“I think there are still a lot of questions about what the future of the farm is going to look like and what we’re going to do with it. People want to be involved and I’m honestly really grateful for that, that they feel so proud of the family farm, that they want to see things do well and see it succeed and be the beautiful place that they remember it being.”

For this week’s episode, I wanted to share our farm transition story. In past episodes I mentioned our move and a little about our farm transition, but today I wanted to dive deeper into what that move looked like for our family. I talked about our previous acreage that we bought not long after getting married and the downside of that property. After deciding we needed to move to expand our operation, I shared about our farm shopping experience. Then when we wanted to move forward purchasing my husband’s family farm, there was a lot that went into making that possible as well as renovations that have happened and are still in progress on the family farm. Now we are getting settled and into new routines and continuing to make progress on our forever homestead and farm.

“I would say the biggest thing is, you definitely have to put your ego aside and your pride and just know that you’re going to do things wrong and you will learn so much more from doing them wrong than doing them right.”  

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Kristin Harms. Kristin shared about the transition she and her husband made from having careers outside of agriculture to having active roles in her family’s Red Angus seedstock operation. Sometimes in agriculture, you have to be creative; Kristin shared some tools they use in their operation that are not ag or business specific. Some of you may know Kristin as The Basic Ranch Mom on Instagram. Kristin talked about the importance of having that page and why she started it.  

“I had to learn everything the hard way. I was going to the library all the time when I had time to do that. I’m listening to podcasts all the time. I’m trying to network with people like you and find people on social media and compare and just join all these groups where you can ask questions. That’s really how you get through it; you’ve got to find people who are willing to share their knowledge with you and that’ll save you some of the heartache.” 

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Tiffany Baxter, owner of Backyard Butchery.  Tiffany talked about how she started her fully mobile butcher shop and some of the obstacles she had to overcome. Tiffany also shared what her farm operation looks like and her plans to expand the farm to hold more animals. Tiffany was very open about sharing what has and hasn’t worked for her, obstacles with Backyard Butchery as well as her own farm operation.   

“Having a game plan is going to save you time and money in the long run.” 

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Thea Larsen. Thea opened up about how motherhood changes you and how the help you need as a mom isn’t always logistical. Thea also talked about being a ranch wife and working with your loved ones. Her words of wisdom that confrontation doesn’t have to be conflict and communication are important to maintain healthy and functional relationships with your co-workers that are also your family members. Thea shared about the group she started for rural and western women called Cowgirls Over Coffee, the purpose of which is for women to find their tribe of other women to learn from and lean on.  

“I love the marketing work that I do. I love solving the problems I get to solve for all the different clients and all the different capacities that I work with. I love that variety.”

For this week’s episode, I wanted to share my story with you! In most of my previous episodes we got to hear stories from people that have inspired me and I thought it was time to give you a little more insight into my life. I talked about how I started freelancing in college and the jobs I had after graduation. With a young and growing family, I knew I needed to make a career change that more aligned with our goals as a farming family. The transition to being self-employed was scary and full of challenges but for me, was completely worth it. Now our current season of life feels like a dream come true and I’m so excited to continue to share our family’s journey with you all!

“Stress plays just as big of role as if I were to take every chemical out of my home because that is one more thing that I have to do, that I’m worried about, that’s increasing my anxiety, increasing my cortisol level and I already know that I’m at-risk for cancer and diabetes and both of those are connected to stress.”  

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Bailee Cooper. Bailee is a licensed and registered dietitian and she explained some of her research and a published article she wrote. A big topic in our discussion was food trends. We discussed what food trends have come and gone and Bailee explains why it’s important to have certain foods in your diet. Bailee also highlighted that stress is something you want to avoid because high cortisol levels can wreak havoc on your body and organs. 

“You’re helping your neighbor. You’re keeping your community going and you’re helping your neighbor and that’s just awesome.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Sammy Gleason. My path has crossed with Sammy’s a few times personally and professionally so it was fun to get to have her on the podcast. Sammy is the marketing manager for the From the Land of Kansas program at the Kansas Department of Agriculture and she shared what it is that she does and what the program does to help farmers, growers, and producers in Kansas. Sammy also dove into some of the benefits of being a member of From the Land of Kansas and how to become a member. If that is something you are interested in learning more about, check out the From the Land of Kansas website or reach out to the office. Also, don’t forget to check out some of the upcoming events Sammy mentioned to help support local Kansas farmers, growers, and producers.  

“We like to consider ourselves a one-stop-shop, which I think is a phrase I probably started in agriculture marketing that a lot of places use now. To give an idea, we had a customer call and say they forgot to pick up donuts and asked if we could stop and bring donuts, and we said, ‘Yep’. We want to be the call they make and we want to provide that service.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Karoline Rose Bohannan. I have known and worked with Karoline for years and it was so fun to have her be on the podcast. Karoline shared the how and why behind the three businesses she’s started so far as well as why it is important for her and her businesses to help the next generation of farmers and ranchers. There’s always lots to do as a business owner and Karoline gave some insight on how she tackles her to-do list.

“I think it’s good to review every once in a while and make sure that the daily routine that we have matches up with our priorities and how we actually want to spend our time on a day to day basis.”

For this week’s episode, I switched things up a bit and am flying solo. Seeing lots of moms, ranch moms, farm moms, etc. on social media, it’s hard not to compare their life to yours, and that comparison is something I wanted to talk about. While I don’t think it is fair to you to compare yourself to another mom on social media because we don’t get to see the behind-the-scenes to her life, comparison can be beneficial in a different way. Being able to hear someone else’s story and how they tackle everyday challenges gives you an opportunity to potentially try something new or see a new way to handle an obstacle. I hope listening to my typical daily routine gives you an opportunity to try something new or I would love to hear from you if you have any suggestions for me!

“I think understanding how things are grown and letting the farmer tell you will calm a lot of the fears placed in people by the major corporations.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Rick McNary. Rick used to be a pastor and had the chance to go to Nicaragua on a mission trip. His experience from that trip sparked a passion to connect more people with food. Rick shared how he and his wife started Shop Kansas Farms as a way to give people access to locally grown/produced food and help people learn where their food comes from. Rick also discussed the Harvest Hub project in Rice county, another project to connect people with local food and products.

“I still would like to share stories for rural women written by rural women because I feel like it brings people together and makes us feel like we’re not alone in our situation. We live a very unique lifestyle, like it’s one thing to be a mom or a wife, but it’s a whole other added thing to be a farm wife or mom, or a ranch wife or mom. We literally live where we work and work where we live.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Jesse Thompson. To me, Jesse feels like a kindred spirit so it was such a joy to listen to her story and hear about her season of life. Jesse shared about her experiences as a ranch wife and mom and the changes she went through from growing up on her family “franch” to her ranch now with her husband and children. Jesse also talked about the joy cooking brings her and why she tries to make as much as she can from scratch. Being a ranch wife and mom is no simple task, especially while also having a job off the ranch, so Jesse shares a few methods that work for her to keep her household running.

“It’s great that we get to bring in Michael’s family’s experience and we’re taking building blocks from that family, but we’re also passing on lessons. With every experience comes a lesson.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Jordan Farquhar. Jordan and her husband Michael farm in rural Alberta, Canada with Michael’s family. Jordan shared what farm succession looks like for them and the key to a smooth transition is communication. Jordan explained what their current cattle operation looks like and how they plan to expand and grow their herd. Growing up, Jordan did not have much exposure to farm life until she met Michael and now she’s a part time farmer and soon to be mom to raise the next generation on their family farm.

“I’m a big fan of ‘and’ instead of ‘but’. So it’s ok to say that was incredibly traumatic and I’m incredibly grateful for how it all happened and all the blessings.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Michaela Gasseling. Michaela talked about some of her big life events, like being an ultrasound technician, then her and her husband deciding to move back to his family’s farm, and her emergency brain surgery after the birth of her fourth child. Michaela also shared the perspective shift that came after her recovery and how that has shaped the life she lives now.

“If we could come together, our community is not going to have to worry about what happens on the coast to not get us the food we need to sustain ourselves. Why do we have to look so far away for food when it’s right here in our backyard?”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Laurie Bruce, co-owner of Bruce's Bullseye Farms. Laurie and her husband are first-generation farmers and are working on expanding their farming operation. One way they are expanding is with Laurie’s commercial kitchen. Laurie shared how it started with her making sand plum jam and jelly for friends and family and grew to a commercial kitchen where Laurie makes all kinds of farm-to-table products. Laurie also talked about the value of being able to provide for yourself and your family with products from their farm, especially when remembering the food supply issues during COVID and the current prices of food.

“The state of Alaska hasn’t been very agriculturally-minded. There’s been comments made by some legislators that in the past said that agriculture doesn’t really matter, we get all of it from the lower 48, it’s ok. So we don’t have a lot of infrastructure to support agriculture but we are trying to change that.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Hailey Edwards. Hailey shared what it’s like living in Alaska and spoiler alert: it’s not like those Alaskan reality television shows make it seem. Hailey also explained what the Alaskan food system looks like and some of the struggles they face that people in the lower 48 do not. Hailey’s family farm used to be a dairy but they are transitioning to the cattle industry and Hailey talked about why they made the change and how she’s using nontraditional methods in their operation.

“We really need more people outside of the community advocating, but we also need more people to say, ‘ Hey, your job is stressful. I could not do it. I could never do what you do, but I support you.’”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Meg West. Even though Meg did not grow up in the agriculture industry, it is her passion to advocate for those in agriculture. Meg explains why she loves the western lifestyle and why it is important for her to advocate for mental health resources and accessibility for people in the ag community. Meg started a campaign on social media using #AgLetsTalk to start the conversation about mental health and to help break the stigma that is associated with mental health.

“That is something that I absolutely love about where we’re living and our neighbors is just everybody helping out and you know you always have somebody that you can call.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Lindsey Huseman. Lindsey and her husband, Mark, manage Huseman Ranch with the help of their two kids ages 7 and 9. Lindsey explained what it's like for her to homeschool her kids and be active on the farm. It was quite the shift for Lindsey to go from being a high school Ag teacher to a farm mom homeschooling her kiddos during the pandemic. Lindsey also shared some stories from the farm and how having such a supportive village has impacted her and her family.

“Video is such a powerful tool when it comes to communicating about agriculture with consumers because it’s not a big Hollywood production that’s getting edited. It’s just somebody in their field talking about their cattle. It’s just real and authentic.”

In this episode, I had the opportunity to sit down with Linnea Langusch. Linnea dives into her research she performed while working on her Master’s degree. Linnea shares how COVID-19 made her shift her research and how it affected the beef industry. She then explains what obstacles the beef industry faced during the peak times of COVID-19 and how many farmers and ranchers had to rely on direct to consumer marketing.

“I would say trajectory is a keyword. When you pull back a slingshot or a bow and point it somewhere, it’s going to go wherever you point it. Where you’re aiming is where you’re going.”

In this episode, I had the opportunity to sit down with Ashley Jackson. You might know Ashley as The Boot Babe on Instagram or TikTok. Ashley started The Boot Babe to be more inclusive for all types of women to share the experience of wearing cowboy boots. Ashley also shared how important it is to be involved in your community especially if you want to see change and the importance of being a leader.

“Food impacts everything we do. Food decisions are so complicated, so seeking to better understand those decisions and the importance of those decisions to ourselves and our families is the best way for us to make sure other families get fed.”

In this episode, I continue the conversation about food accessibility and dive a little deeper into it. (If you missed the first part of this conversation, check out episode 23.) For clarity and to make sure we are all on the same page, I define some of the terms I talk about that go along with food accessibility. I also go over a few articles I found that explain different aspects of food security and why they are important. If you are interested in checking out the articles I mention in the episode, click on the links below!