World's longest ice cream sundae in Nashville, MI

432 gallons of Mooville vanilla ice cream, 56 gallons of strawberries, 28 gallons of chocolate syrup, 72 cans of whipped cream, and 3,600 cherries to beat the Guinness world record for the longest ice cream sundae at 1800-feet long? 

How could I not go?   

So we went today to Nashville, MI, right on Route 66!  

My friends Leslie and Kyle Booher (Leslie was a volunteer) were there with their family.  Leslie purchased the spoons yesterday for us when they were one dollar - today they two dollars.  We'd arranged to meet up, but I had zero cell service there.  My dad said, "You just have to do it the way people used to do it."  He cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled, "Leslie!"  We kind of laughed.  A couple of minutes later, Leslie saw me across the street and yelled, "Carla!"  We laughed even more.  The old fashioned way works perfectly.  

The ice cream came from MOO-ville Creamery in Nashville, MI.  The Westendorp family milks 200 cows with robots.  They bottle their own milk, make their own ice cream, cheese, yogurt, and butter, all under the MOO-ville logo.  They have their own store and tours.  Kris has been, but I haven't ... and I've never eaten MOO-ville ice cream.  But today was the day.

The MOO-ville trucks delivered the ice cream down Route 66 to the 200 8-foot long tables:

The 192 volunteers scooped and topped:

We cheered them on (my dad and Max inadvertently dressed like volunteers):

We readied our special color-changing spoons:

The siren went off, and we all dug in!

In a surprise to no one, the ice cream was fantastic.  Creamy, with all the ingredients perfectly melted on ... and record-breaking.  They sold 7,000-some spoons, and it didn't take long for it to be all gone.

There was so much, that people even had a chance to go back for more, if they wanted.  My son Cole said, "This was the best day ever, because you didn't say we couldn't have seconds."

Thank you, Nashville!  It was a fantastic day, and apparently one my boys won't soon forget.

If you want to know more, you can like my farm page on Facebook, follow @carlashelley on twitter, or get the posts sent to your email by filling out the form on the right. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me! 

Ice cream trend

I went to Puerto Rico with my super-fun traveling friends this weekend.  I enjoy checking out farming subjects in different places (like in Mexico, Oregon, and Costa Rica), and we even happened to have a taxi driver from a dairy farm.

Then, there was the tattoo.

We went on a boat tour to the islands off of Puerto Rico.  One of the girls on the tour had this cute ice cream cone inked on her leg:

I said, "I noticed your ice cream cone.  How did you choose that?" She said, "I had a friend who got one, so I decided I would too.  Because ... ice cream is awesome."  She said she was also going to add another scoop to her ankle to make it look like it fell off.

After telling her I was a dairy farmer and thought it was great marketing, I asked to take the picture.  I already couldn't wait to tell Kris about it.  We're part of the food process that inspires PERMANENT INK TRIBUTES.  

On the way home, I connected in the Baltimore airport.  While standing in line, I noticed that the woman in front of me had ... an ice cream cone tattooed behind her ear!

Since the leg ice cream cone was the first tattoo I've ever seen of a delicious frozen dairy product, I was so surprised to be spotting one again.

I told her I noticed it and it was the second time I'd seen that weekend.  I asked why she happened to get that particular image.

She said, "Well, I used to bake and ... I LOVE ice cream."

"Do you mind if I take a picture of it?" I asked.

"Not at all," she said, "but ... I have an even nicer one on my shoulder."  And she revealed:

This is a powerful food.  Do you, out there, have an ice cream tattoo?  Or a different food tattoo? Send me your pictures!  I'm curious what other ones are out there.  

And say goodbye to the island - 

And hello to rare frozen whiskers.  Of course she's a little frosty - where else would we get the ICE cream?

If you want to know more about the farm, you can like my farm page on Facebook, follow @carlashelley or get the posts in your email by filling out the form on the right.

Goodbye, 2014

Wow - the end of the year.  This Christmas season has been filled with dairy delights away from home, and standard work here on the farm!

In my boys' Christmas parties at school, parents brought adorable string cheese snowmen, while another party featured ice cream sundaes.  (These weren't my ideas, but I was incredibly supportive.  Elizabeth Marvel and Christa Carpenter donated them, respectively.)

Kris worked Christmas morning as always - while the boys open their stockings and then wait for him to open presents.  This is the way it's always been for them - and for Kris and me as kids - so they don't mind.  Kris said that he doesn't mind working Christmas morning, because it's a responsibility he likes having.  Our employees are always really good about working around each other's schedules on the holidays.  Cows need to be milked, and family parties need to be attended!

Other than that, the holiday season has been pretty relaxed ... trying to get the work done in between family and friends and visits.  The big projects always start in the new year!

Like I signed my Christmas card - I hope your new year is full of happiness, buttery rolls, creamy egg nog, and glass after glass of milk!  (This is how everyone is signing their letters now.)

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