Farmer's Market—Week 8, July 23, 2012

Today was hard.


I arrived home from work a few minutes later than usual, so I was rushing as I was loading the car to head down to the market. Prior to loading, I had to cut up an apple pie into sample-sized servings, so that took extra time, too. By the time I arrived at the market, I only had about 30 minutes to set up. That's enough time, but it makes me feel very rushed.


The weather today wasn't too bad. It was warm and humid, but there was a breeze. It seemed about 10 degrees cooler than last week, that's for sure. However, the crowd at the market was a little light. At the sound of the 3:00 bell, it just didn't seem like there were as many people bustling around. My sales were indicative of a light crowd. While I did fine, I did come home with more than I expected. It's weird, and so hard to predict. I would never have guessed that I would have the leftovers that I had...especially since I came home with half the Squish Monsters that I took, and they're my best seller. I just don't get it.


As I mentioned above, today I gave out samples of my apple pie. Everyone that tried it said it was very good. Some people I believed, and others I wondered if they were just being nice. I had a lot of people ask for my mini apple pies (we call them Apple HappyJacks) after I had sold out of them, and I only sold one of the two whole pies that I took. That's ok, because I've owed my mother-in-law a pie for a few weeks now, and she's coming to babysit tomorrow, so that will work out just peachy for me.


For dinner today, I had some pierogies and stuffed cabbage from Polish Pierogies food truck. They served them to me with a side of sour cream, and I thought, "What am I going to do with this?" The pierogies are so good on their own, they don't need sour cream. But I put it on the stuffed cabbage, and boy, was that fabulous! I highly recommend trying it.


My cookie of the week this week was a sugar-free oatmeal cranberry spice cookie. It seemed to go over well. It had an odd texture since it had no sugar—there was no crunch—but the flavor was very yummy. Cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and cloves. And the cranberries added a touch of sweetness. They were really good if you can get past the fact that there was no added sugar.


So you're wondering why the day was hard? Well, I realized how very much I appreciate having my husband with me at the end of the day to help tear down my booth, load the car, and unload everything at home. But today, he started volleyball practice for his fifth and sixth grade girls' JV team, and he was unable to come to the market. So I had to do most of the work myself, with a little bit of help from Lila, who's only 7-1/2 and can only do so much to help. It was hard work, and took a really long time, and to top it off, I hurt myself doing it. I pinched the skin on my left upper arm as I was closing up my folding tables. It's been over two hours and it still stings. 


Anyway, I'm hoping for a better week next week, although it's going to be tough predicting what will sell. Wish me luck! And until next time, have a yummy day!