From the Foreman's Desk - July Update

From the Foreman's Desk is a monthly update from Kaitlyn Kesten (Remi's wife and self-proclaimed "Ranch Foreman.")

Hope everyone had a safe 4th of July! We spent the evening with close friends eating yummy food and blowing things up! 🎇

We had a nice little break of no animals on the properties except for John and Amber's cows. And Jack, of course. Jack loves his snuggles, can't forget about him!

Reeves has a dog named Nala, she's still a puppy. She and Jack like to wrestle in the yard and go on little adventures. They love to go "visit" the bunny. This usually results in them getting in trouble for being too excited and scaring Panda. Naughty little pups.

Lately we've been eating a lot of bacon...Yum! Here's my favorite way to cook bacon!

July 6th we got our Thanksgiving turkey poults! After spending a couple of weeks in the brooder, they were moved out to pasture this week!

In the picture above they are fighting over a grasshopper.

Check out this sweet pic of a garden spider in the Range Coop!

Turkey Poults are really curious, fun and playful!

This week we also received our second batch of chicks! Little baby chicks have got to be one of the cutest things ever 😍

In this picture, I am making sure they know where the water is. We have constant water access in the brooder with nipples running along it. All the chicks have to do is peck the nipple and water comes out.

Mid July, Remi's brother Rex came up for a visit. It was super fun having him around. He fixed up a mini bike and was flying around the farm. I love when Remi gets the opportunity to work with his siblings ♥

Of course Jack always has to know what's going on!

This month we also got a batch of piggies! Don't tell the chicks, but pigs are definitely my favorite. I might not work with them much anymore, but they still hold a special place in my heart. In fact, I even found a perfect picture to hang on our wall in the farmhouse. Looks just like the pigs we have on the farm 💓

Looks like they found someone's glove!

My next batch of soap will be finished curing this week! It is a blend of Spearmint and Lemon. A customer suggestion! I'm hoping to restock Rosemary and Lavender soon. I really need to make some more of the infamous Black Jack soap. An uplifting blend of Grapefruit, Eucalyptus, and Peppermint, mixed with charcoal for all sorts of skin benefits!

This is what the soap looks like after being poured into the mold.

These updates are intended to help close the gap between distance so that you can feel relationally connected. We believe it's such a wonderful thing to know where your food comes from and who grew it!

I love getting to connect and network through this blog. That being said, I would like to keep this space real and raw.

Your farmers had a rough month this month. It's not always just about cute animals and satisfying physical labor. Sometimes it's feeling discouraged. Sometimes it's setting goals and not reaching them. Sometimes it's trying your best and it not turning out the way you thought it would.

This isn't just a farm. It's a business as well. The business side might not require as much physical labor, but it can be mentally draining if you let it.

Remember what I said earlier about teamwork? Well, it's a real thing. And we wouldn't be where we are right now without our DP team members to encourage one another. We've been blessed to surround ourselves with people who want to see us personally thrive and the business thrive as well!

What do you do when you've had a couple of hard weeks?

You get together with those people. You open up and share your heart. You come up with a new game plan. You evaluate how each individual optimistically functions and works. Our team is comprised of a visionary, an operator, a craftsman, a philosopher, a socializer, a daredevil, and an architect (according to Culture Index). All of these can synergistically work together to be more productive and more enjoyable. I love the people our family gets to work with. This to me is what makes David's Pasture special.

Here's to August with renewed spirits, goals, and motivation!

And also, new additions to the sign!

Remi has been wanting to change up our sign for a while now. He wanted it to be more explanatory.

We had a friend fix it up for us. Doesn't it look great?? The plan is to also put "pasture-raised meats" on the main sign.

Now we're off to pick some peaches 😋

The farmer's wife,

Kaitlyn Kesten

P.S. Looking for a new way to change up your water drinking game?

Grab a pitcher of water and toss in a sliced up cucumber! It's been a huge help during these temps.