Local Purchases Bring Jobs

Hi Everyone!
I was looking for a pretty graphic, so if you have one, share it here for this topic...
A friend of ours, Kate, (THANKS KATE!)
Shared a statistic with me that if every American bought $64 worth of their holiday shopping from small, local businesses,
that it would put 200,00 people to work.
Now that's buying power!
We have long been proponents of buying American, reading tags and labels.  All of our glassware is American made, and as many of the other items as we can.  We are also deep into the work on our own sustainability project.
So I welcome cool graphics to illustrate this, and I am sharing the thought.  And I will certainly make sure that around here, we at least reach that number in our holiday purchases.
Have a great night!

Giving Tuesday

Hello, it has been a while!

Life has kept me running, and of all of the things I have thought about sitting down to write, this is the first time in a bit I have actually set down to do so.

Following Thanksgiving, many observe Black Friday, a shopping frenzy.  I have never enjoyed shopping, so I am glad to sit it out and enjoy the family time of the Thanksgiving Holiday, though this year I did set up at a farmers market.  Cyber Monday is a great time to get the word out about the craftsmanship of our little business, so I try to participate.  But did you know this is said to give way to Giving Tuesday?

Many of my friends have their dedicated charities.  Our friends at the Hen House spent a good bit of time working toward raising money for a cancer hospital, and rumor has it they will be unveiling their next charity after the first of the year.  They are such a neat, creative bunch, so I am looking forward to watching them continue to make a positive difference for years to come!

Here at our house, we all have favorite causes and efforts.  Charlie and Wyatt love to go out on the Hunters Who Care desert cleanups.  I enjoy doing little things to support the work that my friends and family do for their favorite causes.  And I really enjoy the mentor work I do.  Bailey Noelle cannot turn down any request for help.  Often at the expense of things she really needs to do, she is always right there to help a friend, teacher, or community member.

So how will we look to Giving Tuesday?

To be honest, it will be a very busy day.  But maybe that is when we need to practice this the most.  The kids will think about what they would like to add into the drive the 4H club is working on,  So tha twill be good to put on the list for tomorrow.  And the farmers market for tomorrow is one run by the Community Food Bank, so 10% of the proceeds there will go to the food bank.

So, tomorrow, we will make an effort to give back.  But not only tomorrow.  So if tomorrow is a start for you, take time to think about what matters most to you.  And please don't feel as though your contribution always needs to be money.  What we give of ourselves is often the most heartfelt and precious.  And, if you have a favorite charity or way you give back, this is a great time to share in the comments or as you share the post.  Just food for thought, and a chance to see all of the amazing things folks are doing.  You all inspire me to do more and be more.  SO thank you all for that.  In this time of year, and all year long.

I look forward to the new inspiration of this discussion.  Love to all.
Erin

Compensating, who, me?

Do you sometimes feel as though recovering from injuries was much simpler when we were younger?  Maybe we spent more time on it back then.  After all, time was more plentiful before children, and all of the other responsibilities of life added up.  Or maybe instead of recovering, we were merely compensating.

I know I might sound crazy, but follow me on this.  I was speaking with a student after Pilates class yesterday.  She was talking about how some cues had her rethinking whether she could realign following an injury  She had been through therapy, and was doing very well in Pilates, but was beginning to think she would never be able to completely flatten and properly align through the pelvis due to the injury on one side. Somehow, during class, one or two of the cues found her a little closer, and beginning to engage the muscles to realign.  She was thinking by the end of class, that maybe patience and perseverance would win out.

She got me thinking.  I often catch myself feeling like some of these chronic issues are just here to stay, and being an older member of the fitness and wellness profession, that some of this was just meant to be.  Some of them are.

But also, when I spent those years working in knee research, folks came in for their first radiographs reporting that one side or the other was far more painful, when it was actually the opposite side which was shown in the x-rays to be more advanced in arthritis.

So maybe, just maybe, when I was training hard and working through the injuries years ago, they didn't just create chronic issues because I was working through them.  Maybe all of that compensating for the injures is catching up to me, too, and if I slow down, and use the power of the knowledge and experience all of this has given me, I can heal as well as I did back then.  Or almost, anyway.

Sure, this doesn't apply in all cases.  But the concern for the long term effects from compensating for the strong or week or tight side,is real.  And could be one key to unlock the door to more consistent training.

Just a thought.

First to Hatch

I mentioned these little ones in the previous post.  What a treat to get to see this one work its way out of its shell!  As the first time to have one hatch before our eyes, it was so fun to see that they really do make a line all the way around and lift off as a lid!  I never figured it was quite so tidy, and the shells have always been pretty beaten up by the time I have seen them.

These are the two little ones that hatched the first night.  It leave me with so many questions!  The chickens in that pen where the eggs came from are all Brahmas, some light, some buff.  So I am wondering if the dark feathers are going to go away on that one, or if there may be some darker brahmas mixed into the heritage of this line I have.  This should be fun to watch them grow!

They didn't have the litter yet a this point, I was having trouble getting the brooder warm enough, since there were little ones ahead of schedule!  Funny, they had no interest in the gro-gel, but that's okay!

We had to fix something in their brooder the second night, as their little friend was hatching, so Bailey took over baby-sitting duty.  They began by standing on her hand and talking to her very loudly, then took turns climbing up her shirt like a jungle gym and nestling in for quick little mini naps.

Once they were dried out and fluffy, the color difference is really noticeable!

Well, we will keep you posted!

Sadness and Joy

What a day...

This evening, Jalympics, a Rhode Island Red who has been with us for several years, passed away.  Jalypics was well known for being the chicken with Wyatt's knight costume last Halloween, visiting elder care homes to entertain seniors, and starring in a YouTube video stealing Wyatt's apple in the car.

Some of Jal's favorite tricks included sneaking into the house to take over the sofa, claiming the blue chair on the porch, and long talks with Remington.  She was officially named by one of Wyatt classmates in second grade.  Over the late summer, Jal had stopped sleeping in trees with some of her friends, and had taken to getting extra protein from Wyatt when she seemed more thin than usual.

 Jalympics had just snuck into the house yesterday.  We are never ready to see our friends move on.  They leave a mark on our hearts.  She has made us better chicken folks.

We were getting ready tonight, while remembering Jal, for a shipment of Brahmas and Buckeyes to come in tomorrow.  Part f the plan is to look at how the Brahmas and Buckeyes do, compared with the Delawares of last Spring, in our climate.  We are also breeding heritage Brahmas here.  As we were working away, Charlie heard chirping in the incubator where there had been no movement only an hour before!

We hadn't expected them just yet, and were behind with another project that we had been busy with all week, so the bedding is cold and outside.  We will add that in in the morning, so the little ones don't slip on the newspaper we use at the far bottom of the brooder.

Jalympics will never be replaced around here, but somehow God gives us new life to continue on the circle and keep us working and reaching for more.Please join us in remembering Jalympics, and in welcoming our new little ones!