Down on the Farm

If you’ve visited with me much at all here at Tire Swings (or wandered in by accident while doing a Google search for swing set and play fort companies and stayed at least long enough to read the “about me” blurb) you know that I live in a small Southern town - the same town I have always lived in, and let me go ahead and say there are both pros and cons to doing such.  

Now, even though my mail is stamped with the same zip code as it was when I was younger, my surroundings are quite a bit different.  You see, I was raised in town.  I could practically reach out my bedroom window and into the window of my neighbor to change the channel on his bedside television.  In fact, such close proximity supplied my room with free cable for years, which was great for a kid growing up during the early years of MTV.

Upon marrying, though, I moved to the country - a whopping 5 minute drive away during high traffic times - to live within the boundaries of my husband’s family farm.  Initially (and by initially I mean 15 years or so), it was not such a good fit.  Think of me as a much less glamorous version of Lisa Douglas from Green Acres.  I knew almost nothing about farm life.  In fact, so little did I know that my father-n-law, who was not known for his soft, kind demeanor, upon his first time in asking me to lend him a hand with something in the barnyard, said - and I quote - “I ought to kick your momma’s a_ _.  You don’t know anything.”  So, I thought it might be best to learn something. *Insert sigh here*

I would look through magazines and see some picture of a fresh looking farm wife handing her handsome husband a glass of iced tea with a sprig of mint as he set on a tractor and think How sweet!  I can do that.  

Unfortunately, those pictures left out a few teeny, tiny details.  Unshown in the romanticized, Southern Living version of farm life was the cow crap one would have to bypass along the way (dried, wet, and/or oh so super fresh and green) OR the dozens of huge flies swarming around  - the likes of which would have been enough to weaken the resolve of even the most stubborn of pharaohs - OR the snakes (both real and imagined) OR the very large cows (hellooo...some with horns).  

So,  I came to a few conclusions early on...1.) John should always take a thermos with him when leaving to to do any work on the farm  2.) Lisa Douglas could run circles around me and 3.) I am okay with that.

Let's hope they don't take after their mom.

Dunroamin

The first several late Mays and/or early Junes of our marriage saw John helping his father cut hay on their land, Dunroamin Farms. This process usually took a couple weeks, depending on the weather. They would each be on a tractor and cut at the same time usually, I believe, in different fields. After the hay was cut it was left to dry out on the ground for a day or two. Then when it was ready one man would rake and one would round-bale. I know that at one time they did some square-baling too but I think this had stopped by the late 80's or very early 90's, as I don't remember it.

This schedule would go on from morning 'til dark until the farm was completely cut, raked, baled, and transported to holding areas where it would be covered in large rolls of black plastic to protect it from the elements. Square bales, of course, were stacked in one of the three barns.

For the past several years - up to this one - the farm was leased out. Prior to his death, John's father's health kept him from tending to it like he had done for years and my John was not in a position due to other commitments to do it. Therefore, some other men paid to run cattle on it.

This is the first year in a hundred years that cattle have not been on the farm. But John is trying to rebuild the hay fields from some overgrazing. His goal is to start out small and, hopefully, rebuild the farm into what it once was.

John and John-Heath in front of a newly rolled bale of hay. John didn't actually do any of the cutting or baling this year. Two other men took care of it this year.

Isn't he sweet? He loves the farm and never tires of walking over it with John. He is a true-blooded little farm boy.

Overall, Ren is more of an indoor kinda girl but she does like getting out and going for walks on the farm. As long as no manual labor is involved she's good to go.

This was such a nice, breezy night as you can tell by the hair in Ren's face.

Ever ready to pose for a picture.