Some Exciting News and a Product Update

Some fun and exciting news. .. 

Today, we will be be delivering some product samples to a local honey company! We are sure hoping that the products do well for them, and that this becomes a lasting partnership. That makes this That makes this a good time to answer some questions that we get a lot, just for your information!

These are stick lip balms. This version is a Chocolate Hazelnut Honey variety. The ones in a stick are a little harder than those in a tub, but generally the same ingredients, We have a host of different kinds that we can make, but usually make them to order. What you see here has honey, beeswax, cocoa butter, hazelnut oil, dutch cocoa, glycerin and vitamin E.  Good stuff. Some of our best sellers are actually tub or glass vial roll-ons. We do a lava lights one in many flavors, and some with chocolate cherry, chocolate mint, mocha, etc. If you are looking for a flavor you love, or specific essential or extract oils, let me know, I may just have a great recipe.

This basket happens to contain two types of soap and some lotion bars.

The soaps, because this is for a group that specializes in honey are two types of our oatmeal, goat's milk and honey recipe. The oatmeal serves to calm and cool sensitive skin. The goat's milk is tremendously nourishing, and goat's milk, as it is close in composition to human breast milk, is better utilized by our skin to nourish and repair it.  The honey is great for those with sensitive skin or acne or rashes. Surprising, but true! There are a variety of oils used, including cocoa butter, and several others. Specific recipes can vary a bit by the requests in a given batch. Don't hesitate to put in a request for a whole small batch just for you! This basket has a plain (unscented with essential oils) version as well as a holiday spice variety, which has clove, cinnamon, orange and nutmeg essential oils mixed in at trace to help get you ready for the holiday season. I even threw in one peppermint soap. True peppermint essential oils are outstanding for opening up the sinuses when you have allergies, and the good stuff won't set off those of us with sensitivities to chemicals. Some folks like the spearmint or eucalyptus for this, but the peppermint is the most popular these days.

What can I say about lotion bars? GOOD STUFF! Typically, lotions take some wonderful oils and do a few things. The first, the frequently use alcohol so that it evaporates and make you feel as though it is soaking in, though it is actually drying your skin. Second, they almost always thin the oils with water, then thicken them with corn starch derivative to keep them thick as well as oodles of preservatives. Since it is the chemicals and preservative that my family cannot handle, and I take issue with genetically modified corn, we take a different approach. We begin with local beeswax, filter it an extra time, and then add pure cocoa butter, and a variety of pure oils and butters, essential oils for aromatherapy and vitamin E for a natural boost to the skin and to help with shelf life. Again, oils can vary greatly. While coconut oil is a fantastic base, some folks who have sought us out because they know we are glad to individually formulate cannot have that, or cannot have another oil. So these recipes vary some, and we try to keep a couple different recipes in stock.

I know, that is a LOT of information!. But feel free to ask ANY questions you may have. That is why you would work with a small local company that specializes in serving the individual needs of the customer in a natural way that supports the health of the customer and sustainable agriculture!

Catch-up Day!

I took this photo leaving the farmer's market last night. Hard to believe that market will only be going through February. We are thinking for the time being, I will put more time into our own farm stand before committing to another market.

The sunsets certainly are beautiful!

While Bailey was at her town class today, I got a few errands run, checked on a friend, and got a little time for cardio! It was only 2.5 miles on the elliptical, but I was so thankful to do it with all the ways I have barely been teaching classes and students and athletes since I got sick a couple weeks back.  Moderate intensity, but consistent, a good step back so soon I can do more!

I knew I had made these and set them aside, but it took me until today to find them to go with another project.  Sometimes I feel certain I could misplace my own head if it weren't attached!  And all because I put things where I think they will be safe and easy to find...

Some of the plant cuttings I had rooting were ready to be transplanted.  These are a couple of them, but also two mint plants and one of the red leafed house plants I have somehow kept going since one of my clients, who was on the Game and Fish board, gave it to me years ago in a glass jar, just a cutting with a beautiful root mass.

These are all new plant cuttings in water for the next batch of mint and house plants to filter the air.  It is hard to see, but there are still a couple jars on the left where I will start some more mint. I have a special experiments I hope to try with the mint in the coming months!

One of the many things that I lost track of when I was sick for a couple weeks in there was the sprouts. We dumped the remains int he compost late last week and let the containers dry.  On Monday, I set the first batch of the containers in to soak.  I finally got them clean early this afternoon, and got the last of them in to soak.  I am still hoping to switch to different trays soon, my friend and I are planning a trade for soap, but she is as busy as I am and on the other side of town, so we ar working with the prototype models for now!

I had started the Barley soaking on Sunday after church, so those went in to three of the cleaned sprouting containers to start.  When we were recently out working on the goat projects, we checked out the sprouting setups of a few of our friends, and Charlene mentioned using a splash of ACV in the first soak to combat the growth of mold in the sprouting system, so we are trying that too, this time. We will let you know how that works for us =).  Have any of you tried that?

These are the next jars of Barley in their first soak.  They will be started Friday night, I hope!  A big thank you to Lynn for the tip of using the plastic needlepoint canvas in the jar rings for straining and keeping unwanted visitors out while soaking.

Also finally got around to candling the egg in the special hatch in the incubator. Unfortunately, the ones we have had in there were infertile, though we have several in there to hatch for ourselves. The six little ones in our brooder- three Brahmas, one Buckeye and two Silkies are doing well.  Wyatt also has new roosters nearing the end of their time in the quarantine pen. They have beautiful plumage on their heads, so we are looking forward to seeing what they bring to the line here. 

These are this yer's strawberry plants- yummy!

And the bright beautiful moon above us tonight had me wondering when the full moon would arrive for this month =)

I had the random idea that in this area along the side of the house, I would like to have additional asparagus patches and lavender. The melons I tried last year didn't work so well, so I figure this might? We shall see. But I needed a more defined space, so I took some scrap wood and made a little planter space for the asparagus starts I brought home today.   I ran out of daylight, so I will do the other little patch tomorrow morning!

I think I mentioned back when we had our first freeze, that despite the really nice frost cover, our pichu plants took it pretty hard. The stalks were still green, so we were letting them limp along and try.  Earlier this week, I was beginning to lose hope. But then, after transplanting the rooted cuttings and making the asparagus patch and beginning the watering...

I found new leaves!  Now I will need to share them on one of the gardening pages, because I really don't know when to cut back a Pichu plant!  Wyatt loves the fruit, so I have several saved to pull the seeds out of, but I really hope the plants we have can make it through the winter. 

The boys also worked on Wyatt's Science Fair project- a cycle powered generator. It is beginning to take shape, but now tomorrow Wyatt needs to try to resurrect an old laptop to try to power with it, and look up answers to some of the questions that are coming up as they work. The paper is also requiring some attention!  Wow, so much to do, but we are plugging along as usual.

Well, I suppose it is time to get the laundry rotated and the dishwasher started, and get some sleep to get on to the next part of the list tomorrow!  Hope you all have a great night!  Love to all.

New Arrivals at the Market Today...

Three new (or newly restocked) soaps have made their debut at the market today out in Marana:

Coffee with Sweet Orange, Cinnamon and Nutmeg Exfoliating Soap

This exfoliating soap uses coffee grounds for sloughing off dead skin cells, while olive oil, sunflower seed oil, coconut oil and avocado oil cleanse, nourish and soften the skin. Sweet orange, nutmeg and cinnamon essential oils bring aromatherapy and a great wake me up!

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Lavender-Mint Castille Soap

This soap is for the purist among us, who love their olive only castille soaps.  We get a lot of special requests from people who cannot have any nut based oils, even coconut, so we always try to have a true castille variety available for them. Lavender and Peppermint are great essential oils year round, and make a great combination as we head into fall and winter.

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Orange- Vanilla Dreamsicle Goat's Milk Soap

This refreshing soap helps us hold on to the last beauty of summer, but embraces the luxury of goat's milk soap with avocado oil, sunflower seed oil, coconut oil, oilive oil, grapeseed oil and goat's milk. Sweet orange and vanilla essential oils bring a beautiful finish that might just have you thinking of ice cream popsicles.

Got any special requests? We are in a big restocking phase right now, so we would gladly put yours on the list!

Vegetarian and Vegan Soap?

I get a lot of questions about soap on the blog, at farmers markets, and elsewhere. Some folks are content by the notion that all products are natural, and wherever possible, locally sourced. Along with that, there are a lot of questions about whether our products are all natural, vegetarian or vegan, and what that really means.

All Natural
All Natural is one of those terms that leads to misleading information more often than not. I cannot tell you the number of times folks have asked me at the farmers market, "Is this all natural?" At that point, I want to launch into educating people, but also try to be mindful not to go too crazy.  As far as a legal definition from the feds...

 The FDA stated:

“Although the use of the term ‘natural’ on the food label is of considerable interest to consumers and industry, FDA’s intent was not to establish a definition for ‘natural’ in this rulemaking....   The agency will maintain its current policy … not to restrict the use of the term “natural” except for added color, synthetic substances, and flavors as provided in [21 C.F.R.] § 101.22. Additionally, the agency will maintain its policy … regarding the use of “natural,” as meaning that nothing artificial or synthetic (including all color additives regardless of source) has been included in, or has been added to, a food that would not normally be expected to be in the food."

In the case of Patriot's Dream products, the bath products, including soap, lotion, lotion bars, etc, began because our eldest child was allergic to synthetics and preservatives. So even in the cases where you might expect such, they will be omitted on our products, because we expect more from ourselves and the performance of the products we provide. Curious as to what is in something or why we chose to put it there? Just ask! We are glad to make it public!

Vegetarian
Vegetarian is of special import to a number of our clients.  Sometimes folks are opposed to all animals products, sometimes only some products, sometimes to animals fed in certain ways. It is widely accepted that vegetarian will not include products which include animal fats or similar items, but that eggs and milk from animals are considered acceptable. In the case of soaps, goat milk is considered vegetarian, but not vegan. Some folks will like the goat milk, but only if the animals are fed organically or corn free or with other specific diets. Curious? We are open to these discussions, and it is important to honest with our clients! Just ask!

Interested in the origin of certain products? Shea butter comes from a tree in Africa, Cocoa butter comes from a plant. Olive oil comes from a number of sources, but we only use extra virgin, because this is the type which has been scientifically linked to the real health benefits.

While some folks love Emu Oil for their skin conditions, it is rendered from the fat of Emu at processing, so it is definitely not vegetarian or vegan. The same applies to lard and other animal fats often used in soap making, and for some these are excellent options, but not for all. You may find something listed on the site which was originally made as a special request for a customer, and the leftover is still available, so if in doubt, please ask and let us know what your concerns and restrictions are so that we may serve you better! As we often say, we love special requests, so we are glad to accommodate individual needs.

Also read on to the caveats of some less commonly known products rendered from animals in the next section.

Vegan
As I mentioned before, vegan means no milk, eggs, etc of any type from animals. While milk is fine in vegetarian soap, it is not permissible in vegan soap. There are some oils which, while they seem vegetarian or vegan, may involve processes in the rendering or acquisition of the oil which would not be considered vegan.

What names should you watch for? Tallow, suet, and lard are pretty straightforward. But there is more to it, things like oleic, palmitic, stearic, palmitoleic, linoleic and myristic acid can be sourced from animal fats or vegetable fats. If you have concerns, ask. I typically only use straightforward oils in our soaps, as this allows me one quick glance to know EXACTLY what is in a bar or bottle when helping a client at the farmers market.  

I don't believe I should ever need to hide anything from a client.  That is not why I do this. As a rule, I need to be able to look at any product, or my child should, and know whether she can use it safely.  She has me to interpret the label. My clients, or those they gift products to, may only have the label.

Wondering about other label items? Post as a comment, message or email me, and i will tackle that in a coming post! I am so glad you all give me the opportunity to have the privilege of serving you! Have a great night!

More on the law and all natural here:
http://www.natlawreview.com/article/does-fda-have-definition-natural-or-not

How many ways can you make 1?

We keep pulling out the fraction manipulatives.  Anything to make something where you can see it. This is sitting at the farmers market, finding as many different ways as possible to equal 1.

And for those of you who like to use scissors when putting together a puzzle- and you know who you are-the math behind the pieces had to work, too! 

More about our Giveaway Prizes!

The other day we introduced you to the first two of our giveaway prizes- our handmade all natural soap and special Patriot's Dream tote, as well as our all natural lotion bar and Patriot's Dream tote, shown off by two of our little friends, fluffy and baby.

Also in this giveaway, are a feathered hair clip,

and handmade crystal earrings!

Who couldn't use a little pick me up on a Monday?

We will be announcing winners on Labor Day Monday, so you have this week to enter, and some entries can be put in daily!  Have fun, and please share with friends to give them a smile, too!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Another day, another round of fun!

Crazy morning! Perhaps this would be a bad time to admit that  Wyatt and I slept WAY in until almost 7 this morning!  Oops! No wonder the goats were so mad at me! Bailey has them spoiled, and they all know the does eat first. I, on the other hand, often stop at my spots on the back porch first, checking on the babies who love to knock their food and water over early in the morning, where the goats have already heard the door, and then I fill up chicken feed buckets on the way to the goat pen.  I think they will be very excited for Bailey to come home at the end of the week!  Until then, they share the mama of the house =).

This is the hen who thwarted me while both children were away a couple of weeks ago. She set up shop with six eggs in the loft up above the the nesting boxes in the big pen poultry barn.  Wyatt took me out there shortly after he returned, and I really had no clue when she had set up shop up there, so we decided to let her hatch them out, if her interest remained. It has been over a week since then, so I am guessing her interest will continue.  Not a safe place for babies, though, so the babies will end up in a brooder inside.  Unless anyone wants a few very inexpensive, mixed breed babies to hand raise...

When the temps here hit 110 for several days straight, the yellow pear tomatoes drooped, and despite my efforts, they are not coming back.  That was less surprising than this pichu fruit plant, the smaller one of two we raised this year, which collapsed the other day. One section broke off, then the whole plant flopped over in a day.  It is looking like a loss, just as we are getting the first fruit off of the other one. Can you believe this plant was four feet tall and three feet wide a day before this photo was taken?

We have been experimenting with several herbs and grasses and the like in preparation to build salad bars for the chickens.  Today, they got a whole thing of wheat grass. I was going to trim more for smoothies, but with Bailey away, Wyatt has been opting for eating whole fruit more, and it seemed better to let them enjoy it than let it go overgrown first.  Again, spoiled livestock at Patriot's Dream! 

And, of course, Roja had to stand in the flat to claim it!

With the roof repair on to the next stage in the Brahma pen, I took a few minutes today to work on the obstacle course project.  This is a balance walk up.  This is pretty low, and there will be a higher/ steeper version soon, but with a flat walking board.

The stump on the left in this photo is for balancing on, one legged squats, etc.  I imagine the kids will find many options for it!  The two logs just beyond will be for lateral agility jumps.

Shadow Paws offered to serve as quality assurance inspector.

This would be my cause for complaint lately. An empty  water trough.  Rain seems to skirt right along the south and est sides of town, completely passing us by.  Please, rain, come to our house!

I set up to give a chicken a bath, but the water was too hot, and never cooled down before I had to pack up to leave for the market!  I will try again tomorrow, though.

Shadow took me back out to discuss a hole that concerned her. She promised to watch it for lizards until I fill it in.

I am working on a new planter. I lined this one with plastic as an experiment. I am thinking of starting beans in there later in the week.

Shadow climbed up on my bed to help Wyatt with his school work. I think he just encouraged her so he could ignore his math a little longer!

This would be the mess I was making, working on reworking the farm stand sign. I think I know how I want to make it work differently now. The chalkboard paint didn't work, so anywhere I want to use the chalkboard paint, I will put a middle layer of lacquer to see if that helps it last better. This pallet will be a list at the bottom of the sign, and will only have blackboard on one side.  Hopefully I get more done before the next rain, but tempting the rain isn't beneath me, either!

This portion is ready for the lacquer layer. Things take a little longer to dry this time of year, so I will do the lacquer come morning.  I like the way the white on blue stands out, so will likely repeat that in the list sign.  Do you agree?

Well, after this, I rushed off to a quiet day at the farmer's market, and still have far more to do than time to do it in.  Honestly, once Charlie's uniform is ready for the dryer, I will probably give up for tonight. The alarm will be going off early, and it is about time I got on track with a little more sleep! You all have a great night, and an even better tomorrow!

There has been an herbnapping,,, and other ranndom goings on around here...

With the heat so dramatic, I have been waiting until the sun is down before watering the plants in the evening.  It is truly funny, just how little I can notice.  In the number of times I head off the back porch, that I hadn't noticed until watering time that the entire dill plant had been completely removed, with just twigs left in its place.

There has been an herbnapping!  Seeing as how my sister is a police officer, shouldn't there be a formal to-do here?  Hmmm... top suspect include the squirrels, little grey birds and rabbits.  So busted, they are, so busted.

 

 

Well, seeing as how there is really not much to do outside of plant more dill, I guess it is good we have lots of pickles made!  As I was continuing with working, I couldn't help but take a couple photos of the beautiful solar gazing ball Charlie and the kids brought me for Mother's Day. The colors of the solar leds reflect beautifully off the wall, and the tomato plants on either side of it leave beautiful streaks.

 

This is the new farm stand sign I have been working on.  It still needs a little work, with leveling and being visible and a few details, but all in all, it has the old time feel I was looking for, and I will keep at it until it works. I think the leveling will be first, and raising it up just a bit higher, and then a few more details. Any thought to make it better?

 

This is a close up version of the same photo.

 

Well, I am pretty tired, so I guess I am off to get a few things done tonight before bed.  Have a great night!

 

 

Pima County Fair 2013- The Heritage Poultry Project

From the time that Wyatt and I kept getting sent tot he poultry section of the petting zoo, to Wyatt earning his first chickens, then Bailey joining the poultry project so that Wyatt could sit in the back and learn along with her, the Patriot's Dream poultry journey has been a winding one.

The year after our first chickens arrived, Wyatt and Charlie talked Bailey into trying the meat pen project in 4-H.  We knew it would be a learning experience, and we had no idea how right we were!  

For those of you who have raised the cornish rock cross birds, you already know they are a laboratory created bird which is designed for optimal meat production in a short period of time.  These birds do not live long enough to lay eggs and cannot reproduce naturally.  The commercial poultry industry standard is for them to live 49 days from hatch to slaughter, and are almost exclusively the chicken you purchase as a broiler or fryer in the marketplace, regardless of whether you purchase organic or not.  In the 4-H project, those birds are brought to fair at 6-8 weeks of age.  After that first year, Bailey spent some time researching better breeds, as those fast growing created birds might put on lots of breast meat fast, but come with their own set of stomach and skeletal issues.  She tried newer, slower growing breeds the following year, and then turned the project over to Wyatt Clay.

Last year, he incorporated the project into his science fair project, and raised White cornish rock cross meat birds, slower growing red broilers (often called red rangers) and heritage Delaware birds side by side.  The birds all went to fair, with special permission to take the Delawares as a demonstration project, and judge felt that they all would have been competitive, but that he started them all at the same time instead of on the timelines for them to be ready at the proper timing for each breed.  But the county premium book was set for  the 6-8 week line, without provisions for heritage breeds.  The white broilers he took would win grand champion, and earned Wyatt a new record in his first year at auction.  And now, he wanted to do more.  

Armed with knowledge and experience (and another trip to regional science fair competition), he looked back at the Delawares and didn't really like how their color had help up in the Arizona weather.  He selected Brahmas - light and buff- and Buckeyes to try for the coming year.  He also liked their finishing weights, and egg size and color, so that extra hens would do well in the laying flock and extra roos could fill out his business goals of the meat.

It turned out hard to time the number of birds he needed for hatching on the fair schedule, so he ordered in more, and the buff Brahmas had color variations that he thought could be a problem for uniformity, so in the end two pens of light Brahmas went to fair a little over a week ago.

The birds were unmistakable. When you looked down the line at meat pens, heritage and otherwise, you really noticed the light Brahmas.  There were regular cornish rock cross meat pens, sure, and some of those looked better than others, but those just sit and lay around, and have no personality   There were other heritage pens, too, but it was the first year these heritage projects were allowed so it was a learning curve.  There were some beautiful barred rock ones, which earned the reserve champion heritage slot, as they were perfectly uniform in weight and one of Wyatt's Brahma pens was off by a 1/4 pound.  But the color didn't stand out quite the same.  That really showed Wyatt that he was right about the light Brahmas over the Buff Brahmas.

This is Wyatt Clay with his Champion Heritage Meat Pen plaque and blue ribbon.  There had been a lot of apprehension about this first year of the project, but the youth did a beautiful job, and educated the public, too!

These are Wyatt's heritage meat birds in the pre-auction viewing area.  He was so excited.  Apparently, the poultry judge had come through and spoken with several of the youth, then even bid on their birds in auction.  Talk about exciting for the kids!!!

A couple fo the boys from his 4-H club helped Wyatt carry the birds through the auction.  I love those big smiles!  I especially love that the youth work together so well!

Another special moment of excitement for Wyatt- not only did he have the Champion Heritage Meat pen inits first year as a project, the judge said it would have held its own again the regular meat birds had they been allowed to compete for grand champion, but the same duo of buyers who have been purchasing the regular broilers and bought at auction from Wyatt last year, still bought from him in the Heritage project!  Lots of work from the youth is really gratified in moments like this, and the fact that they remember him, and remember his letters and projects means so much to him in recognition of his hard work over time.

Next- this weekend, we will make some adjustments to the breeding stock for the qualities that did the best for him, and the not quite perfect attributes he wants to remove from the breeding stock to put in the laying flock.  I love that the hard work and a little success has him ready to work more!  And I guess now, the incubator won't be going back to the shed for a while. 

 He wants to get his timing down and incubators rolling to hatch all of his birds on a perfect schedule next year!  I guess no rest for mama just yet!