Yes, it's in past tense. Do you need to ask why? Ok, I'll tell you anyway. It's been raining and raining here. Where is summer??? This is ridiculous! Anyway, we are once again heading into a long season of haying. Rob took the May long weekend to cut his first batch of hay down. Now, we're not big time prairie farmers and don't pretend to be. We don't cut hectares of hay and sit in tractors for 24 hours solid. BUT, hubby does: worry about weather and constantly watch the weather network website, work like crazy to get it all done in a week before it rains again, wreck equipment because of hills and valleys, rocks and stumps instead of nice flat land, deal with customers who aren't happy, underpaid and overworked, well...you get the picture.
Despite all of this, haying is one of the parts of farming that we love the most. It is one of the craziest and most demanding parts of his job, but it brings him so much joy! For me it used to mean working with hubby, I would be on one tractor tedding the hay while he followed behind raking. I would drive the truck while we loaded bales, but now it means being the full time parent for days on end, delivering meals to my hungry man, not complaining about the long hours. Baking his favorite treats, delivering LOTS of cold, icy pop to keep his spirits up. And most of all, being supportive to Rob, teaching the kids to appreciate Daddy's hard work, and above all else, praying for safety. We will do this crazy cycle a few more times yet this summer to get it all done.
On the May Long Weekend he got all his hay cut, tedded, raked and dried, ready to be baled up into round bales by our friend George. We were waiting for George to come that evening (George does work around the clock) and so we fired up the bbq for a special supper I had prepared. Bro Ken was coming over for his usual Monday night feed and we had just started to relax and anticipate a nice evening together when....George pulled up...hours ahead of time. Hubby dropped the bbq lighter and ran for the fields, needing to rake a few more rows of hay. Well....there goes that. So, Kenny stepped up to the bbq, cooked the meat, helped me get the kids all fed and helped clean up. What a sweetie. After we were all done we took the kids for a walk out to the field (another favorite part of haying) and wandered through the fields while watching Daddy & George. It ended up being a great evening. So...that's a taste of what's going on over here. The clouds lifted yesterday with sunny skies in the forecast so.... here we go again.
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For the last few years I'd already been thinking about Mom's 60th Birthday. I had many different ideas about how make it a special one for her. Mom's not a big party person...obviously I didn't inherit that gene, but I wanted to do something to honour her. A few months back I started talking to Mom casually about it. I promised I wouldn't throw a big surprise party. That would be the WORST gift I could give her! Mom doesn't like being in the spot light! A few things I knew....First, I wanted it to be a classy affair. Second, I wanted her surrounded by those people in her life who love her dearly. I contacted a friend who owns the local tea shop in our historic part of town. We talked about the possibility of having an 'after hours' party so we could have the whole restaurant. I had a guest list of about 30 women. Then, I took the time to really question Mom about what SHE would like for her birthday and she decided on a smaller, more intimate gathering. I contacted a group of girls who mom has been friends with for years and years. They have met weekly for about 30 years to share their lives together and pray for one another and their families. These girls have been a huge support system to Mom as she's dealt with a devestating cancer diagnosis this past year. So, today was the day. I secretly pulled Olivia out of school, dressed the girls up, even let them wear lipstick! We picked up 2 dozen roses, and headed to Mom's to drop off Isaac with Grampa. The girls crouched down in the backseat and didn't make a peep the whole way to the restaurant. ( I didn't think they'd pull it off...) When we got there they jumped up and yelled surprise to Grandma...she was definitely surprised - her face lit up like I can't describe! We went to Serendipi Tea where the staff had prepared a lovely table, complete with the same China my mom collects. They served us noon tea with tiers of fancy sandwiches, peti-fours, and scones complete with devonshire and jam. We had a wonderful time together celebrating the beautiful, strong woman that my Mom is. So Mom, this gift is one of the ways that I want to express to you my love and admiration, my thanks for teaching me so many things growing up, and my gratitude for your constant encouragement and support. I love you for the friend you are and the amazing Grandma you are to our kids. Blessings to you on your birthday and in the year to come. I wish you health, happiness and an understanding of how special you truly are. Happy Birthday!
