Shelburne Farms Festival!

This weekend we ventured here....

By way of these...

To pay homage to this ...

What I wouldn't give for a obnoxiously large mantle and this very banner hanging over it, only to remind me everyday of my love for corn.  Silly I know, but it just is and always will be.  

Check out this fantastic fire pit they were roasting the corn over!  

 And it was only a dollar and I should have bought two!  Did you know that, over the summer, we went to an amusement park (where I discovered how much a loathe an amusement park) and I paid EIGHT dollars for an ear of corn and a small bottle of water?  EIGHT.  and it was all I found there that I could stomach.  

The whole day!

 But this corn was a buck.  We all had one.  It was scrumptious.   And if they had asked I would have paid eight dollars for this taste of cob... hold the butter and the salt, for its natural state right off the fire can not be topped. period.

 These next few photos presents a sequence of events that proves I am still a timid country bumpkin.  The city in this girl is still predominate.  I cannot tolerate bugs, the rain makes me frazzled, and as it seems; working with plants flat out stumps me...

 trying to look like I have an inkling of what is going on around me.... yes, okay, I can do this...

 ...then, after mere moments, I admit defeat and look to my Mr. for a life preserver... I am drowning in failure in enchanted land...help.

Good thing Matt is familiar in all things awesome...

 and created a crown for our young lass...

I suppose I have some work to do in the areas of awesomeness. 

After corn munching, crown crafting, Scottish music listening, necklace making, maple cotton candy gawking, and BEFORE leaving... we had to check out a bale maze.

  Fortunately we had a couple of very sly foxes to lead the way. 

and after it was over we took in the view.  and expressed gratitude. because it was lovely.

Tomorrow is the annual food festival at the little farm down the road... ya know, the gorgeous 1400 acre working farm nestled right on the loveliest lake... check it out HERE.

We are looking forward to a farm fresh lunch, the tunes of some  local musicians, hayrides, and seeing what a bale maze is all about!

I hope to see these sweet birdies too...

Come along why don't you??

 Every morning is the same, it goes a little something like this...

Alarm rings at 5am.  

I race out of bed and dart into the living room to turn it off.  The alarm being located in the next room is intentional.

It is super dark.

I check the weather app on my phone and also look out to see if it is raining. Sometimes they have conflicting forecasts.

It looks good to go.

I begin to pace.

10% of the time I end up back in bed.

Most of the time I throw my shoes on and head out.

Today... I paced and paced.  I put my socks on and then took them off.  I sat on the bed and then went back to the kitchen.  I poured some cereal then poured it back in the bag.  

It is dark at 5am.  It is chilly too.  and I am so so tired...

But, I have a mantra.  I will feel better if I go, better than if I go back to bed...

And let me tell you, today, it was worth it!

The fog was out in full form...

Even over the lake which I usually do not see...

 

Then the sun began to rise and it wasn't so dark.

 And this treasured sight, the Farm Barn...  

It always takes my breath when i see it...

especially on a foggy morning...

 and I ran six miles... to the lake and back.  I feel perfectly sore and much better than if I had fallen back into bed.  I went home and showered and got myself ready and on my way to work...  An hour later Mr. Witt emails me... did you run today?  He sleeps so soundly thru my rustlings in the early morning hours.

--------------

Children are still away.  I miss them terribly.  All the quiet, we as Mothers, look for... 

well, once you get it...

can be deafening.

SO.... I have rediscovered an old passion.  I will be posting on my happenings soon.  Cannot wait to show you what I have been up to.  wink, wink...

Shelburne Farms...

My goodness this place is breath taking... 

I can hardly believe that we managed to move a mile down the road from one of the loveliest farms this fine state has to offer... jeez!

The junior Witts have been attending camp here this summer, how lucky are they??  This week is themed 'A Week at Hogwarts'... 

 WHAT?  So jealous of them, more on that to come....

Due to there unique understanding of the farm and its day to day shenanigans, they were excited to show us around.  I was so glad that Kylee and Kris were here for the very thorough tour too!

 

We rode in on what I call the lazy truck. 

I call(ed) it that because I am usually running when it drives by and I am **haboobed by the dust it kicks up!  I made fun of it on the way over and we all agreed to walk to the farm barn... but then, when we got there and saw it, well it looked like a lot of fun!  So I no longer call it names, I just hold my breath as it passes by and smile.

**Haboob is a new term that we have all recently learned thanks to bizarre dust storms in AZ.

 Gabrielle could not wait to introduce us to the ever so sweet baby goats Honey and Crisp.  They are extra special to little Gabi Goose because they were born on June 21st; her birthday and the 

summer solstice.

One of them was particularly fond of Noahs fingers.

These chores are up daily for children and adults to come and enjoy!  We  have a yearly membership and can participate anytime.  Though I do not recommend feeding these...

They stink!

Next up on the tour de witt; a hike to whimsy meadow.  Can you imagine such a place?  Noah says it is straight out of Alice in Wonderland....

Um, which way??

Oh, Phew!  Thanks guys!

Sadly, and gladly, I was so taken with whimsy meadow and all of its wonders I failed to take one picture.  After many twists and turns we found our way in, and then out, and then to this quaint little bench...

overlooking this beautiful vista...

Did I mention I love this place?  Well I do.  So very much.

 We made our way back to the Farm Barn.



Noah and Gabi were insisting on a climb to the top of the clock tower.



They assured us that they had already been up there, like oh my gosh, you haven't??



But it was a tad warm and the older people were feeling like a cold beverage!




So we settled for a peak at the school they attend...

Noah ended our tour with a speech.  He made sure that to tell us that he knows we have a lot of choices out there but wanted to thank us for choosing Witt... now where have I heard that one before???

thanks darlings!!

and for the record... this is what the farm looks like early in the morning, before any of the people are up...

see these lovelies... heavenly.

For the love of FOG

The landscapes that this Earth has to offer is nothing short of spectacular.  Even the barren southwest caught my attention and tugged on my heart a few times.  There were the 1000+ drives up and down Carefree Highway that gave a good stage for the desert beauty to reveal itself.  

The sunsets...ah the sunsets...

Vermont has its own beauty to offer, obviously!!! And there is so much too mention that I will just focus on my favorite so far...

FOG.

This is my 5am running route, thru Shelburne Farms.  I am in love with this sacred space.  It is filled with sentient animals, spectacular wild birds, and this lovely lovely fog...

I saw the fog for the first time last fall on the outskirts of the Green Mountain National Forest.  

It was love at first sight.

Four Thousand One Hundred and Seventy Five...

 

Pages!

Well done Noah Matthew!  I am not only impressed with your accomplishment but delighted to watch the enthusiasm with which you read.  How I grin when I find you up early with the birds to get an extra chapter in.  How thrilling to hear of your heart beating fast during an intense scene.  How I love that you have finished your very first book series!

I mean, WOW!  This calls for celebration...

And how do Vermonters celebrate?  Ben and Jerry's of course!  It was so fun to surprise you!

Phish food, Half Baked, Chocolate syrup, and Whipped Cream!!

Your dad kind of looks like a character out of your books, doesn't he?  A professor perhaps?  What would his talent be you think?

It is now 7:00pm on a Wednesday night... there are dishes to be done, lunches to pack, showers to take, baseball laundry to do, and beds to jump in...

No thanks, I still feel like celebrating!

and nothing says celebrate like an evening breeze blowing on your cheeks while cruising on a bicycle.

 So we rode all the way down to the lake to watch the sunset

Thanks for giving us something to celebrate Noah.  Life sure is sweet at the moment.  

Now the only question is, What to read next?

The Rald Dahl Collection, good choice!