We arrived at my Aunt Jan's a little after 11 AM and met my Aunt Carol and Cousin Michelle at the Straw Hat in Buffalo Lake for lunch. In high school, I worked at the Straw Hat.
Afterwords we stopped at Carol's. I took some chairs she had been storing for me. Thank you kindly for keeping so many things for me after our house in the country was gone.
Jan was our GRAND tour guide for the day. She took us all over!
We checked out the yard where I grew up. Dad sold our house many years back to a family friend. Since Kevin bought our home site, he has added more than 5 acres of grapes!
Next we headed to Orlo's (the name of the field), where Sheldon and Mike were harvesting sugar beets.
When Marly and Dean get older, I would gladly send them to the farm to pick rocks or hoe weeds like I did, if any of my cousins will have them. I want them to truly know, respect and appreciate the farm if possible, and not just be the "City Cousins".
Of course Oscar came to the farm too. Dean liked watching all the trucks come and go.
Marly on her special lunch box perch in the tractor. I am sitting in the buddy seat. True confession... I suspect I loved my tractor ride perhaps even more then the kids did!
Dean driving. Behind him is Rich Kalenberg in a beet truck. Rich has worked for the family since WAY, WAY before I was born...
With Sheldon and Jan!
Next it was on to see the combine. Matt was harvesting up 8 acres of soybeans that were too wet to get the first go around. Uncle Loren was managing the grain cart.
Dean loaded up on some left behind corn to bring back to our subarban squirrels.
We had SUCH a great day. We headed back to the metro a bit before 5 pm and kids fell asleep some time after Hutch. Thank you ALL for having us, and most especially Jan for spending her day with us and her kindness and love with me and the Twinners. I hope to do it again next year. I relished every single minute of our time. I miss the farm dearly, so at least I get this little taste from time to time. I love my dear Mark... but I suspect I could have made a very good farm wife too.
3 comments:
Glad you had a great day! Have a good Monday too!
A, I'm so jealous that you get to return to your farm and that your family is still there. You would have been a great farm wife-- maybe you could start driving a grain truck to Caribou and deliver large quantities of food to Mark just to "keep in shape!"
HHB
Wow Andrea, this post was so bittersweet that I almost got tears in my eyes! It made me think of my own family and "belonging," even after moving away after high school and how hard to have a "homebase" when there isn't necessarily one. Okay, forgive the big run-on sentence! I *think* you may know what I'm trying to say.... anyways, thanks for sharing your thoughts!!
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