Stillwaters Farm

Come be restored.

April 22, 2007:  Snow...in April?!?

Yes, you heard me right.  Snow in April

 

On the evening of the 6th, we got a nice little flurry.  Nothing stuck, of course, but it was still officially snow.  Now, to show just how deep my Florida roots run, I was walking through the front pasture this afternoon wondering to myself, “Hmmm...I wonder what’s burning to produce all this ash raining down?”  Well, DUH, it was snowing, of course!

 

This past week’s cold snap—22 degrees was the low—killed all the newly sprouted leaves on the beautiful oaks and crab apples around here.  I’m waiting to see how quickly they re-sprout, IF they re-sprout.  It killed my new Japanese maple, too.  Man, that really made me mad…

 

 

June 1, 2007:  Only at the Farm...

OK, as you all know, there is so much going on here at any given time that it is impossible to keep you updated on everything.  So, I thought that I would share one of those moments that remind us why we’re here.

 

Yesterday morning, I was enjoying my first cup of coffee, looking out the back door onto the pasture and taking in all the early-morning scenery.  One moment, all was well.  I looked over my shoulder and then back out into the field, and in a flash, the world had turned upside down...quite literally for Newman.

 

It seems that he was scratching

a good itch on his side against

the cold hard wire of the

pasture gate.  It felt SOOO

Good that he just kept pressing

in...and WHAMMO!...the gate

sprung open and Newmie

 

Tumbled onto his back with all fours stuck straight up in the air!  The look on his face was priceless.  It must have stunned him for a minute  because he didn’t get up until I’d had a chance to put on my flip flops, bolt out the back door, and run 2/3 of the way to him.  He seemed dazed for a minute or so after he’d gotten up, and then he quietly stepped back into the pasture—hoping, I’m sure, that none of his pasture buddies saw him.

 

Thus, life on the farm...

Off to the Coast Guard!

The day finally came.

 

As many of you know by now, Aaron has taken a

very big step towards adulthood:  joining the

United States Coast Guard.  Much time and

thought went into the decision, and he is very

certain that it is the right choice for him.  A step

toward independence while maintaining the

security of knowing that a paycheck will be there

in the bank every pay period for four years.  Not

to mention a healthy $38K available for college

and all the VA benefits he can stand for life.  Not

a bad trade, really.

 

His “going away” party was Sunday, July 29th, and while we weren’t expecting a whole lot, the entire affair was a sweet send-off for a great guy.  His Tennessee friends came by, and our extended family showed up, too!  Aaron genuinely felt loved and that he would be missed.

 

So, on to Monday!  We left home in the afternoon and went straight to the recruiter’s office in Memphis.  Aaron signed the official paperwork, and we were off to the hotel.  A nice dinner and quiet evening went by.  Then at 4:45 Tuesday morning, Aaron was swept away to the MEPS center for a final physical and the Oath of Enlistment.  He phoned us to let us know that he was on his way to the airport, so we joined him there.  We spent some time talking and laughing with him and his new-found Memphis buddy, Nick—now two “Coasties” on their way.  When the time came, we said our tearful goodbyes and left the airport to spend the day in Memphis waiting on two of the grandkids to arrive that evening.

 

Now, the question comes up:  how do you waste a whole day in Memphis?  We chose to go see Gradeland, Elvis’ home.  While it’s definitely NOT Disney, this mecca of the baby-boomer did give me a deeper appreciation for who the King of Rock “n” Roll really was—a poor Mississippi boy who made it big.  Then, we were off to Olive Garden for a wonderful lunch and a rich dessert to drown our empty nest feelings.  An afternoon at Barnes & Noble, and we were back to the airport to pick up the grand kids.

 

Back home at the farm, a message waited for us.  It was Aaron, of course.  He had good news and bad news.  The good news?  They were safe and sound at the USO office in Philadelphia airport.  The bad news?  It seems that because their plane was re-routed from St. Louis to Chicago and because they had an hour’s delay on the tarmac, they’d missed their bus to boot camp by about two minutes.

 

Wednesday morning, 5:30a.m.:  Aaron called again.  It seems that the nice USO staff put them up in the office at the airport—a most comfortable night’s sleep, I am certain.  However, the bus to camp would arrive at appx. 8:30a.m. and whisk them away to Camp Kick-M-Butt for their eight week transformation into men.

 

And, that is the last call we’ve gotten from him—which is good news, I’m told.  You are not supposed to hear from them by phone for at least six weeks, as long as all is well.

September 26, 2007:  It’s ONLY Eight Weeks...

Eight weeks of boot camp have gone by, our son has graduated without incident, and he has come home for a rest before heading out to begin his schooling for his U.S. Coast Guard career.  We are SO proud of him!

 

Our world has changed, however, as we sent off a boy and got back a man.  He is much more confident and purpose-filled than when he left.  It is a wonderful sight to see him blossom into the man we knew he could be.

It was not an easy transition, though.  Early mornings, long days—pushing beyond physical and emotional limits.  One redeeming aspect, though, was that he was privileged to be a part of the Ceremonial Recruit Band while at Cape May.  And, while offered the opportunity to stay and be a permanent part of the band, he opted to continue on with his training and original career path—one that will afford him better opportunities for advancement and adventure.

 

Aaron and Nick “Memphis”, two Coastie boot camp graduates

October 15, 2007:  What’s a Petting Zoo?

This past weekend, we were privileged to help our new church with their semi-annual picnic.  It was a “dinner on the grounds” type gathering, with music, laughter, and food, food, food!

 

Rather than try to “fit in” with lots of people we don’t really know yet, we opted to donate a “petting area” for the kids to come and get to know a little bit about the farm and all the animals we have here.  We took five donkeys, two miniature

horses, and a BIG sheep.  With Rich posted at the

gate for crowd control and a lot of public relations,

I patrolled the animal area answering questions

and keeping little ones from harm.  A great time

was had by all, and we met lots of wonderful

new friends in the process.

 

Don’t you just love it when a plan comes together?

October 20, 2007:  Makin’ Hay While the Sun Shines

Last week we finished up harvesting and baling our very first hay crop.  Thankfully, with the help of a family friend, we are quickly learning the ins and outs of the business.  And, since we suffered such a long dry spell this summer, hay is in short supply, so the whole crop was sold before it was even baled!  We didn’t even have to pick it up out of the field—the buyer did that.  Talk about a great business!

 

We continue to clear fields, as time permits, so we’re expecting at least triple what we harvested this fall for next spring.  It’s funny...as we cut the sapling forests down, the grass springs up.  We don’t seed or tend.  It just g-r-o-w-s.  So, although this farm has seen cotton and corn, cattle and neglect, I guess this place was always meant to be a hay farm, eh?