Farm Life At Its Finest

Farm Life

FINEST AT ITS by Steve Gamel photos courtesy of Permaculture Pastures 2 years old, sweet Cohen can tell you almost anything you’d want to know about every cow, sheep, pig, and chicken on his mommy and daddy’s 160-acre farm in Sunset, Texas. He knows where eggs come from, and rather than beg to watch cartoons on television, he doesn’t have to twist his parents’ arms long enough to get them to take him outside to pet the animals. “We feed the animals together, we collect eggs together, we mow pastures together,” Ryan said with a laugh. Ryan is also the owner of David Ryan Salon in Flower Mound and Trophy Club. “We get to do all these things as a family, and our son experiences it all. We’re always together — and we’re hardly ever indoors.” Being the outdoorsy types was a big reason why Ryan and Addison traded their 5-bedroom home in Argyle for a quaint 2-bedroom house with all the land they could hope to have. Since they were both Cohen’s age — and long before they had ever met — their dream was to be farmers, ranchers, or homesteaders in some way. They dreamed of growing their own food, connecting with nature, and getting away from the hustle and bustle of normal life. It may have taken longer than they planned, but here they are as the proud owners of Permaculture Pastures. At Permaculture Pastures, the Smiths created an environment where they raise their animals naturally — outside, in the fresh air, with a diverse smorgasbord of microorganisms available, and being moved to new, sun-sanitized pasture each day. Doing so eliminates the need to give them antibiotics, vaccines, medicated feed, or specialized GMO feed.

They offer pasture-raised meats such as beef, pork, chicken, and lamb. They also have free-range eggs, all-natural salsa, goat milk soap, local honey, beeswax candles, native Texas pecans, and locally-sourced holiday gift sets. Beyond customers being able to pick up inperson, Permaculture Pastures offers home delivery in Flower Mound, Lewisville, Highland Village, Double Oak, Argyle, and Trophy Club.

They dreamed of growing

Ryan and Addison Smith have a cute-as-a-button little boy named Cohen. And at

their own food “When you bring a person a product that exceeds their expectations, they will stay with you forever,” Addison said. “Our animals are healthier, which means the food they provide is better for you. You’re not eating a pig that ate

GMO corn for its whole life. There is a conventional way, and there is this way. And this way is better for you.”

Ryan agreed.

“We are helping create good quality food for people,” he said. “I could go to the grocery store and buy the cheapest ground beef and be fine. For someone else, that might make them completely sick. So, they turn to someone like us, and they appreciate it. We have some customers who drive over an hour to see us.”

To create this dream, Ryan and Addison had to start from scratch. When they first found the property, there was a landfill 40 yards behind the house. Besides being buried in trash, the pastures were

Cohen can tell you almost anything you’d want to know about every cow, sheep, pig, and chicken

abused to the point of being almost beyond recovery. Even neighboring ranchers told them there was nothing they could do but reseed the grass. All the ponds were dry and had leaks that would typically be sealed with expensive chemical compounds.

Instead of seeding, fertilizing, spraying, and dumping chemicals in the ponds, they began to work with the animals to repair the property. They rotated chicken tractors throughout the pastures to fertilize, spread cow manure, and eat the seeds of weeds. Cows were in small mob grazing sections, which forced them to eat some weeds, trample the rest, and quickly move to a new section to allow grass to recover. Pigs worked at clearing under trees and tilling up gravely and rocky sections of pasture to allow for new areas of grass to develop. After that, they were moved to live in the ponds, which they quickly began to seal.

In just one year, they saw a diversity of species of grass and wildlife drastically increase. The land began healing. And as a byproduct of managing the earth well, they got to enjoy and share the highest quality meats and eggs available.

“For us, this is very personal,” the Smiths said. “Our son has a lot of complications with his ability to process and digest highly processed foods. Monoculture farming and the willingness to sacrifice quality for quantity have resulted in an epidemic of people who suddenly cannot process things that humans have been able to eat for centuries: milk, wheat, etc. Our son, not to mention several other members of our extended family, are among those affected by this epidemic. When we switched his diet to clean foods and foods that we raised ourselves, he was a different child almost overnight. He is no longer in pain every night; he doesn’t suffer from sensory overload and can better navigate things cognitively and emotionally. That is how we can say with complete confidence that we will continually be striving to create cleaner, healthier foods and that we will not ever come to a point where we decide the extra work involved with our methods is not worth it. We are all in.”

We are helping create good quality food for people

Eat ALL YOU WANT DR. SANDERSON WILL JUST SUCK IT OUT

by Dr. Sanderson | photos courtesy of Dr. Sanderson

At Flower Mound Plastic Surgery and Live Young Wellness Spa, we truly have the best clients and patients. To show their appreciation for us, often times our clients kindly bring us treats like bundt cakes or warm chocolate chip cookies.

My team members rarely hesitate to take a quick break from their laser work or injecting to enjoy one of those delicious desserts. Recently, we had a new staff member who is very health focused join our team. One day when we were gifted with some treats, she expressed concern about her diet and did not want to partake in the high-calorie dessert sitting on the table. One of the more experienced team members at the office smirked and said, “Don’t worry about it. Eat all you want, Sanderson can suck it out.” She was jokingly (at least I think) referring to liposuction. I thought this Dining and Entertainment issue was a perfect time to dispel some of the myths surrounding all of the modalities for removing unwanted fat.

First, we will address the modality of liposuction. When non-medical professionals watch a liposuction procedure, it is usually met with mixed emotions. Disgust is usually the first emotion as they see the liposuction cannula moving rapidly back and forth under the skin, but then intrigue sets in when they see the yellow, greasy fat moving out of the body into a sterile canister, and that area of the body begins to slowly deflate. I often get questions like, “Does it hurt?” or “Does the fat grow somewhere else after it is removed there?” First, let me say, excluding diet and exercise, liposuction is still the gold standard for localized fat reduction. It is not a good diet plan, but it works perfectly on stubborn areas of fat that will not seem to go away regardless of the amount of exercise. The pain is minimal to moderate, and I think this is somewhat surgeon specific. It is not uncommon for my patients to go back to work on Monday after having a liposuction on the previous Thursday — requiring only one or two days off of work. I remind everyone that you

BEFORE AFTER

can still gain weight or get heavier, but the area we treat will always be smaller than what it would have been if we had not treated it. Liposuction can be done under local or general anesthesia. We can only do one area at a time under local simply due to the amount of the numbing medicine required. One area includes both sides of the body. For example, both love-handles are considered one area. I am a huge fan of doing liposuction under local anesthesia for those who are candidates. It is cheaper and more convenient. The average amount of pain during or after the procedure is 3/10.

Next, there are several fat freezing modalities on the market now; I would happily purchase one of these devices if I felt like they were effective enough to justify the cost to my patients. I ask all of my clients who have had the fat freezing procedures what their experience was, and only one in 20 or so say they felt like it was worth the money spent. Furthermore, a small percentage of people will actually get paradoxical adipose hyperplasia. Paradoxical adipose hyperplasia is a fancy way of saying the fat increases in size and amount after attempting to freeze it and make it go away. I have seen a few clients in my clinic seeking liposuction after this unwanted effect. This is a really rare, but well described event.

Finally, the best fat reduction modality is diet and exercise. Nothing works better than the difficult, but effective, method that your mom and dad encouraged. We offer nutrition and hormone services if the more natural route is preferred. We have also teamed up with some great local gyms and fitness places. After getting to know you, we can easily refer you to an exercise location where you will feel welcome and at home.

Either way, if you find yourself enjoying a little too much apple pie this holiday season and need help getting back on track, give our team at Flower Mound Plastic Surgery and Live Young Wellness Spa a call.

Every year, you promise yourself you won’t wait until the last minute to do your holiday shopping or buy that perfect holiday outfit, but once again, it’s the week before Christmas and you’ve gotten nary a gift. Don’t panic! Before you go into a desperate shopping frenzy, check out these local area businesses. We are sure you’ll find everything you need with time to spare, and nobody on your list will know you procrastinated (again).

MEGAN’S LIFESTYLE BOUTIQUE MEGANSLIFESTYLEBOUTIQUE.COM Megan’s is a “Lifestyle Boutique” with a relaxed environment and personalized service that is sure to make for a fun time. They offer an amazing selection of women’s apparel, accessories, jewelry, shoes, and gifts. They even have a selection of unique children’s gifts. They are located at 4081 Waller Creek, Ste.160 in Highland Village.

HELLO DAFFODIL HELLODAFFODILBOUTIQUE.COM Hello Daffodil, located at 2451 Lakeside Pkwy. in Flower Mound, is a trendy women’s boutique that offers on-trend clothing, shoes, accessories, fragrances, and home décor. This boutique also offers an amazing selection of gifts such as candles, mugs, and satin eye masks.

BEASLEY’S FINE JEWELRY & BOUTIQUE WWW.BEASLEYSJEWELRY.COM Beasley’s has been a family-owned and operated business since 1948. Turning a family heirloom into a custom piece of your very own comes naturally to them. On top of being experts in fine jewelry, they also offer a fabulous women’s boutique that is all about love and glamour. This boutique is located at

177 W. Main St. in Lewisville.

MAINSTREAM BOUTIQUE MAINSTREAMBOUTIQUE.COM Mainstream Boutique is a multigenerational, on-trend women’s clothing boutique located at 5801 Long Prairie Rd., Ste. 810 in Flower Mound. Their mission is to empower, strengthen, and celebrate women through fashion. You are sure to feel your most beautiful self every time you walk out their door.

THE PALM TREE BOUTIQUE SHOPPALMTREE.COM

The Palm Tree Boutique offers on trend, affordable, high quality clothing and accessories. They also offer a wide variety of gift selections such as candles, key rings, and drink ware. This boutique offers a fun and relaxed atmosphere located at 119 N. Elm St. in Denton.

SOUTHERN ROOTS DNA SOUTHERNROOTSDNA.COM

Southern Roots Dna is a unique boutique located at 211 W 5th St. in Justin. They offer apparel, accessories, gifts, and custom made items. They specialize in Direct to Garment printing and Heat Transfer Vinyl. Their designs are available on tanks, shirts, hoodies, hats, bags, and more. They also allow customization on their designs.

TEXAS PATINA TXPATINA.COM

Texas Patina, located at 401 N Sealy Ave in Justin, offers an array of unique gifts and boutique clothing. Their clothing offers sizes small through 3X. This boutique also offers a selection of gourmet food items just as La Casita Salsa, Addy Dady Spices and Seasonings, Texas Hill Country Olives and Oil, and Rabbit Creek Bakery Items.

LA DI DA LADIDABOUTIQUEDENTON.COM This fun and funky women’s boutique offers a wide variety of trendy tops, fashionable dresses and jumpsuits, fun accessories, and a wide variety of foot wear. La Di Da is located at 114 N Locust

St. in Denton.

BRIGHTSIDE BOUTIQUE BRIGHTSIDEBOUTIQUE.NET Brightside Boutique in Highland Village offers the largest selection of Brighton in the area. They also carry brands such as Merle Norman Cosmetics, Ivy Jane, Clara Sun Woo, Vera Bradley, Uggs, and so much more. This boutique is located at

1400 Shoal Creek Ste. 150 in The Shops at Highland Village.

JACK’S OUTFITTERS JACKSOUTFITTERS.COM

Jack’s is a lifestyle clothing store that caters to men, women, and man’s best friend. They offer the latest trends in fashion along with the hottest brands. The store owner is a dog breeder for Labrador Retrievers, so they also offer unique gifts for your dog. This shop is located at 1101

Shoal Creek, Ste. 140 in Highland Village.

LUCY VOSS LUCYVOSS.COM Lucy Voss is a women’s clothing store and boutique located at 4131 Deer Creek in Highland Village. They offer a curated assortment of designer apparel and jewelry that reflects the personal style of their customers. Lucy Voss commits to custom services, smart pricing, and a sense of trust.