story isn't that recent - it was reported on last April - I recently heard about it on The Health Show on WAMC. Reuters reported that a Yale study showed that women who ate 5 or more servings of dark chocolate a week in their last trimester were 40 % less likely to develop preeclampsia that women who ate only one serving.

Preeclampsia can be a serious complication in pregnancy and is indicated by high blood pressure, protein in the urine and edema. Theobromine, found especailly in dark chocolate, has been shown to lower blood pressure and dilate blood vessels. Yahoo! as I sit here I'm enjoying a cup of hot cocoa a la Patches! Here is the link to the health show story to hear more: Pregnant? Mangaire the Chocolate!

Family Day

2008-10-19T09:11:00.000-07:00

Now that we have less going on a the farm we can spend more time as a family on the weekends. Yesterday was a full day at the farm, beginning with chores in the morning. It was only about 35 or so out so we all bundled up and Bea helped me milk while Dan fed the pigs & chickens. I wish I had our camera. While I was milking, Bea was standing next to me warming up her cheeks on Patches' tummy - rubbing her face back and forth through her fur. It was very sweet. Patches is so soft and smells so good, like hay and sunshine. (Please don't believe that cows are dirty & smelly.) Bea is starting to get the feel for milking and every time does a little bit more. We've just gotten a glimpse of the cold mornings that are coming. Soon it will be too cold to have her at the farm early in the morning.

We fed our own kitties and the family of barn cats their milk and brought the cows out to pasture. And then on to our big project for the day - collecting leaves for compost. We've put out signs for a leaf drop, so we'll see if anyone else adds to our pile. Bea and Dan had a great time jumping in the big leaf pile.

At the end of the day we hung out watching the cows eat (waiting for them to eat until contented - if we try to bring them back to the barn before they've had their fill they can be naughty). They were in the corner of the field where our neighbor store's his round bales, so a great time was had playing hide and seek and climbing and jumping off of them.

We also had our first fire of the season last night, so it really felt like a day of ushering in the cold weather. It is so nice to sit with Bea in front of the fire with the lights out right before bed time.

New Info for Moms

2008-10-08T06:06:00.001-07:00

I've come across a few things lately that I thought I would share. First there is a pretty interesting website & blog called Spinning Babies. It is by a midwife in Minnesota about the importance of fetal positioning for an easier birth. The blog has interesting entries about midwifery, doulas, etc.

Whenever I see previews for films about birth I tend to get very emotional and even teary. There is a new film coming out about fathers and their experiences in the birth process called The Other Side of the Glass. Looks very eye opening, especially for first time dads. The mission of this film is to empower fathers to be an involved participant and protector during the birth of their children. Check out the preview here.

The Massachussettes Friends of Midwives has started monthly Birth Circles at the NOAH Center in Great Barrington. The next is on November 2cnd at from 7 to 9. Come to share info on prengancy, midwifery, parenting, & hear positive birth stories in a supportive environment.

For more info contact Sarah at www.berkshiredoulas.com.

2008-10-05T17:10:00.000-07:00

Fall is off to a busy start. We're getting into a new rhythm with Bea now at nursery school 3 mornings a week. She is delighted with it and I am too. She's been spending chunks of time with Dan at the farm in the afternoon. It is so nice that fall is here. The weather is beautiful and the pace of the work at the farm allows for a calm, steady day. (compared to the frantic, scurried days of summer) Here she is watching Dan spread a load of compost.

We think that Patches is actually really pregnant now. Deborah came to breed her around Labor Day and so far, no heat signs. Coco has been frisky, though. So we'll have to keep an eye on her. And seriously think about whether we would want to milk 2 cows if we did breed her. On the other hand, we could just keep the calf with her. It looks like Dan is leaning towards baby beef next year. I have to say, we've been eating Moon in the Pond veal and it is tasty!

Our girls have been seriously spoiled lately. The quality of the pasture is not that great, but we do have great cover crops that have been really boosted with compost & minerals, so Dan has been bringing the cows out for the day with tethers. They eat to their hearts content and are usually more than happy to come right back to the barn. Yesterday, Patches decided to be naughty and snack on the broccoli on the way. The milk has been incredible and made this beautiful yellow butter.

Labor Day Pot Luck

2008-08-19T12:04:00.000-07:00

My goodness, summer certainly is flying by. I've been estranged from my computer. And now I'm not quite sure where to start. So I'll throw out an invite to come to our farm for a "Labor" Day Pot Luck. Yes as a homebirth mom, I mean Labor in the birthing sense. I guess you could call this the first official event of the Motherhouse Homebirth Network. This is a gathering for moms
(current & expecting) & families in our area to meet each other, share birth stories, share resources, support, hang out and eat some good food while the kids run around the farm. While my hope is to raise awareness about homebirth, I could also easily say midwifery, natural birth, water birth, alternative birthing etc. My intention is not to exclusively promote homebirth, but to get together with other women who see birth as a inherently normal process.

As an off shoot, let me know if you are interested in a mom's group along the same ideas - including nursing, cloth diapering, attachment parenting, etc....

I suppose the time as come to mention that yes, I am pregnant again. Approaching the half way mark! I've been a little reluctant to make such a public announcement as here on the blog. This pregnancy seems more private somehow, but in light of the above events and considering that word is certainly getting around, it seems appropriate to write about it here. I'm sure I'll have much more to say on the subject as time goes on.

I could go on and on, but Dan has taken Bea to the farm so I will take advantage of a little solo time!

Homemade Ice Cream!

2008-07-03T16:12:00.001-07:00

Oh Boy! Our first Patchy ice cream. (Milk around here is now known as Patchy milk.) Thanks to my friend Lisa, who let me borrow her ice cream maker, I just made our first batch of ice cream from our own cream! And ofcourse I had to make strawberry, as they are precious right now. Our strawberry patch has beeen picked and picked and now the volume is starting to dwindle. The impetous to start making our own ice cream is Bea's birthday on the 10th. We're having an early family party this weekend and thought it would be the perfect birthday treat. It is extra special because before tonight Bea hasn't had ice cream yet. (We're pretty careful about keeping tabs her sugar intake.) So glad homemade with our own cream, eggs & strawberries will be her first.
I already can't wait to make more. I think my next batch will be mint chocolate chip! Ah, summer!

June

2008-06-22T15:54:00.000-07:00

Finally, here I am in June.... As always June is a whirlwind. Too much to do, too little time. We often find ourselves saying we wish we could stop time and get an extra day in the week. I've also had a series of low level illness that aren't, thankfully, that debilitating, but just there to annoy me and slow me down. One after another. Ok, enough complaining about that. We're so swamped at the farm. It is the time of year that we do every possible that happens at the farm - starting seedlings, direct seeding, transplanting, plowing, weeding, harvesting, going to markets, organizing the CSA.... And as the official kick off of the summer we also find ourselves trying to get to social events. Sorry friends, but we are really only making it to the big time events. For example - Congratulations to Rachel Gall & Jay Wolf on their solstice wedding!!! They are such super people and also know so many great folks, I was happy to be able to make it there to celebrate with them, even if we couldn't go into the wee hours. (Or for that matter twilight hours!)

Not much new on the cow front. Patches was bred on Mother's Day weekend and so far, no signs of heat! So hopefully she's pregnant. Our apprentices have learned to milk and we had about 4 or 5 of us taking turns. Now that the crew and Dan are harvesting 3 days a week, I am milking those 3 days. I'm happy to have more time with Patches. Bea has been a champ, hanging out with me while I milk - at least for the first part. Thankfully when I am finishing Dan is back at the barn washing veg or Bea can hang out with Marion, Maya and Solana who are camping out at the farm and helping out. Maya is just about 5, Solana just 2 months younger than Bea, so she is really in 7th heaven having girls to play with at the farm most of the time. We love having John, Marion and the girls here. Although I'm already dreading Bea's reaction when they leave in a few weeks! (Mine, too!)

World Made By Hand

2008-05-22T17:43:00.000-07:00

I guess it has only been about a month, so I don't know if that really qualifies for neglect. But I expected something like this to happen. As farm life gets busier I have less desire to elucidate on it. Rather, I have plenty ideas, happenings, etc I'd be happy to share... the problem is actually sitting down at the computer. By the time Bea is asleep or on her way there I usually just want to tune out. Finally here I am. Thought I would mention how I've been tuning out lately.

Ever wonder what will happen when we run out of gas (or can't get it here)? When there are no cars? No electricity? No centralized government? Well I've just finished World Made By Hand by James Howard Kunstler. HIs characters certainly suffer their share of hardships in the post-apocalyptic world, but it was refreshing to ponder the return of agrarian life, set up in Washington County, NY where we spent a winter across from the Battenkill River. So if you've ever found yourself wondering if we'll ever be in the situation where we start digging things out of our landfills because we could actually use the things we threw away, pick up this book. It is as much about how we live today as what the future could look like.

Family Time

2008-04-23T12:03:00.000-07:00

What a week for the family! Last week we welcomed Bea's cousin Kaleb into the world and yesterday we celebrated her great-grandmother Irma's 100th birthday! My big brother Travis was here for the birthday festivities and Bea had lots of fun playing with her Uncle T. It is always a whirlwind of activity when Travis is home. Somehow his vists always coincide with particularly busy times at the farm. Travis and Dan went over to New York to pick up our seed potatoes. Yesterday there was a bit of a potato cutting party, with both our dads, Travis, and the apprentices Cheryl and Aliyah cutting up our spud seeds. Bea had a blast climbing on the hay in the barn, making trips up the mountain and spotting elephants!

The cows are eager to get out into the pasture, but we are waiting for there to be enough grass. The sheep got out yesterday and had a high time grazing around. Coco was not happy about staying behind in the least. Patches is much more mellow. Coco is the boss, chasing Lulu around and bellowing when she doesn't get her way. We missed Patches' heat one more time. We always think it is too early and wait for stronger signs, but then we end up missing our window of opportunity. Maybe next month....

Flood Waters Receeding?

2008-03-31T16:19:00.000-07:00

Well, hopefully my quandry about the drive to the warm will be over soon. The flood has gone down a bit and now we are able to drive the truck through. I'm still waiting and looking forward to the first chance to pull on my tall wellies and walk down, not to mention pull out the bike and our "peapod" trailer for the season.

Fortunately or unfortunately (as my friend Duffy always used to say) Dan had a Judo injury last week. He was thrown close to the edge of the mat and his heel landed on the hard wood floor. We was pretty much out of commission for the week. I got to do all the milking and most of the other farm chores for the week and it was great for me. Ever since Bea was born I've been disconnected from the farm. It has been strange to not even know where certain crops are in the fields. So this week got me back in the swing of things. Dan was home with Bea; she was no longer my first priority while I was at the farm. Having a baby at the farm isn't that easy. I suppose there are lots of women who put their kids in the backpack and get to work, but for some reason that never really worked for me. Now that Bea is more independent (she has no fear or inhibitions about doing things at the farm - collecting eggs, feeding animals, etc. & chasing her beloved cats) and is totally comfortable at the farm I'm hoping that I'll be able to work more. Last week I could freely go about my work. It felt great. I think Dan enjoyed it too.

Quandry

2008-03-13T17:06:00.000-07:00

Many of you, dear readers, know that our road is often (all winter at least and a good part of spring and fall) flooded between our house and the farm. This means that instead of the half mile walk/bike/drive to the farm we have to drive 3 miles to get to the there. Yes, a huge inconvenience and waste of gas. My most recent quandry concerning the flood is this: Since Dan has multiple tasks to do at the farm other than the milking and chores he most often ends up doing the milking. I'm torn because I do want to take on the milking, but does it make sense for me to drive to the farm to milk and drive home when Dan just has to turn around when I get there to go down to the farm to do his work.....? The clincher of course is Bea. Ideally we'd all load up in the morning and go to the farm for the whole am, but those with a 2 year old will know it's never that clear and simple. Dan made a good point this morning, that things don't always have to make sense... yet. Of course there will be that time in the season where every single thing we do should make sense. We have to be as efficient as possible when things get going, it's a survival mechanism.
We're not there yet, though. My looming concern is how to keep Bea occupied during the 25 minutes it takes me to milk. In the midst of the season things can get really crazy down there and I'm hoping that Bea and I can manage the milking on our own without having to pull Dan out of his work. Dan is getting faster, it only takes him 15. Hopefully by the time it rally matters, I'll be down to 15, too.
That being said, Bea loves the farm and I'm sure she can manage on her own for a few minutes. As we sat seeding in the greenhouse the other day we watched her go out to the chickens, into their trailer, come out with two eggs and announce she was on her way to feed them to the pigs. What a farm girl!

3.8.08

2008-03-08T16:16:00.000-08:00

Ah, wallpaper.... Dan and Bea went up to New Hampshire to visit Ucnle Chris and Aunt Jen. A little escape before the greenhouse gets started up. I've been holding down the fort, feeding all the animals. It is also great timing for me to finally get around to the painting and wallpapering of Bea's room. We did a lead test a while ago and it didn't look so good. Thankfully, the paint wasn't peeling. I figured best to just cover it up, hence the wallpaper. My first time! My dad, CJ and I spent the day plugging away on it and were still talking at the end so I take that as a success. We didn't get to finish. Hopefully it won't take to long to wrap it up so Bea can have her room back. Better than ever. No, we never did do the whole painting the nursery thing before she was born.... Today the thought did cross my mind, why didn't we do this three years ago? (Probably because we co-slept and never really needed to have a special place for Bea to go to at night. And for those wondering, at 2 and a half yes she does love her big girl bed and room. Although we still love snuggling with her, too.)

Can't wait to get my hands into more spring projects... cleaning up the yard and ofcourse starting seeds. When Dan gets back we have 60 flats of onions to start as well as celery, celeriac & tomatoes!

Confused Maternity

2008-03-04T13:17:00.000-08:00

It turns out that Coco and Patches may have fallen too hard for the sweet little lambers. When I went down to the farm yesterday morning Coco was guarding them from Lulu! The lambs were as content as could be, sleeping in the sun. Lulu was not so happy. I put Patches in her pen for milking and tied Coco up. Then I moved the sheep and lambs in with the chickens. Our main concern was that if cows weren't letting Lulu nurse the little ones, her milk supply would dry up. The lambs seemed to be getting enough food from Patches! She gave about a quart less when I milked her. This could have been a sign of heat, but her teats were sticky as if they had been sucked on.

The sheep seemed happy enough in their new home with the chickens. The chickens didn't even seem to notice. Coco was heart broken and bellowed all day about it. However the move was a bit of a short term solution. The sheep have shelter in the greenhouse, but eventually it will be too hot in there. Also it means managing seperate pastures for the sheep and cows, something we were going to try to avoid if possible. After several years raising sheep we had decided we were going to stop and then these little ones came along. If anyone is looking for a few nice pet sheep please let us know. Lulu is a sweetheart. We've had her for about 7 years. Blackie is her companion and actually has good wool, not that we have been using it. If you'd like the pair and the lambs, let's talk.

Tomorrow is Pig Day! Things are really starting to happen on the farm. It must be March!

Fertility?

2008-03-02T11:38:00.000-08:00

We've been watching for signs of heat in Patches so we can have her bred again. We haven't seen anything really obvious except for her tail sticking up a little bit and maybe some wetness from her vulva. Other signs can include mounting other animals (even people), giving less milk and other friskiness. Since we don't have a bull, we've asked Debra Tyler to come do the deed (AI) when we're all in agreement that Patches is ready. The window for cows to concieve is pretty short - from about 10 to 18 hours. So you want to try to get the timing right. If we don't see a really strong heat, it looks like we might wait a few months to breed her so that she can calve in the spring instead of the dead of winter.

The lambs are doing really well. We've let them out of their pen and as we expected from Coco's gentle moos, the cows have taken a real shine to these babes. Both Coco and Patches follow them around, licking them. Boy, what a strong maternal instinct in cows! Dan has seen the lambs try to latch on to Patches. I guess we'll judge by the amount of milk we get tomorrow morning how successful they were. Hopefully they won't have an identity crisis and grow up thinking they are cows. So far Lulu doesn't seem to be too jealous.

News from Cyberspace. If you live in our area check out the new website, Rural Intelligence. It is loaded with just about everything you need to know if you live around here.

New Years, Take Two

2008-02-26T14:52:00.001-08:00

Good news to come home to... Lulu had her lambs sometime early Monday morning. They were already there and thriving by the time Dan got there to milk. Lulu is such a good mama. We love those soft gentle bleats of a mama ewe. Even Coco would call out with her gentle moo when she would hear the lambers bleat. Here they are. Bea is smitten.

Well, coming back home from my little trip I feel like it is New Years all over again - ready to start fresh. Definitely ready for spring. We'll be starting up the greenhouse in about a week or so and I can't wait to start getting my hands dirty. As for my trip I should mention my two favorite places in Santa Fe - Ten Thousand Waves and Cloud Cliff Bakery & Cafe. For folks who've been to Japan and have serious onsen withdrawl, this is the place to go. Sitting outside in a hot soaking tub while snow is falling is amazingly peaceful. As for Cloud Cliff - amazing food and bakery using organic & local wheat.

At a Loss for Words

2008-02-20T17:57:00.000-08:00

About 8 hours after I wrote my last post I noticed the signs of an impending miscarriage. Dan came down with the flu. Needless to say we had a terrible week. Yet, farm life goes on - animals need to be fed, the cow needs to be milked. While it is a kind of hell to be milking the cow with a fever in an ice storm, the farm actually offers a certain grounding. Through years of working with life and death on the farm - with the animals, plants and seasons- we can feel comforted that we are just a part of these cycles as well. It turns out that Patches was not bred and will not be giving birth this fall either. Yet, Lulu, who we did not intend to breed is about the lamb any day now. So you see life is full of little surprises. As we often say to ourselves... "Good luck, bad luck.... hard tellin'."

So now a week and a half later we are all recovered and doing well again. I'm off for a little R & R this weekend in one of our favorite places, Santa Fe. Yes, I do have the best husband ever. When I get back it will be like New Year's all over again. I'm looking forward to a fresh start and the new spring season.

Farm Family News

2008-02-10T09:52:00.000-08:00

Big news for the family...Beatrice is going to be a big sister! In September. Most of our friends sarcastically say, "Oh, good timing!" But compared to Bea's birthday in July, September looks great. We will have a great crew of apprentices and workers who will be old timers with farm work by the time September rolls around. By some divine miracle, Patches was bred in late December. This means we'll dry her off (stop milking) in August so she gets a 2 month break before she calves in October. We couldn't ask for better timing. A break from milking before & after the baby comes will be like a little gift of time. We'll probably be suffering from dairy withdrawl but we'll have to deal with that when it comes.

Over the course of the next year, besides pregnancy, I'll probably also be mentionning homebirth quite a bit. We had a really wonderful homebirth with Bea with a midwife and doula. We had a water birth and it was a blessing to be able to labor in the tub. (Not in our bath tub. We used a new stock tank from Agway - the kind for watering cows & horses or in our case washing vegetables.) After I got in I couldn't imagine getting out. I won't launch into her birth story now but I will say it confirmed by belief that home was the best place for me to have my baby. And so we're getting ready for our next one! We've already met with our midwife Elayne and are really excited.

If you are interested in homebirth there are some great resources out there. Mothering Magazine and their website is a great place to start (see sidebar link). Ina May Gaskin the great & inspiring midwife has written several books including Spritual Midwifery and Ina May's Guide to Childbirth.
Also there is a new film out called The Business of Being Born. It will be showing at the Triplex in Great Barrington this month on Sunday February 24th at 11 am. This is sure to be a powerful film about the medicalization of birth in this country and the alternatives. Check out the trailer on their website! Just the trailer is moving!

Where to Get Raw Milk

2008-02-01T16:40:00.000-08:00

Milking Patches with Bea watching.

With a two year old around I often find myself cutting my posts short. Last time I meant to mention where you can get raw milk locally. In Connecticut you can get raw milk from Stonewall Farm in Cornwall. You can go directly to the farm or find it at several area stores. I know they carry it at LaBonnes in Lakeville and Health Food Junction in Canaan. If you are in the Great Barrington area you can join the Twin Oaks Farm milk co-op. The laws about selling raw milk are a little different in MA so they've set up a co-op with a pick up at the Berkshire Co-op Market.

Raw Milk

2008-01-30T07:43:00.000-08:00

Yes, we drink our milk straight from the cow - not pasteurized. We know she's healthy, eating good quality feed and that our milking system is clean. There is a lot to say concerning raw milk and I don't have a personal mission to convert all milk drinkers to raw, unhomogenized milk. Some people seem to think that as organic farmers it is our role to educate consumers about everything from organic growing methods to the health benefits of organic food and perhaps especially about the faults of modern conventional food production. I don't see that as my role. We're busy enough running our farm and raising our family. We feel that when people see our farm & produce and taste our food they will start to understand. A bite of a real tomato has a much greater effect than a lecture of you shoulds and you shouldn'ts. So if you want to know more about raw milk check out the links on the sidebar.

Winter Visits

2008-01-27T12:21:00.000-08:00

Yes, the new pictures on the slideshow are of our farm. And of course the beautiful girl is our Beatrice. Our winter is cruising along with morning animal chores and random wintery tasks. This week we met with another farmer to talk shop a little bit -Jonathan, hired a part-time summer worker-Jonas, had a drop in visit with our other summer part-timer Rachel and had a visit with ex-apprentice Alissa and her friend Megan. Winter is a good time to catch up with fellow farmers. During the season we don't have much time to shoot the breeze. Usually when we are in touch it is about a crop issue or a quick touching base to make sure everyone's surviving ok.

Woops!

2008-01-23T14:15:00.000-08:00

I've been working on getting some pictures and a slideshow up, but haven't worked out all the kinks. Apologies to those who saw some unsightly pics here. Please be assured, they weren't mine! I imagine I'll have real pics of our real farm shortly....

Yogurt & Butter.

2008-01-12T07:28:00.000-08:00

As expected Patches has settled down nicely and is getting used to her new routine. I've been milking by myself and since I am a little more focused, I think that helped her to settle in.

We are making our first batch of yogurt as we speak. It is really easy and the only special equipment that we use is a thermometer. We eat up the milk to about 150 degrees. We've heated to lower temps but the yogurt seems thicker when we go up to 150. Then wait for it to cool to about 115, add some yogurt and stir it up. We use about a cup of yogurt to a gallon of milk. You don't need any special yogurt culture, just the kind you usually eat - plain, no sweetners etc. Then we wrap up our pot in a towel and put it in a pie basket by our woodstove for about 5 hours. If you don't have a woodstove you could use the warmer of your Aga. Unfortunately here in New England there aren't too many Agas around.... I could get on a huge tanget about the wonderful Aga cookers but I'll spare you all for now. Anyhow if you don't have woodstove you might want to invest in a yogurt maker. I'll get some links together about yogurt makers and post them when I get a chance.

Yogurt making is a little bit like making bread. The milk has to be warm, but not too hot or you will kill the cultures. If the milk is too cold, it won't get going. Also, there is a wide range of variables that may make the yogurt thicker or thinner or more sour. Through trial and error we've come up with a routine we like.

We also made our first butter yesterday. My dad, Corey, was here and I skimmed some milk for him. What a great opportunity to make a little butter! I poured the cream in a jar and we shook it up for about 10-15 minutes and viola! Unfortunately I didn't have any cheese cloth on hand to really squeeze out all the extra liquid but it was fine. Bea drank up all the buttermilk with her supper. Eventually I hope to make some real quantities of butter. I hear you can use your cuisinart with the dough blade so I'll try that.

Welcome Patches & Coco Rose

2008-01-08T14:19:00.000-08:00

Yesterday our new cows Patches & Coco Rose came to our farm. Patches is a sweet little Jersey who we are going to milk and Coco Rose is her geriactric companion. She's an old girl at 10, but a real lovey of a cow. I think they may have some home sickness for Debra & Local Farm but I imagine they'll settle in soon. Lulu, our ewe, seems a little miffed. I'm sure she'll soon realize the cows are nothing to be afraid of.

This morning was our first milking and I was pretty excited. Unfortunately it didn't go as smoothly as I expected. Whenever I milked Patches at Debra's it was always a breeze. She was pretty unsettled this morning and put her foot in the bucket twice! Ack! Then it seemed like she stopped letting her milk down although it seemed she still had milk. I asked Dan to see if he could strip her out, being paranoid of not getting all the milk- and causing mastitis. She seemed to let down a little more milk for Dan at the end. We took home a little more than a quart. Which means we spilled about a gallon when she kicked the bucket over.

I'm sure tomorrow will be much better. I can't blame Patches for needing some time to adjust. Bea was champ and sat for a long time across from Patches and watched patiently.

It is such a big change to have cows at the farm. For us, it is a huge lifestyle change. Especially for me - it is really grounding - connecting me to the farm in a way I haven't been before. (The veggies are really Dan's realm.) But I don't mean just the chores and the milking. Each animal has a different energy. I'll write more on this later... It is almost supper time! We are so happy to have these lovely creatures with us. I can't wait until tomorrow morning!

What is Farmwifery?

2008-01-03T07:43:00.000-08:00

I'm often asked what my role is on the farm or for that matter in life. Folks can look at Dan, my husband, out in the field and say to themselves "farmer". He's the guy that grows our vegetables. Usually folks don't see me at the farm, or it is in passing as I am chasing our 2 year old Bea around, trying to pick up some food for dinner, or touch base with Dan about the day's events. So maybe they don't see me and say, "farmer" which would definitely be accurate. So what is it that I do? After asking myself this question often, especially after becoming a new mom I've realized that "farmer's wife" is the answer. "Farmwifery" is the art of being a farmer's wife.

Don't get me wrong, this is not just stand by your man. I kind of see the farm as a part of our family. Farming is not just a job, it is really a lifestyle. We grow vegetables for about 175 families and sell at 2 farmers' markets. This blog will be a little bit about growing the veg, but mostly about all the other things that are going on behind the scenes - CSA membership, running a business, nutrition, eating locally, our farming community, our 2 year old Bea's adventures, my adventures in mothering, attachment parenting, keeping a family cow, making cheese & yogurt, what to cook for supper, preserving food for the winter. And some other fun stuff like family, friends, quilting, books...etc. And generally what life on the farm is like.

Why blog?

I know a bunch of other women who do this same work and so little of it goes unnoticed. The blog is a way to support those other women and shed light on what happens behind the scenes. I was happy to come across Joann Grohman's website and enjoyed reading here diary. Not only to gleen information about her experience with keeping a family cow, but simply to hear another woman's stories about living this lifestyle. I found it really grounding. http://www.real-food.com/
So hopefully I will find the time somehow to keep this going and share lots of info about farm life and other resources. Looking forward to a great new year and lots of new adventures!