Hello all!  Many of you have been to our Mother’s day make and take events in the past.   We’ve been offering this fun time of decorating and planting your own pot of flowers for many years now and I’m always happy to see all the people who bring their little ones to this farm event.  It’s especially nice to see the “Dads” and other Father-like figures who bring their kids to make something special for Mommy and Grandma, Mee-Maw, Mom Mom and Nana.

For just $7 you can bring your child (or yourself!) and help him or her plant a nice pot of colorful annual flowers and then decorate the pot with foamy stickers and/or paint if you prefer.  If you decide to paint then you’ll need to allow yourself time to shop around the market so the paint can dry!  We would love for you to stay and shop, so this is a choice we highly recommend!

Make a homemade card with supplies provided too.  Finish your experience with a snack, drink and visit with our friendly farmyard friends.

Be sure to bring your camera to document the whole event.  Print those pics and add them to your gift; Mom is sure to love her special present, complete with story on how you created it together.

REMEMBER, all supplies are provided:  flowers, soil, pots, decorating items…and ADULTS are certainly welcome to come and plant too for a fun day out of the house.  Make one project or make ten projects!  Just $7 per project!

This event is on Saturday, May 11 from 10:30 to 11:30 AM.  Meet us in the big tent and wear your farm clothes because we don’t shy away from getting dirty here!  Don’t forget to pre-register by emailing us at info@paulusfarmmarket.com .

See you soon!

Thank you!  You clicked on my blog despite my annoying plea!  :0  I haven’t written a blog since the fall so I just felt the need to seem a bit desperate for readers; ’cause I am.   It’s January and I have the ‘whim whams’ as Nan always called them.  Time for some productivity despite the howling winds blowing outside my window.  Time to write!  And then it’s time to clean my house.  No, I didn’t save the best for last today.  Ugh, I am dreading that part of my day.  Anywho…

Super Bowl.  Let me just start out by saying that I do not know football.  I do not pretend to know football.  I do not even enjoy it all that much.  The thing that I do enjoy is the tradition surrounding the biggest football game of the year.

Tradition.  That’s a standard word in our family.  We have Chilson traditions and we have Paulus traditions.  Someday we’ll have other family traditions too.  And by tradition I mean, anything that we’ve done even once as a family and we really liked and so now the kids (and adults) expect it every year and if we don’t do it, it’s really quite disappointing and we’ll never forget to do it again because it’s easier just to do it than to look at the sad little faces surrounding us and answer all the questions as to ‘why’ we aren’t doing it again this year.  Yes, mom, I know that was a horribly grammatically incorrectly worded sentence…so is this one.    The whim whams make you do crazy things sometimes.  Even as crazy as using incorrect grammar.

I digress.

Tradition.  We love it.  We own it.  We change it from time to time.  But Super Bowl Sunday always, ALWAYS, has one thing for us.  B-I-N-G-O!

So BINGO is a pretty common game.  You’d say most people know how to play it, right?  Right.  It’s a game you can play with tots and a game that teenagers think is still cool as long as you have the right prizes.  It’s a game that we adults love too, with prizes, right or wrong!  It’s a game that my in-laws do up right!

On Super Bowl Sunday, when we walk in to my mother and father-in-law’s home, we will smell wonderful ribs cooking.  We will ooh and ahh over the kitchen island filled with decadent and savory dips to go with crunchy chips.  But soon after, sometimes even before we start noticing these delights, we look to the left of the food table to another table and see them- The BINGO prizes.

Now, I’ve never been shopping for these coveted prizes, but I’m picturing it as a great deal of fun.  My father-in-law and mother-in-law with a shopping cart at the dollar tree or the grocery store or wherever their hearts may take them this particular time, are smiling.  They’re looking for some fun.  Some fun stuff for the family.  What will make everyone smile this year?  What will get a laugh?  What will the kids like?  How many of these should we get?  I can picture it clearly.  The giant tubs of cheese curls, peanut butter, hot cocoa mix, olives (we could do without those, thank you), candy and mac ‘n cheese come to mind.  Yes, we Pauluses do love food.  Some of us have better taste than others (you olive lovers come to mind and you know who you are, Matt and Dan!).   At one time, when the kids were smaller, we had lots of fuzzy stuffed animals.  There are always goofy trinkets along with the food.  There are always useful items too…dish sponges come to mind!  They’re usually some of the last choices on the table, but they’re also snapped up when the time is right!  Some things are obviously for a certain someone but many times end up going home with someone unexpected.  We’re ruthless that way!

It must be a great time to shop for these prizes.  I know that it’s a great time to sit around the dining table, munch on snacks, listen to my father in law call the bingo numbers and anticipate the first, second, third, fourth…fifteenth shout of ‘BINGO!’  Everyone gets prizes, not because we’re fair that way, but because we play and play and play.

Determination and perseverence run high in this family and we help each other achieve along the way.  It may be a BINGO game, but it’s also a tradition.  And tradition is what we’re all about whether it’s a simple game or just life in general.  Neither is easy unless you have your family’s support.  That’s another thing that we ALWAYS have.

So happy Super Bowl to you; may you start your own traditions that bring you closer together as a family.

Feel free to adopt our traditions…maybe you’ll run into my in-laws while they’re shopping for prizes.  I’m sure you’ll have fun.

It feels like Christmas here on the farm because we have a new toy!  It’s big and it’s shiny and it’s bright yellow!  It makes noise and smoke too.  It didn’t come with a red bow, but it did arrive with quite a fanfare down the highway!    Passersby gave the ‘thumbs-up’ sign according to our creator/builder/super enthused, delivery man.  Drivers craned their necks to get  a better look at what was being hauled down route 15 behind Mark’s van.

Mark.  The man behind it all.

He got the team together and told us if they built it, customers would come…to the market to try it.  “It will be awesome!”  “No one else has anything like it around you!”

So “Team Smokin’”, the 7th in the nation world champion punkin chunkin’ team, built us a Pumpkin Chunker and we named it the “Harvest Hiccup!”

and now it’s here…

We’ve been “chunkin punkins” from this air-powered cannon for the past week and a half now and I have to say that it is fun!

“It is super fun!”  -according to our boys who also love to shoot potatoes and corn out of the cannon.

Smiles come from all who try it.  Big boys, small boys, Big girls, small girls…everyone is serious when they choose their pumpkins and then place them in the cannon.  They then stand back and wait for the air tank to fill…to about the count of 15.  It’s a long 15 seconds!  After that, it’s time.

Time for the eager customer to pull the lever.  “3, 2,1…shoot!”

Eyes widen at the sheer distance and then, the “chunk!”  The pumpkin goes about 500 ft and explodes on impact.

What could be more exciting?  LOL

You’ll just have to try it to believe it

If you’d like to come to the farm and have some fun, please see below:

Saturday 9-5 Sunday 11-4       Fall fun fort, hay play tent, farm zoo, and hayride to the corn maze, u-pick pumpkins* and pumpkin chunker*  admission $4 per person, all ages 1 and up to adult

*u-pick pumpkins are an additional charge of $2, $5 or $8 depending on size and pumpkin chunker is $3 for one pumpkin launch or 2 launches for $5 (includes the pumpkin)

Special hours on Thursday and Friday 5-7 PM     admission $1 per adult for a hayride to the corn maze, u-pick pumpkin patch* and pumpkin chunker*  Children’s admission is $4 (also includes farm zoo, hay play tent and fall fun fort)

Weekday children’s special  Monday through Friday 9-7  admission $3 per child for fall fun fort, farm zoo and hay play tent area only

We hope to see you soon!

So yes, I know we have it pretty good.  People tell me that.  People tell our kids that.  People tell my husband that.  We know it’s great to live on a farm.  There is no doubting it.

Until.

Mid summer hits and the kids are looking for “other” things to do.  Read, ‘non-farm related’ people.  They’ve planted and picked.  They’ve explored the fields and tended to the animals. They’ve entertained themselves for quite some time with all the “farm stuff” and they’ve enjoyed themselves immensely.  Our family vacation to the north is still a couple of weeks away and now they’re wondering what else they can do.

Oh sure, they have loads of toys, books to read, friends to play with and they still have all their regular farm chores:  tending to their garden, feeding/watering the rabbit, quail and pheasants, walking the dog and helping out wherever else we might need them.  But what else?  Well, left with a good deal of  free time, these boys’ imaginations soar with other things that might be better than living on and tending to the farm that we have.

Quotes from our farm boys:   “Wouldn’t it be cool to live in the woods?” (Their grandfather has a cabin in the woods) ”Why can’t we have a creek on our farm?” (Aunt Donna has a creek by her house that the boys frequent) “Why can’t we finish our basement complete with a home theater, jacuzzi and a popcorn maker?” (Um, I don’t know anyone who has this but maybe the kids do) ”I wish we had a giant camper and could travel the world!” (Ryder checks them  out at the garage near Maggie’s Italian Ice)  “Let’s make homemade ice cream and sell it at the market!”  (The word ‘let’s' undoubtedly excludes them and means that they think their father and I should find another 40 hours a week somehow to make ice cream on top of everything else that has to be done) ”How about building a pool?” (Their Aunt Sha Sha, who lives just down the road, has one so don’t let them fool you into thinking they’re at all deprived of swimming this summer!)  The list goes on and on…:)  And although they’re really not complaining, it does get tiring hearing of all their wants.  I wonder if kids who live at the beach (my dream) get sick of it and wish they lived on a farm.  Probably.  Maybe.  I’m sure there are times.

But it’s okay, I know they love it here and it’s healthy to dream.  Maybe someday they or we will have/do these things.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed on the ice cream and big camper dreams.

The grass is always greener on the other side.  I ask the boys if they know what that means.

Insert much eye rolling from my kids right about now.  Okay.  I smile.  It’s time to make slime.

“What?”  Eye rolling has turned into eyes widened.  Ah, I’ve got something and it doesn’t require moving, major construction, building permits, change of occupation, lots of time or buckets of money.  In fact, it doesn’t involve anything more than a few ingredients and I guarantee a good time whether you live on a farm, at the beach, in the woods, in a camper or by a creek.  And it, the slime, need not be green as my youngest thought when considering my quote of grass being greener and then the suggestion of making slime.   I guess the connection is a long shot, but hey at least it got him thinking.

Nothing lifts a mood more in my house than the creation of something new, especially if it’s messy!  So here is my favorite boredom buster recipe.  After we make it and the boys have had ample time to squish it and make gross sounds with it, they like to use it with their army guys and rubber bugs.  We usually make it green or brown to give it that extra disgusting touch, but I believe that later today when we make another batch, that I will try making mine pink and adding some glitter to it!  That way I can be sure none of the boys in my house will touch it

SLIME RECIPE (NON-EDIBLE):  3/4 C. warm water, 1 C. Elmer’s glue, food coloring.  Mix together in one bowl.  In another bowl mix 4 tsp. Borax (this stuff is in the laundry section and it works awesome for so many other things too; you’ll love it!) and 1 1/3 C. warm water.  Pour contents of 1st bowl into the 2nd bowl.  DO NOT STIR.  Let set for 1 minute.  Remove from bowl and set on coated paper plate or bowl or waxed paper.  Do not put on cloth.  Store in air tight container.  Can add water during playtime for more slimy consistency.  This is a great activity for parties or as party favors in cool containers…even for the kids who seem to have it all

Make a container of it in every color imaginable while the weather is warm and play with it outside because it does stick to clothing, furniture, carpet and the cat.  Trust me on this!

Have a happy day

“What do we do at farm camp?”  says my first little camper this past Monday.  And so, the questions ran down the whole line of little campers.  “Yeah, what do we do?”  “When do we get to play on the horses, the wagon and the giant tractor tires?”  “When do we feed the animals?”  “When can we get sugar cookies?”  “When do we eat lunch?” 

Hee hee, these kids already have it figured out.  They’ve been here before and they already know many of the things we do with kids on our farm.  They’re excited because they feel at ease here.  They’ve been here many times with preschools and kindergarten.  With their families too.  I’m happy for this because that means they must like it here.  Turns out, many of them love it here.  My job should be easy this week.

Oh Amy.  Really?  You should know better.  Having been a schoolteacher at one time.  Being a mother now.  How old am I?  Easy?  Ha!

Monday morning.  Along with the flood of questions came an almost flood of rain to match.  Scrap the garden planting and raspberry picking.  Scrap the free-time to play on those giant tires, wooden tractor and horse swings.  Scrap the leisurely stroll through the farm fields to go on a nature walk and fill our wonder jars with treasures.

Dig out the board games.  Okay, Hi Ho Cherrio-sounds “farmy.”  How about the buzzy busy bee game?  We can work in how important bees are on the farm. Oh, here’s a chicken and egg game! Thank goodness I’m a pack rat and haven’t discarded these games even though my own children haven’t played them in a couple of years.   So now we have appropriate”fillers” to keep everyone busy…for about 10 minutes anyway.

Okay, we can still paint the flower pots and we can even plant them under the security of the big tent.  We can plant sunflower seeds in recycled mini yogurt containers that I’ve been saving for a few months.  We can read about the life cycle of a sunflower.  We can transplant tomato plants.

And now the kids have ideas…water the sunflower seed pots with the rain dripping off the edge of the tent, wash their hands in the drips too, play “farmer says” and giggle hysterically while they run around oinking like piglets.    And now, the rain has stopped!

Time to check out those animals.  We feed, pet, and talk to all the animals.  None are neglected.  All are admired and the kids want to do more.  Endless energy.  And luckily, it’s contagious!

Now to the wooden tractor, horse swings and giant tires.  Games are played.  Turns are taken.  Audrey (my fabulous camp helper) and I can actually take a few minutes to get a drink of water and chat a bit.  Until someone needs to go to the bathroom-and that one person turns into four.  Here we go.

A perfect day at farm camp?  Everyone went home smiling and everyone came back the next day.  That’s close enough for me.

On to Tuesday.  Still a bit cool, no rain.  Great weather for farm camp and it’s sheep shearing day!

Sheep are caught and controlled.  “How many of you have ever gotten a haircut?”  All hands shoot in the sky.  “Does it hurt when you get a haircut?”  I realize this is a dangerous question as soon as it’s finished coming out of my mouth.  Everyone shakes their heads ‘no’ and I am feeling better.  “That’s what it’s like for the sheep. So don’t worry about them if they are making noises and carrying on.  They’re just a little nervous.”  I’m preparing the kids, hoping that the sheep won’t be carrying on, that we won’t traumatize anyone because remember, these kids love it here!  I don’t want to mess that up.

First response as we’re watching?  “Giggle, giggle-ew, that is so gross; look at it’s butt!”  Roar of laughter from the whole lot of them.  Okay, so they’re not traumatized, just grossed out.  I can deal with that.  They continue to watch in awe, or disgust, whichever it is, they can’t seem to take their eyes off the whole scene.  Snap some pictures for Facebook of the sheep shearing and now we’re off to something new.  Whew.

A farm walk through the fields wielding a “wonder jar” proves to be a favored activity among this curious group.  Rocks, herbs, leaves, flowers, bugs, asparagus fern, feathers and other treasures quickly fill the children’s fists and then find their way into the already overflowing, heavily decorated little plastic tubs that serve as our wonder jars.  The parents are just going to love me today

And then we plant those painted flower pots since we ran out of time yesterday.  In the middle of the planting, the silliness begins.  Okay, time for some free-play, lunch and then send them home.  We made it through another day and it was a good one too.

Wednesday.   I’m up at 6 and let the dog out to fetch the paper.  Ugh, the blast of humidity that greats me as I open the door is an unpleasant start to this day.  And then I remember-farm camp.  Oh my, I hope no one is miserable in this heat.  It’s raspberry picking day.

They’re ready.  They can’t wait to pick raspberries!  Pint-sized hands carrying pint-sized containers and walking in a nice little row is sweet until we leave the shade of the animal area and hit the field.  We’re not even 3/4 of the way to the patch before I hear the complaining begin.  Smile, just smile.

We make it to the patch and the novelty of it outweighs the heft of the heat.  Once instructed on the proper ways of picking and ways of avoiding the thorns, the kids go at it.  Purple finger tips and some tell-tale purple mouths appear quickly, soon after the start of picking the ripe black raspberries.  Boxes are filling slowly but surely.  I mean to snap photos but never get a chance.  Help is needed and requested by some more than others and I am happy to lend a hand.  The sun beats and we’re ready to move on in only 15 minutes.  That’s okay.  I’m starting to feel pretty sweaty out here; I’m sure Audrey is feeling the same way and by the looks of these kids, they’re in need of a drink and some shade.  Coming up.

To the bakery to learn what we do with fresh fruit, besides eating it right away.  Now we pick up our ice-cream making supplies.  1/2 and 1/2, sugar, rock salt, large and small baggies, ice and vanilla along with the recipe for some “baggie ice cream” and our pints of raspberries.  The kids are excited.

Up to the tent.  Wash the berries.  Put the cookies in containers.  Make the ice cream.  Create berry, cookie sundaes.

It didn’t go nearly as smoothly as it sounds here, but we’ll pretend it happened that way.   I’m sure the part that the kids will remember is eating all that delicious cold sweetness on a sultry day.  That’s all that matters.

The rest of the time, what little there was left, was spent eating lunch and hanging out in the shade.  The “garden and dirt-loving” kids puttered around with some more planting and dug around in the wheelbarrow of soil.  Our animal lovers fed the veggies from their lunches to the rabbits because they said their moms packed those special for the rabbits.  Hmmm, sorry to the parents if that wasn’t true.   And our keen observers and future farm managers did just that.  They observed, read farm stories, chatted about this and that and managed the heat….the 90 degree heat with nearly 100 percent humidity.  Farmers, even wee ones, work in all kinds of weather.

It was a good three days and I’ll miss those kids.  However, I’m pretty sure that they’ll be back.  They’ve taken some ownership here.   They are right to do that.  This is the farm where my family lives, works and plays.  But it is also our community’s farm.  We welcome all of these children and everyone else in our town and out of it to visit, enjoy and learn.  And farm camp?  We’ll offer it again next year and every year after as long as we are able.  Thanks to those kids who joined us this, our first year!  See you soon

please visit us at www.paulusfarmmarket.com or just come on out-it’s much more exciting live and in-person than it is on the web.