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| Photo and styling by Mary Fox |
It’s been six weeks since we moved into a 99-year-old house here in Norfolk. Some things have been an adjustment, like the swarms of mosquitoes and having four levels. Other things have us elbowing each other and grinning like we won the lottery: an easy two mile walk along the Lafayette River each evening, many good friends living nearby (even walking distance!), biking to the zoo, weather in the 70s while Florida is in the 100s, and fresh produce delivered TO MY FRONT DOOR. What?!
My friend Nicole recommended “The Dirty Life,” by Kristin Kimball a few months ago. The author falls in love with a farmer and they start a farm where people buy in, then get nearly everything they need from the farm, fresh and in season. Readable, and an interesting idea.
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| Sample Garden Box! YUM. |
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| Swai (white fish) with roasted red onion (from the box), pine nuts, and fennel bulb |
So when my friend Mary mentioned she signed up for a similar local farm group that DELIVERS, I paid attention! The Farm Table works with Virginia farms to get produce “48 Hours Dirt-to-Doorstep.” Joining costs $35-50 and each box costs $28.50-32. The group emails members each Friday about what they can expect in the following Thursday delivery, along with recipe suggestions. Sign me up!
My sample Garden Box had eggplants, tomatoes, nectarines, lettuce, red onions, squash, early apples and bell peppers. I weighed everything and priced it out for comparison. These are all fruits and veggies I buy fairly regularly (except maybe the eggplant), so I tried to use the cheapest price I could remember seeing recently. Even compared against that conservative estimate, my Garden Box came out competitively priced, and that’s without even throwing in delivery. And having produce delivered while I have two young-uns and Chris is out to sea? OH YEAH, BABY! It will be extra worth it then! This week I’m expecting a Breakfast Box with fresh eggs and breakfast produce (fruit, tomatoes, mushrooms, red onions). Mary gets the Chef Box, which has more prep produce like kale and tomatillos. Plus there are add-ons like shiitake mushrooms, artisan bread, extra veggies, local honey, etc.
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| Torpedoing jellyfish in the Lafayette River on our evening walk! Kid’s got good aim! |
I always like the idea of going to the farmers market, but realistically we’re not going to do that every week. And I never have enough cash. There will probably be more posts about the bounty at our front door. Thanks for the tip, Mary! If nothing else, I know that after I have this second baby and Chris is sailing the deep blue sea, we probably won’t starve to death on Thursdays because someone will bring us eggs and fruit. And charge it, please!
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| We love moving; we hate moving. This is the Unpack two days after we moved in. Looks better now! |