Snapshots on the Farm

Grandpa's old Ford tractor. Still runs.

Snapshots on the Farm

Nothing says family reunion in the country like watermelon on ice in a wash tub. Farmer approved!

Family Reunion Season

The food, the fun, the close-talking uncles, it’s family reunion season here in the Midwest.

Husband and I have both been lucky to have great families who love to get together. My family has an annual reunion that we look forward to each year while Husband’s family gets together less frequently but with more travel.

This summer we have back-to-back family reunions and I’m starting to see a pattern in the types of people who attend.  There are the same types of people at each one--of course they are family so we love them all. See if you can name the people in your family who fit some of these:

Power Couple - come in from an urban center with their teen kids and work the room talking to everyone. They like to organize.

Great Aunt - knows everyone and keeps up with all family goings-on. Can rely on her to tell you an embarrassing story about your Dad/Grandpa in his youth.

Cousin Wallflower - you're not sure why he/she bothered to come since they don't talk to anyone who doesn't already live in their house.

New Mom - thinks she's the first woman in history to have a baby. Brings four bags to an afternoon event.

Reluctant Spouse - sitting in the corner pouting because he/she doesn't care enough to even try to be friendly to the family.

Uncle War Hero - you really do like to hear his stories but the 30th re-telling of his big battle is too much.

Cousin Surprise - had a major life event that no one knew about until he/she shows up with a new baby/spouse/tattoo/gender, etc.

Tsk, Tsk Grandma - “Did you see what she was WEARING? Really, I don’t think he needs that second helping of pie. Can you believe they are moving AGAIN?”

View of my annual weekend-long camping family reunion.

I first posed this theory on Facebook and several of my own cousins and friends posted some of their reunion types. Here are a few more inspired by their comments:

Teenage Mutant Bored Cousins - They would rather be ANYWHERE but here and remain glued to their phones all weekend.

Overwhelmed Mom - hasn’t had an arm or hip free in four years. Her kids are… where are her kids?

Vague Avoider - this relative doesn't directly answer questions about themselves or a direct relative who is surprisingly not in attendance. Generally the reason for avoiding the truth reveals itself at a later date/future reunion. The Vague Avoider many times evolves into Cousin Surprise.

Betty Crocker - follow her from the car to the table or else the coconut cream pie will be GONE. You want to ask for the recipe but who are you kidding, you’re the one who brought Jello and a bucket of chicken.

Long-lost Klan of Unknowns - they seem to be multiplying right before your eyes. Who are they?

Conspiracy Guy - you don’t know how you are related but he freaks you out. He seems to know a little about a LOT of subjects and isn’t afraid to spout all of his ideas.  Tip: seat him next to Uncle War Hero and slowly back away.

I think it’s important for my kids to know their family and have relationships with aunts, uncles and cousins of all stripes. I’m excited that I can see my kids playing with the kids of some of the cousins I used to hang out with at the family reunion.  

Morgan and her friend and distant cousin at the 2010 family reunion.

So, if your great aunt calls to invite you to picnic shelter number 12 this August, pack up some deviled eggs and a batch of cookies and get your kids (and spouse) out to spend time with the family.

Who knows who you'll get to meet.

4-H Memories 80 Years in the Making

In 1930, rural kids in Ohio were in the first generation to grow up with 4-H Clubs, an organization that was rapidly expanding across the country. Teenagers Don Michael and Frances Caylor were among Montgomery County's 4-H members headed to camp that summer.

Frances was happy to get a break from the crowded home where she lived with her aunt, uncle, father, grandfather siblings and cousins--12 in all. Her mother had died a few years earlier in childbirth. Fortunately, Don could give her a ride to camp. He was a farm boy through and through who loved mischief and tormenting his twin little sisters.

Frances (left) and Don (right) both loved 4-H and supported the Montgomery County Fair and 4-H programs for the rest of their lives. UPDATE: Oops. Don was misidentified in my earlier version. The photo above shows the right camper.

Thankfully, they did NOT fall in love that summer. Or else Husband and I would be related. And that could be a problem.

Frances was my grandmother and she shared this photo from 4-H camp and told the story of Husband's grandfather, Don, giving her a ride.

Both our grandparents were very supportive of our years in 4-H and Grandma got to hear about how Ryan, Justin and Morgan were following in our footsteps; we know Husband's GrandDad would have been proud too.

Last weekend we dropped Ryan off at the very same 4-H camp attended by both of his great-grandparents (and his aunt).  Grandma (Frances) had been back about 20 years ago when my little sister was a camper and said then the place had changed very little. UPDATE: My Mom, (Ryan's Grandma) also attended camp!

Ryan had a ton of friends as bunkmates and he had a blast at many camp activities that apparently all involved turning his clothes into a musty, damp ball. (Thank goodness for Funk-Out!)

I like to think that 4-H tradition will continue in our family. And who knows, maybe one of the young ladies at camp this year will be part of the next 80 years of family history.

The Octogenarians

Have I mentioned before how much Husband loves his Hoveround Chair-endorsed TV programs? Oh, I guess so.

Well, the 88 episodes of Matlock clogging our DVR have just risen in value (Joke credit: Husband's brother). On July 3, the year of our Lord 2012, Andy Griffith departed this earth. He is now playing the ukulele in heaven with Dick Van Dyke.

Husband (right) and his father with their idol at Disney's Hollywood Studio.

That crossover episode of Diagnosis Murder and Matlock was CLASSIC. Oh, wait. Dick Van Dyke is still kicking?  Thank goodness! Now Husband still has at least one living octogenarian TV star to admire.

Here's Husband, me and the kids with Mary Poppins and Dick's Disney-approved doppelganger.

Maybe Andy's solving crime or singing show tunes in heaven with Angela Lansbury, then. What?  You say she's still with us too?

Well, it looks like Husband's DVR collection isn't extinct yet, although I'm going to feel terrible if something happens to someone else from Andy Griffith's era that Husband regularly watches on TV.

Photo credit

OK, seriously, James Best from the Dukes of Hazzard knew Andy Griffith? Let's hope old Rosco stays in hot pursuit on this earth for a good while longer.

I shouldn't mock Husband for his wholesome TV viewing habits, especially in this era of reality TV when it feels like every minute watched is causing brain cells to seep out of your body. Fortunately, basic cable will continue to allow us to visit that fishing hole with Andy and Opie whenever we want. Set your DVR.

And I'm Proud to be an American

Can today GET any more American? I'm sitting on the expansive front porch of my un-air conditioned farm house, sipping ice tea/lemonade (I drink them together because that's how AMERICAN I am!) and blogging. Just as our founding fathers imagined it would be.

Also,  because some rodent alert went out that the hunter of the family is out of town, there is a mouse running loose in my kitchen. (This may be the real reason I'm on the front porch, sorry America.)

Speaking of American heroes, have you seen the VIRAL ag video from the Peterson Farm Brothers, I'm Farming and I Grow it.



THIS is America. Kansas farm boys with cut off t-shirts and seed company ball caps, working hard to feed us all. The video was posted Monday by Greg Peterson and now has 3 million 5 MILLON (as of 7/9/12) hits. Take that, P3TA.

UPDATE: The OFFICIAL I'm Farming and I Grow it t-shirts, with percentage benefitting the Peterson's. Ryan is getting one of these!

And because I get a thrill every time the worlds of agriculture and PR collide, I have to share some of the sweet media hits they have earned.

• This Huffington Post piece has links to some other great coverage.
• They were welcomed to the couch on Fox and Friends.
• The holy grail of media coverage: the Associated Press, baby! Out of Witchita with great background I haven't seen elsewhere.
• UPDATE: Associated Press video coverage

Today, my boys are farming and growing it at a hog show. They may never be whisked off to New York City for network media interviews but I know they will be feeding this nation.

Gotta Feed Everybody
Gotta Feed Everybody
Gotta Feed Everybody
(Uh-Huh) I work out (side!)

Our all-American farm kids and cousins had a big day showing hogs at the 2012 National Swine Registry Summer Spectacular. Photo thanks to my sister-in-law.