Tuesdays are generally our busiest days. Josh gets up bright and early to proof bread, warm the ovens, bake the bread, and then label and bag all the orders. Then he piles it all into our tiny car with our growing child and delivers to all the good people (the St. Nick of bread? ha!). Somedays we also come up with marketing initiatives, pick berries and/or flowers for order, and design our week.
While they are off an about, I try my best to get a few household things taken care of, any calls that are easier to make when my people aren’t here, maybe yoga, the blog, and then get to work on the dissertation. Also, on their delivery journey, they generally pick up groceries or bakery supplies, visit a couple of Portland-based folks, get coffee and try and talk up the Bread Share Program. When they return, we head to the local Farmer’s Market to stock up on the local goods we need. Josh looks very forward to his days off on Wednesday and Thursday (though in preparation for the Harvest Party, those will be busy in a different way!). We try and have family game/pizza night on Wednesdays and do some lowkey homesteading work (foraging, woods walks, small projects). Other evenings we stroll through the orchard and check on the “state of things” – apples, herbs, sunsets.
As we roll through our usual week, Josh is back to work on Fridays for Saturday wholesale accounts and then again Sunday for a Monday account (this gives him a few hours “off” in between these occasions where sometimes we can sneak in some friend dinners or outings). Where I utilize my Thursday/Friday/and a bit of Saturday to work in the garden or on the house in the mornings, and try and get to the writing in the afternoons so that Sunday I can meet with either directors, colleagues, or students to discuss and plan writing strategies. Up until Thursday, our child has floated like a magickal faierie through whatever activity strikes her, though she is a great help in general (now mowing the lawn!).
But now- there is an extra hustle and bustle for all of us! With the advent of the bakery/bookshop space, a possible end to the dissertation, and a more scheduled approach to homeschool for D (7th grade and all, comes with new needs!), we all have to pack a little more in to our days. We are all finalizing our schedules and ready to rumble. In the cracks and crevices of all this, Josh has been creating some new bakes (like the subtly sassy Cardamom Honey Rye or the new soft and wheaty #75, along with a possible Blackberry Rye) and working with some different techniques (higher hydration but with longer proofing, adding more nutritious elements, altering shapes and cuts). I can’t wait until he has more space to experiment and hone his happiness.
Rock Bottom Homestead 