Reflections and Thanks for a Memorable Decade

It’s hard to believe that ten years ago, Cairn Hill Farms began at a local market with a rickety card table and a handful of products. Whether you are a fan of Sara Dippity, drink our special tea blend for cold and flu season (Bee Well Tea), or enjoy our beeswax lip balm, I’m thankful to have met you along the way.

Over this past decade, our farm has been home to some memorable characters. You may have read about Darryl, the free goat. Darryl and my husband, Chad, formed a challenging relationship. Darryl developed a bad habit of escaping his 5’ enclosure and enjoying his favorite foods: Chad’s fruit trees and our flowers and shrubs. Some mornings, we’d find him on our front porch, looking through the windows. Darryl also made an impression wherever he went, winning Grand Champion Meat Goat three years in a row at the Barry County Fair and marching in local parades.

Country living also introduced us to wonderful “salt of the earth” folks, like our neighbor, Deb. On a morning walk a few years ago, Deb noticed that the neighbor’s bull had escaped and was sampling grass on the side of the road. Deb pointed toward the pasture and yelled, “Get your %!& back in there!” The bull immediately complied. When we made the difficult decision to euthanize Darryl, MK and I were home alone on one of summer’s hottest days, frantically trying to dig his grave. Deb drove up in her truck, grabbed a shovel from the bed, gave MK a hug, and started digging.

Cairn Hill Farms has gifted many lessons over this past decade: Slow down, enjoy the beauty and bounty all around, and share that bounty with others. In celebration of Small Business Saturday and thanks for this splendid adventure, here’s a special code for our online store, good for 10% off your order (CODE: 10YEARS).

Here’s to many more years!

Thanks for reading and Happy Thanksgiving!