"So what exactly do you guys do once you're done farming?"
A question we always get towards the end of our season.
"sleep....uh, sleep and sleep."
Just kidding.
We wish that's what we got to do but we have a baby, so, that doesn't happen either way.
What do we actually do in the off season...
Well, we still work a little around the farm, we actually completed our last restaurant sale the week before thanksgiving. We do a lot more clean up and try to get things prepped up for the spring so that when it's time to get moving, there's less in the way of us getting started.
We both also still work at our "normal" jobs. Ben shifts to full time vs. the part time work he does during our farming season.
We went on two big trips this winter and a few weekend trips here and there! We went on a family vacation to Hawaii in November and then to Wisconsin to visit my family in December. We also made a trip over to Olympia, WA where we visited friends and Ben got to go Salmon fishing.
Which leads me to the next thing we do and that's hunt. And by we, I mean Ben.
It's the time we have to hopefully fill our freezer. Unfortunately, no deer this year! But we were able to fill our freezer with some fish he caught over the summer, the smoked salmon he made from our trip, some venison from a friend that Ben took out hunting and some pork that was given to us from a family friend. We also raised some chickens for ourselves this year, so we have plenty of options. Ben went out bird hunting quite a few times, so we've enjoyed some duck and goose meat along the way. If you can't tell- we try to only eat meat that either we caught/raised/hunted ourselves or from friends that we usually trade for!
Besides all that stuff, we get to enjoy time together. We get more time to cook and just slow down in general. We took time to do some improvements around the house and just enjoy time with our daughter, Adeline, free from time constraints. Though it seems like we get a ton of time together during our season since we work together- most of it is split up so that we can be the most efficient and at the end of the day, we're exhausted so it doesn't often leave us with a lot of family time. This is a nice time for Ben and I to get time together and to see our families a little bit more!
Now that it's February, our work load is starting to pick up as we launch the CSA, finish up crop planning and even do some work outside since it's been pretty mild winter. Oh and taxes (super fun right?!).
We've both been going to the gym and creating a more structured schedule for Adeline and the family. Farming can be kind of crazy, it's long days and different things happening everyday so we are trying to lay the ground work of a more organized and structured season overall by getting our family on a good routine now.
We hope you've enjoyed a little peak into our "off" season. A time to rest our bodies, reflect on our past season and set goals for the following one to come. Though I've written quite a bit, there's just something about photos that seem to do it more justice so I'll share some of my favorite moments we've captured over the last couple months. Honestly, most of them are of Adeline because she's just the light of our life!
- Rauha
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