Farmstead Update

Hey friends! How are you? Happy New Year AND we’re halfway through January already!! Things have been progressing nicely here on the farmstead. I have lots to update you on, so grab a cup of coffee and let’s chat! I’ve missed these sessions.

Classes and Events

Let’s start with the most obvious things. I’m still booking and hosting classes, for now. I will be transitioning away from these classes and events at some point in the future. I am working with the TN Small Business and Development Office in Anderson County to help me figure out the path forward. I’m hopeful that I will have more information in the coming months on where my journey is taking me. But. In the meantime, I am gearing up for some fun opportunities in January and February and will then close down the public group workshops.

I have two series of virtual classes available for January. We’ll see how they go and then I’ll decide if I want to book more for February. They’re a really cost effective way to take a class from me. You get a workbook or recipe with instructions, a live session, and then the recorded session after. Go check out my virtual series of classes. They’re meant to start at the beginning and teach you the building blocks and skills that you need to start, or grow, your own farmstead. Or learn new cooking skills.

Next up I have two workshops scheduled for January. One is herbal infusions at Ijams Nature Center. And the second one is my most popular class-Homemade Mozzarella. We’ll gather back at Hi-Wire Brewing on January 23rd for two make along sessions (6PM is already sold out but I have spots in the 7:30 session). Cheese making is so fun, so easy, and so, so rewarding. If you’ve wanted to learn how to make mozzarella, now is your time to do it! This is the last cheesemaking class I am booking. The rest will be private classes (more on that in a future post, but just know this is it for now).

Around the Farmstead

There’s been a LOT happening around the farmstead, none of which I took an actual picture of! My brother had some time off from work so he helped get some projects done. He cleaned the gutters, fixed the oven (the element went right before Christmas). We bought a new dishwasher and it was installed last week. Friends. I can’t tell you how glad I am to have a new dishwasher. I don’t use bleach (or paper towels). So when it comes to sanitizing things I like to use the dishwasher. I put the dog bowls in there. When I had chickens I would run their waterers through the dishwasher. I use it to do a preliminary wash on my canning jars. Plus I’m all about cutting corners where I can and it’s so easy to put dishes in a dishwasher and call it done. And it’s too early to tell but I think my water bill decreased by $10 this month! Could it be because I am not hand washing dishes?!?! Also, don’t get me started on having to pay for water. I haven’t ever lived anywhere where I had to pay for water! But, since my brother is in charge of water quality for the state of TN, I’ll give this one a pass. LOL.

We also, finally, had the door replaced where the house was broken into back in June. Friends. Do not go to Lowe’s for any household installation needs. It took several tries with them. And then they ordered the wrong door! But. They did give us a refund on a portion of the door. When we went to purchase the dishwasher, it was much of the same. They couldn’t figure things out. So we walked. And went to Home Depot. Which was a much better choice! They had the same dishwasher, for the same price. But, the difference? They could figure out how to order it and the installation was one week later! We also fixed the screen door that was broken during the break in as well. So, all in all, lots of things are getting done around the farmstead.

Oh! We also took down 2 trees and I staked the garden. It won’t be a big garden, and it will be all raised beds. But I’m excited about having some space for a garden this year. Did I tell you about Sow True Seeds over in Asheville? I will be ordering my seeds from them this year. They have a great selection, mostly heirloom and organic, and they are just over the mountain from me. I circled a bunch of stuff that I want to try to grow, but I’ll have to really set down soon and figure out how much space I have and how much I can realistically grow.

Speaking of. I got a gift card to a local grocer here in Knoxville for Christmas. I’ve been using it to start a little stockpile. So far I’ve purchased some fancy frozen fruit, some organic canned pumpkin, and some coconut milk. Those are the things that I don’t always have time to source and purchase but I love having on hand for soups, stews, and grain bowls. I’ll keep stockpiling as I can. I don’t have a huge need for a stockpile anymore but I do like making things from scratch. I have a chicken to make into stock. I need to make some grainy white wine mustard. I have some strawberries that need to be made into some jam. Oh. And I’ve been stockpiling canned beans. I’ve lately loved pinto beans, black beans, and northern beans. So I’ve purchased some (always organic) from the grocery store.

Goals

With the new year brings a renewal on goals for the next year. I’ve been thinking about those goals for a while. I’ve felt pretty aimless lately with the pivoting of the business and letting the classes go. I don’t know where life is taking me next. Sometimes having too many choices is hard. I don’t like having all the choices. I like to work towards goals, know where I’m going, and make a plan on how to get there. That’s kind of been on the back burner these past few years, but now I’m ready to figure it out. And I’ve got time. So. I am starting to sit with all the possibilities and figure out how to narrow it down into where I want to go next.

One thing that I am doing to help me with setting and achieving my goals is to have accountability partners. I gathered the girls together a couple weeks ago for a night of chatting and talking about our goals. It’s nice to have people in my life now who are goal oriented and want to be held to a higher standard. I’ll admit, I struggle with this. I haven’t routinely surrounded myself with people who want to achieve things in life. I’ve been complacent for far too long with this. So now we are changing that! There are big things out there for all of us if we take the time to focus on what it is that we want and then make a plan to get there. But it also takes a lot of patience and working on ourselves. I’m not always patient when it comes to these things. I want things to happen now! But, with the help of these ladies (and others who are in the know) I know I will continue taking the steps to get things accomplished. Anyway, the ladies came over and we sat around the table eating chili, cornbread, and dessert and drinking wine and just chatting about what we want out of life. We made plans to check in once per month and see how we are accomplishing our goals.

I’ve come up with a 30 day plan and that’s enough for right now. The 30 day plan gets me on track and then I can focus on the 60 day, 90 day, and beyond plan. I sat down with my mentor from the TN Small Business Development Center and we hashed out that initial 30 day plan. And then I had a meeting with a marketing guru and we took that 30 day plan and broke it down even further. For the first time in a really, really long time I feel like i am on the right path.

Have you guys ever heard about how anxiety is tied to you doing things that your primitive brain isn’t used to. Like, your brain is saying ‘this isn’t how we normally do this. ABORT the mission!!!”. Well. That’s how I feel on a daily basis. My brain is screaming at me to abort the mission (of moving my life forward. Of seeking clarity. Of doing something completely different. Of growing and changing myself). And daily I reassure myself that we are in the exact spot we need to be in. That it is all going to be okay. That I am actually coming up with the best life plan I’ve had in over 25 years, and while I might not know what that life looks like, exactly, I do know that it is going to be my best life and I will show up as my best self.

So. While all that is going on in the background, I will just be over here working on the farmstead, taking pictures, and writing about it. As I normally do! Oh, and using that dishwasher like nobody’s business!

‘til next time
-k
xoxo