Being a mom of two kids and a farm

The way Sage Creations evolved had everything to do with being a mother.

When I founded Sage Creations in 2006 after 15+ years in the agriculture world, my husband Bobby and I had just had our first daughter. Wanting to be present and hands-on in her life, and in our second daughter’s, shaped the way we grew our farm: slowly and (as best as we could) patiently.

We moved to Palisade, Colorado in 2005, committed to sustainable farming practices and raising our family in Colorado’s clean air. My first lavender planting was in 2006, marking the beginning of Sage Creations.

As our lavender fields grew, I extended our product line to include farm-distilled essential oils, bath and body products, and plant starts.

Meanwhile, our daughters grew up paying attention to seasons, ebbing and flowing with seasonal tasks and the fruits of our labor. They grew up watching a woman on a mission, watching plants grow from cuttings and seeds, seeing greenhouses being built and cherry trees marked, watered and harvested.

Our girls grew up watching me build a business and steward the land. And I watched them be a part of it, knowing it would shape the way they saw the world as young women.

Balancing, or integrating, work and home life is something all parents learn to navigate, and there’s no single right way to do it. It parallels sustainable farming in that there are always costs and benefits to consider; thoughtfulness and resilience are key.

We’ve always managed our farm using sustainable farming practices: nourishing soil life, not using herbicides or synthetic fertilizers and encouraging beneficial insects through diversified plant hedge rows, companion planting and insect releases — despite these approaches rarely being the most convenient or cheapest way to go about things, because to us, the rewards far outweigh the extra effort and challenge.

And we’ve always done our best to raise our kids with the same care, to put our values first, and act on them even when it’s hard.

Having our whole family involved in an agriculture lifestyle is a unique way of life — the balancing act is always at play, and the blessings are endless.

Wishing a Happy Mother’s Day to every family out there. May the fruits of your labor be utterly delicious.