Quiet On The Farm

This farm is quiet!  Raising your kids on a farm is a dream come true mixed with dirty fingernails and smelly clothes.  With my husband growing up on a farm and being a 4-H kid, he was counting the days that his own children could be in 4-H.  Our oldest turned out to be a ballerina.  She did however like to do other 4-H projects and took pigs to the fair to bond with her daddy I think.  Our son came along and being the pleaser of the family joined in to take pigs too (only to find out many years later that he hates 4-H and pigs).  Then the baby came along and wanted to take horses and beef, and tried her hand at turkeys, rabbits and goats too. 

There were steers to be walked, a horse to be ridden, turkeys to be washed, pigs to be chased and lots of stalls to be cleaned along with record books to be filled out.  On top of that was all of our school work as we schooled at home.  Field trips, tutor sessions, lab classes and science fairs.  We were running around like chickens with our heads cut off!

NOW.....they are all married and some with children of their own.  Here is the hard part.  They are still my "kids", but they are adults.  They have adult decisions of their own to make now.  I want them to carry on with the 4-H ritual, but guess what?  My son hated it so he will probably take a different route.  He might not school his children at home either.  My granddaughter may not take ballet and maybe none of them will love farm animals. 

THAT'S O.K.  We raised them to have a good life and experience all we could offer them.  Now they can make their own choices for new experiences for themselves and their family.  I may even learn something new by watching them!  We raised good kids.  I swore to myself I would never say those words until they were on their own.  Now I can say it.  Not with pride for us as parents, but by the grace of God and daily prayers.  Prayers that they would not be who we wanted them to be, but who their creator fashioned them to be.  The unique qualities are exciting!!!  You can't take a clay pot that a potter made and reform it into the kind of pot you want it to be.  It's been fired! 

I have to remind myself of this a lot.  The urge to jump in and start telling them how they should do things is a little overwhelming at times.  But then I have to step outside of my "mother" body and look at them as just another person.  Then I realize that they are full blown adults that will make the decisions they want to make whether I like it or not.  And guess what?  I TRUST THEM. 

Yep!  It's quiet here.  Now it's time for my husband....He's been sitting in the background working harder than any man should have to just keeping us going.  See ya later kids...  We are going to have some fun.  Just give us a call when you need us and we will see if we are available!   We love you all!

MOM