With the new year upon us, Don got out the dry-erase markers (see them laying there along the bottom?) and created yet another whiteboard mural masterpiece.

We hope 2010 is a year to win for all of you too!

Editor's note: We're so excited that so many of you have made commitments to Go Organic in 2010! We hope more of you will RSVP this week, and we're happy to have Shaina sharing 10 great tips with us  here:

Organic living is definitely a way of life, but if you have a family with kids, you may find that buying organic and eating organic often seem to be less than frugal.  It doesn't have to be that way.  In fact, there are ways to live organically that won't break your pocketbook and can even have you living more economically friendly for the New Year.

1.  Buy in bulk.

Buying large quantities is often cheaper per ounce/pound than buying individual-sized portions.  Consider a warehouse membership or just look in your own grocery store for larger packaging.  Look for recipes for interesting and new ways to utilize the larger amount of food to be sure it gets eaten or flash freeze it and store for use later.

2.  Join a CSA.

Look into Community Supported Agricultural shares at a local organic farm.  You'll be supporting a local business and benefitting from seasonal produce during growing season.  Find a CSA near you.

3.  Visit your farmer's market.

Make a habit out of going to the local farmer's market to buy product and meat.  You'll get to know where your food is coming from and you're sure to be buying in season and will cut out the middleman of a grocery store by doing so.  Oftentimes heavy fruits like melons and squash that are paid for by the pound in the store are significantly cheaper at a flat rate from the farmer's market

So many of you have pledged to take a small step or two towards going organic in 2010! Our Facebook event: New Year's Resolution: Going Organic. Keep it up! The year is just getting started, but it's never too late to comit to something good for your body, and good for the planet!

We wanted to share some of your comments here, and encourage you to keep on sharing and inviting your friends to RSVP! Here is what some of you said:

Am already doing the organic milk and cereals, try to find the organic fruits and veggies (some are more important than others) and actually eat very little beef, but grass-fed with no antibiotics makes a huge difference in the flavor. Thanks for the challenge.

-Amanda R.

This is already the main resoluation our family is making!!

-Jessica G.

I love this group! Organic product are the best!

-Catnip M.

Go in 2010.

This year, Cascadian Farm is asking you to make a New Year's resolution that is good for the planet, and good for your body. We know it may be difficult, and sometimes it's downright impossible to go all organic all the time. But we're asking you to make a New Year's Resolution to take a step or two in the right direction.

Can you commit to at least one of the following?
*Use organic milk instead of regular milk
*Buy organic fruits & vegetables whenever possible
*Buy organic cereals and other dried goods
*Eat organic meat (grass-fed beef is especially good for your body, and the environment)

If you can commit to at least one of these things, please RSVP on facebook and invite your friends to do the same.

Learn more about going organic here: http://www.cascadianfarm.com/organic/

And check out our friends at the Organic Farming Research Foundation to learn more about Organic Farming: http://ofrf.org/

Dear Friends,

Some of you have been a part of our family for over 35 years. Others of you may have only recently connected with us online, at your grocery store, or at an event in your hometown. Whichever the case may be, we are honored to have you as a part of our extended family, and we want to tell you how thankful we are for you.

This week we will all take a break from our jobs (even this blog) and spend some time with our friends and familes. We have a couple things to share with you next week, but otherwise we'll be focused on family and "unplugged" until the new year. See you in 2010!

We hope you are fortunate enough to do the same, and we wish you the very Happiest of Holidays.

-Cascadian Farm

(photo by Marcus Q on flickr)

Have you been searching for holiday gift ideas that are outside of the box? Wouldn't you love to give a gift that is Eco friendly, handmade and lovely? Did you know that you can find these gifts from the comfort on your own home? It's true, you can with Etsy. Etsy is an online community that spans 150 countries and enables people to connect with others who make a living making things. This is a fabulous community full of creative individuals who not only sell lovely items but have a fabulous story to go with them. You will find something unique for everyone on your holiday gift list.

Would you do your holiday shopping on Etsy?

What are your favorite Etsy shops?

Last week the team from small planet foods got together for a Holiday Party near Sedro Wooley, WA. This time of year we're all looking forward to spending time with family, friends and neighbors to celebrate the holiday season.

Many farmers don't have the luxory of having days off, or paid vacation. Many livestock farmers work 7 days per week, 365 days per year. As the saying goes..."These cows won't milk themselves" ...even on Christmas!

At the home farm, our winter crops don't require quite as much attention and work, but there is still plenty of work to be done - even in the off season. There is planning to be done with our sourcing partners from around country and around the world. Equipment on the farm needs maintinence and upkeep, and winter is often the best time to do it.

Cascadian Farm's founder Gene Kahn - working on the tracker in the 1970s

Soon enough spring will be here. It will be time to sew our seeds, and get ready for the busy season. But for now we're looking forward to some time with our famies, and hope you enjoy the same this holiday season!

Winter is the perfect time to spend bonding together as a family. It seems like the colder it gets outside, the more time my family has to do things together. We like to pack our winter with activities that are both Earth friendly and fun and that can be done either at home or close to home. Staying at home or close to home, enjoying winter activities is much better on the environment and tons of fun too.

1. Make it a Snow Day: One of the greatest things about winter is waking up to a few inches of fresh powder on the ground. My son will look out the window with wide eyes and ask, "Can we play outside?" The snow brings all kinds of fun activities with it. You can pack a warm lunch and cocoa and spend the day sleigh riding or snow shoeing. You can even spend the entire day in your own backyard building a snow fort, snowman or having a snowball fight.

 

With a new year comes new challenges, new ideas and new resolutions. Maybe this year you have been thinking that going green will be on your list of resolutions. Going green is something that you can start by taking simple steps and I think you will find the process to be very liberating and rewarding. I think that when it comes to going green, the best and healthiest place to start is at home, since this is the place where you probably spend most of your time with your children and your pets. This is also the place where you can have a large impact on the environment, just think of the things that we could accomplish as a people, if we all followed these few simple steps.

Thanks to all of our friends that came out to see us at the Dallas Marathon last weekend! Here are some photos from the event:

Check out the rest of our photos on facebook. If you find a picture of yourself, make sure you tag yourself so your friends can see too!

For a list of upcoming events you can check out our the Cascadian Farm Almanac, or check our our facebook events page.