Fabulous Farmgirl Visit Home

Victory! After way too long, we finally made it to The Farm for a lovely visit. We did so much, I’m not sure there’s space or time to recount it. But here are the highlights.

Feathered Friends. It’s unanimous. We love chickens. We love that they sweep the yard and garden for bugs. We love that they somehow manage to stay close to the house and don’t wander to the neighbors. We love that they leave us wholesome eggs…though the fun of hunting for those eggs is wearing thin. The yolks, no kidding are so rich, they’re almost orange. Yum. Kids are way back into eggs.

Four-legged Friend. We also love Sammy. What a great dog/chicken protector/goat protector. This Great Pyrenees is quite an animal. He’s not exactly anti-social, but he’s not unfriendly. He seemed to want to protect us more than play with us. The closest I could get was to pet his nose. But he liked to trot behind me and keep a perimeter around the kids while they explored the woods.

A Thorny Situation. Just before Alzheimer’s had a complete grip on my grandpa, my dad drove him for one last look at the river. The route was by and through The Lane. When they returned, they had four flat tires. The culprit? Honey locusts. Those are pretty hanging over the lane, looking like a magical forest. But those trees hold a nasty secret…thousands of icepick-like thorns. Those have kept farm equipment and work trucks from the area for years. Not to mention they have kept foot traffic to a minimum. Anyway, Hoosier Outsider and friends, have almost eradicated that invasive species from The Lane and other key spots of the farm. We helped for a bit, throwing brush from the felled trees into piles and stacking firewood to clear the roadway.

Finding Flint. We took a break to hunt for arrowheads. No luck. But we found some colorful pieces of flint and some likely knives. Hunting here is never as good as in The Mountains, where the obsidian breaks through the clay like shiny glass after a good rain. But that’s another story.

Family Farming 2.0. Finally, after reading about it and hearing the praises of the place, we visited Victory Acres, an Upland-based CSA that caters to urbanites in Indianapolis. Lots of interesting experiments with small farming on 114-acres in the Himelick name before my parents were born. While we were there, the team was using and training students to use well-drilling equipment that will bring water to dry, third-world communities. They were over 77 feet down and getting pretty muddy last we checked.

Folks Like Folkie’s. And so do we. Ten years ago, wedding dress and all, I beat my brand new groom post reception to a game of darts while Patsy Cline played on the jukebox. Music’s pretty much the same and my Irish darts luck held, ’cause I beat him again…by just about one dart this time. It was close. Great to be back in the bar, though we missed seeing Steve.

Warm by the Fire. Turning the corner to The Farm, the bonfire jumped out at us. Maybe 20-foot flames. Not an exaggeration. We found out that even green wood, when hot enough, will burn. Took a while to cool off enough to roast marshmallows. The brave jumped up, shielding their faces with hats and arms.

Farmgirl Fireworks…

Fine Flavors of Nutmeg. Sad to go on Sunday, but not with an empty stomach. Thanks to Bon Appetit, we tried some nutmeg pancakes with bananas and…a little late to the plate…nutmeg syrup. I just couldn’t get my simple syrup to thicken in time. Umm. Good. Will definitely renew that subscription. Homegrown, then homemade salsa on the back burner…

Fun in the Shop. Just before we headed out, we discovered some pre-Civil War barn nails in Hoosier Outsider’s wood shop. Those are just what I was looking for to create a custom coat rack with some old bead board I found under our front porch in Oak Park. Virtual Farmboy polished them up. If the project’s any count when it’s finished, I’ll post a shot.