An afternoon at the farm

Last weekend we attended our annual CSA potluck picnic. It's one of the things I love about small town living. We belong to a farm for one thing. That was unheard of in my city life growing up. The most open space I knew was the local park. And then there was the annual apple picking trip. But other than that and the occasional camping trip with my uncle and aunt, I knew boulevards, avenues and streets. I rode my bike on sidewalks and streets and played on my grandmother's cement patio and her small contained garden. I can't even tell you what I did from the age of birth to age 4. I probably only saw the outdoors when my father came to take me for the weekend. That's why I love this life I am giving my child. He has so much to see in nature and so much to learn from. And in return, he teaches me how much to appreciate the beautiful place we live in.

The other thing I love about small town living is that when you go somewhere you almost always see a few people you know, which we totally did.  And the food? The food was also out of this world. Three trays of pasta with different in-season veggies. Freshly made bread. Homemade cookies and brownies. Our contribution was a salad that included fresh lettuce from our vegetable garden. Our salad, which had all the fixings, including dressing, was the most popular out of all the salads. Just sayin'.

I can't tell you Cole's absolute favorite part of the picnic, but I can tell you the highlights:
Cole went on his very first hay ride.
Cole got to see new baby chickies.
Cole got to say hello again to the grown up chickens (who may have been baby chicks he saw last year).
Cole climbed a mountain of gravel.
Cole stood by a really OLD tractor.
Cole ran through a maze of wheat grass.

The only thing Cole didn't do was eat much food, which was a crying shame. He nibbled on a few things, but the farm was too exciting to sit down at the picnic bench for too long. Plus, he slept damn well that night. So I'm not complaining.

Here are the best of the best. As you can tell, Dada took them all.

Cole watches a 5-week old baby (not seen in this picture) nurse.

He loooooves chickens. 

Yook at me!

Pure fun.

Baby chicks.