My first Quail Cove Farms order!

I called the lady who hosts the Quail Cove Farms pickup yesterday, to find out what time the truck usually arrives.  She said it usually gets there around 5:30 am!  Yipes!  She said nobody is ever there to meet the truck and in the Summertime, folks bring a cooler by the day before for the cold stuff.  I was glad that the pressure was off to meet the truck!  I did get over there a little after 7am to pick up my order.  It was simple; find your bags and take them home!

I ordered 3 dozen free range eggs, 5# of organic potatoes, 5# of organic carrots, 4 organic navel oranges, a bag of organic corn chips, 2.5# of butter and nearly 10# of free range turkey loaf.  After shipping my total was $72!  That would have been a good price for the turkey if that was all I got, but all together it was a wonderful deal! 

I will likely continue to order from them, but I am looking forward to more local sources of these items as the Summer approaches. 

Spring Fever

The snow here has just about cleared.  You may still see a bit in parking lots where the piles were as big as dump  trucks, but other than that, we are just looking at soggy winter.  We had a solid week of sun last week, and while the temperatures didn't get out of the 40's, it was still beautiful!  I am suffering from Spring fever in a bad way and I am planning a garden I may not actually have.

Our house is still sitting here on the market.  We lowered our price to $172,000 and we are still getting traffic through at least once a week.  We still haven't had any offers, though, and I am getting tired.  I know that so many folks have their houses on the market for much longer than 4 months these days, but it is really tough to always be ready for a showing.  Living in a house from which you have emotionally detached while being a SAHM (stay at home mom) is much more difficult than I expected.  I am feeling as if I am living in limbo.  It makes me long for a "home" again.  You know, kid's art on the fridge, family photos out for all to see...

As for the garden, I am planning as if we will be at Hunter's Grove in time for planting.  So far I have the layout mapped out and flower seed chosen.  I need to plan the veggie portion, but depending on when we can move, we may be at the mercy of others as to what seedlings I can find.

The food changes here in the Rollogas house are being made slowly.  We have made the switch to organics (and local milk) at the store, but we are also still eating up the stockpile of food we already had.  I placed my first order with Quail Cove Farms.  It arrives tomorrow, so I'll let you know how that looks!  We are using a portion of Brandon's bonus this year to join Agriberry CSA (an organic, local fruit/ berry CSA).  I am really excited about that!!  My copy of Food, Inc. is making the rounds among my friends and I am thrilled about all the changes everyone seems to be making!  More folks eating real food means more access to real food (good old supply and demand)!

If you remember, this week, say a prayer for the sale of our house!

BOOOOO!

Snowing here AGAIN!!  Not a fan!

...and again

Again, it is snowing.  I am not usually one to complain about the weather.  I usually take it as it comes, but boy am I ready for some sun and warmth!  I think the sun is supposed to shine his beautiful face a bit tomorrow, but the high is supposed to be 32F and we are supposed to get more snow on Tuesday!  The yard is so wet that you sink a couple of inches when walking even on the grass.  We have standing water in the back yard (something that, I'm sure, impresses potential buyers).  It is dreary and definitely having an impact on my personal morale.

Enough about the February funk.  I wanted to update you a bit on the food stuff!  I have been sharing my new knowledge with anyone who will listen and boy are people listening!!  My copy of Food, Inc.  is loaned out and I have a list of at least 7 people who want to borrow it!  It is still available on Amazon for $9.99.  If you purchase it, you can watch it instantly on your computer or download it to your on-demand device!  If you have Netflix, you can watch it instantly on your computer.

Being pretty new to this journey, I am finding it easy to get off track by wandering the "organic" foods aisles.  Is "organic" the point?  Is an organic banana better if it is coming from Chile?  What is worse, pesticides or oil dependance?  It could be easy to get bogged down with those kinds of questions.  I can see how it could be paralyzing.  I think this has made me open my eyes and think about where my food is being grown and what are the growing conditions.  Close to home = good!  Less dependance on oil for transportation and a fresher product.  Farmer's Markets = good!  The close-to-home reasons apply and you have the advantage of meeting the people who are actually growing your food!

The changes in our shopping are going to be huge.  We can't just buy the same things just the "organic" version.  In addition to being cost-prohibitave, it is missing the point!  The point is... is what I am eating actually food?  Or is it some company's product that we have been conditioned to think of as food?  Are the animals I am eating being treated like a creature not just created for human nourishment but created for God's glory?  Are the plants I am eating organisms that occur in nature?  Or are they a product, trademarked and owned by a "multinational agricultural biotechnology corporation"?  Is that packaged food I am buying really food?  How many ingredients does it have?  How many can I pronounce?  How many are naturally occurring?

This is an enlightening journey for me.  Thanks for walking beside me!!