Well, it's May, and we've already been at the farmer's market for a whole month! I think I'm STILL trying to get myself back in the routine of preparing and setting up each week.
The first morning was dark and chilly while getting ready for the Easter weekend crowd:
But later on the sun came out! Yay! And this vendor's pretty pansies brightened up the front row, since the veggies were still scarce.
This year, we have a new vendor...a fish farmer. This is the first time the Staunton market has offered fish, and it seems like they are doing well. They sell whole fresh fish, although you can pay more if you want them to clean and fillet it for you.
Gloria's Pupuseria has been at the market for a couple of years, but this year they have upgraded to a new BRIGHT food truck. They are becoming quite busy and popular! This past week, Hannah and I decided to get some pupusas to share, and it was a 30 minute wait. It was totally worth it, too. :)
Hannah introduced her new product, Stonewall Beard Oil, and has had many comments on it. One bearded vendor, when told that it tames the beard, said, "But I want my beard to be wild and free!" :) It's amazing how we both now notice all the men with beards who pass by when we didn't before!
Out of the 4 weeks of market so far, most of the Saturdays have been beautiful days with good sales. One week was really quite cold, with sleet off and on all morning, but other than that, it's been nice. This past Saturday was an annual 5K race that starts and ends right beside the market. It draws a big crowd of runners - it's nice when they decide to walk through the market after the race. :)
This vendor always brings such beautiful, colorful flowers. It's always nice to see her customers walking around market carrying bouquets from her booth. She usually has a bucket, as seen below, of single free flowers that she gives out to little kids. They love them!
As Mothers' Day is approaching, this vendor brings many, many hanging flower baskets and does a brisk business!
Lots of us at the market like to walk around before the customers come out and chat with our fellow vendors. Varieties of veggies, weather, planting techniques, and more are common topics of conversation.
Our handy dandy chalkboards have been put to use once again this year, advertising our wares to the passing customers. I bought some more chalkboard paint this year to refresh both of our boards, and it made them like new and easy to write on.
Hannah's board is usually artfully decorated with flowers and other pretty chalk pictures. She often grabs people's attention by listing her more unusual items such as shampoo and shaving soaps - and now beard oil!
I have enjoyed seeing all my regular customers again after the winter off-season. One lady often comes by to purchase a linzer tart for the priest at her church, since she knows it's his favorite. Just this past week, she brought me a magazine she had finished. She had thought of me as soon as she saw it and wanted to pass it on. Wasn't that nice?!
That's the update on the market front these days. Tomorrow I'll be preparing lots of pie crusts ahead of my baking day - it's Mother's Day weekend, and I hope people will be buying a yummy dessert for the occasion. :)
~Sarah
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