these photos are a bit out of order, but that's okay. they tell the story just fine. each year about this time i brouse over local farms in my area that offer shares in community supported agriculture. what that means is that farmers offer folks the opportunity to become "shareholders" of the season's harvest. by becoming a shareholder you purchase your "share" of the seasons bounty with an upfront payment which allows the farmers to purchase seeds, supplies and equipment in order to sustain the growing season. the result of your investment is a weekly share - boxes bursting with in-season and fresh from the farm produce. it doesn't get any fresher than this. or healthier. or better for the environment. or better for our local farmers! 
this year i did more than just browse, once again putting it off with "maybe next year." i bought a full CSA share from Earth Harvest Farm located just over the illinois/wisconsin border. not only will i receive my weekly share boxes, but i can also visit the farm, work it when time allows and take the grandbabies for visits so that they can see (for real) where our food is coming from. i'm seriously psyched about it - can't wait for my first share on june 14!
in addition to buying a produce share (all organic, free of the scary stuff) my daughter and i went in on a quarter steer, a half a hog and a few dozen chickens, raised simply and naturally in the purity of native prairie (all purchased through my CSA farm). no antibiotics or growth hormones. grass and organically fed. i'm pretty stoked about that too - locally grown organic foods free of pesticides and chemicals! we've been purchasing organic eggs fresh from a local farm for months now. one of my husband's coworkers supplies us with the efforts of her hens. eggs fresh from the farm are so different in taste, texture, size...once you have them fresh it's hard to resort back to the sickly eggs (even the ones proclaimed to be laid by "happy chickens!) offered at the store. 
the price wasn't too bad either, pretty reasonable, in fact, when i consider what i spend at wholefoods. don't get me wrong, i enjoy shopping at my local wholefoods market, but you can pay some pretty steep prices for organic produce there. but it sure makes me happy to know that my food isn't traveling hundreds of miles to get to my table. and that i'm helping to support a family less than an hour north of where i live. the farm also partners with organic growers in michigan. this summer i'll have the opportunity to add fresh, chemical free michigan peaches, cherries, blueberries and apples to my share. my love of cooking is taking a whole new, fresh turn. i'm planning on learning canning and preserving techniques so that next winter i'll still be able to enjoy the "fruits" of my CSA share.
sloppy writing this morning - didn't take much time to wax poetic. i was just really excited to share this information. it's not too late if you're interested or want more information on purchasing CSA shares or finding farms in your area that offer natural and organic produce, dairy and meats. visit www.localharvest.org to find a farm in your area. the site is also an excellent source for farmer's market listings, which are fun too. you can visit "my farm" at www.earthharvestfarm.com.
happy friday - wishing you a peaceful, easy weekend!
-t.
Thanks for sharing! I've always wanted to find a local farm to purchase a share but didn't think there were any around us. I'll have to look into since you shared the link. Last year we started our first garden and did lots of swaps with the neighbors but more variety would be even better.
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