Articles By This Author
As much as I dislike and distrust our current national administration, I also deeply value community harmony.
Shannon Hayes | Jun 8, 2017
As a new parent I tried to delight over stocking stuffers, wrapping paper, and battery-powered plastic thingamabobs. But none of it made me happy.
Shannon Hayes | Dec 26, 2015
I hate clutter, and one morning I just couldn't take it anymore. Here's how I got my kids to throw out their toys and tidy up our house.
Shannon Hayes | Jul 28, 2015
Our isolated life on the farm keeps my family close, but it can also stand in the way of my daughter becoming her own person.
Shannon Hayes | Jul 23, 2015
In his book “How to Raise a Wild Child,” Dr. Scott D. Sampson argues that the current disconnect between kids and the natural world is a threat to their physical, mental, and emotional health.
Shannon Hayes | Jul 13, 2015
I never thought farming would mean owning a post office. But looking at my community and our need to define ourselves as a place, that seems to be our family farm's next job.
Shannon Hayes | Jun 30, 2015
As I begin to take over my parent’s farm, I’ve learned how important it is for my family to celebrate our strengths, acknowledge our weaknesses, and work together as a team.
Shannon Hayes | Jun 27, 2015
When it was my turn to raise kids, I was certain I’d get it all right. But it doesn’t happen by the book.
Shannon Hayes | Jun 19, 2015
When my family's dog passed away, I was faced with the question of how to talk to my children about sadness and death.
Shannon Hayes | Jun 1, 2015
When my mom had a medical emergency on Mother's Day, I was reminded to cherish the time I have with her.
Shannon Hayes | May 27, 2015
Farming and writing don't bring home the bacon—why I'm no longer ashamed to ask my community to help.
Shannon Hayes | Apr 14, 2015
This year’s muddy spring presents my family with the chance to pull together more closely than ever.
Shannon Hayes | Apr 9, 2015
Tired of the spending that goes along with the holidays? The gifting frenzy? The stress? Maybe this is the year to blend a few new ideas into your holiday routine.
Shannon Hayes | Dec 24, 2014
Magic is about stepping into our power, about uniting our intentions with the natural world to create something better, something deeper.
Shannon Hayes | Dec 17, 2014
A short list of books that have kept discovery alive and well in 2014 at Sap Bush Hollow farm.
Shannon Hayes | Dec 5, 2014
Quite often it is our darker side that illuminates the best part of us, that brings us to where we need to be.
Shannon Hayes | Nov 27, 2014
I love my solitude. I also love my community. But my independent nature has never been unusual in this town.
Shannon Hayes | Nov 14, 2014
I had grown up identifying joblessness with shame and failure. But here we were, on the other side of the employment equation, and for the first moment in my grown-up life, everything felt … right.
Shannon Hayes | Nov 8, 2014
Rather than feeling guilty for not giving each child everything they deserve, I will feel gratitude for the grace with which they accept my limits.
Shannon Hayes | Oct 16, 2014
If there is one key to making it in a family farm—or in any business that thwarts the trend toward relentless greed and destruction of the planet—it is the ability to believe.
Shannon Hayes | Sep 23, 2014
I have lived for 40 years, gathered 10 years of higher education, and never before this moment understood the foundation of science.
Shannon Hayes | Sep 11, 2014
Sure, life goes on even if it is devoid of buttercream. But when it is there, life just seems so perfect—even if you only get to eat buttercream once or twice in a year.
Shannon Hayes | Sep 4, 2014
While making the season's tomato sauce at three in the morning, I mull over the origins of my desire to farm.
Shannon Hayes | Aug 29, 2014
No matter what age we are, the challenge of telling others "no" never really goes away.
Shannon Hayes | Aug 22, 2014
"There are times when I question whether I was a fool to walk away from a conventional career."
Shannon Hayes | Aug 16, 2014
Each year I take a week-long break from radical homemaking to act like a "normal mom" and take my kids to camp. It's never easy—and this year was no exception.
Shannon Hayes | Aug 7, 2014
What at first seemed like a disturbing reaction to an article was all about my kids finding something they could relate to in the story.
Shannon Hayes | Jul 24, 2014
As a mother, I have made life choices that can’t always include everything my children want—like hiking the Adirondacks. Here’s how I learned to overcome the guilt.
Shannon Hayes | Jul 9, 2014
The experience of debt can guide us toward different ways of living—like having extended generations share a household—that are both cheaper and more fulfilling.
Shannon Hayes | Jul 3, 2014
Moments of sadness are inevitable in a life filled with deep connections to other people.
Shannon Hayes | Jun 28, 2014
When You Live in the Local Economy, Musicians Are Just People (And Cyndi Lauper Is Coming to Dinner)
After getting mad at her daughter for handing hard earned money to a street performer, "Radical Homemaker" Shannon Hayes considers what musicians bring to the local economy.
Shannon Hayes | Jun 14, 2014
A midnight run-in with a spiny interloper forced me to re-evaluate my priorities.
Shannon Hayes | May 29, 2014
I've learned not to worry about whether others approve of my life. But applying the same thinking to my daughter is a challenge.
Shannon Hayes | May 21, 2014
I made the choice to give up a career in law and return to my family farm. Now, I wait to see if my daughter will do the same.
Shannon Hayes | May 13, 2014
I've learned to embrace the dreams I most deeply desire, but also the burdens that so often work against them.
Shannon Hayes | Mar 5, 2014
Books should light up our lives—especially during the dark days of winter. Here are a few to pass along.
Shannon Hayes | Dec 11, 2013
If it takes being a "controlling wife" to make my husband value his own health over his love for his family, I'm going to do it.
Shannon Hayes | Nov 28, 2013
Stepping into the realm of creativity can be scary for little ones. But reward for sticking with it is the powerful feeling of making something beautiful with your own hands.
Shannon Hayes | Nov 2, 2013
Self-reliant farmer types may not think they need help from the government. But they need affordable health insurance at least as much as the rest of us.
Shannon Hayes | Oct 17, 2013
Living a happy life in love is the most important sexual education we can give our kids.
Shannon Hayes | Sep 5, 2013
I've built a life filled with work I love. But the challenge of choosing among competing joys is very real.
Shannon Hayes | Aug 26, 2013
It feels bad to throw away the crayon drawings and unfinished projects. But the memories stored there can never really be lost.
Shannon Hayes | Aug 21, 2013
I never expected to develop such a strong connection with another person’s child. But once it happened, I had to learn how to let her go.
Shannon Hayes | Aug 7, 2013
Country people have a reputation for viewing outsiders with skepticism. But it turns out they have good reasons for doing that.
Shannon Hayes | Aug 3, 2013
Maybe there’s something deeper to the stereotype of old-school farmers as plodding, slow-moving people.
Shannon Hayes | Jul 25, 2013
Heather and I were like oil and water. We made polite conversation but couldn’t find a single thing in common. But slowly over time, a friendship has grown.
Shannon Hayes | Jul 19, 2013
Wearing a sunhat and a cape because you want to is innocence. Doing so when you know others don’t like it is bravery.
Shannon Hayes | Jul 6, 2013
Selling food in the freezing rain is not my favorite thing. But seeing my customers come out in the bad weather reminded me of why of do this work.
Shannon Hayes | Jun 19, 2013
I was afraid of being judged by a neighbor who began giving free French lessons to my kids. But the worries melted away as our friendship grew deeper.
Shannon Hayes | Jun 13, 2013
When we visualize the lives we desire, we often leave out the difficulties and frustrations. But they’re inevitable, and in the end they make the rewards of life more satisfying.
Shannon Hayes | May 30, 2013
There’s nothing like talk of “government handouts” to get people upset. But when it comes to farm bill, the real culprits might not be who you think they are.
Shannon Hayes | May 15, 2013
Using young children as political props is problematic, to say the least. But when they do form their own opinion, it’s important to let them express it.
Shannon Hayes | Apr 12, 2013
Children’s future happiness is not tied to how well they behave or whether they will be able to hold a job. It is tied to their ability to create with their minds and their hands.
Shannon Hayes | Mar 16, 2013
We know about the ecological problems that follow when farmers are asked to “feed the world.” What would happen if they just tried to feed their neighbors instead?
Shannon Hayes | Feb 21, 2013
Breaking our families into nuclear units has an ecological and emotional cost. Could the multigenerational farm remind us where to turn for a viable future?
Shannon Hayes | Feb 2, 2013
It’s a good time to be in farming if you like to grow corn. It’s a tough time if you see yourself as a steward of the land. Shannon Hayes on why growers pressured by corn-heavy markets should hold out for crops that nourish the Earth.
Shannon Hayes | Jan 26, 2013
Sometimes Shannon Hayes finds herself missing the days before she was a mother. But the circle of familial give-and-take love makes the trade-off worth it.
Shannon Hayes | Jan 17, 2013
Caught in the consumer trap? Radical Homemaker Shannon Hayes discovered that producing what she needs at home lets her live on a fraction of what she thought she needed.
Shannon Hayes | Dec 11, 2010