A word of caution about peacocks- if you talk nice to them and look into their eyes with deep interest... they attack you. Just ask my mom and Cole. Both were recently accosted by the stupid bird. The funniest thing about the peacock is the sound it makes.. it either sounds like a child yelling "HELP" or a cat meowing. It is a freaky thing. Check this out!
The other favorite thing on the farm is the little trailer that I believe was never intended to haul farming implements, but was designed to entertain my mother's posterity. The men (I use that term loosely) took the kids on many rides.. they went looking for (and found) wild asparagus. They inspected many an irrigation ditch. They napped (or pretended to)as they motored along. They drove through the fields checking on the cows and their calves. We women had peace for over an hour one glorious afternoon. It was heaven for all.
Grandpa's big red tractor is Luke and Sadie's favorite! That is always the first thing they ask Grandpa about--"When can we go out and do chores with the tractor?" Dad is always good about making sure they get a ride or two. I hope someday they don't grab Grandpa by the collar and push him out in a field and commandeer the thing. That could get really ugly. I can almost hear Luke laughing an evil laugh as Grandpa is dusting himself off and running after the tractor being driven by the smallest of Satan's minions.
While we are on the subject of Grandpa... Grandpa is getting a little fuddy-duddy. We like to poke fun at him whenever we can. My favorite thing to tease Grandpa about lately is the fact that he ruined my mom's beautiful garden spot because he mistakenly put rat poison on her entire garden instead of fertilizer. Yes. It is now a barren wasteland where NOTHING will grow. You will notice that is the area where our kids loved to play and dig. Hmmm... I wonder if that is a bad thing- letting them play in the toxic soil that will not grow a weed? Again, another reason I deserve the Mother Of the Year award (ms. congeniality?? maybe??).
And then there is the adventure in the chicken coop. Not only do you have to avoid stepping in fresh "poultry pies" (IMPOSSIBLE), but the dumb birds are constantly trying to peck something they shouldn't be pecking. This weekend they tried to eat my sandals and they pecked Cole in his eyeball (it was quite hilarious... "I was just holdin' her and talkin' to her and all of us sudden she pecked me right in my eye!!" Of course, we laughed and laughed). Luke was in his glory and loved to grab one and hold it for about 2 seconds then throw it then go for another one. Sadie was thrilled with holding the brown ones and "Snowy Owl" (pictured). Who ever thought my kids would thrill to chicken in any form except NUGGET form. They truly love chickens now. I wonder if I should help them make that connection so I don't have to take them to McDonalds as much.
We had a bit of trauma at the horse stall. I was trying to help Luke learn how to feed the horse without losing a finger and unfortunately, I am not a good educator. He kept his finger, but has been traumatized forever and I don't think he will ever fully trust Jesse the horse again. Sadie however, was in love with Jesse. What is it about horses and little girls??
Life and Death on the farm... Mia and Sadie were strolling down the lane when Mia discovered some little baby birds that had been blown out of their nest in the tree. Being the farm kid that she is, she had to pick up one of the babies to come show us. Dead bird in her hand. So nasty. So sad. Sadie and her crack were very interested in the dead babies though.
Of course, we ate 3 of the grandkids (and my) favorite "Grandma" specialties-
1. Hot chocolate and Biscuits- This may be my favorite. My husband fondly calls this "mounds of dough". It is just a baking powder biscuit with homemade hot cocoa. You break off pieces of the biscuits and drop them in your cocoa then spoon out the soggy remnants and slurp it up. It really is the best and it is always what the kids ask for when they come in a bit cold from terrorizing the animals.
2. Waffles- Hands down, my mom's waffles are the best ever. I make the same recipe, but I must not put as much love in the mix as she does, because mine never taste quite as good as hers. But, everything tastes better on the farm.
3. Homemade Tacos- this is our typical Sunday dinner. I know, we are rebellious Mormons to not have the traditional roast and potatoes. In fact, this weekend my mom and I were in the kitchen, chopping up lettuce, onions, tomatoes & grating cheese & frying the shells & cooking the meat... (you get the picture) and Mom said to me "I have often wondered how badly I am breaking the Sabbath by making tacos every Sunday." My thought is that Heavenly Father would totally appreciate my moms tacos as much as we all do and would be totally understanding if he had eaten one. My brothers and Todd used to have contests to see how many they could eat.. my sweet husband has the record. He scarfed down 7 one day. Then he followed that with about 12 tums..
All things considered, I think my family is very blessed to have Grandma's farm and all of the funny people that go with it. I don't know what we did to deserve all of this adventure and love and fun, but we sure do appreciate it.
Can't wait to see you all again! We miss you and love you.
1 comment:
the only thing that would make the farm better is if you guys were here more often. how about every sunday???
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