Taking the farm to the city literally!

I might be just a little giddy with excitement. You see, tomorrow I will make the trek to the big city were I am privileged to be part of an effort that will bring the whole farm to 10,000 students at 25 school sites in San Francisco Unified School District on Thursday, October 20. It's a HUGE undertaking and I cannot take credit for the work and energy that has gone into the planning of this activity. I however am very proud to be one of the more than 200 volunteers.

The project, San Francisco Farm Day, is a program of the California Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom (CFAITC) who is celebrating their 25th Anniversary this year. So the story goes, in 1981 the San Francisco Unified School District asked the California Farm Bureau if they could help the district locate farms that teachers could visit. The Farm Bureau took the request and in 1986 the California Foundation for Agriculture in the Classroom was born.

Jump forward 25 years and it only makes since that CFAITC head back to the city and share the story of California's farmers and ranchers with another generation of future consumers.

I am also looking forward to visiting the ever famous Cow Palace. The Grand National is taking place and its been a few years since I have been after many years as a Jr. exhibitor, then as a member of a college livestock judging team and then as an employee of the livestock department also while in college. So many memories from the Cow Palace. It will be nice to smell the straw in the barns once again. If you have been, you know exactly what I am talking about.

I am taking my camera and hope to capture the days events at the school site were I will be volunteering so stay tuned for a review of what is sure to be a FABULOUS day.

Thanks for reading! ~mrs.c

Women and wine with dinner of course!

It's not often I go to dinner without my husband. After all I love going to dinner with him but he is not always available. This week I had dinner with friends; girlfriends in fact and I drove to Sacramento to share in what was a great evening. Just to put this into context, my house is about an hour and 45 minutes from Sacramento; not your typical drive time to enjoy dinner but when the dinner date traveled from North Dakota, you don't whine about two hours!

I'm a fairly social person without the help of the Internet but social media has played a significant role in growing my network of friends and especially women who I fondly refer to as my sisters. One of those special friends is Katie Pinke from North Dakota. We are both working moms who share a love for what else - agriculture! We have lots of other things in common as I have discovered from following her blog the Pinke Post or tracking her trips through her many tweets. But this one night we were separated by nothing more than the table in between our chairs.

Katie's colleague Sharlene Garcia also joined us; another working mom and lover of all things agriculture. The three of us spent more than three hours talking, eating, talking, drinking, and then did some more talking over dessert. I think it's fairly safe to say we could have spent a few more hours if it wasn't for the evening getting late and each of us needing to work the next morning.

I am so grateful for fabulous women, especially those in agriculture, who inspire, challenge and remind me why it is I do what I do everyday. Katie and Sharlene are two of those great women. I can't wait to have dinner again!  Thanks Ladies ~mrs.c