Soapin'

What started out as a curious experiment has morphed into a small business which could easily reign more of my limited time if I could decide if I really want to be in the soapin' business or not. Three years ago, in an attempt to prove to Rob that those goats really could do more for the farm bank account than just sucking it dry by eating so much hay, I attempted to make my first batch of goat's milk soap.

Although the bars were far inferior to the current ones I've been creating, I was still ecstatic when I saw my creation. When a friend saw the soaps, he became ecstatic for me and foresaw a future to fulfill dreams that I never knew I always had. And after using the goat's milk soap during that first cold, Wisconsin winter the whole family was convinced that we would be goat farmers from here on out.

I continued to play around with different recipes, different additives, scents and colors all the while trying to find new guinea pigs to try them out on. As I am better at giving things away than selling them, many friends and family politely accepted these gifts and humoured me with their appreciation.

Since sales are not my forte, the brilliant idea came one day to attempt teaching a soap making class. As hard as it is to exchange four dollar bills for a bar of sudsy gold, I can easily lead close to a dozen individuals in mixing potential lye volcanoes. The response from our little community overwhelmed me! Alexis became my right hand assistant, and then people actually started asking me if they could buy soap. And then Trent died. And grief has taken over every facet of life for twenty months.

But people still kept asking about soap. So in an attempt to keep living while I'm here, I continued the soaping. Requests came in to host another class through the local community education program at the high school last fall, and private requests have kept me busy throughout this previous summer and fall again, so much so that I have had to turn some people down until spring because *someone* didn't freeze enough milk. Many of the ladies who have taken classes have thrilled my soul by telling  me of their continued soap making.

And then we were asked to host a booth at a local Women's Expo, and nearly sold out of our soaps and laundry detergent, which has us excited about some Christmas craft sales that we hope to be able to attend as well this winter. So, until I decide if I am going to have a soap business or not, I guess I have a soap business.