Farm and Garden: Goats

It finally happened! Friday evening we brought home two new additions. Charlotte and Willow are now a part of our growing farm family. The trip home was a bit stressful for them and they were a little panicked by the time we got them out of the back of my SUV. Noah and I carefully got the dog kennel out of the back of the car and I carried each of them carefully to one of the pens in the back yard where they had to temporarily share space with the rabbits. Separating the goats for the time to get them from the car to the pen seemed like a moment of pure torture for them and they were screaming like babies. I'm not sure what our neighbors were thinking, but it was not at all a pleasant moment. After a bit of timid walking around the pen they found the hidden rabbits and it was interesting. The rabbits were trying to hide and they were trying to figure out what the heck those lightning fast fuzzy balls were. It was so very cute to see their curious looks and posturing. By the time we got them in the yard and settled it was getting dark so the children were not able to play with the kids. They are making up for that now, I'm sure that by this afternoon all the kids will be well acquainted. So now we need to find a puppy to go with the goats.

Saturday morning Noah came in our room saying we almost have our own personal petting zoo. I guess we are getting there.

So, why the goats? I'm sure many will ask...We have a beautiful piece of property, that unfortunately is so very over grown it will take a huge amount of effort to clear and in an effort to find alternative ways of doing-instead of using big machinery, or slowly working it by hand-we have decided to employ a few goats to eat their way through the overgrowth and stuff we don't want. We will have a moveable pen that we set up around the yard so that they can happily munch away and mow down on a rotation schedule to keep our yard cleaner and neater.

Next year we will breed them so that we can begin milking the following year. We will be able to use milk in cheese and soap. So...that's the plan in a nutshell.

Soap: New Batches...

Just out of the molds and onto the curing racks. These are the first batches of the year. As with all the soap we make, every bar is a unique and individual creation cut by hand. Each one will differ slightly size and shape. Every bar containing color, or herbs will vary from bar to bar as well as batch to batch. The color, design and sometimes even the scent are always a state of evolution... I love the ability of always having a product that is growing, changing, and evolving over time...I hope you do too.

Lavender

Plain, simple, gentle, fabulous. If you are a fan of Lavender this bar of soap will probably win you over. It is one of the simplest bars that we make other than plain old soap, unscented Oat and Grain, and Lavender Oatmeal. A simple base soap of Olive, Palm, Coconut, Castor, Almond and Shea Butter, with Lavender and Tea Tree essential oils for scent. These bars contain no color, or exfoliants, they are made simply so that even the most sensitive skins can use it. . Lavender is a calming and soothing scent. These make great soaps the days you need a bath to unwind, or a soothing bath for baby.

                                                      

Orange Eucalyptus

This is an excellent bar of soap for a citrus lover, the combination of Orange, Eucalyptus, and a cinnamon swirl makes this bar a wonderful morning shower bar. It has a warm, spicy herbal scent, sometimes it reminds me of orange cinnamon rolls.

Patchouli Lavender

The mixture of Patchouli and Lavender creates the most amazing scent combination, it is  warm, earthy, inviting scent. Even though floral scents are used, this soap is actually designed to be a manly scent. It has become our best selling unisex bar, and probably our most popular bar sold.

Patchouli Rose

Very similar to Patchouli Lavender, this bar is a beautiful combination of the earthy scent of Patchouli, and the lovely scent of rose a creates the most amazing scent combination, it is  warm, earthy, and inviting and maybe even sensual and alluring.This is NOT the sweet rose fragrance oil that comes to mind when you first think of rose scent. This soap is a special soap that we don't make very often because it uses the real essential oil of rose that creates depth in the scent that fragrance oils just can not reach.

Rosemary Mint

Another of our most popular scents. Rosemary is a blend of several essential oils with the main focus being a mixture of  Rosemary and Peppermint. Each of our scent blends are carefully considered and blended together to make the wonderful scents in the finished bars...It is almost like layering the flavors of a fine wine. This is a classic scent that is liked by most, strong, invigorating, wake you up kind of scent. The peppermint even leaves a tingle when you use it. 

Serendipity

This bar is a citrus floral that we love making at the beginning of  spring. The scent combination just seems to be Spring-like. The juicy scent of lime, mixed with the floral of several lovely flowers, come together reminiscent of fresh dew on new spring leaves.

These will all be available next week, and for the May Maker's Market on the Square in Oxford. We will also be restocking at Mississippi Madness, and The Farmer's Market. We are always open at Cypress Lake Soap's Website visit us there to see what is currently available. 

 Keep checking back with us to see what will be coming up next...and along with these new batches, new sample bars and soap rocks have also been created. If you like smaller sizes of soap or want to try something out first, be sure to check out these options.

Christmas on the Bayou

For the past three years we have built a Gingerbread Display for The Gertrude C. Ford Center here in Oxford as a way of advertising our little budding soap business Cypress Lake Soap, and also as a way of contributing to benefiting our community because the Gingerbread Village also collects food for the local food banks and pantries in our area. This year in honor of our little business, We decided to recreate a scene reminiscent of the poem A Cajun Night Before Christmas.

Every year the kids have been able to participate a little more than the previous years. I like that it is becoming a collective effort and as they get older they are able to do and accomplish more. This year most of the gingerbread was created by me, but the boys helped by making animals from the chocolate clay that I made. They made chickens, alligators, chairs, pots, birds, rocks, nests, eggs, a deer, and cypress knees. The princess helped by testing, tasting, molding and eating what she molded. She said it was all pretty good. Matt helped with the trees, and made a couple of the cutest raccoons.

We worked for weeks and yesterday when it was finally finished and ready to be driven to its new home we couldn't get it through the door. It is quite a bit easier to get a 3'x 3' pallet through the door when it is turned sideways...and not one of us thought to even check to see if it would fit flat. After trying a couple of doors in the house I finally made the decision to risk it, remove everything that was not fixed in place and have Matt and Nathan turn the pallet while I held the house in place and hoped and prayed that everything else that was stuck on didn't come tumbling off.
There were a few casualties, but fortunately nothing that wasn't repairable, and other than a couple of birds and maybe a squirrel all the animals made it during travel from home to the destination. Although we originally had grander plans and not everything got accomplished, I am very happy with how things turned out and very proud of the work that my family did helping to create our Christmas Bayou Wonderland. I hope you all enjoy it too. I leave you today with pictures of our creation and the Cajun Night Before Christmas poem...




 Cajun Night Before Christmas

 Twas the night before Christmas an' all t'ru de house,
 Dey don't a ting pass Not even a mouse.
 De chirren been nezzle good snug on de flo',
 An' Mama pass de pepper t'ru de crack on de do'.

 De Mama in de fireplace done roas' up de ham,
Sit up de gumbo an' make de bake yam.
 Den out on de by-you dey got such a clatter,
 Make soun' like old Boudreau done fall off his ladder.

 I run like a rabbit to got to de do',
 Trip over de dorg an' fall on de flo'.
 As I look out de do'in de light o' de moon,
 I t'ink, "Mahn, you crazy or got ol' too soon."

Cux dere on de by-you w'en I stretch ma'neck stiff,
 Dere's eight alligator a pullin' de skiff.
 An' a little fat drover wit' a long pole-ing stick,
I know r'at away got to be ole St.Nick.

 Mo' fas'er an' fas'er de' gator dey came
 He whistle an' holler an' call dem by name:
 "Ha, Gaston! Ha, Tiboy! Ha, Pierre an' Alcee'!
 Gee, Ninette! Gee, Suzette! Celeste an'Renee'!

 To de top o' de porch to de top o' de wall,
 Make crawl, alligator, an' be sho' you don' fall.
" Like Tante Flo's cat t'ru de treetop he fly,
 W'en de big ole houn' dorg come a run hisse's by.

 Like dat up de porch dem ole 'gator clim!
 Wit' de skiff full o' toy an' St. Nicklus behin'.
Den on top de porch roof it soun' like de hail,
W'en all dem big gator, done sot down dey tail.

 Den down de chimney I yell wit' a bam,
 An' St.Nicklus fall an' sit on de yam.
 "Sacre!" he axclaim, "Ma pant got a hole
 I done sot ma'se'f on dem red hot coal."

 He got on his foots an' jump like de cat
Out to de flo' where he lan' wit' a SPLAT!
 He was dress in musk-rat from his head to his foot,
 An' his clothes is all dirty wit' ashes an' soot.

 A sack full o' playt'ing he t'row on his back,
He look like a burglar an' dass fo' a fack.
 His eyes how dey shine his dimple, how merry!
Maybe he been drink de wine from de blackberry.

 His cheek was like a rose his nose a cherry,
 On secon' t'ought maybe he lap up de sherry.
 Wit' snow-white chin whisker an' quiverin' belly,
He shook w'en he laugh like de stromberry jelly!

 But a wink in his eye an' a shook o' his head
 Make my confi-dence dat I don't got to be scared.
 He don' do no talkin' gone strit to hi work,
Put a playt'ing in sock an' den turn wit' a jerk.

 He put bot' his han' dere on top o' his head,
 Cas' an eye on de chimney an' den he done said:
 "Wit' all o' dat fire an' dem burnin' hot flame,
 Me I ain' goin' back by de way dat I came."

 So he run out de do' an, he clim' to de roof,
 He ain' no fool, him for to make one more goof.
 He jump in his skiff an' crack his big whip,
 De' gator move down, An don' make one slip.

 An' I hear him shout loud as a splashin' he go,

"Merry Christmas to all 'til I saw you some mo'!"

 by Trosclair

If you are local stop by the Gertrude C. Ford Center on the Ole Miss campus and take a look at the local supporters for this years Gingerbread Village . Admission is free, but people are encouraged to share a canned good or non perishable food item for families in need.

Catching up

The younger kids learning about
mixing colors to make new colors.

Looks like it's has been a while since our last post. We had a nice and busy summer. The kids are now back in school. Nathan is entering his first year of Middle School this year. Noah is beginning Second grade. Jacob is beginning Kindergarten, and Evelyn is hanging out, practicing her language and communication skills and just being cute in general. 

Evelyn helping to adjust
  Nathan's neck slide. 

Scouting is now back in full swing, meetings, projects, belt loops, badges, selling popcorn, outings. Nathan is in Boy Scouts, but he is also helping out as Den Chief for Noah's Cub Scout group.

Some of the new baby chicks

New additions since the summer time. We now have some ducks, and this week we got another order of chickens; we normally wait until the spring, but since we are expecting another baby we figured that having our peepers in the fall would be a better idea. This batch of chickens also includes several extra roosters that we will be using as meat birds. 

Plans are in the works for a new and bigger chicken coop. One thing that I really want to figure out is how to split the run(hopefully expanded a bit bigger) so that we can keep grass or other types of green things growing on it, mostly because I do not like the mud pit that the girls have created it is very messy when it rains. Also, because I really want the girls to be happy when they are not able to free range; grass, seeds, yummy bugs = happy and cleaner chickens. The extra roosters are going to need a shelter too, we just haven't completely figured that one out yet. The ducklings are hanging out with the chickens in the run, but they could stand to be a little less messy too, I guess we will have to put them in etiquette classes. 

Our duck so full of cuteness.

The garden didn't go over too well this year. We got a few tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, a couple of watermelons, lots of kale, spinach, and swiss chard. The rest failed because of the heat, and our visiting deer.  She must have been desperate this year, besides eating the pepper plants, tomatoes, tomato plants, purple hull peas, and snap beans, it also ate my okra and the okra plants. We will keep trying, hopefully next year will be better. 

Canning was minimal this year. We were able to put up some tomatoes, blackberry jelly, and jalapenos(pickled pepper jelly, and cowboy candy). Dehydrating started out well and slowly stopped over the summer, but we did get strawberries, peaches, cherry tomatoes, onions, potatoes, carrots, and some fruit leather. We are getting closer to true pantry storage, it has quite a learning curve to change your lifestyle.

Liquid Soap during the cooking stage

Soap is back into production...slow, but steady. We have several new batches curing, and new batches of liquid soap has been made and is now sitting ready to be bottled and scented. We have also started making Bath Salts to go with the soaps, I am looking forward to making coordinating products that could be packaged together for gift bags, baskets and packages. I think my next trial will be solid lotion bars; hoping to have these ready for Christmas stocking stuffers.

New batch of Patchouli Lavender

Well That's all on the home front for now...What have you been doing now that fall is approaching?

Cypress Lake Soap is off to the Races

Recently, we were approached to be part of the Swag Bags that are handed out at the Kentucky Derby. Here is a video interview with the company WOW Creations that puts these amazing gift bags together. We were very excited to participate this year and have the opportunity to have our brand sent out to a broader group of people. If you look closely we are in the front middle of the group.




http://www.whas11.com/great-day-live/video/Kings-of-Swag-show-off-what-celebrities-will-get-at-big-Derby-parties-150169475.html

New Website!

The website for Cypress Lake Soap is finally up and running. We would love to know what you think! The link is CypressLakeSoap.com Come on in and find all your old favorites. Look for our new features and products. 

Soap of the Month

One of our new purchasing options is a Soap of the Month. With this option we are offering a club subscription to try out a new soap. We are offering a 3, 6, or 12 month option. 

New Scent
Amaretto Latte

New Scent
Hotty Toddy

We also have several new scents available and are planning many more over the coming months. We are really excited about all of our new changes and we hope you will enjoy them too. 

Soap Rocks

A new addition for this season
Soap Rocks

We really like this new idea that some other hand made soap shops are doing. It is a great way to use up some of those extra pieces that are cut from the soap edges and ends. This means less waste for us and a savings for you. These little "gems" are great for guest soaps and kids soaps. They are each unique hand shaped little soaps.

Demos at the Farmer's Market

This year at the Taylor Farmer's Market I tried doing a couple of demonstrations to show people some of what I do to make soap and other bath products. One of the demos was making Bath Bombs. They are really fun to make and since there wasn't a huge crowd involved this time, I let some of the kids that were standing around the table participate and take their creations home. It was really lots of fun to get people involved in the process instead of me standing there doing the demonstration and just explaining each step. I think everyone involved had a good time and it looked like the people that participated were really excited about what they made. Bath Bombs are a relatively simple project that really anyone can do once you get the feel for it. The ingredients are very simple and safe, and there are so many things that can be done to make them your own creation. It is all up to your imagination.



If you are interested in trying yourself, here is a simple recipe that can get you started.

Basic Bath Bomb Recipe

1 cup Baking Soda

½ cup Citric Acid

Witch Hazel (or water) in a spray bottle

Color*

Scent (essential oil)*

The most important step is mixing the baking soda and citric acid. Make sure that it is well blended this is what creates your fizz.

       Add your color and scent and mix well. If you are using a food coloring that is water based mix it in quickly because it will make your mixture fizz.

       Now for the difficult step…Begin spraying while mixing with the other hand. Don’t let the mixture get too wet. When you can squeeze the mixture in your palm and it stays together without crumbling it is ready to put into molds.

       Tightly pack the mixture in your molds. You need to work rather quickly so that the mixture doesn’t dry up on you. The harder you pack the molds, the heavier, denser, and more durable your final product will become. Let your molds set for a while and unmold on a sheet pan that is covered with a towel. Let them air dry for a few hours or overnight. When dry place them in an air tight container.

*Note: because of sensitivities in our family, color and scent only comes from natural sources. I try to use only colorants that are a natural material(vegetable, clay, etc.), and scent only comes from essential oils. Fragrance oils and dyes can be used if you like.

Chocolate Almond Oatmeal

As delicious as it sounds, it is not breakfast, fudge, or a new granola bar, although I am quite tempted to try it. It is my newest soap scent. I think it came out quite nice. The scent is very strong in almond, which may need a little adjustment, and then the chocolate comes through. It is a nice warm scent. 


If you are interested in trying out this new scent, I am giving away 4 sample sizes. All you have to do is post in my comments and let me know if you have tried any of my soap before, what are your favorites, and follow our blog to get future updates and giveaways. I will randomly draw 4 names to receive a sample of this new scent. If you know of anyone who would be interested in natural soap send them a message, if your friend wins I will send one to you and the friend.

So here's your chance to try a new scent on me.
Good Luck!

I will pull names on Tuesday October 25th.