Updates

WE have Been Traveling ON!

We have been busy around the Queen household, so I just haven't taken time to blog.

Hayden is busy with scouts and working toward his Eagle! He will begin 9th grade this coming year and things will get tougher for him on the college prep track. Lots of reading, a foreign language and more writing. He is SO excited. He also keeps us laughing.

Sarah is, well, Sarah. She stays on track, does her work and chores without us asking; what a blessing she is. She is funny, smart and beautiful. Eventually she is going to charge Hannah for her modeling services!!

Hannah continues to impress us with her talent. She is speaking at the BlogHer Food conference this month in Atlanta, in August she goes to Pennsylvania for a get together paid for by a company that she loves and loves her and she is developing a line of greeting cards with her photography on them. She is also applying for an internship with a photographer she admires and continues to work toward opening her portrait business.

My sweet husband is buried under work. The Lord continues to bless us with an abundance of work and we may need to add another employee. Balancing work, family and scouts keeps him busy.

I have begun a new eating plan and have lost around 40 lbs! It works for me and it is easy, so long term is not going to be a problem. We are also working to be more active with family Frisbee nights! It is fun and a great form of exercise. Cutting out sugar as been amazing; I feel 100% better, my arthritis doesn't hurt as much and my energy doesn't go up and down all day, it is constant. I am also toying with the idea of starting my Masters degree again; we'll see what happens.

Our farmers market starts in June, so we need to gear up for that. We need to make labels, decide what breads we want to bake and make sure everything is ready to go.

The hot weather is here, so it is time to make time to head to the creek and enjoy the cool water. Get out and get moving!!

“Our soul waiteth for the Lord: he is our help and our shield. 21 For our heart shall rejoice in him, because we have trusted in his holy name” (Psalms 33:20-21)

Our Farmers Market and a New Addition

I love our Farmers Market. It is so colorful and full of life.

We have heirloom tomatoes.

And red and green tomatoes!

And smiling faces!!

And.... an earthquake today! We heard a rumble and the earth vibrated under our feet. It was crazy. The center was north of us, right over the Ga. line and it was a 3.2.

And finally.

OTIS!

He showed up at Hannah's co-workers home two days ago. They couldn't keep him and the Humane Society had no room. So, we said we would. It was hard after having to give Scout away, but this puppy is so loving. He took to us immediately and just wags his tail.

Market Day!

The Farmers Market was awesome today!!! There were 22 vendors and there was a constant flow of customers. Anyone that had corn sold out and all the farmers did well with their vegetables.

We sold everything we had. What a blessing!! I love return customers; it is good to know people like your bread enough to come back for it.

The market is a social gathering where people see old friends they haven't seen in awhile. Farmers swap stories about crops and weather. Vendors offer advice, smiles and friendly service. It is a wonderful thing to behold.

Below are some pictures Hannah has taken of some of what the market has to offer.

A Great Day at the Farmers Market

Things are still slow at the market because the produce hasn't come in yet. But, we have been doing pretty well overall. Today we sold out of everything!!!!!

We sold out of these little sweeties before 9 am.

Sold all these early also!

Sold all our bread!!!

And we sold the 3 last jars of Hannah's salad dressing. Praise God for a good day!!!

First Day of the Farmers Market

Today was opening day of our Farmers Market. The rain held off and we had a good day. Not a lot of people yet, but still a good day. Things will pick up when the vegetables come in.

The market is a wonderful place full of colorful characters. We have a lady that sells gourds she has painted and she is so sweet and feisty. We were next to her today and enjoyed her company.

Sarah and Hayden helped in our booth today and did a great job. They are learning a lot and getting to meet all kinds of people.

Hannah loves her job and is thriving in it. She meets and greets the vendors, answers questions, discusses rule compliance, etc. We are proud of her.

Here are some pictures from today.

We have been busy this week getting ready for the Farmers Market that starts on Saturday. It seemed as if it would never arrive, and now here it is on top of us! Time to "panic and freak out"!! (I know none of you reading this EVER do this)

Today we have made dressing, printed labels, loaded the car, pulled the table stuff together so we can bake tomorrow.

Hannah is looking forward to starting her job Saturday. I think she will thrive in this atmosphere and learn a lot. She will deal with all kinds of people, situations, and responsibilities.

So, here we go....

New Blog

I have created a blog for our farm, Brambleberry Farm. We are coming into the Farmer's Market season and we are listed on a couple of sites that are for this purpose, so I wanted something dedicated to what we are doing organically, what we are growing and lessons that we are learning.

We are babes in this and are learning alot daily. Hopefully we can encourage others that would like to make this step into greater self-sufficiency.

The Farmer's Market

Hannah and I attended a meeting Monday night about our local farmers market. We are excited!! There are good plans in place and we are connecting with the Appalachian Sustainable Agricultural Project. We are certifying with them as an Appalachian grower; this will help all of us in the long run.

I am hoping to be on the board in the near future and Hannah is designing a blog for the market. There will be more advertisement this year and more organization. It is all good!

We have alot to do to get ready for opening day in May. We need to buy bread bags, make labels, plan our set up, find bottles for Hannah's dressing at a good price. The ones we found online line are a good price, but shipping will kill us.

And get those dang chickens to laying some eggs!!!!!