Certain days are just so busy, we don’t have a chance to take a breath.
After sleeping 11 hours last night, I think my brain is finally clear enough to process yesterday.
Another day with W at work. A team of 3 – until Helper #2 missed their alarm. Yeah, I texted. I called 27 times with no answer. On the way to the market, Helper #1 and I decided we’d have to adjust the menu and psyched ourselves up on the monumental task of setting up the booth. GIRL POWER!!!
But we did it. We got the entire booth built, the electrical cords ran, the equipment set up, the food to temp, the griddle fired up, the sign updated, etc. We did it! Then the whistle blew and the day began. We had a beautiful day – a little cloudy, a little chilly (nice when you’re set up on asphalt) and a great crowd.
#2 showed up 90 minutes in and the regular menu was back on. We enjoyed the morning of people watching, talking with everyone, seeing the cute kids and dogs, and we made it through the day. We decided where we wanted to eat – always a popular topic. We tore it all down and went to lunch. Cold water, air conditioning, and tasty food while we relaxed. Ice cream after and our day was complete.
I drove each helper home. Once I got home I washed my face, put on comfy clothes, and relaxed. Everything else could wait until tomorrow (today as I write this). We went to bed early and I slept for 11 hours – much needed. I unloaded things today and have been going all day.
I’m thankful to have this day to recover and get things done. I’m thankful for an extra day off tomorrow and for those who gave the ultimate sacrifice to make sure we still have our freedom.
Until next week… do your best with the knowledge you have, with the best of intentions and be kind.
Some days, if it CAN go wrong, it WILL. How we handle these days defines our character.
My alarm rang at 4am. The was the first day W would have to be at work instead of the market. We would be a crew of three. I looked at my phone and discovered a message from one of our workers, saying they didn’t think they could make it today. Uh oh. The entire season we’d been training the helpers for this day. I sent them a message saying I REALLY needed them today. They said they’d be there.
I loaded up the car, thankfully not forgetting stuff. Yes, I’ve forgotten important things before – the cash box, the iPad, whatever. It happens.
I always text the helpers to let them know I’m leaving, so they’ll be ready. If they don’t respond, I start calling. After a few calls, helper #2 answered. I had woke them up, but they said they’d be ready. I picked up 1. Picked up 2. We stopped to get drinks and ice. Went to the market.
When we arrived, the trailer had a flat tire – a problem for later. I remembered the correct key to unlock it (thank goodness!) and we began unloading. The appliances kept kicking off, so I had to engineer the lines to the generator to get everything going, all at the same time. Yesterday’s menu was the lamb meatballs in a vindaloo sauce over rice. I had decided to bring the rice cooker and cook the rice while we were setting up. While setting up, the rice cooker took a dive off the table, mid-cycle. I had only brought enough rice for 2 batches – no extra. So, I picked up everything and headed to the market kitchen to rinse the 2nd batch of rice and get it started. Later, one of our fellow vendors ran to the store and grabbed me a bag of rice – we are blessed to be part of such a great community of people. (THANKS BECKY!!!!)
Set up took longer than usual with a missing team member, so I was working on the “specials” sign at the last minute. We opened and the day began. It went by in a blur, but it was windy. 4 jars of jam blew off the shelf and broke. The only break I took was to run to vendors to pick up orders of ingredients for future meals. I didn’t even have a moment to take pics of the food or post on social media.
We saw many adorable children and dogs. We spoke with many people. We laughed. We enjoyed the beautiful (albeit windy) day.
When noon arrived, it was time to tear it all down and put it away. I was helping the Market Manager when the helpers decided to take down the canopy. A gust of wind blew in and one of the canopy legs got bent. OUCH! We managed to get it down, folded, and put away, but it will have to be replaced. I’ve already placed the order today, so it will hopefully be here later this week. (SIDENOTE: When we ordered the old canopy, it arrived as a huge air hockey table that we had to return, cancel the original order, and place a new order. I’m hoping that doesn’t happen this time!)
We locked up the trailer, aired up the tire and went to lunch. Taking time after the market to sit down together and enjoy a meal gives us all a chance to decompress. We went to Sam’s after, then headed to drop of #2. I’ve been giving driving lessons to #1, so we ran some errands, then came back to the house to drop off everything in my trunk. Our daughter stopped by and hung out for a bit, then #1 and I logged some more drive time to get them home.
It was a long day, filled will hiccups and a little stressful. But, it is what it is. The rice wasn’t finished by the time we opened, but people graciously waited and were patient. Everyone was kind today. Nothing that went wrong was anyone’s fault. Stuff just goes wrong sometimes. We keep on going, with the best of intentions. The world isn’t out to get us. Patience goes a long way.
On my way home on this very long day, I saw a beautiful sunset. I took a moment to snap a pic and document the moment. There’s something beautiful in every day – we just have to look for it a little harder some days.
The market day begins after a short night of sleep with an alarm at 4am. We get up, get ready, load up, and head out. Him in the truck with the trailer, me with the car in the opposite direction. He gets to the market, puts the trailer into place and gets started. I drive to pick up our two employees – two teenagers with no drivers’ licenses who, for whatever reason, have chosen to spend their Saturdays with a couple of older folks. They’re really good kids and we love them like our own.
Sunrise on the way to the market
On the way, we stop for drinks, a quick bite to eat in the car (usually doughnuts), and ice. Then we head to the market to begin. We’re usually there by 6am. Then the fun begins.
Booth set up takes 60-90 minutes, with time for emergencies (we left the spatula! we need a bucket! I forgot the extension cord!) to get to a store quickly. It’s a parking lot before we set up. We bring everything and build this space each week – Canopy, weights, tables, product, food, sanitation, shelves, signage, POS system, tea, chairs, coolers, everything. This was our 5th set up of the season and we’re finally hitting our stride.
We change something every season, which means every year is different. This year, we moved up to a double booth to accommodate everything we need. It’s still a work in progress, but we’ll figure it out eventually. For now, we’re doing what works to get the job done. We’ve figured out where everyone goes and their portion of the job. I take the orders and handle the register. W cooks and is training G, who cooks and helps bring out orders. S’s job is food prep. She assembles the plates and works with the customers on toppings to finish out their sliders.
We are currently out of ground lamb (yes, we were shocked, too!), so we don’t have any lamb sliders at the moment. This week, we had our biscuit & gravy, the breakfast bowls, braised lamb in a stock reduction over rice, and an Italian beef slider in marinara on a brioche bun with provolone.
We had our usual retail offerings – jams, jellies, honey, lamb meat, topped towels, bags, dishcloths, etc.
The Mother’s Day market is always a busy one. It was a beautiful day! Perfect weather. Not too hot. Not too cold. A breeze. NO RAIN!!! When we get a moment to look up from our booth duties, we watch the people. It’s so much fun to see the babies, the kids, the pets, and the people having a good time. We had music in the form of a live community band. Many times, fellow vendors will hop over to the booth to place an order and we’ll run their food over to their booth when it’s ready. We understand they have customers, too, and we want them to be able to get a good bite to eat. Throughout the market time, we discuss where we will eat lunch. It’s an important decision in the world of hungry teenagers.
The day went quickly. We were busy most of the time. Gone are the days of walking around the market to talk with fellow vendors and browse the wares. Now, if we get a moment, we RUNNNNNNN to a vendor to get what we need and hopefully we see something great we need to have. Tomatoes from Dakota Edge Farms. Lettuce from Fischer’s Family Farm. Bacon from Hill View Farms. This week’s slider meatballs were beef from Hayden Farms and Tichenor’s No Creek Angus. The sausage in the gravy is from Bittel Heritage Meats. We make our food from scratch and we use as many ingredients as we can source from our fellow vendors. If you ask, we’ll point you in their direction. BTW, my “had to have it” item yesterday, was a piece of strawberry cake from Taste of Home Baked Goods. It took me an hour to get enough bites to eat it, but it was tasty!
By noon, it was over. Time to take it all apart and put it away until next week. It all goes back into the trailer or my car. There’s dirty dishes and laundry galore! We tear it all down, put it away, and head to lunch. Normally, we’ve chosen a restaurant to fill our bellies. However, this weekend was the BBQ Fest (formerly International BBQ Festival, now known as BBQ & Barrels). I didn’t want to go, but I was outvoted, so we went. We had the kids turn on their phone locations in case of emergency, handed them $20 each, told them to get whatever food they wanted with it, and let them go be kids. Us old folks found a food truck, sat down to enjoy our food, then went out to find the kids. We watched them ride the rides with smiles and laughter.
I was wrong. We DID need to go to the BBQ fest. We gave the kids a moment to just be kids. Laughter and smiles are sometimes just what we need. Of course, they hadn’t eaten. After they were finished with the rides (and their stomachs settled), they got their food. We headed home after a really good day.
Today is Mother’s Day. My kids will be treating me to dinner tomorrow, when we’re all available. I’ve spent my day recovering from yesterday’s marathon. Tomorrow will be work. In this moment, I choose to be thankful – for a beautiful day, for happy babies, for adorable dogs, for laughing kids, for a cool breeze, for a beautiful sunrise, for the community of wonderful people who make up our farmers’ market, for our wonderful customers who keep coming back week after week, for strangers who visit our booth and become regulars, for people who stop by once because they’re from our of town, for this life – as crazy and hectic and beautiful as it can be.
First market booth, 2014Current market booth set up.
We set up at our local farmers’ market for the first time in 2014. It was one table, a cool door sign with our prices, and a dream. We transported everything in our Ford Explorer. Eleven years later, we have a double booth, tables, shelves, a POS system, a truck, a trailer, lots of equipment, and two employees. The fun doesn’t end there! Our goal is to transition to a food truck when it becomes financially feasible.
In the meantime, we’ll be setting up every Saturday and The Owensboro Regional Farmers’ Market through November 1, 2025. We still sell our lamb meat, jams, jellies, honey, handmade items, fresh cut herbs, and (when available) produce. However, our primary focus is THE FOOD! Lamb sliders made with our Jake’s Run lamb, scratch made biscuits and gravy, breakfast bowls cooked to order, and a weekly special that’s always delicious!
Lamb slider
Biscuit and gravy
Asian braised pulled pork
Our amazing lasagna!
We love local! We strive to use as much locally grown ingredients as possible. We grow the lamb and the herbs used in the sliders and tzatziki. Our lettuce comes from Fischer’s Family Farms. The tomatoes and cucumbers are grown by Dakota Edge Farms. We use produce from other vendors at the market, depending on what we’re cooking and availability.
If you love local, scratch made food, give us a try! We’d love to see you at the market!
Welcome to Homegrown Bites by Jake's Run! 