The Rare Moments

When the children were little, the Wife feared they would "never" grow up...and they did.  Now we are at the stage where they are leaving the house; now the Wife wonders if we will "never" be together again. This year, because of Dear Farmer and the Wife's anniversary, all the children made the effort and arranged lives to be together for a full 24 hours! God answered our prayer, and there was peace among all of them for our blissful moments together...and the Wife cherished this in her heart.

The Wife clearly remembers her grandmother, the Amazing Farm-Wife, saying much the same things...
She was 90 at the time...so, it must be a "mom-thing".

These are the ebbs and flow of life. Children graduate from sippy cups(the inventor of which, should have received some sort of award!) to coffee mugs. The arrows, that were once jammed inside our very cramped quiver, are shot out. Wrangling them to all come home at one time, doesn't often happen.  It's the rare moments that help us to look back and be thankful for all the craziness of the past with fondness.
Those little ridiculous trials-the child who refused to eat potatoes, the dishwasher that never quite worked right, or the dustpan that was forever cracked-they weren't that big of a deal after all.
Probably didn't need to stress over the unplanned haircut, or the marker on his face.

Enjoy those rare moments...cherish them in your heart...

Country Boys Go To Town

The Keeper of The Flame, The Pied Piper, and The Farmer's Shadow have all spent exactly four full weeks in town over the last eight weeks.  They had no choice, they were told to get in the car~so they went.  We are blessed to spend time in a town that desperately wants to be a suburb, but its not yet found a city to belong to. The town once resided in the country, and it seems to think it still does...but now that we live in a true country setting(okay, we think it is...we have to drive 40 minutes to get to a WalMart and our nearest neighbor is a mile away as the crow flies, isn't that true country?) we kinda chuckle.  This is a town.  A bonafide, curb-enhanced, paved, town.  Complete with two gas stations and four restaurants.

For boys who have only grown up in the country, and on a farm...coming into town is different.

First of all: no peeing outside. This is an actual issue.  Country boys are used to watering the tires.  Even some country girls can do it (I heard tell). But in town they will have NONE of it! So zip up those pants and wait until you're inside.

Secondly: Please don't flush the toilet for fun.  In town you have to pay for that water going out, and the water coming in!  

Safe-fun only: My country boys tend to be the knife tossing, hatchet wielding, hole digging kinda boys.  But in town...well...the police aren't so happy about eight year old knife throwing boys.  Especially when they think the best targets are the trees in the front yard, next to the road...

And though we have lived in a recreation of the WWI trench wars...we don't want to go back, so please leave the turf in place now.

"What CAN we do?" , they ask after the Wife has shot down any hope they had for outdoor fun.

"How about you build a fort with sticks for pine cones? You could make an obstacle course and time each other running through it. OR fold laundry!"

"What's the fun in any of that?", they ask.

I have no answer for them.

An hour later the Wife found this in the back yard....

Its definitely big enough for pine cones, a large dog, or an eight, ten and twelve year old...but they say they built it for the six, four and two year old (whatever).

And as a side note: this structure is NOT safe! Those logs are all stacked on top of each other. There's no stability at all.  The six, four and two year old did not get to play long in it, before a wall fell down and there were tears. Thankfully no cracked sculls.

"Girl" chores: we aren't gender neutral around here.  There are specific "boy" chores and "girl" chores on our farm. The boys do the hard work and heavy labor.  Basically, the nasty stuff the Wife doesn't want to have to do again.  Like cleaning the barn, stacking hay, and trimming goat feet. What on earth do boys do in town?  The Keeper of the Flame has cut the grass(which is the size of a postage stamp) twice! And I fear it's not going to come back it's so trimmed! The garbage has gone out of every room...hourly, every day, just to give the Pied Piper some work to do!  In a final act of desperation, the Wife gave the Farmer's Shadow a "girl" chore: unloading the dishwasher.  The poor boy, he's a sweetheart, he did it, but he nearly cried as he began putting away silverware.  The other two hid-I'm not sure if they were concerned that they might have to help, or just felt the Shadow's shame.  Since then, they have been folding laundry, loading dishwashers, washing pots and pans, vacuuming and sweeping. The house has never been so clean with ten people in it!

Country boys in town find trees to climb-usually in front of some poor lady who never heard of tree climbing children, or maybe had only read about them in a book and cannot believe that the Wife would permit her children to climb a tree in a public place.

Country boys end up on the roof of the garage. Or the house. Or have one on the garage roof and one on the house roof and begin sending signals back and forth using mirrors.

Country boys spend a LOT of time at the beach with a net and goggles trying to catch the elusive cat fish they imagine lives under the pier.  They find dead fish and dissect them in front of all the other children on the beach.  They get dark and dark-er tan.  

Country boys say "HI!" to every passer-by, and pet every dog.  They laugh loud and shout to each other when they walk down the sidewalk.

In the end...they will go back to the country and talk all winter about the fun they had.  When they were made to use the bathroom EVERY time they had to "go", when they build forts for little siblings, and they only had to do "girl chores". In the end, it will be a fond memory...when the Country boys went to town.

April Snows Bring May Flowers

April 9,2018
Photo credit: Liane Layhew
no filters,iphone 6

The hunt was on for the daffodils! Everyday we were outside, mostly the Wife, walking the front yard and counting little leaves bursting through the ground. All of the sudden there they were! Fourteen perfectly random daffodils and one tulip. None of us know where the tulip came from, but there it was!
And the day came when one bloomed! And the Wife envisioned fourteen, at least, cheerful  yellow blossoms greeting every passer-by. What the wife did not foresee was the three year old Farmer's Daughter...also knows as "The Ninny-nator". Destroyer of makeup bags, ruin-er of rising bread loaves, picker of flowers...The Ninny-nator.
And the first beautiful yellow daffodil bloomed, the Wife took a picture! And The Ninny-nator Farmer's Daughter picked it.  Running behind the Wife and smiling grandly, she showed it to everyone.  Everyone-crestfallen-said, "No, Ninny.  No picking the pretty yellow flowers."
And the next day a new daffodil bloomed in a different location.  And the family cheered!  And we reminded the Ninny-nator NOT to pick the flower.  And she nodded her head in agreement.  And at about two o'clock in the afternoon-she picked it. And the Wife was sad.  She saw a death to her vision. There would be one flower a day.  One flower...and if a passer-by was there at just the right time, and looked in just the right place, providentially the passer-by would see one lovely, coveted, happy yellow daffodil. That was the reality.  And the Wife sighed-she took the flower from the Ninny-nator, gave her a lecture, but knew the war was lost.  If it wasn't a Ninny-nator who would pick the daffodils...it would be someone or something else.
Flower #3 met it's demise to a Frisbee.  Flowers #4 and #5 to the windstorm.  Flower #6 to the dogs.  Flower #8 went MIA. Flower #9 was too close to home plate in our family kickball game. Flower #10 was under the child climbing the magnolia tree. The tulip hasn't bloomed. We think it has seen the fate of those who went before, and has retreated back underground.
Someday...someday you will drive past our little patch of heaven here out west...and you will be delighted with a field of happy yellow daffodils in spring. Someday...

Daffodil Flower #1, April 25, 2018
Photo credit: Liane Layhew
no filters, iphone 6

We Don't See Any Daffodils Yet.

There has been great discussion in the house about where our daffodils are.  In the fall the little farmer's daughters and the Wife went and bought two bags of yellow daffodil bulbs.  Then we opened the bags and threw the bulbs in the front yard near the ditch...hang on, I know that sounds strange...wherever the bulbs fell, we planted them.  It has a natural effect when they start popping up-like there was never a time there wasn't a daffodil there.
When we lived in Wisconsin we constantly drove past a neighbor who had been doing this for ten or so years-in the spring his front yard was "a bloom!".  The Wife was thinking ahead!!!  If we start now, in ten years...it will look amazing! All winter we have been looking forward to the spring, because of the promise of the daffodils.
Here in lies the problem: the Spring has been hot, cold, hot, cold, hot, cold...everyday is a little different from the day before.  So, on the hot days we are out searching for the daffodils to peek their heads above the ground...and on the cold days we PRAY they will peek their heads above ground quickly!
The Wife has read that daffodils planted in protected areas will rise and bloom earlier than daffodils planted in a field.  I guess here on the plains of Illinois, we would be considered unprotected.
Yellow and happy faces of flowers welcoming everyone who passes by, welcoming all of us home on busy days, welcoming warmer weather for a season, these are reasons we are desperate for daffodils.
Where are they?
Are your daffodils blooming?

Springtime Sharing

There is a joy to be had in springtime! And for all of us, it usually starts with a cold.  Either from the overly anxious child who has run outside coat-less, barefoot, and in shorts proclaiming "It's WARM!"; when the thermometer is barley registering above zero. Or from the extreme temperature swings: 70F degrees one day, down to 30F degrees the next, and back up overnight to 60F.  It's absolute craziness, but also a good reminder...it's springtime!
March is coming in "like a Lion" on our farm.  The wind blows to 45mph gusts, the temperature swings back and forth, and the grass greens one moment, and freezes the next. The livestock wander out to the greening paddock to nibble on what little they can find. The people in the house wander around looking for chocolate. And then there's the sounds of spring...cough, cough, achoo!  And being a family that shares, everyone is making sure to be generous in the giving of cold germs with the family members they feel "deserve" it most.
O the joys of springtime!

To Mow a Lawn

The Keeper of the Flame has had the esteemed job of mowing the lawn. Not just your average postage stamp of grass, but rather a couple acres. By push mower.
As parents we were super impressed with our forward thinking that the mower we gave him to push is gas powered. The Keeper of the Flame dilligently pushed for three weeks of the July heat index beyond 100F. The lawn is large enough to make it divisible into five smaller parts so that it was five days of an hour or two of lawn mowing. Small complaints were breathed, but no large blow-ups. And then the day came when the request was made, "I don't need any birthday gifts. Save the money to buy a riding lawnmower." This is the way to any mother's heart, through humility and self denial. Willing to give away all worldly pleasures for a simple riding mower with which he could bless his parents and continue to cut the lawn. So when the neighbor was selling his riding mower, the Wife was willing to pay whatever he was asking for her dear sweet boy. The haggle was short, and the mower drove to its new home. At dinner that night the conversation was light and good humor abounded. Tomorrow the Keeper of the Flame would be cutting the full lawn in one day. Everyone was jovial! Soon the conversation became something new to the Wife's ears..."Hey, Pop! Could we hook up a trailer to the mower to haul water buckets?"
...Such a thoughtful son, she thought, helping do his brother's chores...
"Pop, I could drive the mower to weed the bean field with the neighbors.."
...ahh, everyone should have a son so willing to be a blessing to everyone...
"and we could hook a trailer up to the back for the canoes going down to the canal, maybe we could tweek the engine to go a little faster? How do we lift it for four-wheel drive? do you think I could drive it to the gas station to get ice cream?"
...eh?...who's child was this?
And this was when the Wife realized...she had just bought her son his first vehicle...which just happens to cut the lawn.

(He is still a sweet boy, thoughtful, and diligent.)

The Adventures of Dear Farmer and Indoor Plumbing

Disclaimer:this is probably one of the more disgusting posts. But in our family everything is shared news. Everything! It is part of Dear Farmer we love. However, the Wife does not believe that this is part of country hospitality....though, should you visit, you should know this beforehand.


No, We do not have an outhouse. Yes, we do have indoor plumbing. However, we have the indoor plumbing from when indoor plumbing was first made. And then in the ninteen sixties someone thought it looked old, put a new pink face on it, and made it appear hip and trendy.
A mere fifty years after the facelift, the bones of the original plumbing are brittle and clogged...and needing replacing.
Insert Dear Farmer's newest adventure...indoor plumbing.
To give Dear Farmer more time to research the "how to" his family has come up with a jingle you might have heard in a playground, " If its yellow, let it mellow. If its brown, flush it down." This is the core of playground humor, and reality in this old farmhouse. Well, reality until Dear Farmer has figured out how to fix and replace the old plumbing.
Insert the family joke: "but what do you do if its green?"
Now you can screw up your face, giggle and laugh. But really...what do you do?
Here in lies the adventure every time we open the toilet lid. What did the person who used the bathroom before you do? What did they do with the green?

What I Like About You!!!

It is one of those things that bring a farmer great joy, to be able to show you what he has accomplished.

Our family identifies itself as "Faithful Stewards". So as the Pied Piper is learning to fill the water buckets without complaining, he is listening to the Wife explain how this job is so important as a faithful steward of the animals, but also this family. Yesterday he did the job entirely without complaining! Recognition was given in front of everyone at the dinner table. He had accomplished something he will be expected to do every day forever...hopefully there will be recognition thirty years from now. 

Dear Farmer does the dull work every day. Make soy meal...move fence...weed wack. And here we tell you about it. And (joy!) you read it!!!

Its one thing we like about you...

Just two small words...manure fork

Excited the children with a manure fork this week. It's what Dear Farmer and the Wife picked up on their date...because we know how to thrill our children.
When they rush downstairs(because they aren't actually sleeping when we walk in from our date late night) and the question is "what did you bring me?" They were all just hoping we would say "a manure fork", I am so sure!
Shoulders slump, feet thump back upstairs, certainty that the other shoe will drop in the morning, they trudge back upstairs to bed.
With no messing around, the Wife got people moving into chores the next morning. Take that brand new shiny manure fork to the barn, she told the WhizBang!Farmer's Daughter, and clean the floor.
About half way through the job a tragedy struck. The locking nut fell off disconnecting the tines from the handle. And the nut was lost! WhizBang!Farmer's Daughter concealed her joy and delight well as she broke the news to the Wife. The manure fork would remain new and relatively shiny until a new nut could be bought.
Not to fear, the Wife still has the old pitch fork. The job isn't nearly as neat as it would have been with the manure fork, but it'll work.
The floor of the barn is now clean and fresh. Next date: locking nut for the manure fork. And this time, we'll tighten the nut before chores.

Well, Hello Dolly!

Introducing the Newest Members of Foundation Family Farms...

"Dolly"-our someday milk cow-currently a three month old hefier calf. She's a Jersey-Angus Mix, given to us by dear friends.
Under her is "Chili Pepper" and in front of them is "Cayenne Pepper" our two newborn goatlings from mother "Paprika". They were born July 13 during dinner.  It was great fun to hear and see the excitement of all the children knowing that "Paprika" was giving birth while we were eating.  Dinner was a good excuse to get everyone out of the barn so she could have a little privacy, also.  When we were done eating everyone hustled out to see not just one baby, but two! 
It seems that the three have formed the "Future Milk Suppliers" Club.

So, come on down to the farm! The little kids are curious to meet you!

Raspberries for Breakfast

We have the most giant patch of red luscious raspberries right outside our back door. 
When the Wife was a littlest girl she had a raspberry patch that she used to eat breakfast in. A cup of milk from the kitchen and out the door to the raspberries for a morning graze.
 
This morning, while the Wife was cooking oatmeal over the cooktop outside, the Chicken Dinner Farmer's Daughter followed her out.  But she didn't stay with the Wife.  She continued past the Wife and began a morning graze...in the raspberry patch.  She was happy and completely content eating berries. 
The Wife did finish up the oatmeal, and took it inside for everyone for breakfast.  Chicken Dinner happily brought in a few berries to add to her oatmeal, as well as a few to share with siblings.

How can you not just LOVE raspberries from your own backyard for breakfast?

Threads of a Multi-Generational Family

There's lots of great things about being part of our big family.  But the Wife's favorite part is that there's a bunch of people!  Grandma, the Amazing FarmWife, had just left the arena of "mother of little children" when us older grandchildren were born.  Thus creating a multi-generational family setting for all of us to grow up in. The Wife was growing up with Aunts and Uncles, our Great-Grandmother was a presence in our daily lives.
It was always an adventure to go to Grandma's house...with her revolving door.  First one there got the beds!  As a younger child, I just prayed we'd be late, so I could sleep in the living room on the floor and listen to my mother and her siblings stay up late and laugh as they told stories!

 Three of the Wife's favorite movies are: Cheaper by the Dozen(1950 film), With Bells on their Toes(1952 film), and My Big Fat Greek Wedding(2002 film).
(The first two are books also, read the books!!! The movie, however, was good as well.)
The reason these were/are the Wife's favorites are because of the family situations, and close to real life!
When Frank Gilbreth, Sr. answers the question: are these all your children?  And he says, "Yes, they are, and it's NO PICNIC!" About him children are hooting and hollering...That's the Wife's life on a daily basis now...but I am sure the Amazing FarmWife had her own moments of chaos.
Films that mirror our own lives and give laughter to all the hard times we weren't laughing at; that's therapy.

Upcoming we have a wedding in the family...it's the first wedding in a long time. A family tradition is to compose a song to sing to the Bride and Groom, based on their favorite musical...a tradition that was started some twenty years ago.  The more family who comes to the wedding, the more singers there are.  Sometimes the crew has even had time for props and choreography.
We watched My Big Fat Greek Wedding with Uncle Photographer-he's all excited about another new family tradition: spitting on the bride.  All this time, we had no idea our family was so Greek!

The best parts of being in a large family are bunches and bunches of people!  In our family, that's bunches of laughter, bunches of love, and bunches of support in every and all situations.  All these threads, woven into a beautiful tapestry of Family.

The Bear Cub Puppy Grows Up

Yesterday the Haus Frau Farmer's Daughter had a long and beautiful day to spend outside.  She spent it out there with the former "bear cub" puppy, 'Mate. 'Mate has grown into a ruggedly handsome aussie-teen.  He's tall, sleek, and has just enough puppy left in his face to call him "adorable" as well.
The Haus Frau Farmer's Daughter has been teaching him not to jump up on anything...
this is a huge ordeal for this breed.  The instinct of the Australian Shepherd is to stand and lean on cattle to move them, if that doesn't work, they move to the front for the nose.
Interestingly enough, no one wants a dog jumping up on them after the rain with muddy paws, or on a Sunday morning as we make a mad dash for the van to get to church on time! Nor does anyone want a dog nipping them at their nose if they aren't doing what it wants.  So, training was necessary on this level.
'Mate has been doing great!
He also has instinct to herd the animals to a location where he can see them all.  This means every chicken that goes behind the garage, the house, or in the woods is getting flushed out and driven home. 'Mate is quite the task master, we've watched chickens pant because he won't stop.
Of course, the Haus Frau is finding that 'Mate demands her attention at all times.  There's no downtime for a working dog-until the sun goes down.  He loves working all day!  Doesn't matter what the weather, doesn't matter if the Haus Frau has sniffles, or would really rather go to see a movie.
Responsibilities always come first on a farm!
The Haus Frau Farmer's Daughter is doing good at training her first farm puppy/dog. It hasn't been the "cake walk" she thought it'd be, but she's making it a sweet time anyways!

Family Series(Part 4): The Wife's Mother...MorMor

The Wife's mother was raised by Grandma the Amazing Farm Wife, she is the oldest girl.  She has always had a heart to listen.  Listen to the hurt, listen to the sad, listen to the person rejoicing!
She taught the Wife how to put aside all the "TO DO"s and stop and listen.
Which is good when running a house with a lot of people and things going on...to be able to stop and recognize the people are more important than the "TO DO"s.
Thank you, Mor Mor!  Happy Mother's Day!

Family Series(Part 3): Dear Farmer's Mother...the Dynamo!

The easiest way to explain why Dear Farmer is the amazing man he is, is to introduce to you his mother, the Dynamo!
From poorest of poor origins, growing up in the Gary Area of Indiana, she was the toughest little Puerto Rican you'd encounter.  She endured trials and heartaches, but never was a victim of any circumstance.  She rose above and prevailed.
So when she adopted a blonde haired, blue eyed, little boy who seemed to be the energy level of the Tazmanian Devil...instead of veiwing him as the "spawn of Satan", she saw him as a "Beloved Gift from God".  When everything seemed like the world was set against them, she took everything head on and plowed through.
So Dear Farmer, being brought up by the Dynamo!, does things much the same way.  He takes the world head-on, looks at the facts and deals with the necessities. Had he not been taught to be an over-comer rather than a victim, he wouldn't be the Dear Farmer that he is today.
Thank you, Dynamo!  You have awfully big shoes for us to fill, for having such tiny feet.
Happy Mother's Day!

Dear Farmer's Morning Call

It is slightly unusual that Dear Farmer will call from the barn.
If we get a phone call, it's usually not good.
"I need help!" is most often the message.
So when the phone rang this morning, the Wife shouted-"It's Pop!"-before she even answered.  Children began scurrying and searching for shoes.  The house was in general chaos.

On the other end, this is what we heard:
"There is the cutest baby goat down here!  He's about four hours old."

A hip-hooray from the children went the cheer, and out the door they flew!
Babies are the chocolate of the job, with whipping creame and a cherry on top!  Baby Goats are nearly the most adorable thing we have ever seen.  They even rank higher than baby ducks(which are pretty darned cute as well).
And so, the children rushed down to say "good morning" to our newest member of the farm family...Peppercorn.  And a hearty congrats to his mom, Cumin.

We don't mind these phone calls from the barn ONE BIT!

Easy to be Distracted

It is the season that Dear Farmer and Family can be all too distracted.
There's chickens to be housed and cared for, buildings to build, the garden to plan and plant, goats hooves need to be trimmed, calf needs brushed, house needs little tweeks here and there, people to visit with, unending chores, fences to build, tractors to fix and clean, barns to clean, yard to cut....the list goes on and on....
With such a list, it's hard to "Stay On Task!"  {Perhaps that will be our theme this year...hmmmm....}
Priority given to things that must be done IMMEDIATELY!, like housing the little chicks.  And our missing 200...they came in yesterday...all 300 of them.  Someone at the chickery is having a good laugh, we think. The littlest chicks cannot fend for themselves, depending on us for their every need...
What else on the farm ranks in that same class? The smallest children.  Okay, both go on the highest priority.
Next on the list probably comes the rest of the animals, and medium size children.
And so on, and so forth...
But the list becomes hazy when the sun is shining and the birds are singing...and all Dear Farmer really wants to do is walk among the cows.  Sit in the shade and admire the beauty of creation.  Watch the children play Frisbee on a warm summer night.  These are both the reasons to keep plugging on through the work of today...and reasons to stay on task tomorrow.
Distractions can be the making of the memory...or the downfall of organization...
And so...we attempt to "Stay On Task!"
However, if you come to visit us, we'll happily be distracted!!!

Hey! They clean up pretty well!

Permit me a proud moment of bragging...because I have good cause, not bad character...

This past weekend the Wife had the pleasure of working at the Farmer's Daughters' Prom.  The Wife had the joy of shopping for dresses with the Farmer's Daughter and the Haus Frau Farmer's Daughter.  We looked at hairstyles, accessories, shoes...lots and lots of shoes...we talked logistics of time-frames and conversations with people-we-really-like versus other-people.  It was a pleasure to spend a month of planning and seeing the results of age, maturity, and life-experience.  We had a great time.  Then came the moment of truth...the Wife left the Farmer's Daughters with the beautician and went to the Prom location for set up and preparation.  Having already been briefed by the Haus Frau Farmer's Daughter on good photography-know-how(the Wife was the photographer #2 for the event)...the Wife was off and running!
It was between the pictures of the appetizer table and drink fountain table that the Wife was able to see the most beautiful girls in the event walk through the door.  The Farmer's Daughters, with their BFFs(who are also farm-girls) walked in like Greek Goddesses(a look I think they were pleased to have attained).  They floated on clouds, laughed liked music, and conversed with ease...making all in their presence feel like royalty. And all the Wife could think was, "They clean up pretty well!"
See, covered in the muck and damp from the rain.  In the middle of feeding a bottle to a calf, or hay to a horse, a farm-girl is pretty impressive.  It wasn't a charade for an evening.  They weren't playing a part.  They really are these beautiful Goddess looking ladies on a day-to-day basis, just cleaned up for the "Ball". They are beautiful on the inside as they muck stalls, wipe off grime and bend down to clean gooky-noses all out of love. Daily they are disheveled and dirty with no make up on...But when that farm-girl can get cleaned up and walk with the best-of-them(in high stiletto heels) in a situation so opposite from her day-to-day...THAT'S pretty impressive.

The Wife's Log: April 14, 2016

The day started like any other day. The Pied Piper was sent outside to milk the goat, he returned in the house fifteen minutes later whining that the goat was not cooperating.
The Farmer's Daughter had to leave for work, but went down to milk the goat for the brother instead.
Meanwhile, the Haus Frau Farmer's Daughter (who just had a birthday) madly was doing her own chores so she could go and enjoy her new kayak on the pond.
The Wife drove the Farmer's Daughter to work and sent the Farm-boy Trio out to help Dear Farmer finish preparations for the incoming 1000 chicks this morning.
The Haus Frau Farmer's Daughter finished her work and pleaded to go kayaking on the pond. She took with her the Pied Piper.  The Keeper of the Flame and WhizBang! were anxiously anticipating the soon-to-be chick delivery. It is always amazing how the Wife can find jobs for waiting people to do...they began a job and disappeared "under the radar"(which means the Wife doesn't see them again)...
Left alone in the house with the smallest Farmer's Daughters, the Wife tried desperately to get dressed and clean the kitchen from the onslaught of breakfast.  With three "helpers"...it was going slowly.
In walked the Farmer's Shadow, who had a cold for the past few days and couldn't manage to get up and collect eggs.  He had been feeling well enough to make a dime, and brought in three dozen eggs that he found. He began sorting through the hay in the egg basket for the eggs in the middle of the kitchen floor. Hay all over one's kitchen floor, does not make a cleaning process go faster or smoother.
While changing a diaper and giving orders to the egg sorter a faint "Mother? Mother?" is heard above the roar of life.  The Haus Frau Farmer's Daughter was back with the Pied Piper--both wet.  Apparently all of kayaking is fun, except for the part when the electronic device slides out of the back pocket and lands in the murky bottom of the farm-pond. Tears were shed over the device that she was sure kept her world revolving...but lesson learned:  Don't go kayaking with anything in your pockets.
During the tears, and before the laughter, the chicks came in. Out went the Keeper of the Flame and the WhizBang!Farmer's Daughter to settle them down in brooding houses with Dear Farmer.
Into the house whooshed the Farmer's Daughter with a friend for a lesson on the attachment of fake eyelashes.  Upstairs echoed giggling and laughter. Downstairs we were preparing for a (hopefully) early lunch. With four helpers making lunch, snitching ingredients, and generally causing chaos lunch did happen.  All were called with a whistle.
Downstairs whooshed the Farmer's Daughter with friend to the next appointment.
In came Dear Farmer...the 1000 chicks were short...by 800???  On the phone went Dear Farmer to find out where 800 chicks are peeping currently.  In came the children to snarf down food, all are excited about being next to try out the kayak.  The Youngest Farmer's Daughter Trio is just too small to kayak.  Great tragedy's of life are often solved by popcorn and a movie about a dancing British mouse.  Which works once again today!
Clean up in the kitchen goes much faster without help.
The Pepper Goat was arguing with the Garlic Goat, and the Garlic Goat snapped the Pepper Goat's neck. Tears shed over the loss of a pack-goat, but quickly recovered with another ride on a kayak.
The Nordic Ninja is over to replace headlights and tail-lights with Dear Farmer. The Farmer's Daughter whooshes back home to change into work clothes and whooshes out again to evening work.
No one can find the 800 missing chicks currently, they are somewhere in the USPS(where I am sure someone is going mad listening to unrelenting peeping). Dear Farmer is working to build and wire infastructure, while at the same time keeping the phone nearby in case he hears word of the chicks.
And now, onto those dinner preparations...at 6pm the whole family will be at the table, there will be laughter of the fun, remembering the losses, and encouragement that we can all do this again tomorrow.
This is an amazing world we live in!

The Careful Planning of a Tiny House...or...The Size of My Shoe

Dear Farmer promised to build the Wife a tiny house in lieu of tent camping this year out at the garden.  The Wife has always loved tiny houses, we first started in one(see article: The Movement We Never Abandoned 2/23/2016 ) and the thought of being able to go back into one is a dream come to reality.
But exactly how to build a tiny house for a family of...ahem...thirteen?
Start by checking out the regulations for building a tiny house on wheels.  For a family of thirteen to live in the tiny house for an entire summer and fall...that size is SO not happening. He would need to build three tiny houses...but as we do not have three trailers, three vehicles to pull trailers, or three drivers. We quickly eliminate the wheels and trailer.
Now we are looking at building tiny house on skids.  This way house can be moved from location to location on site which makes the house an option for more uses.  If no one is residing in it, the house can become a storage shed, a studio, or even a chicken coop.
The tiny house will have two doors, two windows(actual double hung windows) and sleeping spots enough for thirteen.

But what happens to all the stuff you need?
Let's talk needs:
Food
Water
Clothing
Shelter

Those are all our basic human needs. Past that it's all luxuries.

The Wife has every intention of giving each child the luxury of electricity, internet, plumbing, fans, heat, and a small space for individual trinkets/toys.
Clothing will be kept in a mobile trailer that we will need to power-wash to get the stink of animals out of(the goats had lived there for a time) and Dear Farmer has plans to make it into a "family closet".
So far as washing those clothes go...a Laundromat isn't so bad, and if the Wife gets desperate to have her arms get a good workout, there's the clothing plunger and wringer secured on a tub.  Old Fashioned has a time and a place.
Now Dear Farmer is in the process of drawing up the plan for the tiny house for the Wife.  He estimates the size to be 10 x 20.
I guess for the summer the Wife will be the "...little old lady who lived in a shoe, she had so many children she didn't know what to do...".  Perhaps, like the Gilbreth Family (Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank and Ernistine Gilbreth) we will have to name the tiny house "THE SHOE".