Things are really getting cold. It is down to the mid-twenties and the fog is so thick that it is hard to see across the land in the mornings. It reminds me of living on the coast but the taste of salt in the air is missing.

It is the perfect weather for staying indoors to play chess.

Btw, I was lucky to get a call from Ashley this afternoon. She was one of our WWOOF’ers that stayed here this summer. She is doing well with a new job at REI and her studies. It was nice to catch up, hear her voice and stay connected.

We have had several inquiries about WWOOF’ing here this winter but are not accepting new folks at this time. We are going dormant and curling up in front of the fire with board games and hot cocoa. Our son love is when we play chess with him. This is a great time to focus on our just being with our family.

This is not to say that there aren’t chores to be done but for now, we will be doing on our own. I’ll write about them later. For now, I am off for my daily practice in humility, I am about to play chess by my son who will undoubtably beat me again.

Please don’t forget to check out our all-natural skin, body and hair care products at www.songcroftnaturals.com

Last week I spent four days at the NW Herbal Faire. I arrived at midnight after running my farmers market booth. This meant packing up and working all day at the market, returning home to off-load and re-load new product and merchandise as well as all of our camping gear and then driving to Mount Vernon, Washington. All of this included my two children whom I have to say are quite the troopers.

Please bear with me as I am not a NW Herbal Faire employee  but believe that letting folks know about the event and why we should all attend and support it is a valuable service.

(Btw, the event is ran by Michael Pilarski and lots and lots of volunteers. If it weren’t for their vision and hard work, this resource wouldn’t happen! Thank you!)

NW Herbal Faire was from Thursday August  19 to Monday August 22^nd. In attendance were herbalists from all over the country. These herbalists ranged from the formally trained to those who grew up with gathering wild plants as a family tradition. There were professional practitioners, instructors as well as those who just want to be able to provide support to their family and community.

Workshops were offered by top-notch presenters such as Ryan Drum, Michael Pilarski and Heidi Bohan. There were over 100 workshops ranging from ayurvedic herbs to farming herbs and localism. The brain cells present could have lit up the entire state for a month is we had only thought to plug them in!

As far as I am aware, this is the only event like this in the entire country. There are a few conferences but while they are great resources for learning, they are rather dry and certainly not the family oriented, community building event this was.

We ate meals together, volunteered to make things run smoothly, camped out, danced under the stars and even sang songs.

One might wonder why it would make any difference to gather in the summer where there is a lake to swim and a stage that plays live music. The difference is the value of the conversations, the joy, and the heart-felt connections we make as we celebrate life as a community of healers. This is where the real healing begins because it’s the joy in life and what we do that gives us the energy to give more love and care to others.

Oh, and let’s not forget the support these young ones of herbalists and permaculturists need as they often live in an alternate world of electronics and fast food. It is a special time for children who live “outside” the mainstream to commune with other young ones who eat dried sea veggies for snacks, slather plantain salves on their “owies” and understand that Marshmallow is a plant. These young people need time to connect with their tribe too.

So whether you are an professional herbalist or someone interested in learning about how to care for your family, consider coming to the NW Herbal Faire in 2012. I know I will!

High 62  Low 34  Clear and slightly warm.

Visit www.songcroftnaturals.com to support our family farm and to get great all natural skin and body products!

Visit the Farmers Market Thursdays 3-7pm

I’m not even going to put the date on this entry since I am embarrassed how long it took me to get around to writing. You see, it’s spring and although it has been the wettest April in Washington’s history, there are still a lot of spring shores to be done!

• Have planted a thicket hedge of prinsepia to help keep the neighbor dogs from coming over.

• Planted a variety of willows in blue, red, green and yellow along the creek.

• Trimmed back the rugosa, raspberries, woody herbs and several other plants

• Mucked the goat shed, cleaned the stall mats in them and sanitized all of the feeders and water buckets.

• Made a new perch for the chickens.

• Bred the rabbits.

• Got help re-doing parts of the goats sacrifice area as well as their browsing areas.

• Brian added on to the chickens poly-carb covered roof on their summer home (okay, they are a bit spoiled).

• Deconstructed some keyhole beds so I can reconfigure parts of the garden and add vertical growing space as well as an outdoor room.

• Fed the bees (It’s been so cold that they rarely go out and things are blooming late)

• Harvested lots of greens.

• The kids and I planted lots of carrots, radishes, lettuce, bok choy, peas, leeks, cilantro, potatoes, onions, and flowers in the garden beds.

• Planted a ton of seeds in trays that are now overcrowding the greenhouse (snow and hail in April!)

• Made compost tea and applied it to a test garden. (Amazing difference!)

• Taught two soils science class and composting class.

• Planted a berm with edible berries and trees with my apprentices.

• Planted a perry pear, cider apple and medlar tree.

• Planted forage plants including Nanking cherries around the summer chicken house.

• Did all the mom things like helping both kids enter project in a science fair and droving kids to and from swim classes.

• Did the homestead stuff like baking bread and making cheese.

• Got our www.SongCroftNaturals.com business ready for the Snohomish Farmers Market.

• And so the list goes on…

Soon I will be at the Snohomish Farmers Market every Thursday.

You might be asking yourself how I find time and energy to do all of these things. It is really more simple than one might think. I don’t have to go to the grocery very often and I don’t watch TV. I eat a healthy diet that includes very little processed foods and I have a positive attitude, even in this rainy season.

Attitude is everything!

See you at the Snohomish Farmers Market!

High 33   Low 20

Snowing with high winds!!!Whoohoo!

(If you want to learn even a little of what you are reading here, our apprenticeship program starts Jan. 15th. Last call for registration!)

http://songcroft.com/index.php/the-songcroft-school-of-self-sufficiency/

Folks email me all the time saying they get tired reading the list of things we do. Well, you might want to grab yourself a cup o’ tea and kick your feet up ‘cuz this is going to be a long one because I’m going to give a summary of 2010!

All in all, it was a good year in many aspects. We accomplished some of our goals and completely failed on others. Okay, failed is pretty harsh. We just didn’t get everything we wanted to get done done. I am sure we got more accomplished than the average bear since both Brian and I are ‘Type A’ Capricorns.

Our apprenticeship program filled up and we had 3 teens all year!

We had a successful Fish Camp here in conjunction with Wolf Camp.

We took a few camping trips as well as went to our favorite seasonal gathering.

The things we didn’t get done were due to a matter of lack of weather, money, time or energy. The early part of Spring was very wet.

When we went on a camping trip, the chickens got out and scratch up much of our garden beds. I replanted and got things under control, so I thought, and one of the kids didn’t latch the gate so the chickens rearranged everything again. It is amazing what they can do with my tidy little rows in an hour! Of course, they left the forest garden alone since it would’ve taken more effort to walk over there.

We lost part of our duck flock, we think to neighbor dogs, so we are down to just three. Our son was heartbroken when he found his pet duck “Blackfoot” dead in the field.

We sold lots and lots of eggs all Spring and Summer. That was a nice supplement to the family budget.

We also sold a few goat kids too. We got a lot of milk and enjoyed the cheese.

Brians workshop was built and we will finish it in the Spring.

Our cabin was transformed in to a classroom and manufacturing facility for our SongCroft Naturals Personal Care product line. (The ingredients are so safe I can use them on my babies!)

We grew a good garden that is still providing us with fresh vegetables. We had tomatoes until early December and ground cherries too!

I “put up” lots of canned meat, fruit and vegetables, pickles, kim chi, as well as dried fruits, herbs and vegetables too.

I caught two bee swarms and hived them.

We put in the forest garden in April and it’s looking good.

We are one year closer to harvesting asparagas!

So, to the coming year. What are our goals? Well this is what I have settled on:

1. Finish Brian’s shop!
2. Enjoy our apprentices
3. Launch SongCroft Naturals our all natural Personal Care Products and have a Farmers Market booth.
4. Grow a bountiful garden that is well and truly chicken proofed!!!
5. Have more of the family’s help with harvesting more often so our production stays up and our waste in minimal.
6. Preserve more foods and herbs than last year.
7. Learn to smoke different meats.
8. Clear the spot behind the cabin so I can plant new beds. I haven’t decided what to plant there yet though.
9. Plant an evergreen edible hedge on top of a berm to create privacy as well as more perennial food.
10. Plant an evergreen privacy screen near the road.
11. Make more soap than last year. We ran out and I got too busy to make more.
12. Plant more trees for firewood.
13. Which reminds me, reinforce the goats browse area.
14. Fix all of the little jobs like greenhouse door handle, hinges on the compost bins, etc…
15. Re-design the lower part of our land.
16. Build new hay storage.
17. Build a new rabbitry.
18. Expand the summer chicken yard from 16×30 to something like 30×30.
19. Host Farm Camp.
20. Host Illumina Girls Camp.
21. Host Fish Camp.
22. Camp more, play more
23. Sing more.
24. Dance more.
25. Breathe more consciously.

I hope you enjoyed reading our summary of 2010 and being witness to us setting goals for 2011. Somehow it makes it a little more of a commitment if others know that the goals are set. (Maybe I should mention the 10 pounds?)

Oh, and if you come by for a visit, feel free to roll your sleeve up!

Thanks for reading. Your comments are welcome. Please do share our blog with others that you think might be interested. Happy New Year!

HIGH 52       LOW 47          Heavy Rain after 4pm

http://www.lucandthelovingtons.com

http://www.omculture.com/

The rain falls heavy outside. The darkness comes early and stays late. This is the week of the reversing the clocks. We adjust our clocks to leave daylight savings time and “fall back” an hour.

Now is the time for inside chores that make the house smell so good. Applesauce will be simmering on the stove by Wednesday and little noses will be scrunching up to get a whiff of cinnamon in the air. The kids love applesauce. I anticipate putting up about one hundred jars as it is a family favorite.

I am spending much of my time organizing the curriculum for the upcoming Self-Sufficiency Course that starts in January. A new syllabus and hand-outs are all underway. We are planning this year with a lot of excitement!

Our personal care product line is awaiting labels so we can get them on the market. We have natural food stores already waiting to carry our line. We are excited to get there all natural, fragrance free products out there. As someone who suffered from severe chemical sensitivities for many years, I know that there is a serious need for products that are truly safe! After formulating and making them on a small scale for a small number of clients and spa’s, I am glad to be able to offer them in stores and online through our soon-to-be Blissfully Natural website.

While it is true that I am taking care of responsibilities, I am also having a lot of fun!

Our family has been enjoying more social time. We have been out dancing several times. We feel truly fortunate to have the opportunity to have access to places that encourage families to dance together. Family dance is a great activity to start the kids with while they are young. They tend to continue to enjoy dancing as they get older, they tend to feel comfortable in their bodies during those awkward teen years and they tend to connect “fun” with family time. Also, unlike activities that they grow out of, dancing is something they can do their entire lives. An added bonus is, even if the power grid is out, you can throw a family dance for your neighborhood and have a great unplugged time!

Also, it create memories that the entire family can cherish. For example, I will always cherish images of my 13 yo dancing with her girlfriend- twirling, spinning, hugs and a dip. These are the times that life is about. Unplugged entertainment.

One of the places that a family can go to is Om Culture in Seattle, where we danced to Luc and the Lovington’s. Live music and dancing with children! Whoohoo! It’s a great place.

We hope that all of you are enjoying these darker, slower times. They are times for gathering, reflection and a little good ‘ol hibernation!

High 56 Low 45

Wow, what a whirlwind of a week! We have been busy in all areas of life. Our teenager got her braces off. That was a major deal. Her smile is beautiful. Our son has had either a fishing pole or a bow in his hands at all moments of each day. His accuracy with a bow has jumped leaps and bounds and he has caught a lot more trout since opening day.  Brian has been busy making improvements to animal housing and I have been planting, transplanting, milking, making cheese and tending flocks.

Here we were up to our ears in chores so we did what any rational people would do. We ran away to the San Juan Islands and played on the beach.

We spent four days in the pouring down rain playing on the beach, playing canoe tag and visiting with friends. We ate chocolate cake and fresh lake trout. It was a great escape.

So now that we are back, we are back to work. Garden, barn, hive, coop, forest and browse areas all need my attention I will be back to it in the morning. Hopefully the rain subsides!

High 61 Low 45  Drizzly but warm. ( Our seedlings are loving this!)

Farm Camp

http://songcroft.com/index.php/farm-camp/

This month has been busy with all of the usually Spring chores of getting the cover crops turned in, garden planted, pullets out to forage, hens in their Spring/Summer home, goat kids birthed and settled in, does milked, cheese made, rabbits bred and the post-construction landscaping started, all the while enjoying the flush of green that has taken over our land.

Although these things have me excited, it’s Farm Camp that has been on my mind. In August we will be opening SongCroft up to those who would like to live and learn about how to run a family farm. This is so exciting that I am finding it hard to concentrate on other projects. We’re going to have a lot of fun!

You’ll experience instruction on dairy goats, chickens, ducks and rabbits as well as growing your produce year-round and preserving the harvest. Mushroom logs, the basics of permaculture, food forests, alternative energy and home arts are all part of the program. It’s great to read books and dream about living a more self-reliant lifestyle but it’s a rare opportunity to be welcomed on to a farm where you are able to learn and try things out for yourself!

Checked out the Farm Camp page. Tell us what you think, what you would most like to learn and if you intend to enroll don’t wait because space is limited.

High 51 Low 43 Misty morning with sunny afternoon

About a month ago, our family had a beautiful salmon dinner. As we were eating, my 9 year-old son Simon looked up from his plate and said, “Pretty soon Mama, I’m going to put the fish on your plate.” He said this in a deeper than usual voice and with all sincerity. He is my little man.

This Saturday was the opening of fishing season. The lakes in our area are clean and well stocked. Simon got his gear together and at 6 a.m. came in to our room to wake up his Daddy so they could “Get a move on.”

The two of them went off into the morning with sandwiches and fishing gear. They met up with our good friend Derrick, who Simon has decided is his best fishing buddy outside of his Dad. Simon just turned nine and was given a beautiful fishing pole and gear by Derrick.

Having come from a long line of fishermen and having many of my best childhood memories of catching my own meals off docks and jetties, I was secretly elated that my child has fishing in his blood.

About mid-day, as I was working on chores around our place with Sofie, the guys came back. I waited patiently and refrained from asking if they had a good catch in the case that they got skunked. I instead asked if they had a good time, which they said they had

Simon looked at me and smiled his sweet “I’ve got a secret” smile and then disappeared out the door. When I went back to the door to meet him, with my camera in hand “just-in-case”, he was standing there with the biggest grin and eleven trout on a line! Some were quite large.

He had me call his grandmother and invite her to dinner. Simon set a table with floating candles and flowers that he picked. He was one proud boy.

He and his Daddy cleaned the fish and used the innards to fertilize some of our fruit trees. I cooked up a dinner of baked beans, corn bread, salad and the best pan fried trout I have ever tasted.

This was a day that will never be forgotten, by Simon or by the rest of our family. Self-sufficiency can start at a very young age.

High 59    Low 40            Overcast morning with clear afternoon

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0xWHETBd8BA

SongCroft Spring Tour (click above to see the video)

Today was the first warm day in along time. I actually saw people in shorts and tank tops. With all of the hail and heavy rains of late, I think people were truly optimistic and taking whatever they could get.

It was a beautiful day to explore with my son Simon. Among other things, we went on a trillium hunt. We looked for the precious flowers that hide in the shadows of the forest. We found lots of them but were delighted with every one. Simon was pleased to bring to a secret place where fifteen bloomed together, all in different stages.

Simon and I explored the creek, looked for frogs and salamanders, discussed the lives of the arborial faeries that live in the massive cedars and hemlocks and watched a pileated woodpecker. We collected maple blossoms to add to our supper, a mediteranean quinoa dish, and told each other secrets.

Today was a day to slow down and enjoy the weather, my children and the arrival of Spring.

It was precious.

Harpo is 15 minutes old

Shugs Birth (click here the title to see the video)

High 42 Low 38 The sky is shifting between sun breaks and darkness.

It’s cheese making time and the kids and I are ready with the molds! Part of our path towards having a self-sufficient lifestyle is to raise dairy goats. Raising dairy goat be very rewarding. Goats have milk high in cream which makes good cheese and the medicinal benefits are well documented. My son, Simon, can chug a quart down right after it’s left it’s maker.

If you are trying to live a self-reliant lifestyle in the city, you can check your local ordinances to see if it okay to have goats. In Seattle, it is legal to have miniature goats and I have met lots of folks who raise them.

Last Thursday, one of our does, Aggie, had two beautiful kids. We now have a little buck and doe. Baby Goats are so cute it is unbelievable!
Every generation receives names from either a literary great or from the live of one of our favorite musicians. The buck is named Harpo and the doe is named Shug. The names came from one of my favorite books. I’ll let you figure out which one.

I had been up the night before thinking Aggie was going to have her kids but she never progressed. I kept checking and finally fell asleep around three in the morning. The next day I ran the kids (the human ones) to their Spanish Class and various other commitments. When we came back, Aggie still wasn’t close. I cooked dinner and cleaned up before falling asleep around ten.

Simon woke me up around eleven saying he could hear Aggie in the goat shed and it was time. I threw on my clothes and ran outside with the lantern. (Luckily, I had the forethought to wire a light in the kidding stall the day before.) Sure enough, Aggie was in the process of birthing Harpo. I looked up and both Sofie and Simon were peering over the stall wall. They weren’t going to miss seeing the kids born. Brian showed up a few minutes later.

When Harpo dropped to the ground, Aggie just looked back like, “Gee, where did that come from?” I helped clear his throat and calmed her as she got ready to birth the second kid. Within five minutes she birthed Shug and all was well. I stayed with her until both had had some milk and were clean and dry. I also waited until I knew she birthed the placenta.

Brian brought the iodine for the umbilical chords and Sofie brought a nice warm bucket of raspberry leaf tea with a bit of molasses and Aggie sucked the entire thing down at once.

I left the mama and babies to bond. It was almost three in the morning and we were  all tired.

It’s been four days and the kids are strong and healthy. Aggie has recovered and if the kids weren’t there, it would be hard to tell she just birthed.

All is calm here. Cheese making has begun. We are working to be a self-sufficient farm.