Be Bold... Wonder Women

March is National Women's History Month. It is a series of dates in which women past and present are highlight, celebrated, acknowledged for their contribution and accomplishments. As I look back at the past 37 years there are many people I would put on a list to celebrate. They all have one thing in common.... They ALL took risks and stepped out of their comfort zone.

Over the past two years, I have been fortunate to participate in a national leadership program, Partners in Agricultural Leadership. Despite agriculture's need for leaders, feet on the ground spoke people, and communicators, being part of this program has developed me to use leadership, communication, problem solving, research, listening, issue development and empathy in real life. In real life I value these skills in relation to our farm/ agriculture and within in my involvement in my state and community. It is with these skills that I have stepped back and realized that if I am going to complain and desire something different, then I better be ready to offer solutions.

Today, many women have found opportunities to be involved. They have discovered that they do not need to be part of a group or club designed only for them. They know that they are valued for more than their ability to bake, make decorations, and care for children. Today, women, although more difficult in some regions of our country than others, are leaders, communicators, and connectors out in the open, not just behind closed doors. Today, women are electing to participate in women's and ladies' groups because they see value and comfort in them and by choice, not because that is their only opportunity!

So, for all you women, moms, aunts, business owners, homemakers, teachers, doctors, lawyers, young ladies, athletes, musicians, students, service workers, etc..... BE BOLD, celebrate yourself, your talents, and passions. Step up and be involved, let your desires, concerns, ideals, and solutions be heard. YOU have a lot to offer!

Headlines Hit Home

I will be the first to admit that the main newspaper I pick up is my local paper. There are often great stories about upcoming events and things that have taken place in our community. Of course, one of the most entertaining sections of the paper is the Sheriff's Report. I also catch "news" headlines in a variety of place: Facebook, Twitter, Fox News, CNN, newsletters and such. I am always surprised how there can be so many different stories about the same situation, event or trend. What makes one person see something in a completely different way than another. I have decided that it come down to a few basic principles:
* marketing
* personal experiences
* personal beliefs
* motives
* effort into unfolding the truth

While doing some reading over the past week the light bulb came on.... I, and I will dangerously venture to assume, and many others don't distinguish between correlation and causation. Ok, I know deep stuff, but it is true! If we look at illness or even food/ eating trends there are 1000's of headlines that scream at us to believe things like "Sugar is Killing us!" "Gluten is Making us Fat" and "Hormones in Food Advance Puberty". All of these headlines trick our brains into jumping on a bandwagon without taking time to ask.... is sugar really causing death (causation) or do some people who consume heightened amounts of sugar and some people die from health issues (correlation) or does gluten in wheat products truly cause obesity (causation) or do many people eat excess amounts of highly processed foods, which are often products containing wheat, and are some people carrying excess/ unhealthy weight (correlation). And to be quite honest, there are and have always been hormones in everything we consume- yes, even the lettuce we grow in our own gardens! I am pretty much an open book. So, I will admit that a few years ago I was shocked to find that all food and plants carried hormones and that I consumed them every day for over 30 years! I was a critic of hormone use simply because I didn't know any better.

Headlines drive me crazy... but there are some fabulous writers and marketers out there! They do their job well. As a mom, farmer, wife of a farmer and a life long learner I am always seeking out new information. I want to make sure that I am making the right choices for my family and for ensuring quality process and product on our farm. All decisions are generally well thought out, some just come a little easier than others. Somethings are complicated and others are not.

I too fall victim to the big bold letters and catchy three to six line phrases that often send our brains spinning and into defense mode. My only resolution to the talented media and marketing experts is to simply ASK QUESTIONS. Have questions about food or things we do in farming and ranching? Ask those who work in those areas each day. If we don't have the knowledge in the area you ask about we will help you connect with people who do!

As for me, I am an open book. I hope to share why I do what I do on my farm and with my family. So the invitation is open.... GATHER YOUR QUESTIONS AND ASK AWAY!

If You Give a Mom a Garbage Bag

About a week ago I finally realized why I felt like I started a lot of things, but never got any of them finished. I seriously felt like I had been suffering from adult onset ADD, but it wasn't. It was simpler than that..... Simply, I AM A MOM! I have a million things running through my mind all at once and I just hope that my brain can keep up and put all those thoughts into the right folder in my brain so most things when they do get done are done fairly accurately!

And so on this day, when I had this revelation, my story began,,,,

If You Give A Mom A Garbage Bag

If you give a mom a garbage bag expecting her to place it in the can,
she will find a piece of dirty clothes laying on the floor in the way.

The dirty clothes will lead her down the hall towards the clothes hamper when
she will hear a child yell her name.

Spinning to decipher which child and where they are calling from and yelling, " Yes, what?!"
she steps on a pile of legos and stops to pick them up.

As she is picking them up she notices that there are dust bunnies and left over lunch on the floor
and puts down the garbage bag, laundry, and lego and heads to get the broom.

On the way to the broom closet a child calls her name again
and she dashes to the stairs to once again say , Yes, what?"!

Which is met with, " Did you remember that I have a birthday party to go to today?",
she sighs puts her hands on her head and contemplates what Christmas gift could be re-gifted.

But as she mentally runs down the gift list, the telephone rings.
She stops to answer the phone and agrees to bring rolls to church.

Because she agreed to bring rolls,
she stops to make sure she has flour in the pantry.

As she reaches for the door knob on the cupboard
she notices that it is all caked in "stuff".

As a result of it being covered in weeks worth of gunk,
she grabs a paper towel, wets it and walks back to wash the handle.

When she is done washing the handle she opens the garbage can to toss in the towel,
suddenly she realizes that she never put the garbage bag in the can.

Which leads mom back to the pile of the garbage bag, dirty clothes and legos,
when she decides that it is time for a cup of coffee and a status update on Facebook!

For all you moms out there, remember that for the millions of things that go half done that your effort may be worth more than the success of completion!