State Fair Dairy Products Competition of 2023

           Very few probably know this, but our state competition for dairy products at the fair is pretty well attended. I think the secret to that lies with the fact that all cheese plants fall under the same inspector and he highly encourages all the Kentucky plants to enter. It's an enormously fun mishmash of small, medium, and large producers, all in one room. Products processed range from fluid milk, to butter and cheese, to yogurt and ice cream. 

Maid-N-Meadows: Summer 2023 Update

       It seems like updates are becoming fewer and farther apart! I started this blog because I wanted to connect with people. I looked for other families online with lives similar to my own and found some! But I wanted to find more. And because I looked for others, I was hoping that others would look for me!!! I laugh when I write that because "me"/"I" am changing as I walk through the seasons of life. Who I was when I started this blog is not who I am now. And so when I began writing just now, I had to think about "who" am I writing to and why. 

I'm completely drenched from unloading groceries in a downpour. Why didn't I just wait? I'm a nut!

Maid-N-Meadows: Fall 2022 Update

         

     "We have come a long way, baby!", but somehow this year felt particularly challenging. Lol, I guess adding an expensive pasteurizer, a flock of sheep, more chores, more cheese, new recipe development and a first employee, probably has something to do with it. There was more fighting this year, fewer family suppers, and just over all exhaustion. I think when energies run low and there feels like no reprieve, tempers running short shouldn't be a surprise. The oldest children really held things together this year. They were the rock and foundation.

        That sounds crazy, to me because I never wanted or expected my children to be the foundation of our business operations. I wanted them to help, sure! But I wanted them to have a life of their own and seek out their own opportunities. Both Karson (17) and Jaden (15) pulled weight no one expected and well beyond expectations, while also holding a strict boundary of Sundays off. 

     They did the work they knew how to do and did it well, in a predictable fashion. And this is what held everything together this year! While Daniel and I burned out regularly, became unpredictable, and erratic in our function as we burned the candle at both ends, they were the turtles that just kept on marching toward the goal. They worked when they needed to and rested when they should have....and just basically showed up the adults in common sense when it comes to work life balance.

       Jaden brought home another blue ribbon for her cheddar to top it all off!

      Remember that pasteurizer?! Well, its 100 gallons bigger than we first intended! It arrived in July but the probes for the temperature recorder didn't arrive until October! So, we have yet to use it in a full run yet. But that has to happen fast now as we only had a year to complete the project, per the USDA grant. Its a bit overwhelming! But think of the fun stuff we can do with it! I can't wait for fresh mozzarella and cheese spreads galore!We can finally up our output too! 500 gallons of milk can be processed in a day!

       A few sheep are lambing and there is fencing to do. There are so many repairs on barns and fence posts....the garden fence needs repair. Our spring house roof is literally falling off! 😂 Laugh with us so we don't cry! This winter isn't going to prove much of a rest. But we have put our foot down, and the family is eating together again. Family movies are happening again. And life is just more cooperative and together in general. I guess we just needed a season of strife to remind us how much value we have in the slower pace. Karson will finally be moving in his own direction this summer. The younger boys are going to move up in responsibility, and somehow, we adults need to rebalance how we handle it all. Throw us some pointers if ya got any! Winter is a good time to chew on things like that.

The girls....chewing in the barn!

Maid-N-Meadows: Spring 2022 Update

               Wow! Its been a minute, hasn't it!?  The last time I posted was in March of 2021, just before we slid into the rollercoaster summer ride with a 2 year old and a 1 year old. I have the drawings on the walls, a vast array of cups with missing lids and the 3 shoes whose mates are probably halfway to the ocean by now, having been lost in the creek, to show for it. We made cheese three times a week last year and needless to say, Daniel and I both had a melt down in July. It just wasn't sustainable, but I think the heat was the last straw. We dropped to milking once a day and finished the year strong.....and being the gluttons for punishment that we are, we applied for some brand new equipment with the USDA!

         You may have heard, but one of the highlights for us last year was being awarded first place in two categories at the State Fair. We won in the cheddar category and flavored cheeses category. Can I just say I cried my eyes out when Daniel picked up our ribbons and plaques? We have made our share of really bad cheese, fed a lot to pigs, and re-evaluated all along the way....to finally see that work recognized! It just made all the times we made cheese at 3 A.M., all the hours of driving to our rented facility, sleeping on the ground or in cars, weeks of sandwiches and coffee pot macaroni and cheese.....just all felt like it took us somewhere and was worth it somehow. So many tears of relief and joy and more relief! So many times I wondered if we were crazy to pursue a craft we knew so little about, while also putting our lives in such a crazy, helter skelter position. Everything was on the line.  This was the moment we felt our faith had rewarded us.

    Also this year, I learned to take time for an endeavor uniquely my own. With a flock of sheep on the farm and no outlet for the milk, I came up with the idea of utilizing the milk and wool in soap production. I enjoy dyeing wool and mixing up essential oil fragrances. It has been a creative outlet for me after many years of supporting, and nourishing the goals of my children and husband. Plus the sheep are so cute and look so majestic grazing in the field at sunset.

      We milk these East Friesians and hand wash/pick their wool, for a unique and homegrown product. Each one is its own work of art.

     A lot of things are the same on the farm and of course a lot of things continue to change. Jacob finished school last spring and started out pursuing his own adventures. The next oldest, Karson, is likely finishing out his last summer on the farm, this year. The years of raising a large family are coming to a close as every other year, the farm crew diminishes by one. It is a bittersweet experience, to be sure. But I am so proud of them and know they have everything they need to be successful.

      Daniel and I took some much needed time to step back from the farm and consider the big picture, last fall. What direction do we need to take this family and business? In the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains we tried to reconnect to one another and to our personal visions for the future. How to fit the puzzle back together after such a tumultuous summer?

      It was then we decided to apply for a grant for value-added farms, like ourselves, and create a new line of cheeses that enabled us to utilize the help of other farms' milk. And guess what!? It was awarded! A new PASTEURIZER and several more new surprises is coming up! 

      As we pondered our future, camped through a rainstorm, and hiked into the sunshine, a rainbow appeared. It was in that moment that we were reminded that after the storm comes new hope, a new day, a new chapter. While we are still in the thick of "weedy terrain" with small children and hours of chores, we still see a vision of the future taking shape where the farm can be of service to the community and a home to our family. So here's  to a hopeful future and the faith it takes to plod on! And wishing you all a beautiful and rejuvenating summer!!! Thanks for being with us, every step of the way. 

Maid-N-Meadows: Spring 2021 Update

           

      Daffodils, the symbol of spring, are finally blooming on the farm. It has been many years since the last time they bloomed in March. Usually they are fully bloomed in the third or fourth week of February. Not so this year! We had a snow that will remain in our memory for many years to come.

Managing CL In Goats

       

 Talking about CL in your own goat herd is a subject that fills many a goat farmer with shame. No one likes to talk about it or admit they have it on the farm. It is a disease that is incurable, gets in your soil, in your barn, and spreads through tools as well. Quite simply, it is gross and hard to get rid of without hard culling and testing. It was a sad day when I realized what we were facing.

Dairy Sheep Diary Part 3

       

          We have had our dairy sheep for four years now. If you are just catching up, check out "Dairy Sheep Diary" and "Dairy Sheep Diary Part 2". A lot has happened with the sheep in the last 6 months. We are still really enjoying our girls and milking them more and more. This year we are using some of their products to sell at our farmer's market booth, along with selling the rams for meat.

Maid-N-Meadows: Spring 2020 Update

         Spring Has Sprung! 
      But we are still hunkered down, waiting for Covid to pass.....like everyone else, I suppose. How has everyone's spring been? We are really fortunate to have the farm to weather this "germ storm" on. Always lots to do and plenty of fresh air to do it in. The children were sporting their swim suits for the creek as soon as the thermometer hit 70 degrees!

     First priority, this spring, was sealing the walls of the facility. When our youngest was born, last fall, we were a little too busy at the hospital to get that done. By the time we got home, the temperatures were too cool for the wall sealer to dry properly. So we made do this winter, but the day the temperatures warmed up, Daniel was out there digging and sealing and putting a rock drain around the facility.

     Speaking of that precious baby, Elora, she has plumped out substantially. As of today, she is six months old and grabbing and reaching and rolling! She is a handful when she is teamed up with one year old, sister, Beulah! Good thing I have a lot of helpers who enjoy the tots!

           Spring is a big time for babies of all kinds, here on our farm. The sheep, lamb and the cows, calve. We got our very first black sheep out of an all white flock, this spring. Can't explain that one, but I can really relate to the original mean of "black sheep"! This sheep is sooo different and seemingly came from nowhere, genetically speaking. I am very excited about the wool, though. He is definitely staying on the farm!

         Red Ears, the cow, welcomed a beautiful little heifer to the farm, early this month. She is just the cutest little thing and a real live wire. She comes into the holding pen with her mother during milking, just like she is part of the team! We really love when this arrangement works because the calves are naturally comfortable with the sights and sounds of the milking parlor.

  So we have been busy around here! But before I sign off I want to give some recognition to Karson, who turns 15 this year. He has taken up welding and is doing a pretty good job! He has been building gates and doing odds and ends repairs for us this spring. Check out these gates he built! The little notch opening there is so the goats can get out to the big field without the cows getting in the goat barn. (Cow piles are a whole lot messier than goat piles! We prefer the cows hang out in their own barn. Plus cows don't really care to watch where they are going and I am always afraid they will step on baby goats!)

   We are looking forward to seeing everyone again at the farmer's markets and just plain being back out to meet and greet everyone. Hope everyone has stayed safe and looking forward to the summer! See y'all soon!

Maid-N-Meadows: Fall Update 2019

  Fall sure has been a doozy! I don't know about anyone else, but the heat combined with no rain turned our pastures into dust! Our cows suffered and so did our milk production! But that wasn't our biggest challenge of the season. As soon as we started to experience a cool down and a bit of rain, we got hit with a family crisis.....one that would take a month to recover from.

                                

Baby Elora on CPAP, under a heat lamp. She was 18 inches long and weighed 4lbs 10oz.

   

10 Things I love About Farming!

        The farm life is a life of passion and excitement! (Sometimes the excitement is not the fun kind, but there is never a dull moment!) Here are my top ten favorite things about living and working on a farm.

10. No Traffic And Comfy Clothes

 

Why We Started Maid-N-Meadows

           I have been sharing some of our journey in the cheese business, but I thought today I should share some of the personal reasons of why we actually started this journey to begin with. What really pushed us forward was a time of crisis in our family and marriage....this business, was actually born out of a serendipitous opportunity in a time of insane uncertainty. While our friends were supportive, there was no getting around that given the stress we were relating to, this was a rather risky time to invest in such a huge undertaking.

Early label design!

           Looking back though, I think the business was a beacon of hope. It was something that we could build together, even though at that moment  we had forgotten how to work together. The efforts we have undertaken to make our family stronger were and are valiant ones. But this business is still in the early stages and the hours are rough. I still look back in wonder at how far we have come, but I still wonder about the path forward!

Say CHEESE!

           Its been about a week and a half since we were finally approved to make cheese. Honestly, when we passed, it didn't feel real. I have told myself so many times, "We will be making cheese in a week!" So many times I have been very, very wrong! Meanwhile, the cheese was running low and then practically OUT! As it sits, our new cheese won't be ready until September. But hey, we are back making cheese and that is all that matters.

Maid-N-Meadows and Kiva: Crowdfunding LOANS!

               Small business owners know how hard it is to secure financing in a pinch, especially for micro loans! Knowing we needed a little extra help to complete our project on time, we contacted Kiva for a bit of help. Their mission is "to connect people through lending to alleviate poverty."
Basically, they provide a worldwide platform to crowdfund interest free loans to small businesses!
                                                      OUR KIVA PROFILE!

          The loan process was simple. We simply needed to share what the funding was for and tell a little about ourselves and our business. One really ingenius litmus test of creditworthiness is Kiva's requirement that each loan be partially funded by people in your personal network! After you reach that goal, (Ours was 20 people.) Kiva launches your profile to a network of worldwide lenders. Lenders use their paypal account so their bank information isn't just idling in Kiva. Plus, every dollar can go directly to the loan, while a corporate sponsor matches every loan, dollar for dollar! Our sponsor is Google.org
      To enhance our profile, we worked hard on a video. It was harder than we originally thought to look at a phone and talk as if we were speaking to an actual person. To help with that, Daniel had me peak around the side of the camera so that he could look directly at me when he was speaking. The hardest part of the video was explaining how we had started Maid-N-Meadows. It required Daniel to speak about shutting the commercial dairy down, 9 years ago. It took two days and several takes. Every time Daniel started talking about that time, he teared up and had to stop to blow his nose!

     
     It's interesting, nine years ago, when the Dairy Farmers of America  (The cooperative that bought our milk.)  fieldman stopped by to inform us that we did not have enough milk to be worth a stop to pick it up, no other words passed between Daniel and I. We both knew it was time to close up shop.
      I was quietly relieved. Milk prices were rock bottom and we had racked up a terribly high feed bill over the winter. Daniel had just gotten a job with the Post Office to keep food on the table and he was driving back and forth to Louisville, Kentucky for training. He had spent the last two weeks milking the cows at about 7 p.m. and then again at 2:30 a.m. Daniel was living on caffeine. But the cows couldn't handle that schedule and our production tanked from an already dismal amount. The crux of it is this: Daniel had given everything he had to hold everything together....and it just was not enough.

          Daniel was crushed. He had milked the cows in his herd for several generations. With each one, he could tell you their mother's name and their grandmother's name and some their great-grandmother's name. We were deeply in debt, but not a single cow went to the stock-pen. Later, Daniel did herd health for another dairy and leased his cows where they would be under his supervision. But I did not realize how deeply loosing the dairy still affected him until we made that video.
        As of today, we are 51% to our goal of $10,000, for the last of the equipment we will need. Normally we would work a little longer until we could just pay our way with cash. This time we are in a pinch because we have restaurants and stores that rely on steady product.....product we will run out of if we do not resume production soon. So are asking for some help and would love it if you would consider lending to us! So many friends, family, and customers have been so supportive, not to mention international lenders! If we could reach a few more people, we could wind this up this week!
      For those looking for funding, we couldn't recommend Kiva any higher! The staff have been supportive and the Kiva community has been generous! Follow their recommendations and have a plan for your business and the rest should take care of itself, Lord willing!
     

Maid-N-Meadows- Winter 2019 Update

        There has been a flurry of activity going on at the farm over the past few months! With spring just around the corner, there is almost a panicked fever taking over. The facility must be completed soon if our winter stores of cheese are to hold out until the new cheese is ready to sell. But it feels like an upstream swim and we are beginning to strongly resemble chickens with their heads cut off.
       

Goats And Winter Kidding

                 It has been a banner week for goats on the farm! We are at 17 kids born now and still have 2 days to go. This really wasn't something we planned. Kidding in late January, with day time highs in the 30's is really a recipe for disaster. Kids freeze before they dry and the nannies can't keep the warm enough on their own. A baby that is too cold to get up for a warm drink of milk, is doomed.

Maid-N-Meadows: Winter 2018 Update

     We are making progress, folks! Slowly but surly, the cheese facility is rising out of the dust! We had a good year this year and have so much to be thankful for. But watching our family and friends come together to help us get this building up has been the most awesome experience yet.
     This past month has been a nail biting venture for me. I don't think Daniel had any doubts, but having poured the walls last month, we were ready for pouring the floor this month. But the weather just hadn't cooperated. It was always too rainy and/or too cold to pour concrete. The construction sight became slick and sticky with red, muddy clay.
      After the long slog of prep work was complete and the footers were carefully dug, we were ready for concrete. We pounced on the first warm day, calling in all the help we could muster. Boys and men were working right up to the trucks pulling in with concrete, trying to get the rebar in to reinforce the new floors. Many hands make like work and, after three concrete trucks, the floor was in!

     It did not take long for the boys to latch on to this new success and jump into getting the walls up! We found this interesting fella that buys up all the extra and misfit supplies from contractors who are working on big jobs and then resells those supplies to people like us. It was a nice discount from the lumber yard and we like putting our money back into the local community. Here is another look at the overall design.

         The cave walls will be 2x6's so that we can incorporate more insulation. The office will be small, but we sacrificed space there to have a larger packing room. Plus there will be a loft upstairs that we can use as office space as well. The make room can accommodate two vats and a small soup kettle that can also be used as a vat for small quantities of milk....like sheep milk!

         Walls are coming up fast! I wish all aspects of the process went this fast. We are excited to bring the operation back home and get the next season started! See ya next year!

Maid-N-Meadows: Fall 2018 Update!

      Life feels so crazy these days, but I am happy to report that it is a good kind of crazy. After a long summer of chaos and endless days, we have reached a time of busy punctuated with times of rest. Plus! We are seeing the people we love and nourish us from before Maid-N-Meadows. The only problem is, now, we miss our market friends!
       We have been doing a lot of craft markets this past month and Daniel has enjoyed meeting new people. We are always blessed by the warm welcome and kindness we receive from the folks in the Springfield/Clarksville, Tennessee area.
      It was at these markets that our newest project/product made its debut. We have been donating our whey to Daniel's brothers hogs. They live an outdoor life with plenty of range and lots of opportunity to root and wallow. They also only eat GMO free feed and what they find in their outdoor environment. So they are pretty clean eating, as pigs go! We feel charcuterie is a nice compliment to cheese and these pigs fit the sort of practices we wish to promote. So we combined forces with Webb's Butcher Shop to create this summer sausage and snack sticks.
 

     The summer sausage has been a spectacular hit and we plan to make more when we run out!
      Progress on the facility is moving slowly. I am very worried we will not be able to pour the concrete floor as it is cold now and only going to get colder! Not getting this done would be a major problem as it would hold up the rest of the building process. We are not going to return to the old facility, so our cheese inventory would definitely run out come spring. So we sit at the edge of our seat as we do what we can to keep things moving, watch the weather, and ultimately wait for the temperatures to be right. All things work together for good, so we will just have to accept God's timeline.

     But with some major help from family, the walls are poured and standing strong! It amazes me how Daniel has experience in so many areas of construction and practical living! He will be able to head up the entire project, except for the part that the state is requiring our commercial plumber to handle.
       Also, the editor of Edible Nashville blessed us with a great surprise this fall when she included us in the latest edition! What we love about this magazine is that it focuses on the local food chain. From local grocers to local producers and makers, this magazine promotes community through food. Food has been a connector for eons and here it is again, bringing us together for a purpose greater than any one of us......which is to promote a hopeful and bright future for the next generation.

     Manuela from Ella P. Photography took our pictures for us! She handles big families like ourselves with ease and produced unique shots of our family on the farm. Little Beulah was just three days old in these pictures!

              Last, but not least, I want to share that we have been enjoying our little Beulah. We have taken some time to reconnect as a family and celebrate our blessings. She has many arms to hold her and everyone loves to dote over her. Even three year old Pilgrim likes to "pet" her. We look forward to a quieter winter with time spent with family and friends, Lord willing. We have a lot to be thankful for! Blessings to all our readers and thanks for coming along for the ride!
                                                                   Showalters

Maid-N-Meadows: Fall Has Arrived!

      Fall is finally here and with it comes a blessed cool down! Markets are coming to a close and the cows are beginning to wind down production. On the home front, school has started for the children and we are all counting down, waiting for baby Showalter to arrive.
      As an answered prayer, we have been awarded some help with our loan for a cheese facility at home from the Kentucky Office of Agricultural Development. They will guarantee half of our loan with an interest rate of 2.75% for ten years! What a relief! We are so ready to be home on our farm, full time! Get ready for the fall workbees!
     

                 It is a whirlwind of a time as we prepare to close on this loan, wait for the new baby, and try to get our hay up.....while still running markets, deliveries, and the cheese facility an hour and a half away! We are tired but committed to finishing strong and feel encouraged by all we have managed to do this summer.

        We splurged this year and took the children to the State Fair. Our first fair, ever, actually. We wanted the children to know how much we appreciated their hard work through the season in a way that celebrates our lives as farmers. Largest pumpkin contests, amid youth animal shows, spiked with ferris wheel rides, seemed like the perfect way to do that. The children have carried their weight during the hard times, as a family does for each other, and we have valued their insight and input in the operation.

        Fall is kind of like starting a new year! So many things shift in our daily lives! As the garden dies back and the leaves begin to fall, school feels fresh again and a whole host of hopes and plans come into focus! The weather is comfortable to work in as we catch up on the summer backlog. Tidying up the fences, or repairing feeders, there is no end to the work. Priorities decide what gets done and what waits.
        Winter preparations begin as we look forward to friends and family, gathered around hot meals and festivities. Bike riding as a family or picnicking with friends, has been something we have had to cut from the schedule due to lack of time. But we eagerly look forward to those leisurely times together, again!
   

Looking forward to a season of rejuvenation and rest as we cobble together a facility at home! Come say "HI!" at the last few markets of the season! We love seeing you and appreciate all your support and encouraging feedback!

Keely and Daniel and the rest of the crew!

USDA Micro Loans, State Programs, Banks = Small Business Finance

       

       We have to build a facility, folks. The business looks viable, we have learned all we can from our mentor, and having accomplished these goals, we have to reduce our travel time and stress levels by bringing this business back home to the farm. But being a young business and this being the first year of working it full time and relying upon it for our financial needs, we just don't have the funds to throw up a facility.
          Before starting to look for financing, I combed the internet looking for the experiences of others. But I mostly came up empty handed. Weird! I know we are not the only farmers who have needed financing. We hate borrowing as much as the next person, but when it has to be done, it has to be done....so here is a run-down of the options we found and some tips and mistakes we learned from along the way.

Crash! Burn! Rise!

     Life has been pretty intense! We have been doing all the milking, cheesemaking, packaging, marketing, and delivering cheese ourselves for the past two months. (Except for the fine work our distributors do....(I love you guys so much right now!!!)) With the cows and the facility a 3 hour round trip away and our markets and major buyers in cities that are a 4 hour round trip away, our weeks are maxed out. When we have part of a day off, we stare glassy-eyed into space, utterly fatigued and burnt out.
      Daniel continues to amaze me with his endurance and optimism. He goes without sleep and food in a race against time to keep up with everything. Meanwhile, I'm not faring so well. Be it pregnancy hormones, the 33 extra pounds, low iron levels, or all of the above, I can barely move and I am a blubbering mess.

      When I say blubbering mess I actually mean  a virtual meltdown where one is in a state of despair and questioning whether they can continue going in this direction. That's right! A year and a half in and countless hours, all our financial reserves and I am wondering if we should just quit.

• I miss my family being together. I miss my husband! 
• I miss sunsets and sunrises on the farm....quiet times and coffee time!
• I miss doing fun things on Sunday with the children...now I stare at the ceiling in exhaustion.
• I miss friends, family, vacations....anything fun.
• I miss real food....food that I cooked and does not belong in the sandwich category!

     After a particularly depressing attempt to achieve funding for the new facility, I just fell apart.

     A-N-D.....not quietly, in a corner, like usual! Due to missing a commitment, my family caught wind of my disfunction. AND.....they sprung into action. Food, transportation to a baby well care visit, help with clothes, and basically just meeting our needs where we are... arrived through thousands of miles of travel and efforts. I am still not exactly sure how to go on, but I have a few ideas.

     

         It is humbling to have a family that loves me that much...but I am so grateful. Everyone needs that kind of support sometimes and to be reminded that someone values them. I never want to abuse such support and I hate the inconvienence  they have suffered for it, so I want it to mean something. I want it to support fruit in me that is successful and stable. Also, a full cup has something to give to others! I desperately want to pay some of that love and support forward.

      The take away here is that in the crucible of life, family can make the difference between burn-out and hope. So on we go....with renewed strength and hope.