Just a Mix

Yesterday was farmer's market day. Today is church. I find myself comfortably sandwiched between the two events. I love my church family, as you already know. I am also coming to love my farmer's market family. There are people there that I am just getting to know and others that I know and love but never see except at the market.

Our sales were steady.We are seeing a big upswing on our Meadow Magic Salve. Already we are having repeat customers and we only introduced it in June. I am so thrilled that other people like it. It has served us well over the years, but it is nice to see it blessing others. Please pray that I can make a living being a mad scientist! Seriously, ever since my parents would let me mix up potions in empty bottles, I said potients back then, I have loved experimenting with different substances. Gathering and using herbs fulfills that same niche in my life.

Jesse's brownie bites and Grace-Marie's breakfast bars both were a big hit as was my 4 Alarm, He-man Woman Hater's fudge.It makes me happy to see my children involved in the market. They do not always want to sit and hold down the fort, but they both are enjoying the interaction with the people. Jesse wants to spend every penny he earns on someone else and he would like to do it NOW! Grace-Marie hasn't seemed to understand that she is earning money yet.

I love my little town. Yesterday Jackies, the restaurant closest to the market, had an anniversary party for the town. They had hot dogs, hamburgers and trimmings. There were lawn games and music. Everyone was there (or at least it seemed so to me) It was sweet to see several generations of various families sitting under the shade trees or playing volley ball. There were lots of little children and some old folks (like me), It was small town at its best. Thanks Mike and Jackie!

Here is the political skuttlebutt from the market.

1. People who use petroleum products should not object to mega loads.
2. People who use toilet paper should not whine about logging.
3. There are too many mountain lions in our area.
4. There are too many wolves.
5. It is hard to garden in Western Montana.
6. Some people ought to be flogged.
7. It is great that in our school little children can still hug their teachers.
8. It is good to see 3 generations of a family together at the market.
9. We like tourism...a little bit.
10. These are hard times.

The temperature at daylight on my porch was a muggy 60 degrees but that is dropping significantly due to a storm.

Have a great day!

Lawana

Farmer's Market Report

Jesse and I had a wonderful time at the Farmer's Market. We took 5 or 6 types of fudge, several types of cookies and bars and some lettuce and micro greens. I LOVE the market. We did better than we have so far. Not getting rich by any means, but my son is developing a love of the market atmosphere and all my children are learning about baking, wildcrafting, making salves etc. Grace-Marie got fired last week because she was disobedient and difficult. Actually, I suppose she was just laid off, as we will give her another chance next week.

We had so much fun with our 4 Alarm, He-Man-Woman-Hater Fudge! (Named from the club on Little Rascals)
I made it for the people who complained that the regular Jalapeno fudge wasn't hot enough. This one definitely was! It tasted really good, but I could only eat a tiny nibble because of the heat. That is the only kind I should keep around.

I have been feeling good about getting in close to 5 miles walking as many days per week as I can. It is an accomplishment for me. Tonight; however, I talked to my sister-in-law and she told me that a lady we both know who is 86, is putting in 20 miles per day on a stationary bike! Now she could have just kept that information to herself! If I live to be 86, I probably won't even be able to get on a stationary bike. The nerve of some people.

I hope you had half as much fun as I had today (and that you didn't have an embarassing, earth shaking, bone crushing fall on concrete in front of half the town). I hope your sunset was stunning. I hope you see the sunrise. I hope when you count your blessings, you run out of fingers and toes.

God bless you!

Lawana

We Slept In!

My family is split this week. Three of us are at a big 4-H event and four of us are home. We are kind of taking the week off from some things. I was blessed by a friend with a BIG pile of groceries including some yummy quick fix items. So, I am not cooking much this week. The kids are off from school (we usually do some school year around)  and we are taking it easy for a few days. Tomorrow we start preparation for the Farmer's Market but last night and today we are playing.

Here are some of the things we have done and are doing. We slept in! Woo Hoo! Until 8:30 when my arthritic knee, er soccer injury, refused to be quiet. I had gotten up at 4:00 to open the house up to let cold air in. That is how we air conditon our house. We open it up in the cool of the morning and then "trap" the cold air in to keep the house cool most of the day. It works splendidly so long as we get a few hours below 60 degrees at night or in the morning. At our house, we don't have screen doors and the doors with their low thresholds let in much more cold air than the windows, so sometimes there are visitors. So far it has mostly been moths and domesticated animals. In the back of my mind though I half expect a skunk!

We got up and did our chores and went to town to the free lunch in the park where the younger crowd ate a ham and cheese sandwich, chips and and apple. Ezra harvested a little plantain for me while we were there. After a little play time at the park, we went by the store to pick up supplies for making Jalapeno fudge for the Farmer's Market. While I was there I bought a bag of fudgesicles These are necessary as we are making knitting Nancies this week. My friend Susan introduced Grace-Marie to the knitting Nancy yesterday. The little one though is a bit cumbersome for little hands, so we are making some with the tubes from the foil box and popsicle sticks. Look here to see many kntting Nancies. The one we are making is almost at the end. http://www.waynesthisandthat.com/knittingnancys.html I want to teach fiber arts to my younger chldren and having a snake knitting contest with these little Nancies sounds like a fun way to start.

Tomorrow we will bake breakfast bars, brownie bites, gluten free cookies and we will make Jalapeno , He-Man (4 alarm jalapeno and cayenne ) and jelly bean fudge. I will finish a batch of Meadow Magic salve and we will be packaging,printing, cutting and attaching labels to everything. Friday, we will be picking beets, lettuce, spinach, chard and radishes. But for today our biggest challenge is finding some friends to help us eat 8 fudgesicles so we can make our kntting Nancies.

Hope your day is blessed!

Lawana

Lawana

Bungee cords and Baling Twine

Sometimes I worry a little that my children will grow up feeling that they were deprived during their childhoods. Ask me in about twenty years and I will perhaps know what effect our frugal and humble lifestyle has on people when they grow up. I am not sure how they will remember the years of wearing only hand me down and thrift store clothing, working to earn money for anything above food and shelter, wildcrafting, Farmer's Marketing and generally making do with what is at hand. I didn't design it to be this way. The life I envisioned had just a little more money for discretionary spending. It would have included a small allowance, a few more new clothes, a little more exposure to the inside of a restaurant and a little more travel.

In reality; however, life is what it is. I was brought up in a similar fashion, though my parents didn't do any entrepreneurial stuff. We ate simple foods, wore inexpensive and hand me down clothing and tried to keep both ends together in the middle. I remember well  when my dad wasn't able to work for various reasons. I remember things being tight. What I don't remember is feeling poor. We were spiritually rich. We loved each other and we welcomed others in our home and family. I hope my children will recall feeling the same way.

I see eveidence that my children are benefitting from not being able to run to the store for everything though. When we are out of one ingredient for a recipe, that almost never thwarts my clever kids. Applesauce will replace oil in baked goods, mayo can sub for eggs or shortening in many baked items as well. They all know how to use powdered milk for anything requiring liquid milk. It is nice to know that we can all put something passably edble together in spite of missing ingredients.

I am most entertained by my family's use of baling twine, Bungee cords, tarps, duct tape and glue! At this very moment, we have a kennel built out of recycled chain link panels. It has Bungee cord hinges and some of the broken brackets have been replaced by zip ties. Our vacuum cleaner maintains suction due to a duct tape repair. Our pigs are shaded and protected from the heat by a tarp and zip ties. Parts of some of our cars have been repaired with tape, glue and (sorry honey, I had to share it) dental floss!

I think we might get kicked out of some neighborhoods, but thankfully most members of our neighborhood get around on hooves or paws and don't concern themselves much with countryside renovations. Our human neighbors too are kind and forgiving of an area of dereliction here or there. I am thankful for the experiences we are having . Sometimes I wish my chldren had it a little easier, but it will be interesting to see how they turn out and whether they carry on the family dental-floss-holding -in-the headlight where mom hit the deer with the van legacy.

Enjoy yourselves!

P.S. Go here http://www.cowboypoetry.com/stephaniedavis.htm#Baling to read the lyrics to one of my favorite songs.

Lawana

Thankful Again 2

I am thankful for so many things. First and foremost, I am thankful that God holds me in his hand. I am thankful that nothing surprises him or catches him off guard. I am thankful for my good husband and the fact that he has stuck by me all these years in spite of the fact that I am pretty much crazy most of the time. My children are a blessing to me as well, even though I sometimes want to trade them all for puppies.

I am thankful that G. from the farmer's market gave me pink peonies! I am thankful for a summer storm and that the big limbs that fell missed our house. I am also thankul for access to a camera and that I was able to capture the full moon rising last month.

Here is a quick list from a poll I just conducted around the dinner table.

Child 1: I am thankful for the kitty and Pastor. (Sorry Pastor that was her order!)
Child 2: I am thankful for God,  my dog, my bike and my brothers and sisters.
Child 3: I am thankful to be selected for 4-H congress and having a car to drive.
Child 4: I am thankful for my family and my church family.
Child 5: (He was at work, so I am assuming he would be thankful for employment)
The Poppie: I am thankful for my wife, and grateful children who open the gate for me when  
I drive up in the yard. I am also thankful for a "woman cooked meal".
The Grannie: (Poll conducted by phone) I am thankful for Life, Health and Family.

I am also thankful that you took the time to read this.
God bless you!
Lawana

Superior Farmer's Market July 2nd!

We are gearing up for the farmer's market tomorrow morning. Jesse, Grace-Marie and I will have our little table in the shade. We are praying for nice weather and lots of people to show up. If you are local, you should really stop by. There are a number of hand crafted items as well as potted plants, baked goods, produce, eggs and lots of interesting people.

We have been working hard on our trademark breakfast bars, and bran muffins. This week we have added spelt/ molasses gluten free cookies and brownie bites. We will also sell a few dozen eggs, the first of our herbs and micro greens as well as our Meadow Magic Salve.

Stop by and see us or visit your local farmer's market. Know your farmer, your baker, the one who knits your socks and makes your soap. Also, whenever you can, buy something from a child. Many entrepreneurs got started with a lemonade stand or selling cookies. You never know what dreams that small purchase may be fueling.

God bless you!

Lawana