APRIL! We Welcome Your Sunshine and The Colors It Brings

Oh, what good timing for spring's flowering and greening. Is everyone hanging in there? What an odd time we are living through. Writing in Baby Jack's journal...I found myself telling his future self about how strange of a time it is to be two months old! I wanted to start off by saying that our family wishes you wellness and courageous hearts/minds. I hope that by next month's newsletter, we have seen the tide turn and COVID-19 receding. However, as we don't know what is around the corner, I hope that you all tap into your resiliency and keep up that necessary socialness that we all need...be it via Zoom or email or 6-foot front yard get togethers. Be safe and well as can be.
What is going on with us?Circumnavigating the Corona VirusThis time of the year is one which we spend hunkered down on the farm, waking up the field...doing our first seedings and making sure the barn and wash house are both in working order. That being said, this is naturally a time that we are socially distant and staying at home as there is so much to be done and no markets to attend as of yet. We have been 'holing' up here, with the exception of Rich making twice-a-week deliveries. Let me assure you...we are seeding more than we have in previous springs...and we are going to get that produce to Dayton one way or another!
Despite a fairly status quo start of spring for us, going forward will be a different story. Now that we have more produce in the works, we are trouble-shooting how to get all of that goodness to you lovely Dayton folk...no matter what orders are in place. Markets are on stand-by as we are all waiting to hear if markets are allowed to open on time. It is likely that they will open on schedule, as they have been deemed essential by the state so far. We have plans for an online ordering system on our site if markets do not open in time. This will allow you to choose what you would like each week...produce, sourdough, granola, floral jellies, rugrat toddler May (just kidding...although maybe we should take turns!). We would then deliver to your box to your stoop. We also have the opportunity to sell our produce to Dorothy Lane per usual, as well as a few other makeshift shops around town that have developed due to the pandemic. We are going to morph right along with the rest of Dayton's small businesses as we see this thing find its way out! It'll be the day when we are saying sayonara to COVID-19.
Other Updates
- Shoots, micros, and granola available from the Ghostlight Corner Shop on Wayne. Order online and pick up...along with other local goods, coffee, and treats
- You can order a loaf of our sourdough bread via Top Knot Kitchen's website...deliveries are on Tuesday's. Top Knot is known for their incredible salad delivery service...but they have now added other local goods to be delivered
- Shoots and micros as always available at all three DLM locations
- Our hoop house kit has been delivered and we'll be putting it together this spring...pictures to come
- Our sheep have been seen breeding...fingers crossed for healthy, pregnant ewes
- Garlic is growing! (see picture above)
- Rich has been able to start getting the field prepped and we have seeds germinating...lots of produce to come!
Inspired by Dayton
We are bound to look back at this time and wonder what just hit us. It feels a little familiar after the various events that we experienced last year. I have to say...although this is a tumultuous and unsettling time, that familiar feeling is actually warm. I'm not sure if it feels that way across the country...but in Dayton, I feel it. I feel so inspired watching the way that the people of Dayton have come together and have sought out ways to contribute to a society that has to be apart from each other right now. I am really feeding off of the energy of the restaurant industry and of our local grocer Dorothy Lane Market. So many eateries as well as DLM flipped their business models overnight to help continue to serve and feed people in a safe way that mitigates the spread of this virus.
Thank you for your continued support of our business. We were contacted by multiple restaurants partners and customers who wanted to know how we were and if they could help us somehow. In a time when we are being advised to look out for ourselves, I am witnessing so many people reaching out to lend a hand to each other. And that's just the food industry. My dad works in the medical field. The other day he was explaining how the local hospital networks are working together in a capacity not seen outside of this time. I am so grateful for our medical professionals. Come together!
We will come out the other side of this. I'm hoping that we reach that side sooner than later and with the least lives negatively affected as possible. In the meantime, my goal is to stop letting it take up too much of my headspace...looking to May as an example. She is none-the-wiser about all of this going on, and she is relishing the stay home time...tapping into her imagination and enjoying each day as it goes by.