When Boys Meet Farm

When my dad’s great-grandparents settled in the U.S., they established themselves in a small town in Michigan and set to work as farmers. That was back in the mid-1800s.

I’d always known the story but never gave it much thought. Until my dad died two years ago. As I began sifting through his personal items, I quickly learned how much he’d been interested in our family history. He’d built up quite a collection of photos and other records, many of them linking back to the old farm.

Turns out the family farm still exists today. And I can now proudly boast that I have been there to see it. So just how do a couple of city kids pass time on a farm?

Ride on cool farm equipment.
We’ve seen plenty of tractors at other farms we’ve visited, but getting to ride on one with the farmer himself? Nothing beats it!

Run through puddles.
The little explorer was more excited with the puddles he discovered than with any big fancy tractors.

Play with corn.
It took the grown kids to let us in on this one. Picture a tabletop filled with dried corn kernels. Add toy trucks and tractors and you’re looking at hours of entertainment.

Explore a corn maze.
One member of our family just happens to host a corn maze on her farm every fall. She was sweet enough to take us on a sneak tour. Even though there are still a couple of months of growing left for the corn, it’s still plenty tall to the big explorer.

Eat corn right off the stalk.
The kids weren’t sure about this one until an aunt showed them just how yummy it was. They liked it so much they forgot to save some for me!

Discover local wildlife.
There were plenty of kittens to chase, new-to-us birds to spot and cool bugs we haven’t seen before. And although we didn’t see fireflies during our time on the farm, we did manage to find a bunch of them swarming around the light outside our hotel room.

Slow down.
The adults shared stories and the kids played indoors and out. We ate food grown just outside the back door. And no one got bored.

I am extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to make this journey. To meet people for the first time and have an immediate connection. And to see that the desire to connect with nature has been in my family for generations.