A week ago today we returned from our trip to PA and my Melinda's farm. Her husband inherited the farm from generations before him and works extremely hard to maintain all that has been given to him.
It was a wonderful time to catch up. We picked up right where we left off 5 years ago as if I had just gone away for the day and was now back in her kitchen sipping coffee. It was a bit noisier with 6 total kids between us riding tractors, crashing cars, and running from room to room. The boys loved the farm. Warren even fed the pigs. At first he was a bit intimidated by their grunts and spastic reactions but finally he said, "Mommy, if I smile at them while I'm feeding them maybe they won't get mad at me." So away he went with a large scoop of grain and a smile plastered on his face trying to hide the slight fear he was still feeling.
You would think living in VA would have given them more exposure to farming and animals but unfortunately this was one of their first tastes of farm life. Most of the farmers we know around here have mostly vegetables, not pigs. I for one still have a problem with the overpowering smell that greets you when you open the pig barn door. I don't consider myself to be very delicate but I still struggle to grow accustomed to that smell.
One other benefit of my trip away was the relative seclusion for the cyber world. Melinda does not have internet...not even dial-up. As I said goodbye to my computer I resisted the urge to give it a hug and I was regretting that I was not one of the millions carrying an iphone around so that I could conveniently check my e-mail even in a cyber dead zone. However, it was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. In fact once I returned I didn't even want to check my e-mail. I had over 200 messages (that was one reason for my reluctance). It has taken me more than a week to get back into this computer world and I'm still somewhat tentative. I really enjoyed not checking my e-mail or feeling compelled to look something up. I actually took moments to read or write in my journal again. There is definitely something to the simpler life even if I am growing back into my computer filled world.
I'm not sure I have a photo of Brooke without out posing something like this. While there we had a crazy dancing session with Miley Cyrus and I played Barbies for the first time since I was little. It was definitely different having a girl around (I also found myself somewhat appalled at the new barbies but that's for a different time).
1 comment:
That is REAL farming! I don't think my kids have ever been able to get that close (to see or smell). :) And I miss the internet-free environment we used to have at the homestead.
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