Hi There,
I’m Rosy, C’s farm helper for the week! Today is my last day here so I wanted to say a quick hello before I left. I’ve heard so much about you! I love the supportive community you have all built here.
I’d like to share some of my favorite moments on the farm but first I’ll tell you how I got here… I started a company (www.surpriseride.com) a few years back that makes toys and activities for kids that gets them off the iPad. My sister and I were inspired to start the company from memories of our own childhood. Our dad is an artist so we grew up in a very creative home. Shortly after starting the company we appeared on national television on ABC’s hit show Shark Tank. At the time it was just Donna and myself so it was quite the whirlwind. We got over 500 emails from viewers overnight! Fast forward to today and we’ve successfully brought to market over 50+ products for kids, have offices in Washington DC, grown the team, brought on Shark Kevin O’Leary as our investor, and are launching in retail stores this year! Taking a week off to go live on a farm is certainly not part of the equation.
I’ve felt for a while that I wanted to do something out of my comfort zone and push myself to grow. I’ve always wanted to live on a farm especially one with a focus on food (I love to cook!). Fate helped me find C, and her farm, seemed like just the right mix of everything I was looking for.
Living here and working with C was so special. She is such a patient and kind teacher. So very, very wise too! I want to share a few of the lessons I learned from her with you.
1. “Think like a chicken to know how to deal with a chicken.” I was having such a hard time getting chickens to move so I could collect their eggs. Once I started thinking like a chicken and moving like one it became so much easier. This is also good to remember in life when dealing with anyone that thinks differently from you.
2. “Fear of failure is the worst.” Don’t be afraid to fail or you won’t learn anything.
3. How to make bread, butter, yogurt, labneh, pastry dough, Apple tarte tatine, Chicago John Pasta, pickles, and so much more.
4. Relentless determination. She has taken such amazing care of the rescue pig Wai. Taking him on walks every hour, feeding him, putting ointment on him, and putting so much effort into seeing him get better.
5. To not be afraid to try new things. I cared for the chicks for days without holding one. Then C came with me one day and told me to pick one up. I was shocked “I didn’t know I could do that?! What if it bites me?”. It didn’t bite and holding that little chick was one my favorite parts of the trip.
6. How to care for piglets, chickens, a rescue pig (poor Wai!), chicks, peacocks, kunekunes, dogs, cats, and cows.
7. “Take a step back to look at the bigger picture.” I was planting lavender and parsley and was trying so hard to plant in a straight line. But I learned you can’t plant in a straight line if you’re sitting on the ground, you have to get up, walk away and then look at it from a distance.
8. “When building anything new you must create a good foundation”. This is called the friendly monster. Then as you continue to work hard on it, the monster takes over and runs with it and you become just a small part of the bigger whole.”
I could go on and on with the lessons I’ve learned! Thank you for being part of my trip to the farm. It was an unforgettable experience that I’ll be repeating time and time again.
I’ll be replying to all your comments so leave me a line! Hope to talk to you soon!
Hugs,
Rosy
Weather: Wonderful.
Saturday 06/24 10% / 0 in
Clear. Lows overnight in the low 50s.
Saturday Night 06/24 10% / 0 in
Clear skies. Low 53F. Winds WSW at 5 to 10 mph.
The Kitchen's Garden 
84 responses to “Guest writer: Rosy”
Hello Rosy, loved reading your story, and also the snippets of Celi’s wonderful practical wisdom. Your business sounds inspired, what a great idea, and obviously from your success, its time has come! Congratulations… hope you come back to Celi;s little paradise, good wishes from New Zealand.
Hi Valerie! Great to hear from you! I’ve heard so many wonderful things about New Zealand from Celi. I need to make a trip there soon. Thanks for reading and hope to be back soon. 🙂
Thank you Rosy for telling us about your life and endeavours: what fascinating people do end up helping ‘our Celi’ on the farmy!! And I agree – every wwoofer arriving on the scene henceforth should leave a ‘footprint’ we can look up and remember! Wish you could have stayed longer, especially to help with poor Wai . . . but the best with your company: an interesting idea and so worthwhile . . .
Hi Eha! Thank you for reading and taking the time to comment. I appreciate it. I would have loved to stay longer. Time on the farm seemed to weirdly fly by. Hope to be back soon and continue to share that journey with you all. 🙂
What wonderful life lessons to learn and then pass on. Thank you, Rosy, and best of luck in all your endeavors. Penny
Hi Penny! Thank you for reading. I checked out your blog. You have gained a new follower! I’m excited to continue to follow along. 🙂
Thank you – and welcome to the Cutoff.
Dear Rosy, you are an inspiration for sure! On top of everything you do in your life, you’re now a farmer too… or at least have some experience as a farmer. You’re so right about Ms C’s wisdom and wonderful of you to spell it out so well. You will be missed, I am sure; you came along at the exact moment you were so needed. I checked out your website and saved it to look closer at it later. I did find it inspiring and have a grand child that I am sure could benefit from what you’re offering. Do you ship to Canada? Have a safe trip home and fare well. ~ Mame 🙂
Hi Mame, Thanks for reading! It did seem like I got there right at the perfect time! How special. Glad you checked out Surprise Ride! We don’t currently offer shipping to Canada but get a lot of requests too. We are working on it! I was born in Canada so we need to make that happen. 😉 Please do let me know if there’s anything else I can help with. Hope to stay in touch!
A very insightful post, Rosy, thank you. Very best wishes with your business and your life. Hooroo from Australia!
Hi Ardys! Thanks for reading! I’m happy to hear you found the post insightful. It was a wonderful experience. 🙂
Your company is so neat! I think I did see that episode of shark tank! Keep doing good and getting kids off those devices! Safe travels home
Hi Pat, thanks for the sweet comment! Glad to hear you caught our episode on Shark Tank! Hope to stay in touch. 🙂
Sorry to have missed you, Rosy. I think it wonderful that your company aims to get kids active again and away from the gaming and app worlds. Much success to you and your sister!
You can take the wwoofer out of the farmy but you can’t take the farmy out of the wwoofer. I think that Miss C and the farmy will be with you for a very long time. Frankly, you couldn’t ask for better company. Good luck to you in all of your endeavors.
PS Thanks for the shout out. That pasta recipe has served me well and I know it will do the same for you. Mom wouldn’t have it any other way. 🙂
Hi John, thanks for reading and commenting! It’s so wonderful to meet you. I hope on my next visit we’ll get to cook together. So special that your mom’s dish is now a favorite dish in other families! So special. 🙂
Hey Rosy .. nice to meet you! How lovely to spend time with Celi! Best of luck with your business .. 🙂
Hi Julie! Thanks for stopping by and reading my post. Looking forward to checking out your site. 🙂