Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Oliver Kelley Farm

Today the girls and I went to the Oliver Kelley Farm near Elk River, MN, about a half hour west of here. It is a working farm restored from the 1860's. This was our third year to visit, so we were remembering all the animals we'd seen before. This morning at home, Emily said, "I wonder if Daisy will be there?" She has a picture of her with Daisy from last year. Sure enough, Daisy was one of the first animals we saw!The farm does a great job of teaching children about work around the farm and Emily and Bri experienced several new things this year. The first was laundry. They were given a piece of clothing, a bar of soap, and a wash board. The lady in charge of laundry today was Emily so the two Emily's had their picture taken together. Bri, who loves to play in water, had a great time.

Here you can see some of the wash on the line and a man working in the hay field beyond the house.
I'm not really sure why, but pumping water is always one of Emily's favorite things to do. Although Bri couldn't do it on her own, she helped.
We've always visited their big garden, but today the girls had a very important job--picking potato bugs off the potato plants. Emily loved this and Bri joined in too. After they were done picking the bugs, they got to feed them to the chickens. (Sorry I forgot to rotate that picture.)

In the big barn the main attraction was lots of kittens. A few were sleeping on a stack of lumber. One of the mothers was bringing in a mouse for her family and she dropped it just inside the door of the barn. Of course, Bri asked, "Can I pet it?" She has a strange fascination for dead animals.
Another job the girls had fun with was using the big pitchforks moving the hay from one pile to another. Amazingly enough, no one was injured!
This last picture gives you a better view of the house and shows the oxen going out to the hayfield.
We had a wonderful time, as always. There was some rain and some mud, but the girls were good sports. The only part they objected to was the walk back to the car since it was our first year to not bring the stroller. And, next year, Bri will probably be able to pump water. They are growing up so fast.

7 comments:

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Charlotte said...

Great photo's! Heck, even I would luv to pump the water from that well. Actually it looks like fun. Is that weird?

Rob Hearts NY said...

I stumbled upon your blog. I hope this doesn't come off as creepy. I'd love to visit a farm like the one in those pics. I live in Manhattan, so a farm is a very foreign concept.

Margaret said...

Rob, did you read my post The Best of Both Worlds? I live in the country, but also love the city. Manhattan is a fabulous place and I love to maneuver my way around all the sights there.

Susan said...

I always loved pumping water at Grandma and Grandpa Miles' old place when I was little.

Unknown said...

Margaret it is easy to see that all of you had a wonderful time. Pictures were amazing. I have only began to travel in my later life and enjoy so much seeing new places and meeting interesting people. Thanks for your post. Mine is called "The Simple Life" and is located at http://odielangley.blogspot.com drop in any time. Have a great weekend

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