Stopping By...

So, I know you guys haven't heard from us in a while, but I need you to do me a favor. I've submitted an essay entry for the 2012 CollegePlus! scholarship contest, entitled "A Plodding Visionary". Now this is where you guys come in: from now through August 28 (next Tuesday) I need you guys to vote for my essay. All my Republican friends, please jump party lines for a bit and vote early & often! You can vote once a day from each computer... That is you, your family, your best friend from grade school, your neighbor who mows his grass every Wednesday, that guy who is always in the frozen food section at Stop & Shop... I think you get the idea. ;)

 

I really appreciate it folks!

 

God bless-

 

Samantha Nicole

 

Happy Birthday, Lauren!

15. The year you get to eat whatever you want, whenever you want.

Here's to the end of one year, and the beginning of a new one...

Seamstress. 

Puddle jumping. 

Goofy.

Cowgirl. 

Violinist. 

Gurtle's Yurgin. 

Beautiful. 

Gardener. 

Cutie.

(Along with Miss Leah. ;) 

Fun! 

Sistas. 

Smiley. 

Hard worker. 

Ducky.

Seamus' bestest buddy.

Happy Birthday, Lauren!

We love you!

What's Up NOW!

King Lewis has become the farm pet. He's as adorable as ever and always enjoys a good scratch on the head. 

Pumpkin in the hay crib (one of her favorite places. ;) 

Curly & his son (who tastes mighty fine...) 

The piggies. 

Lumberjack Noah.

(Lovely job Lauren & Gretta ;) 

Guess who! 

Gretta's "I missed you" gift from FL (for Lauren, of course ;). 

Seamus in the snow. 

Ben, lighting himself on fire.  

Josh & Ben aka "the twinsies" working on Ellie. 

Seamus & Chief having a staring competition.

~Lauren & Sam~

What's Up?

Sooooooooo... I guess we haven't posted for a while. Like a LONG while.

Everyone here on the farm is doing great. Samantha is doing college and Ben just almost finished fixing Ellie to drive. Noah is doing school and playing with his neighborhood pals... I am helping run the farm, riding, doing school and anything else farm related. Mom's ........... well doing EVERYTHING a farm mom/wife does and is still teaching us kids. Dad is still going to work every day and running his property management company and on the weekends doing all the BIG guy stuff that doesn't get done during the week. As you can see everyone is pretty busy.

All our cows are pregnant and will be ready to birth late fall. We have about 140 laying hens and they are all laying at least one egg daily. We also have five meat pigs, two barn cats, and Seamus who is as curious,cute, and lovable as before...

That's about everything for right know... when we have time we'll keep you updated and when the calves come we'll be sure to post pictures.

For the Farming Family Crew-

Lauren

Thankful Remembrance

November 18-20, 2011

It's hard to believe that it's time to bundle up and head to Plymouth again! Our family looks forward to this celebration all year, as do so many others. Please join us this weekend for a lovely time remembering early days of our nation, and to thank those who have given so much for our freedom.

Second only to Macy's, America's Hometown Thanksgiving Celebration is something you're not going to want to miss.

Hope to see all of our local friends and family there!

~The Farming Family Crew~

The weekend of festivities has become a beloved holiday occasion as well as an important link to our nation’s history and heritage. For 16 years, hundreds of thousands of people from all walks of life have traveled to the historic Plymouth Harbor and Waterfront to experience a bounty of authentic Americana. The celebration of Thanksgiving becomes history-brought-to-life as Pilgrims, Native Americans, Soldiers, Patriots, and Pioneers proudly climb out of the history books and onto the streets of Plymouth.

~The "Official" Description.

Reformation Day

"Armed dignitaries of Oxford lead the two prisoners to a ditch near Balliol College. Crowds line the route to the stake. The first prisoner, Nicholas Ridley, aged fifty-five, until recently bishop of London wearing a black fur gown, velvet cap and a pair of slippers walks cheerfully to his death. The second prisoner, a former bishop of Worcester and Gloucester, walks behind him, wearing a shabby woolen coat with a frayed cap and handkerchief on his head. ‘Are you there?’ Ridley calls to his dear friend. ‘Yes, I’m coming as quickly as I can’, replies the seventy-five year old Hugh Latimer, affectionately known as ‘old father Latimer’.

'Be of good courage’

At the stake, the two men embrace one another, kneel to pray, and then listen to a fifteen-minute sermon by Dr. Smith on ‘Though I give my body to be burnt and have not charity it profits me nothing’. For the preacher, love to God equals belief in earning salvation by good deeds and sacraments - especially the sacrament of the Mass in which the priest offers Christ as a sacrifice for sins. The condemned men had preached that acceptance with God comes through Christ alone who died on the cross once-for-all to atone for sin – his death makes the re-offering of Christ in the Mass unnecessary and blasphemous.

‘Repent and come home to the Church and you will save your lives and your souls’, thunders the preacher. ‘May we speak?’ asks Ridley. ‘Only if you renounce your erroneous opinions’, replies Dr. Marshall, the vice-chancellor. ‘Well’, he answers, ‘so long as breath is in my body I will never deny the Lord and his truth, God’s will be done to me’. Death by burning is now inevitable.

Ridley gives clothing and other items to bystanders; Latimer has nothing to give. ‘Shall I wear my belt?’ Ridley asks his companion. ‘It will cause you more pain if you keep it, besides it will do a poor man good’, answers Latimer. Ridley throws the belt into the crowd and prays, ‘I beseech you Lord, take mercy upon this realm of England, and deliver the land from all her enemies’.

At the stake the smith fastens a chain round the waists of both men. The executioners tie bags of gunpowder around their necks and light a bundle of sticks at their feet. Latimer says, ‘Be of good courage master Ridley, and play the man, for we shall this day light such a candle by God’s grace in England, as I trust shall never be put out’. As the fagots catch fire, Ridley says loudly, ‘Lord, into your hands I commend my spirit; Lord, receive my spirit!’ Latimer prays, ‘O Father of heaven, receive my soul’. Latimer burns quickly, but Ridley lingers longer because the fire burns badly on his side of the stake.

Tears flowed from hundreds of faces as they watched Nicholas Ridley and Hugh Latimer bravely die on 16 October 1555 – 450 years ago this year. As the flames consumed their bodies, Thomas Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury and a chaplain of Henry VIII watched from his prison window. His turn to die a martyr’s death came the following year on 14 February 1556. These courageous men were just three of some three hundred believers who died during the reign of Mary Tudor, English Queen from 1553 until her death in 1558. A memorial in Oxford, near Balliol College, commemorates the deaths of Ridley, Latimer and Cranmer."

~From Such a Candle - Latimer and Ridley by Stan Evers

May we always remember the stories of old and keep that candle burning, so help us God. A blessed Reformation Day to you all!

For the Farming Family Crew,
Samantha

New York- July Trip

It's hard to believe that the summer is almost over, and two weeks have passed since the end of Wilderness!

It's been a whirlwind of a summer, and I ended up blogging less than I expected. So, here's the first of a few summer catchup posts...

Week #1: On-Campus Survival Building a shelter from materials only found in the wild...
Hunting for ferns.
(This became the dreaded job... I must say, I don't blame them ;)

Learning how to properly hold a toad. The animal scavenger hunt: Ancell searching for minnows...

Rosa's giant worm.

Patience.

The cannibal camp spiderweb, try #1.

Getting the hang of it.

Team work.

Another shot.

Lazy afternoon.

The entrance to the finished shelter: complete with patio and fenced-in yard.

Guardians of the bridge.

The look-out seat.

Testing out Shelly's automatic fan.

Is it waterproof?

(I think we decided it was about 80% waterproof... Let's just say, not everyone remained dry ;)

Week #2: Hiking

Our hikers & Matt at the ice caves trail marker. Strolling.

Heading into the caves.

And there was still ice in July!!!

Yours truly & the cool shaft of light.

Aidan's Rock & Eddie's Drop.

From above.

:D

Templeton the Cheese Man.

Sam's Point.

(Appropriately named ;)

From the summit of Indian Head Mountain.

From peak #1 of Twin Mountain.

Even the clouds were amazing!

From the top of Hunter Mountain. Resting in the highest fire tower in NY.

The view.

A much deserved ride down the mountain.

The rest of the group lookin' cool, as always! ;)

From the lift.

The Hudson Valley from Artist's Rock.

Huckleberry Quinn.

North/South Lake from North Point.

Aslan, taking in the view.

A welcome sight.

Beware of the hot dog! ;)

Templeton & his deliciously cheezy creations!

Looking at these pictures is making my mouth water!

" If you don't..." ;)

Kaaterskill Falls.

Aidan: Taking a dip.

Y

In which we conquer Session #1 of our summer adventure!!!

:D

And I can't end a post about my trip without a picture of my adorable second cousin Dalia!

Y