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Family Matters:  Farm Life...  |
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wildflower17
True Blue Farmgirl
3043 Posts
Judy
KY
USA
3043 Posts |
 Posted - Feb 02 2013 : 5:10:37 PM
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I was just wondering why having a farm or the desire to have one is so important to you and your family?
Even though things are not as they were when I was a child, I still love everything about farmlife. My fondest memories are of spending time with my father hanging out around the barn and garden, working with all my family in the garden and planting other crops and spending time with my family on the front porch after a long hard days work. These are memories that I will cherish forever!
Thankfully, the Lord sent me a farm boy to spend the rest of my life with...how blessed I am!
Blessings,
Judy
"Country Girl at Heart"... |
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Marybeth
True Blue Farmgirl
6418 Posts
Mary Beth
Stanwood
Wa 98292
USA
6418 Posts |
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Joey
True Blue Farmgirl
1868 Posts
Joey
Gulf Coast
FL
USA
1868 Posts |
Posted - Feb 02 2013 : 6:49:21 PM
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I was born and raised in Philadelphia, PA..at that time there were over 4 million people in that city. My great-grandfather had a farm but it was sold long before I came along..but I have farm roots. I had never even on a farm until my very cultured DD married a dairy farmer.
Now I LOVE their farm. I love seeing the wheat in the field and the corn. Soybeans are such a pretty plant. I love the baby cows and could NEVER eat veal again. I love the cycles of life on the farm. My SIL has been very helpful to me with my questions about things on the farm and I am always learning something new. He laughed out loud when I told him I had only ever been close to a cow at the zoo.
He lived 2 years in Philadelphia and has come to love the city and what it has to offer too. He says he likes being close to a city but just can't live there and I understand that. I love the farm and the quiet there too. Joey
Well behaved women rarely make history. |
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HodgeLodge
True Blue Farmgirl
662 Posts
Tiana
Berkeley Springs
WV
USA
662 Posts |
Posted - Feb 02 2013 : 7:40:48 PM
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I have never lived on a farm, nor do I now. I love the idea of a small farm, but for me it's all the raised beds I have in my little surburban yard. My hens (Agnes and Jean) after my ancestors are wonderully fun to raise. My grandchildren and neighbor children love them. It's starting seeds, and making things grow, and making things beautiful. It's soaping, and cooking, and sewing, and friendships. .JPG)
Farmgirl #4817-The greatest gift of the garden is the restoration of the five senses. ~Hanna Rion
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wildflower17
True Blue Farmgirl
3043 Posts
Judy
KY
USA
3043 Posts |
Posted - Feb 02 2013 : 8:08:29 PM
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Girls,
I love your thoughts on the subject and thanks for adding to the post. Tiana, the picture is beautiful! Thanks for sharing it!!!
Blessings,
Judy
"Country Girl at Heart"... |
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Bear5
True Blue Farmgirl
13055 Posts
Louisiana/Texas
USA
13055 Posts |
Posted - Feb 02 2013 : 8:53:34 PM
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Sweet picture, Tiana.
Judy, I love farm life. I was raised in a farm life setting. The only animals I have now are cats. But, we do live in the country. For me, I love country life.
Marly
"It's only when we truly know and understand that we have a limited time on earth- and that we have no way of knowing when our time is up- that we will begin to live each day to the fullest, as if it was the only one we had." Elisabeth Kurler-Ross |
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Simply Silly
True Blue Farmgirl
78 Posts
Amy
Woodbine
Georgia
USA
78 Posts |
Posted - Feb 03 2013 : 4:58:59 PM
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Judy,
I am one of 9 children that was raised on a farm in NE Kansas. I did not understand the blessings of living on a farm until I was away from it for so many years. I am really looking forward to moving back to the country and growing my own food -vegetables and hunting for our meet. My husband and I also want goats and chickens. We currently raise parrots - they are the only children we were ever blessed with.
I love the quite and serene life that the country brings to my life!
Amy |
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Erin Rock
True Blue Farmgirl
103 Posts
Erin
Grand Blanc
MI
USA
103 Posts |
Posted - Feb 04 2013 : 05:59:03 AM
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I have never lived on a farm and I'm sure that some of my ideas about doing so are romanticized but I would love to let me kids run free but also have jobs for them to do learning about responsibility even more than they do in our suburban home. My husband's grandfather owned a horse farm and he spent summers and weekends working in his grandmother's garden mucking out stalls and running wild in the woods. Every time he talks about it his face lights up, and I want that for my kids too.
Erin Rock (sister #4131)
Tree Huggin'
Bunny Lovin'
Dirt Worshipper! |
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FARMALLChick
True Blue Farmgirl
978 Posts
Lora
Alexandria
IN
USA
978 Posts |
Posted - Feb 05 2013 : 1:15:36 PM
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I like it because no one is telling me what to do, what I can or can't have in my yard or driveway. I like growing my own food and breathing fresh air. I love my chickens and my flower gardens. I love being able to go for a walk and not have to worry about being mugged or hit by a car. I love the quiet winter evenings and the breezes on warm summer nights. I like being able to sleep on my screen porch and not hearing cars and trucks zooming by. I love being able to look around my 18 acres and say "This is all mine!"
"Courage is being scared to death and saddling up anyway" -John Wayne
www.CountryFriedAcres.etsy.com www.farmallchick.blogspot.com www.farmallchickphotos.blogspot.com |
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HodgeLodge
True Blue Farmgirl
662 Posts
Tiana
Berkeley Springs
WV
USA
662 Posts |
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rubyleesmom
Zapped Profile
190 Posts
Colina
Homosassa
Fl
USA
190 Posts |
Posted - Feb 05 2013 : 5:35:38 PM
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| I wasn't raised on a farm but my daddy always grew a huge garden every year and both my parents have simple country backgrounds. I live on a small farm now and we love everything about farm life. From the fresh eggs and veggies we get to the quietness of the area, to the comraderie with our neighbors that we never had in the congested neighborhood where we used to live.. I wouldnt give this up for the world! |
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KD Earthwork
True Blue Farmgirl
210 Posts
Katie
Gualala
Calif.
USA
210 Posts |
Posted - Feb 05 2013 : 6:29:32 PM
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There are good descriptions here, I'll try mine. Little things like watching the cats, or the hummingbirds becomes better than TV. The grocery store is the social event of the week . Everyone hurts in the whole community when there is a sorrowful event, but rejoices equally with joy. The sky , dawn-daybreak, the clouds, the sunset, the enormous star studded sky at night. The personalities of the animals. Watching the children disappear up trees, on top of piles , into the chicken coop to get eggs, trying to climb onto the backs of the horses. Eating the apples and fruit off the tree, worshiping the trees. Popping kale leaves into their mouthes. Helping to make bread, jam, canned goods. Understand where their food comes from. The wonderful food. Basically the best quality of life I can imagine.
http://www.rosemancreekranch.com |
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HodgeLodge
True Blue Farmgirl
662 Posts
Tiana
Berkeley Springs
WV
USA
662 Posts |
Posted - Feb 06 2013 : 04:38:14 AM
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Like you Colina my daddy was a farmer too, and his people before him. Tennessee Cherokee farmers. On the other side was my Grandmother she married a fisherman. She gardened and had chickens to make ends meet. Made all her own herbal rememdies. Guess thats why I love the herbs and foraging. I don't live on a farm, I live in a suburban area, but I have made use of my yard. I have 2 great hens, and will get a few more this coming spring. What makes me a farmgirl at heart is when I wake up in the morning and go out and feed the chickens just as the sun is coming up, gardening and weeding before I even have a chance to get out of my nightgown. Having my coffee outside picking my greenbeans with my sister in law like it is Christmas day. Moving the foliage around to find that long bean, and filling my colander with them. Finding my first egg like it was my first grandchicken. Calling everyone I know to tell them. My sense of farmgirl is in my heart and pride. That and I spend some time with my friend up on her farm help feeding her babies. Oh I got it. By the way love the bread Katie. Just beautiful.
Farmgirl #4817-The greatest gift of the garden is the restoration of the five senses. ~Hanna Rion
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Hodge-Lodge-Clothesline/285366378259342
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kristin sherrill
True Blue Farmgirl
11303 Posts
kristin
chickamauga
ga
USA
11303 Posts |
Posted - Feb 06 2013 : 05:11:38 AM
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Well, I hate to burst any bubbles here, but farming is not all that pretty. Or fun. Or happy. It's not a Norman Rockwell painting. Maybe sometimes. But it's messy, stinky, dirty, muddy. poopy. There's lots of death. Lots of things go wrong. You don't hear a lot of the bad things. Like in the Dodge commercial about farmers. It made farming look great. But there are people who don't like what some small farmers are doing. Like selling organic veggies and fruits. Or raw milk and cheese. Or eggs that haven't been candled. Or happy grass fed animals. Oh my. We are the ones who are blamed for so many things. Not the big factory farms. The ones with money to get all the certifications and licenses to actually do things legally. And then there's the money. Where is it? Anything I make has to go right back into my farm. People make farming look so nice.
Forgot to mention that farming is HARD work. When I have to go out to a hay field on the hottest day of the year with no shade or clouds to help, and load 45 bakes of hay, then unload them, then haul them to the barn and stack them again, it's hard work. When I have to go put up fences, or repair fences, and have blood dripping down my arms from getting cut on the fence wire, it hurts too. When a ram head butts me in the stomach and knocks the breath out of me and comes back to do it again, it hurts y'all. So yeah, it's hard work and it hurts.
Not to mention that there are NO vacations. Unless you have family or friends that will come feed and milk and do all the harvesting for the time you're gone.
Please don't get me wrong here. I LOVE what I do. But I'll tell you the truth, it's not always fun. Sometimes I don't like it at all. Sometimes I want to shoot my goats. They are giving me a really hard time right now. It's not always like this. No, sometimes a whiole day goes by and I haven't screamed or cussed at something. Sometimes I can actually sit outside under a shade tree and knit or read a magazine in peace and quiet.
But ya know what? I would not want to be anywhere else but right here. Doing what I'm doing. Even though each day is like being in the movie Groundhog Day. Same things over and over and over. But I chose this life. I love where I am. But not all the time. I would be lying if I said it was all peachy clean fun every day. Even the cutest little baby goats and lambs can cause the biggest problems. And I have been knocked down too many times by crazy rushing sheep to say it's all a bed of roses. Not when I'm face down in some stinky poopy hay.
So now I will answer your question. The reason I do all this is because I want to know where my food came from. I want to be self sufficient. I don't want to have to depend on anyone else to feed me or my family. I want to be able to look down at my plate with pride because I grew or raised everything on it myself. And I take pride as well in knowing that other people are happy with what they buy from me and come back for more. When I see someone post about the best chicken pot pie they have ever put in their mouth from a chicken that was raised here on Outback Farm, I want to keep doing all this. THAT'S why I do this.
Plus baby goats are the cutest sweetest best thing to cuddle with!
Kris
Happiness is simple.
www.kris-outbackfarm.blogspot.com |
Edited by - kristin sherrill on Feb 06 2013 06:54:39 AM |
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FARMALLChick
True Blue Farmgirl
978 Posts
Lora
Alexandria
IN
USA
978 Posts |
Posted - Feb 06 2013 : 07:37:47 AM
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You're right it is a ton of hard work, blood, sweat and tears too. And I wouldn't change a thing. Everyone has their own idea of what farming is or should be, but if we didn't make it sound good - would so many people like it?
I think just about anyone who has had any experience with animals has had to deal with death, I know I have. I have also hand dug fence post holes (because I got burned on the gas auger!), mended fences, baled hay on days so hot even the devil broke a sweat, chased the neighbors loose calves and ended up spraining a knee and shot at coyotes trying to steal chickens. I have come home to find a yard full of dead chickens because a neighbors dogs were loose. I have dealt with the loss of a home to a fire caused by rodents chewing on wires, crop loss, drought, floods and lack of money. I had to sell my horses when I lost my day job because I couldn't afford to feed them anymore.
I have a day job again, but would give it up if I could make it work with self-sustainability, but in this economy - that isn't going to happen anytime soon. My ultimate goal is to pay off all of our debt so when it is time for me to 'retire', I can putter around in my gardens and not worry about this payment or that payment.
I'm sure there are many people like me who, if it weren't for the 'idea' of being a farmer or a farmer at heart, they would just give up. I have had moments when I've thought to myself - is it worth it? Then I look around at the flowers, chickens, blue sky, green grass and say "Yes, it is." I listen to the birds singing, chickens clucking and leaves rustling and think 'Absolutely.'
I want to know, too, where my food comes from and that there are no fake things in it. I dream about having an abundant garden and a pantry brimming with jars of food. I come to this place to refresh my dream when the world overwhelms me. I come here to vent my frustrations. I come here for support. I come back here to read about successes and failures - to know that I am not the only one having a bad time. I know there are many like-minded hearts out there that have the same sort of dreams as I do. I wish you all the very very best. I want everyone's farm dreams to come true - no matter how big or small. Many hugs to all.
"Courage is being scared to death and saddling up anyway" -John Wayne
www.CountryFriedAcres.etsy.com www.farmallchick.blogspot.com www.farmallchickphotos.blogspot.com |
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SandraM
True Blue Farmgirl
295 Posts
Sandra
Coldwater
Michigan
USA
295 Posts |
Posted - Feb 06 2013 : 09:31:20 AM
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Something drew me to a farm. Not sure what. It does have its romantic image. We liked the idea of a "simple" life. We figured out pretty quickly it isn't simple but it does have it rewards.
My girls are hard workers and they have a lot of respect for life. We have all learned a LOT.
There are times when you wonder why you do it but those times usually come when you are dealing with a difficult situation. If it was like that all the time noone would do it ever. But the good outweighs the bad.
There are challenges no matter where you live as well as blessings.
I believe you can have a wonderful home no matter where you live but I am glad that we had the opportunity to raise our kids here.
I enjoy raising sheep and love what you can do with wool.
I like that my girls have enjoyed 4-H and had the opportunity to show animals.
I like the quiet (if you discount when everyones home) and the view.
Sandra
www.mittenstatesheepandwool.com |
Edited by - SandraM on Feb 08 2013 6:39:52 PM |
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wincrestnubians
True Blue Farmgirl
76 Posts
Jennifer
Ohio
USA
76 Posts |
Posted - Feb 08 2013 : 1:31:36 PM
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Farm life is a repitition of daily life on the farm. The animals dont choose to be with us, we choose them. We choose to breed, raise and keep any and all of them. Big or small. It comes down to us to care for, feed and love them, good times and bad. With life comes death, it is natural. With farm life comes blood, sweat and tears. Calloused hands, sore backs, skinned up knuckles, mashed fingers, cold fingers, frozen toes, drenched wet with sweat, sun burns and darn near heat strokes. Lots of rides on a hay wagon, stacking 6-7 tire high, then unloading it into the lofts of bins. But I have the joy of watching baby goats play, romp and love to give cuddles. Eat and enjoy my farm fresh eggs and goat milk, make cheese, soap, yogurt ice cream, etc. I reap the rewards of the life I choose to live.. And I dont regret one day of it, as I also get to raise my daughter up the way we love.. Yes, I could complain of the stress it causes me at times, but if I let that define me, I wouldnt be me.. Life is to short to complain always of the tests and trials thrown at us. If you get lemons, make lemonaide.. :)
Only those with an open mind can learn from ones own mistakes. |
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wildflower17
True Blue Farmgirl
3043 Posts
Judy
KY
USA
3043 Posts |
Posted - Feb 10 2013 : 05:40:52 AM
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Girls,
I have so enjoyed reading what everyone has to say! When people genuinely pour out their feelings, you really get to know who they are. Even though farmlife is not easy...I think the rewards definitely outweigh the not so good stuff about farming. I hope to hear from other farmgirls about their experiences with farmlife.
Blessings,
judy
"Country Girl at Heart"... |
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Family Matters: Farm Life... |
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Farm Life...
