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Simple Joys

It’s at this point in the year when my mind is flooded with ideas, expectations, traditions to continue, and traditions I want to start. I anticipate my grown children experiencing the holidays with their families and I listen in on the conversations they have with their own children. My hope is that their memories will be filled with joy and excitement, generosity and love.

In order to fulfill this idea of giving them joyous holidays, I can tend to become overwhelmed with all the possibilities. We’ll schedule an outing to go experience fake snow falling from the sky. I’ll seek out a tree farm where we can hear the saw moving back and forth as our tree is slowly released from its roots. I’ll make plans to bake dozens of cookies to share in their perfectly decorated packages. And yet, if some of these ideas do not happen because of the reality of a chaotic life with three young children, I feel defeated and as if I have failed them.

Then I am reminded of their simple exuberance.

The other day, my husband, sensing my exhaustion from a long day with the children, decided to take the very energetic boys for an evening walk. I relished in the quiet while they left the house bundled up and excited for a little adventure. It wasn’t five minutes later that I heard the roar of the garage door opening and expected the quiet to be over, except that they didn’t come upstairs. Nearly twenty minutes later the door flings open and their little voices call for me with such eagerness I couldn’t help but smile. They came to fetch me from the couch and insisted I close my eyes as they had a surprise for me. So down the stairs I went, guided by a five and three year old with my eyes closed.

I stepped outside into the cold and was guided further. Through closed eyes I sensed glowing colors of red and green. When I was finally allowed to open my eyes I saw a single strand of Christmas lights lining one side of our fence and casually lying among the plants. My boys jumped up and down and shrieked with excitement, and I mustered up as much enthusiasm as I could in trying to match theirs.

Stepping back inside from the cold and warming ourselves with some hot chocolate, I realized that in the simple event that had just transpired my children experienced the joy of the holiday that I so methodically try to create. We spent time together, enjoyed one another, and relished in the season of joy and giving. That moment wasn’t dulled with the stress and chaos that can so often overwhelm the season. It was simple, joyful, and one that I will cherish.

by Ashley Rodriguez

Chef, food blogger, and full-time mom. Read more of her writings at www.notwithoutsalt.com

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Holiday food, family and finances

Oh, the joys of eating our way through the calendar. The big holidays alone make it hard to eat healthy, but toss in all the anniversaries, birthdays, soccer parties, etc., whew! Our whole lives are spent around food—buying, eating and hopefully enjoying it. Honestly, eating is a good preoccupation, but we still have to think before we eat or before we take the next bite.

Now, to find the balance, especially during the next five weeks. Many of us will be busy at various functions like office parties, family gatherings and church socials, and it will be really hard to eat healthy during this season. Not impossible though. When you are out and about, opt for salads and veggies for snacks, you can find these at most restaurants. When you are at the office party or church social, fill up on veggies, fruits, meat and cheese offerings first, then head for sweets. Refresh yourself with water whenever possible and always be a gracious guest. If you are heading to or hosting a party, bring/offer the veggie and fruit tray or a fruit basket. I guarantee that other people will be thankful you did.

And in-between parties and the big meals, eat as healthy as possible to compensate for the other times. Your digestive system will thank you and you will have more energy to enjoy this season.

And lastly, enjoy the people in your life. A few years ago, our dinner table was busting at the seams. Over the years we had slowly been filling up our eight foot farm table, watching the children grow up and grow in number, much like the tide coming in. I was considering building a bigger table, but now, a few years later, with the older children coming and going, it appears the tide is going out and the table seems to be too large, sigh. I am really looking forward to having my farm table bursting to capacity with my children and family at the holiday meals. This season is a joyous season, and wouldn’t it be fun to not have the indulgences of these next five weeks show up on our bathroom scales and our credit card statements, ugh?

Let’s make a commitment to indulge as wisely and graciously, as possible, this holiday season. And while we are at it lets commit to having a debt free Christmas, too! If you want to join me in making this holiday season healthier and debt free, sign below and put this on your fridge! Sign below!

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News worth sharing: KFF Holiday Specials

We have great news worth sharing! Share them on your facebook wall and your name will be entered for a chance to win a signed copy of Tamara Murphy’s new cooking book: TENDER. (http://shinshinchez.com/tamara-murphy-tender)

This raffle will be a series of posts from now until December 15th. Every time you share a KFF post, your name will be entered on the raffle and the more chances you have to win.

NEWS WORTH SHARING: KFF HOLIDAY SPECIALS

This is a time of year when get surrounded by friends and family. We catch up on each others lives and we show them how much we love them! Because we appreciate you (and therefore your friends and family) we have a special promotion to show your friends how much YOU appreciate them.

– FOR EXISTING CUSTOMERS*: For the month of December, not only will you receive the standard thank you gift for your referrals, we will take $15 OFF your next order when your referrals become new customers.
– FOR NEW CUSTOMERS**: Order two boxes and get the third one FREE plus a welcome gift from us.
– FOR RETURNING CUSTOMERS**: If your account has been inactive for the past 6 months or more, order two boxes and get the third one FREE …frankly, we have missed you!

Thank you for participating!
Restrictions:
*Not redeemable for cash.
**Buy 2, get 3rd box of equal or lesser value FREE.
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Thanksgiving Healthy Eating Tip: Slow Down

Article by Darya Pino at SummerTomato.com (edited)

Worrying about carbs, calories and diets is one of the most unproductive things you can do on a holiday that celebrates thankfulness. Instead of giving you a list of healthy side dishes or tips on how to cut out calories, this Thanksgiving I offer just a single piece of advice: slow down.
The actual content of your Thanksgiving dinner matters very little in the grand scheme of things. A few hundred calories here or there can make a difference when projected over weeks and years, but for one meal the impact is negligible. Your body will adjust naturally and you’ll burn off those extra calories the next day, so don’t worry about it.
But for people trying to get healthy or lose weight, not worrying about food can feel very strange. There is always the fear that if you aren’t vigilant and conscious of what and how much you eat you may gorge yourself stupid and all your hopes of fitting into your favorite jeans by the end of the year will be ruined.
Overeating is certainly a possibility when food anxiety is a constant force in your life, but Thanksgiving is a perfect opportunity to start getting over it. Really. It may seem counterintuitive that such a food-forward holiday can be stress free, but let’s not forget that the real point of Thanksgiving isn’t turkey or pie, but being thankful.
…With the emergence of modern media, there are other essential pieces of our lives that we can no longer afford to take for granted. Free time is one. Exercise is another. But most important of all these is our real, human, non-Twitter relationships, particularly those with family and friends. It is far too easy to neglect these basic elements of our existence when we have so many other obligations and distractions, but failure to nurture them can severely affect our overall quality of life.
If you care about your health and want to keep your eating under control on Thanksgiving, why not focus your attention on strengthening relationships and spending time with the people you care about? Instead of worrying about yourself and what you want to accomplish, ask people about themselves and discuss mutual interests. Let food be part of the celebration, but not the purpose of your day.
Once food is no longer the center of attention the only thing you need to keep in mind is to eat slowly–it is pretty tough to overeat if you are biting and chewing at a snail’s pace. Slow eating helps you eat less food and appreciate it more. It also helps you make wiser food choices, since decisions about what to put on your plate are made less impulsively.
But slow eating does require some conscious effort. If you are in the habit of shoveling food in your mouth without taking time to put down your fork and chew (or breathe), it is easy to slip back into this pattern. Also, if people around you are all guzzling their food in a fury, you might feel a natural compulsion to keep pace and match their eating speed.
…Start by actively trying to keep conversations engaged while you eat. Chewing and talking are (hopefully) mutually exclusive, so the more you converse the longer it will take you to get through your meal. Making an effort to put your fork down between bites is another effective way to slow your pace at the dining table. To give your hands something to do between bites, reach for your glass and take regular sips of your water…or wipe your lips with your napkin. And don’t forget to chew.
Trying to eat slowly is much easier than trying to summon the will power to skip the mashed potatoes and biscuits…
Spend time with people, enjoy your meal and have a wonderful Thanksgiving.
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Open for change

This time last week I was in Morocco, surrounded by vivid colors, a light sun, golden sand, and a culture that only vaguely resembled the one that I’m used to.
The opportunity to travel to Morocco came up suddenly and I seized it, thinking that it would be great to say that I’ve been there. I arrived with many preconceived notions, but I soon found myself falling in love with this country. The differences of this land and my own were glaring at first and I couldn’t help but think of these differences as negative. As the days passed, however, and I was able to experience more of the beauty, the food, the people, and the culture in general, I saw those differences positively.
With each new place we visited I came to expect the welcoming dramatic pour of mint tea. Brewed strong and sweet, this tea became a symbol of hospitality and love. As we left a place, we received the customary kiss on each cheek. Although I found myself initially trying to pull away from this embrace, I discovered that I left it a better, more tender me. I embraced the simple lifestyle and I savored each moment for what it was, not thinking of what I should be doing and where I was going next. The Moroccan people helped to teach me that a meaningful life is best lived simply, not watered down when stress and pressure tend to dilute.
In light of this experience, I am reminded to be vulnerable and willing to allow others to continue to shape me. As much as I try to convince myself that I have this life figured out, I still have an incredible amount to learn, and in reality I hope I never stop learning. Allowing myself to be open to new experiences and open for change, I am able to become a much more rich individual because I am shaped by God’s creation that is ultimately a reflection of His image.
On a more practical level, this idea also translates to my Thanksgiving table. As I prepare for a meal designed around the idea of giving thanks, I am thankful for the experience I had in Morocco and the flavors and ingredients enjoyed there. I am eager to let my food be influenced by that place with ingredients like dates, saffron, dried apricots, cumin, paprika, olives, and preserved lemon.
I wish you all a very flavorful Thanksgiving season. One that is rich in new tastes and new experiences.
by Ashley Rodriguez
Chef, food blogger, and full-time mom. Read more of her writings at www.notwithoutsalt.com
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Thanksgiving Delivery Schedule

Thanksgiving is just around the corner and many of you have already started to prepare. Let Klesick Family Farm be apart of your holiday planning! Here is our Thanksgiving delivery schedule to help you plan ahead.
We will not be making deliveries on Thursday and Friday the week of Thanksgiving, so we will have an adjusted delivery schedule that week. After reviewing the general delivery schedule below, if you are still uncertain as to your delivery day the week of Thanksgiving please give us a call.
For delivery Monday, 11/21
• Tuesday customers
• Anacortes & Oak Harbor customers
For delivery Tuesday, 11/22
• Wednesday customers, except those in Anacortes & Oak Harbor
• Thursday customers, except those in Marysville south of 100th St NE
For delivery Wednesday, 11/23
• Friday customers
• Marysville customers south of 100th St NE


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BioGarden™ Soil Conditioner

BioGarden™ Soil Conditioner 3-3-2+5 (Ca) is a blend of beneficial microbes and nutrients to help build rich, healthy soil, which is the foundation for plant health and productivity.
Convenient
BioGarden™ Soil Conditioner may be sprinkled directly onto the soil with our convenient shaker container, or may be mixed in water and sprayed or watered in. May be used in furrow at planting, as a root-dip for transplants, or  to side-dress established plants and trees. Use up to four times during the growing season.
Versatile
Use for vegetables, flowers, berries, around fruit trees, and in containers.
450 gram shaker bottle    $24.99
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Thanksgiving Holiday Planning

Every year for the Thanksgiving holiday we offer an additional special Holiday Box ($35) full of traditional Thanksgiving meal items for your celebration. Not only can you schedule a Holiday Box to be delivered the week of Thanksgiving, but also the week before and the week after. You can have this box delivered along with your regular order or in place of your regular order. The box menu is as follows (*denotes local):

Holiday Box Menu

Granny Smith Apples, 2 lbs.*

Cranberries, 8 oz.*

Satsumas, 3 lbs.

Breadcubes for Stuffing, 1 lb.*

Celery, 1 bunch

Acorn Squash, 1 ea.*

Green Beans, 1 lb.

Garnet Yams, 2 lbs.

Carrots, 2 lbs.

Yellow Potatoes, 3 lbs.*

Onions, 1 lb.*

Remembering Neighbors in Need

If your celebration includes helping the less fortunate who live in our community, we would like to partner with you by giving you the opportunity to purchase a discounted Holiday Box for $25, to be given to local food banks the week of Thanksgiving. Last year 174 Holiday Boxes were donated and this year we’d love to have a greater impact. The volunteers at the food banks have expressed again and again how wonderful and satisfying it is to be able to supply people with fresh produce. Please call or e-mail us to set up this donation.

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Organic, Conventional, and Chemical

I was reading in one of my farm papers and I was drawn to an article about biotech sugar beets and how this massive farm company (19,000 acres) was so thankful that the USDA had deregulated GMO sugar beets. I have actually met the president of this farm company a few years ago, which is also why the article caught my attention. I have been following the GMO debacle for years. What really set me thinking was a new shift in thinking.

In the past, farmers have been categorized as either conventional (those that use synthetic chemicals) or organic (those that don’t). But this president was also thankful that the USDA allowed GMO sugar beets, because one of his field managers said, and I paraphrase, “I was going to quit if I had to go back to conventional farming.” What this means to me is we have moved from two types of farming paradigms to three. We now have organic, conventional, and chemical farmers now! That field manager didn’t want to go back to using plows, discs and mechanical weeding, he just wants to plant, spray, and harvest. Talk about having to reread and reread and reread that statement. I am so grieved by this thinking. We are moving farther and farther away from the ability to farm without Monsanto’s GMO laced poison crops. Sure there are pockets of farmers like ourselves, but there are literally hundreds of millions of acres of acres now being farmed chemically and using GMO crops that it will be harder and harder to turn the tide on this trend.

We need to win this battle for good food. There are two ways to win this fight. First, don’t buy GMO products. This alone would cause these companies to change farming practices. Right now the money is too good to change. Hit them in the pocketbook and we will see change. And second, labeling. MANDATORY LABELING of GMO foods will “encourage” farmers, processors, and marketers to change more quickly when the public shies away from GMO products.

Future generations of people deserve the right to eat real food, from seeds that are not injected with pesticides and herbicides, grown in soil that is alive and fertile. That is what we believe and that is how we farm.

Thanks for being co-laborers in this fight for good food.

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What a Hit!

Alright, truth be told, I didn’t know what to expect when I announced to my team that we were going to have a Squash Fest. Having never hosted an event like this and with such short notice, I was thoroughly blessed to see so many of our customers on Friday and Saturday. An even bigger shocker to me was the turnout of seniors and super seniors.

In my mind, I imagined several young families coming out to “see” where their box of good comes from. While young families did show up, it was our “more mature” customers who wanted to buy squash, and lots of it. We even had repeat shoppers. Three customers in particular came back the second day for more of their favorites. As a farmer, it really blessed my heart to know they wanted more of the food that I grow and that it was worth the second trip in order to “stock up.”

Saturday was also a production day for us, so we had a crew out harvesting squash and bunching spinach. With all the activity of my crew working, customers picking, and tractors in the field, one customer commented that the picturesque scene remind her of Norman Rockwell’s artistry.

To help sort and accumulate the pumpkins into nice piles, I enlisted the help of a few young strapping boys. My crew, after handling several thousands of pounds of squash, was thankful for their help. So, thank you Caden and Chase for your help. And, of course, thank you Brenda for bringing your boys out to the farm.

For those of you who couldn’t make it, we harvested lots of squash that we will be sending your way over the next few months.