Local Frittata

We have eggs up the wazoo right now. Our chicks aren't producing yet (October), but we've found some local sources so I loaded up.

There's a (non certified) organic farm very close to us, Windjammer Farm where I bought a few dozen. These were added to the two Larry Schultz cartons of eggs that I actually found at Cash Wise. My MIL brought me some "Fertile Eggs," from Fertile, MN then Freddy and I visited the Mankato Farmers' Market on Thursday (which seems like a decent market). I bought some eggs and frozen OG chickens as well as some produce -like a quart of homegrown strawberries for only $4! It was a good trip. In general, I'm still in the exploring stage of moving and, so far, that is really focused around food sources. I still need to make it to the new St. Peter Food Co-op. Maybe today if it rains.

I'm considering selling some produce next year at the Mankato Farmers' Market, so I talked it up a bit with the vendors there. It has been a tough spring for growers which makes me want to put up some high tunnels and do things with a little more control over the elements. I'm still deciding what it is I'm going to plant next year. I'm going to see how things grow here, and so far, everything is coming along wonderfully in my garden plots. That said, there is plenty of time for disasters to arise this growing season. Weather and bugs being the most feared culprits. And deer.

In the meantime I'm enjoying my food searching. Suddenly, I found myself eating an almost 100% local frittata for lunch yesterday which must mean the season is moving along. Eggs from Windjammer, asparagus and steamed nettles from here, green onions from the farmers' market, and cheese from Wisconsin. Not bad! If only I had used some local butter instead of olive oil.

Aside from frittatas we are eating eggs as swedish pancakes, egg tortilla wraps, and egg salad in addition to our scrambled dishes for breakfasts. We will have them taken care of in no time.

Naked Root Beer Break

We are officially back into the good old fashioned farm fun business!

We are able to catch our breath this beautiful Saturday afternoon thanks to all of the folks who helped us move and start some home improvement projects during the past two weeks.

Thanks, people!

We've torn out carpet, sanded floors, removed wallpaper, taken down paneling and even a wall. There are new chicks peeping in the barn. We've been harvesting rhubarb, nettles, and asparagus. There is a garden plot with new raspberry bushes, chard, kale, basil, herbs, and tomatoes. There's another garden plot with squash, pumpkins, cucumbers, zucchini, and melons. We have plans to invest in a tractor on Monday. My studio is again up and running, and Peter is studying away for the bar exam. Phew.

We are hungry and tired and ready for the next thing.

I can see why you're supposed to keep your stress levels down during pregnancy. I have been worn out nearly every day during the past month so I'm hoping things soon get, well, boring. Decisions like which lawn mower to buy are enough to send me over the edge. It's frustrating to "take it easy" when there is so much to do. But wow, even an hour of planting or weeding and I am shot. Freddy and I have been taking lots of breaks, though I haven't had a naked root beer break yet.

Chicks!

Runnings, our local farm store, won't have chicks for that much longer so we decided to just jump right in and buy 12 last weekend. Inside our milk house there are four each of Barred Rock, Aracauna, and Production Red chickens running around in Fredrik's kiddy pool. The plan is to get a coop built (by sectioning off part of the milk house with a little chicken door to the outdoors) this weeked (or next it is seeming).

Freddy wasn't 100% about the chicks. Their feet were too "pokey."

Crazed Farmer Talk

Peter and I attended the MN Sustainable Farming Association -SFA- conference at St. Olaf in Northfield last weekend. We were a little apprehensive about dipping our toes back into that world, the memories it might conjure, the strange welcome we might get from some of our old cohorts. As a young organic farming couple we were activists; someone even once called us "the poster couple of sustainable agriculture." We apparently still are the poster couple of sustainable ag, since our picture was blown up in the front of the auditorium as part of the SFA logo/letterhead. We are also on their website banner. Weird? Yes.

The conference was actually extremely motivating and enlightening. Mark Ritchie gave the Keynote and it was very encouraging. He stood in front of the crowd of activist farmers/chefs/retailers and talked about the importance of mainstreaming the ideas that a lot of us stand for- and in order to do that, we all need to become leaders and go out into the public with confidence and be heard. As the MN Secretary of State, he also talked about economic issues, the hard times, and the importance of entrepreneurship and small business. Good stuff to hear.

I also attended a workshop about local foods in both the city and country with Homegrown Minneapolis Megan O' Hara ( mayor RT Rybak's wife) and Dorothy Rosemeier of the U of MN program "Buy Fresh Buy Local." It was quite nice and frankly, overwhelming, to hear about all the hard work that has been put into local and sustainable food systems in Minnesota. I have always given credit to the farmers and consumers, but really, there are a lot of people in the middle that do a heck of a job bringing it all together. There are people fighting for grants to keep vendor fees at the Mill City Market affordable for producers, there are people (Homegrown Mpls initiative) starting mini- markets in high rise neighborhoods where poverty-stricken people don't have easy access to fresh groceries or even pots and pans. Kudos to all these people (including SFA!)

The conference did have an awkward point while we were watching a college produced movie about farming for the future (or something similar). All of a sudden, there was our farm on the big screen in front of us, with other owners of course, our old greenhouse and Toblerone...and what was the topic? The acquisition of the farm. AWKWARD! Could've used a head's up on that one.

Also worth mentioning about the conference, we are still quite skilled in "crazed farmer talk," the running at the mouth that happens when a farmer (who spends a lot of time alone) is asked how things are going. We will no doubt be back on a farm once again and we'll just be patient until then. And we'll take it easy. Just chickens for eggs. Veggies for ourselves and a small market business as a side business. And a CSA if it works out. And a goat maybe. We'll be over our heads and stressed out in no time.