Soapmaking and meat marketing

A couple bars of Donna's beautiful soap

When reading the evaluations of last year's conference, "live demonstrations" were one of the requests for the 2013 conference. So, here you go!

We're excited to announce that Donna O'Shaughnessy of South Pork Ranch will be back for the 2013 conference. If you were with us last year, you might remember Donna presenting sessions on grassfed beef and dairy, as well as pastured pork. This year, she'll be presenting these sessions:

Little White Lye ... Cold-Process Soapmaking
Participants will learn the basics of creating real soap from real lye and lard similar to the way our ancestors did ... but so much better and safer. The class will watch the entire soap making process including use of inexpensive molds, oils, clays, herbs, and other plant materials.

This Little Piggy Went To Market
So you've done the hard part of raising your calf, piglet or lamb to market weight. Now what? Learn how to market, price and legally sell your home grown meat direct by the carcass to individual consumers and restaurants or by the package at the local farmers market, and/or all natural grocery store.

Learn about bees and beekeeping

Seasoned beekeeper Richard McGinnis will be presenting two sessions on bees and beekeeping at our 2013 conference. He describes himself as a "Homesteader, Master Beekeeper, Heirloom Seed Enthusiast, Food Preservationist, Hen Whisperer. Talented organizer of other people's random thoughts and processes. Skilled time manager, patient tutor." Richard has kept bees on his rural Illinois homestead, as well as atop a Chicago skyscraper.

He'll be offering these sessions:

Bee Basics: Are you thinking of getting a garden beehive for fun or starting an apiary (a place where beehives are located) to make a little cash? Are you bee-curious? Do you have questions about CCD (Colony Collapse Disorder)? Do you want to help make your garden or orchard more productive? Or, do you simply want to participate in a conversation about different ways we can be kind to our pollinators? North-central Illinois beekeeper, Richard McGinnis, will lead a presentation on the basics of beekeeping, beekeeping etiquette, best bee practices for our region and introduce you to the stickiest business on the planet.

Beekeeping 101: Richard McGinnis leads an overview of materials, costs, pros and cons of different hive types (i.e. the Langstroth hive and the top-bar hive) and what to expect when starting your apiary. We will also review the anatomy of honey bees, the care and feeding of honey bees and managing the colony throughout the different seasons. We will discuss in disgusting detail the various pests, parasites and predators of our beloved bees as well as keeping an eye out for swarms and capturing feral colonies. Time and interest permitting, we will chat about the products from the hive, marketing these products, and managing a seasonal business. Even if you are a seasoned beekeeper, you will want to attend this session to contribute your knowledge – the best ideas come from community conversations and shared concepts.

Beyond bees, Richard is a statistical analysis and problem solving professional, talented teacher and manager of information technology. He exceeds at development of marketing strategies and targeted demographic delivery. He is passionate about bringing divergent cultures and communities together through sustainability initiatives using multi-platform, integrated media combined with hands-on experiential workshops as a cohesive and compelling reality.

"I learned this, at least, by my experiment;
that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams,
and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined,
he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours."

-- Thoreau, Walden - The Conclusion

Looking for speakers for this year's conference

This year's Mid-America Homesteading Conference will again be held at Joliet Junior College the Saturday before Labor Day, which falls on August 31, 2013.

We are currently looking for speakers. If you or someone you know would like to speak on a topic of interest to homesteaders, just fill out the online application! You can still see last year's conference schedule here. Speakers get free registration to the conference, as well as lunch, and we'll also help with travel expenses if you're driving more than 120 miles to attend.

If you are not interested in speaking but have ideas for topics or speakers, please leave a comment below!

Winter goat workshop

For those who were unable to attend the sold-out goat workshop in September, there will be another one at Antiquity Oaks Farm on Saturday, February 2. The topics covered will be the same as the September workshop -- care, breeding, birthing, soap and cheesemaking -- and this time, there are several goats due, so participants will get real life experience seeing pregnant goats and learning to determine when they might kid by looking at the belly and udder and checking tail ligaments. Several goats have already kidded, and more will be born before the workshop, so you will also get experience in determining polled or horned status in kids.

Registration for Goats: Care, Breeding, and Production is available at the Antiquity Oaks website There are also shorter classes in goat care, soap, and cheesemaking later this winter and spring.

Information about the fall homesteading conference will be posted soon!

Conference accomplished!

Cathy Lafrenz talks about marketing your farm business

By all accounts, the first Mid-America Homesteading Conference was a great success. We had amazing volunteers who kept everything running smoothly from registration to getting extra copies of hand-outs at the last minute. Evaluations were overwhelmingly positive, and the speakers said that attendees were enthusiastic and motivated. Of course, it wasn't perfect, but everyone was excitedly saying, "Next year, you should do _____!" when talking about how we could improve.

As nice as the facility is, we are not sure it will meet our needs next year. There were 51 people, and that seemed like a comfortable number. Although the capacity for the rooms is 30 each for a total of 90 people, we probably would have felt cramped in the lobby area with that number. Also, there was a suggestion for more vendors, but there wasn't much room left in the lobby for more exhibitor tables.

Some definite changes for next year:

• We will indicate in the program whether a session is geared towards beginners or advanced attendees, as some people said that various sessions were either more advanced or more basic than what they needed.

• There will be more time between sessions for networking and shopping.

Some people also asked for live demonstrations next year -- canning, soapmaking, and cheesemaking -- so we are going to check into the possibility of using a culinary classroom for doing a pre-conference workshop, or maybe we'll just bring in a hot plate and a microwave.

If you forgot to turn in an evaluation at the end of the day, it's not too late to offer your suggestions for making next year even better. Or maybe you did turn in an evaluation, but you just thought of something else to add? Click on "Comments" below and add your ideas!

Last minute details

We are putting the finishing touches on the conference, so here are a few more details on what you can expect. Coffee, orange juice, and snacks will be available in the morning, and lunch will be cheddar broccoli soup, chicken caesar wraps, and veggie croissant sandwiches.

To make it easier for you to find the conference, we will have signs on Houbolt Road and on campus. The conference center will be on your immediate left as soon as you walk into T building.

If you have not registered by Thursday evening, we ask that you just pay at the door when you arrive at the conference Saturday morning. We can take cash or credit cards.

If you have any last minute questions, click on "Comment" below and just ask right up until Friday night!

We're looking forward to meeting everyone and sharing lots of great information!

Tell a friend and get a $10 discount

If you tell a friend about the conference, you could receive a $10 discount on your registration. How exactly does it work?

Tell your friends about the conference on Facebook, Twitter, emails, and even old-fashioned phone calls! They have to register by Wednesday night, August 15, and be sure to tell them to write in the comment box "referred by _____" when they register. Fill in the blank with your name, of course. You have to be registered first, and when we receive their registration, we will refund $10 to your registration fees! It doesn't matter whether you registered last month or five minutes before your friend, as long as it is before your friend. (After all, we can't give you a refund if you haven't paid anything.) And that's all there is to it!

And you can get up to five discounts for a total of $50 off your registration, so be sure to tell everyone who might be interested in attending!