Sheri Ann Richerson

My proof of the Goat Milk Kitchen Toolkit arrived today!!

Today’s delivery made me smile!

There’s something exciting about opening a package and seeing new copies of my books arrive.

This shipment includes 101 Self-Sufficiency Tips and 101 Beginning Gardening Tips - two books written to help you build confidence, whether you’re just getting started or you’ve been gardening and homesteading for years.

I believe everyone can take one small step toward a more self-sufficient life. You don’t need acres of land or expensive equipment. You simply need the willingness to learn, experiment, and keep growing.

Seeing these fresh copies reminds me why I love writing. Every book represents years of hands-on experience, successes, failures, and lessons learned that I hope will make your own journey a little easier.

Have you read either of these books? If so, I’d love to hear what you thought. And if you’re just beginning your gardening or homesteading journey, be sure to check them out locally Bookworm Orchard at https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B002BM2TZE

Every garden starts with a single seed… and every homestead starts with a single step.

It’s official - The Goat Milk Kitchen Toolkit is now available in PAPERBACK!
When I started putting this Toolkit together, I originally designed it as a printable dairy binder system. I wanted something that would help you keep track of the milk coming into the kitchen, where it went, what you made with it, how much cream you collected, what your butter and cheese actually yielded, and all those little details that are so easy to forget from one batch to the next.
Then I started thinking about those of us who simply like having an actual BOOK in our hands.
There was one problem.
A dairy recordkeeping system is meant to be used over and over. You might need dozens of milk production sheets but only a handful of cheese records. There was no practical way to put enough copies of every worksheet into a paperback without making an enormous book.
So I did both.
📖 The paperback gives you a permanent physical master copy of The Goat Milk Kitchen Toolkit.
🖨️ And inside the paperback, you'll find access to the printable working files so you can print fresh copies of the repeat-use pages whenever you need them for your own homestead.
The Toolkit includes 7 organized dairy-kitchen sections covering milk and cream tracking, dairy batch records, inventory and storage, kitchen planning, butter, cheesemaking, and your own personalized dairy quick-reference system.
Because I'm really not interested in telling you what some generic chart says a gallon of goat milk should give you.
I want you to learn what your goats, your milk, your equipment, your recipes, and your kitchen actually produce.
Your goats. Your milk. Your kitchen. Your results.
The paperback is $24.99 on Amazon.
👉 Get the paperback here: [Amazon affiliate link] https://amzn.to/4qcLiGC
And yes - the printable digital edition is still available too, so if you'd rather build your own binder and print everything yourself, you have that option.
I am pretty excited to finally be able to say this one is available as an actual book.
Which would you rather have in your dairy kitchen - the paperback or a printable binder?

If you have dairy goats, you probably know this feeling...
At first you're excited about all that beautiful fresh milk coming into the house.
And then the jars start multiplying in the refrigerator. 😂
What am I going to do with all this milk?
I've been working with fresh goat milk for years, and I've learned a lot along the way - sometimes because things turned out beautifully and sometimes because they absolutely did not.
So I put together From the Milking Stand to the Kitchen, a FREE 41-page guide for anyone who wants to make better use of fresh goat milk.
I cover milk handling and storage, collecting cream, butter, cheese, yogurt, kefir, cajeta, preservation, troubleshooting, reference charts and more.
You don't need to learn everything at once. Pick one project and start there.
🥛 Get the free 41-page Goat Milk Guide here when you sign up for my homesteading newsletter:
https://shop.experimentalhomesteader.com/free-goat-milk-guide/
If you're milking goats right now, I'm curious - what are you making with the most milk this summer?

Sometimes a plant completely changes your mind about what you thought you knew.
I've grown blue salvias before, so when I planted Rockin' Playin' the Blues® II Salvia in the Butterfly Garden of Gas City, I thought I had a pretty good idea of what to expect.
I didn't.
I originally chose it because I wanted blue flowers for our red, white and blue planting celebrating America's 250th birthday, and of course, anything going into the Butterfly Garden needed to make sense for pollinators.
But this plant has surprised me all summer.
It grew FAST. It filled out beautifully. The tall clusters of violet-blue flowers are constantly buzzing with bees, I've seen several kinds of butterflies visiting, and even a hummingbird has stopped by.
Then there's the weather.
Extreme heat. Humidity. Too much rain. Severe storms. Winds over 60 mph.
It still looks great.
I haven't deadheaded it. I haven't staked it. I haven't pruned it. I haven't given it supplemental fertilizer.
At this point, it's no longer simply a plant I wanted to try.
It's on my must-grow list.
I've put together a complete guide to Rockin' Playin' the Blues® II Salvia, including how to plant and care for it, watering, companion plants, pollinator benefits, troubleshooting, container growing and what I've learned from growing it in a real public garden here in Indiana.
🌿 Read the complete guide: https://www.exoticgardening.com/how-to-grow-rockin-playin-the-blues-ii-salvia-the-complete-guide-to-this-long-blooming-pollinator-favorite/
Have you grown Rockin' Playin' the Blues® II - or another salvia you absolutely swear by? I'd love to hear how it performed for you.

How to Grow Rockin' Playin' the Blues® II Salvia: The Complete Guide to This Long-Blooming Pollinator Favorite Grow Rockin' Playin' the Blues® II Salvia for long-lasting color, easy care, and a garden buzzing with hungry pollinators.