Contentment

Contentment is one of the most powerful finanical principles in our lives. If we have learned to be content, it will be easier to understand and accept our position as the manager of what we have been given. This doesn't mean we need to be hands off on money issues. Contentment helps us focus on our goals for money and to resist temptation to overspend or borrow.

Here are four signs of discontentment...

The Olive Tree

We aren't too familiar with olive trees here in Minnesota because they can't survive our harsh zone 4 winters.  I was reading about olive trees earlier this week. It takes 15 years for a sapling to reach olive bearing maturity. (In contrast fruit trees will typically bear in 3-5 years.). 15 years is a long time to dedicate space and nurture to a crop before getting any pay back at all.

However, once the root system and the scaffolding of the plant is in place olive trees can bear fruit for 2000 years. There are trees in the middle east that are this old. I've heard the analogy of slow and steady personal growth if we want to be  "a squash or an oak tree", Based on these new facts I guess I rather be an olive tree.

Learning about the olive tree made me think about the task of parenting and the parallels between olive tree husbandry and raising children. Here are 5 principles of raising children gleaned from the olive tree.

The Supper Table

As a father and a farmer I have learned that the supper table isn't just for eating it is also for leading. Many examples, values, and instructions are transmitted at the table. This won't happen if you are watching TV or talking on the phone. You need to pay attention and be intentional.

Here are five principle of "The Table".

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig

The title of this post is the line from a children's nursery rhyme, Both of our daughters were home for the beautiful weather last weekend. We had a mini-family reunion at the farmers market. With everyone converging there around 10:00.

Both girls gathered up a pile of fresh vegetables to take back to school. Winter squash and carrots were the favorites.

Andrea is studying Music Education at Northwestern University in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Jenna is studying Kinesiology at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa.

Home, One of the Most Fertile Places in the World

The idea of fertility is the ability to reproduce and sustain life. Being able to produce abundant growth or crops. The home on our farm has been a good place to grow children. Fertile places support strong families and grow strong children.

Here are 10 ideas for how your home can grow a strong family and strong children.

Characteristics of a Good Farm Father

A good farm father has some unique characteristics that most of us could learn from. In honor of all those farm fathers here is my top ten list...

The Enrichment of Adversity

Adversity, difficulty, failure, stress are typically viewed by our culture as negative. If  I take a tomato plant when it has just its first set of true leaves and put it outside in the Minnesota spring weather where it is exposed to the sun, wind and rain. We end up with this wonderful stocky plant that is almost bullet proof to the weather and wind.

In the same way, if our education system, creates a challenging environment for our students where they are caused to overcome failure, grow, and handle an appropriate amount of stress. Then we end of with a resilient, sturdy and nearly bullet proof citizen, who is ready to be a productive member of society.

Hunting for Truth, Beauty and Goodness

The elusive Morel mushroom is the gem of the spring forest floor. There is nothing better than Morels sauted in butter. You can't cultivate them. they just show up. But there is a time and place where they can be found. The experience forager knows where to look to increase the odds of finding these delectable treasures.

Elusive Morel Mushroom. Reed Petersen.

In the same way the High School graduate from Schaffer Academy has been trained to know where to look for...;

The Card

Jenna and I were at Think Bank, Friday, after she helped me shovel a load of compost. She was depositing her graduation money and the teller was just making small talk. She asked Jenna where she was going to school and if she was excited about it.

Then the conversation turned to "the card" and it is interesting what Jenna's reaction was...

A Look in the Mirror - Graduation

GET BACK, BEHAVE, LAY DOWN, STOP IT, said a "stage whispered" little girl voice, which greeted Lisa and I one June morning at 5:00 am.

Upon investigation I found a three year old Jenna standing on the counter in the bathroom in front of the mirror working on her hair which had suffered some set-backs during the night in bed.

15 years later...

The Radish as a Marketing Case Study

One of the gems of spring is the humble radish.

When we first started selling at the farmers market radishes were gong for 50¢ a bunch. They are way to much work to sell for that, so what we did to be able to sell more is a classic study in marketing...

10 Reasons Why Rochester Minnesota Is a Great Place to Raise a Family

Spring is in the air and people start thinking of moving and relocating. With all the talk about the Destination Medical Center (DMC), many people will be thinking of relocating here. The local papers and TV are promoting Rochester as a mecca for employment and growth.

As a long term resident, I would like to offer my list of why the Rochester area is a great place to live and raise a family.

Farming Lessons From Noah the Patriarch

A story to contemplate on this Thanksgiving weekend. We are spending some time with family and I will resume posts next week.

I believe that men are happiest when they are pursuing a big awesome vision and behind that vision is a life changing purpose.

In Genesis 6:14-16 God told the patriarch Noah that he was to build an ark 450 feet long, 75 feet wide and 40 feet deep. That was one big boat! God gave him 120 years to finish the task.

Just for fun let us see what can we learn from how Noah might have proceeded. I'm reading between the lines here a little because scripture doesn't give us all the details, but it might have been something like this:

1. Noah had three sons. He worked with and trained them. He gave them age appropriate tasks to do and then followed up to guide their progress.
2. Noah rewarded his boys for their work and worked with them to save, spend and give.
3. Noah guided his sons in their relationships and choice of wives.
4. Noah was going to need lumber so he might have planted a few thousand acres of cypress trees. He had 100 years for the trees to mature
5. Noah was going to need large amounts of hay and grain. So he learned to grow these as well.
6. Noah learned to preserve his harvest as he would need to have enough stored up for a year in the ark and most of a season until crops could be grown again. He likely canned a years supply of salsa.
7. Noah had learned to save for a "rainy day" and was able to hire some skilled craftsmen for certain areas of construction where he was not an expert.
8. Noah worked closely with these skilled craftsman and was soon able to go to the Mesopotamian version of  "Home Depot" and get the tools he needed.
9. Noah was widely read and studied up on things like timber construction techniques and veterinary science (the zoo and exotic animal version).
10. Noah also had one of the best grape vine collections on the planet, since it was ultimately the only grape vine collection on the planet.

Like Noah my vision has been to work with my family teach them life skills that will serve and protect them as they look to the future. My work and the farm have been my big awesome tasks. Not quite as big or awesome as Noah's. But awesome nonetheless.

10 Ideas for Personal and Family Success

I was thinking about elements for success for a family and a farm. Here are my top 10.

1. Have a strong faith.
2. Mary the right person. Someone with similar values and faith
3. Make your family a top priority.
4. Handle money well. Spend less than you make, stay out of debt and save for the future.
5. Be generous and give. To church, to the poor and to your family.
6. Work at something you enjoy. Farming is a great career.
7. Under promise and over deliver to your customers.
8. Be persistent in reaching your farming goals.
9. Be honest and loyal.
10. Be innovative and open to change in your farm.

10 Reasons My Children Are Awesome

If you tell your children that you love them and give them encouragement they will walk a little taller each day. Each of our teenagers have unique skills and abilities, but there are some common denominators that they all share.

1. They have a real faith.
2. They value relationships
3. They respect those who have a leadership role in their lives.
4. They are good students. 
5. They work hard.
6. They save for the future. They have learned to delay gratification.
7. They like to read.
8. They are learning to win with money.
9. They are givers.
10. They pick good friends. They involve their parents in their friendships.

They are my children and I love them.

The Fastest Way to Change Yourself is to Hang Out With the People You Want to Be Like

Whether you want to be an excellent cook, an knowledgeable parent, an experienced foodie or just reduce your carbon foot print. One of the quickest ways to change yourself is to spend time with the people you want to be like.

If you want to be an excellent mom, find other moms who have done a great job and are a little ahead of you in the process. Ask if you can hang out with them once a week or once a month.

If the process of being a dad seems a little overwhelming from time to time. Find some other men that have been through the stage you are in and pick their brains. Don't be shy, do a little parental networking.

Cooking can seem like a lost art, find some folks of like mind and spend some time cooking together. No one has all the answers and we can learn from each other.

I'm not sure how you get to be a foodie, but I'm sure if you hang out with other foodies you get better at it.

The reverse of this process is also true, if you hang out with people who are the opposite of who you want to be they will rub off on you. If someone uses coarse language, you will pick up these manerisms. If someone has poor habits with money like over spending or shopping beyond their means, this can affect your spending patterns. If someone has the "spirit of Eore", this can also be contagious.

So do your homework and spend time with people who you want to be like.

The Lavendar People

Photo Credit: Reed Petersen

There are some unspoken rules in farming, like you don't sneak up on someone while they are running noisy farm equipment and you don't drive all over in the field looking for them. It is customary to catch their attention from the road or gate into the field and "get their permission" to enter or have them come to you.

It was about this time last year, when in their excitement the "Lavender People" broke all the rules. This is the story about how these  folks got to be called the "Lavender People" by the our teens and me.

Is Okra a Vegetable for Dixie, Ya Shure?

Many of our customer seem very surprise when we start bringing Okra to market each year. Especially those that are from the south and new to town. "I thought Okra was a southern vegetable!" is the common refrain.

Well take it from an old Scandinavian. It just tain't so!

It takes a little doing but you can grow Okra in Minnesota. We typically get about a 60 day harvest window before the frost stops all the Okra festivities. Okra is very sensitive to cold; similar to basil in that respect.

Lisa and I were first exposed to Okra 25 years ago when we were on our honeymoon in New Orleans. We had a stew or soup called Gumbo that had lots of Okra in it. We had other strange foods while we were there like oysters on the half shell and blackened red fish (sounds colorful). I bought a New Orleans cook book and tried to grow some of the main ingredients.

I had promised to take Lisa some place where they had a beach for our honeymoon. I figured Lake Pontchcartrain had a beach and never checked any further. Well wouldn't you know it they only had a levee and not a beach. We looked all over but no beach.  We had fun anyway, but she reminds me that I still owe her a beach. You'd think that a French Quarter would be good enough. But I digress...

It is our anniversary today, so I guess I'm doing a little reminiscing.

I ran across a YouTube video a while back where an old gentleman with a thick southern accent was showing how he picked Okra. It was really comical. He had an electric golf cart that he drove along the Okra rows and picked Okra from the seat of his golf cart. He picked about 15 pounds that way and then showed his viewers how he froze the fresh Okra for use during the winter. The interesting thing was the Okra plants he was picking was 6-7 feet tall. It looked like a jungle. He'd reach in and snap off the pods. Very educational!

Because of our short growing season Our Okra never gets over 3-4 feet tall. See my post earlier this season on how we grow Okra.

I'll put a recipe for gumbo in a future post. It has lots of good vegetables in it that are typically available as soon as the Okra is.

Oh, by the way we are starting to harvest Okra this week. It might take a couple of weeks before all the plants are bearing and we have a large quantity.

Ya'll come get some. Ya shure!

We Want to be Your Farmer

"We want to be your farmer"

Not only our purpose statement but also articulates our goals and dreams.

Wouldn't you want to work with and buy from a family that pledges their allegiance to the health of your family?

A pledge that results in stewardship of the land to produce clean vegetables, just picked flavor, unique products, and organic growing methods; a family that is your friend, that greets you with smile,  that cares about your produce needs, that can coach you on food preparation techniques, that can advise you on food preservation, and that invests your food dollar locally.

"We want to be your farmer."

This is a repost for our new blog visitors.

Nicole Arpin Essay - A Guest Post

This guest post is what Nicole Arpin wrote as a college entrance essay, in answer to the question "Write about a memorable meal". Nicole was a graduating senior in the class of 2013. She worked with our family on our farm for 5 years and attended Schaffer Academy with our children. We enjoyed having her as a part of our extended farm family.  She is an excellent student, hard worker, and role model for other young women. One of Nicole's interests is writing. 

*****

I bent over in a field of tomatoes, my knees dusty with black Minnesota dirt.  Turning my head in the general direction of my coworkers, I hollered, “What time is it?” “One thirty!” they shouted back. “Come on in for lunch!”   As we trudged up the well-worn hill toward the house, someone asked, “So, what’s on the menu today?” “Subs, of course,” was the bemused reply.  “What else?”