I am a first generation French woman relocated in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. I grew up on a produce-horse farm in the Southwest of France in a very unique situation, well not so unique for France, but unique compared to the life I live here today. My grandparents lived nearby and were an instrumental part of my life growing up. I had multiple cousins, aunts and uncles close by as well, which made for a very intricate sometimes difficult, yet beautiful tapestry of life, one that is hard to leave behind and that I have never forgotten.

Although I have now lived in the US longer than I lived in France, I have always spoken French, and embraced the traditions I grew up with, and our small diversified farm is a perfect canvas to make sure I keep some of these traditions well and alive. We are a Franco-American family small farming in the US.

Here, just outside of Eugene in Oregon we raise a small flock of Gotland sheep, we run a small produce-egg-flower CSA, we run a few camps for children, we host workshops and we are in the process of launching a Farmstay experience, all of these diversified offerings really are great platforms to spread some of these traditions and for education, which is a cornerstone of this farming life.

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I have been gardening using no dig methods, or no till as it is also known, for around 12 years. I’ve worked in, created or advised many different kinds of edible growing spaces: market gardens, kitchen gardens on large private estates, pop up gardens for festivals, tiny gardens, urban gardens and in my home garden and allotment, where I have a small homestead.

Bruton where I live is a small ancient market town in England, with a population of around 3000. The local church was founded in the 7th Century and the town was listed in the Domesday Book in 1086 as “Briuuetone” – people have been living here and growing food for a long time. We are surrounded by verdant farmland and ancient sites including the Isle of Avalon, Stonehenge (45 minute drive away) and Cadbury Castle, said to be the site of King Arthur’s Camelot.

My house is a semi detached ex council house, built around 1930 as affordable housing for rural workers. The gardens are not very big, but I manage to grow a lot of food in my front and back garden, and at the allotment just up the road. This is rented from the local council for £17 a year, where I have eleven 4 ft x 16ft beds plus an area for composting. I do all of my growing and gardening mostly by myself. My three children are all university students with not much interest in growing but they will help out and are certainly interested in eating the veggies!

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Years ago, I bought a pair of goats. Just two little baby goats, newly weaned and cute as can be with their expressive little faces and dancing hooves. Little did I realize what I had just gotten myself into. After what felt like no time at all, something fascinating happened, and gradually I found myself with a pasture FULL of 22 goats! We goat owners like to refer to this phenomena as “goat math.”

If you haven’t gotten the hint already, goats are addicting, but unfortunately, a few really naughty goats out there have painted a bad picture of themselves... When most people think of goats, they think of this wild-eyed beast that eats anything it can get ahold of, and will escape again and again even if you pour your life savings into building a fence secure enough to hold an rouge elephant.

Well let me assure you that while there are a few especially naughty ones out there, that is NOT your typical goat! A happy goat will stay in its pasture, and there are a few key “ingredients” to making a happy, content goat. The basic wants and needs of a goat are simple.

With a bit of research and hard work, a moderate size goat herd can easily pay for itself, and in fact make you some money as well! There are three basic types of goats: Dairy, meat, and fiber. I’ve falling in love with dairy goats, and particularly the Nubian breed. These are the gentle giants of the goat world, weighing in at up to 300 lbs! Their iconic Roman nose and pendulous ears make them stand out among the crowd. While their size could be intimidating for some, they have the biggest heart to match. If raised with gentleness and love, these happy beasts will be very much like the family dog.

This brings me to probably the most valuable lesson I’ve learned from keeping goats. When it’s kidding season, and I have half a dozen little babies running around, I make sure to spend as much time with them as possible. I build trust with them, and in turn, they learn that humans are friends. I continue this throughout their life, but the first 1-5 months are absolutely critical. This may seem like a simple thing, but it really can make all the difference in your goat keeping experience. If a goat gets stuck, injured, needs medication, or has complications during birth, they are going to need your assistance. If you have built trust with them, when emergency situation arise your presence will bring peace to them instead of stress. This will save you many miles of chasing down goats that dislike humans, simply to administer some medication.

So whether you have a back pasture that needs eaten down, want fresh milk right from your backyard, or simply enjoy having animals to watch and care for, goats are such a fun addition to any farm or homestead. Don’t hesitate to reach out to me on Instagram @the.freckled.herd with questions or for more goat information! And as always, don’t forget to shut the gate. 😉

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Hi! I’m so glad you’re here. My name is Honey Smith.

I’m an RN for our local school district and am married to my best friend who also happens to be a fireman. We have two little ones and we own and operate a small family farm called Dalkena Highlands, just about an hour north of Spokane in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.

My husband and I didn’t grow up in this farm community - but we decided when our daughter was 9 months old to buy a 5 acre plot and make it a small hobby. So we packed up our Greenlake home in the heart of Seattle and followed our dream to own some property and started small with 2 baby doll sheep, a flock of chickens and 2 ducks. Our dreams and family grew when we decided to pick up and move east to pursue bigger things. We now operate on 115 acres with 18 Scottish highland cows, 2 percheron draft horses, 2 nigerian dwarf goats, a large flock of chicks, 4 cayuga ducks and we seasonally raise Idaho pasture pigs for our loyal customers and personal use.

My real passion for health and fitness actually started back on that small 5 acre plot though. I had just undergone my 4th knee surgery and decided - enough was enough, I needed to stay healthy and strong to keep up with the demands of two little ones, working full time as an RN, and all that goes in to the farm.

In the midst of all this, I started an online health and fitness business. Ever since then, being “farm fit” and practicing self love have been two of my biggest passions. I help people feel strong, know their worth and eat like they give a darn. Since our move east, our drive to share those concepts have become a daily part of our life and message. We focus on pasture raised beef, pork and eggs. And I primarily workout now to keep up with the chores of daily farm life. Whether it’s being able to tow my 40+ pound kids, or feed bags, or be able to go the long haul during hay season, staying “fit” far outweighs anything else. Being a mom of two, I understand how incredibly real the pressures are for mom’s to have it “all” together in todays day in age. Not only do our kids need to be doing the best, learning the best, and so on and so forth, but us too as moms put demanding pressures on ourselves.

I hope after reading this you may think when you’re out doing chores or getting ready for a long day of projects on that farm that everything you’re doing is enough. Being you, being present and getting the job done is more than enough is all realms of life. “Fit” is not a cookie cutter, one size fits all term - by any means. I hope that you can feel good when you accomplish a really hard chore, or tick off something big on your project to do list. Spend all day in the garden? Heck yes girl! That is work. That is fit. That is being a mama. It is all the things and so much more. I love helping see people find their outer strength but more importantly, their inner beauty. Keep up what you’re doing and when you’re out lifting heavy bags or helping the “guys” out - you know I’m right there in your corner rooting for you! With love, and dumbbells, - FarmFitMama :)

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