The kitchen teaches me patience, and preserving food is a lesson in delayed gratification. And when my boys watch me milling about–sometimes with my hair tossed in a messy pony tail and still in my pajamas–pacing from the counter to the fridge to the garden to the trash can to the table and back to the counter working on countless food projects at once–they see something beyond the mess.

Each morning I wake groggily and find my way to the kitchen. I pour a steaming cup of coffee and head out to the garden. Slowly I make my way around mounds of soil and baby plants to see the growth that took place over night. They are always growing. New sprouts– where nothing was yesterday, today there is green life, new leaves, and finally–first fruits.

During my first year of shopping regularly at the Farmers’ Markets, I made a point of asking the farmers whether or not they “Were organic.” I quickly found that this question resulted in vague and ambiguous answers. That is because although the term “organic” is tightly regulated, it really doesn’t matter that much when it comes to shopping at Farmers’ Markets.

The best way to get the most out of your experience at the Farmers’ Market is to befriend the farmers you are buying from. There is an art to shopping at the Farmers’ Market, and mastering that art is an adventure in itself! It all starts with asking the right questions; here are 5 important questions to begin with!

The Farmers’ Market offers a fun, educational, hands-on shopping experience while giving us the opportunity to support our community of farmers; as well as buy fresh, local ingredients at affordable prices! Check out today’s post where I share 7 Simple Ways to Shop With Confidence at Your Farmers’ Market!

Shopping at the farmers’ market was not easy for me; not at first, and it did not feel natural. It was a very different shopping experience then I was used to. I was used to walking down sterile aisles with too many options of too many processed foods, and next to no interaction with another human being besides offering my answer to “Paper or plastic?”