2021 Year in Review

Whew! This year was a big one for us. The list of things we did and accomplished and moved and rebuilt is nothing short of mind-boggling- which is much of the reason why you haven’t heard from me in several months. Jack and I were talking this week about all we have done and everything that has happened in our lives this year and came to the conclusion that short of getting married and having our first baby, this may have been the craziest and busiest years of our entire lives.

We started the year off with some pretty big news and preparing for our very first CSA. Jack, after several years working as a game warden made the decision to leave his job and focus on the farm full-time. This was one of the biggest decisions he had ever made, but the relief and hope we felt about what we could accomplish in our lives working together far outweighed any anxiety or fear of the future, and in fact, was a huge asset for us moving forward in our lives and in our business. The transition was seamless and amidst his last days of work we experienced the magic and wonder of our very first lambing season- a beautiful and at times heartbreaking experience. While new life was gracing the farm outside, new seedlings were sprouting inside and I was putting hours into planning our outside garden expansion and building a new cat tunnel as soon as the ground was workable. In early May I completed my first degree Reiki training, a life-changing experience, and soon after found myself in the garden for hours as the weather warmed, transplanting seedlings, building beds, and anxiously awaiting our first CSA pick-up. During that time we searched and searched for piglets to expand the pork side of our farm only to have a series of very difficult situations and illnesses they could not overcome. We found ourselves up to our ears in baby chicks in preparation of our first year pasture raising and selling meat birds. We then found out we were expecting our 2nd baby and are overjoyed to become parents of 2 in early March 2022.

Friends, family, and neighbors stepped up and became our biggest supporters of the farm and helped with hours of planning and building and harvesting, being caretakers and entertainment and doing just about anything they could to lend a helping hand. The help, love, and support was a true nod to the beauty of community and friendship (thank you a million to our family and friends, especially Meredith, Chereen, and Ryan!). We could not have done it without you!! And I’d be remiss to not mention our first ever CSA members that contributed to the farm in picking up veggies, eggs, and meat throughout the summer. We cannot express how grateful we are for the support this year with our CSA and the continued support you show us through purchasing our products from us directly and at the CAA market. The support of our community is invaluable and we are so grateful for each and every one of you.

Then….we unexpectedly found the property and home of our dreams about two miles west and within months were planning the move of our entire lives-farm, business, home, and hearts. It is absolutely crazy to think we were staring out at the landscape of our future everyday for the past 4 years. I even took a picture, unknowingly of the property that is now our home nearly 2 years ago on a bike ride (see below). Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that we would be living here. Life sure is unbelievable!

This is a picture I took while I was on a bike ride up County Road 56 back in April of 2018. Little did I know I was taking a picture of our future property.

From September until the end of November we worked tirelessly to move the entire farmstead to our new property. Jack and our parents worked day in and day out for months to get us moved- while I, being 6+ months pregnant did my best to organize and stay out of the way. During the move we also took our first batch of lambs in for USDA butchering and now have USDA cuts of lamb available for order and at the CAA Market in town. We are finally settled here and although we have much to still do (hoop houses and the garden will be in the works in 2022) we are so grateful for where we have landed and cannot wait to see what the future holds in store for us and our expanding family. While things may look different for us with a new baby and a hiatus from our vegetable CSA in 2022, we look forward to expanding our flock of sheep, raising more pasture raised chicken and pigs, and continuing to sell our products directly from us here at the farm and at the CAA Market in downtown Steamboat. We expect to have vegetables available in late summer/fall of next year!

It’s been a wild, amazing, difficult, blessed, and achingly beautiful year. Despite the hardships we have all faced, there truly is beauty in even the smallest of things. Thanks for being on this journey with us. We love and appreciate you all.

See you in 2022!

Farmer Kinzie