A Tiny Homestead

Turn Here, Sweet Corn - Atina Diffley

Today I'm talking with Atina Diffley, author of Turn Here, Sweet Corn. You can follow on Facebook as well.
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00:00You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, the podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters, and topics adjacent. I'm your host, Mary Lewis.  A Tiny Homestead podcast is sponsored by Homegrown Collective, a free-to-use farm-to-table platform emphasizing local connections with ability to sell online, buy, sell, trade in local garden groups, and help us grow a new food system.  You can find them at homegrowncollective.org. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like, subscribe.
00:29share it with a friend or leave a comment. Thank you. Today I'm talking with Atina Diffley, the author of Turn Here Sweet Corn. Good afternoon, Atina. How are you? Hello. It's really a treat to be here. Thanks for inviting me. Oh, I'm so thrilled you had time. I reviewed Turn Here Sweet Corn on my book blog years ago and I haven't read it since and it's been a while, but I remember just being smitten with your writing.
00:57Thank you. was really fun to write it and really healing. Yeah. Yeah. I imagine it would be. was so  like, it was so comforting to read it and know that I'm not crazy to love everything about the lifestyle. Uh huh. Yeah. Yeah. The good, the bad, the ugly, the aberrant, the fantastic. It's all there.  Exactly.  So because not everybody knows about the book.
01:25Asina, will you tell me about yourself and what the book and what you're doing now? Sure. The book is a memoir. And when I started writing it, really all I knew is that I wanted to write a memoir about my experience as a farmer. our farm started in 1972. My husband, Martin, started it in Eagan, Minnesota. So for those of you who are familiar with Minnesota, Eagan is now 100 % developed as a suburban.
01:53area, it's 20 minutes downtown Minneapolis. So he grew up there at Fifth Generation Family Farm and saw all that change happen. And that in and of itself is so much what this book is about because  he knew that land through his ancestors and their experience as settlers, as Fifth Generation on land that had been in that family since it was taken from the Indians.
02:23And that was rolling land.  It was diverse. It was never farmed industrial style because of the topography of the land. wasn't  flat and possible to put big equipment in it. So it was small fields settled into a diverse landscape that still had an intact biological system from pre-colonial days.
02:53fields that he grew there were small vegetable plots, settled into this extreme diversity. And as a certified organic vegetable farmer, before anyone knew what organic was, he was really utilizing that diversity of that land.  So that right there is a great place to pause and to really just sort of celebrate this word biological diversity that has now become somewhat of a
03:20buzzword and a catchword and it's now being greenwashed, but it really is that the essence of all life on the planet. Well, yeah, because  different is good and same is not good. It's boring. And from a health perspective, the more diverse any system is, whether it's a living natural ecosystem or a relationship,  and you talk about any system, diversity is healthy.
03:50and creates  reduced disease transmission, reduced disease issues.  When you think about it from an agricultural perspective, as long as we had a diverse landscape around our fields, we really didn't have disease or pest issues.  And I was really naive when I joined Martin in the  80s. I was young and
04:17There wasn't really a lot of science and research and conversation at that point in time yet about this and how it works. And so really, I organic farming was really easy. I mean, it was hard physically. We worked our butts off. But the management of our fertility and our pest-centered disease and our water needs was done through the diversity of the landscape and didn't take a lot of effort. But I didn't know that at the time.
04:46I just was doing the task of planting and harvesting and I didn't really understand the impact that diversity had on it until the sky fell out and that land was developed.  Yeah. It's,  I, okay,  I'm sitting here thinking about how to say this next.  We lived in Jordan for 20 years, Jordan, Minnesota, and we moved to our little piece of heaven like a little over four years ago.
05:14Our little piece of heaven is in the middle of the corn fields right now. And it's a 3.1 acre lot and our nearest neighbor is a quarter mile away. And part of the reason that we chose to leave Jordan is because stuff was starting to get built up. There were a whole bunch of housing developments that went in. And when housing developments go in, population expands and then big box stores come in and they want to
05:43They want to buy up land to put their stores in. And I didn't want to watch this town that I had lived in for 20 years become  what Egan has become. You know, it's really hard because I'm all for progress, but I'm not all for destruction, if that makes any sense at all. No, it's really complex societal issue and there are positive ways to go about it.  And I think one thing that's really critical to point out here,
06:12is that the destruction that happens when a suburban development happens, it's really obvious because they come in and American style, they take every tree, every bush, every blade of grass, they scrape off the living soil and they sell it. And then they build the houses. But it is not development that is a leading cost of ecosystem loss and species extinction and diversity habitat loss. It's actually agriculture.  Agriculture uses 70 %
06:42of the planet's water. It is the leading impact on natural diversity habitat.  creating dense urban settings actually is a smart way to deal with housing. And the fact that we have a lot of humans that do need housing and do need, you know, don't want to have to buy everything on Amazon, at least I don't.  So it's a human need that we have to work with and we can do it in a way that's concentrated.
07:11and that incorporates diversity into it. Once those developments happen, there actually is a lot of diversity that can happen in a housing development. And it can be a diversity reservoir. But when we get into America's agricultural systems, which  are monocultures, the whole system is based on, we don't want anything but one plant species in that field.
07:37you know, the cash crop that we're aiming after, whether it's corn or soybeans or whatever it is, we want that one species. We don't want any other plants. We don't want any animals. We don't want any insects. We don't want any diseases. We don't want any funguses. And so it is a vast monoculture and that is an absolute biological diversity desert. Yep, it is because there's nothing else. And
08:04And I'm telling you, I hope that the people that farm the fields around us switch back to alfalfa in a couple of years, because this cornfield thing is driving me insane. Hey, refresh me. Do we have an hour or half an hour? Um, half an hour, 40 minutes. Okay. So, you know, going back to my book and how that relates to all this,  when that farm was developed,  we experienced an ecological collapse.  We were renting land.
08:32from the developer actually, because they developed over a three year period. the fields, the land around our fields that we were still running were bulldozed and we couldn't pull a crop out of those fields. We were overrun by pests and disease. And that's when I started to really understand how much biological diversity is doing for us was as I experienced that extreme loss. And it's a really powerful part of my book because
09:02The reader experiences it through my children's loss. young. And children at that age, they just connect with nature. It doesn't have to be a big environment. They can connect with one rock or a little tree or a bush or sitting under a plant.  And it's really quite spiritual for them. And when that was bulldozed, they really went through the loss of innocence.  They experienced it as a rape victim would, that their parents
09:30these caretakers that are supposed to keep them safe cannot protect them from everything.  And they're really not supposed to figure that out till they're, you know, teenagers, rebellious teenagers.  So that was a profound moment in my life and in my book. The reader really goes through that process and has the opportunity to really grieve whatever losses they have had in their own life, whether it's land or relationships or people, it doesn't really matter.
10:00The emotion is the same. It's grieving those losses and recognizing  how complex and valuable they are. And then we bought a new farm  just south of Lakeville. It had been conventionally farmed. was 100 acres. They plowed it from one end to the other. And the first thing we did was walk that land in a heavy rainstorm and understand how the water was moving. We staked that out and we planted those to waterways so that  we wouldn't have so much erosion.
10:30And then we laid out fields to the contour of the land, 45 smaller fields on a hundred acre farm. And between the fields, we planted biological diversity habitat, diverse flowers,  plants, bushes, bunch grasses for dung beetles and various beneficial insects.  And we had to restore a diverse habitat on land that had been destroyed. And that was a lot of work.
10:59You know, we just had that need because it hadn't yet been destroyed  from how it had been  colonial. And here it had been destroyed at our new farm, but we had to create that.  that's another really great part of the book is the reader starts to realize, yeah, destruction has happened.  You're experiencing that with your cornfields, but it can be recovered. And life is inherently resilient. Every time people make an effort to
11:29do biological diversity recovery or water cleanup. They're always astonished at how quickly  systems can recover. That happened big time with the river when they cleaned up the river and how quickly fish returned in a river that was dead on the Mississippi. Yeah, I have a question. How long did it take you with your new land to  get it healthy again? Well, we were certified organic and in a certified organic process,
11:58you cannot use prohibited substances for 36 months.  So we couldn't take a cash crop off of our new farm for 36 months. So we didn't try to, we just spent 30.
12:15through soil building crops  and getting these systems in place. So was very intensive and not everybody can do it that way.
12:25We were ready.
12:28that were certifiable. They hadn't had chemicals on it. We were renting 18 different properties with a 32 mile radius to grow our cash crops at the same time that we were rebuilding this hundred acre farm. So it was a very intense  period of our lives to be managing cash crops  on so many different properties and build this farm up.  But we got through it. I would say it took
12:57three to five years for things to start really being solid systems at our new farm. You were saying that your kids went through grieving the loss.  The only story I really have about that kind of thing is  my husband and my son and I used to really love and go hike and check out the public land in Minnesota. And  if my listeners don't know, in Minnesota,
13:22You can harvest things on public land. You just can't dig anything up. So if there are wild plums growing, you can pick the wild plums. It's totally fine and take them out of the state lands. there was an old  like homestead out in towards St. Patrick and  it became public land. State bought the land.
13:48And there were two absolutely gorgeous ancient apple trees on that land.  No one has touched these trees in forever.  And we happened to find them just before it was apple picking season.  And we checked out the apples and they were not buggy. They looked like they had been taken care of and no one had been taken care of these trees, I guarantee you. So when we knew it was time,
14:14We enlisted a friend and her daughter and we went and picked apples till we couldn't pick apples anymore.  That was amazing. Did it two years in a row. Third year went back, trees had been cut.  And I cried,  I'm not kidding you. I sobbed.  That was like our special secret trees and they were gone.  And I cried. sat in my car with my husband and I cried like
14:42big ugly tears. And he was like, they weren't our trees. And I said, no, I said, no, they felt like my trees and now they're gone. And he just, he was so like, he felt for me, but I think he was more amused at how destroyed I was that they cut those trees.
15:05Oh, that's actually how I met Martin.  I see my book, but  I,  had been an orange and apple picker professionally as a young person, as a migrant. And  I lived in Minneapolis and I was so  missing the country. I was a real person at heart and dying in the city. I knew he had a cider press. Someone had told me,  I'm, you're not there. What it take to get you back?
15:36Oh, there you are. My phone said you weren't.  Somebody told me he had a press and I called him up and asked him if I could borrow it. And I just drove from Minneapolis to Eagan and stopped any time I saw a fruit tree and asked if I could pick it and arrived at his place at  like 20 bushels. And he accused me of stealing them.  So we started to have a little spat,  which fits for us.  That was how we met. But that that relationship is so critical and
16:04We all want that. And it's a beautiful thing for people that are homesteading or, you know, even if you live in a city, you can plant a tree in your yard. You can plant a garden in a pot on your apartment building patio deck. You know, it doesn't have to be a lot of space, but just having something growing in our lives  is huge  and really a  spiritual healing process.
16:29I always think of growing plants as being responsible for something. And I think it's why, I think it's why people have pets if they don't have plants,  because there's something really good for the soul in taking care of something else.
16:47Yeah, I'm pretty attached to my house plants.  To finish the story on my book, after we got our new farm put together and became the  main supplier of organic produce to the Twin Cities co-ops, and we're pretty well known as a farm. In 2006, we got a letter from a crude oil pipeline owned by  the Koch brothers.
17:16And Boya Hearts just stopped. They wanted to eminent domain our new farm for crude oil pumping station and a pipeline. And we already knew what that meant as far as development. We knew that it would be the end of our farm, that we wouldn't continue here. And it was just heartbroken. So I decided to start learning about the legal process. And what really caught me was as I...
17:44reading the court documents, there was a document called an agricultural mitigation impact plan. And what it is is the agreement that the pipeline company has to fulfill when they cross a farmer's land, basically says they're going to put this pipeline through there and then put everything back the same way it was. So it's the detail of how they're going to do that. And it said that they would not knowingly allow more than 12 inches of topsoil erosion.
18:15Not knowingly.  And that was the moment I got mad. I got really mad. Because that is not putting things back the way they found it. And do they know how long it took for that 12 inches of top-celled abortion to be created? So we intervened in the legal proceeding. And this was an absolutely brilliant move on the part of my attorney, Paula McAbee, because it meant that we were part of the actual routing permit process.
18:41They couldn't get their route permit. They could not build anything on their pipeline until the three parties, the Gardens of Eagan,  was our intervention, the Pipeline Company and the Department of Commerce, which represents all people impacted by the pipeline. We all had to stay at the table. So,  you know, in a lot of these cases, if it's just a one-on-one lawsuit, you could win the lawsuit, but then the company appeals it and the person ends up losing because they can't afford the appeals.
19:10It goes on and on forever. But in our case,  they couldn't just keep appealing it because then it would have held up their pipeline process.  So we intervened in the legal proceeding and our goal was to establish that organic farms are a valuable natural resource like a wetland that should be avoided when feasible and when they cannot be avoided to be protected through specific mitigations.
19:39And we wrote a specific mitigation plan that addressed all of these issues on an organic farm.  Went through the legal process  and  we accomplished that goal of writing a mitigation plan, an organic mitigation plan that is now standard procedure for any public utility in the state of Minnesota. A number of other states have copied it and a number of  utility companies have just taken it on on their own because they see it's
20:09it's going to make life better for them. And I don't want to go into a great deal of detail on that simply because we don't have the time. But I think what's really critical here and what the reader really gets in the book is to  kind of get a grasp on how as citizens we can really engage in lawmaking and in things that are going that are not good. In this particular case,  when
20:36I had this problem facing me. felt like I don't know anything about public utilities. How in the world could I fight this? But I realized that what I do know about is organic farming. was an expert on organic farming. It's what I'd done my whole life and I was good at it. So that is really what I had to speak to.  And as we were a direct market farm, we went to our customers and we said to people, would you write a letter to the judge and tell them how you will be differently impacted by this?
21:06pipeline because it's not just us the farmer that would be impacted.  It's our customers. And that's how we differed from a corn and soybean field. And you can just go up there all commodity crops. You can buy a hundred bushes of corn. doesn't matter if it's from Bill's farm or Mary's farm, but we were not a commodity crop. so 4,600 people wrote a letter to the judge. was really astonishing to read these letters. They were so personal  and they talked about
21:35how they would be impacted. They too did not have to understand anything about pipeline law to write this letter or pipeline issues. They really just had to say how they would be impacted. And people talked about the fact that they were chemically sensitive and that they really counted on food from this particular farm for their health. Other people said every single year we have our family reunion in the middle of August when the garden's vegan sweet corn is ripe and the watermelon.
22:03people talked about having eaten from this farm for four generations. They were really phenomenal letters. And I really want people to know that they don't have to feel voiceless. There's so much stuff going on in the world that  may be of concern to people, certainly is to me. And I know that I'm not voiceless, that it's really important for me to engage as a citizen and that we do have an impact.  And I think it's what
22:32people really get when they close that book. And when you read the last page is really understanding that role as a citizen to be engaged. You don't agree with what is going on in the world. You have the right to say so. You have the right to contact your senators or your representatives or your congresspeople or whoever by letter or by email or by phone and say, this is how I feel about this thing that's happening. And
23:01It's their job to listen and to try to try to do something about it.
23:09And I encourage people when they write those letters to go beyond feelings and talk about how they're impacted. Because a lot of our laws are actually based on impact.  Ecuador passed a law that gave nature a right in court as an entity. It's the only country in the world to my knowledge that has a law like this. In the United States, we have to prove how humans will be affected if the river is damaged or the land is damaged.
23:39in Ecuador, that river itself has a right to exist. That sounds very,  very much like the Native American beliefs.
23:49Well, that is why it passed because they have a majority of native voters there.  How they passed that law there. Um, I doubt that we will ever pass that law in my lifetime in the United States. Um, but that's why I tell people, if you write a letter or talk to a Senator to talk about impact to you, to the human being, because that's what our laws are based on is impact to the human being. And a lot of times  my attorney said a great thing to me at the start of our case.
24:17Because I wanted to do all these great things and I wanted to get at the things that were unjust. And she said, Atina, right  now, if you want to change those laws, that's really great. But right now, you don't have time to do that before you deal with the issue at hand. So you deal with the issue at hand. And then if you want, you can come back and change the law, work on changing the law.  And I thought that was just a really valuable thing for her to have said to me that.
24:44Sometimes you have to pick your battle. It's like raising children. You pick your battle, right? And that was a really important lesson that I got from her. I have a question about those 4,600 letters. Did you read every single one of them?
25:00It was great in middle of the night when I couldn't read, when I couldn't sleep. did, but I also felt really supported. I would have had to have read every single one no matter whether my face was completely swollen for a week because I cried so much. Because that's really important. And as you were telling your story in my brain, all I could see was a full auditorium of people stomping their feet and applauding you.
25:32because that's a big thing that you did. That's a huge thing.
25:38You know, I would have never been able to accomplish it. Well, not only without the support of the community that wrote those letters, but without having had the experience of the loss in Egan, that that was just so educational to me on a spiritual level and on a scientific level of really understanding the loss of biodiversity. So to bring this, kind of home, I think you told me you're, you're a lot of your audience are homesteaders.
26:09And it's such a beautiful thing to realize that in a sense what they're creating is biological reservoirs.
26:19And we see the loss you can look out your field your windows and you said you have cornfields out there and that breaks your heart And the fact that even if your land is just a little three acre plot You can make us such a diverse little three acre plot and that is keeping those species safe there so research on what insects are on your
26:43your little three kerplot and the birds and the animals that come in there and the plant species, it's actually making a difference.  When we were, we're not running our farm as a vegetable farm anymore. We retired from that and now it's  got pasture and animals on it. But when we were running a vegetable farm, the University of Minnesota would often come out and do research here.  And they came out one time  and they just went into a field and they were looking for a pie.
27:12My new pirate beetles. It's an insect that parasites,  um, cabbage lopers.
27:22And they came in, I couldn't even see them. I'd never heard of them, I'd never seen one on the farm. When they first asked if they could come, they asked me if I'd ever seen one. I didn't know what they were and I said I never saw one. And then they showed me one and you needed a mag to find glass to see them. Our fields were full of them. We didn't bring them in there. They weren't in the neighboring fields. They asked our neighbor who had a corn soybean field.
27:47if they could go in there and look, they went in 10 feet, 15 feet, 20 feet into them, there was none. They were on our farm and they'd come there because the plant species that they needed to survive and that  habitat was there for them to survive.  And the researchers were blown away by this as I was, because they thought they had to be brought in. And they really walked away from that day on our farm, understanding that when the habitat is created,
28:17If there's a reservoir of the species within a reasonable distance, they can come in and  settle in there. So to homesteaders who, you know, just really look at your little plot, you might wish you had bigger land or feel like has to be bigger. Every little bit really does matter and it's a reservoir that's really critical. On that subject, we have so many butterflies, different kinds of butterflies and moths here in the spring and the summer.
28:46There are these little light blue tiny moths or butterflies. do not know what they are, but they are, they look like little,  very pale blue fairies when they're flying. And I don't know what they are, but I  love them.  I, I, something here, they, really like it because I have not seen these guys anywhere else.  And
29:11We have all kinds of dragonflies all summer long, all different colors, all different sizes.  So  I think that our little homestead gives a lot of creatures a place to be.
29:26I think so too. isn't everywhere. Have you ever read descriptions  written by the earliest Europeans  to come into Minnesota? They are mind blowing. They're describing like these hordes of various birds and butterflies and all these insects and there's so many of them and they're talking about how many of them there are. And I often have dreams where I'm in that period of time and
29:56it's phenomenal to actually be immersed in that kind of an intact ecosystem all at one time that you know is going beyond that three acre plot you're on. know, like imagine if that was 100 acres what you're seeing on your little three acres or imagine if it was a thousand acres imagine was the entire state of Minnesota. That would be fantastic. The other thing that grows here is yarrow. Y-A-R-R-O-W. It's a plant.
30:26And I didn't know what Yara was until we moved here. And we have  like a yellow and we have a white that's tinged with pink. And they are so beautiful. And I have not figured out yet how to actually use them.  But where they grow, my husband does not cut any grass or any weeds or anything. And he was like, should I cut those? And I was like, no, leave that alone.
30:55Yarrow is really a favorite of pollinator species and it's a very strong medicinal plant. It actually is a  fever inducer to bring on fever as a burning off of disease.  It's a plant that I think should be used by skilled and I am not a skilled herbalist. So I will have to do my research and find someone who is a skilled herbalist before I do anything with it.
31:20Either way, it's really beautiful and I want to leave it alone because I really love it.
31:27When I was young, I was very idealistic.  I still am, hopefully, but I was also very ignorant and I would, you I was just in love with plants and I thought of them as all these great healers and I would just sort of plunge into like utilizing them for medicine and I've had a number of pretty funny stories now. Like  one time I slept in a poison ivy patch and had poison ivy all over my body and I looked in an herb book and it said to use sumac and
31:57So I went out and picked sumac leaves and put them through a champion juicer and painted that on my whole body. I used poisonous sumac. Yeah, like I was bad before the coca. I was really a mess after that.  And I could tell you about 50 stories like that. I was not as quick learner before I realized how powerful these plants are.  They're very powerful and that's really beautiful. So I'm a much wiser plant user now.
32:25We've had a few experiences. So I have two things. Number one, is Martin still with us?
32:33Yep, Martin is alive and well and happy man down in his fix-it-all shop. He likes to fix things. Good. what are you doing now? What's your life now?
32:48We actually spent our summers now in Glacier Park. And what attracted us there is that it is the most intact ecosystem in the lower 48 states. So I do feel like, you know, as I was saying earlier, imagine if you could walk into Minnesota, pre-colonial, and really experience the ecosystem here. I feel like that's what I'm experiencing in Glacier Park. And we volunteer as citizen scientists. So we get to like go to the back country and
33:18count how many loons there are on a lake or  lose binoculars and count how many rams there are, how intact a system is. Sometimes we get to collect seeds because when they do  biodiversity rehabilitation in areas, they use seeds that are within 10 feet of the area that they're inhabiting with plants. They're really specific because you could get echinacea from the park, but if it's from
33:47The side of the rocky, you know, the, the divide or, you know, even a mile away, it's a big park. It's  not quite the same. So that's just really where to be immersed in that. I still write. Okay, Where is glacier park? Cause I'm blinking.
34:06It's in Montana and it's the Northern Rockies. just, it's right next to Canada. In fact, it crosses the border into Canada. It's an international park. you said you're still writing. Are you writing articles? Are you working on another book or what's up?
34:26I work on a couple books, but I don't have the same need to get a published book out of it. So whether I will or not is not my driving source. the good news is it doesn't have to be. You just have to express how you feel in words and that's what you want to do.
34:46I find it  helps me stay very  balanced to have writing in my life on regular You are a beautiful writer, so keep doing that.
34:58And it helps me be a better talker. I find when I write about things I access words that I wouldn't normally access in language and speaking.
35:10and then it ends up becoming, it comes into my articulation. It's like transfers over.  It's so interesting that you say that because I have friends, I've had friends, have friends in my life  where I talk with them and I pull words out of my brain that I haven't thought about in years. And I use them correctly. And they're like, where'd that one come from? And don't know. It was just  inspired.
35:38My theory on that is that I learned those words when I was reading and that's why they come out when I'm writing. And when I was writing Turn Here Sweetcorn, I'd often use a word and then I'd stop and go, I don't even know what that word means. And I'd look it up and I every time had used it correctly.  So that was really fun. We are almost out of time, ma'am, but I really did love Turn Here Sweetcorn. Like I said, it's been years since I've read it.  Anybody who hasn't read it and loves to read,
36:07should go buy a copy. came out when? How long ago? Yeah, so it's been a bit. A 2012. But it's beautifully written and it's really, really educational.  educational seems really boring. It is not boring. It's beautiful.
36:26That was my goal. wanted someone who didn't care about organic farming to read it as a story. it reads like a novel. But yes, I freaking love it, which is why I asked you to come talk to me today. So, um, I appreciate your time and thank you and you have a wonderful afternoon. Thank you. And thanks to all your readers for me listeners. Thank you. Bye. Bye.
 

Rural Route Bulbs

Today I'm talking with Jodi at Rural Route Bulbs.
A Tiny Homestead Podcast is sponsored by Homegrowncollective.org.
If you'd like to support me in growing this podcast, like, share, subscribe or leave a comment. Or just buy me a coffee 
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00:00You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, the podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters, and topics adjacent. I'm your host, Mary Lewis.  A Tiny Homestead podcast is sponsored by Homegrown Collective, a free-to-use farm-to-table platform emphasizing local connections with ability to sell online, buy, sell, trade in local garden groups, and help us grow a new food system.  You can find them at homegrowncollective.org. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like, subscribe.
00:29Share it with a friend or leave a comment. Thank you. This Homestead Holler Shoutout is to our friends over at Freedom Reign Farm in Buffalo, Minnesota.  Their new little farm shop is the perfect spot for seasonal fresh goat milk products if you're local to the Buffalo area.  While their online shop makes it super easy to order shippable items right to your door.  From natural handcrafted goat milk and tallow soaps to grass-fed tallow skin care and beautifully arranged gift boxes.  Each product is crafted with care and love.  Check them out at freedomreignfarm.com or follow their Facebook page to stay in the loop.
00:58Let freedom reign. Today I'm talking with Jody at Rural Route Bulbs in Wisconsin. Good afternoon, Jodi. How are you? Hi, I'm good. How are you? I'm great. How's the weather in Wisconsin? Well, it's probably about the same as Le Sueur. It's windy. It's warm, which is nice. It's like 62, but we have a pretty good south wind. think we're gusting to like 40.
01:21Oh, it's not too bad here, actually. They were saying this morning that it was going to be windy and it was, but I think it's died down and it's sunny and I think it's 50 degrees maybe. Yeah, it's beautiful. And I was just telling someone else this morning that I interviewed at 10 a.m. that they are predicting real measurable heavy snow for Wednesday. And I'm like, of course they are because it's the day before spring. Yep. We were supposed to get that same snow.
01:48So we'll see how much we get. We're kind of on the line between rain and snow, which we ride the line like all winter between rain and snow, it seems like.  are you in Wisconsin? Uh, we're by Eau Claire. So we're just east of Eau Claire. So about an hour and a half east of Minneapolis and St. Paul. Yeah. Eau Claire is really pretty. I have been through there. So.  It is. Go ahead. It is. It is. It's, it's so pretty in the fall. Um, I'm from Southern Minnesota.
02:18by where you're from. And I've been combining in some areas with previous jobs. And sometimes I just stop and I'm like, it's so beautiful here when the leaves are changing. And so yes, you're right. It's, it's wonderful area.  town are you from in Minnesota?  Janesville, Minnesota. Yes. Yes. I've heard of Janesville. My, my husband actually has family in Janesville, Wisconsin. So, okay. Yeah. I get confused.
02:46A lot of clinking things going on here this morning or this afternoon. Sorry. keep thinking it's morning. It's not. It's one o'clock. Okay.  So anyway,  I'm very excited to talk with you because I've been talking a lot on the podcast with people about eggs,  chickens, cows and pigs. And I really do love flowers. So tell me about yourself and rural route. I can't say it rural route bulbs. Yeah. So, um,
03:15Roll route bulbs was just  an idea that,  well, my husband and I, we were trying to think of a crop to diversify into that was local. So we farm,  we're pretty conventional farmers. know, we have a combine, we do corn, soybeans, rye.  We're trying to rotate into a couple of different things right now, but we were really looking for a local market  that we could diversify into.
03:44We happened to be on a trip in Washington state for baptism for my sister and my husband was like, we should think about tulips. So we looked into them. We planted 5,000 one year just to see if they would grow well. And they did. then planting, I planted 5,000 tulips with COVID when it was new and I got very sick afterwards. And then we planted another 12,000, I think the next year and I.
04:14planted those when I was pregnant. So I would like to plant tulips when I'm not in an otherly state.  Your property must be gorgeous in what, May, June? May, yep. It is.  16,000 tulips didn't take up quite as much space as I thought it was going to, but yes, I often find myself, I go out to  the garden just to
04:42to take notes on my tulips, which ones are coming back, you know, but sometimes it's kind of a lie. I'm just out there because it's just so nice.  Yeah. I feel like people who grow flowers do it partly because it's a good thing to grow, but because there's such joy when they bloom. Yeah. So my trade is in agronomy. So I generally work with crops.  Um, but I've
05:09I've had flowers for a long time and  while it was something local to diversify into,  it's just,  it's a totally different aesthetic than, you know, what your corn and your soybeans and your alfalfa are. So it's really been, it's been a fun thing to diversify into. Yeah, absolutely.  I've tried growing tulips here at our place and they do not do well. I don't know why. I don't know enough about it to know why.
05:38We grow peonies and they're my favorite flower and they're basically a bulb flower too. Oh, go  ahead. Sorry. Yeah. We don't grow them  to sell. We don't grow thousands. We grow maybe,  I think we have 40 plants right now. Oh.  And so we mostly grow them because I love them and they're pretty and we do sell stems when they're blooming at the farmer's market, but that's about it. I bet they are pretty.
06:07I bet they're very pretty.  so for the tulip thing that you mentioned, they're hard to grow.  There's a couple things. Some tulip varieties don't do very well this far north,  which I think you're probably in,  I think you're probably in like zone five. I'm zone four B.  We're right between the two. yeah. Okay.  So I have noticed that some, I've planted a whole bunch of varieties just to see what was going to work here and what wasn't going to work here.
06:35Um, and some varieties do a lot better than other varieties. Surprisingly, some of the tulip pair pair, some of the tool parrot tulips,  um, they're a little bit more irregular shaped in the leaves.  They do fairly well here. Um, but some of them, like the triumphs that are just like completely gone.  Um, so I think the Darwin's do really well here. I have some really good luck with some of the late doubles. Um, so you kind of have to find ones that.
07:05to some degree are regionally appropriate. Okay. I have no idea what the varieties were. We just bought some bulbs and put them in and we're like, grow. And  they did okay the first spring and they did less than okay the second spring.  And then this past spring, and it might've been weather related too because it just rained and rained and rained here last spring.  But  they didn't do very well that third spring.
07:33I really love the double bloom ones, the double, I don't what they're called, the ones where it's not just the outside petals, but there's like petals in the middle too. Yeah, they call those doubles. Yeah, that's all those doubles. Yep. Love those. I didn't even know they existed until about 10 years ago. Our neighbor had some coming up by his front step and I was like, those are not peonies. And I went and looked, I was like, I'll be damned. Those are tulips. I didn't know they made them, made them that way.
08:03Yep. They do look like peonies. I agree. They're so pretty. And I do know what your weather conditions were like last year. I was out looking at some crops with my mom and you guys got so socked with weather. Tulips need a lot of drainage and you guys have heavier soils. And so I bet they just practically rotted in the ground. mean, you were so excessively wet. Yeah, it was bad. Like
08:29I have talked about this so much. shouldn't even say it again, but our garden, our hundred  foot by 150 foot garden  was soup. Like  my husband had to plant tomatoes three times last year just for us to can like,  I think 20 pint jars of tomato sauce. Yeah. In our area, you could not find tomatoes that people grew on their farms.
08:56We have a huge Hmong community in the area and a lot of them grow vegetables. And  when you would ask, we have some people right next to us.  Our farm is in town  and we have a park in front of our house and I usually get my vegetables from there in the summer. they were like, nobody has tomatoes because they just all drowned out.  Every tomato that we took to the farmer's market sold out in the first half an hour.
09:25gone. And my husband came home from the first farmers market. We had tomatoes in August, not July, August. And he said, I sold out of the, I think he took maybe 50 tomatoes. He said they were gone in the first 10 minutes they were open.  Well, I'm glad somebody else can relate to how wet the weather was in the Midwest last year, because it was just deplorable.
09:53It was freaking miserable. And that's the F word I have to use on the podcast. Yeah, that's okay. In 2023, it so dry. In 2024, it was so wet. And we saw so many crop issues and we saw issues with soil microbial populations and we had slugs and they wouldn't go away because it didn't get warm. The last two years have just been the most crazy growing conditions. I think I've
10:22almost ever experienced like back to back. Yeah, it was insanity. And honestly, the summer before 2024, we  had the most beautiful garden. did great. So  yeah, we were very, very sad last summer.  And then I applied for a grant and got it and we put up  a hard sided greenhouse in May of 2024.
10:53Yeah, May of 2024. And didn't do a lot with it that  last summer because it was hot. So, you know, a hard side of greenhouse doesn't do you a lot of good when it's really hot out.  But we did manage to get some stuff put in there last fall.  And  we have actually managed to overwinter rosemary in that greenhouse this year or this winter. Oh, that's cool. Is rosemary a hard one to overwinter?
11:22It does not overwinter outside. Okay.  It will not. It dies. So excited that the greenhouse stayed warm enough that we could overwinter rosemary in it.  And we also had strawberry plants in pots, hanging pots out there.  They survived the winter too.  well that's cool. So the one saving grace of last year is that I applied for this grant and we got that greenhouse built.
11:49and extended our growing season by about two months in the fall. And growing season can now start like  now in the greenhouse. without the greenhouse, we can't do anything.  That's so nice because in the upper Midwest, if you don't have a greenhouse,  the weather's getting nice in Tennessee  and we're just sitting here like waiting. Like I have some crocuses I found that were coming up  this weekend.  otherwise.
12:17That's kind of it, maybe a little bit of grass greening up, but we were 77 degrees last Friday, which I think was pretty helpful.  But okay, so I'll get a little bit back to tulips.  I  have a master's degree that I just finished in agronomy and I'm somebody who just likes to know.  I like to learn.  So  I dug up some, I meant to dig up crocuses.
12:44two weeks ago and I ended up in my daffodil row and I dug up some daffodils and the ground was still frozen. Like I had to go get a real shovel and stand on it to get it into the ground. Yeah. And I had daffodil shoots that were pushing up through the frozen ground. So,  um, from somebody who goes grows usual, usually annual crops, it was pretty excited to see like how hardy  daffodils are in the area. And when we planted them,
13:13So we bought a trencher to plant with.  so I crawl on the ground and I just pop the bulbs in the trench. And then my father-in-law, who is very, very nice, he, he fills the trenches in and walks on them for me.  So I just planted one daffodil, you know, one bulb. And when I put the shovel in, I had like four or five  bulbs that had daughter bulbs that had grown there. So that was pretty exciting to see that in this area, like my crop was.
13:43flourishing  and that they can push out through  conditions that  not plant great. That's been really fun. I dug some crocus bulbs up the other day too and I just planted one of those and man, I had a little cluster of them.  The first year I had them, thought, these aren't that great. I just have one flower and now I have a whole bunch of flowers to  one little clump.
14:11That's been really fun to see the expansion of some of the naturalizing bulbs that I've grown.  Yes, that's the joy of bulb plants because  when somebody says to me, have peonies, I need split. Will your husband come over and split them for me? You can take half of them home.  I'm  on my phone texting him immediately.  Can you make time on this day, on this weekend to go split peony plants? And he's like, yes.
14:41Because the more  more times you do that  They do the same thing they spread as well So you start with like one clump of peony roots and they're not bulb there. I think they're a rhizome Yep, but either way rhizomes and bulbs propagate on their own and so we'll get one clump of a special peony that somebody has in their yard  and Three years later. There's like a hedge  Yep
15:11Yeah, yeah. mean, plants are just... The more I look into plants, the more I am amazed by  the things that they can do. So this is just a little off topic, but I was looking into  the nitrogen fixing process  for  legumes, so alfalfa, peas,  soybeans.  And in those nodules, the step before they make  usable nitrogen for the plant, they actually make rocket fuel.
15:41And I just thought it was like the most amazing thing. And I'm really a plant nerd, but I was like, those tiny little nodules with some  iron, malignum, and sulfur make rocket fuel. And it just blew my mind. So,  had no idea. I learned something incredibly new today.  Yep. Yep. It's I've told a lot of people and  they look at me like,
16:10whatever, Jodi. And I'm like, that's amazing.  It's just amazing that bacteria with some nutrients can do that. So it's very exciting.  if we get back to tulips, so this year is our first year in the you pick.  We're going to do some you pick with the tulips we have growing right now.  I haven't really done anything with them for the last
16:36five years because I've been trying to finish my degree and I was having babies and got to be a little bit too much. So this year will be our first spring with you pick. So I'm really excited about that. And then next year we're going to do an actual tulip display garden.  because I don't have a big stock yet,  I just ordered like 50,000 bulbs to put my display garden together.  I am actually really excited about that because how many people  get to
17:05just have like a  huge garden. It's going to be a lot of work. I'm not super excited about all the hand planting, but I think the results will just be  stunning.  Hopefully. I'm going to tell you the same thing I tell everybody else who's like, I'm going to do this huge project and it's going to suck at the beginning, but it's going to be amazing when it's doing the thing.  I always say that big projects suck when you're beginning it.
17:34but it will be so worth it in the end. Yes, yes, yes. I'm very excited to see the product  next spring. should be,  mean,  it's a lot of flowers. It should be really, really pretty.  So I don't know if my husband's gonna be able to get me to do my normal job next spring.  Oh no, whatever will he do? He'll be fine.
18:03I'll have to just get it done real early. So all my other farmers have their fertilizer plans ready to go before May. exactly. So do you sell tulips? Like the cut flowers? Yeah, so we're just starting this year. I feel like I'm a little bit of like a plant purist sometimes. I know that if I don't cut my flowers and bring them in the house, they're going to last longer.
18:31Yep. In the ground than they are in my house. So  I  haven't picked a lot. I let a couple people last year come pick them,  but I usually don't pick them. And I've had a couple people stop and I think they've picked them, but we're  pretty close to a highway so people can see them. And they're like, what are you going to do with all those tulips? So it's been really good advertising. So  all the years before I didn't do much, I deadheaded them.
19:01pretty much. And so this year we're going to do a you pick where we sell the cut flowers and in the future we might do some bulb sales this year, but in the future it'll be a you pick. We'll sell bulbs. I have some potted plants and you know, so it'll be more of an agritourism type thing where we have some food, you know, maybe some music on the weekends. We'll kind of see how everything shakes out. So it is like an incredibly
19:30new  business.  Do you have any idea how to make tulips last once you cut them and put them in a vase with water?  Well, now I don't know the particulars on that right this second. I have them in a notebook, but I do have a friend who also has a flower farm in Fall Creek  and she gave me some tips on that.
19:55but I would have to look through my notebook to find what they were since I haven't been cutting them. Okay, well,  do me a favor. When you do find out, send me a message and let me know just the basics because  I had some really pretty double tulip flowers come up two or three springs ago, like I was talking about.  And I cut some of them because they were so pretty and I put them in a  mason jar with water and they were good for about three days.
20:24and then they started to wilt.  I thought three days was great. So one of the things with tulips is if you harvest them, longer they've been bloomed,  they won't last as long. So the best thing you can do is cut them before they bloom. However, that's kind of a double-edged sword I found because the tulips seem to get taller and bigger. The actual flowers do. The longer they've been bloomed.
20:53Um, so like some of the store ones you see in the store, they're smaller, but they've been picked  pre bloom. Um, so the earlier you can pick them, the longer they last in the vase. And I think like daffodils, you have to let the goop come out of them  before you put them in  the vase with the other flowers or the goop will kill the other flowers faster. All right.  And you, you grow daffodils too. Yes.
21:23Yes, I, and I had daffodils. So our farm is on the edge of a town  and I have just terrible trouble with deer.  Um, so I do,  I, I did grow daffodils as well because I heard they naturalize in Wisconsin a lot better than tulips will, which,  um, is pretty much the truth. All my daffodils come back and the deer don't touch them, which is really nice. I spray this stuff on my tulips called liquid fence and it kind of smells like.
21:53It smells like hog manure and pee,  just for a little while. then humans can't smell it later, but the deer really just stay away after that because they like to eat them like right before they bloom.  so I'm always like  really excited to see the blooms. And if I forget to spray them,  they're all eaten off the next day.  Yep.  Damn those deer.
22:22We have a doe that showed up here  two years ago. Two springs ago. I don't think she's still alive. I think she got hit by a car.  But  the first year she showed up by herself  and she nibbled a bunch of stuff that was growing in the garden. She didn't tear it down, but she definitely took some, some snacks.  And my husband was like,  um, we have a deer.  I said, He said she's, she's helping herself. And I was like, okay.
22:51So like two days later, I was up early and I had my coffee and my husband came out on the porch  and he happened to look out the door and he was like, stand up really slowly and look to your left.  And I could see her out in the garden. I was like, oh my God, she's so beautiful. And he's like, yeah, and she's a thief. And I said,  Last year she showed up in May when there was really nothing in the garden and she had a fawn with her. So we get to see her and the fawn.
23:21And then my husband was driving to work about a week later and there was a dead doe on the side of the road, no fawn to be seen. And he said, I think our deer is done. And I said, okay, well then  your garden might be okay if we actually get it in. And then it rained all summer basically, so it didn't matter.  So I'm really torn about  do I want to see a deer or do I want the deer to not show up and not eat my stuff?
23:49So it's a double edged sword, know? It's beautiful to know that she's around, but it's also going to cut into our production.  Yep. Yep. That's exactly how I feel about it. My husband got a picture of them  like last  spring  and they actually paw through the snow to eat my tulip vegetation if it knows after they emerge. they're...
24:15Well, I mean, we live in the upper Midwest, so there's just not a lot of food at the end of spring, or, you know, at the beginning of spring. So I feel for them,  but I wish they would go for just somewhere else.  And my friend in the country, she's like, oh, I don't have trouble with  tulips with my, or deer with my tulips. And I'm like, oh, you're so lucky. Cause I spend a lot of time  spraying stinky stuff on my tulips. So the deer don't eat them.  I think that the deer just know.
24:44when it's just tulips that somebody put in because they're pretty and there's only a few. And then there's people like you who are trying to make a business out of it and they're like, let's eat the business place first because there's so many more of them. maybe they just taste better. It's a fancier restaurant. They just know, yeah. It's slightly far afield, but I don't care. We put in peach trees two falls ago now and we actually had peaches last fall. Really?
25:13There were 12 peaches on one tree and my husband brought in  six.  And I had one and my husband and my son ate the rest of the six.  And he was going to go out the next day and pick the other six.  They were gone. We think that a deer got the last six peaches, which is really sad because it was the first year we've ever had peaches and ever had put in peach trees.
25:39And he said that he's going to try to put up some cattle panels like around the trees so that the deer can't get to them.  that,  oh, go ahead. Sorry. What most people don't know is that deer will jump a fence as long as they can see how much distance they have. So if you put like a small fence around a tree and then another fence around that fence, it confuses the deer. don't know how much clearance they have, so they won't jump the fence.
26:09Oh, that's cool. I didn't know that. Yeah. So he's going to do that this year and see if maybe we can actually eat our own peaches and not feed them to the deer. Yeah. Well, I've actually done some research on fences for, um, fields, uh, cause  we're in Wisconsin and there's a lot of deer.  Um, and fencing does help protect yield when it comes to deer feeding. So I think.
26:34I think you're on a really good path. And also, I guess I didn't realize you could grow peach trees in southern Minnesota. They're a winter hardy tree. And I don't remember the variety and I don't have the tag that was on them when we bought them. all you have to do is go to Google because Google knows everything and type in winter hardy peach. And I think they were developed in Canada, if that makes any sense at all. Yeah, no, that's cool.
27:03So yeah, and oh my, these peaches were like softball sized peaches. They were so good. Oh, well maybe we'll have to try some. Maybe it'll have to be a peach  tulip garden that we put in. Well, if you love peaches, I would suggest getting this variety because they're really good. Okay, I'll have to Google it. My husband loves them.
27:28So you said crocuses, tulips, and daffodils. there any other bulb flowers that you grow?  Are there any other bulb flowers?  I have some hyacinths in there  and then I have some allium and  allium is kind of okay. I think it's varietal. I have some Everest ones  and I think I only have two or three of the six  that I planted that came back. And then I have  an ornamental purple one.
27:57And those tend to come back pretty well.  The hyacinths are okay. They smell really nice, but the longer that they grow, so the first  year after I planted them, the first spring,  they came back really nicely and they looked like hyacinths. And then since then they have less flowers on them every time that they come up.  hyacinths are okay.  They're definitely something that you have to plant every year.
28:28You know, I feel kind of  meh about the hyacinths,  but  I didn't think I'd like crocuses as much as I do, but they're just, they're just such a wind, a little winter hardy  bulb that I just, I really love their fortitude because they're not planted very deep.  So they freeze hard and they're like the first guys out of the ground. So  they have antifreeze in their bulbs.  They do. They're just.
28:58It's amazing. so the longer I've been,  as I've been looking into  bulb physiology and what happens when it's cold and what initiates like flower formation in the bulbs,  it's really interesting. And I know  even some companies in the Netherlands, they'll MRI their bulbs to see  if they have  flower that's been initiated in the bulbs.
29:26I can't remember if it's MRI or ultrasound. They take some picture of them. I think it's MRI where they could see if there's going to be a flower that comes out of the bulb. Wow. Okay. They really have it down to a science.  All right. Well, I have a couple of things about things you just said  and then we'll probably be at 30 minutes.  The hyacinths. When I was little, I used to call them the grape plants.
29:54the purple hyacinths because they looked like grape Kool-Aid to me.  That makes sense.  And the crocuses.  We put in crocus bulbs the first fall we were here, so  four falls ago. And I'd never grown crocuses. I just thought that they were very pretty. seen pictures and I was like, let's try and see what happens.  I had no idea the bulbs, the blooms were so tiny. Yeah.
30:23My husband came in and he said, there's these little yellow and purple flowers out there.  And I said, did you take a picture with your phone? And he said, I knew you'd asked. So I did.  And I looked and I said, those are crocuses. said, how big are they? And he used his thumb and his finger to show me how big the bloom was.  I was like, are you kidding? He said, no, they're tiny. He said, they're gorgeous, but they're small.  I was like, oh no.
30:52He said, did you think they were like a lily size? I said, yeah. He said, no, they're tiny. I said, oh, okay. So  we still, we left them and they've come up every spring since we put them in. There's not very many, there's maybe 20. Okay. And they haven't really naturalized. So there's not a whole lot of spread, but he comes in that part of the driveway where they're planted on the right-hand side. pulls them driveway. You can see them when they come up.  And
31:20As soon as he sees the yellow or the purple, when he gets home from work, he comes in the door and he's like, you're going to be happy. The crocuses are blooming. And he's not wrong. I'm very happy because it means spring is officially here. first vestiges of spring is what I think every year when they start blooming. Yep, absolutely. And I don't know if you are a nature watcher beyond plants, but I saw a big flock of geese flying north the other day.
31:49I heard my first red wing blackbird this past weekend. think it was Saturday.  And our maple tree  is sending out the little flower thingies right now.  Oh, okay. I don't know what they're called.  I'm not a plant person by science. I'm just a plant person by, oh, that's pretty.  But you know how the maple trees send out the little spiky flowery looking things that they're happening now. Yes. Well, that's exciting. Hopefully they don't get froze off on Wednesday.
32:19Which is not,  it's not going to be that cold. It's going to be not cold enough to snow, but I don't think it's going to be bad. So,  Whatever the, the maple tree is going to do what it does. Cause it's been there for at least 50 years. I'm sure it'll probably be okay. Yes. Yes. They nature does what nature does, no matter what the weather does or what we try and make it do. Yeah. It started budding back.  Um,
32:49I don't know, a month and a half ago when we had some really warm days. And I was like, go back to sleep. It is not time to wake up yet. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. That's the tricky part about the Midwest is those real warm days early, everybody and all the plants, everything gets excited for spring. Yeah, and so do we. I can't tell you how thrilled I am to be through this second really weird winter in a row.
33:18And I said this the other day to somebody on one of the other episodes. said I have looked at the long-range forecast. I have looked at the old farmers almanac  Forecast and it doesn't look like we're gonna need to build an arc this year. So that's good news Yeah, yeah, I guess all we can do is wait and see uh-huh. I I am I've got everything crossed I I'm gonna braid every piece of my hair to keep that cross too cuz
33:45I can't live through another summer like last year. My husband will be so upset.  So we're going to just hope that it's all going to be good this year.  Normal amounts of rain. Healthy amounts of rain. Yes.  And in our case, even if we do have a drought here,  the thing we learned last year is it's a lot easier to deal with a drought because we have a well and we can water.  But you can't suck water back out of the ground.
34:14Nope. not where it rains like that. So it's easier for us if there's too little rain, if that makes sense. You guys have such beautiful soil down there, but you got a lot of water holding capacity and they don't always go well together. No, no. And the worst part for our garden is that we have like 12 inches of really good black dirt. And then you get down after that 12 inches and we've got clay.
34:44So when it rains real bad, it just holds that water even more because it's got nowhere to go. Yeah, you  something with a real long penetrating root to punch some root holes through that clay. Yeah, well, it was a hay field and weed field for 40 years because no one had grown anything on it for that long. it still is just,  it's clay under there.
35:15I hope it doesn't rain that much this year.  I'm praying. I'm not a praying girl, but I am sending up every message to the universe to maybe not cry so much this year. That would be great.  anyway, Jodi, I really appreciate your time and I actually learned some stuff about bulb flower plants that I didn't know about. So I'm very excited. I got a chance to talk with you. Oh, great. Well, thanks for having me on. I really appreciate it.
35:44Yeah, thank you so much. Have a great day. You too. Alright, bye.
 
 

Minnesota Farm Living

Today I'm talking with Wanda at Minnesota Farm Living. You can follow on Facebook as well.
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00:00You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, the podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters, and topics adjacent. I'm your host, Mary Lewis.  A Tiny Homestead podcast is sponsored by Homegrown Collective, a free-to-use farm-to-table platform emphasizing local connections with ability to sell online, buy, sell, trade in local garden groups, and help us grow a new food system.  You can find them at homegrowncollective.org. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like, subscribe.
00:29share it with a friend or leave a comment. Thank you. Today I'm talking with Wanda at Minnesota Farm Living and by the name of the farm, you know it's Minnesota. So good afternoon, Wanda. How are you? Good, good. I'm glad to be here. I'm happy to have you. And I'm really glad you're in Minnesota because when I ask you about the weather, we can just grin because it's sunny and it's warm.  Oh, know. It's crazy. And it sounds like this next week. I mean, the next like seven days is going to be like a roller coaster. And I mean that literally almost.
00:58Highs near 70 and it will be down to lows in about the 30s by the end of the weekend and probably snow again. Yeah, but not much not much snow and will melt next week.  Yeah, exactly.  can't Considering the winter we've had and how little snow we've had I would be very happy to not have three feet dumped on us. That would be great. I'm in Lasur. Where are you? I am in Welcome, Minnesota. So I'm actually right along the I-90
01:25In fact, I can actually see I-90 from my house and yeah, just south central Minnesota. Okay. I have no idea how far away that is from me in Lesor, like an hour. I'm going to guess an hour and a half. Okay. Cause I think St. Peter for us is like an hour and 15 minutes. So you're a little bit north of that. So yeah, we're about 10 minutes due north of St. Peter. Yep. We go to St. Peter all the time. It is such a cute town. Oh my city, I guess. I think it's a town.
01:52But I think every town is a town other than Minneapolis. So  yes, I had a daughter that actually went to school there for a year. So it gets Davis. So familiar with that. So  yeah, my son and I, a couple of springs ago went down to the campus and there's this really pretty like park area and they have some walking trails and it's really, really gorgeous. So we, we enjoyed that cause we moved to Lusore.
02:18little over four years ago and we really busy getting things set up in our new home  and getting a garden plotted out and getting a chicken coop set up and you know things you do when you buy 3.1 acres in the middle of cornfields  and so there's hadn't been a lot of time to go familiarize familiarize there we go  ourselves with the area and we went down to St. Peter and I was like  I want to live in St. Peter this is so pretty and then I got home
02:46Then I got home and went, no, I want to live in the middle of  I hear you.  So anyway, yeah, the weather is going to be a little nutty  starting Friday and be nutty into Sunday. And then I think we might be through the worst of this winter. think we might be on our way to spring. I would be okay with that for sure.  Me too. So Wanda does a whole bunch of stuff, but I think the biggest thing is, that you guys grow.
03:16pigs to supply Hormel, is that correct? That is correct. we've been- Okay, tell me about that. Yeah. So we've been raising pigs for 47 years. So that's how long we've been living on our home site. And so we've always raised pigs. We started off with actually having sows and boars and they would feral, which is another name for giving birth. had 24 farrowing stalls.
03:44And so we could have 24 cells actually giving birth at the same time.  And so then at first we just started raising them up just a feeder pig weight, which is about 40 or 50 pounds, because we didn't have any room for them to grow up to like 280 pounds, which is what we do now. And then we would sell them, we'd go to Windom, Minnesota, and we sold them on a feeder pig auction.  So that was how it started. And then eventually we got into,  we actually,
04:12built what we call gestation barn, which is where our cells actually were housed.  And the reason we did that, if anybody really knows much about pigs, they can be pretty aggressive towards each other because what they have to do is they have to figure out their pecking order, you know, who is going to be king sow. And so the way they do that is they can kind of fight with each other. And that was kind of hard to see at times. I mean, we actually had a sow die because another sow attacked it because they were just trying to figure out
04:41Who's going to be King Sal? So we built a gestation barn so they could all have their own individual areas. And I tell you, was like night and day difference. They were awesome. They were calm, you know? And so we could take much better care of them. So we brought them indoors and then eventually we built some barns that we could fill them, you know, to actually grow them out to market weight. And we have always sold to Hormel. So Hormel is located in Austin, Minnesota.
05:08It's about an hour and 15 minutes from where we live. yeah, I sometimes I call myself a grocery store farmer  because if you go into the grocery store and you go to the meat counter and if you see the Hormel label, those pigs could have came from our farm. So. All right. Well, the next time I buy Hormel pepperonis, I'll know where maybe some of that came from. Absolutely. Because we do occasionally buy those for making homemade pizza.
05:37And honestly, we actually  take our pigs locally to a locker. I have three freezers in my basement and it's just my husband and I here. But we have three freezers, but we have three daughters too that are grown, but we have lots of pork and beef on hand.  And the pork is from the pigs that we raise. Nice. It's really funny we're talking about pork because guess what's on the menu for dinner tonight?
06:00Ooh, hopefully pork, huh? Pork chops and tater tots and green beans. That's dinner tonight.  lunch, we had pork patties.  yep. So we eat a lot of pork.  Yeah.  I was never really a pork fan until I got sick of beef.  bought a couple halves a  while back. Like we bought a half. We ate most of that, bought another half of beef.  And  I've said this a bunch of times, my husband and my son would eat beef
06:30breakfast, lunch and dinner if they could. And I'm just over it. I'm so over it. And I was like, okay, I kind of like pork chops. I guess we could put that in the lineup.  And then my  other son, all my kids are grown. They're all adults.  One of my adult sons who doesn't live here came to visit and I said this not three episodes ago, but he made  sausage, gravy and biscuits for us.
06:58Okay. And he made it super black peppery. You know, he put a lot of black pepper in it and it was so peppery. I couldn't eat it. And so I was like, I think I actually would like it if it just wasn't so peppery. So I made some last winter, not this one, but last year. And I put the smokehouse maple seasoning that we get at the store. don't know what brand it is.
07:24And I put that in the, in the gravy and some salt and a little bit of black pepper.  And it was fabulous. So right now the only pork stuff I really, really like is pork chops and sausage and gravy biscuits. I'm, I'm good with those things.  And honestly, if I could get away with it, I would probably be vegetarian because I'm just so sick of every dinner having, having to have meat with it. My husband is a big meat and potatoes kind of guy,  but
07:50I do like what I just said, so I'm glad that you provide pork to people. Okay. So can I give you a hint? Sure.  Um, so we actually use the seasoning. It's very popular in our County kind of South central Minnesota. In fact, I think they even use some of the seasoning up at the twin stadium.  Um, so it's called Martin County magic seasoning  and everybody just raves about it. So that's what we use when we grill pork chops or do anything with pork.
08:19again, Martin County  Magic Seasoning and you can guess where I'm from, Martin County.  So yeah, so it's a very, very popular seasoning. People can get it into their local grocery stores.  You can order it online. I think it's like martincountypork.com.  So yeah, so that's very popular around here.  I will have to look that up and see if I can find it because that might help my case about meat.  I just, didn't grow up having meat at every dinner.
08:49And so for me, it's weird. I'm just like, aren't you sick of meat yet? And my husband's like, I will never  not want a steak. And I'm  like, okay, babe, that's fine. okay. So I do not want to put you on the spot, but I do want to talk about  factory farming  because I've talked to one lady,  she's a rancher in Nebraska.
09:18I've interviewed her, love her, she's fantastic.  And  she had kind of  a not great reaction when I used the term factory farms.  And  she was telling me that they have many, many, many cattle steers  and that they take really good care of their steers. They love their steers. They're not best buddies with their steers because steers aren't friends like that.
09:46I'm paraphrasing badly. Please Leah. Don't be mad at me.  Um, but basically that factory farms have gotten a bad reputation  and that  That factory farms are not evil. Yeah, and I believe I believe her. So what is your take on that? Okay. All right. So let me just let me go back a little ways here So I started my blog over 12 years ago
10:11and the in Minnesota farm living. And the reason I started it was because I was so frustrated as being a farmer, but all the misinformation that was out there in the media, you know, and one of the terms of course was factory farming. And I'm like, and to this day, I don't even know what a factory farm is. And the reason I say that is because  when I think about factory farm, I'm thinking about  massive producing, you know, whether it's,
10:38crops or specifically livestock and that you don't have that connection with them, that you don't care about them, I can tell you that that is the exact opposite.  So we have one employee, so between my husband and our employee, they're out in those barns multiple times a day checking on those pigs, making sure that everything is working fine, making sure they've got water, making sure they have feed, making sure no one is sick, no one is injured.
11:06They're constantly monitoring them. Yes, there's quite a few  in a barn,  but there's really not part of the factory part of it.  And I'll just give another example of how  we're so connected to our animals.  This was a number of years ago, and not in a personal sense, but just knowing that this is our job to take care of these animals. This happened quite a few years ago.
11:33And this was when we had the sows and the sows would feral give birth. Well, there was a virus that was going around. It's called TGE. Nowadays we don't have it. They have eradicated it. But at the time, what would happen is  when the pigs were born, they were healthy, but then they would have this virus and they would almost immediately die for about three weeks,  100 % pig mortality. Nothing to do.
11:59what would happen is that the salus would build up a natural immunity to it and then actually pass it down to the pigs. So after three weeks, then the pigs were fine. So  anyway, it happened to be Thanksgiving  and had the girls, we were all going to go to my mom and dad's for Thanksgiving because this is what we do. And he said to me, he said, you know what? He said, I'm going to stay back because I am bound to determine that I'm going to keep these pigs alive. And I said, okay.
12:27For one thing, this isn't something you do. My mom and dad is like,  no, you come to our house for Thanksgiving. This is a holiday, you know? And I said, okay, you do your thing. So he stayed back. You know, the girls and I went to my mom and dad's had Thanksgiving dinner. But like I said, he was bound to determine, I'm going to prove the veterinarian wrong. I'm going to stay with those pigs and I'm going to keep them alive. Do you know what happened?  You know what I mean? I mean, that just shows you just the connection that we have as farmers to our animals.
12:57Yes, we don't have a personal name for them because there's too many, but we are completely 100 % committed.  Our animals are actually, you know, have a higher priority a lot of times than what our family is, unfortunately. But, you know, we just are just so committed to, you know, to raising those healthy animals. So. Thank you so much for answering my question because I get real twitchy when I ask questions like that because I'm afraid I'm going to make people angry.  And I feel like I gave you an open door.
13:27to talk about it. Yes, yes.  And that's one of the reasons, like I said, that I decided to blog because what I want to do is I want to create that connection  between agriculture and consumers. And hopefully if they have any questions or, like, why do you do this? And why are you doing this? And what about this?  I can just have that open line of communication to explain, OK, here's what we do. And this is why we do what we do. Another example, just to kind of, you know, not the factory farm, but
13:55We have volunteered at the Minnesota State Fair a number of times in the swine barn.  And if you've ever been there, you go in there and there's a sow  in a fair ring stall with the baby piglets. So we, my husband and I, we would get in the crate with them.  And then  people would come and take a look at the  sow and see how big the sow was and how little  the pigs were. And then they could ask us questions. I love that because the questions were wonderful.
14:23What I found is that, for example, someone might say, why do you cut their tails? They kind of say it really kind of a negative aspect, like, why are you doing this? But once you explain why you do what you do, 90 plus percent of the people go, oh, yeah, that makes sense. It's just that they don't know. So I love that kind of communication. Yes, absolutely. since you brought up cutting their tails,
14:52We have an Australian shepherd dog and she's been really well behaved lately. She has been barking in the background,  but she has a docked tail. Okay. And  I, because I didn't know anything about this breed, didn't know that they aren't born with docked tails.  I thought she was just a naturally short tailed dog.  Okay. And then I was talking with our friends that have the mom and dad dog and they were like, Oh no, no.
15:22No, she hurt, she had a tail, but we dock their tails when they're like a day or two old. Yup. Yup. And I said, but why?  And I wasn't mad. I just didn't know.  Yeah. And she said, because most of our puppies are going to be adopted out to be working farm dogs. Okay. And they really like to wag their tails. And if they wag their tail too hard, they can smack it on something in the barn or in the barnyard.  Okay. They can break their tail.
15:50She said, and she said they are the dogs that get up real close and personal with the  livestock  and they can get their tails stepped on and broken. It's just a thing that's in the way. So we dock all the puppies' tails unless we're asked not to by the potential new owner. Okay. And I didn't know we were getting Maggie until she was like,  oh man, I think I met her when she was two weeks old.
16:19It was way too far past to not have her tail dock.  So my lovely, beautiful, classic Australian shepherd girl  has a nubbin  and we call her a nubbin wagger because when dad gets home, she is wagging that tail,  that non-existent tail like it's a full length tail.  So there are reasons for the way that things are done with animals. And if you don't ask, you don't know.
16:47Exactly, that is absolutely correct. So again,  the reason that I do the advocacy work I do for agriculture is just really to open that communication and answer people's questions. So, yeah.  When I started doing this podcast, I really thought that it was going to be more of,  okay, so tell me about pigs, tell me the lifestyle, life cycle of pigs, tell me about how many babies they have, na na.  It's really not. It's become this overview of what you do.
17:16And then all these philosophies and lifestyle things that come up and I really love it because  if it was just about a life cycle of a pig, it would be one episode about pigs because why would I do more?  So it's great that I get to talk to people like you and find out your take on how you do things and your perspective out into the world on how other people do things.  Uh huh. Yes.  Okay.
17:44So I was looking at your website literally when you signed on to talk to me. Okay. And you have recipes on your website and  you have gorgeous photos to go with those recipes. So  I didn't have a chance to really dig into it. Is it just one recipe per photo or is it like if you click on that, there's a bunch of recipes under it?  There should be a bunch there.  I put recipes on there even though it's probably not my main focus.
18:14of my website, but I do put some out there. And again, pork related, you know, recipes and you know, when people, for example, I know one that I've got out there is like, well, what happens if you go into the grocery store and you buy this 13, you know, 10, what, 11 to 13 pound pork loin? What do I do with it? You know, I mean, you know, unless you're going to have a huge crowd at your home, what do you, what do you do with it? And just kind of give some suggestions. Here's how you cut it up. And then you can.
18:41actually freeze it up and use it for pork chops or, you know, just other, you know, things in your recipes. And, you know, that's just one example of something I have out there because I was in the same situation. What do I do with this big, long piece of pork loin? You know, so,  And  we do that. We buy a pork loin from Sam's like once a month and we, and we cut it up and we use it for pork chops.  We used to do pork roast, but we're kind of not.
19:09into that right now so we haven't done one in a while.  And the end pieces where they're not the same thickness, we will chop those up and do pork stir fry with them. Oh sure, that'd be perfect. Yes. And it's way less money if you do it that way. You know, if you're trying to save a buck on groceries, it's a really good way to do it. Yeah.  And some of the other recipes I have out there are just family favorites. I mean, these are things that my mom's recipes,  they'll go pretty special to me.
19:38I actually have, she had the best handwriting. I have the worst handwriting. I will tell you straight up, that is nothing I inherited from her, but she had the most beautiful handwriting. So I have all of these recipe cards with her handwriting. And of course, a lot of things were made from scratch. And so I like to duplicate that and follow her recipes. And I still make a lot of the food that she used to make when I was young. So, and those are some things I shared on there too.  Nice. I love that.
20:07Did you happen to put a photo of one of her recipe cards up so we can see her handwriting? That's actually a good question. I'm not sure if I have one out there or not, but I definitely have them in my house.  I think you should take a photo of one of them and put it on there because handwriting is so distinct. Oh, it is. And when you have really beautiful handwriting, people really love seeing that.  Yes, yes. It's good idea. I'm going to take your suggestion and do that.
20:35Yes. Yeah. My grandmother on my mom's side had the most beautiful loopy handwriting, but it was small. So, know, consistently rounded, beautiful handwriting. And I was digging through my, my keepsake box when we moved here four and a half years ago. I'd go through stuff and rearrange and I found a card from her and it said, it said, love you, Mary Evelyn, grandma on it. Okay. Oh, and I'm going to tear up. didn't think I was going do that. Um,
21:04Anyway, I was looking at it I was like, I need to take a photo of that. Yes. need to get a necklace made  with that on it. Fantastic idea. I  haven't done it yet, but I still have the card and I keep saving it thinking that I'm going to do it.  Yes, absolutely. Yes. Those things are very special. Yeah. And her, her grandma, you know, her written grandma is just so pretty.  Okay, sure.  So yeah.
21:33handwriting is really special and it is absolutely a representation of the person that wrote it. Yeah, part of my side interest that I have right now that I really want to start getting into is the genealogy. So when you mention that story, those are the stories that you need to keep, you know what I mean? In saying those for future for other family members or just for yourself, you know? And so, you know, we talked about the recipes that my mom did.
22:01that will definitely go into my family history and I will definitely share those. But I think those are very special because,  you know, if we don't share them or save them, they're just gonna go by, you know, gonna go away, you know, and I don't think that should happen. Yeah, and it's so easy to just  not see how important it is. I  live like five miles from this really beautiful cemetery.  it's one of
22:30the two oldest cemeteries in Minnesota, supposedly. Oh, really? Okay. There are Civil War soldiers buried there. Oh my, yes. And it's up a hill and it's in  an oak grove, basically, and it's just beautiful. And  some of those gravestones are super duper old.  Oh.  And there's kids, you know, there's kid gravestones up there from 1800s.
22:55And I went up there and I wandered around because I'm weird. love cemeteries. They're quiet. They're usually very pretty. They're calming. And I was looking at these headstones and I was like, man, I wonder what their story was. I know. That's exactly what I was just thinking. I mean, each one of those has a story and you wonder what is that story? Yeah. And unless they were famous, nobody knows about what they did. Yes. Yes. So yeah, history is really important. you know, I mean,
23:25There's a saying about if you don't learn from history, you're doomed to repeat it.  And it's a terrible saying. mean, it's true, but it's very negative. But history is also full of life and brilliance and fun.  Oh, yeah. And you just, don't know, I just feel like people are so focused on moving forward. Yes. That they don't entertain what came before. Yes. No, I agree completely. I love history. Actually, I might
23:55My  college degree is in secondary education social studies. So history falls underneath that.  And so I hear exactly what you're saying. There's so many great stories that I would just love to write about all of them, you know, so.  Yeah, exactly. OK, so  agritourism, you were telling me something about you're starting a new blog or you did start a new blog. Yeah, I have a new blog. It's not been out a real long time. It's called the Minnesota Traveler.
24:25Basically kind of focusing on Minnesota travel, road trips, solo trips, that sort of thing. But I also go  beyond  Minnesota if there's some things in the Upper Midwest. That's really what I'm going to focus on.  And I love agritourism  because again, that connection with the farm. I think it makes a lot of sense.  So I will write about that and share those stories. I guess the first one that comes up to my mind is like the Spam Museum that's in Austin.
24:53And I love that because this Hormel and that's where I sell our pigs, you know, so there's a special connection there,  you know, and just kind of  kind of really just really focusing on some of the small towns  right along the I-90 like Fairmont. So if you're into pigs, if you ever go to Fairmont, Minnesota, they have over 100 pig statues placed around town and around the community. Please stop and check them out.  You know, so I've got that, you know.
25:21best things to do in Fairmont, Minnesota. It's a town of 10,000 people, but there's five lakes and it's just, you know, it's kind of these places that nobody thinks about, you know, like, why would I go there? But there's a lot of really cool things there. I did one on Blue Earth and one did one on Albert Lee in Austin and you know, working my way to the West and doing something with Jackson. On my bucket list is Laverne, Minnesota, because I guess they have a Nutcracker Museum there and I want to check that out.
25:49So yeah, so just small towns, agritourism.  In Iowa, there's actually going to be a, I don't know, celebration in Clear Lake,  Iowa. It's called Evolution of the Heartland, and they really focus on agritourism and really what's, you know, how these small towns were created based on the, you know, farming backgrounds of the area. So that interests me. so,  so. Fine, you should come to Lasur.
26:17And I will tell you why  the Jolly Green Giant  thing got started here.  Oh, yes. Yes. And you can see that in Blue Earth, right? To the statue or no, that's the Jolly Green Giant. Yes. But yes, yes. Uh huh. Yeah. We have a big billboard coming into town that has a Jolly Green Giant and Sprout. Sprout. Yes. Yes. Yeah. Yeah. They just repaired it like last summer or the summer before, like it was torn apart and then they redid it because it was  falling apart. So.
26:47I need one. There's a brand new billboard up for that.  Yep. And, the Mayo M A Y O house is here and it's, I have not been in it. I have not figured out a time to get down there, but they have tours that they do. You can go in that little house and see where the guy that started the clinic stuff live. Okay. Way back when. Yes. That'd be very interesting.
27:15And I live like four miles out of town. So if you decide you're going to visit LaSalle, we'll have to set up a coffee date. All right. That sounds like a deal. That would be fun. Yeah. It's really kind of fun because I grew up in New England. I grew up in Maine. Okay. And moved to Minnesota back over 30 years ago, kicking and screaming. Did not want to go. And it took me probably 15 years to realize that I actually love Minnesota.
27:44It's not that different from Maine.  Okay. Okay. It is and it's not.  I call it a lateral move. Okay.  And  I  saw like a baby when I realized that I actually loved Minnesota because I had been fighting it for 15 years. I felt like  a traitor if I embraced where I lived, you know?  Minnesota has so much going for it. It's so beautiful.
28:14And there are so many different quirky little things about every single city in town.  Yes.  It seems like every town, no matter how small, has some kind of little festival they do every year.  Absolutely. Yep. They do. They're all different.  I haven't spent hardly any time up north. I think the furthest north I've been is Duluth. Okay. Yeah. So I know nothing about  northern Minnesota.
28:41I keep being told that I should take a road trip. Oh, yes. That is one of my favorite, favorite places to go  is Duluth and up to harbors and Grand Marais.  We go up there fairly often or when we can kind of get away because that is one of our favorite. I love Lake Superior. So  yeah, it's a beautiful, beautiful area. Yes. The one thing I can say is I had never seen a lake that
29:09big in my entire life in Maine.  Yes,  that's for sure.  There are some beautiful lakes in the state of Maine and there are some beautiful rivers, but I don't think any of them are as big as Lake Superior.  it's taken me a while to embrace my situation of living in Minnesota, but  we had the choice four and a half years ago to move,  to leave our house in Jordan and move.
29:39And we debated moving back to Maine. And  Maine is expensive because of the tourist state.  sure. Sure. And they have really good lobster, right?  Yeah. Yeah. Much better than what we can get here. Yes.  The problem is  land and houses are fairly, or they were at the time, fairly reasonable. Uh-huh. But the cost of living is really expensive.  Ah, okay.
30:07All right. And so for about a month,  I was convinced that we were going to move back. And then I looked into it and I was like, no, we're staying in Minnesota. The cost of living here is way less money.  Okay. So I made a choice when I had the choice to stay in Minnesota. That's how much I have decided that I love it. Okay.  It's a hard choice, but that's where I'm at. Yes. Well, I think it's a good choice. So  I do too.
30:35I really do. It's a lovely place to live. Yeah. Yeah.  I have no story to compare that to. I've only lived in Minnesota. In fact, I tell people and I know this sounds very unusual, but I've only lived in two houses my entire life.  Wow. I was born and raised in Fairmont and I stayed in that house until I was 18 after I graduated. Shortly after I graduated, I got married.
31:00And we moved out to the farm about eight miles northwest of Fairmont and I have been here ever since. So I have a pretty boring life. you're happy. can hear that. Yes. Absolutely. So I've got one more thing because I was thinking the other day that I needed to find someone who was older than me. Not old, but older. I'm 55. Yep. And talk to them about what it was like when they were teenagers because I was a teenager in the eighties.
31:30Yep. And the 80s was a really silly time. No, no one's going to argue with me about that. Uh huh. When, what, what decade were you a teenager in? Yeah. So I would have been in the seventies. Yep. So I'm about 10 years older than you are. Um, so yeah, I mean, the things that we, I don't know, trying to think you're in, that's like a long time ago. Um, but I know that we had definitely, whether this is good or bad, but we had a lot more freedom. mean,
32:00Like parents weren't worried about where you were at. I mean, you would have to have a curfew. You would need to be home at a certain time. Um, but there was no, course, definitely no cell phones, nothing like that. You know, it's just, you just said, well, I think I'm going here to  one friend's house and okay, sounds good. But they would never, you know, they would never know if you changed your mind or not, you know?  Um, but one, one story when I think about when I was young, you know, especially with the farm and everything. So, um,
32:29And I laugh about this yet today. So my best friend actually lived on a farm right outside of Fairmont and they had pigs. They had a few pigs on the farm. And so like best friends do, we would stay overnight at each other's house. And so this one night, Friday night, I stayed overnight at her house. Saturday morning came and her dad said, you need to go out and clean the pig pens. You've to go do pig chores. So I told her, I said, you know, I said, I'll come out, I'll watch.
32:56I'm not going to help. I'll come watch you."  So we went out and did that. So she did her chores. And when she got done, I looked at her and I said, I will never marry a hog farmer.  So we laugh and we laugh. it's like, I bet you God was just rolling on the floor when he heard me say that. like, you have no idea, Wanda.  So we laugh about it. So this is kind of funny how that was. But  a lot of time we spent  as a teenager,
33:26We did have like a place that we would have dances that we would go to. We would do a lot of just driving. know, that was back when you had that kind of the hot rods. My husband to be at the time had a 1969 yellow Roadrunner. You know, the back end was jacked up and you'd go up and down the main street of Fairmont and hang out at the mall parking lot. And that's kind of where you would talk with friends and other people. And you know, that was kind of what we did. You know, it wasn't.
33:54Drive-in theater was in Fairmont. We could go there.  So yeah, was nothing too exciting beyond that.  But it seemed exciting at the time. Oh, definitely.  definitely. Yep,  absolutely.  I wonder if hanging out at the mall is still a thing for teenagers. Yeah, I don't know. know in Fairmont it's not. I don't even know where they even hang out, be honest with you. They just go to...
34:20each other's homes and kind of hang out there, but it's not like it used to be, you know? So yeah, that's actually good question. But I know I have been at the mall like on a Friday or Saturday night and it's not a thing locally, but maybe some other places it is. I'm not sure. Yeah. I have no idea. My kids, my youngest is 23 and my oldest 35, so they don't know either. Yep. And you wouldn't catch me dead in a mall these days. I haven't been to a mall in years.
34:49years and years.  I see no reason to go.  They're a dying breed. mean,  it makes me sad because  the Fair Mall was like, it was the place to go when I was young. mean, they had restaurants, had grocery stores, all the  stores were full. And now you go in there and there's maybe two retail stores left. I mean, it's so sad. You you go in there, it's like, this is not what it used to be, you know? So it's just kind of a change in times, you know?
35:20Yes, it is astounding to me how things have changed since my dad was a teenager. I mean, he's 81. Uh-huh.  And he's so like with it. He's so up to date on stuff and he's in great health. He's in great shape. He's smart. Oh my God, this man is so smart.  Awesome.  And I asked him what it was like when he was a teenager.  And  he has this story about his foster mother because his mother died when he was two.
35:50Okay. And his dad, his dad worked for the state of Maine fixing roads. That was his job. Okay.  And, uh, my dad tells this story. He can't stand corn. My dad will not eat corn to save his life.  Okay. Part of it is that when he was growing up and spending his time with the foster mom, when dad was, was working,  she made a lot of corn recipes because they grew corn. Oh, sure. Yep.  And,
36:19He can't handle it. And I'm not a big fan of corn either, but that's just, I don't like it. I don't like too much of it. And I'm like, there's gotta be other stories. And he's like, well, he said, I spent a lot of time fishing in the creek behind the house and watching the eagles come in and lay their eggs. You know, they had nests in the trees and in the, um, the rock walls, going up the side of the creek. And he said, I just spent a lot of time out in the woods doing boy stuff.
36:49He said, and if a girl wanted to hang out with me, she had to like do him buy it boy stuff too. Sure. Yes.  And I just he's so far removed from that that talking about it is  weird for him, think.  Uh huh. What a great life, though. What a great life.  You mentioned that. And I think about back when I was young, too, I used to climb a lot of trees. I mean, that's what we did as kids. You know, you'd go to the neighbors or friends or whatever. Let's go crime. Climb a tree.
37:18I don't even see that happen anymore, you know, but you know, we don't have phones in front of our faces and that sort of thing. So that's what you did. But that just sounds like a wonderful life of your dad. Yeah. And us kids kind of followed in his footsteps because we lived  quite, I mean, we lived a good half an hour away from a lot of our good friends.  So we spent a lot of time playing in the woods that were behind our house when we were growing up  and going out.
37:46the creek and catching brook trout and  I don't know, just the stuff you do hanging out in the woods as a kid.  I don't know that a lot of kids have that experience right now. Yes, I know.  It kind of makes you sad really when you think about it.  Yes. But I was just curious, I'm trying to find somebody who's like  90, who is still in good health and still capable of having this kind of conversation with me.
38:13Just have a nostalgic conversation about what it was like when they were growing up So if you know anybody, let me know I will definitely do that. Yes,  because a lot of what we farmers and homesteaders and ranchers are doing  It's based on what those people did too. Uh-huh. Yep So that's of where I'm trying to go with that But  either way I grew up in the 80s the 80s all I can think of is Madonna and Prince I listen to a ton of music
38:43And back in the eighties, that's when MTV came around. Sure. Sure. And if I wasn't out in the woods screwing around or riding my bike, I was in front of the TV watching MTV and  all the lyrics to music. That's what I was doing. Yeah. I'm a huge music fan too, especially live music.  Sticks is my favorite band. So anytime I get a chance to go see them, I love that. So classic rock, that's kind of, that's my thing. So  that makes sense for the seventies. Yep.
39:12Absolutely. Yeah. And I grew up on all the weird overtly sexual strange music.  The stuff you couldn't get away with in the seventies, you could get away with in the eighties. So,  all right. Thank you for entertaining me on that question. It's really not necessarily homesteading, but it's sort of within the realm of history. So  thank you so much for your time today, Wanda. I really appreciate it.
39:40Absolutely, I loved it. So thank you for asking me.  Oh, absolutely. And you'll have to come back and visit me in a year and we'll see what you're doing and where you're at. good. Thank you.  Thank you. Have a good afternoon. Yep, you too. Bye.
 

The Cottage Foodie

Today I'm talking with Matt at The Cottage Foodie. You can follow on Facebook as well.
A Tiny Homestead Podcast is sponsored by Homegrowncollective.org.
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00:00You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, the podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters, and topics adjacent. I'm your host, Mary Lewis.  A Tiny Homestead podcast is sponsored by Homegrown Collective, a free-to-use farm-to-table platform emphasizing local connections with ability to sell online, buy, sell, trade in local garden groups, and help us grow a new food system.  You can find them at homegrowncollective.org. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like, subscribe.
00:29share it with a friend or leave a comment. Thank you. Today I'm talking with Matt Rosen, also known as Sergeant Shortbread at the Cottage Foodie, because he has a new thing going on. Good afternoon, Matt. How are you? I'm doing fantastic, Mary. Thanks for having me on. I'm looking forward to it. Yeah. Just  to catch people up, Matt and I talked quite a while ago about his business, Sergeant Shortbread. He makes fabulous shortbread, I have heard.
00:54And then he decided he wanted to do this new thing called the cottage foodie. So this is kind of a catch up and to talk about that. So tell me about yourself  and what you're doing now.  Yeah. So like you said, I started out in the cottage food  community or the cottage food industry as Sergeant Shortbread.  I still am a cottage food producer here in Minnesota. Yeah,  I love it. I don't know if I'll ever quit.
01:23Physically, that might be the only way that I stop, but we'll have to see. Only time will tell, I guess. But  yeah, I've been a cottage food producer here in Minnesota for,  seven years now. Yeah, seven years in April 2018 I started. yeah,  like I said, been a cottage food producer since then and about a year and a half ago or so  just had a...
01:50I don't know, a revelation if you want to call it. I'm not sure  what exactly you'd call it, but  I just felt like there was a need for a  directory  of cottage food producers.  for those of us who remember  the yellow pages,  maybe I'm dating myself here a bit, but. I remember them. Yeah. There's no digital yellow pages for cottage food producers. look for.
02:19for this and I saw there are some out there but it didn't look like they were really being  managed or maintained and I wasn't sure if they were still being used and so I thought well I'm gonna do a  new upgraded version of this and  so  yeah, joined up with a social media, a digital marketing company  and we created a platform for cottage food producers to  become members and have profiles on
02:48the cottage foodie  and  then  in return, what I do is I do some of their digital marketing forum. I don't take over their digital marketing and so I tell them, keep doing what you're doing. This is just gonna be  in addition to what you're doing.  So  I run Facebook ads  for them. Anywhere we have members, I  run paid advertising in their areas. So for example, I think
03:17in Minnesota here alone, we're close to 70 members. so essentially I just run it in the entire state of Minnesota, just because I'm not going to pick and choose little communities. Once I do that, I'm going to be covering the whole state practically anyway.  But take for example, California, I think we have four or five in California.  Two or three of them are in kind of the Los Angeles area and that surrounding area. And then two or three of them are up in like the San Jose Sacramento area. So
03:47So I just run specific ads within those areas. I'm not running in the entire state of California.  I mainly just want to highlight the cottage food producers  within their areas.  So for example, I might put San Jose in the Facebook when I'm doing a targeted  audience, I'll put San Jose plus 20 miles. And so it'll be San Jose and then 20 miles from downtown San Jose, it'll cover that.
04:16So yeah, that's what the cottage foodie is all about.  I  grew my business, my cottage food business from  being a cottage food producer to moving into a commercial kitchen. So I do have a  wholesale food manufacturing license on top of my cottage food producer registration. So  I just wanted to help other cottage food producers  grow their businesses if that's what they wanna do.  If their goal is to...
04:46move into a commercial kitchen and sell in grocery stores and coffee shops and things like that, then I just want to be able to help them achieve that.  And I know that one of the hardest things that we as cottage food producers  will run into is,  and I hear it all the time,  how do I get my name out there? Nobody knows I exist. I can't hire somebody to do my marketing and I can't afford.
05:14all this paid advertising on Facebook and social media. And so,  so that's where the cottage foodie steps in is I just want to be,  I want to help out in that way. If  as much as I can. Next step should be starting a podcast, Matt.  Oh gosh, don't even get me started by my wife. She will not be happy that you mentioned that because  she's  she, she had, matter of fact, she told me once I started the cottage foodie, she's like,
05:44please promise me no more businesses. Please don't start any more businesses.  So,  you never know,  who knows? Maybe you and I can team up to do a podcast together. We could be co-hosts or something. That would be really fun. I have not done a co-hosting thing. The closest I've come is guests, because you guys are basically my co-hosts for each episode.  Yeah. So a different co-host every day. It's amazing.  Yeah. When I started the podcast, it was about
06:13exactly what you're talking about. was about getting people a platform to be able to talk about what they do. And it's worked really, really well, actually.  So I love it. And I keep saying that I'm sure people are sick of hearing me say I love my podcast, but I do.  Well, yeah. And I know you love what you're doing. So it's it's kind of great when you find something that  I don't know, get you up out of bed in the morning with a smile, I guess. Yeah. And and the thing is that
06:40people like your listeners and the people who buy my cookies,  they can feel that when someone like you and I are passionate about what we do and we're excited about what we do, people feel that and they just, they gravitate to that. So it's just a lot of fun to  be within that community where people are just as excited as you are about what you're doing and what they're doing. And so  it's just, it's a lot of fun. And so it's just fun to be part of. Yeah. Who knew good vibes were attractive.
07:10Weird, right?  Okay, so  I thought that the cottage foodie was just from Minnesota, but it's not. It's nationwide. It is. Yeah.  So, funny story.  It,  my whole goal when I thought of it and when I started it was I wanted this to be a nationwide  platform or a  nationwide directory.
07:35But the initial thought was, okay, let's start in Minnesota because obviously that's where I'm from. And  this is where I have my roots and this is where I know like a lot of the cottage food producers in the state. And so it was just natural, let's start in Minnesota. Let's just see if this works. Let's just see if people are even interested in, know, cottage food producers are interested in joining.  Will consumers come and actually know that this exists? Will they come and search? You know, can we get traffic to the site?  And...
08:04Yeah, so I went live May 1st of last year, so 2024. And in August, I happened to have a conversation with a national business platform for cottage food producers. I don't want to, it's not mainly in the sugar cookie, the decorated sugar cookie community, but predominantly that's who a lot of their customers are. It's called My Custom Bakes.
08:32And they are,  it's an online business platform for cottage food producers to when consumers come, they can, it's a great way for them to customize their order so they can do very specific. Like for me, there's no customization. You're going to order a dozen blueberry lemon shortbread cookies or you're not. I mean, it's not going to be, I'm going to have like three blueberry lemon and then I'll have seven dark chocolate sea salt.  You know,  you can't customize that  through, you know, the
09:01the platform that I'm on, but with My Custom Bakes,  it's very detailed about what a consumer is ordering. so  the person who  founded My Custom Bakes also founded Borderlands Bakery, which is an online bakery supply store. So  any kind of bakery supplies.  And I had a conversation with them  and they actually said,
09:29We'd literally have been talking about this for months about wanting to create something exactly what you've done. And now you did it and we don't have to. So what do you say we partner up and how can we like join forces? And so, yeah, from that point on, that was August of 2024, I said, well, I guess we're going national a little quicker than I anticipated. And so just because they have a...
09:58I think, you know, they're in the thousands of members in their, in their My Custom Bakes platform and, and then Borderlands Bakery, uh, just on Instagram alone, they have, gosh, I think it's 180,000 Instagram followers. And so, so I thought this is just a great way to, um, get our name out there, um, on a national, on a national scale. And so I don't want to miss this opportunity to just really grow.
10:28the cottage foodie nationwide. so we jumped right in. We said, okay, let's do it. It's a little quicker than we wanted to, but let's go. And as of today, we have, I believe, about 120, a little over 120 members and 110 of them have actual profiles in the directory. And we are in 22 different states covering 22 states.
10:58with our cottage food producer membership. That's amazing. And I'm actually one of your members, but I just haven't done anything with it yet.  When, when ingredients went up in price sharply was about the time I was like, I am not getting into this right now. Yeah. It's tough. Yeah, it is. And the other thing I wanted  to bring up is I got an email the other day from somebody.
11:26who wanted to know if I was available for a cookie pickup on March 27th, because supposedly there's a big corporate event that's gonna happen in LaSore, Minnesota. And I read this and I was like, I don't think there's a big corporate event happening in LaSore, Minnesota on March 27th. That sounds like bullshit to me. So I wrote back and I said, have a couple of questions. How many cookies are you looking for?
11:54And something else, I remember what the other question was.  And  the person wrote back and said something like, like, I just need to know if you're available and then we can talk details. And I thought, yeah, that's got scam written all over it. And so  the reason I bring this up is if you are a new cottage food producer,  do your research when people approach you about making something for them, because  that, would have been a really weird
12:24thing, you know, and I didn't say yes when they asked if I was available because when you say yes to something on the phone or in an email,  you might be saying something, saying yes to something you aren't actually prepared to say yes to. Yeah. So be careful people.  And the other question I have for you, because you were a college food producer  is like, God forbid this happens, but let's say somebody says I need
12:5250 shortbread cookies two months from now  and you know, they pay half upfront. And then for some reason when you make them last minute, because lots of people do that,  they burn and you don't have time to make the rest of them. You don't have time to redo it.  Do you like consider that that payment that half down a deposit and if something goes wrong?
13:18you refund them that money and pray they don't bad mouth you or how does that work?  You know, if I ever ran into a situation like that,  I would refund it all. I would give it back.  And that's just who I am.  I would feel right.  I would just have to eat the cost  of my time, my ingredients. I'm the one who burned them. It's not their fault.  And so,  you know, think about it from their standpoint. Okay, so I burned these cookies and I
13:48email them the night before, oh, by the way, you're not going to have your 50 cookies for your event tomorrow. Yeah. You know, know, look at, look at the, the position you're putting them in. And then for me to say, Oh, by the way, that half down, I'm keeping that because that was just your deposit and that's non-refundable.  So,  um,  yeah, I, I just, I would not, I would not feel right. Yeah. Hanging onto that deposit. I would just have to say, I have to own it. I, I messed up.
14:18I'm not gonna be able to fulfill the order that  they requested. So here's your money back. I'm so sorry this happened.  I sincerely hope that you'll give me another chance.  Exactly, yeah. No, it's just, I know things go wrong with businesses and it could be as simple as burning the cookies  or as bad as your house burning down. And that definitely burned the cookies.  It's just one of those things.
14:46When we used to do a CSA, people would pay us for the season ahead of time to the tune of 500 bucks for the biggest share we had. And we would put that money in the bank and we would leave it until the end of June because that way the people that were coming to get their stuff during June,  if they weren't happy,  we could return their money.  If they didn't say anything by the end of June, that
15:11then they were out of luck. were getting what they were getting for the rest of the season and that was in the contract for the CSA. So, yeah, I was just curious about how people handle that because I have not really sold anything  yet.  Well, I've sold granola at the farmer's market with my cottage food registration, but other than that, I haven't really done a whole lot with it yet. Yeah, yeah, that's  and you know, I guess  each
15:38to each his own,  everyone can run their business how they want, but  I just, I wouldn't feel right.  I'm the one who messed it up. Now, if the consumer comes and says, you know, I've already made the cookies and they come back and say, oh, you know what, nevermind, cancel the order.  Then in that case, like, okay, that's fine. know,  good luck finding somebody else and that your deposit, I've already made the cookies, so your deposit is.
16:06is non-refundable. I would definitely not refund it then. Yep. And then what you do is you turn around and find somebody who wants those cookies and you sell them.  Yep.  Yep. You sell them. And if you're  feeling generous, just take them to,  you donate them to a local shelter or a hospital or take them down to the police station or  somewhere. You donate them to  somebody.  That's what I would do. mean, normally what I would do is
16:34If I have extra cookies from an event or something, I go on Facebook on, I live at Eden Prairie, so on the local Eden Prairie Facebook groups and I say flash sale.  I couldn't sell these cookies yesterday. They're half price. so  rarely, I don't think I've ever  not sold them when I put them on  Facebook for half price. They go pretty quick. Oh yeah. I also hear that assisted living facilities really like donated cookies.
17:04Yeah, yeah. Oh, absolutely. I didn't even think about that.  I will keep that in mind for sure. That's an amazing idea.  Yep.  They,  it's really funny because a lot of the older folks, I don't want to say old, just older than me,  certain cookies really bring back memories for them.  And shortbread, I would bet would do that. So. Yeah. Oh, I would guess the same thing.
17:33Food is such an amazing thing. mean,  again, food can be really hard for people who have issues with it. But for people who don't have issues with food, food is one of the best things in life. And it's about the sense, it's about texture, it's about the memories it brings back.  And baked goods for sure are a huge trigger. Oh yeah, yeah, absolutely. So, okay, the cottage foodie thing. It is  only for people that
18:04do cottage food, is that right? That's correct. Okay, so like canned goods are okay, baked goods are okay. I know in Minnesota we can't use  cream cheese, frosting, and  there's water restrictions in the food, things like that. But basically anything shelf stable, right? Correct. Okay. All right, cool.  And  we still can't ship in Minnesota.
18:34Still can't do it. You can ship pet treats, but,  and this is funny, I've had numerous conversations with the cottage, Minnesota Cottage Food Association, and we chuckle about this when we think about it.  Pet treats,  and I don't make pet treats, but I  think that they have to be  essentially for human consumption. They've got to be made with ingredients that are for human consumption. Yes. So we can ship.
19:03these dog treats that we could eat,  but we can't ship cookies that we could eat  because it's not a pet treat. So maybe we just need to label everything dog treats.  Only for doggos. But if  you take a bite to make sure it's okay, that's cool.  I actually had a brain thing, I don't know what you call it, inspiration, talking with someone months ago on one of the podcast episodes.
19:32And it occurred to me that if we're going to ship, you know, baked goods,  we're going to make the stuff in our kitchen. We're going to package it, package it up in our kitchen.  We're going to hike our cute little butts down the post office and get a tracking number when we ship the treats. And then they end up exactly where they were meant to go to the person that ordered them.  Where is the problem with this? It is tracked.
20:01all the way through. Yeah.  Yeah. I do not understand. Oh, this is a passion project of mine too, because like I mentioned, I've got a wholesale food manufacturing license and a cottage food registration. So I make these my cookies in the commercial kitchen. Okay. I take them to the post office. I ship them because then from a commercial kitchen, as long as they're made there, I can ship all I want. Yeah.
20:31I'm taking these cookies to the exact same, the exact same people would be handling these cookies, my boxes,  whether it's coming from my home kitchen  or from a commercial kitchen.  And the reason, from what I understand, the reason that the legislature is not approving us shipping is because they're worried about food safety and us not handing it direct to the consumer.  Well, I mean, that just doesn't make any sense to me. The same people are handling it, whether I make it in my home kitchen.
21:00or in a commercial kitchen.  And if the box is opened, when it gets to the consumer, they're probably not going to eat it. They're like, they're going to send it back to me they're going to call me and say, Matt, this is damaged. It was opened.  it just,  there's just, I just don't see the, the food safety, quote unquote, scare  of shipping something in the mail.  There, there isn't one. And the only thing I can think of is that the people, the powers that be as it were,
21:30Don't quite understand this. Yeah, that's that's all I can think of and
21:39I'm not going to say what company, because I do not want to start a flame war on my podcast, but we, we ordered some tomato seeds from a company,  um, a month ago. Um, there would, we ordered four packages of 125 seeds each and they came in the mail and my husband was planting them. And because he has ADD,  he counted each seed as he planted it.  One pack was like,
22:0780 seeds, one was 91 seeds, so far short of 125 each. Oh yeah. And I emailed the company and I was like, um, just so you know, there's not 125 seeds in these packages. And the person that wrote me back was super nice. And they were like, um, would you like us to replace the two that you've opened or would you, know, how do you want to make this right? And I said, well, ideally I'd like four new packages because the other two are probably short as well. They were totally cool with that.
22:36We're going to put former packages in the mail. Should you marry? Here you go. It'll be here. It'll be there in a week or so. What they didn't know is that once those packages got mailed out in the little paper mailer that they sent it in, it got mangled in one of the machines at the post office. We got two packages out of the four. And my husband was like, you've got to be kidding me. And I said, it's not the company's fault. It's the mail.
23:04And I said, I am not emailing them and being like,  so this time this is what happened.  he says, yeah, he said, we're going to save seeds from our tomatoes this year and that way we'll just have them for next spring. said, that's a great plan. Let's do that.  so yeah, there's no accounting for what happens when it goes into the mail system. And  if you ship a box of cookies and they get, the box gets ruined in the mail, that is not your fault. It's the mail's fault.
23:35Yeah. So, yeah, yeah. Unless that, you know, unless they open up the box and they see that I didn't like package it at all.  Just like  random cookies laying around in a box that then it's, yeah, then it would 100 % be my fault. But the way that it, when I'm shipping from the commercial kitchen, the way that I, the way that I package those, it's like, unless the post office is using my boxes for a football or a basketball,
24:03There should be no reason why the cookies don't get to where they need to go unharmed. And knock on wood, had one person say that the cookies didn't arrive in perfect shape, but they also in the same breath, were like, yeah, but the box was not, it was intact, but they could see that it was mishandled. was not, they could tell that it wasn't my fault. So they didn't ask for a refund. They're just like,
24:33Just want to let you know that this is what happened.  So if you hear anything else, you might want to check with the post office to see what's going on. Yeah, for sure.  Back  to the powers that be that won't let us ship our goods.  The other thing that I wonder about is if maybe our people in our local government have bigger fish to fry.
24:57Yeah, yeah, it,  who knows, I just,  I do, agree with you that I think it's just a lack of knowledge.  And,  you know, that's, that's a big thing. And so they don't,  if they don't really know a lot about it, yes, they're going to move on to like you put it, the bigger fish to fry, we have other things to worry about. I don't really know exactly what this is. So let's just
25:24you know, let's just move on from that because I don't know exactly what that is. So let's just move on to, yeah, as you put it, you know, bigger fish to fry with budgets and things like that. So yeah, I would agree. Yeah. And the other thing that I laugh about is most cookies have so much sugar in them, their half life is forever. Like they wouldn't be rotten even 150 years from now. They'd be hard as a rock, but they wouldn't poison you. Yep. Yeah.
25:54Yeah, like my shortbread cookies. I will,  I've like  date tested them or I don't know what the actual term is, but you know, I just,  I'll have them sit  and they'll actually be sitting out on my counter. I won't even have them in anything.  And even sitting like that, I'll come back to it. You know, I'll keep  testing them and like two weeks after they have  been made and they're still good. They're still good. They're
26:21They're  drier, of course.  You can taste the difference. They're not fresh. But yeah, they're still good. Nothing in a shortbread cookie or any other cookie, a chocolate chip cookie or sugar cookie, nothing in those cookies is going to be harmful to you if you ate a cookie six months from now that you found in your freezer or  on a shelf somewhere. In the cabinet because you put them there thinking you'd get to them and didn't. Yeah.  Yeah.
26:50Because truth be told, you can forget about cookies in the cabinet and  not remember them for a year. Oh, it  is definitely possible. I had some in my freezer, some frozen cookie dough,  and  kind of forgot about it. It just kind of gets pushed to the back.  yeah, was in there for, gosh, it was in there for,  I hate to say it, but almost two years.  Pulled it out, made it, baked it. It was delicious.
27:18Yeah, it's still just fine. Yeah. And if you live at my parents' house in Maine,  they have a border collie who will not let them forget that they have snickerdoodles for her.  My mom  makes snickerdoodle cookies. She does them as a bar. So she just spreads the batter in a pan and bakes it.  And they give it to their dog as a treat.  I keep trying to tell them that giving dogs sugar and cinnamon probably isn't the best plan.
27:48Every time I tell them my dad says well Mary Evelyn and I hear that and I'm like, uh-huh This dog  runs like ten miles a day on the property. She's just burning that sugar. So it's okay. I'm like, all right  Okay  So that dog gets the best treats on the planet as far as I'm concerned. Oh, yeah
28:12I would agree 100 % with that.  Yeah. Our Australian shepherd does not get snickerdoodles because I want the snickerdoodles.  Well, that's the other thing.  And  I don't know how many people really know what a snickerdoodle cookie is supposed to be because there are stores in Minnesota that sell them and they're weird.  they don't  even compare to a homemade snickerdoodle.
28:42Oh yeah. Yeah, I don't make snickerdoodles, but  I should make that into a shortbread now that you mention that. I should see if I can get that flavor into a shortbread cookie somehow.  It's just butter and cinnamon and sugar. I'm guessing you probably could do it super easy. Yeah, yeah. But  yeah, I don't, so I don't know exactly what goes into a snickerdoodle, but yeah, I mean, a homemade is
29:12is always, it's not even gonna compare to,  or a store bought cookie is not even gonna compare to a homemade cookie. There's just no way. Yeah,  I found the recipe for those cookies you get. I don't even know what they're called. They're like a sour cream cookie that all of Minnesota stores sell. And they're the ones that are just a white cookie  that have like a buttercream frosting on top with sprinkles.  Oh yeah.
29:40And I don't love those. They're super dry and I won't buy them because I'm not going to eat them.  I found a recipe for them. I'm going to try making them and see if they're better than the ones you can buy.  I will be shocked if they're not.  And I swear to you, my husband made huge, God, they must've been five inches across, maybe six inches across  chocolate cookies a couple of weeks ago.
30:09He just wanted to make them. I was like, okay.  And they came out really flat and they were crispy on the outside and really like gooey, chewy on the inside. It's the recipe that his mom used to make. And I bit into one of these cookies and I was like, you didn't really use the recipe that I have. You made them the way your mom made them. And he said, I hadn't thought about it, but yeah, these are exactly like my mom's. And I was like, I'll TV proud.
30:37And he passed away like five years ago.  And I'm telling you, I bit into that cookie and all I could see was his mom handing me one of these cookies. It was crazy. Yeah. Yeah. Well, like you mentioned earlier, that's what food does.  You know,  it brings you back. It  reminds you of something,  especially baked goods, you know, like a cookie or a loaf of bread or, you know, anything like that.
31:07It takes us back to  memories of growing up nine times out of ten. Yeah, my kids are always going to be reminded of me when they get a really good brownie, because I make a killer brownie.  And they would ask for them for their birthday instead of birthday cake.  Yeah.  So I can just imagine when I'm gone, my kids are going to be like, oh my God, this is just like the brownies mom used to make, you know?  Yeah.  So.
31:37Anyway,  the cottage foodie thing,  what's in the works? Is there anything happening with that or just keep growing it?  Yeah, just keep growing.  Ideally, we get to all 50 states because,  well, take that back. I wonder.
31:59Don't have to spot check me on my facts here, but we might only have cottage food laws in 48 out of the 50 states. But yeah, just keep growing. That's my ultimate goal is just to keep growing and keep helping cottage food producers quote unquote, get their name out there. So, and we'll see where it takes us. You know what I think would be super fun? I mean, you don't have to do it, but I was just thinking about it.
32:29You need merch, you need like baseball caps and t-shirts and stuff.  Oh,  again, I go back to my wife is not going to appreciate that we had  this call right now.  So I think that's a great idea. Like, I'm  and for me, the very first thing I would do,  and it's probably more for me than an apron.  No,  no quarter zips.  I'm like pull over.
32:58quarter zip.  Not really a switcher, but yeah,  I'm addicted to quarter zips. I've got a closet.  My closet is half full of just different quarter zip.  So if I could throw some logos on there, I'd be in seventh heaven. But I think an apron would be great.  That would be cool. That would be cool. And  I'm forgetting, do you have an actual logo for the cottage foodie? You do, right? I do. Yeah. Yep. It's
33:29It's basically like the shape of a house and then almost like a stamp of approval in the middle and it has the word homemade and then there's a check mark in the middle of the stamp of approval. Yeah, I want an apron with that logo on it right now. Well, I mean, now that you've mentioned it, I'm thinking that, you know, the logo right smack dab in the middle of the apron. Yeah, that would be pretty cool. Yeah, it'd be really fun. But your wife said no more businesses, so you got to figure out a way to loop it underneath the cottage foodie business.
33:58Yeah, see, well, yeah, this is I'm not starting a new business. I'm just expanding the current one.  It's just promotion, honey. That's all. Yes, exactly.  This podcast is actually under our A Tiny Homestead LLC business. And I got paid for something the other day and my husband was like, I'm going to need that number.  And I said, what number? And he said, the number of dollars that you received. And I was like, for what? And he's like,
34:27taxes. And I went, ah crap.  Yep, okay fine, I will get you that number.  And I was so excited when this happened because I was like, I made money finally off the podcast. And then I was like, I gotta pay Uncle Sam some of that money.  Yeah, that's definitely the downside to making money.  Yep, it's There's always a handout.
34:51It's not much but it's just kind of sad when you have a number in your head and then you're like Oh, I only get to keep this much of it. Yeah But still very excited because I really was working on this for a while and I'm like I just needed to make some money to show that it's worth it. That's Yeah,  well, that's awesome.  So  anyway
35:12I can't think of any more questions. I'm really glad you took the time to catch up with me today and very excited about the Cottage Foodie Directory. I think it's brilliant. Oh, well, thank you. And thank you so much for having me back on again. was  thrilled that you messaged me a couple of days ago and say, hey, want to come back on? Well, yes. When do you want to talk? I'm ready.  So  thank you so much for having me back on. It's just blast  to be able to chit chat with you. So I had a lot of fun. Well, you're welcome.
35:42And I wanted to wait a while before I had you back so that we could talk about what was happening with it. Yeah, perfect timing. Good. All right. So you have a great weekend. It's Friday. Who knew? And enjoy it. It's supposed to be nice tomorrow and then kind of not nice Sunday, I think. So enjoy tomorrow. That's what I hear. That's what I hear. So, yep, you have a great weekend, too. All right. Thank you so much, Matt.
36:11Thanks, Mary. Bye. Bye.
 

Cotton Cupcakes, LLC

Today I'm talking with Nikki at Cotton Cupcakes, LLC. You can follow on Facebook as well.
A Tiny Homestead Podcast is sponsored by Homegrowncollective.org.
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00:00You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, the podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters, and topics adjacent. I'm your host, Mary Lewis.  A Tiny Homestead podcast is sponsored by Homegrown Collective, a free-to-use farm-to-table platform emphasizing local connections with ability to sell online, buy, sell, trade in local garden groups, and help us grow a new food system.  You can find them at homegrowncollective.org. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like, subscribe.
00:29share it with a friend, or leave a comment. Thank you. Today I'm talking with Nikki at Cotton Cupcakes LLC. Good afternoon, Nikki. How are you? Good afternoon, Maryam. Great, thank you. Good. I always, I swear like one out of three intros that I do, I screw it up somehow and I'm like, ah, it's all right. It's okay. We got it covered. Those are the ones people remember, so that's good. I'm sorry, say it again.
00:54And those, think those maybe help people remember the names. So it's good if you mess it up, then maybe someone will remember the name more so than not. Or they just giggle and go, yeah, that's Mary again.  Okay. So you're in, where are you in New Hampshire? So I'm in a small, very rural town called Alexandria, New Hampshire. What's it near? So we're near Newfound Lake, which is a stunning, gorgeous, pristine lake. We're very, very fortunate to be beside it.
01:23And  we're also close to Plymouth. So we're close to PSU, which is the university up there, Plymouth State University. Okay, that doesn't actually help me because when I think of Plymouth, I think Massachusetts. So what's the next biggest town or city? We have Laconia, which is pretty close. We do a huge  annual pumpkin festival at Laconia Pumpkin Festival.  you know, I probably haven't heard of that. Maybe you have, I don't know. I actually grew up in Maine, so I do know where Laconia is.
01:53fantastic. All of my family's from Maine. Yeah,  and now I live in Minnesota of all places. Oh my goodness, that's quite a ways away.  Yes, yes, I've told the story a few times. I'm not gonna repeat it. It's just sickening to keep saying it over and over again. If you really want to know, I'll explain when we're done recording.  So  your business name is Cotton Cupcakes LLC, but you don't do cupcakes, right? I do not make, I mean, I make cupcakes for
02:20for joy, you know, for my family and for neighbors and whatnot. But cupcakes, I do not produce cupcakes as a business, no. No.  So tell me about yourself and what you do do at Cupcakes, LLC. Okay, so Cotton Cupcakes came about  because I have wanted to own my own t-shirt company for about 20 years.  So 20 years ago, my husband and I said, we're going to do this thing, we're going to start a t-shirt company. Then we went down to our state house and we applied for our name.
02:49And one thing led to another and we never got to do it. So 20 years later, my children, I've been a homeschool parent for forever. And about a year ago, about a year and a half ago, my littlest said, I've decided that I don't want to be homeschooled anymore. I want to go to public school. And I was devastated. I went, I was just almost in mourning for a little while, but I've always told my children that if they wanted to go in public school, they could, the option was there that we're homeschooling.
03:19because we have the pleasure of being able to do so. So I said, okay. So she went in and then my eldest who's going to be starting high school,  just after a year, I said, you you should take some courses so that you can get ready for high school. So I went through a bit of a little emptiness syndrome with one in school full time and one starting to take courses. And I started to freak out like,  oh no, I've got to be something because I've been a homeschool parent for years.  And  I made a picture.
03:47I was painting a picture and I put it between two pieces of plastic and I pressed on it. And then I pulled the plastic off and I looked at it it was a squished cupcake. And I was like, oh my gosh, I love this squished cupcake.  I want to do something like this because I went to school for design and I've used it in various  elements of my life, but I haven't really been able to do anything for quite a few years with it. And I sent it to my husband, I took a picture and I sent it over the phone and I said,
04:15you know, do  you think  if I start my t-shirt business now?" And he just responded, that's it. That's it. He just said, that's it, as the words. And I went, I knew it. I was like, okay, because he and I are very in sync and  we believe in a lot of the same things and feel a lot of the same ways. And he said, this is it. This is what you're supposed to do. So I took my squished cupcake.  I call it pressed art. Some of my art is called pressed art. I'll  paint a picture.
04:43and  I'll either leave it as is or I take like a plastic covering and I press it and then pull it off and see what I have. And if I love it,  I send it away to a digital transfer company and they put it on a gang sheet for me and send it back in duplicate. And then we  have pressing machines and I press all of my own stuff. So it's all original artwork  and  it's right out of my home for now. Our goal is to hopefully
05:13be able to have an open shop someday.  But yeah, so that's how Cotton Cupcakes came about. That is such a fun story. I love that. So you're one of the few people that I've had on the podcast who is actually a crafter because the painting part is the craft. Yes.  And I do all of it. do.
05:3899 % of it is all just painting. And then when I do download it onto the computer, I'll digitally enhance some of it or do some of the work with it. But for the most part, it's all just painting. It's all just paintings. some of them are  actually some of them are really, really old pictures that I had done 20 and 30 years ago. used to, when I went to college, I was very, very homesick and I used to paint little pictures for my mother all the time and send them in the mail.
06:06and she saved every single one of them. She had them all and she passed away a few years ago and  she always would save ephemera. She had all of her papers everywhere. And I started to go through them and I found all of these illustrations that I had done for years. So I'm doing a line of little  characters  that are in my mom's memory  of all of these little things that I had sent over the years and she had every single one of them. So  it's fun. Some of my stuff is sentimental  and
06:37It's just,  it's definitely from the heart, that's for sure.
06:42That's really special, Nikki. That's amazing.  Okay, so I have a question about the transfers. These t-shirts aren't silkscreen. They're like the sticky plastic kind that goes on a t-shirt, yes? So  that's like a vinyl. So there's vinyl and there's silkscreen and there's digital, it's called DTF,  digital to film transfers. So that's kind of a relatively  new technology. I mean, I wouldn't say it's totally new. It's been around for a few years, but.
07:13It's getting very, very popular. In fact, it'll make the t-shirt company industry supposedly go up by 11 % from now until 2030. So t-shirts will boom a lot more simply because people who do artwork now can do their artwork, take a picture of it, send it to these companies, and then you get your artwork literally back and compress it within moments. So it's not...
07:38Like when I go to press something,  simply cut it off of the plastic gang sheet. set it on my shirt and I press away and there you go. 25 seconds later, you have your first press and then you tear off the plastic sheet. You do another 25 second press and you have  a viable item for sale, which is so cool. It just opens up a whole world to people. You know, so that's, that's one of the reasons I was intrigued by it is because I did a lot of studying on it before I did it.  And, um,
08:09I was most impressed with this because it would allow me the most flexibility with my artwork.
08:16Okay, so I'm not trying to be  nitpicky, but  the vinyl ones, after like a year or so of wearing and washing, that vinyl starts to lift up off the t-shirt material. Does the way that you're doing it not do that? So what they say is, and I have to go by obviously the company, the digital transfer film company, supposedly the digital transfer film that's on your shirt will outlast the life of your shirt. Okay, cool. So that's how they sell it.
08:44Now I'm not a digital transfer film company and I've only been in this company myself for nine months. I started nine months ago. So,  so far in the nine months that  I've been doing it with the shirts that I've been using, we've seen fantastic success. I mean, you press and it's just like a silk screen. It's like a vinyl. It's the  same concept,  it's you still have to press them.
09:10at like 325 degrees or whatever degree you need for wherever you're living because sometimes it can range from  environment to environment. But for the most part, it's exactly the same thing. It's kind of the same like if you go to Old Navy or if you go to some of those commercial based  t-shirt companies, they have a lot of DTF transfers as well. That's what a lot of those shirts are. So  it's just it's a mainstream item, but it's very, very popular. And now it's kind of it's an industry that's open to the general public now.
09:40So that's why it's so accessible whereas before I don't think it was very  accessible and it is still  newer than Vinyl Transfers, Sublimation and what was the other one we were talking about? Can you remember? But anyway, it's relatively  newer  but it has been around for a few years.  Okay, the reason that I asked is my youngest son had a t-shirt that he loved and it was the vinyl kind.
10:09you know, picture on the t-shirt was the vinyl kind. And after a couple years of wearing that over and over again,  the design started to peel off and he was little and he was heartbroken. And I didn't think to buy two of them because he was going to grow.  know what size to get for a second one. So I just didn't.  I should have. He grieved that t-shirt. I'm not kidding you. You know what's sad is he probably could have had that
10:38Because vinyl is the same thing. They're pressing vinyl onto fabric. It could have been repressed. I bet you anything that could have been brought to a press shop and pressed and you probably would have, it might have had minor cracks in it where the vinyl cracked, but I bet you it could have been pressed again. Yeah. Well, it's way too late now. He's 23 now.
11:05That's the thing with like with DTF transfers. Yeah. Yeah. You probably could have had it repressed. I mean, even these in the future, I'm sure that if you overdry a DTF transfer, if you put it in the dryer and you leave it for extended periods, like maybe you overdry your clothes after hundreds of drying cycles, you will see cracking and peeling just like any shirt, you know, after wear and tear. But the interesting thing about these DTF transfers is you can put them right back on your platen.
11:35on your pressing unit and you can repress and  it  looks exactly the same as it did when you first pressed it,  which is pretty crazy. So it's really neat.  It's a very intriguing world. Like when I started into it, I knew very little  and it's just fascinating to me. It's fascinating to me that I can paint something on a piece of paper. I can take a picture of it. And then three days later, cause I work with a company that does like rush orders.
12:02Three days later, it's on a shirt and I'm looking at my daughter run across the lawn with it. It's crazy.  So I saw on your Facebook page that you have little Easter egg t-shirts right now and they're very, very cute.  I do. The question I have is if somebody, I don't know, if somebody had like a favorite pet who passed away or  a signature from someone they loved who's passed away,
12:31Could you do a custom t-shirt for them? Is that something you would consider? Well,  it's kind of like,  so a few people have actually, not a few people,  many people have asked me, many people have said, you know,  can you do something for my  kids soccer team? you do, so primarily I'm kind of like life is good t-shirts. Like I'm starting my own brand. So I'm trying to brand my own style.
13:00And my style, sadly, because a lot of people have asked me this, does not include words. People have said, oh, well, you put words on it. I specifically say that's not  the style of my brand because when I started out with it,  you have to differentiate yourself because I'm up against millions of t-shirt companies. There's so many t-shirt companies out there. And a lot of people starting just like I am because of DTF transfers  that you have to, they say, don't even bother getting into it unless you can think about how to be different.
13:30So originally I said, okay, first of all, it's my own original artwork, so that's different. It's not like computer generated, it's paint. Like you can actually see the strokes on my shirt. It's my artwork. So I said, all right, I'll do that. And then if I put words on it, unfortunately, you can't really dress up the t-shirt. And one of the main things about my shirts that I try to impress on people is you can actually wear one of my shirts with like a tool skirt, a blazer, slacks.
13:59and you can actually dress it up because it doesn't have any words on it. So it was fun. went down to TD Bank, which is our local bank down here, and they're wonderful to businesses and TD Bank said,  you know, you can come into our lobby for a month and we'll put a whole display of your business because I have  a check-in account with them. And they said, we'll help advertise you for the month, which they do for all local businesses. And I said, oh, this is fantastic. So I brought my stuff down and I explained to the women,
14:28that were the tellers that my shirts could be worn dressy or they could be worn with a pair of jeans. It's whatever you choose. So the bank manager said, I would never have thought, I don't think that you can wear a t-shirt and dress up. And I said, Barbara, try it. Go try it. Go home and put on something and wear the shirt that's a pop of color and see how it turns out for you. And she did it. She went out and bought a pair of slacks and she got a blazer and she came in with,  you know, all the ladies got one of my t-shirts.
14:55And she came in and she looked, she goes, I never would have thought about this. Like I never would have thought that I could wear a t-shirt and feel like I could pull this off. And I said, well, that's the difference between my shirt and somebody else's. I don't have way to go underneath my words. I don't have something to try to enhance the painting. The painting itself  enhances itself. So I don't try to add anything on to umph it up. I just say, this is it. And  it's pretty funny. I did a whole blog about it.
15:25and  saying how you can feel elegant in a t-shirt. And it's amazing how many people resonated with that blog. Like they said, oh my gosh, like this is me. Like I want to wear a t-shirt and a skirt and feel dressy. And I said, well, that's me. I don't like to dress up. I don't like to feel like something that I'm not. And I can wear one of these t-shirts and I can wear a dress and I can wear a nice pair of flats or even a pair of heels if I have to. And I feel like myself,  but a little classier, a little dressier and it works.
15:55That's why I don't often put words on. So if people say, oh, I want my kid's name or whatnot, said, well, that's not really my brand. That's not really how I go.  Okay. Yeah, that makes sense. And  the other thing is that people are wearing art if they're wearing your shirt. That's right. Yeah, they're wearing original artwork, which is totally fun.  And some of them are wearing artwork from 20 years ago.  one that you saw with the Easter eggs.
16:20On my Facebook page, I explained that when they get those, they're going to see cracks in the Easter eggs.  And I said, don't be alarmed. That's not your DTF transfer. I painted those little eggs 20 years ago for my husband when we first got married on barrel slats.  And the beauty of a DTF transfer is I took a picture of my artwork on the barrel slats. And when you delete the background and you have just the eggs left,  have eggs painted on wooden barrel slats.
16:47So it's neat, it gives you a textural feel. It just allows you to do so many things.  You can paint on anything, remove the background, and put it on a t-shirt. Yeah, and what you're talking about is the wood grain showing through the paint on the eggs. It absolutely does. It's so cool. So it gives an antiquey feel to a painting that I did 20 years ago, and now  people are wearing it. And actually, that little series of Easter shirts,  inside the shirt, I've hidden a teeny, teeny, tiny Easter egg.
17:16They have to go find it. It's either pressed inside the shirt or under the arm or some random place and it's tiny. It's like the size of like the eraser at the top of your pencil. And they have to go find it. And when they find it, they go into my Facebook page and say, I found it. And then I enter them into a Easter package surprise that they can win before Easter. So it's really fun. they get to go on an Easter egg hunt with us when I go send out their shirts. It's a virtual Easter egg hunt. I love it. That's the whole point.
17:44Fantastic. You're brilliant. You are very good at this. I'm trying. I'm trying. I'm still fairly new to it, but I'm trying.  And it's a full family affair. And one of the reasons that we did the business was to  not only  it wasn't only just to start a new business, we actually sold our business of 12 years  last fall. And then it was my turn. You know, my husband said, it's your turn. Let's do it. Let's do what you've wanted to do. But I also wanted to make it completely.
18:12completely interactive for my children and my family. I wanted it to be a full family affair. And it truly is a full family affair. Like my kids have been the models for me. My husband has helped me try to market it. Like all four of us are involved. it really is, it's been creating a future for my family and we're doing it together, which is just, it's a blessing. It's awesome.  It is a blessing when you can work with your family.  I'm gonna  tell a story. My dad,
18:41worked in the medical field. He wasn't a doctor or anything. He actually repaired  like the EKG machines and the ventilators and things like that. So he was a bio med tech is the term. And when we were younger, he worked a lot. And so when he was home,  it was an event. If dad was home, we wanted to be with dad. And when I had my kids with my husband,  when dad walked through the door, my husband,
19:10The kids were like, daddy and run and jump and just be all over him all evening until they went to bed. And he was like, why do they love me so much? I said, because you're gone five days a week for 12 hours a day. And he was like, oh, and I said, I said, now you could be on the flip side. You could be the mom who's home with them all day and they want nothing to do with me. He was like, no, I like my role better. I said, good.
19:38You be the good time dad, I'll be the kiss the hours and help with homework mom. He's like, okay, good. So it's really great when you guys can all be together and be working. I know it's a really amazing. mean, for 12 years we've dreamed about this. Like we've really dreamed about being able to spend more time with my husband because the business that we created was, it got extremely busy and he was on the road all the time. And, and
20:07We just seldom get to see him. So when he finally retired from that job, he's not retired, obviously, because we're going to do this business. But when he retired  from his business,  was like the kids were like, they were shocked. They get up in the morning and dad said,  I'm taking you to school today. And the kids were going, oh my gosh, dad's taking us to school. Because even my homeschooler has a couple of classes in the morning. And obviously, my little one is full time now.
20:34He just,  was, it's the coolest thing. now, and then he comes home and we press together, you know, he's pressing the neck presses and I'm pressing the front press. And,  it's so we've just always worked very well together. I know that doesn't happen with all spouses, but for us,  we started out as EMTs together on an ambulance and we just loved working together.  And over the years, you know, altered and we started this business instead. And  we really wanted to get back to being able to spend time together. And I can't believe that.
21:03you know, it's happening that he's here and we're doing a whole new venture and we're going for it. And the girls are included too. So it's really, really fantastic. I'm so happy for you. You sound so tickled with this. I am. I'm shocked actually. Like I get up every morning and I'm like, I'm so excited for the day. Like I'm so excited. And I think,  you know what?  I'm going to tell a story and it's,  I'll tell it quick,  but I was in a grocery store.
21:32I was in a grocery store yesterday and this is, I would say like my seventh experience that I've had  in the past two weeks. And I'm not kidding. Like it's gone over and over again. having the same experience. Went into the grocery store. There's a woman who is a cashier, known her forever, known her since my little kids were little. And I could tell something was off and I said, what's going on with you today? And she just kind of mumbled and I'm like, you're not yourself. And come to find out as we were speaking, I said, how many...
21:59How many years have you been here?" And she said, I've been here 23 years. And she looks all of 23. So I'm like, you've got to be kidding me. And she said, no, I'm 39 years old and I've been here for 23 years. And I said, oh my gosh, you're not happy. You don't want to be here. And all of a sudden she looked at me and she started to sob. And thank goodness there was no one behind us. So she came out from around the counter and I'm holding her and I'm rubbing her back and I'm saying, oh my gosh. I said, what was happening? And she basically ended up saying,
22:28I really want to do something else. want to go be a nurse, but I don't feel like I have a support network to help me. And this is what I want to do. And she's the seventh person within a two week period that I've spoken to that is absolutely  miserable.  you know what, the only thing I can say, Mary, is we have one life that we're going to remember. We have this life and  it's so sad to waste it. And I know life can be daunting and I know it can be intimidating.
22:58But if you stay in a job that you do not like and you lose all those years of your life, there has got to be something more. It's just, it's not the right choice for you. It's not the right choice for your family members. And if you don't have that support network, you've got to find it. You've got to find the people that would support you. And it's just devastating because, you know, I want to teach my children that
23:21they can't be complacent about the job that they have in their life, that they've got to be in love with it. Yeah, they'll have some jobs that are kind of like a means to an end, but it's the end that matters. You know, like, are you happy? Are you gratified? Are you excited? Because it just makes life so rich and otherwise, what are we doing?  Like literally, what are we doing? Yeah, exactly. And  I'm gonna say something about my podcast yet again. I had no idea that I would love
23:50doing this podcast as much as I do. If you had asked me five years ago if I would be good doing a podcast, I would have been like, no, I hate being on video.  I hate listening to my own voice recorded. No, I don't want to do a podcast. And then I was like, but people keep telling me I have a voice or a face for radio. They joke because I'm not ugly or anything, but you know, they're like, you have a face or voice for radio. And I never did anything with it because I was raising kids.
24:20And when I started thinking about what I wanted to do when the youngest moved out and that was short lived, he's back. I was like, what am I going to do? And I thought and thought and thought, and I was like, I'm going to do a podcast. It's like the most out of character thing I can think of. It's a challenge. I'm going to do it. And I thought I'd do a couple of episodes and it would fail. would just be like, nobody listened. Oh, well, whatever. tried it and I freaking love it.
24:49I love the people I talk to. Some of them become friends. Some of them become acquaintances. I'm okay with either. It doesn't matter to me. People are people.  And I just, get up in the morning when I know I have interviews to do and I get my coffee and I go look at the pages that I found the people on and I'm like,  oh, they do this thing. Oh, they do this thing. And I'm just so energized when I sit down to talk to you guys.  I'm so happy with it. So I get it.
25:18But the one thing I will say is that it's a privilege. know, a lot of people are not in a position to go after the thing that they love. Number one, because they may not have the support system. Number two, they may not have the seed money to get it going. And number three, they just may not have the confidence to jump off the cliff. Yeah. I know. And it's devastating. So I get what you're saying. And yes, I wish that everybody could go do
25:48the thing that they love and make money from it and support themselves. But not everybody can and it's a huge bummer. Yeah, it is. truly is. That's all I have to say on that part. I agree. I agree. But I'm very excited for you that you are having a ball and you're putting out some really cool, uplifting things for people. Thank you. I'm trying. mean, I think the really
26:18wonderful thing is  your t-shirts are adorable. Oh, thank you. Thank you so much. Yeah, the people that have been following the Facebook page. I said to my husband, I never expected to  get to know some of these folks.  And it's amazing how they have become part of our world. You know, like we'll put something like now I'll ask opinions. Now I'll say, what do you guys think? Which design do you like the most? need to know.
26:46or I'll show them a line of sweatshirts. Like this week I found sweatshirts for kiddos. And I said, what do you guys think? Do you like these? Do you think this is something I should add on to the website? Because every article of clothing that I choose to add on is a financial investment. So I like their thoughts.  If they're into it and they think it's great, then I know it's something I should do. And they respond, which is amazing. I can put something on and there'll be 22 or 23 comments within an hour. And I'll go, oh my gosh.
27:16So I can really get  my finger on the pulse of what  a much larger mass of people is thinking.  And they know that I value their opinion. And some of them I genuinely  hope to meet someday, which is kind of crazy. Like some of them have become friends and it's a gift. It's really cool.
27:39So our hope for Cotton Cupcakes is, mean, primarily we're an online store right now  and we've started to go into some different retail shops locally. But the goal is actually to have our own storefronts  and you know how far we go.  I don't know. I'm excited about just my first one.  In June we're going to be opening up just a small shop that's off of our barn.
28:02where people can come in and they can actually choose the transfers that they want pressed on the shirts. They can even choose the location where they want the transfers put. If they don't want to them squarely in the middle of the chest, can choose where they want them to go so we can give them a more personalized experience. But  the goal is to have some shops and  to have people be able to walk in the door and try those shirts on because
28:25As much as I really appreciate things that are online, I'm also a tactile person. I want to touch things. I want to feel things. I want to see what they look like on me. And I'd like to give those experiences to the people that are enjoying our designs. It reminds me of a tattoo shop, but there's no needles involved. There's no needles. Yeah. It's much friendlier. Less painful. Yeah, absolutely. My daughter has tattoos.
28:51She sends me photos because she lives in Florida and I live in Minnesota and she sends me photos of her newest tattoos and  I'm a really cool mom. I'm like, that's gorgeous. What inspired that one? And I get the story and yay. But man, every time I think about that body that I grew covering the tattoos,  it kind of hurts my heart a little bit. My husband is a big tattoo guy. He loves the tattoos. I have none.
29:16And I don't know what direction my children will go because they have one versus the other, which is pretty funny. And we just say, whatever you're going to do, you're going to do. So we'll be prepared for anything.  Yeah. just, when she got her first one, I don't even remember what it was now. It was,  it was important to her. It was lovely. It looks good on her. And she was like, so what do you think? And I was like, do you want the cool mom answer or do you want the heartfelt mom answer? And she said both. And I said, the cool mom answer is it's gorgeous. I love it.
29:45and I'm really glad that you can handle the owie of that.  I said,  the genuine mom answer is,  I grew you. I grew that perfect skin and you just had needles with ink poked into it.  And she's like, yeah, but, and I'm like, I'm not telling you not to get tattoos. It's fine. It's your body. It's your choice with what you do with it.  But it hurts my heart just a little bit.
30:11that that skin is not the skin I grew. And she's like, well, honestly, body cells regenerate every however many years and it's not the same skin you grew anyway. And I'm like, enough, yes. Oh man, that's a very intelligent response. Yeah, well, she's a smart ass and she's smart. So I had to accept it. And she's 35 now. I mean, she got her first tattoo in her early 20s, I think. But either way.
30:38I don't know how we got on tattoos. Oh, because  you're letting people choose where they have the design on the t-shirt.  yeah, definitely.  But yeah, being a mom's hard. I'm just going to leave it at that.  It's one of the most wonderful and thankless jobs on earth. I think we all know that if we have kids. So absolutely. Absolutely. All right, Nikki, I try to keep these to half an hour and we're at 31 minutes and 26 seconds. So I'm going to cut you loose.  Thank you for being like the third.
31:05Genuine crafter I've talked to you in over a year and half on the podcast. I'm like, thank you for having me It was wonderful. Yeah, it was really fun and keep keep making those t-shirts are awful. I'm gonna do it I'm gonna do it. Thank you, Mary. All right
 

Heirloom Garden Studio

Today I'm talking with Josie at Heirloom Garden Studio.
A Tiny Homestead Podcast is sponsored by Home Grown Collective.
If you'd like to support me in growing this podcast, like, share, subscribe or leave a comment. Or just buy me a coffee 
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00:00You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, the podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters, and topics adjacent. I'm your host, Mary Lewis.  A Tiny Homestead podcast is sponsored by Homegrown Collective, a free-to-use farm-to-table platform emphasizing local connections with ability to sell online, buy, sell, trade in local garden groups, and help us grow a new food system.  You can find them at homegrowncollective.org. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like, subscribe.
00:29share it with a friend or leave a comment. Thank you. Today I'm talking with Josie at Heirloom Garden Studio. Good morning Josie, how are you? Good morning. I'm great. How are you? I'm good. You're in Texas, yes? Yes,  I'm in Houston. Okay, how's the weather?  The weather is great. Spring has sprung here.  It's going to be close to 90 degrees today.
00:56So we're getting some warm weather, but you know, Texas does this little two-step thing where we kind of stutter into spring and then we'll have some cold weather again and then warm. So it's kind of all over the place for a while until it gets hot. Yeah, we've been going through that in Minnesota. It hit 70 here yesterday. Oh, that's wonderful. That's great. It was kind of really refreshing to step out on my porch.
01:25and the window was open and I was like, oh, it's beautiful. It's not gonna freeze my face. This is great.  I can't imagine.  I could never live someplace where it gets cold like that.  I love the heat.  Yeah, I love it when people are like, I'm never gonna live somewhere where the air hurts my face. And I'm like, well, you're also missing out on spring, summer and fall here. that's really great. true. And I understand. I can't imagine living somewhere without the season.
01:54So we're kind  of on opposite ends here, but I do get  it. All right. So tell me about yourself in Heirloom Garden Studio. Okay.  Yeah. So  my name is Josie Haley with Heirloom Garden Studio. As you mentioned,  I design and install kitchen gardens or backyard gardens, whatever you prefer to call them.
02:19in and around the greater Houston area and I also provide gardening services  and I teach gardening classes and workshops.  Awesome, I love you already.  Great.  We also have a small  urban homestead which is funny to say. I never thought I would hear myself say that but here we are. Well, what do you do on your urban homestead because I'm always trying to make the point that you can homestead anywhere.
02:48Correct, yes.  we  live very close to downtown, about four miles  in kind of an urban area.  We have about  an 8,000 square foot lot, so not big. And  we have three chickens  right now,  which give us plenty of eggs, but we also have five baby chicks that my kids just love. And we're hoping to introduce them to the flock.
03:16in a few weeks here and get some more eggs going for this year. And then of course I have my beloved kitchen garden, which is where it all started. So that's what we have here. Nice. What do you plant in your kitchen garden? Do you have herbs or is it just veggies? my. Herbs and veggies, yes.
03:43Houston actually I know everyone thinks oh my goodness it's so hot here you can't grow much but believe it or not we can grow year-round so I have four raised beds about a little over a hundred square feet of growing space and  I love to pack in as much as I can and right now we're starting to plant all of our  tomatoes and peppers and cucumbers and squash  and
04:12Just everything spring  and  it's just it's probably my favorite time of the year. Anytime I can put a tomato plant in the ground, I'm  as happy as I can be. So  we're also harvesting all of our what we call winter vegetables  here.  Our cool season vegetables like lettuces, snap peas,  brassicas and all of that. So.
04:42So what you're telling me is that you're never without fresh produce during the year to use in your house.  That is true. And that's what I really love. And I love teaching it to people here locally because, you know, in Houston, it's cyclical, right? Gardening.  You should never have an empty garden bed.  You can be growing something and constantly adding to it and taking things out. So
05:10You know, even if you just have a few minutes every day to go out and grab a handful of snap peas,  you should do that. And then you should also plant something.  Uh huh. I'm right there with you, sister.  I agree completely. Um,  what I, what I try to tell people when they're like, I want to start a garden, but I don't know how to do it. And I want to start small is I tell them to start with herbs, like chives and thyme, because chives and thyme are really hard to screw up. They really are chives. I would say are a beginner.
05:40a gateway to gardening for sure. and they're easy and they taste good and you can dry them. So you can use them in sour cream dip things.  Oh yeah.  And they're really pretty when they bloom. You can actually stick them in a  bottle and they look like a bouquet. They're really beautiful. Yes. Yes. I love bringing in fresh herbs into the kitchen and  my husband, he doesn't like  dill.
06:07But I love a big bouquet of dill whenever it's going to seed and blooming and it just smells so amazing. absolutely. My husband plants the mammoth dill every school. If I go out to the garden, the first place I go is over to the dill and I run my hands through it. And then I can smell my hands for hours afterwards. I'm like, pickles, pickles, yes.
06:29Pickles, yes, yes, for sure.  and thyme is great here because it will continue to grow through the winter under the snow as long as it's not like minus 30 for days on end. Right, right. Yeah, that's true. Yeah, we get  basil here that I can plant now and will grow through the spring and into the fall. And that's like our go-to herb.
06:56keep saying it, I freaking love basil and basil  loves heat.  When we have a hot summer, our basil does amazing. Right. Exactly. Yes. And people like assume that basil is only good in spaghetti sauce, but it's actually good in salads. It's good in soups.  It's good with fish. We've tried it with fish. Okay. You can use it in a lot of things other than spaghetti sauce. Absolutely. Yes.  So.
07:25Okay, so now we've raved about all the great things about those.  I also suggest to people that if they want to start small, don't want to do herbs. Do lettuces because lettuces you can put in a bowl of dirt in your kitchen by a sunny window and they will grow and you can eat it and they continue to grow. That is true. Yeah. Lettuce has a shallow root system.  So easy to grow. You know, you bring up a good point. Starting small.
07:55Actually, in my garden classes, I like to teach people that,  you know, sometimes starting small is not the best way to go.  think  people get discouraged easily.  They'll say, oh, I had a garden last year and I had a couple of this or that. And then  they say, oh, but I didn't get much and it's not worth it. You know, it's not worth it to me. And they get discouraged. So  my goal is really just to
08:23keep people encouraged and I want people to continue to garden. So I like to  offer raised beds in my packages. And I think, you know, this is a common pitfall for beginners is just to start too small.  And  there's a lot of reasons why you shouldn't do that. And I think, you know, there's nothing like going out to your garden and getting a whole bowl full of cherry tomatoes, you know.
08:52That's encouraging, that's exciting and fun.  And yummy. Yes, for sure. Yes. And the only reason I said that I tell people when they say they want to start small,  is because it's usually people who have a small apartment and they're like, I don't really have any space.  So I try to find things that they could start on  their table or their windowsill in the sunlight from the window.  Absolutely. And I think herb containers are wonderful.
09:19But if you have room to put in a raised bed, yes, do that.  Definitely. Okay. So how do people,  this sounds like I'm ending the podcast, but I'm not.  How do people find you to get help from you?  Sure. Well, for right now,  messaging me,  DMing me on Instagram or Facebook.  My handle for both is heirloom garden studio.
09:46and they can reach out that way.  I have my phone number  on  both  pages  and my email address.  Okay, cool.  Yeah, I noticed you didn't have a website and I'm like,  why does she not have a website?  Well, you know what? I don't have a website yet, but I mean, I'm a millennial, so maybe I don't know what I'm talking about, but I feel like a lot of people just use their Instagram account now, right?
10:15Yes, yes, they do. But if you're like me, who's 55, and if you're like my mom and dad, who are 78 and 81, They want a website. Websites are fun, you know, we get to find out your story or why you're about, you know, and it's just a really fun billboard. I get that. Okay. It's super easy to do. I just went to a different
10:43website host  for my podcast, my designated podcast page.  And it's,  I can't think of it right now. Webador is the name that I click on to get to it, but that wasn't it. I think it was Weebly,  W-E-E-B-L-Y.  And it's really user friendly. I feel like my mom who's not tech savvy at all.
11:07would be able to get a free page website in about two hours if she tried it. Okay, well I'll look into that. Yeah, and it's not that expensive. And that's the other thing is websites aren't that expensive these days. You buy the domain name for about 13 bucks, you pay maybe $10 a month for hosting and you're set for a year. I have a domain name actually, but my business is new so I'm still working on a lot of it.
11:37I feel like you have a really cool story because I was looking at stuff earlier on your Instagram page and your photo. you. There's got to be a story here. There has to be a story. There is a story. Yeah.  So tell me the story. Okay. Well, so I wasn't always a gardener  before I started gardening or getting into it as a hobby.
12:04You know, I have a degree in architecture from Texas A &M University.  I worked in the high-end kitchen design industry for 10 years before I had children.  And also, I guess  maybe one thing that kind of developed my interest in gardening was that I have some creativity in my blood. My mom...
12:31is an artist and my dad is a master carpenter and he always taught us like to appreciate quality craftsmanship  and to build something right the first  time.  And then of course my mom taught us how to appreciate beautiful things and arts. And so I kind of feel like gardening is  my canvas to be honest and I enjoy it.
13:00so much. know,  let's see. Also,  you know, Houston is just a really huge city, as you know, it's chaotic, it's stressful, it's a rat race.  And I feel like I what kind of led me to gardening was that I needed something beautiful in my life. I needed an outlet  for relaxation and peace. And I just found so much fulfillment.
13:29through growing my own produce and realizing just how incredible it tastes and how the stuff from the store just doesn't even compare. And I just really want to share that with my clients. Nice. I usually jump onto the food from the store doesn't taste the same as stuff from the garden. Yeah. I'm going to go a different direction today. Okay, great. Carrots. Carrots are so
13:58good when you grow them in your own garden. It's true. The carrots at the store taste like cardboard to me.  Yes. carrots in our garden are so sweet. Yes.  My kids love  harvesting any root vegetable really, but carrots, I don't know why. They just love pulling them out of the ground and seeing how much is grown underneath.  And my daughter will eat them just like crazy. She loves carrots and the ones from your garden. It's true.
14:28They are so much better. Yeah. And the other thing is celery.  Celery is supposed to have like  a peppery bite. I never get that from the celery store, but my God, I cut all the tops off my celery two summers ago when we had it  and I dried it.  And if you put that in a soup or a soup,  oh sweet Jesus.
14:54The leaf celery grows really well here. And I actually have some of that right now. Yeah. You can just use the leaves to create that flavor. So, yeah, it's fantastic. Yeah. But I think tomatoes, that was like my aha moment.  My neighbor across the street,  he, he's since passed, but maybe about eight years ago,  maybe 10 years ago, he brought us some big slicer tomatoes. There were probably like  a
15:22beef steak, if I'm guessing, but he brought us some one day and I tried it and I just thought, you know, what have I been eating from the grocery store my whole life? This does not make any sense. And how can I recreate this? Like that was my light bulb went off.  Just like, what am I eating  in the grocery store? So.  Yeah, we actually went through that with eggs for the last four months too.  Just got chickens. I don't want to go too far because
15:53Eggs are a  big subject right now everywhere. That's for sure. So I don't want four people,  but we were buying eggs from the store and they were not great. And our chickens just started laying there 24 weeks old. Oh yeah. Yay. That's fun. Oh my God. I had  scrambled eggs with three other little eggs the other day. The baby ones. Yes. And I was like, I'm not crazy. These are, these are fantastic. They do taste different. They actually taste like something. And
16:22the texture of these eggs was like creamy and the Sorobot eggs not so much. Yes, and it's true. And you can really see that in the yolk color.  You know, if you have like that rich dark yolk from your backyard chickens, it's just, it's incredible.  Yeah. And I mean, I hate to keep riding the subject, but you eat first with your eyeballs.  So if the food looks appealing,
16:49It tricks your brain into thinking it's going to be yummy.  And usually it is.  It's true.  mean, um, anything where you know the source  of your food supply,  I think makes it taste better. Yes. The more you know, the more you infer, the more you enjoy it. Right. Right. Yep. Yep.  Okay. You were saying that you designed kitchens before.
17:14Were these like restaurant kitchens or were they home kitchens? yes.  So residential, worked  actually in the, excuse me,  high end kitchens. know, multi-million dollar homes.  We designed these dream kitchens.  so  kitchens are really important to me. And I, you know, learned a lot about the functionality of a kitchen.
17:42So I mean, I think in also design,  so  that's kind of has inspired me and led me to incorporate the garden, your backyard garden or your kitchen garden into your everyday life.  It should be as functional as your refrigerator or your pantry. Yep.  OK. Well, I want to get back to the gardening stuff, but I also want to talk about kitchens for a minute. OK, go ahead. When?
18:13There are so many people who do not cook these days, okay?  When you design these kitchens, were they designed for actually cooking or were they designed for entertaining?  That's a good question. I would say it was about 50-50.  We get a lot of people that would  come in to our office and they had personal chefs basically most of the time or...
18:39They didn't cook. Yes, that was a common denominator.  But then they have these beautiful appliances and beautiful cabinetry. But some people did say, oh, I love to cook.  So we saw about half and half. Yeah. It's a minor bone of contention with me because I love to cook. really do.
19:04Yes. I only learned in my  20s. It's not like I grew up cooking with my mom. I think I've watched what she did and I took it in my head, but I didn't really cook. the kitchen in the old house that we had, that my husband and I had, had a galley style kitchen. And I swear to you, everything was within arm's reach in that kitchen other than the refrigerator.  And I made some of the most fabulous food in that kitchen.
19:31Yeah. And then we moved to our new house a little over four years ago and it has a huge kitchen. I have to walk steps to get to the sink from the stove or the refrigerator from the stove or whatever. My triangle is very big. Okay. And I find myself frustrated sometimes because that little galley style kitchen was so convenient. Right. Yeah.
19:57Yeah, it has to be designed correctly and functional to make you want to use it. Yeah. the one thing that saves me is that in the middle of our kitchen, there's a big island. And underneath that island is storage for pans and bowls and stuff, which is fantastic. But the island is situated so that I just bring everything out and put it on the island, measure everything out, put stuff away, and then I'm set to just do the thing. That's nice. And so that's really great.
20:27And the other thing that's really great is that my husband and my son, who my son's 23, he still lives here. Um, we all love to cook together. And so when we all want to really cook, that island is great because we can all stand on one side of it, you know, one on one end, one on the other and one on the middle. And we're just chopping veggies and talking and there's music on and we're throwing stuff in a bowl or a pan. And it's just so fun. That's nice. That sounds wonderful.
20:55So the reason I even asked about the kitchen design is because for me, kitchens are made for cooking. They're also made for getting other people involved in the cooking. Yes.  Yes,  I agree with that 100%. I love the idea of having a big island with no  appliances or sink in it and where you can just have like a complete work surface to just chop and  nothing's in your way.
21:24Yeah, it's great. And the other thing that's great about it is I have a friend that comes over about once a month for coffee and we get caught up. And there's two bar stools that go underneath the side where you sit, you can put the island. And when she comes over, I heat up the kettle because she does tea. And we sit down and she's got the pot, the tea kettle pot, and I've got my coffee. And we're just sitting there in my pretty kitchen talking. That's wonderful.
21:52And there was no place in the old house to do that. So  I love the fact that my kitchen is so  livable. Does that make sense? Of course. Absolutely. Yes.  I'm so I'm a huge fan of kitchens, but I'm not a huge fan of kitchens that no one cooks in. Cause I think that it's sad when nobody cooks in the kitchen. It is sad. I,  um,  I kind of, um, swiped an appliance from our showroom years ago when we remodeled our house and I have a
22:2248 inch  range top,  a wolf  with a big griddle in the middle. And I tell you what,  if I ever move, I think I'm gonna like take it, take it with me, because I love it so much.  And of course with the garden,  it comes in super handy. I love being able, my garden is actually right outside. I have these two big glass  doors in my kitchen and my garden is right outside.
22:51I can literally step out barefoot and grab some herbs or whatever I need to cook with and bring it into my kitchen and get to work. is so awesome. I love to cook also. Yep. I do. And I get full on the smells from cooking. I sit down to eat and I eat three bites and I'm like, I'm done. I'm already full because I smell like the whole time we're cooking. I end up snacking while I'm cooking, just tasting everything, you know? Oh yeah.
23:20Yeah, you got to taste it because you won't know if it's any good if you don't. Right, exactly. Yeah. And I'm so jealous of your kitchen garden because our garden is like a good 200 feet away from our house. I think that's also a big misconception. I hear people say, oh, I want to put my kitchen garden behind my garage or in this space on the side of my house. And I almost start shaking my head immediately. No, no, don't do that. You want it to be
23:48right outside your kitchen window or as close as you can get maybe alongside your driveway when you pull up, you can  see everything that needs to be harvested and it's a reminder.  just again, being so close that it's almost like a pantry is pretty fantastic. kitchen gardens,  they're meant to be beautiful.  And I think it's wonderful to see it from your  house.
24:16Oh, I can see the garden from my living room windows, but it's 100 feet by 150 feet. Okay.  It's a big old garden. Okay. That's incredible.  Yep. And I keep trying to figure out how to put an herb garden near my house because that's what I would go out and grab is herbs. Yeah, absolutely. We have the most wonderful dog named Maggie  and her lead.
24:42you know,  she's on, so she can't run wild on our property because  the road out front is way busy with semi trucks and I'm scared to death she'll get hit.  Sure. And that would ruin my life, not just my day.  So her lead, she can get to everywhere around the house except the front of the house.  And there's no door to the front of the house. We have one door in and out of our house. That's it.  So we're not set up to have a kitchen garden at all.
25:11unless we don't have the dog and I am not giving up my dog. love  her. So if we didn't have the dog, I have a perfect spot for a kitchen garden right outside my kitchen window above my sink  and I would do that. But we have the dog. Yeah.  And in Houston, you know, everyone, it's so urban.  know,  I think part of the challenge is trying to figure out where the garden should go. And that's enjoyable for me.
25:41Yeah,  I love that you do what you do because people do have a hard time envisioning a place for growing things.  And that's an innate talent for you. So they're like,  this is my property. Where do I put a raised bed? And you're like, right there.  Exactly. Most of the time I go in and I automatically know exactly where to put it. I just have to listen to the client first.  Yep, exactly.
26:10I just, I've talked to a couple of people who do stuff like you're doing.  And  it's always amazing to me because  I talked to a couple, like they're married to each other  and they do, they help people set up raised bed systems and gardens and stuff. And they're just so into it. They're so excited. Right. And the husband said that  they actually help people for free at first.
26:40that it was frustrating because he would run into the person that he helped and he'd be like, how are the gardens going? And they would be like, eh, we didn't do it. Oh no. But a minute they made it a business and started charging for their services,  then the people that are paying for the services have skin in the game. Right. Absolutely. And they actually do it.  Yes. I've never thought about it that way. Yes. Yeah, for sure. Yeah. I think  I got a lot of
27:09You know, over the years, people know you as you know, that's your hobby, your gardening. Yeah. And they ask you tons of questions. But then when you ask them to pay for advice, well, then they, you know, they they take it more seriously for sure. So, yeah, it was just funny the way he said it, because he sounded he was trying really hard not to sound mad, but he definitely was frustrated with the fact that he had spent all his time trying to help. then, oh, yeah. Oh, yeah.
27:38And he was, he sounded very,  I don't know, amused and excited at the same time that when they started charging, people would actually do the thing. Yes. Yeah. They take you seriously for sure. Yeah. And  I love people like you because I am not a good teacher. I do not have the patience  and I talk too fast when I'm trying to teach somebody something, cause I know the thing. Yes.
28:05And so when I meet people who teach and who are good at it and who enjoy it, I'm just like,  I bow down to you. You have skills I do not possess.  Well, I think teaching is really the big picture. The whole point is  setting your customer up for success.  I don't want them  to give up like I mentioned earlier. I want them to have all the tools. I want them to learn from
28:33my mistakes.  And I think that's important because  as a gardener, especially in the beginning, you really, you don't know what you're doing.  And it's all one giant experiment, right, that you're learning from. It's trial and error. And I think having them  skip that part and me leading them and guiding them is important to their success.  It is. It absolutely is.
29:02And I just love that there are people in the world who can do that for other people.  Because I had some fabulous teachers when I was in high school.  they were friends. Most high school students don't consider their teachers to be their friends.  But if I was after school for something, not because I got in trouble because I had to stay after for something, help or a volunteer thing or whatever.  I saw one of my teachers in the hallway. I would be like, hi, mister or missus, whatever.
29:31And they would come over and be like, how are you? didn't get a chance to talk to you in class today. What have you been up to at home with your folks? And it was so great knowing that I had adult friends at school who were supportive of me almost to the same point that my parents were supportive of me. That's great. That's wonderful. Yeah, I have a mentor actually in the neighborhood that lives across the street.
29:59She's amazing. She grows everything, landscape, vegetables, flowers, everything. And I'm constantly like, as soon as I see her out, I'm like, hey, I have a question for you. So she's great. She loves it. But she's helped me a lot. So. Yeah. And when I think about that, if someone calls me or messages me or is here and sees something I'm doing and says, how does that work or how do do that?
30:29I'm real good at being like, oh, this is how you do it. But I don't consider that teaching. I consider that sharing my information.  I think of teaching as  more hands on sitting down with someone and trying to show them how to do something. Right, right, right. Yeah.  Well, yeah, you know,  that's true. Sometimes I have to back up.
30:58and explain it like I'm explaining something to my kids. Like, oh, they don't know any of this.  And I know it, so I have to  sort of start at the beginning.  Yeah, I have reeled off my recipe for bruschetta a bunch of times on the podcast episode.  And when I do,  it's to someone who knows how to cook, so they kind of get it.  And I realize after I do it that just because I say, oh, you just chop up these things,
31:27You put it in a bowl, you add some olive oil and some balsamic vinegar, and then you toast up some bread and you put stuff  on top of the toast and you eat it. That's  not all there is to it, clearly. And  I keep forgetting that if you've never cooked in your life, there's a whole lot of questions that come from that description. Exactly. Yes, yes, for sure.  So it's funny to me. And I remember not knowing how to cook. I remember not knowing how to...
31:54put dirt in a container and plant seeds and do things to make seeds grow. remember. Yeah, it's so true. And you know,  people come to me all the time and they say, well, I try to grow tomatoes and, you know,  I always hear this like the same. It's a pattern. People have an interest and a passion, but they don't  know how to do something and they make a common mistake like growing tomatoes in like a 10 gallon container.
32:23And  I think just giving them the tools they need and  giving them the knowledge, I think it's just so encouraging.  Absolutely. And again, really glad that you are in the world to encourage people to grow things because right now I think everybody should be growing food.  Oh, yes,  I agree.
32:51I'm really into organic gardening and that's important to me and I think that's becoming more important to a lot of people and just  knowing what kind of soil was  my vegetable grown in or what kind of  pesticides or hopefully lack of pesticides were used in this produce.  think it's  really important. People should know how to grow their own food because they're really missing out if they don't know how to grow their own food.
33:21Yes, and we're going to get done here in a minute because I tried to keep this half an hour more past that. But the other thing that I would suggest people try growing because it's quick, it's a quick turnaround and it's really yummy is radishes. For sure. Radishes. I love growing those. Again, my kids love to pull them out of the ground, maybe too early. But yeah, there certain vegetables that you can grow with a quick turnaround and it's a lot of fun.
33:51It's a lot of fun for sure. Yes. And there are people in the world who don't like radishes. I'm not one of them. I don't like beets, but I love radishes. I love beets. I love beets. Can't do it Josie. They taste like dirt to me. My mom gets so frustrated with me. She'd harvest the beets and she'd be like, I'm going to slice some of these up. Do you want a slice? And I'm like, no, no. Yeah, they're so good. And they're so pretty. But radishes are beautiful too. And I like them raw, but
34:20I started roasting them. Have you done that? They're great. have not, but I have pickled radishes.  Okay. have with dinner. That sounds good. That's lovely. And it takes like 10 minutes. Yeah. Yeah. Pickling thing.  I'm not a pickler. My husband is the chemist  in the family. He loves anything like that. So  he always does the pickling. Yep. Well, I call it a pickle, but it's really more like a marinade.
34:49Right, with some vinegar.  Yeah, vinegar and whatever oil you want to use, whatever oil choice you like to have.  And some honey. Okay. Oh, that sounds good. And I think it takes mirin, which is an ingredient most people don't know about. It's  like an alcoholic  cooking wine, but it's called mirin. And you just kind of put a little bit of on the sliced up radishes and you let it sit in a bowl for about 10-15  minutes.
35:17And it's like a pickle, but it isn't a canned pickle. Do you ever add any lemon juice or anything like that to it? No, you could. OK. You could, but I don't. Sounds good. The vinegar has enough acid in it to do the thing. Yeah. Sounds yummy. But radishes, literally from planting the seed to pulling them out and eating them is like four weeks. Yes. It really is cool to watch them grow so fast. Yeah. And the quick turnaround is great because you can
35:47You can start them in February in your house if you wanted to because they don't need to be pollinated. They don't need any bees to do the job. Absolutely.  The funny thing is this year,  since we have chickens, this is our first year to have them.  I had to figure out how to keep them out of the garden  and then also let pollinators in. But  all of the cool season vegetables are brassicas, leafy lettuce, radishes,  root vegetables.
36:17I can grow those under ag fabric and  I have just like tinted my raised beds, which is great. And the chickens can't get in there to destroy  everything. So  that's been really great. Yes. And I  was just going to add, it has kept the caterpillars out. So I'm getting like the most wonderful harvest this year. Good.  Yes. And chickens will decimate a garden.
36:45They will completely destroy it. do. And even if they're not eating whatever it is that's growing, they just get in there and they scratch and they kick stuff around and they destroy your seedlings. so yeah, you have to keep them out. Yeah. We have chickens right now and they are going to be not free-ranged when my husband puts the garden in. Right now they're allowed to run of the property, but they won't be in May. That's smart. Very smart.
37:14We learned the hard way the first summer we were here, they ate some of the seedlings he put in and he came in from the garden and said, where my seedlings disappeared. And I said, um, were the chickens out? no. I I made that same mistake. had some corn. I had started some corn seedlings and I was going to plant them a few days ago and I forgot I had left them out and I went out there. Of course they had like.
37:42knocked all of the pots over and taken them all out and now I have to start over.  Yep, there's lots of good to be said about chickens, but if you give them free reign, they're going to take it.  For sure.  All right, Josie, thank you so much for your time this morning. I really appreciate it. Thank you so much, Mary. This was a wonderful opportunity. It was really fun. Thank you. Have a good day. Okay, thank you.  Bye.
 

BLB Farms

Today I'm talking with Bobbi at BLB Farms. You can follow on Facebook as well.
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00:00You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, the podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters, and topics adjacent. I'm your host, Mary Lewis.  A Tiny Homestead podcast is sponsored by Homegrown Collective, a free-to-use farm-to-table platform emphasizing local connections with ability to sell online, buy, sell, trade in local garden groups, and help us grow a new food system.  You can find them at homegrowncollective.org. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like, subscribe.
00:29share it with a friend, or leave a comment. Thank you. A tiny homestead podcast is sponsored by Homegrown Collective, a free to use farm to table platform, emphasizing local connections with ability to sell online, buy, sell, trade in local garden groups and help us grow a new food system.  You can find them at homegrowncollective.org. Today I'm talking with Bobby at BLB Farms. And Bobby, what does BLB stand for?
00:53Butcher's lazy bee farm and depending on who you talk to myself or my husband is who the lazy bee is. Oh Okay, I get it Yeah, we don't swear on the podcast so lazy be is perfect Thank you for explaining that you're in Texas and What's the weather like in Texas right now? Well, we just got over having two tornadoes come through
01:21One was three miles and one was about eight miles from us. So it's nice and beautiful and sunshiny right now, so we'll take it.  Yeah, I'm really glad it was three miles and 10 miles away because I would be very sad if I wasn't talking to you right now. Thank you. We would be very sad too. We lucked out. We didn't have any damage this time around.  Last couple of years,  we have really bad straight line winds here. So it makes farming very difficult.
01:50Yeah, I'm in Minnesota. We have tornadoes here too. Luckily, I've never actually seen one in the over... Oh my God. I don't know how many years I've been here since 1991. So over 30 years, I think? Never seen a tornado, but I have seen the sky look really scary and like it could turn and I don't love it. So, and for those who don't know, I talk about the weather at beginning of the episodes because it's my way of expressing my esteem for the person I'm talking to.
02:20So the weather in Minnesota today is sunny and it's supposed to hit 70 degrees this afternoon.  Yay.  And no tornadoes that I know of. we're set. So all right, Bobby, tell me about yourself and what you guys do at BLB Farms.  I am a  47 year old housewife  and farmer,  chief cook and bottle wash.  And I have three children.  My youngest is 18.
02:49oldest is 27. So we kind of spread them out there a little bit. But I found out very early that I wanted to do farming. was raised with farmers. So I already had a good background. And we just kind of, you know, rolled with it from there. Okay. So have you always been farming?
03:18Yes,  we were raised,  we grew all of our produce.  My mother,  we did chickens. We processed our own chickens.  We had friends that done their own meat chickens. So  that was the extent of the animals  that I grew up with. But as far as vegetables, fruits, anything like that, that we could grow, we did so. And my mother preserved them.
03:47via  freezing  or  dehydrating or even  canning, pressure canning or water bath.  I think that's a beautiful way to grow up. It was.  I took it for granted.  And then when, because I was raised between my mother and my father had gotten a divorce and  we had moved to Alaska when I was three. So up there things were very expensive.
04:16So if you have a good ground somewhere where you can actually do some of your own produce, it's best to do that.  And so  when we moved back to Texas,  I was lost because that's what we done. And it was cheaper down here, so we got the routine of just going to the store.  So I had to come kind of full circle back to  the way I was raised.
04:44I feel like that happens to a lot of us.  When I was growing up, I grew up in Maine. My parents had an acre of land  on  a block. So you would drive down a mile  into the woods and there was a block. You drive down, hang a left, come back out around on that same one mile lane again.  my dad put in a garden, oh my goodness, I think the first year that we lived there in
05:14Oh, moved in the summer of 76, so must've been 77. He put in a big garden and he had a garden every year until I moved out and I was six when we moved in there and I moved out at almost 19. And so I watched my dad and my mom garden. And then when I moved out, I moved into the city and lived in cities or suburbs until, oh, can't think.
05:421999 maybe? And then  moved in with my husband and we were in a little tiny town and we didn't have a big lot. We had a tenth of an acre lot with a house and a four car garage on it.  And my husband  hadn't thought of doing any gardening at all. And then we got some  hand-me-down plants from his mom, some irises and lilies. Nice. We put those in and they did great. And I was like, hey, we have the backyard that's just gross.
06:11weeds and grass, we could dig that up and put in some topsoil loam, and we could have food producing plants back there. And he was all for it. And that's where the bug started. That's when he loves gardening. And then a little over four years ago, we moved to a 3.1 acre homestead with a house and a pole barn and a useless garage and a woodshed. And he now has a 100 by 150 foot
06:38farm to market garden every summer. Nice.  So  I really  wasn't  into any of this until  his mom gave us those plants. And then I was like, hey, gardening is kind of fun.  Yeah, it is. It's the best therapy you can ever have.  Sunshine and dirt underneath your feet.  You can be grounded. And it's very good for the soul and the body.
07:08Yes, and one of the best smells on earth is fresh turned  good dirt.  Yes,  yes it is. That and shucking corn. Oh my god, I love the smell of shucking corn. Yes.  And it's amazing.  I made some dilly beans yesterday. I was canning  and the smell of fresh green beans.  I was remembering all the times we snapped
07:36beans to get ready to can them for my mom.  It just brought back so many memories and you forget about those smells and then something will just trigger them and you're like, oh, that's the best smell right there. That's how you know you're doing good again.  absolutely. Now, how long is Texas's growing season? Because here in Minnesota,  we don't put anything in the ground until May 15th and we're pretty much done with outside growing.
08:05by end of September if we're lucky? Well, last year  we went from March to November, middle of November, which is very unusual. Usually we've done had a good heart frost that shut everything down.  But we were still shelling peas in the pea sheller  the second week of November.  It was very mild  and we took advantage of
08:32every day we could possibly get out of it.  So we do have some wild weather.  So we kind of just  play with whatever we can.  I'll start indoor seeds sometimes November, December to get them ready for the greenhouse for the following  January, February, depending on what I need to be growing,  what's being requested.
09:01Um, sometimes it's not until January or February that I start the seeds. So, um, if you have a greenhouse, you can go all year.  Um, but if you don't and you strictly are doing in-ground, then you know, March for the cold weather stuff,  um, to probably October is usually when our shutoff is.  Okay. So you've got  three months more.
09:30than we do basically.  And my husband, I'm lucky if I get him to wait until February 15th to start seedlings in the house. Oh, I know it's hard. It's so hard. Uh huh. Yeah, we've got, he just repotted  yesterday.
09:48Let me think Swiss chard and kale  and romaine lettuce and butter crunch lettuce that was in the little tiny seedling trays. Nice.  He just repotted those and took them out to our hard sided greenhouse because he looked at the forecast and he said they're cold weather crops. said it would have to get to minus 20 to kill them.  And I was like, okay. And he had, he has a whole bunch of tomato seedlings and basil seedlings.  said, do not go to the greenhouse.
10:18He also has peppers. would be surprised how hearty tomatoes and petunias are.  They can take some pretty good cold and it'll keep them from bolting and just growing super fast and getting really leggy.  It kind of controls them. If you kind of use the weather, the cool weather  to  help you grow, sometimes it's beneficial. Yeah, I'm scared.
10:47But they're only like two week old seedlings. They're only about an inch tall. Oh yeah. No, no, not that young. So I basically, he's the gardener and I try to defer to him on what he wants to do. But I said, I said, please do not take the tomatoes, the peppers or the basil babies out. I said, because I will literally sob for a week if they die. And he said, I don't want to see you cry for a week. said, no, you don't. really don't. So they stayed inside. They're all safe on the table.
11:17They're going to keep growing inside for another at least two weeks, maybe a month. And then the water greenhouse and then  May 15th, God willing the creek don't rise.  They'll be in the garden itself.  we're very excited about this because I don't know if you've listened to any of the episodes of my podcast, but all I've done for the last six months is bitch about the summer last summer. Cause we had a terrible growing season here. Really?  See ours  surprised us because we did have that.
11:45110 degree weather there in July and August  and it was short-lived though.  So we didn't suffer unduly.  So we got a break in it and we, my okra,  I had to replant it because the spring started out really bad. We had torrential rains, it was washing everything out and then it went straight into the heat.
12:10Yeah, it was, it was not a good year here last year. We probably lost about $5,000 on produce that we could have been selling.  Had our art not been soup for too long. So yeah, it was, uh, it was painful and sad. And, uh, we're really looking forward to this year because we've looked at the long range forecast.  We have looked at the farmer's almanac long range forecast, and it doesn't look like we're going to need to build an art in May. that's  Thank goodness.
12:38I'm telling you it was bad and the baby plants look good. So we're we're really kind of we're kind of doing the rain dance But only the grow dance for the plants. I don't want rain. No rain dancing here, right? Not like last year. It was insane See that was the way we had last year for last is what done it to us I was in the same boat you were in it was miserable. We had a snowstorm. It was just awful
13:08Yeah, it was nuts. I don't know what Mother Nature was thinking last year, but I hope that she's thinking something much better this year. Okay, so I saw that you have  chicks for sale. Yes,  yes. Are those laying hen chicks? Yes.  We take their eggs and we incubate them.  We have everybody segregated, so we have...
13:35the roosters that are supposed to be with the hens that are like, you know, Brahma's light,  the lights with the lights and the buffs with the buffs. And  we have some Jersey Giants, which we did get some crosses with them, but I don't think the eggs are going to hatch because we had lost electricity for three days with that spasm. I think we've lost those, but  it's part of farming. happens.
14:05It does. It really does. You're not, preaching to the choir. Everybody who's listening to this podcast, who's in the  homesteading, farming, ranching realm understands exactly what you're saying.  Yeah.  It can be so amazing and it can be so  heartbreaking sometimes. Yes. I always say heartbreaking.  But there's a balance and if you can find the balance, you're doing okay. Yes.  Some years are better than others. It's just kind of the
14:35you know, to Mother Nature, really. mean, there's some things we can control and there's some things we cannot. Yeah. All we can do is set up the best,  I want a word and it's not there,  the best growing situation we can, whether it's an animal or a plant,  and then just pray that everything else works. Yes. So what else do you have on your farm?  We started doing wholesale growing first.
15:05And we were doing vegetables and hanging baskets.  And then I started meeting a bunch of farmers  and  everybody was talking about having problems selling their produce. They were having masses amounts left over that they were just dumping  because they couldn't find good farmers markets or people to buy their.
15:34you know, bigger than a farmer's market normally, but they're not big enough to attract Walmart or Albertsons or Safeway or some, you know, one of these big places to sell. So  we started a farmer's market here on our property  because we were having problems getting approval in town for one. had tried for years and then I tried and  it just wasn't working.  So,
16:03We started the farmers market and we are doing amazing with it.  We keep  the emission free  to set up or  just enough to cover the porter potties, know, something like that. So everybody, we're coming together in a group and attracting people to come shop with us. And we're doing better as a group than we would singly.  So  we added that.
16:32We're adding a, we added the farm store this year.  Almost got the interior of it done. It's a little 16 by 40 building. We'll have electricity and coolers that we can, in the freezer, we can keep produce longer.  Cause I've been running with ice chests in the back of my little GMC train  to and from other farmers and the farmers markets and  trying to keep things cooled off and.
17:02I think I need to buy an ice machine too because I've been supporting Dollar General in their ice. Uh huh. Yup. So, but we just kind of let everything  fall into place where it calls us to. I mean, we see a need and we just kind of go with it.  Um, and kind of come together as a group to help others.  Um, a middle gentleman that he was farming peas.
17:30And just, he's an older gentleman and just couldn't get the peas sold. And so when I met him, he was like, can you, are you interested in buying some peas? And I was like, absolutely.  So he  stumbled on a miracle because he grows some old fashioned stuff that I didn't think anybody grew anymore. Some little lady cream peas and they're so good. And so we just started.
17:59making friends and networking together and just adding stuff here and there. It's amazing what happens when a group of comes together and has a plan, huh? Yes. I mean, you just about be able to move mountain.  It's really been something to watch and see how everybody blooms together. Not just one person. It's not just one person being greedy or
18:26suffering, you know, we all come in and pitch in and then we can  all get raised up. We can  all, you know, make our living  at a decent rate. You know, it's not,  don't know how else to explain it. It's just, it's really nice to see other people enjoying what they do  and being able to make a living at it. Yeah.
18:53It's too bad that not everybody in the world could do that because it would be a much happier world, I think. And I'm not being a smart ass. I really do wish that people would find their calling and be able to make it support them for their whole life, you know? Yes. Yes. A lot less stress, lot less bickering. People just doing what they love and just being happy. Yeah.
19:19And happy goes a long freaking way. really does for me. I  am,  I'm  going to say this. am an  oldest, oldest child. am the oldest of my three siblings and  I was raised to be really independent, almost too independent. My parents outdid themselves, I think. And I think that they were sorry about that when I hit about 12 years old, but that's another story.
19:46The hardest thing for me is to ask for help because I don't want to bother anybody. I don't want to put anybody out. I don't want to take from someone if they don't have something to give freely.  And I've been having a hard time with the podcast because I really would like the podcast to be more than a hobby. And so I've been trying to figure out how to make the podcast make a little bit of money.
20:12I finally realized that people don't quite understand what sponsorship means, but they understand advertising.  And so I've been offering like a little shout out at the beginning  of every episode.  When I can talk, it's really good.  And, you know, for a little bit of money, I just say, here's a shout out to whatever business is what they do. You can find them on Facebook and at their website, whatever that is. And I felt really weird about.
20:41Asking people if they wanted to do it and I've made $30 in the last five days because people were like yes I want to do that and I was like, whoa, really? Really? Okay, cool. And I felt so I don't know just anxious about asking I'm having I'm doing the same thing with the porta potties on the farmers markets because I was trying to keep it free but
21:09$140 for two porta potties coming out of the store account. It hurts. It doesn't sound like much, but it hurts. That's every month.  So yes,  I can feel exactly where you're coming from.  It's,  it's so dumb because you  are providing your land as a place to have the, the farmer's market.  And that's commendable. That is amazing.
21:39And like, I don't see any reason why the people who want to sell at the farmers market can't kick in five bucks. You know? mean, right. It's not a big ask and you're providing a service that  I know the  one of the big farmers markets here in Minnesota. Just to be there. It's like a thousand dollars for  the summer.  That's a lot of money. Yeah, it is. It's a crazy amount of money.
22:08So I'm not saying that I should be asking, you know, $2,000 for a 15 second, hi, this is who these people are, go visit their stuff. I'm saying that sometimes you can ask and sometimes you will get a yes. I just always expect a no. I got you. So I was very excited to know that people like the podcast and want to be featured and enjoy it and want to support it. It was very...
22:37I don't know, it was very satisfying to know that people actually like it. It was good to find that out.
22:44So, and you're finding out that people want to be at  your  farmer's market. I don't know what is wrong with me. cannot get words to come out today. So anyway, yeah, if you have a dream  and  you're afraid of pursuing it,  don't be afraid. Just  try. I mean, the worst that's going to happen is people say no.  even if they do.
23:10It might  just not be, it might be a not right now kind of deal.  But there's somebody out there that'll say yes.  Yeah, and it's gotta be the right situation.  know,  if I messaged, I don't know,  a jewelry store and said, you wanna have me shout out your business for five bucks? They would be like, no, because jewelry has nothing to do with homesteading. And they would be absolutely right.  Right.
23:39So it has to be the right circumstances, the right people, the right timing.
23:45And always do your research.  I  always tell, we always have some new people that are starting. They love to come to ours.  Cause we're so laid back. We don't have a lot of rules. So I tell them, I'm like, talk to your customers.  If there's somebody in front of you, that's your potential customer.  Use your time wisely with that person. Talk to them, find out what they enjoy, what they love.
24:14Don't just sit there and look at them.  Greet them.  They're people. They want to talk to you. They want to know about you. They want to know about your story.  don't use your time wisely. Always learn. Be ready to evolve. Add things. Take things away. Some things will work perfectly and other things is just a little bit too  no. So you just need to work it.
24:42Absolutely. And this is why my husband does the farmer's market and I do a podcast  because he's so good at just getting people to laugh  and I'm,  you're going to think this is really dumb. I'm actually really shy.  I have no problem with the podcast format because I don't have to be in a room with somebody. I'm good. I'm good this way. get that. My husband  is quiet. He's not a people talker.
25:12I  am, I have ADHD. I'm severe at a time where we didn't, I grew up with, we didn't know what that was. I was just the chase the boys and talk too much in class and stayed in trouble and  that was me. So he's always like, no, you can sit there at the farmer's market. You got it. You're good. Yeah.  And honestly, I think it's a talent.
25:37I listen to the stories when my husband comes home from the farmers market about what went on and what was said and who said what, about our stuff or the vendors are chatting with each other.  He's so energized. He's so high on it.  I listen and I laugh and I make notes on things that we could do or not do.  When he's done, like,  I'm so glad you do the farmers market. It's so good for you.
26:04And he's like, I'm so glad I do the farmer's market. It's so good for the community. And I'm like, yeah, it is. It is. And I understand exactly your, your take on him because that's,  I do the same thing. He does the same thing for me as well.  Um, and  it's,  I do,  it's wonderful seeing your friends, new customers,  um, somebody that's been sick that you've
26:31prayed for  and they're out walking around, you know,  and you're happy to see them. It's a genuine feeling  of getting to know everybody  and  meet new people and seeing the new babies and grand babies and  it's just a  ray of sunshine. I mean, it's just wonderful. It's good for the soul.
26:57Well, the way it feels to me is like the town socials back in the 1800s. Oh  yeah. When people used to come and bring food and they'd have a dance and they'd all just hang out and talk and  drink whatever they had to drink and eat some food and the  teenagers would go out and dance and then sneak off to make out and you know, stuff.  To cook up recipes and... Yeah. And  I feel like the...
27:22The farmer's market these days is about as close to that as you get unless you're a part of a church. Yes. Absolutely. And you get fresh vegetables too. Well, sure. And craft stuff and goodies like cookies and cakes and things. And I'm a big fan of brownies. So my husband brings home a brownie. He's good for a week. He's in my good graces for a week. And then he comes home with another one and I'm like, okay, we're good for another week.
27:53We had a new vendor,  this first farmers market opening.  He's a young autistic gentleman  and  young teenager  and he makes some amazing cookies.  Oh, and his parents  are  supporting him  and letting him live his best life. And it was great to see him. He'll come up, shake your hand and talk to you.
28:21tell you his ideas of what he's wanting to plan and it was really refreshing to have him. We always get excited when we have young people that get involved with the farmers markets and we love seeing the 4-8 and the ag, rabbits and chickens and goats and you name it. We want to know. We follow him on Facebook.
28:50We cheer them on when they're winning or if they don't win, we still cheer them on. So it's just a huge community. mean, we just, they need support and I'm glad these kids, young kids are getting involved with this. And it's really something to see. I was really proud to have him out. Awesome. I love that. Our son goes to the farmers market with his dad. He's 23 now.
29:20And he went almost every time two summers ago now.  And then he was like, I got stuff to do. I can go, you know, to every one out of four.  And my husband was like, that's okay. And that  last, that was last summer, summer before when our kid decided he didn't want to go to every single Saturday.  people would come up to my husband and be like, where's your kid? Yeah.
29:47because the kid's really good at talking to people too and he's very polite, he's very kind. So I get what you're saying. It's actually really good for kids to be involved in that stuff because they learn how to function in a way. Because our schools aren't teaching them anything like that anymore. Unless they do have an ag. I'm not sure they ever did. We, well in the south,
30:14Um, we had Ag programs.  Um, we would show the animals.  Um, they taught you how to butcher, um, all that good stuff. But also we had growing programs where they would show you how to raise your tomatoes, plant them,  and eventually harvest.  Um, we had the home ec that taught us how to cook and quilt and  all that good stuff. um, my kids didn't have that.
30:44I'm so jealous. I'm a Yankee girl. grew up in Maine and the North and we didn't have that kind of stuff. We had a home ec, but it was not,  it was not in depth. It was a very surfacey kind of home ec class. Oh, wow.  Um, we even used to get our hunter's education, um, as part of a school program, um, where we would have youth,  um, hunting trips that we could go on, but  they've since discontinued that now as well. Huh.
31:13Okay. Well, you had many more resources at your fingertips than I did in school. And I'm really glad that you did.  I would have jumped on a lot of that stuff if we'd had it.  Um,  so the one thing I want to say before I cut you loose, try to keep these to half an hour  is if you're going to be part of a farmer's market, like you're going to be a vendor.  One of the things that we did is we made business cards and business cards are kind of old fashioned, but
31:40people take business cards off the table because they want to know if they need something that they like that you make,  if they can get hold of you.  And the other thing I've done is I've made a QR code and I've blown it up and my husband tapes it to the table  and people can use the QR code on, you know, user phones and that goes directly to our website. So those are the two ways that we get it so that people can find us.  I love that.
32:08I haven't done the QR codes, but we do the business cards,  which we're in a small community. They usually just message, hey, I'm on my way. I'm okay.  So that's usually how we get  a heads up. that, and that's fine with us. We don't mind.  I'm here all the time, just about, unless I'm out doing deliveries. So.
32:30Yeah. And the other thing that's really good at a farmer's market, if you can afford the cost of it, is to have a banner that has the name of your business on it.  Because if people see it enough times, it sticks in their head. Yes. So,  hint.  The banners. And another thing I would add to that is make sure that your banner and your card, your logos, they all match. Yes. Because it'll get confusing to them. They think they've seen three different
32:59businesses when it's only just one. And sometimes that's hard.  It's just something, a goal to work towards. Yeah, it is really hard to come up with a logo.  It's always going to be difficult unless it just pops into your head and you're like, that's it. That's the one. And then you got to figure out how you're going to create the logo because do you have somebody create it for you?  Do you draw it? Do you do it on the computer? How do you do it if you're not an artist?
33:28Right. A lot of times there's programs that will  allow you,  like a Pies app is an app and there's a free side to it. And then there is also  a  pay to use it by the year. If you get really in depth with it, cause I do all my own advertising for the posters on the farmer's market.  And  I do not, they don't pay me to say that. That's just the one.
33:57I know people use Canva.  There's others, but they have little programs in there you can actually design your own for free. mean, so you don't have to spend a lot.  Yeah. And the other thing, my  friend that I worked for for like six years, she was in PR and marketing.  She was always telling me that I was too, I don't remember what the word was, but I want to say esoteric when I would think of naming names for things.
34:23Because I would, I have a really weird brain. have all kinds of associations when I think of a word, like there's all kinds of words that go with it. Like if I think apple, there's the apple we eat, there's the apple computer, there's all kinds of things you can do with apple. And she would be like, it needs to be obvious. It can't be 16 layers down, Mary. Yes. Right. Oh yeah. So when I was trying to come up with a logo for a tiny homestead,
34:53for our place,  I was like, I just need a little farmhouse with two little potted plants on the sides of the steps that go up the door of the farmhouse and a couple of chickens.  And I ran that by my husband and he said,  that's perfect. That's not 16 layers deep. And I went, uh-huh. Thanks, honey.  It's kind of making fun of me,  but  either way, keep it simple, you know, and,  and keep it the same. Don't, don't change it every year because people do get confused.
35:22Yes, they will. All right, Bobby, I have loved this conversation. didn't know it was going to be about the farmers market, so I'm kind of glad it was. Well, thank you for having us. This is the first one we've ever done. So I was excited. I was like, yay, somebody asked me to be on their podcast. I love talking to people like you because you're so bubbly and full of information and all you want to do is chat. And that's what I need. I love these conversations.
35:52Thank you so much for your time, Bobbi. Have a great day.  Thank you, you too. Bye-bye.
 

VT Blodgett Family Farm

Today I'm talking with Dawn at VT Blodgett Family Farm.
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00:00You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, the podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters, and topics adjacent. I'm your host, Mary Lewis.  A Tiny Homestead podcast is sponsored by Homegrown Collective, a free-to-use farm-to-table platform emphasizing local connections with ability to sell online, buy, sell, trade in local garden groups, and help us grow a new food system.  You can find them at homegrowncollective.org. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like, subscribe.
00:29share it with a friend or leave a comment. Thank you. Today I'm talking with Dawn at Vermont Blodgett Family Farm. Good morning, Dawn. How are you?  Good morning. I'm doing good and you? I'm great. Tell me I pronounced Blodgett correctly. You did. Okay. Cause  I was like, could it be Blodgett or is it just Blodgett? Blodgett.  Awesome. Good. I always hate like slaughtering people's names. I feel really bad about it.  What is the weather like in Vermont this morning?
00:55This morning we've actually had a warmer day.  It's up in the  30s.  We got about an inch and half of snow in an hour this morning when we were milking.  So the roads are nice and slushy and we're all white again.  Well, it's pretty. I'm sure that you're like a lot of Northern Tier State people. You're probably looking forward to spring. Yes. Yes, us too.
01:22just to do my usual thing that I do at the beginning of every episode. Here in Minnesota this morning, it's bright and sunny and it's warm. And we're supposed to hit 70 degrees today for the high. I'm jealous. Yeah, me too. I'm gonna be real happy to see that hit this afternoon. The problem that we're having with this though is that it's really bouncing up and down. And today it's to be, it's supposed to hit 70.
01:51And then it's supposed to go back down to like the fifties and then Friday they're saying that it's going to be over 70 and we're, might get, um, severe thunderstorms in March. Wow. Yeah. I'm like, you know,  this is not great. I don't, I don't really love the, uh, the zigzagging and the up and down that we're going through right now,  but hopefully by May it will have worked it all out and it'll be okay. Saturday.  was  negative five with the wind chill.
02:21Oh, all day long. Yeah, a week and a half ago,  two weeks ago here,  we were in like minus 20 real temperature weather for a week. So yeah, it's really hard to know how to dress for the day. I'll tell you that. Layers and it all then can come off.  Exactly.  All right. So tell me about what you guys do at your farm and about yourself.
02:51So we are classified as a dairy farm. So we have 45 milking jerseys. So we ship to Organic Valley. so that is what we actually do. Like our whole farm is set up as a dairy farm. We've been here for almost 10 years now. are high.
03:20What is it?  High rotational grazing or intense. That's it. Intense.  Great  rotational grazing.  We have  about 50 acres of land that we we pasture.  We have about 100 acres of land that we hay  and then we have beef cows. But we only have 15 of them.  That's more for the farm stand that we have.
03:48And about three years ago, four years ago, my husband built the stand, the farm stand, and I have been increasing my egg sales since. So I'm up to 670 chickens. Wow. But we are a dairy farm. OK. I understand that you're a dairy farm, but 670 chickens lay a lot of eggs. Yes.
04:17You must be very popular right now with egg sales.  Very. I right now because I have various ages of birds.  I have about  250 that are laying consistently.  So I get about 21 dozen eggs a day and I sell out within an hour.  Well, I was impressed that our chickens just started laying a week ago. They're starting to be consistent and we've been getting 10 eggs a day. So  21 dozen a day seems like a wonderful thing. Yes.
04:47It is a lot of eggs. I'll be happy when we have a dozen a day because we have 12 chickens. So if they're all laying the way it was supposed to, we will have seven dozen a week, which would be really nice right now. Yes.  Yes. And I don't really want to talk too much about eggs and chickens because it's all over the news. And I saw your post  on Facebook that you did  about your chickens and what it costs to take care of them.
05:13And I'm going to share that on my page and my tiny homestead podcast page because  people don't quite understand that that that first outlay for the chickens is expensive.
05:27So  it definitely can be. As you said, I posted it. But for the first four months of a chicken's life, it actually only cost about $10 for  four months to feed them. But what's going to cost you the money is starting up. So you need a housing place to put them.
05:53Yep.  So you need  the waterer, you need a feeder, you need  a place to keep them warm. When I first started, actually kept them in my bathtub  with a heat lamp, right? my, you know, because I could shut the door and my dogs, you know, and my cat couldn't get to them.  And so,  I mean, you can do it cheaply.
06:21You know,  if you have a place to put them in a place to do things,  but  it's not really the first four months that becomes an issue. It's when they  start laying  that they  that they'll start costing you because it takes a lot for them to lay an egg.  Uh huh. So  you have to,  you know, make sure that they have.
06:49the right amount of feed  and the right amount of  temperature. As you know, you have chickens.  In the wintertime, they're cold. They don't lay eggs. Their energy goes to body heat instead of producing an egg. A lot of people forget that chickens are seasonal. The only time they're not seasonal is that first  winter  because they're still technically considered a pullet. A pullet is anything under a year old bird.
07:19Yeah. So yeah, it costs a lot of time too. Yes, they do. And I mean, it's not hours and hours a day, but you, do spend time with your chickens. You do spend time cleaning out the coop. You do spend time  gathering the eggs and making sure the chickens are okay and all that. Yes.  Like I said, I don't want to get too far down the rabbit hole because I've talked about this a lot on the podcast lately because it's the topic of the month basically.
07:46But what I want  to say is if you're fortunate enough to have the funds to go get chickens  and raise them and have  the means to make a home for them and you have the time,  it is well worth it. But if you don't, find somebody who does have chickens, know, a local grower, local farmer and buy from them because  you're supporting them and you're going to get great eggs from them. Correct.
08:13And it's going to cost you less than the grocery store, probably from the farmer that, know, because I'm not going to be charging $10 a dozen for our eggs. I'm looking at probably $5 a dozen when they, when we have enough to sell. So. Correct. Cause we have less people touching the eggs. So less people to pay. Yes, exactly. So support your local farmer or your local homestead or your local grower. If you can't be any of those things, I guess is what I'm saying. So, okay. So you said you have 45.
08:43dairy cows. Yes. That's a small herd  for a  dairy farm.  how did you get into this? So  actually my husband,  I grew up in a  dairy farm background.  My father  and his family  were big into dairy farming  from
09:10You know, the early, I would say, I think they bought their farm in the late sixties,  early seventies.  And so they made it big  in the eighties when you could actually make money farming. Yes. So then they bought a lot of land and they were, they had 300 cows back in the eighties, which  is, you know, milking cows,  which was a large, you know, industrial farm  back then.  And  for Vermont.
09:39I mean, other places may not have been, but for Vermont, that was a pretty  substantial amount.  so  I was with it when I was at my dad's  every weekend and being part of  the farming, not really farming community,  because I wasn't big into it.  But I was always out in the barn with my dad helping and  learning how to take care of animals  and dealing with stuff like that.
10:09I'm actually, my children are ninth generation Vermonters. Oh wow.  Yep. And so farming actually kind of goes back on my grandmother's side, you know, all the way to the  1700s.  So  that's kind of a cool little history background. And they all lived, we all lived in the same area. I was the first one to move away.
10:37So my husband,  his family had a farm and his grandparents had a farm  and his parents  lived a couple houses down, which in Brookfield is  probably, I think it was like a mile away. they had sold all the cows by the time I met my husband, but he had farmed with,  bought a farm with his brother-in-law and sister and were farming and they had different views.
11:06So my husband got out of it. And in 2011, he's like, I want to start again. So the new adventure started. So we've been farming together for 14 years. Moved here almost 10 years ago. OK, I don't want to be nosy, but I have to ask, is this your job or is this your job outside of your job? This is our job. OK.
11:36So I quit my job. I was a nurse. I worked with a podiatrist. And I quit my job in 2000 of November of 2012 to do it full time because we had two small children at the time. One was in just started school and the other one was, you know, still technically, I guess a toddler. But the school district was not in the farm district.
12:05So he would have to stop what he was doing and go pick up our son,  either from the house where  the bus dropped him off or picked him up at school,  and then  find either his parents or my parents to watch them while he went down and farmed. financially,  it was a little difficult taking that income out.
12:34But  time wise,  it was  the only thing we could do. He could not be a stay at home dad  and a full time farmer. No, because that does not go hand in hand.  No. And see, the thing that a lot of people forget about farmers versus homesteaders  or  people who have a few animals  is this is 24 seven, right? Like he gets up at four o'clock in the morning.
13:04and he goes until six o'clock at night. And that is an everyday thing.  And if then there's haying or calving or  something breaks  or something like that, he literally is gone longer out of the house. We have no workers  other than me and him and then our 16 year old son helps.  But as we know, what 16 year olds, they like to do other things.
13:33It's a very time consuming thing. So  when I got done my job, it was mainly to be  a stay at home mom helping on the farm because our kids just took so much time  away from him.  then when we moved here 10 years ago, because now we lived on the farm that we actually have before we rented the farm that was about five miles away.
14:03it became, this became my full-time job also. Okay, cool. The reason I asked is because a lot of people, even full-time farmers,  they're  full-time farming as much as they can, which means every hour they're not at their jobby job. And it's a really, really hard balance from what I've been told. I haven't had to do it. Thank God.  I would not have the energy or the patience for it.  But  you were saying in messages that
14:33that was I sure that I wanted you to be on the podcast because you're farmers, not homesteaders.  And Dawn, there's a lot of overlap between homesteaders  and farmers. There's a lot of  skill involved that are the same skills.  And I feel like there's some homesteaders that consider themselves to farmers  and farmers that consider themselves to be homesteaders as well. So
14:59It's all under the same umbrella for  what I'm trying to get to on the podcast. That makes sense.  So  I think, to be honest,  that is true to some extent.  I think  the thing that does separate a homesteader  versus a farmer, and what I classify as a farmer, I know that's kind of a loose term.
15:28is  most homesteaders do it for themselves.  A farmer does it to feed the community.  And I think that is something  that just plays a part in it. So like when I was talking about I was more of a stay at home mom,  and I helped on the farm.  So at that point, I would classify myself as more of a homesteader because I used
15:57the materials, right? I had my garden.  you know, I cooked from everything from scratch because I had more time to do it.  So I did more of the homesteading and  I use quotation marks on that one because, know,  labels just aren't very nice anyway. They sound horrible.  But  I had more time to be able to do some of those things. When we became
16:25farmers up here or when I became a farmer, should say.  I could not do a garden anymore.  I pay for my vegetables.  I have a friend who  that's what he does full time.  we barter meat for vegetables because I do the meat, he does the veggies.  I do not have time in my day to do a garden.
16:52I have to literally pencil in enough time  if I want to can my chicken broth just because I have so many, you know, frozen chicken in my freezer that I've got to get out of. Right. So I'm staying up late at night  to  to be able to do that because there just isn't enough time. So I think that is a big difference between homesteaders is  it's just  they're they're doing things to feed themselves.
17:22And then making money with the things like that versus farming is like our full-time job. Yep. Okay. I see the distinction now, but, but again, I thought I was trying to, I know it sounds horrible trying to get it out, but there is a distinction and there's not, it's not a bad thing. Yep. Right. I'm not trying to say homesteaders are lease,  you know, less than farmers. It's just different.  yeah, absolutely.  And
17:49Again, going to stick by there's a lot of overlap in what you guys do regarding skills because,  because homesteaders, a lot of them definitely have a of dairy cows and they milk them and they do the thing, but it's not like what you're doing. You are an operation as it were. So the skill set is the exact same,  right? The difference is, like you said, we're doing it as an operation. have 48 milking cows versus they have one. Right. So my cows, you know,
18:19Myles and I were actually just talking about that this morning where  somebody was saying how I read somewhere about washing the udder and brushing down their cow before the milking procedure.  I went, could you imagine if we did that  for every cow we had before we brought them into milk?  And we would be milking for 12 hours every day,  like sitting there brushing our cows.
18:47Because it's an, so we, you know, we just do things differently. Yeah. Right. But it's still the end result is getting milk out of the cow and healthy milk and clean milk. Exactly. So if you have that many cows, do you actually have babies in the, in the, during the year or not? So we are seasonal. Um, because, um, I growing up in, in a farm,
19:15household, my father was never available. He was always out milking or doing chores or doing something.  So Christmas, we had to wait  until he came in to do, you know, Christmas presents. And we never got to take vacations.  And we never got to do anything. Yeah. So for my family, I told my husband when we started farming, we were  going to still be a family first,  no matter what.
19:44So we were taking vacations. We were going to basketball games. We were doing all of the things that my kids needed to do to be, you know, children. So we became seasonal in 2017. So everything got dried off, everything capped within six weeks to two months. Sometimes there's a little, you know, tail-enders there that got pregnant a little bit late. The prices. Yep.
20:13So  we dry everything. We go down to once a day normally in the beginning of July.  And then by August 1st, we dry everything off at once.  So we are not milking anything. And we have our first cow, Cavon, in  mid September. Okay. And then  because you already have so many milking cows, do you keep some of those babies or do you sell them?
20:42So I keep 10 babies  a year  and then I sell everything else.  Okay, cool. So  you're keeping your  herd fresh and in rotation, I guess is what I'm trying to get to. Awesome.  And you get the joy of dealing with calves.  Right.  And  I say that with kind of a weird tone to my voice because  I love calves, but I don't have any, you know, to me a calf is something.
21:12calf is something I go  to visit and pet and be entertained by and then I get to leave it with its parents. But for you, this is this work. So  so do you still get to enjoy the calves or are they just a means to an end?  I enjoy my calves. Okay. I think we look at it definitely different where yes, they are means, right? We have to have them on the farm to
21:40bring in new life to the farm because cows get old, cows get sick, right? So we do look at them very different, but every one of my calves  are loved on, they're played with.  We have kids that come over that love playing with them and  desensitize them, because having a spazzy calf is not fun.  But they're fed.
22:09They're bottle fed, they're,  you know, they're named, they're loved.  We love our cows just like we do our dogs.  Every one of them has a personality where we're just like,  you're just like your mother. Like coming out, you look at them and you're like, wow, you're just like your mother.  But they,  and I think that that's where the small dairy farm comes in versus some of the larger ones.
22:38is we do, because we are small, we have time to  get to know our animals,  right? We're touching them, we're playing with them, we're part of their community versus like them being part of our community. Right, yeah. So what kind of  farm dogs do you have? Because everybody has a favorite. I mean, we have friends that have two Pyrenees, so. So we have three golden retrievers that  are our mascots.
23:07and they are not allowed in the barn. Uh huh. Because they have the longest, most beautiful golden hair and they would love to be on my bed being covered in cow crap. So our dogs are babies. Yes. Versus, you know, when we were a Thai stall, when we first moved here, Thai stalls have a lot different atmosphere because the cows are tied to, you know, where they're supposed to be. Yeah.
23:37So they only poop in one spot. So having the dogs out there wasn't a big deal because they just knew not to go in the gutter. But now that we're in a free stall,  there's poop everywhere.  Yep. And cow poop is amazing for manure, for  fertilizer, for a garden, but it's not amazing if you're wearing it. Yep. That's exactly.  I actually have a really funny story about wearing poop.  So we had just moved here.
24:07And  so a manure pond  is where all of our liquid manure sits until we can get it spread on the field. Yes. So  there is a special little tool that can be backed in and it has a propeller on it to  agitate the pit. Yeah. And it's got a spray hose on it. Well, my husband,  I had to talk to my husband about something and I was walking out and I went.
24:35That would really suck if somebody got sprayed with that. Oh, no. And it  was in the spring, by the way. So the manure had sat in there for all winter. And then, of course, we had just moved here and the previous owner hadn't emptied the pit. So that poop in there was ripe.  Right. So I went over and I was standing there waiting for my husband to  see me and pay attention.  Well, he put the hose  on the bottom part underneath me.
25:04to try to  get the poop  to move away from where it was.  And literally a wave of poop covered me.  Oh no.  My silhouette was on the wall behind me. Ugh.  His face was, he didn't know if he should laugh.
25:29Or run. Yes. Yes, run fast away because she's probably really mad right now. I actually could do nothing but laugh. It was just the funniest thing because I had just said that would really suck if somebody got sprayed with that because it did it stunk so bad. For like a week it was in my nose. Oh yeah. That smell. Even after you showered and put deodorant on and perfume, you still have it stuck in your nose.
25:58I had to throw away all of my clothes  because I could not get the smell out. And if I could have taken my skin off, I would have been thrown that away. It smells so bad. Oh yeah, absolutely.  I don't have a Kalmanor story, but I have a skunk story. When I was a teenager, when I was in high school, our Samoyed dog, the big white fluffy dogs,  got sprayed by a skunk and he took a direct hit.
26:26My parents had to bring him in the house and, you know, get him in the bathtub with tomato sauce or whatever they used to try to cut some of that smell because it is really intense.  And because they brought him in the house, that smell was all through anything that was cloth in the house, including my clothes.  And I don't know how high school was for you, but I was not popular and I got teased a lot.  You can just imagine.
26:51the two weeks or three weeks after that happened me going to school because I couldn't go buy new clothes and even if I did the house still had that smell in it.  yeah. Yeah. It was not fun. Three weeks to a month after that happened being in high school smelling like a slug.  It was really bad.  So yeah, I've had my experiences with stinky things too, but not, not calminor. The only time,  the only story I have about calminor is we went to visit my folks in Maine.
27:20back in 2014  and they have a hay field that they basically let a friend of theirs cut and and in exchange my parents get venison from them I think or be foreign the other and So  when we went to visit it was right around the time that a guy was gonna put manure on the hay field  and my mom was just crossing everything that he wouldn't come until after we had left because it's stinky  and
27:47That morning that I got up and heard my mom swearing like pirate as I was coming down the stairs at their house  was the morning that he brought the the shit spreader as my parents call it.  oh, my mom was mad. I have not seen her  that upset about anything in a long time. And she used words that I've never heard her used before.
28:12And I basically had to give her a big hug and be like, it's okay. I know what cow poop smells like. It's fine. She's like, he could have just waited another day. And I'm like,  mom, when it needs to be done, it needs to be done. She's like, you're taking this much better than I thought you would. I said,  I remember driving through this area when we were kids  and the windows would be down and we would smell cow poop.
28:38And we would be like, oh, it stinks. And you'd be like, that's mother nature's gold right there. I said, we're not immune. This is not a new thing for me or my husband or our kids. It's time.  So yeah, she was mad, really, really mad. I have so many words I'm not using right now. yeah, mean,  a lot of this lifestyle, whether it's farming or homesteading or ranching,
29:05There's a lot of messy things about it, but it is  so incredibly worth it, I think. So it is a lifestyle,  right? It is.  And if you don't like the lifestyle, then it's  it's miserable. Right.  And actually,  I grew growing up because of how my father was. I kept saying to my mom,  I was like, I'm never marrying a farmer.
29:33I hate Vermont. I'm moving away and I did move away, right?  I moved away to Virginia Beach when I was 21. So,  and then I moved back and I met my husband. It was fate.  We actually had gone to kindergarten together all through school. Our paths have,  you know, intertwined.  It was meant to be.  And I found where I belong, right? It took forever, but this is where I belong. This is, even though it's frustrating.
30:03Like I did a post the other day about how tired I am,  but it's not the fact that I'm tired of the nonsense. I'm tired of  how things work  in our society. They shouldn't be so hard for farmers  or for homesteaders or people to be able to make a living doing what they enjoy.  a bunch of people said on my post, they were like,  oh, well, but it's so rewarding.
30:32That doesn't make it less tiring. No, no, it does not. That actually makes it more because our job is so demanding on all of our time. I say it, my husband's not just married to me. He's married to 48 other women. Yes. And, he treats them better than me sometimes. I'm sure he doesn't mean to. Oh no, he does. He says it all the time. They get everything, but it's okay. Most of the time it's okay.
31:03But the thing is, it's all the other stuff that makes a tiring job even more tiring. Like, why are we fighting our government,  right? To be able to  provide good food for our community.  Why are we fighting people because they don't understand and believe in what we do? Yeah. You know?  And I think that's the hard part is  that's what makes it so tiring is
31:33all the other.
31:36Yes.  And  if you love what you do,  it makes it a little easier to deal with that. But man, if you don't love what you do and you're having to deal with all that stuff, you're going to get out. You're just not staying in it. And so I think another part that people forget  is, you know,  farming,  again, like homesteading is a lifestyle, right? It is a profession.
32:04But, and this is where it kind of overlaps, you were saying,  is  once you get to a point where that farm is no longer making enough money  to sustain itself, you have to make choices  of either getting out  or passing it on and finding something else to do. Farmers don't know what else to do. And they will hold on to their lifestyle longer than they really should.
32:34But they don't know any different. They don't know what else to do. Yeah.  It's so hard. Like I'm talking to you and I'm like, oh, it's so hard and it's so, I don't know, negative sometimes.  And then I talked to other people who are farmers, like actual farmers, and they're so high on it because everything is going well. So I think it's  an any given day thing.
33:03where you're at with how you feel about it?  Yes.  I have had, and I'm not trying to put down farming in any way.  This is an emotional week for us.  Last week was the anniversary of us losing my husband's brother.  It's been three years. And so we had that huge emotional,  you know, that's when his accident was.  He didn't pass away until March 24th.
33:33Right. And so there's a lot of emotional baggage still,  you know, with with all of that. And then  last week was a big week because we had a lot of vet checks, right. We had a lot of extra.  So.  For for me right now,  I'm just I mean, tired,  right, is is what I keep saying  is I just need to be recharged. So.
34:01That's why I take vacation every year, why we go on vacation and do the seasonal thing. And so we can recharge  and bring that energy back in the next season. Yeah. And, you know, it's really hard with a winter, right? The way we have,  it's just draining. It's just tiring. I know I say that word a lot, but,  you know, right now we're at the end of that season. Well, Dawn, I'm going to tell you,  I
34:31appreciate what you do. And I'm not sure you hear that enough, but right now I've got about a third of a gallon of milk in my fridge because my husband was supposed to go and get milk yesterday and didn't get it at the store. He said he's going to and they got sidetracked. And I was like, did you ever go to the store? He's like, no, it was past time to go. So I love milk. I drink it in my coffee. I have it with cookies when we have cookies because I can't eat a cookie without milk. That's not happening.
34:59And I also have really gotten into making sausage gravy and biscuits this winter because it's really filling and it's not  it ain't good for you, but it's yummy and It's great for you. Yeah It just depends on you. It's great for the soul. Yes, exactly And it was really freaking cold here a couple weeks ago Sausage gravy and biscuits was very warming and I was very happy to have it, but it takes like three cups of milk.  So
35:28I really appreciate what you do. really appreciate what dairy farmers do because it is a lot of work. And I know that sometimes you can have a bad batch of milk that you can't sell and you lose that money and that's not good.  So I appreciate you. Thank you for doing what you do.  Thank you.  And  it actually,  it's nice to hear when people appreciate you because, and I, you know, I feel very fortunate.
35:58my Facebook page that we have  has a lot of supportive people, right? Like I love my people.  But every once in a while we get one, you know, where they're just like, oh my gosh, I hate dairy. And it's like,  well, come learn,  right? And you wouldn't hate it. I mean, yes, it's like any industry. There's parts of it that  are not,  that aren't pretty,  that are, that's hard.
36:28We make hard decisions every day. Like there's a cow that's not producing and isn't pregnant. What do you do?  Do you lose money? So, you know, that's the difference. You know, sometimes is people just don't see it as a business. They put their emotions in it. Well, I'm going to say something that's probably not very popular to my, well, to my listeners, probably fine, but to anybody else, probably not.  I feel like.
36:58people  are not very good at considering the other person's life and perspective. You know, the walk a mile in my shoes thing.  And I have been trying to do that for a very long time because I used to be  very sharp with my tongue when I was young and I used to not really understand that the world didn't revolve around me because teenagers are like that.  And after I had my daughter,
37:26when I was 20, my whole worldview changed. I wanted things to be good for her.  And I started doing, I read a lot before that, but I started reading a lot more things about other people and other  ways of living and really tried to pull in what I learned into my, my own paradigm of just because I do it this way, doesn't mean it can't be done successfully in a different way.  And so
37:57My big thing  is please just consider other people's viewpoints. You don't have to borrow them. You don't have to embrace them,  but at least consider them. Yep. That's all I really want because I feel like the world would be such a better place if maybe people had a little more patience and consideration. Yep. I agree with you 100%. I  always sound very Pollyanna-ish, like very idealistic with that, but  I don't think it's a big ask.
38:27I feel like every human being is capable of listening to someone's story, processing it and going, I've never done it that way, but huh, it worked. Yep.  Well, so like  I  feel very strongly going off from that. I feel very strongly that there's enough room for everybody. Yeah. Right.  I'm not competing with the person next door. Right.
38:54I am there to support the person next door.  if  we are both selling hamburger, I don't care  where you go, just go.  I tell people all the time  on my farm page, right? Hey, go here, go here.  Support this person, support this farm.  To be honest, I'm not in competition with anybody  and they shouldn't be in competition with me.
39:25It's a let's help everybody grow. There is enough business just like I am not one for  almond juice,  coconut juice. I personally find them so sugary.  I can't stand them. Right. So that's why I drink real milk.  know,  but I understand why more people why there's people that drink those. My best friend's allergic to milk. Yeah. She can't have any dairy. she's  like,
39:54I'm so sorry. like, why? It's not your fault. Right. It's like, even if you don't just don't like it and fine with it, but  you know, so  she doesn't bash me for it. She's like, well, you know, she just she supports the farm. But it's like, I don't know. I feel very strongly where  it doesn't matter what you want. Like.
40:20There's enough people in the world that we all can support each other. Yes, and we should. So I'm going end the podcast episode with that because we should all support each other. I think that that is a really good way to end it. Everybody  try to support each other. Try to be encouraging. Try to help  because it's so important.  Dawn, I really appreciate your time today. Thank you so much.  Thank you for having me. All right. You have a great day. You too.  Bye.
 
 

Valor + Harvest

Today I'm talking with Daniel at Valor + Harvest. You can follow on Facebook as well. 
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00:00You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters, and topics adjacent. I'm your host, Mary Lewis. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like, subscribe, share it with a friend, or leave a comment. Thank you. Today I'm talking with Daniel at Valor and Harvest. Good afternoon, Daniel. How are you? Doing well. Thank you for having me.  Oh, absolutely. I live for you people to talk to me. This is what I...
00:27I spend my life doing lately, so thank you for being here.  So tell me about yourself. Well, actually first, tell me what the weather's like, where you are, where are you? So we are located  just north of Cincinnati, Ohio, behind Kings Island Amusement Park, if you're familiar with that.  Well, I'm not, but that's pretty cool. And what's the weather like there today? The weather is, we'll say mixed, so we have partly cloudy.
00:54and sunshine mix between the two. It's very windy out there, probably right above freezing.  Could be wrong. Ohio weather is very hit or miss this time of year. So  it was snowing last night. I think it's supposed to be  60 or something tomorrow. So it kind of gives you a  overview of what we have around here.  We're in that spring crazy weather pattern right now. Yeah. I'm in Minnesota, but I grew up in Maine.
01:22And my dad used to say, if you don't like the weather, wait a minute. And,  and Minnesota is like that too. And honestly, I think every state is like that.  So,  okay. So we've done the weather report from Ohio. Yeah. Ohio you said, and Minnesota this morning. tell me about yourself and what you guys do.  Yeah, absolutely. So we started Valor Plus Harvest back in October.  We are a bath and body company.
01:50We initially started with candles.  We have soap coming, also beard oils and other items.  So the very basics, that's what our company is.  We're a veteran owned small business. So I'm a Marine Corps veteran. I served in OIF 1 and 2, straight out of high school. What's unique about our company is first and foremost, our products are made with,  we try our hardest to get all locally sourced ingredients.
02:18and Made in America products. It's very hard, but that's what we're going for. And what's really interesting about our company in totality is the end of the day, we give back 10 % to veteran organizations. So I know you're not familiar with Cincinnati, Ohio, but we're very close to the  Disabled American Veterans Headquarters. That's our organization that we donated to last year. That's the  national headquarters for all disabled American veterans. you know,
02:48Not only do we create a good product and what we're striving for in our space,  we also like to give back and that's at very high level, that's our company.  Fan, I would use the F word, I-N, tastic, but I'm not going to do that because I don't do that on my podcast. My son was a, well, he says that once a Marine, always a Marine. So he's a Marine, but he hasn't been in service for a bit. He served for eight years actually.
03:17duty. Nice.  Thank you for his service.  Well, I don't know if I'm saying this right because I don't know a lot about how this works, but  he was  in the Marines for eight years. I don't know if active duty means like fighting with guns or it just means being in. Yeah,  same eight year contract for myself as well. So once a Marine, always a Marine. Still live by that motto, created really good work ethics and self-discipline. Yeah.
03:46I always joke that I started the process of growing him up and the Marines finished him. There you go. That's a very good way. I like that. Yeah. And he came back like a year after he  enlisted  to visit me specifically before the kids got home from school.  And we had a slightly rough parting of the ways  when he moved out  and he showed up at the door to the house that he grew up in.
04:14knocked and I was like you don't have to knock just come in to your house and sat down and first thing he said was I need you to listen and I need you not to say anything and I was like okay he said first off I'm sorry I said for what he said for being such a pain in your ass and I was like oh well that's that's okay I said I love you and he said I love you too and then we just kept talking
04:41It was the most beautiful moment of my life with that kid, swear to you. That's good. I'm glad you have that relationship. That's really important.  Yep. And I don't talk about it a lot because it's very,  it's very personal, but  I was scared to death that he would get killed when he enlisted.  And I, I'm not a praying girl, but I, I said a lot of messages to the universe saying, please keep them safe in that eight years.  And so.
05:08when he came out and he was okay. I was very grateful. Awesome. That's amazing. Yeah. Very tickled that he survived his eight year stint in a situation that could have gotten him maimed or killed. I was very happy to have him not in that situation anymore. So I don't want to keep talking about this. So you started this in October, you said? Correct. Yeah. October of 2024. So I mean, to give you some color about,
05:37background. I'm right around 20 years of in my career outside of the military. I have a bachelor's degree in finance, a master's degree in business. I've worked for some of the largest corporations,  global, national,  more so specifically in the financial services space. I spent some time in Washington, DC, working with the US Treasury. I do have a day job.  know, entrepreneurship is a big thing right now.
06:05And, you know, I think that I was steered like a lot of the early state millennials in my category. It was go to college or else.  And so I'm from that generation and I did comply with that. And it's not by any means a sense that I'm trying to bash college. I have a lot to show for my career, but there's something to be said about entrepreneurship and building your own brand.  And so that at its core foundation is also another
06:31very important part of Valor Plus Harvest and just everything that I'm going for. And it is a subset  of college. And I'll tell you,  we send our youth to college and we learn all of these great skills. And I feel that I've used  my more so my master's degree more in the last six months than I have over the last entire 15 plus years of my career.  it's been a really interesting process,  learning experience.
07:00You you're so used to going to a job interview and you know, they have a sentiment of the type candidate that they're looking for  And another thing that's so unique about entrepreneurship is there is no interview. It's you  You are the you are the CEO if you will  and so it's been very unique for me and it's a different road if you will  Now keep in mind, you know, it's very hard to replace a salary overnight,  but it's it's just something
07:29through this process that's been very, you know, it's all ownership, it's all you.  You have your support network and your friends and family, right, to your point of talking about your son. But what's really cool about this chapter and this company is it's just me, myself, my wife, and my family. And so that's what's been really neat for me  as a new entrepreneur over the last, we'll say, four or five months.  Yeah, have you had that moment of, oh my God, I did it, it worked?
07:58Yes, I will.  You know,  there's been a lot of milestones,  you know, classic Marine Corps  in me, just like your son, you know, we're trained to do  execute, get the job mission completed at all costs. Right.  And so usually at the end of the top of the hill, any type of mission objective or success milestones in the in the civilian career, you get this  sense of accomplishment. Right. And I'll never forget  right around.
08:27Actually, it was right on Halloween to be exact as I got my first order. And so I use  Shopify. I love Shopify for its integration.  It'll give an entrepreneur  get from A to B with very little startup costs. And I'll never forget that first feeling, that feeling that I had.  And it was so funny because the order, my first order was $52. And I said to myself, my goodness, this is the first time.
08:55in my entire life and I'm in my  early forties now that I ever just made money for myself,  for my own brand. And that feeling is something that I hope, you know, that, you know, no matter if there's other entrepreneurs that listen to this,  regardless of generation, I hope more people get to experience that because it is a sense of feeling of  self-pride. And, you know, you're taking all that school and all those things that society in America
09:23told you that you must do and you must have to  perform whatever job. And now you just kind of flipped out on its top and it's like, no, this is my route. And so it's been a  lot of fun so far this journey.  Yeah,  I do understand because  I have made things myself and sold them to people  and there was no middleman. It was just I made the thing, person bought the thing, I made money. It was amazing.
09:52But I have my first experience with me doing the job and getting paid for it back when I was 12.  my,  principal of my elementary school, if you can believe it,  wanted me to babysit her infant grandchild.  I was 12  and this was a baby, like maybe, maybe a month and a half old.  And she called my mom, she knew my mom. And she said, do you think that
10:22that Lynn, my nickname's Lynn, would want to babysit my grandbaby. And my mom was like, do you really think you want to have Lynn babysit your grandbaby? And my principal's name was Mrs. Mosley. I don't think she's with us anymore. I'm 55. I'm pretty sure she's not. And she said, well, yes, she's so responsible and she's so helpful and she's a good student, da da da. My mom said she's never babysat any kids except her younger sister and brother.
10:51Mrs. Mosley was like, all she has to do is come and be in the house for like four hours and the baby will be asleep. And if it cries, all she has to do is see if it's got a wet diaper and give it a bottle. I had never changed a diaper in my life. luckily this, this baby was perfect. Slept the whole time, never even cooed. And they came home and they paid me like $40. I was 12 years old.
11:21I was so excited. It started my babysitting career. Like I was never without pocket money from the time I was 12 until I graduated high school. Great. So I totally get what you're saying, but I was a lot younger than you are. So  it's really cool when something that you do, just you, gives you some form of satisfaction in that way. Yes. Yep.  So you said you're
11:49You have been doing candles, but you said soap is coming. Yes. Yeah. So another big important part is, you know,  the military connection. So both my wife and I travel a lot. We've been to a lot of countries  in our lifetime. And so,  you know, what's unique about our products is we try to make them with the least amount of gradients possible.  So I could go on a whole rabbit hole of what's in most of the candles that you get at the store.  So.
12:17Way too many things.  Way too many things. A  lot of,  you'd have to be a chemist to basically understand or maybe even pronounce in totality the word that's in there that makes the scent. So our candles are all Clean Scent certified.  We use organic products  sourced in America.
12:37But yes, we have soap coming, but it's the same song and dance from an ingredient standpoint. usually like to use an analogy for people of comparing it to a TV dinner instead of going to your local produce section in your local grocer. So our products would be from the produce section in comparison to the large cap companies that create TV dinners. If that gives you a good analogy of where we're going.
13:04We have soaps that are coming. They take six weeks to cure.  sure do. Yes, they do. We went through two months of trial.  We also have beard oil. So I have a couple of partnerships. have a very large selection of that.  There's already a couple on my store existing and a couple in the pipeline.  And then at the local level here, when we get doing some of our booths later this spring, we'll be selling locally.
13:34sourced honey. So it's not something that I'm going to have  ship nationally, but for my local booths, I will have that. So that kind of gives you the realm of my products, if you will, and where we're going. it's very, it's, you know, and back to the  travel piece that I mentioned. So last year we went to France  and I'll never forget the lotion that was in our hotel.
13:57And I looked at the ingredient, I'm like, my goodness, this smells so good. And I'm not usually big on hand lotion. I'm a guy, right? I'm considered a sitter. And I started saying, well, man, why does it smell so good? There's three ingredients on it. Right.  And so I started doing this compare and contrast. And so that was really last year was when I really started to see how a lot of products in this country, you know, I don't want to talk politics, but
14:23There's just not a lot of regulation, no matter if you're talking food or you're talking any other form of consumables. So,  you know, up the road here, we have an old  school that was  vacated, a lot of towns, and they repurposed it into a small business shop. And in there, you'll actually find a lot of similar companies that are similar to ours that all make locally sourced products.  There's a big market right now for
14:50detergents that you wash your clothing in.  You can go down a rabbit hole with that. So  every industry with time kind of ebbs and flows. And I think that, you know, from a consumer standpoint,  more so in the  millennial population and Gen Z, not to say baby boomers or not, but I really think people are paying attention to the sourcing of their products, the ingredients of their products.
15:16And kind of looking at that from a sustainability issue and saying, do I want all of this in my product? It smells really good, but is that right for me?  And so that's really where a lot of this is going when we started to create our business is we've seen the trend, we support the trend and we want to kind of be  produce a good product that's good  for consumers.  And so we've had
15:43pretty good success. actually been extremely surprised  even to be sitting here on a podcast in the month of March  with being started in October.  did an interview with the Jar Store, so we're going to be featured on our supplier of our American-made  vessels for our candle line.  And it's been a good experience this far.  Fun. I'm really glad that it has been.
16:09because sometimes you start a business and it seems like nothing but roadblocks and doorways shut in your face.  And I'm not, I'm not saying that happens to everybody,  but it can, and it can be really, really discouraging. Now I have a couple things to go back to here. I don't want to talk politics either, but anybody who's in America right now might want to really look at where they can get things  locally.
16:36Correct. Because of the terrorist situation. That's all I'm going say about that. Plus if you're shopping locally, you're supporting your neighbors and your community. So do that. It's good for everybody.  Yes.  Number two,  beard oil.  I don't like beard oil because I have really sensitive skin and if my husband has it on his beard, it makes my face get all red and blotchy.  Yeah. If he kisses me and I really like it when my husband kisses me. So he doesn't use beard oil.  But
17:05But if he needed to use some kind of beard oil, because for whatever reason,  one of the things that I have found is coconut oil is really good for beard oil.  Like the most basic beard oil ever, and I don't have any reaction to that. So that's all good. But I know that there are people who absolutely love beard oil because it smells good. Yes.  Yes.  And then the third thing I was going to say, because I was going to say at the beginning of the podcast episode, and I forgot to mention it,
17:35I have been doing a sort of every other episode update with our chickens that we just got four weekends ago this coming weekend.  They are just starting to lay.  My husband, my sorry, my son who still lives here brought in 10 eggs from 12 chickens this morning. Nice.  Yeah. So anyone who's been following along with the, many eggs did we get today? It's 10 out of 12 chickens today.  I am so excited. I cannot tell you.
18:04Nice. Yeah, that's a good thing to have. Right now it sure is. It's like gold. Yeah. Yeah. We've seen a lot of chickens too. That's one thing for international travel. you know, chickens are to any of your listeners,  sustainable source of protein  for multiple reasons.  They're a good thing to have.  I do. tell you on the downside, they, are a lot to clean up after sometimes. You also have to watch out for predators.  grew up in the outskirts of the big city. So.
18:32You got to watch out for the fox and the coyote  for Mr. Chicken, but they're really good to have.  And we're really lucky. The coyote is like our neighbor's property far more than ours because they have more animals than we do.  So when I hear the coyotes early in the morning,  they're always sounding like they're over by the neighbor's property, which is like half a mile from us.  And I'm like, I'm so sorry if they're losing critters, but at least they're over there and not over here.
19:02Yeah, it's something to pay attention to.  probably a matter of time.  Yeah. And our chickens get locked into their coop every night and  they have a chicken mansion. have one of those,  uh,  those sheds that you can get at like Home Depot or Lowe's. It's the  vinyl stuff.  And, and they actually have a lot of room right now. Cause we had, I think 30 chickens at one point that all went in there at night and now we only have 12.  So they have.
19:30They have more room than they can possibly use and they seem to be very happy. So we're,  we're tickled to have eggs again. had chickens until last fall and then we got rid of them because they were getting old and not giving us very many eggs and we screwed up because you're supposed to stagger the new chickens every two years. You're supposed to get new, chickens.  We didn't. So they were all the same age and my husband didn't want to feed them through the winter. And  he said, do you mind if I just call them? And I was like, no, that's fine. And then chicken.
19:58the eggs prices went up and I was like, God damn it.  So we now have new chickens and they're beautiful and they're producing and I'm so excited because  like I keep saying on the podcast, store-bought eggs are not great. I've actually said store-bought eggs suck.  So very excited, meant to mention at the beginning, didn't do it so I'm saying it now halfway through. Do you guys, where do you guys live? Do you live in a house or an apartment or on land or what? Yeah, we have a very big house.
20:28Yep.  And we're on a half acre. do live in a subdivision, but we have a lot of space.  There's three of us. So we have a pretty big house, a house that we're going to own for a long time. Very fortunate. So I think I mentioned at the start that we, you know, we've spent time in Washington, DC.  We both used to work there.  We backtracked here to  Southern Ohio and we wanted to start a family and just be not in the limelight 24 seven.
20:57I'm very, very fortunate.  But on the house front, I'll tell you, my first house was built in 1901. So  it's just that classic thing. Very similar to a car, if you will.  Think about back to your first car  and just kind of teeter totter with time in your life.  Yep, for sure.  And  do you mind if I mention the third person in your household?  No, no, absolutely. Yeah. So we're new parents.  baby, yeah.
21:27new baby. And you know what's funny is we've started this venture. I think that's a really good thing to bring up. So right before our baby was born is when all of the stars aligned for our business. Time management is very important. So I'm a basement dweller. I'm the type person, I'm not sure if you've heard of the analogy, but I know what your nine to five is, but what's your six to 10. And so
21:55To answer that, it's twofold. One is parenting and second is growing this business. And so I do it in the wee hours of the night, whenever the feeding's done. I've even came down here at 3 a.m.  just because I have a new idea for a new scent or product.  so we're currently in our basement  and we're scaling fast and it's been,  you know, it's been extremely hard. So I've been told no more times that I've been tied.
22:24told yes,  but each no is one step closer to a yes. And so that's kind of how I look at things from a business standpoint. And, you know, it's been a good journey this far and a long way to go.  Uh huh.  Yup. Exactly. And honestly, you're in the new high of having your first baby. So  that energy that you have is fake.  It's fake energy, but it works. Yeah.
22:52I mean, I look at it a sense of I have another excuse to get out of bed each day. And so, you know, I've been very driven from a career standpoint and, know, it's always, you know, you start from the ground up like most people I think do. And so it's nice to have another reason to get out of bed and be somebody in the United States right now. So it's a good source of motivation. I know it's challenging, but I've loved, it's kind of like the poke the bear analogy. Each day I'm like, yeah, you
23:22don't have an option to not get up now, you're getting up.  So it's been great. really am an advocate of parenting.  And where I was going into it initially, I  was not as excited as what I actually am and have been. So it's been great.  Uh-huh. have three. I have four children, three of my body.  One is a stepson, but he's the child of my heart. He's the one that was the Marine. Okay.
23:50When they put my daughter, my firstborn, in my arms in 1989, I  thought to myself, wow, 18 years is a damn long time.  And I was brand new. I had no idea what I was doing. I was 10 days past turning 20.  And my husband was older than I was and he already had a daughter. So he was a huge help at the time because he had already been through this thing.
24:18When the day she turned 18, I was like, oh my God, 18 is a blink of an eye. And it's so funny how your perspective changes. So what I'm going to tell you, even though you're near your 40s, or over or under 40, but what I'm going to tell you at 15 years older than you are is enjoy every single moment with that baby and then that toddler and that preschooler and then that elementary school kid and then that preteen and then the teen.
24:47And then the young adult, because you don't get them back. Yup. So, so soak it all up dad, cause, cause you gotta take it while you have it. Absolutely. Time is of the essence, right? Can't replace time. No, no. And take all the pictures you can, you can possibly store in your hard drive on your computer or in your phone and keep them. Absolutely. Because that little baby they put in my hands and in 1989 is now 35 years old.
25:15And she is a full-grown, fully-fledged, gorgeous woman. And  every time I see her, I'm like, how did this happen? Yeah. That's good. And I don't want to make podcasts into parenting advice because I get into this a few times every few months with people on the podcast, but  it's important. If you want to be fulfilled as a dad, you got to do the work and you got to be in it and you've got to...
25:43value every moment as far as I am concerned.  yep, absolutely. Just like a career, right? You get out what you put in. Yeah, absolutely. My youngest son still lives with us and I still, he does things and I just like make a bookmark in my head  of  this is one of those moments where it's new for him, which means that it's new for me to watch him do something new. And I just take like a snapshot in my brain so I can remember it.
26:14And he's 23. You know, would think I would be past this, but I'm not. He's still discovering new things, which is fantastic.  So anyway, how's your wife doing? Is the baby a girl or a boy?  A girl.  Yes, my wife is doing very well.  She started going back to work.  yeah, very blessed.  Looking forward to,  we haven't...
26:37gone on a... so my wife does a lot of travel. She's gearing up for her first back-to-work travel, which is going to be interesting, but I'll tell you what, FaceTime is a very big friend of ours in a lot of households, I think. I mean, I can't tell you how many times... back to the formula, I forgot what formula she wanted me to get and just pull up FaceTime in the store and there you go. But yeah.
27:04Everything has been really good in that, in that sense. know, back to Valor plus Harvest and everything, it's just gives us a new reason to get up each day and get out there and press it our goals.  Yeah,  absolutely. You have all the reason in the world to do that.  You were saying  back in the beginning, how awesome it is to be working for yourself.  Yeah.  The other thing that is involved in working for yourself is remembering that you are the face of your brand.
27:34You are it.  whenever somebody tells me they started a business, I usually very gently say, just remember that from now on, every interaction you have with another human being  is the impression they have of you, which means it's the impression they have of what you do, which means that if they talk about you, that you want it to be good. That's right.  And so I'm not being nearly as gentle with you because I don't have to be.  You are the brand.
28:01That's right. You are the brand. I think that from a responsibility standpoint, that is one another thing, you know, I don't want to bash corporate America. Like I said, it's been a good experience for me, but a lot of times, you know, we have so many filters to go through to get from A to B, rightfully so to protect the brand, right? You think of big corporations that there's filters there for a reason. you know, back to, think, what are we, what I talked about the early state, you know, I've always
28:30been in that realm of, know, there's a pass through, need to go, you know, to get to B, you have to unlock these codes and go through these approvals. And so  it's really been a wake up call. And I've used my degrees that I went to school for more so now than ever. And it's really something. I also do a lot of speaking.  I'll keep the organization  private, but I'm a part of a professional organization where I serve in the president's role. And one of the parts of our
29:00engagement is community outreach and also next generation training. So I talked to a lot of  college students and entrepreneurship is a big topic right now.  Brand equity is a big topic.  A  lot of parents that, excuse me, a lot of students that watch their parents dedicate 20 plus years to XYZ company  missed a lot of birthdays, things of that notion. You can't, back to what we talked about, you can't replace that time.
29:30And at the end of the road, come up short of the company or there's a mass layoff and their parent dedicated their entire life to this company. Right. So I guess that's another point I'm trying to stress about entrepreneurship and what's neat. It's like, yeah, we all can fail. But you really have more, I guess, opportunity from an entrepreneurial standpoint to, to pave the way for the next road.
29:57Where at the large cap companies don't necessarily have that option  You're absolutely right and I will tell you why I say that  My husband worked for a rather large company for almost 30 years  And he had had it back  two years ago  this month actually and he came home from work on Friday and he was very cranky and Saturday morning he got up and he was still very cranky
30:26And we were sitting outside on our porch and I said, um, what's up? He says, I need to quit my job. And I said, okay. I said, I've been saying that for five years. So are you actually going to, are you actually going to quit your job?  And he said, I think I am. I said, no, that's not good enough. I said, are you going to quit your job? And he said, yeah.  I said, okay, what's plan?  He said, we're going to make this place go now.
30:53This place is a tiny homestead, where we live, it's a three acre hobby farm basically. Nice.  And uh, we had a...
31:05We had a farm to market garden going. You know, that was what we've been doing. We had done a CSA for a couple of years. We had chickens  and  he was like, I can sell stuff at the farmer's market and we have, can sell eggs and we can make, we can make our soaps and our candles and our lip balms and stuff in more quantity and we sell those.  And I'm not going to lie. My first thought was that is not going to be enough money  and come to find out it wasn't. He actually got a job that.
31:36that same year in October,  but he took six or seven months to get his head straight and to take a mental break and do what he loved to do. Yeah. And it really helped him. So just because he's no longer just an entrepreneur  doesn't mean that it didn't help. Yeah. Absolutely. Yeah. I mean, it's such a
32:01important topic, know, mental health, you know, when I first started my career, it was all about composite. And if you came to me and said that you're going to pay me $20,000 more to join your company, I wouldn't even before you could even tell me that I would already respond to you with a yes. throughout my career, I've learned that, you know, think shift. Money is not the only thing. Your purpose in life is also
32:29different as well. example, back to the DC analogy, I worked extremely hard, made a lot more money, but my quality of life was the worst it's ever been. actually am a pretty fit person, always been into the gym, athletic community. I started to acquire high blood pressure  and  gained weight. And it's like, is your XYZ salary worth what it's doing to you from a physical standpoint on your life?  And so it's so hard and it's,
32:58It's going to continue to be hard. don't want to sugar coat things because, you know, I could talk for hours about global competition, but it's true. It's like the playing field. Yeah. I was used to, I like to use the analogy of the Olympics.  The rest of the world is catching up.  Rightfully so. And so it's going to continue to be a constant challenge.  But you just really have to dig deep and, and then follow your North star and do what's right for you.
33:26But  it's very hard for a lot of people right now.  Yeah.  You have to want it. Whatever it is, whatever your it is, you have to really want it. Yeah.  And  do what it takes.  Yeah,  exactly.  And like with this podcast, this podcast started out as  a placeholder because my youngest was going to be moving out and I didn't want to go through empty nest syndrome without something to focus on. Yeah.
33:56And  I was like, yeah, I'll do a couple of episodes and see how it goes. And it probably won't do anything. And a year and a half later, it is the thing that I love  to do.  is my favorite thing  during the week to line up interviews and talk to people because there's people like you.  There's people who are coaches. There are people who are just growing food. There are people who are raising cattle.  It's never the same. It may fall under the same umbrella, but it's never the same conversation.  Awesome.
34:26So I kind of really love it. I want to keep doing it. So this is my it.  My husband's it is the growing plants and growing chickens and getting eggs. I'm not as into it as he is. I will cook any of that stuff, but he can grow it. It's all good.  So anyway, Daniel, I try to keep these to half an hour and I'm sure you have a baby you'd like to go snuggle. So I'm going to catch you loose. But thank you so much for your time today.
34:53Thank you so much for having me.  encourage people to check out valorharvest.com and be on the lookout for our future products.  And thank you for having me and you know where to find me if I can add value for you long-term, maybe follow up with me in a couple of years, see where I land.  Oh, I would love to do that.  All right. You have a great afternoon. You too. Bye.  Bye.
 

Tee’s Kitchen

Today I'm talking with Christi at Tee’s Kitchen.
If you'd like to support me in growing this podcast, like, share, subscribe or leave a comment. Or just buy me a coffee 
https://buymeacoffee.com/lewismaryes
00:00You're listening to A Tiny Homestead, podcast comprised entirely of conversations with homesteaders, cottage food producers, and crafters and topics adjacent. I'm your host, Mary Lewis. If you're enjoying this podcast, please like, subscribe, share it with a friend, or leave a comment. Thank you. Today I'm talking with Christy at Tee's Kitchen in Louisiana. Good morning. How are you? Good morning. I'm doing well. Good. So what's the weather like in Louisiana this morning?  Oh, it's...
00:29Actually, it's raining. It's raining here, kind of humid, muggy, the typical Louisiana weather. Okay, well, it's like 35 degrees, I think, here in Minnesota and the sun is just pouring through the window. Oh, wow. I'm a little jealous. Yeah, so we're kind of on opposite ends of the spectrum, but that makes sense considering how far north I am and how far south you are.
00:56Okay, so did the obligatory weather report. This is a thing now. I do this on every episode  and tell me about yourself and what you do. Well, my name is Christy. I'm from South Louisiana, as far South as you can get. I'm married to my high school sweetheart  and we've been married for 20, 25 years.  And we have two, I'm a boy mom. We have two boys, an 18 year old  and a 10 year old.
01:24I'm an elementary teacher, so I currently teach third grade in the charter school system.  And I also have, I guess you could call it a business,  T's Kitchen,  which kind of started out as a,  I would bake from my home. slowly kind of got away from that lately because I've been so busy, but  now I mostly do, like as my side gig, I do social media. And so I do  cooking videos and.
01:52Sometimes I work with brands and so I enjoy that social media aspect of my life, which is more of a hobby, but sometimes I wish it would be my full-time job because I just love it so much.  Yeah, I'm discovering that  media content production is really fun. Who knew? It's so much fun.  Yeah, I mean, I'm not doing videos, but I'm definitely sharing my voice and other people's voices. And when I started it,
02:18I was really nervous and now I just sit down and like, hi, how the hell are you? Let's chat. Right. Me too. I was so nervous at first too. I wouldn't even show my face. Like I would just show my the food, you know, and then slowly I started showing myself and becoming more vulnerable and I feel like people really connect to that, you know. Well, I think your face is adorable. I watched a couple of your videos and you're really good at it. Well, thank you.  Yeah.  Okay.
02:45So we need to stretch this to half an hour about what you do. We're going to talk about your videos first. Your videos are really  good. Like  your diction when you talk, you are so clear, which is really helpful if there's actually like something you're trying to get across on how to do something. That's helpful.  And you're always smiling. Whether you want to be or not, you're always smiling. I think it's beautiful.  And some of your videos are funny, but
03:14a lot of them are just really interesting.  thanks. Wow, what a compliment.  you know, we're always  our own worst critic, you know, so  I don't sometimes it's funny to  see how other people's people, not people's other people perceive you, you know, so that's such a compliment. Thank you. You're welcome. And believe me,  I am always my worst critic.  I listened to the podcast back before I released them, obviously, to edit them.
03:42Some of them I'm like, I don't know about that one.  I'm not sure I want to put that one out.  And I wait, I wait like a couple of days and I sleep on it then I listen to it again.  I'm like, I don't know why I thought that was bad. It's fine. There's nothing wrong with that.  I know, I know. And sometimes, you know, whenever you think something is terrible, other people really connect to it. And I don't know if it's cause it's, you're a little more vulnerable. I don't know, but  some of the videos that I release and I'm like, the next day I'm thinking, Oh, I shouldn't have posted that.
04:11I get the most comments or the most private messages from people that were like, I'm so glad you shared that. I'm going through that too.  yeah.  Yeah. The episodes I  really get tweaked about when I'm doing this  is if somebody says something that makes me tear up and you can hear it in my voice, and I don't like hearing my voice like that.  Yeah. I'm like, that's a real reaction.  It's important that people realize that
04:41I'm human too, so. Right, right. Yeah. I've done my fair share of crying on social media.  I'm really glad that it's not video from mine because I have the worst ugly cry face you've ever seen. no, that's not going to ever be seen on a video on the internet if I can avoid it.  Okay. So are you in gumbo country? We are. We are.
05:10So where I am, I'm actually located in Vermillion Parish. We have parishes here.  And it's referred to as the most Cajun place on earth. So  and the food here is, I mean, everybody thinks of New Orleans and I love New Orleans. But when you think of Louisiana, you think of New Orleans and the food is just different here. It's  I think the food is much better here personally.  I don't know. That's just the.
05:38The people around here know how to cook and men and women equally that we,  they all cook, you know? Yeah. Is, is barbecue a big thing in Louisiana? Uh,  not,  I mean, we do barbecue. love it on Sun. Usually people will do it on Sundays, you know, when the weather's nice in the summertime,  um, not as much as we cook rice and gravy around here.  Um,  so yeah, barbecue.  I mean, people do it, but it's not.
06:08the most common thing here.  Okay. And I would say we do it, but we don't do it as well as other like Texas does it a little better, I think.  Okay, cool.  Um, you said, you said rice and gravy.  Um, my, one of my sons,  uh, came to visit like, I don't know, a year or so ago and he made sausage, gravy and biscuits. Ooh, yeah. And that's,  I hadn't ever really had it before.
06:36He put a metric ton of black pepper in it and I'm not a fan.  And so I really wanted to love it and I just couldn't get past the black pepper. And I ate like two bites and he was like, you don't like it. And I said, I think I do like it. I just think I would like it better if there wasn't as much black pepper in it.  And he was like, oh, that's eight years in the military for you. And I was like, yes, I'm sure you a lot of black pepper.  So like, I don't know, six months ago.
07:05I said, you know, I'd like to maybe try making my own sausage gravy and biscuits.  there's this sausage we get from a local store and I love it's breakfast sausage and it's really good. It's not peppery. It's not super sagey. It's just this really nice blend of seasonings.  Right. So we had a pound of that in freezer. was like, I'm going to try my hand at sausage gravy and biscuits. Yeah. That is my number one like favorite breakfast sausage. Yeah. I love that. like it. I like it for dinner.
07:35But anyway, made some and I used this this smokehouse maple seasoning in the gravy and some salt. And oh my God, I loved it. And my husband loved it. And the kid who still lives here loved it. And we just had that the other night for dinner. And I was like, I don't know why we don't have this more often. And then sweet and savory sounds good too, you know, love sweet and savory.
08:00And then after I ate dinner, I was sitting there on my phone doing something for the podcast and I was like, Oh, I know why we don't do this more often. Cause it's really heavy. Right. I was like once a month, every two months in the winter time. Awesome. And the summer, maybe not so much. So yeah, food is, I am so glad I'm talking with you this morning because food is such a gift and it's such a, it's such a thing that brings people together and everybody can relate to it.
08:30So when I saw your videos and what you do, was like, yeah, I to talk about food on Saturday morning. know. And that's why I think that's why I love to cook and I love to bake. And I think that's why. it does. It brings people together. I guess it's, and I always say this, like my husband and I laugh and we're like, food is our love language. It's how I show my love. Like that's instantly, if I want to make someone feel better, I cook for them. That's my way of showing I love them, you know?
08:59And  I've lost most of my family,  you know, now. And so  when I make their dishes or I make their recipe or certain things that I'll eat, it just takes me back and it reminds me of them. You know, so I think it does. It connects so many people together.  Yeah, absolutely. I actually told the story that is a representation of that for me  back months ago on the episode, but I will, I will shorten it and share it with you.  My mom's mom used to make.
09:27what she called Christmas candy every year. And she would make like peanut brittle and divinity and  buckeye candy and fudge and just stuff that she  would make. And she would send us like a 30 pound box of  Christmas candy  for Christmas.  And she had Alzheimer's or  whatever dementia, whatever they called it.  And she was no longer with us by the time I was,  oh,
09:5730? Might have been before I was 30. And I adored her. She was this little tiny lady and she loved everybody and she was a fantastic cook and she was fun. And she loved flowers, she loved peonies  and like she was just this sweet little lady.  And so  back about 15 years ago, I was like, I want to make grandma's candies and I want to send some to my  family for Christmas.
10:22Yeah, and I made grandma's candies. I didn't make all of them I didn't do peanut brittle because peanut burles kind of a pain in the butt Yeah, I didn't do divinity divinity is also a pain in the butt to me. did I did her little chocolate bonbon candies and I did Potato stick candy. I don't know if you know what that is. Yes Yeah, did that and some fudge and a couple other things and I sent my parents like a 40 pound box of candy
10:48and said, divide this up between you two and my sister and my brother and  your friends.  And they still had candy in the freezer  that following November.  Oh, wow.  But it was really, really neat using What a special thing.  Yeah. So I think that if you're raised in a family where someone in the family before you  makes a certain thing,
11:15It's really kind of fun and really kind of important to try making it. Yeah,  I agree. I agree because like I said, most of my family,  they were great cooks. Both of my grandmothers were amazing cooks.  My mom was a great cook. My dad didn't as  my dad worked, you know, away a lot.  So he didn't cook as much as my mom, but he had like the best fried chicken.  And to this day,  and that's
11:40kind of how T's Kitchen, like more the cooking side developed was because I wanted to preserve those memories. But, you know, once he passed away, it was kind of sudden and kind of traumatic. And I just, we realized like,  none of us actually watched him fry the chicken because I was inside helping my mom with the mashed potatoes or whatever.  And he was outside frying chicken and none of it, he never wrote his recipe down  and it just, we don't have it. And so I said, you know what, I'm gonna
12:09I'm going to video myself. I'm going to make sure like my husband and I have been loosely working on a family cookbook for a couple of years. And I'm like, I want my boys to have that. I want them to have those memories because, you know, I wish that I still had that.  still like my mom recently passed away  of dementia in October,  excuse me, September. And,  you know, there's things that  I'm like,  I wish I wish I knew how she made this or
12:39recipes that I can't find, you know,  because it's true. Like, and I guess that's why I love food and cooking so much. It involves all your senses, you know?  So it's like the most vivid memories revolve around food. So take, you know, once, when I have things that my mom made or my dad or my grandparents, it reminds me so much of them. So I want my boys to have those memories, you know? Yeah.
13:04Have you ever tried making something that you hadn't tried making before that really brought back memories and you're just standing there chopping vegetables crying? Oh, yeah  It happens to me often  especially recently, know, cuz cuz both my parents are gone, but Yeah,  so many things like and you know, I was scrolling through  Facebook yesterday or day before and  I was scrolling and I came across a
13:32I don't know you've ever had this, but it's like an apple salad. So it has apples, raisins, and maybe just mayonnaise, I think. my mom, I have not had that in, my mom used to make it when we were kids. And when I saw it, I'm like, I haven't had that in over almost 30 years. And it just instantly took me back, you know? And I'm like, okay, I have to make that. Yeah. I think it's called Waldorf salad. I Yeah. Okay. What I've had. But yeah, it has, and it has walnuts in it.
14:02Oh, okay. See, mom never put walnuts, probably because we didn't like nuts as kids.  And it was so good. And I guess the sweet and savory, I'm a big fan of sweet and savory, like I said, but  I was like, okay, I have to make that. But it instantly just took me back to my childhood.  Yeah. And you were saying you want to make sure that you have a family cookbook put together for your boys.  I've done that. I have actually made, I've done  the little binders with the pages and put the recipes in them.
14:30for my boys. I have a daughter, she's the oldest and I have three boys after her.  And my oldest boy  kept saying, kept calling or messaging or emailing and saying, how do you make this? How do you make that? Cause he remembers me making it.  And I finally was just like screw it. And I literally put together a binder with the recipes that I have and sent them, sent it to him for Christmas one year.  Oh, how nice.
14:56And he sort of kind of knew it was coming because I asked him what recipes he really liked from when he was growing up. And he got it and he called and he was like, thank you. Now I don't have to keep asking you all the time.  Like,  exactly. it's just, it's a, it's a really simple thing you can do for your kids. Yes. And they do appreciate it. Whether, whether they're like  really excited and
15:23Yay, thank you. This is amazing. Or if they're just like, thanks, you know, they appreciate it. Right. Yeah.  So, um,  I was at my mom's funeral and my, call them parent. It's my godfather. So my godfather, he's really shy and reserved. And he came sit next to me and he said, you know, I have some,  uh, he's probably trying to make me feel better. He said,  I have some recipes,  uh, from my mom, from my grandmother. And he said, would you like those?
15:52And I'm like,  of course, I mean, that's like gold to me. I'm like, yes. And he's like,  I need to get those to you. I'm going to get those to you. But I have a, think he said recipe cards or whatever, and I'm going to get those recipes to you.  We really still haven't connected to do it, but  I mean, it was like, okay,  instant, like my heart just burst, you know, like  that was his way of trying to comfort me. And he knew that  I loved food. And so I can't wait to get those recipes and, and start
16:21digging into that, which I'm kind of curious to get because my grandmother was actually legally blind.  someone else must have written those recipes for her. So I'm kind of anxious to get them and see what it's like, because most of the things that she cooked and are baked, she would just feel. would, know,  and she didn't measure really well. She used the coffee cup  to measure.  So it should be interesting.  so this brought up, I need to see about that.
16:49Yeah. when you,  if and when you get them,  make sure that you scan them and save them in your computer. Oh yeah. In case something happens, the actual hard copies, cause that would be terrible to lose those. Right. I know that's true. The other thing I was going to say for you and for the listeners is that  people don't live forever. We know this. So if you have, if you have things like  you want to know what your grandma's recipe for brownies is  or
17:19family history or any of that.  Ask now while they're still here. Yes, yes. I know. So on my dad's side of the family, his only living sibling is  he has a sister.  And I was telling my cousin the other day, said, you know, we really need to one day I sat down with her and we had coffee and I'll do we'll do that every now and then.  And she was just telling me all kind of information that I never knew about my my my family, you know, and
17:45I'm like, I need to go back though, because now I'm like, I'm 45. So my memory is not great. Um, and it's been a rough year for me. So I think that's having that's a little bit having to do with the memory loss, but I need to sit down with her. And she was like, of course I said, I'm going to bring a notebook and I'm going to write down all these facts because she just has, she's getting up in age though, and her health is not great. So I really need to do it soon, but, um, she is a wealth of information and she has a great memory. So.
18:15I I need to make it a point to sit and  write all that down because now I mean once  your family starts passing away, it's like I'm almost in a panic, you know,  I do know because my dad's mom passed away when he was two. He never knew his mom.  Oh,  and my grandpa was so madly in love  with my grandma that it just it just killed him that she died so young  and he never really talked about her.
18:44He just couldn't. And then he remarried.  And my mom, when my grandpa passed away, my mom went up and helped clean out his house and she found a box  of cards that had been sent to my dad's mom when my dad was a baby. And little notes about what a pretty baby Calvin was. Things like that. That were so precious to have.  So I do understand that
19:13you gotta ask the questions now. And we didn't have the opportunity to do that because  she was long gone by the time I was born.  But yeah, there's just, I mean, I have a whole extended family on that side of the family out there somewhere and I don't know how to get hold of any of them.  It's hard. It's really hard when you know there's that potential but there's just no way to make that connection. Right. Right.
19:41It's so important though, because that's, you memories are,  you know, you have to preserve those memories, especially, you know, as you now I appreciate things that, you know, at the time I thought were so insignificant. And now I just, I really, and I'll talk about this sometimes on, on my stories on  Instagram and Facebook,  like just little things will just, you think they were insignificant at the time, but it just triggers an instant memory, you know? Yeah.
20:09My youngest likes to make baked beans and my mom used to make Boston baked beans. And so when my youngest, who's 23 now, when he gets the beans out and he actually, he gets the bags of beans and he soaks the beans overnight and boils the beans to soften them and they make baked beans.  And when he makes it, he puts that molasses in there and all I can see is my mom  in her kitchen making Boston baked beans.  Right. Yes. It's like, dude.
20:39I'm so glad and so not glad that you like making these.  Exactly.  So, and the other thing that I really want to say is you guys cooking  is not as hard as you might think it is. No. And I feel like the first step  in cooking for anybody  is learning how to boil water because there are people who have burned a pan boiling water. Oh, wow.
21:07Yeah. Because they don't know. They don't know that they have to, you know,  watch for it to boil. Right. once it boils and you know, you know, sort of where that mark is,  you know, it takes about this many minutes for this big a pan.  And then you can move forward to like boiling eggs. So you have hard boiled eggs. And  the easiest way to make hard boiled eggs for me  is I put five eggs in a small saucepan and I cover them about an inch over the top of the eggs with water.
21:36And I bring that to a boil and then I let it boil for 10 minutes and then I shut it off. Oh yeah. That's how I do it. And if you can boil an egg to hard boiled for egg salad or deviled eggs or whatever, you have officially cooked something. Right. Right. So it's, not that hard. is, it is being able to follow directions, pay attention and then eat what you made. Yeah. And I think, you know, a lot of people are intimidated, but you just have to get started and
22:06you know, some of them,  when I receive compliments from people that say, oh, I didn't realize you make it look so easy. That's just like, that means the world to me because  I want people, I want it to look easy. want, I don't want people to be intimidated. You know, you nowadays, it's like, we have to, you have to learn how to cook for your family. You know,  um, it's, what brings people together. So you have to learn how to cook for your family. And  like you said, it doesn't have to be complicated. It can be so simple.  Um,
22:36But you just have to kind of take that first step, I guess, you know? Yes. And the most simple cooking is not any harder than reading the back of a microwave  dinner box that says, that says peel the plastic back,  put it in the microwave, set the timer for two minutes or whatever,  take it out, take the plastic off, put it back in for a minute. You have food.  If you can do that, you can cook. Right. Right.
23:03And I'm not trying to be snotty about this because I know that a lot of people just literally think they don't have time to cook. there are some people who may not have time to cook. They may have a full-time job that's 60 hours a week and have four kids at home who want to eat the minute you walk in the door. I get it. But you got to make time for yourself. And one of the most pleasurable things that I do for myself is cooking from scratch. Yeah, me too.
23:32I love it. And I think it's because it's  for me and I always say that it's  sort of like therapy for me. You know, when  I'm cooking, I'm not, you know, worried about anything else. It's kind of relaxing. I know it's not like that for everyone, but  it is for me. It's like therapy. Yeah. It puts you in this zone where you are focused on  one task. And when you're focused on one task, it's really hard to worry about other things. Yes.
23:59I love that part. really do. love the cooking zone.  Okay, so you're an elementary school teacher. Yes.  Yes. So do you talk about cooking and food with your students?  Not so much. I don't, um, some of my kids, like they'll note it, they'll, they'll figure out, I guess that I'm on social media, but I don't really advertise it. You know, I don't say too much about it.
24:24But  that is  something that I would like to somehow figure out how to incorporate more of. Like every now and then for years I've done, like for Mardi Gras, we'll do homemade  king cakes and I use, know, Pillsbury,  just the cinnamon rolls out of the can and I show them how to make a king cake and we've done that.
24:44You know, little things like that. Last year, I was, they asked me to be on the local news and I did like a cooking segment. And so I had to miss school for that. And when I came back, I guess the other teachers were talking about it and the kids were just like,  Ms. Christy, show us, you know, show us the videos. And so I did show them  those, but, and they were so excited to see their teacher on TV, you know? But I really, I don't, kind of, I've been, I've kept that.
25:10part of my life a little more private, you know,  but I do want to figure out a way to kind of incorporate more of that into the classroom if I can. Because it is an important skill and I don't think, you know, don't think nowadays I don't think they teach enough life skills at school.  They do not.  I guarantee you they do not. I I know that we don't, we just don't, you know.  Yeah, it would be nice if they did, but they don't.  So you were on TV. How was that for you? It was
25:39It was amazing and it was live TV. So I was very nervous at first, but  the host was just so he was great. so I just did, I'm trying to think of what it was. Oh, it was Valentine's Day treats for mom. was like a mother's day special. And so I had to come, you know, and I would sort of prepare the food.  I mean, it was quick things. They didn't have a kitchen. So I would just kind of show it was showing kids how to make little treats for their mom for Valentine's Day.
26:08And was so much fun. That sounds like a ball.  I would have  been nervous as a long-tailed cat in room full of rocking chairs. I hate being on camera.  But yeah, that does sound like a lot of fun. And you are so bubbly and so personable. I'm sure that it came across really great.  Well, thank you.  OK. Well, what's on the horizon for your cooking stuff in your  social media?
26:38Content creation thing you got going on.  Oh gosh, I don't know, you know  I'm just I'm at a point like I said, I've kind of  I wasn't as consistent this year just because of the hard year we had  with social media,  but I'm kind of in a good place where I'm just  I guess I'm a little bit more vulnerable and  Just being more authentic on social media. That's kind of my thing. Like I'm not one to
27:05follow the trends and that's probably why I don't grow as fast as other people. just not,  don't want to force anything. So if it's something that I'm not comfortable with, I don't really do it.  So I just kind of go off of, and most of the stuff that I film, it's truly what we're having for dinner. Like I film what we are cooking. And so it's not, don't plan content, I don't do any of that.  But  I would like to expand it.
27:33My goal, one of my goals is to teach a cooking class, whether it be online  or in person. I'd really love to do a kids cooking class. And I've been talking about this for a year and I just have not been able to make it happen because of location and all of that. So that is probably one of my goals that I really want to work on is starting that, like  doing some kind of cooking class.  Um, and I really would like to, you know, collaborate with more local Cajun.
28:01brands or businesses. love promoting local businesses.  there's actually  it hasn't been announced and we haven't really figured out all the details, but I do have  a collaboration and working opportunity with a new local business  that kind of like encompasses all of what Cajun food is all about. So I'm excited and I really hope that it pans out.  So I have that going on and  I don't know. just
28:29I'm just kind of, I've been praying about it and you know, cause I was stuck for the longest time and I've just been praying and saying, you know, just I trust in you and show me what I need to do. What is your purpose for me? know?  yeah. Okay. So I, I try to keep these to half an hour, but you just gave me another question to ask you.  Um, so I know very little about Cajun cooking. I, I know about, um,
28:56uh, Cajun blackened chicken and I'm not a fan, but that's because I've had it in Northern States. Who knows how it is when it's cooked the way it's supposed to be cooked.  So what makes Cajun food Cajun food? Is it a specific set of seasonings? What, what makes it Cajun?  Well, most Cajun dishes we, do have our own, um, they have cayenne pepper bits.  Most people think that Cajun food is spicy and I would say it's really not.  It's just got such a good.
29:25I don't know. It's got a good, it has a little bit of a spice, but it's, it's a great flavor. Um,  so I think first and foremost, if it's Cajun, it's gotta have the Cajun seasoning, which is usually like salt, cayenne. We don't use a ton of black pepper, but some, some Cajun seasonings do have it. Garlic. cook with a lot of garlic  and most dishes start with onions, bell pepper, celery, and people call it the Cajun Trinity. know? Miraflour, yes.
29:54So  it starts with that, but Cajun food is,  I would describe it as more country. Like people in this area were just poor and they lived off the land. know, like  my family, like my boys hunt, like we, hunt and they fish and it's, you know, we have a lot of seafood and you  know, we boil seafood, we boil crawfish, we boil crabs.  Like I said, most around here, everybody cooks rice and gravy.
30:24And that's basically like Cajun people would take their tough cuts of meat. They would brown it and they would throw in onions, bell pepper, celery, you know, or what really whatever they would have in their garden is what it would, they would use.  And you just braise it. You cook it low and slow for a long time and they serve it over rice because in this area, rice is a major crop and we have tons of rice farmers.  um, you know, it was a cheap way to just, okay, whatever cut of meat they had or seafood or whatever.
30:54you would just cook it in a gravy and it stretches the meal and it really, you you can just kind of cook it while you're cleaning or doing whatever, let it just cook on low  and serve it over rice and it stretches the meal and it just feeds a lot of people.  So I would say Cajun food is just humble country. We eat a lot of rice, a lot of seafood just because we have it available, a lot of wild game. We even eat alligator like.
31:21Just whatever is available. Like in my freezer currently, it's, I don't normally buy a whole lot of meat from the store, maybe chicken,  sometimes pork, but it's mostly a lot of wild game and a lot of seafood is what we have.  Very nice. I'm so jealous. spice is just, oh, it's amazing. Like there is nothing like it. And if it's done well, it's, you know,  it's really, really good.
31:46I'm so jealous of the seafood. grew up in Maine. I could eat seafood whenever I wanted to and I didn't like it. And now I'm an adult.  I like it, but I can't get my hands on good seafood in Minnesota. Gee, I wonder know, we're so spoiled. We're spoiled. And now I see people eating like  the imitation crab meat and I'm thinking,  don't get it. Like, why would you eat that when you have crabs available?  but. Because it's the same thing as people who eat Miracle Whip versus people who eat real mayo.
32:16Right. Yeah. think it's the same thing, but it is not the same thing. It's not.  It's not. And I guess we're spoiled. We're so spoiled because we're used to having crabs. I mean, we went and we caught crabs a couple of weekends ago and we had that. That's what we had. And it's like, most people would be so jealous of that. know. Me? Yes, me. I would be jealous of that. I am jealous of that.  So is gumbo like...
32:43I haven't really had it. it's kind of like a stew over rice. you serve it over rice, but it's a little thinner  than a stew. So  it starts off with a roux, you just, but you brown the roux really, really dark. Okay. And then you add the onions, bell pepper, celery, and then  you add enough water and your meat. Like around here, we do different, like everybody thinks that
33:11um you need okra and gumbo. Around here it's a little bit different. So we'll have a chicken and sausage gumbo or we'll have a shrimp and okra gumbo or we'll have a seafood gumbo.  You know sometimes we have okra in it sometimes we don't.  So yeah it's like the same flavor of a stew but it's a little more watery I would say. Okay.  And you just serve it with rice and then we always have potato salad with it.
33:39Oh man, you just got me. love potato salad. too. Summer's coming. Potato salad is our thing in the summer. So I'm looking forward to that first. Yeah. Brat and burger and potato salad and fresh cucumber from our garden. That'll happen in I know. I can't wait for the fresh vegetables.  Oh, I can't wait. My husband usually... I have a brown thumb.
34:02But I love when  he's got the green thumb and his garden is always amazing and I cannot wait for those fresh cucumbers and tomatoes.  Me either. I got four months to go, ma'am.  Oh my God.  Yeah, tomato. Good tomatoes in Minnesota in the wintertime.  Real hard to find.  I would think so, yeah.  Yeah. Yeah, there's a company I keep mentioning them and I need to let them know I keep mentioning them.
34:30But  they have  hot house tomatoes that they grow here in Minnesota in the big greenhouses.  And usually hot house tomatoes are not great.  These tomatoes are fantastic. They actually taste  almost like the ones we pull out of our garden in July and August. And I love this place. And so if I'm going to do like a bruschetta thing  with the basil and the,  can't talk,  the olive oil, balsamic vinegar,
34:59tomato, garlic, basil leaves,  and  mozzarella chopped up in it  on toast.  I'm going to get tomatoes from that company from the store because they are the best ones.  yeah, you definitely need to mention them.  Like you said, let them know you mentioned them.  Wow. Yeah, I talk about them a lot because they're the only game in town for a decent tomato in Minnesota right now.  All right, Kristy.
35:25Thank you so much for your time today. I pushed it to 35 minutes.  I'm okay with that though.  Thank you. you again. This was so much fun. I'm so, I'm so honored that you invited me. This was so much fun. I'm so glad you had time to chat with me.  You have a great weekend. Thank you. Same to you. All right. Bye. Bye.