Clean the World!

I've recently become aware of a fantastic organization called "Clean the World."

Here's a little info from their website:

"Clean the World recycles soap and saves lives.

Everyday in America, thousands of hotels discard millions of pounds of soap and shampoo. These products often end up in already overflowing landfills and contaminate fragile groundwater systems.

Impoverished people around the world die every day from acute respiratory infection and diarrheal disease because they have no soap. The death toll is staggering. Each year more than five million lives are lost to these diseases with the majority of deaths being among children less than five years old. Studies have shown that simple hand washing substantially reduces the spread of these diseases. Unfortunately, the essential items for proper hand washing are unobtainable for millions of people worldwide.

Clean the World gets soap to people who really need it.

In an effort to prevent these needless deaths from occurring, Clean the World distributes recycled soap products, along with appropriate educational materials, to impoverished countries worldwide, and to domestic homeless shelters."

You can read more at their site http://www.cleantheworld.org/

Now isn't that COOL?!

I'm going to be running a special soon and send a donation of new soap to this great organization. If you haven't done so already, go to our website www.realsimplesoap.com and sign up for email specials so you can help too!

I love

my loyal customers!

I did a craft show a few weeks ago where, as soon as booths were set up and vendors were ready to sell, a couple came up to me and said, with huge grins, that they were "here to stock up on soap!" They went on to tell me how much they love my soaps and it's the only soap they'll use anymore. The husband told me that they've been watching my website to see which shows I'll be at, and decided to come to this one to save on shipping costs (which was still a good 30-40 mile drive for them). But I think it gave them something to do, and it's always a fun time to go to a craft show and see what's new and interesting. And it made my day too!

Yesterday I did a show in Buffalo, which is always another great show to do. I've been there for three years now with soap and have quite a "fan" base there. Several people came up to restock, and as always I gave away a lot of free samples and even a few free bars.

I especially love talking with the people who have sensitive skin and I always give them a couple samples to try (Bare Naked and Oh Honey, Honey). It thrills me to be able to help someone stop their constant itching and get them away from the chemical-laden stuff out there. And when they usually call me a few days later to tell me what a difference it made, I just want to give them a big hug and a "Hurrah!" I even offered to work with a lady who is allergic to olive oil and develop a recipe just for her...I'm pretty sure she'll be giving me a call, she had tears in her eyes when I told her I'd be happy to experiment and find something that will work for HER.

And that's why I do what I do! : )

It works!

People often ask me at shows whether the "Don't Bug Me" soap actually works. I reply that "Well, in theory it should. It contains citronella, lavender and eucalyptus essential oils, but I haven't been able to really test it out yet for it's effectiveness."

I've had two customers in the past few days tell me that yes, it definitely works! One lady stopped by my booth in Rogers to report that her family had taken it camping with them up in the Boundary Waters (border of Minnesota and Canada). She even used it to wash her hair, and said it most definitely did help.

And my "vendor neighbor" at the Monticello market last night told me it works for her too! She said she uses it before going out to work in the garden, and nothing bugs her.

That's pretty cool. Something that's 100% natural, contains no harmful chemicals like DEET, and it works!

I'm going on my Summer Escape in a few days and will have a chance to test it out at one of North Carolina's state parks near the ocean. I can't wait to go and report back what I find out.

I do have a limited supply of this soap though, and won't be making any more this year because with the six weeks cure time, it would be fall before it's ready and that's getting too late. But I'll definitely make a LOT more next year!

Adding to the busy schedule!

Like I don't have enough to do. Seriously! I've taken on another weekly Farmer's Market, this one is in Rogers, Minnesota on Wednesday afternoon/evenings from 3pm to 7pm. It's located right next to the high school, just off Hwy 101 at 21080 141st Ave. N in Rogers (a quick minute or two off I-94).

Last week was my first week there, and I was very impressed. Not only with the amount of customers coming out to a brand new, two-week-old market, but with the people who are running the market too. Everyone was super nice and very accommodating. It's gonna be great!

This week I'm missing my usual Thursday Monticello market to go up to St. Cloud and be a vendor at the Lemonade Fest. I believe this is my sixth year there, third with soap and I made jewelry for three years before that. Another great show I look forward to each year, and it looks like the weather is going to cooperate again. Yay!

I hate to not be at the market though (in Monticello). Customers come to expect that the usual vendors will be there, and it's not good if you're missing. My plan was to be gone also on July 9th, 16th and 23rd, but I'm pretty sure that plan is changing. The 9th is my son's birthday, but I made a deal with him to share in the profits that day as part of his birthday present, so I can attend. I might even talk him into coming with me so we can have a special birthday sale (we'll see about that one!).

The other two weeks I'll be having fun in North Carolina with my big brother, who I don't get to see very often. I'm really looking forward to a vacation with him and his wife and stepdaughter. He's a fabulous cook (yum!) and fisherman, and we're planning to camp by the ocean for a weekend. I love being by the water.

Then I'll be back, refreshed, and ready to make more soap!

Sales!!

Wow, I hate to do it, but I've had to mark several soaps "Temporarily Out of Stock!" The Farmer's Market has started, and I've received some unexpected, unusually large orders, depeleting a lot of my stock.

There's a lot more already ON the curing racks, but since I let my soaps cure a full 6 weeks before packaging and selling them, some of them might be a little bit of a wait. But wouldn't you rather wait for a fully-cured soap than get something that's just going to melt quickly in your shower??

The busy summer season is on! Be sure to check out our "Where You Can Find Real. Simple. Soap." page if you're looking for a few good craft shows to attend.

And thanks for your patience!

Farmer's Market!

We've started the new season of the Farmer's Market, and have had two fabulous days already! And this year it's even better!

What can you find at the Farmer's Market this time of year? Not really much produce yet (although I did get some fresh rhubarb yesterday), but there are some new vendors, which means new products among the "old" regular vendors...this week included some beautiful felted purses, stepping stones, jewelry, baked goods, bedding plants (veggies and flowers), hanging baskets, soy candles, fresh eggs, bird feeders, maple syrup, homemade taffy, photo cards and framed art, gluten-free baking mixes, chemical free beef and chicken, all kinds of home-canned goods like jellies, jams, pickles, pickled green beans, beets and more. I bought some wonderful home-canned roasted red pepper soup that I can't wait to try.

We have a new location this year and it seems to be working out nicely. We're just across the road from where we were last year, we're at the Monticello Public Library parking lot each Thursday from 3:30 - 7:00, now until mid-October.

There's even live music this year! Yesterday we had acoustic guitar and an accordian player. It really helps liven things up and provides a nice atmosphere for the market.

Stop on out...you never know what you'll find!

A little consumer deception??

I happened to be at the Mall of America the other day, and stopped in to check out a soap/bath/body store that I've been curious about....you may have heard about it, it's called "Lush." They are a big corporation with many, many stores and a huge following.

They have beautiful products - soaps, bath bombs as big as a baseball, fresh facial masks, solid bubble bath...the list goes on. Very nice stuff, and expensive too! I don't know that I'd personally want to spend $6.95 for a bath bomb for just one bath, but they sure looked cool!

I told the girl as soon as she came over that I make soap and just came to check out their stuff too. She asked me how I make soap, and I told her the basic ingredients/steps. Then she went into her sales speech, "educating" me on their products. Turns out, I ended up educating her a bit.

She proudly told me that their soaps are not made with palm oil, because there is a controversy around the sustainability of the rain forests, nor is it made with lye or glycerin. Hmm. Soap made without lye? Sorta impossible, as the lye is what reacts with the oils to change into and create soap.

So I looked at the ingredient list for their honey soap: Honey Water (Mel Aqua), Propylene Glycol, Sodium Palm Kernelate, Sodium Stearate, Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, Perfume, Beeswax (Cera alba), Sweet Orange Oil (Citrus dulcis), Bergamot Oil (Citrus bergamia), Aloe Vera Extract (Aloe barbadensis), Aloe cupensis, Sodium Chloride, Glycerine, EDTA, Tetrasodium Etidronate, Gardenia Extract (Gardenia jasminoides), Titanium Dioxide, Limonene, Linalool, Benzyl Benzoate.

Ok, so it doesn't say lye or palm oil, right? I explained to her that when you mix an oil with lye (sodium hydroxide), it becomes a whole other substance. In this case they mixed Palm Kernel oil with sodium hydroxide, and it becomes Sodium Palm Kernelate. And Palm Kernel oil definitely does come from the same plant/place as Palm oil. The palm fruit is the source of both palm oil (extracted from palm fruit) and palm kernel oil (extracted from the fruit seeds).

And...what else is in their soap? Sodium Lauryl Sulfate, also referred to as just SLS, one of the worst ingredients to put on your body. So why is a dangerous chemical like sodium lauryl sulfate used in commercial soaps and shampoos? The answer is simple - it is cheap. The sodium lauryl sulfate found in commercial soaps is exactly the same as you would find in a car wash or even a garage, where it is used to degrease car engines. A report published in the Journal of The American College of Toxicology showed that concentrations as low as 0.5% could cause irritation and concentrations of 10-30% caused skin corrosion and severe irritation. Skin corrosion...seriously?

National Institutes of Health "Household Products Directory" of chemical ingredients lists over 80 products that contain sodium lauryl sulfate. Some soaps have concentrations of up to 30%, which the ACT report called "highly irritating and dangerous." There's no way to know what the concentration is in the product, but you know the higher it is up on the ingredient list, the more of it is in the product.

Tetrasodium Etidronate is a substance found in many personal care products that has the potential to cause adverse effects in people with eczema. Tetrasodium etidronates are also used in water softeners. Because tetrasodium can be an irritant to the skin and mucus membranes people with eczema should exercise caution before using products that contain it. One reason that tetrasodium etidronate is used in soaps is for its preservative properties. Commercial soaps are required to have no more than two percent of tetrasodium etidronate but even small amounts can trigger eczema symptoms.

Many commercial soaps and other personal care products that are billed as "natural" actually contain tetrasodium etidronate. In fact, many of the soaps sold in health food stores contain tetrasodium etidronate.

Benzyl benzoate is used to treat lice and scabies infestations. This medicine is believed to be absorbed by the lice and mites and to destroy them by acting on their nervous system. Wow, not something I'd want to be putting on my body every day!

So what's in OUR honey soap? Water, coconut oil, castor oil, palm oil, olive oil, sodium hydroxide, shea butter, beeswax, honey, sugar, lemongrass essential oil. Yep, that's it! Nothing else!

The sales girl seemed to be interested when I explained the lye/sodium palm kernelate part to her, and she said "Well, I guess I can't say that to anyone anymore, but that's what they tell us to say!"

I walked away rather angry at this company, because if they are indeed telling their employees to say such things, that, in my opinion is major deception. Their soaps look like the purest, most natural soaps you could imagine, when in fact they're not.

Another reason that we, as consumers, need to educate ourselves.

Healthy Life Expo!

Wow, did we have a busy and fun weekend! My daughter, Bri, and I were vendors at the Healthy Life Expo downtown Minneapolis this past Friday and Saturday. We gave away a LOT of free samples and met some wonderful people.

Friday was a little slowish, but things picked up considerably on Saturday. I think the gorgeous weather (or so I heard!) may have helped. It was 47 degrees out and I believe sunny, so I think people wanted to get out and do something.

We really did have a good time. When we had some slower moments we took turns walking around looking at the other booths. I got a mini-massage each day, what a treat. Just what I needed on Saturday afternoon when my shoulders were feeling a little tight.

There were wonderful booths there...everything from chiropractors, jewelry, natural fiber clothing, artwork, purified water, natural grain-fed beef, handmade soy candles, healthy cookware (which we were directly across from, and I could probably now tell you their whole sales talk, having heard it 8 times!), natural skincare, energy/vitamin drinks, personal trainers, body detoxification, essential oils, massage, intuitive and palm readings, dna activation, anti-aging, and so much more.

If you missed it, there will be another show this November 7 at the Midtown Global Market in Minneapolis, and again next January.

And the winner is....

Patricia Perla from Utah is the lucky winner! This basket full of 12 soaps will be in the mail to you on Friday, January 2.

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season, and best wishes for a fabulous 2009!

New Soaps!

I added three new 100% natural soaps to the website today...Patchouli Lavender, Patchouli Lime, and Pine Tar.

I've had a customer stop by my booth a few times this summer and ask me to make Patchouli Lavender. It was a favorite of hers from another soapmaker who no longer makes it, so I did it. And while I was at it I made an old favorite of mine, Patchouli Lime. If you're a Patchouli Orange fan, while that one's out of stock (curing now), give the Patchouli Lime a try.

Pine Tar soap is an old-time recipe for a medicinal soap. Pine Tar soap has traditionally been known to help with frustrating skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis and dandruff. I make no claims...that's just what it's known for. Lots of people over the years have found relief (NOT cures, but relief) from skin problems when using Pine Tar soaps. It definitely has a medicinal smell, but if it helps, it would be worth it! I added a touch of Eucalyptus essential oil to it to help with the smell a bit. Many people like the medicinal smell of the soap.

I'm still working on the other new items (lip balms, bath bombs, sugar scrubs, bath salts, etc.). A big part of the whole process is working out the labeling, as there are government rules and regulations that have to be followed. And of course the labels have to fit on the container too!
I'm hoping to roll out the new products in January.

Hope everyone's having a wonderful December and holiday season so far. We're getting a beautiful, soft, light snow today, which helps put me in the holiday mood.

Packing it up!

No, we're not the latest store casualty going out of business!! : ) Not at all!

I just unloaded the van and brought everything in for the last time this season (unless I find another craft show I absolutely must do before Christmas). It was sort of a relief, because I've packed and unpacked the soap, tent, tables, and all other things necessary to do a show at least 40 times this year, and that's just since May! It'll be nice to take a little break before the spring season kicks back in.

Yesterday was my last show of the year, and what a way to end the season! I had such a great time, it was a very well known, well run show at the St. Michael/Albertville High School. The crowd was unbelievable, I was actually thinking that it would not be much fun to be a shopper in the first few hours, it was so crowded people could hardly move, let alone have fun shopping.

Several of my favorite customers stopped by too. One lady (Jane!), is so much fun...I was busy wrapping up some gift sets for customers, so there was a line at my booth, and she was telling people (anyone within earshot), how great my soap is and that it's all she's used for the last two years and has helped to greatly control her eczema. She always comes with her daughter, and they're just great people to see. I asked her if she wanted to hang around the booth for a few hours and just be my salesperson! I love her! Of course I gave her an extra free bar for being so nicely outspoken about my soap...she deserved it. Jane, you're the best!

For the next month I'll be working hard on the recipes for new products (bath salts, bath bombs, lotion sticks/bars, body butters and more). They're coming along nicely, and I'm hoping to have them all perfected before mid-January, as I do have one big show the end of January that it would be nice to have new products for. But I won't put them out for sale unless they're just right! I'll send out an email special when they're ready too.

Thank you all again for being great customers this past year! It's been a delight.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Valarie

Win FREE Soap!

How would you like to win a year's worth of FREE SOAP?

For every order placed between now and December 31, 2008, your name will be put into a drawing to win this basket jam-packed with a dozen bars of handmade soap!

There's nothing to do...except place your order (yes, you can place as many orders as you'd like, and each time your name will be put into the drawing)!

Drawing will take place on January 1, 2009.



And there's more exciting news...we're expanding and doing some new product development!

Felted soap is now available. What's felted soap you ask? It's soap with wool roving wrapped around the soap, then felted (wet and rubbed so the fibers lock together). As you use the soap you'll get great lather and a nice scrubby texture.

Skip the washcloth or poof and try felted soap. They're beautiful and practical, and make great gifts. You can choose to have any bar of soap felted, but please be aware that it will delay shipment of your order for five days, while your bar is being felted and dried. Colors will vary.




Creations like whipped shea butter, bath salts, sugar scrubs, lotion balms and fizzy bath bombs are all being worked on, tested and perfected. The guinea pigs (friends and family, not real guinea pigs!) are testing, testing, testing products and giving me lots of feedback. Hopefully there will be several new items on the website to start the new year off with a bang (or a bomb...bath bomb that is!).


I'm also considering lip balms, and would love to hear what kind of items you'd like to see us make, and your favorite scents, etc. Any feedback/ideas/suggestions are appreciated! Just email me, valarie@realsimplesoap.com, and let me know your thoughts.

Thanks for being a customer! I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

End of the season!

Thursday was the last day of the Farmers' Market for the 2008 season. It was bittersweet, of course.

Thankfully we had an absolutely gorgeous fall day to end the season. Did you make it out to the market this year? If you didn't, here's what you missed:

We'll start again next May, so mark your calendars! It's not only a great way to spend some time, but you never know what you'll find there (if you're interested in the free kittens, let me know and I'll hook you up with that person!). They need a good home! : )

Hunting time!

Hunting season is upon us. Actually the bow hunting season opened here mid-September. My husband is a bow hunter, and he likes to try different things to hopefully get the advantage over the deer. This year he bought himself a special bar of soap. It's unscented, and is supposed to help get rid of human scent.

Hmm...that sounds fairly familiar (my "Tall Tale" soap?). Nope. It wasn't Tall Tale, and I'm sure he paid a pretty penny for it too.

That's fine. Give it a try I say. But I picked it up in the shower and didn't like the feel of it. It wasn't smooth feeling like my soap. And Honey, I also make one that's unscented (Bare Naked), and one that's supposed to attract deer. : )

I didn't say anything, just let him use his special soap.

Then last week he told me that he had to stop using it because his skin felt really dry! He went back to my soap and could immediately tell the difference.

Guess we all have to live and learn!

By the way...he's been throwing small pieces of my soap around out in our woods this year, hoping that the deer will get used to the smell...'cause he smells like soap all the time. Hope it works for him!

Pretty cool...

Last night I got an order from a woman in Arkansas. When I asked her how she heard about our soap, this is what she said:

"My husband is in Iraq, and somehow got some of your soap. He sent me a slice of the Patchouli Orange and said I needed to get some! It took me a little while, but he kept bugging me to get some, so I finally called. He'll be so surprised when he comes home because he doesn't know I'm ordering it."

How cool is that?!! I had sent about 100 bars over to Iraq the end of July. One box went to Troop Care Package, where she divided it up amongst boxes headed for soldiers. The other box I sent directly to a customer's son who's serving over there, with a letter hoping he'd share it with his troop mates. Somehow this soldier from Arkansas got his hands on a bar and loved it so much he encouraged his wife back home to get some too!

I just love stories like that! I never know what'll happen or who might fall in love with the soap, and it makes my day hearing such cool stories.

New Bar Shape

When I got the product test results a while ago from the National Health & Wellness Club members, I noticed one particular comment/suggestion happened several times.

People suggested that I make the bar shape a little differently, so the soap is easier to hold on to. Currently it's about an inch and a half thick, and it can sometimes be hard to hold, especially for those who have smaller hands.

So, I'm taking their wonderful suggestion to heart! With the newer batches I've started cutting the bars a little thinner, but longer, and you can see the comparison in the picture. Hopefully this will work out wonderfully, I like the new shape myself.

The bars will still weigh the same (approximately 4.5 oz. or more), they'll just be longer and narrower, so they'll look a little different.

I've been working on some web updates today, adding a few new soaps and putting some summer scents on clearance. I've got several great new scents coming out, so if the summer ones are your favorites, you might want to snatch them up while they're still available, and clearance priced!

100% Natural vs. Fragrance Oils

When I set up my booth at shows or the Farmers' Market, I separate the soap tables by which soaps are 100% natural, and those that contain a fragrance oil, which is the only thing that's not natural in that soap. That way it's easy for those who are interested in strictly 100% natural soap to see what they have to choose from, and avoid the soaps with fragrance oils.

Sometimes I'm asked why I use fragrance oils and don't strictly do 100% natural soaps. My reasons are many. I personally don't have a problem using soaps containing fragrance oils, because I know they are high quality cosmetic fragrances. I only buy fragrances from reputable companies, never the "cheap imitation fragrances" I've heard other soapers refer to. Good quality fragrance oils aren't "cheap" to begin with, some are much more expensive than essential oils. I hold myself to a higher standard than that, and would never buy or use something in my soap that wasn't top quality (don't forget, my family uses the soaps too!). I scent my soaps at 1% of the recipe, so each bar contains a very small amount of fragrance, whether it's essental oils or fragrance oil.

There are many, many fragrances which people love, that just aren't available in a safe essential oil (not all essential oils are skin safe either). Scents that are very popular, such as Fresh Cut Grass, Black Raspberry Vanilla and Hardwood Musk just aren't going to happen unless I use a fragrance oil. I like bathing with scents such as Lime Margarita or Cleopatra's Treasure.

I also struggle with the "sustainability" of essential oils. Do you realize how much plant material it takes to make a tiny amount of essential oil? And what is the environmental impact of all the machinery used to plant, harvest and process the plants to make such a small amount of oil? Are those plants grown without pesticides? Are they processed without solvents? Here's an interesting link about essential oils: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essential_oil#Production

If someone wants to live completely natural, I honor and applaud that. Whether you choose 100% natural soap, or those containing fragrance oils, handmade soap is still 100% better for you than commercial detergent bars. Guaranteed.

FDA Globalization Act of 2008

http://www.indiebusinessblog.com/indie_business/2008/06/stop-the-fda-gl.html?cid=124512866#comment-124512866

Have you heard anything about the FDA Globalization Act of 2008? If not, I urge you to go to the link above and watch a short video from Donna Maria, President & CEO of the Indie Beauty Network.

This video summarizes the Indie Beauty Network's position against the Discussion Draft of the FDA Globalization Act of 2008, the legislation that would put thousands of Indies out of business by forcing them to pay outrageous registration fees and comply with burdensome paperwork.

If you've ever bought a lotion, lip balm, or other personal product from someone other than a big name national or worldwide company, that choice could be taken away from you when small, independent businesses are forced out of business due to the burdens of this Act.

If passed, this law would drive consumers back to the days when they could only choose between a few huge, faceless, nameless big box stores and brands for their cosmetics and personal care products. And fewer consumer choices always leads to higher prices.

The Act would put unfair burdens on small, Indie businesses like Real. Simple. Soap., burdens that would most likely put thousands upon thousands of small business out of business. Not only would that affect your choices as a consumer, but think of how many families depend on the income from their small businesses these days.

Please take the time to view the video, and sign the petition if you feel led to do so.

The Things We Go Through...

Yesterday was one of those days.

Our local Farmers' Market was set to open early because of the town celebration (River Fest), so we were to open at noon instead of 3:30. Everyone got there, got their booths set up, and wham.... look what happened! We knew storms were coming so I think most of us were pretty well prepared, but man, did it rain! With wind too. I took this shot of the booth across from me (while holding down my own tent, so it's not the greatest quality). It rained for a good long while and then finally cleared, giving us a nice cool breeze on our soaked bodies, which meant then we were cold. No problem, just continue on.

Not much later, it clouded up again and rained some more. There were some shoppers who braved the weather, some had umbrellas, some didn't! I had managed to put a tarp on my canopy ceiling, so my soap was staying pretty much dry, which is good. The sun came back out.

Not much later, it clouded up again and rained some more! Yes, it did that probably 6 or 7 times. I'd put a side up on my canopy to stop the rain because it always seemed to change directions. It would stop raining, things would dry off, I'd take the side down for customer shopping ease, and then it would rain again! Finally around 4:00 it stopped for good, things dried off and the rest of the evening was beautiful. The nice part was that everything was dry to pack up, because packing up in the rain is absolutely no fun.

Today I'm going shopping for a new canopy! My old one is not waterproof at all, and if I hadn't put the tarp in the ceiling, my day would have been ruined. One of the other vendors had a new canopy that I was eyeing all day, and I'm going to go look at that one. It would be nice to not have to worry about rain and soap mixing.

It's nice to see the "regulars" coming out to the market. It's nice to see people supporting local farmers and crafters. It's even nicer when I hear comments like this: "Last week I took a sample of Paradise, and it smells and works just as good as the Bath & Body Works stuff... without all the chemicals." That was fun to hear!

I also picked up a few "new" vegetables for our family to try. I've never tried kohlrabi, but it sounded good when the vendor was telling a customer about it, so I got some too. And fresh beets. I haven't had beets since I was a kid and had to eat the canned ones, so that'll be an adventure too. I'll most likely be the only one in the house to try them, but you never know.

If you are local and haven't ventured out to the market, it's every Thursday from 3:30-7:00 pm behind the Community Center in Monticello. You never know what you'll find there, besides veggies there are things such as fused glass pendants, photography cards and prints, kitchen towels, homemade baked goods, jams and jellies, garden plants, hanging baskets, homemade candies, homemade fruit rollups, stepping stones, salt-water taffy and lots more. Yesterday a group was selling THE best strawberry shortcake with local berries that were the sweetest I've ever tasted. So I had to taste it twice. : )

Bring your kids, your spouse, your grandma! There's something for everyone at the market.

New Blog!

I've decided to change things around a little bit with my blog and started using blogger.com so it can be a little more interactive. You can now leave me comments and/or sign up for automatic updates when I post new things (at the very bottom of the page)!

I did transfer some of the older posts below too, just to get things started.