One Last Hoorah

Today, dear reader, we are preparing for our final in-person event of the year. One last hoorah, if you will. I say our final event because it is the last one, The Bibbed Wonder, and I will attend. Our dear friend Jenna will be at one or two more. This Saturday, Eric and I will attend the Lone Oak Farms porch vendor event. We will join some of our absolute favorite people to peddle our wares for a few hours on Saturday morning. Although live events are always a bit stressful for me, I am genuinely excited to see my vendor friends one last time before we begin our winter hibernation.

If you are local, I gently encourage you to come out to support this beautiful family and their wonderful farm-based business. There is so much to love about the Simpson kids. I’ve told you all before how much I love and respect what they are doing to keep the small family farm relevant in this ever-changing world. They work together, utilizing their individual strengths to create a successful and diverse family business in the place they love with the people they love. All very cool, in my opinion.

Not only do they work to make their business successful, but they also support dozens of local small businesses. Their year-round store is a representation of local talent, small family farms, and family run businesses. Honestly, it’s like having an indoor option to my favorite Ligonier Farmer’s Market. I can’t say enough good things about the Simpsons, their business, and their support of the community.

Come join us on the porch at Lone Oak Farm on Saturday, December 2, from 10-1. A fresh group of vendors will be set up on the porch from 4-7. This holiday event will run on December 2 and 9. If you can’t make it to 1606 Georgeville Road, Marion Center, PA 15759, you can see one of our favorite people, Jenna Strittmatter, aka Jenna the Elf, at KCAC for an all-day event. Between Jenna’s love of dressing up, her contagious laugh, and her sparkling personality, she is hard not to adore. Get your picture taken with Jenna the Elf; she loves a photo op and Nerds Gummies…insert a wink…and get your soap fix for the year.

On this sunny November day, stay safe, be smart, get out, and support local this weekend; Jenna the Elf will do just about anything for Nerds Gummies, and keep washing your hands.

We Can All Be Givers

It is Wednesday already, dear reader. This week is going surprisingly fast. Yesterday was Giving Tuesday, and we have made it our mission to be a company that gives back, beginning with Giving Tuesday 2023. Yesterday, any order placed online automatically entered a drawing to win a $100 donation to the charity of the winner’s choice made in the winner’s name. The lucky winner and their charity were Zach T. Zach just messaged us to share his charity of choice, which is St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital. A worthy cause indeed, thank you, Zach. We are honored.

Here at The Smiling Goat, we are appreciative of all the support, kindness, and generosity our soap family shows us. It does not escape us that we could not do what we love in the place we love with the people we love without all of you. We try to give what we can when we can. We almost always honor requests for fundraisers and gift baskets for charity. In our minds, it is the least we can do to pay it forward. We are quiet givers. You will not see us making a big production of gifting or giving. There will not be any videos of us presenting charitable contributions to an individual or organization. That is not who we are. We were both taught that if you must tell someone about a good deed you have done, it ceases to be a good deed and becomes self-promotion. If you are familiar with us, you know we are uncomfortable with self-promotion.

My dad was a quiet giver. It was not until he passed away that I became aware of all the good my dad tried to do for people. Countless people have approached me, sharing stories of my dad’s generosity and kindness. He never expected anything in return. He just wanted to help where needed and do what he could. With every story that is shared, my pride in my dad grows. It makes me sad and proud to know that he did so much for so many. It makes me sad because I never got to recognize that in him when he was alive. He may not have a grave, and his legacy was destroyed, but the man greatly impacted the world. Nobody can take that away from him. He makes me proud to be his daughter.

In 2024, I have a list of charities I want to donate to in honor of people who have impacted our lives. Some of the charities are local, some are national, some care for people, some fight disease, some are for animals, and some combat cruelty and abuse. Each charity chosen has a name attached to it, and that name is the reason for giving. Each month, I plan to make a soap and a moisturizer for the sole purpose of donating the profits to the organization. In January, I have chosen Colby’s Crew Rescue, which rescues horses from the slaughter pipeline at The New Holland Auction right here in Pennsylvania. My pony and all the horses that were in my life as a child are the reason for this choice. My donation will be made in my pony, Nuggets, name. I have also chosen to donate to the Colon Cancer Foundation in honor of my beloved father-in-law, Dale. We will also contribute to the Sarcoma Foundation in honor of my dad. We will fight ALS in honor of Carl Dush. The Humane Society of Indiana County is on the list because they rescued my Heavy-B, and we adopted him from there. We will also fight suicide in honor of Jesse Armstrong, Drew Ferringer, and Steve Jackson…all amazing human beings who were taken too soon. We will donate to the paralyzed athletes in honor of our dear friend, Katie Smith. That girl was a force of nature, a beautiful soul, and she is especially missed every week during the market season. The loss of Katie created a large void in our soap family. Giving back in her honor is the only way I know how to try to fill that void. We will also donate to The Alice Paul House to fight domestic and sexual violence, Autism Speaks, and ICAP. There is meaning attached to each and every choice. I know our donations will be a mere drop in the bucket to fight these vital causes, but every little bit helps.

Of course, we will quietly, respectfully, and happily donate to individual causes and local organizations as well. In 2024, I gently encourage you to donate when and where you can. Perhaps you don’t have the extra income to make a monetary contribution. There are other ways to give. Give your time, share posts and events on social media, donate unwanted objects or perhaps a talent. If you are good at photography, volunteer to take pictures for an event, fundraiser, or cause. Donate your creations if you can crochet, knit, sew, or quilt. If you make a product, like soap, donate your products to food banks, group homes, or shelters. We can all do a little bit to make this world a better place for someone.

The thing about giving is it helps not only those who are receiving but also the giver. I know my heart feels lighter when I donate. I know that I lovingly create baskets, gift boxes, or soaps, and when I do, I feel a sense of purpose and a jolt of happiness. I may not be able to cover someone’s salary for years, or gift someone a vehicle, or pay off someone’s medical bills, but I can do small things to make someone’s burden lighter. In my mind, that is part of our responsibility as human beings. We are only here for a short time. The most incredible legacy we can leave behind is the kindness quietly shown to others.

On this cold and blustery day, stay safe, be smart, give what you can, be part of the solution, be a glad giver, make it a point to do some good, and keep washing your hands. Giving germs to others is not a gift; it’s gross. Wash your hands…insert a smile and wink.

Tuesday Spotlight: Cotton Candy

Today's Tuesday Spotlight shines on our last addition to the kids' line of products, Cotton Candy. The Bean chose cotton candy as the scent to replace her wildly popular Duck Fart soap. Sadly, the oil blend was canceled. Rather than try to imitate the original, she retired her funny little creation and went in a new direction. Her choice of cotton candy made sense to her then-eleven-year-old brain. After all, what kid doesn't like pretty blue and pink spun sugar? She also chose cotton candy because it is her mom's favorite carnival food. Side note: this is when she still believed I hung the moon and was not placed on this earth solely to destroy her social life…sigh.

The Bean's Cotton Candy creation is a lovely, scented soap and moisturizer that smells amazingly like freshly spun cotton candy. Have you ever opened a fresh bag of cotton candy from your favorite vendor at a carnival or fair and had the scent gently waft into your nostrils, making your mouth water and transporting you back to childhood? Yeah, this is what The Bean's soap and moisturizer do for me. If you are a lover of sweet scents, Cotton Candy is your go-to scent. If you have anyone that fits into the category of, say, eleven or younger, this will appeal to their child's senses and make them smile.

Cotton Candy, of course, doesn't just smell amazing. It's good for your skin as well. Like all our products, we begin with our fresh, raw goat's milk and add skin-loving oils to make a nourishing, clean, simple soap. Follow a warm bath using Cotton Candy soap with the Cotton Candy moisturizer, and your little one (or not-so-little one) will smell delicious. Fun soaps are a great way to get reluctant to bathe children in a state of cleanliness…in my experience, this also happens around age eleven. Don't worry; soon, they will turn into teenagers obsessed with cleanliness and smelling good. Adding Cotton Candy soap and moisturizer to a stocking is a sweet treat that won't rot their teeth, add unwanted pounds…or give them that annoying sugar high.

As always, our Tuesday Spotlight becomes our weekly special, and our weekly special is a savings of $4 on bars and jars. Whether stocking up on a personal favorite, purchasing an affordable gift, or trying something new, now is a great time to save. On this cold and blustery day, stay safe, be smart, enjoy the savings, and keep washing your hands.