04/02/2026
Well better late than never - we wanted to share our 2025 Christmas card with everyone. Yes, I know it isn't December anymore - but I had to share it before July 4th (so I could prove Adam wrong). 😁 We hope you enjoy our update!
It is April Fool's Day though - so I thought it would be the perfect day to send out our Christmas card not as a joke, but as an update letting everyone know how last year shaped up on our farm.
Thank you all for your continued support! Cheers to 2026 (the year that is already a quarter over)! We hope you enjoy our update!
From Our Farm to Your Home: 2025 Reflections
It’s been a few years since we’ve sent a Christmas update, and this year felt like a good time to pause and share a bit of what’s been happening around the farm. We hope your family is doing well and had a blessed holiday season. We’ve had our share of good days, hard work, and sweet moments with family and friends. Now six years into living on our farm, we’re continually amazed at how much this place has shaped our family and how God keeps using it to teach us, stretch us, and bless us.
As the year began, we found ourselves dreaming big after visiting a local dairy in January. We watched our new batch of laying hens grow, and deep cleaned the barn and milk room. Our dogs Kona and Lucy spend most of their time napping and playing!
February brought one of our biggest milestones as Carmel and Sunny joined our farm, officially making us a dairy cow family. We tried new recipes and continued remodeling the milk room as a family.
March brought learning and creativity. At 4H Demonstration Day, Joanna described how to make Rice Krispy bars while Nathan taught “How to Take Care of a Dog.” We processed maple syrup again, and Sara and Nathan had fun at another mother-son night of dodgeball and crafts.
With April came new life as we welcomed baby Cornish Cross meat chicks for the fifth time and celebrated the birth of Marty, Carmel’s healthy bull calf. Nathan graduated from the DARE program, Joanna and Adam enjoyed the father/daughter dance, and we drank milk from our own cows for the first time. Cheers! It is SO rewarding knowing where our food/beverages come from.
May overflowed with activity: spring choir concerts, making more soap, and the arrival of our honeybees for the third year. We completed our 4H Adopt A Highway ditch pickup, began giving farm tours, and celebrated Nathan’s golden birthday. Sara taught engineering activities in the kids’ classes, Nathan auditioned for Newsies, DJ had a heifer beef calf, Tulip and her calf Twinkle joined our farm, and both kids enjoyed their end of year field days.
June brought steady rhythms with farmers markets, calf walking for the fair, chicken chores, and musical rehearsals
July was peak summer with haying, the Heritage Days festival, and Nathan performing in Newsies (enjoyed by supportive grandparents).
August centered around the Pope County Fair, where the kids proudly showed Twinkle for the first time (and learned a lot). They submitted static projects, helped at the 4H food stand, and we enjoyed the demo derby. Adam tackled painting the outside of the barn (he’s the backbone and ringleader of our farm).
September brought the return to school — Nathan to 6th grade and Joanna to 2nd. We enjoyed the Dalton Steam Threshers show, hatched three Monarch butterflies, and volunteered for the third year at Breakfast on the Farm. We tried new whole wheat recipes, dug potatoes, Joanna enjoyed reading and art projects, and we hosted a homeschool farm tour (Adam was an awesome tour guide — even if he doesn’t think so).
October was filled with stunning sunrises/sunsets, steady customer and community support (one of my favorite parts of owning a business), and our Annual 4H Banquet. We welcomed Olly and Sunflower, two purebred registered Jerseys, and felt grateful to see our dairy and beef cows thriving on lush pastures through rotational grazing.
November brought community and celebration as we participated in vendor shows, Nathan became one of our 4H club’s Recorder/Photographer officers, and we enjoyed playful pasture walks. We celebrated Thanksgiving and Joanna’s 8th birthday.
December wrapped the year in warmth and blessing. We felt deeply thankful for our family, friends, and customers – without your support we wouldn’t be able to fulfill our dreams. This month I celebrated my 19th year at SRF (time flies when you’re having fun). We enjoyed holiday school concerts, festive cow photos, holiday baking, celebrating with both of our families, and learning to use Adam’s new cream separator.
Throughout the year, we saw God’s hand in both the big moments and the everyday ones – in steady family support, new and growing friendships, hard work, and answered prayers. We’re grateful for the year behind us and hopeful for all that is ahead. We’d love to have you take a trip to our farm sometime. May God guide and bless you in 2026! Love, the Schmidts
