SlakMarket Farm in Kentucky

Eggs from happy chickens.

Our last day of trip was spent driving from Lexington, Kentucky to Chicago. We had a most amazing time at the SlakMarket Farm in the Lexington area, an Airbnb that our ‘daughter,’ Laura, had found.

When we arrived just as the weather started changing from 73 degrees and plummet, we wondered where the heck we were. We were on a country road near Lexington, horse country, and we came upon a place with beautiful, clearly happy, chickens running all over. Soon we saw a cat here and a goat there. Then we saw cow. Then we saw more cows. We soon met Kenya Abraham, a former fellow Ohioan, like myself, only she was from more central Ohio. She told of her longtime desire to have cows. She and her beautiful family welcomed us to a most interesting stay.

She is now producing raw milk that is actually drunk that way, via a group that was put together in order to share it. I think it is called a Herd Share. Raw milk is not something that the FDA would allow to be ‘sold’ in a normal way. The interesting thing, however, is that the practices Kenya uses are actually, more hygienic and stringent than what the FDA requires. Kenya mentioned that she cannot drink regular, pasteurized milk, but she can drink and does drink the raw milk. She takes several different types of cow to produce what she feels is the best tasting milk.

The first night we also had a treat as we got in later than we wanted due to the traffic and Kenya suggested Eiffel Pizza (an odd name for a pizza place) several miles away in Lexington proper. The proprietor learned his trade in Paris and Nice and came originally from Sénégal. We got to speak French to him, have delicious pizza, and topped it off with a Nutella pizza because Samantha was willing to ask in French.

The day we left started out with a learning session as Kenya brought one of the cows in for milking. She went step by step with the organic methods she uses to assure totally hygienic milk. She mentioned that she has visited commercial dairy farms and noted that since they pasteurize the milk, they were less careful about the cleanliness. She showed how she checked the milk and how she cleaned and prepared the udders.

All in all, our grandkids went crazy seeing turkeys, goats, and all kinds of farm life and learning about milk production. They played with Kenya and Eddie’s three girls and one son and reveled in a life different from their own.

The monies taken from our farm stay fees will go to allow a terminally ill child from St. Jude’s or Ronald McDonald House in the area to stay at the farm and see what farm life is like. Kenya will then put the information into a book and will provide each child with a bound book of the experience.

Nonetheless, we were totally blown away by this, it was an amazing ‘icing on the cake’ for a great vacation and now we have new friends.