His Wife...Their Mother: Enough for Today!

Hello friends.

Sorry but this is going to be a long post. It has been too long since I jotted down my thoughts. Life has just been rushing right along as it tends to do, whether we are ready for it or not. Many new life experiences within our family over the past year and a half.....

JoCasta and Wayne's daughter, Bella was diagnosed with juvenile arthritis the week before Christmas, December of 2012. She spent a week in the hospital and came home on Christmas Eve. Although we knew many of her joints were affected, visibly swollen and painful, we just could not grasp how painful until we began to notice her developmental delay. She stopped crawling, pulling up, cruising and baby jabber. I can tell you truthfully in the first weeks and months after her symptoms appeared we wanted so much to help, but felt useless. We could provide little relief for Wayne and JoCasta as Bella would have no one else but the two of them. She just could not trust that anyone else could hold her in that special way and comfort her like mom and dad. Our friends and family continued to pray and with God's help and the excellent care of a wonderful physician, Dr Stein at UNC-Hospital, Bella is doing much better. We were so excited when we received a video last summer of Bella walking, finally at 18 months. What a difference a year made. She began taking Hippotherapy (riding horses) once a week on her 2 year birthday. Therapy was very painful in the beginning with a lot of tears. Now she loves it and looks forward to therapy days. She has been learning to talk and working with a speech therapist and another therapists to assist with movement. Although we don't understand all the words we love to hear her hum and sing what is clearly a lovely tune of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.

Chistmas morning 2012. Just home from the hospital.

In the beginning Harland and I drove down to help as leaders and side walkers as Charlotte gets to be a companion rider on therapy days. She is blossoming into a horse lover as well. Harland and I chuckled together on our way home remembering her saying, 'I am really good at this'! She just spent a week here at the farm, going home on Sunday. At 4 now, she is so sharp. She doesn't miss a thing and REMEMBERS everything. She loves it here and looks forward to each day helping with farm chores and checking on the animals. We love having her here!

Audrey and Jon blessed us with another beautiful little girl in March of 2013. Her name is Wren. I spent almost three weeks with them at their home in Leesburg, Virginia. In addition to a new baby they also closed on their new home the day after Wren was born. The first week we packed and prepared to move to Purcellville, while we waited on Wren to arrive. Then we cleaned, painted and moved after she arrived. It was busy, but I loved being able to help and spend time with Audrey, Jon and Wren. Everyone came up to see the new addition to the family and see their new place. We were just up to visit with them for Wren's first birthday a couple of weeks ago. I stood in front of their house just thinking it seems impossible they had been in their lovely home for a year and Wren could be a year old already. Wren is one of those babies that wants to get all her milestones gathered all at one time. She is so smart....at Christmas she got one of those little walk behind toys and she immediately pulled up and put it to use. Audrey send us a video of her walking down the hallway like she had been doing it forever. She is taking a couple of steps on her own now then plopping down. So it won't be long before she is off and running. She is also learning so many words. She watches your mouth move and copies quietly. Then she just spits out a new word. I think one of the funniest things she does is shake her finger when you sing No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed. Audrey told her that story one time and she picked that finger thing up right away. She is a little pistol!

Wren walking with her push toy after Christmas.

Almost two years ago now, Chris came to visit and had "The Talk" with Harland. Of course we were thrilled that Chris wanted to marry Amber and finally become an official member of our family. After they set a date and asked if they could get married here on the farm, Harland and I looked around and began to see the farm though new eyes. We spent all of 2013 getting the farm ready, repairing fences, rebuilding the arena and cleaning out the barn. As well, many other projects we had wanted to do for a long time, but put off to take care of everyday chores. Expecting wedding guests from all over the US, Chris' family would be traveling from the Seattle, WA area and the west coast. As well, their friends from high school and college were spread out across the US. Well ahead of the event we planted grass and fenced off the area they selected as their wedding site from the cows. Amber and Chris had a goal for their wedding. They just wanted a simple wedding with a big party to celebrate. A few days before the wedding the crew arrived to put up the huge tents in the arena with a big dance floor and lots of tables and chairs. We moved hay bales down to the wedding site and covered with our precious old family quilts and borrowed quilts from friends . My cousin Tommy Archer is a minister. He and his wife Cindy drove down from Indiana to officiate the wedding. He also officiated Audrey and Jon's wedding. It was special to our family to have him here with us and be an important part of this event. So on the cloudy and misty day on October 19th 2013, our great and best friend Skeet Davis pulled a trailer with Amber and her bridesmaids across the pasture to the arena. As they stepped off the trailer the sun popped out on queue! Harland walked our last (unmarried) little girl down the aisle. I have to say their goal was accomplished as a big time was had by all. We celebrated and danced the night away and made great memories right here on the farm where she grew up.

Two weeks ago we were with Amber and Chris in Columbia, SC for 'Match Day". A celebration all medical students in the US have on the same day to learn where they will do their medical residency. The medical school at USC-Columbia invites all the families of their students to share this celebration. We were excited with her as she learned she will do her residency in Dermatology at Einstein Hospital in the Bronx, NYC and a preliminary year with Internal Medicine at Palmetto Health Richland in Columbia, SC.

Harland is nearing the end of his latest project. He is building barn specifically for feeding hay to the cattle. The end result is the ability to stock five or six bales of hay at once in the trough, keep hay off the ground and dry, cows can shelter out of the weather with continuous access to hay. Less weeds in the pasture from rolling out hay.

As you know in 2012 I became a beekeeper. In summer and fall of 2013 while we were busy preparing for Amber's wedding, I also took my first honey harvest, designed and put together a label and purchased bottles. After the wedding, cleanup, Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays and a 'bout with the flu in January, I finally began to bottle the honey in February. I am currently trying to develop an on-line store to sell my honey. In addition to selling honey, my goal is to eventually sell honeybees, products from the hive and possibly other products from the farm. Once the website is up and going you will find me at www.topofthehillhoney.com. I hope you will visit me there soon!