January Round-Up: Chalkboards, Ice Cream, and More!

Kyle says that January is the month in which we sit and look out the window, wishing for warmer weather and making plans. But, really, there hasn't been much sitting. 

Much of our work this month has been focused on ice cream (of course) and on new things to add this fall.

Oh, and cleaning. We deep-cleaned the donut machines, which was a necessary if a bit unpleasant task that we gladly gave the privilege of to Kyle. In the kitchen, we cleaned everything, from the walk-in cooler to the floors. We also updated our lighting to more environmentally friendly - and brighter - LEDs. 

We've made huge progress on Scoop 2, our new ice cream truck. Kyle gutted it, ran a whole bunch of cords and wire, and painted the drab grey inside a bright yellow. The truck also needed a few tune-ups and new back tires, so Scoop 2 is currently in the shop awaiting maintenance. Then it will be off to Digital Designs in Dubuque, where they will wrap the truck in the same clothing as Scoop 1. Also, Caitlin, our new scoops coordinator, has been designing a new menu board for both trucks that looks absolutely amazing. 

Even better (especially for my kiddo, who loves ice cream), we've been testing out some new specialty flavors to add to the summer truck route!! Taste testing will begin in earnest in two weeks. 

If you want to check out Kyle's journey to get the new truck, check out our Scoop 2 blog! And for more on Caitlin, check out her blog here!

We also got quite a bit done and in the works for next fall. We're in the process of building a new feature for the farm designed just for toddlers, and are working through design and materials questions. We will start building that when the weather clears a bit, and I'm super excited to see our fun vision come to life and watch our tiny farm visitors enjoy it in the fall. 

AND we just finished one of the most fun projects I've ever done at the farm - a giant chalkboard! (More on this one later - we'll have a video up soon!)

There has also been a lot of exciting discussions about new things to come - new food items, new fall season and ice cream merchandise, and talked A LOT about a new friend arriving this fall, someone we can't talk about right now, but are so excited for you all to meet!

We've had a lot of time to develop our new farm family, a membership group for our visitors, and we have a lot of great coupons, giveaways, and new information for you there when you sign up!

And you can sign up, right now, right here! 

These next couple of months will be excited as we continue to work on new and fun things and they all come together! Stay tuned!