Farmland

Has anyone seen this trailer for the upcoming documentary, Farmland yet? I discovered it last fall and I immediately showed it to my Dad. I don't think he's ever been more interested in an online video. In a day when it seems like so much of the mainstream media has negative views (or perhaps just aren't knowledgeable) about farmers and what they think they do, it's incredibly refreshing to see a film that seems to portray how hard these men and women work everyday, and how most of them are doing it because they are passionate about their jobs. My dad has had some great success as a hog, corn and soybean farmer, but the amount of work he's put into the job every single day of the year for 50 plus years is something that I am still in awe of.

This film doesn't debut until spring, but I cannot wait to see it. I may just have to wait a bit longer though; if it ends up being as amazing as the trailer looks, seeing it with my Dad would be pretty special.

Digital Sketchbook: Grow

My Mom recently sent over a photo of the harvest in full-swing going on in Minnesota, which is the image that is overlayed in the graphic below. Harvest is my Dad's favorite time of year and if you were to talk to him for just 5 or 10 minutes about the season, you would certainly be able to tell.

I have very fond memories of harvest back when I was young. I remember one year my Dad let me help unload each truckload of corn. I diligently watched the corn flow out of the truck and into the auger, making sure to sweep any piles of corn that had fallen outside. I felt even more proud when at one point during harvest my Dad left me to go the shop to grab some more supplies and I was "in charge" of unloading the entire truck by myself. I think he had even taught me how to lift and lower the truck bed. From there on that year, I was my Dad's tag-a-long. At that time we had a Springer Spaniel named Sadie, who, like most dogs, loved a good car ride. When the corn had been emptied and Dad was ready to drive back out the the field, I would call out for Sadie and she would come running and make her jump in the truck and the three of us would be on our way again.

I have so many more sweet recollections of autumn and harvest, but I think that one is probably the one I hold closest to my heart.

 

What We're Up To...

I know...it's been awhile hasn't it? So let's play a little catch up.

• Our biggest family milestone is that we finally moved into our new house at the end of April. We are loving it! Sebastian worked extremely hard to get all of the major updates completed, but we still moved in with a lot of little things unfinished. I've been holding off on debuting the house, but I'm learning very quickly that the house will only continue to evolve. I need to just post in-progress photos or I may never post any. So house photos to come soon.

Sebastian putting together and installing our cabinets.

• Aliyah and I went to Minnesota over the Memorial Day weekend. It was a superb trip, like always. Aliyah and her cousins, Grace and Faith, are so cute together. They usually are very shy around one another for a little bit, then suddenly just pick up and start giggling and playing together. Every time we'd go somewhere, Aliyah would exclaim, "Fifi!?" And towards the end of the trip she became completely smitten with her Aunt Emily and was even asking for her on the way to the airport. Aliyah also enjoyed lots of cuddles from Grandma and Grandpa Peters, whom she affectionately called, "Bama" (we got a big kick out of that one), and Papa since those were her versions of Grandma and Grandpa. It was good to see my family again. Every time I visit, I always leave with the wish that we could live closer, but I am also very, very grateful that I'm lucky enough to be able to visit so often, and to have them make trips to visit us as well.

• I also ran a 10k with Ashley Allerson while we were in Minnesota. It was a pretty challenging course at some points, but I did better than I expected. My brother, Nick, decided the night before that he would like some brother/sister bonding time and registered for his first race ever. I was sure I could beat my 31 year old sibling, but being the super athlete that he is, he beat me by a couple of minutes. The race overall was a lot of fun and I'm so glad Ashley got me motivated to sign up and run it. It was Ashley's first longer race and she was outstanding. 

Nick told me that he wanted to run the first mile together and then I could go ahead. So I did. Then at mile 5 he shows up right beside me, barely missing a breath. I finally admitted defeat and told him it was okay if he ran ahead of me. In the end, he beat me. Because he is amazing.

• Arizona is starting to heat up! I'm pretty sure from here on until September, the weather looks something like this: 100+, 100+, 100+.... It's hot, but there's no humidity and we're finding ways to stay cool.
• I experienced my first Arizona thunderstorm. It was awesome! Until I saw that we were in a severe thunderstorm warning and realized I had forgotten all of my Minnesota weather survival skills since thunder was nearly non-existent when we lived in California. Wind was blowing, thunder was cracking, our french doors were flying open and I was overreacting, wondering how Aliyah would be doing since she was at daycare. I picked her up shortly after the storm passed and the entire car ride home she excitedly babbled about "raining" and "windy.

And lastly, let me leave you with a video of Aliyah's current obsession: being a super hero. The blanket she is wearing is her favorite thing. It has to be with us almost all the time, and it used as multiple things. In this instance, it makes a perfect cape for saving the world. Sebastian also makes a good partner in crime. :)

Breathtaking Sedona Day Trip

I remember growing up in Minnesota and having this sense of wonder and awe during the summer months. I loved the green corn fields and the lush landscape. I loved laying in the grass in our backyard at dusk and soaking it all in. I have my Dad to thank for this appreciation of the the earth, specifically the Minnesota farmland. His passion for agriculture is something I admire and I often sought to love the land as much as he did. Interestingly enough, no matter how beautiful the scenery was in California, and trust me, there are some breathtaking sights there, in the five years I lived there I could never get that complete feeling of wonder and awe back the way I did in Minnesota. I sometimes wondered if I was becoming stagnant in my ability to see the beauty around me, and this is something that bothered me from time to time.

Today, as we approached Sedona, I got that feeling back fully and it was wonderful. The beauty there is amazing. Gorgeous. Breathtaking. Awe inspiring.



Sebastian and I agreed. Today was pretty much perfect.

Since we were just going for the day and we had a toddler in tow, we decided to go up and explore with no set plans. I think at times that's the best way to explore an area. The day's activities started out promising. We saw signs for an Oktober Fest. Free to the Community! We thought, why not? A glass of beer, maybe some brats for lunch. Let's kick off this trip with some goodies.

We followed about three homemade signs, which probably should have been our first clue that something was amiss. We then missed the actual sign for the entrance and were out in the Arizona wilderness (okay not really). Perfect opportunity for Aliyah to stretch her legs and for Mom and Dad to get some photos.



We finally made it to destination Oktoberfest. And made a loop and were on our way again. Why, the short appearance, you ask? It might have been the fact that the main demographic included the over seventy crowd. Or it may have been the one (and only), oddly placed science fair board, with just a couple of lone-kids manning it. But the final clue that maybe this Oktoberfest was something different than we had envisioned was the sign outside the entrance.



I'm sure it was a nice event, just not exactly what we were envisioning. And so we were on our way again. No biggie. That's the best part of not having plans. When something doesn't work out it, it's not that big of a deal because it wasn't even on the schedule to begin with.

With that mini-adventure behind us, we drove through town and found a place to park and eat our picnic lunch that Sebastian so sweetly packed for us. As we ate, we agreed that we need to eat more picnic lunches. (Good thing there were no brats at our first stop, right?) Every time we do we love it. I'm also pretty sure that we eat much healthier and save a lot more money, than when we go out to on the weekends. Plus, Aliyah loves to be outside and she loves to eat. So she is basically in heaven when we have picnic lunches.



After lunch we let our little explorer loose and she was all smiles. Rocks to throw, bushes to swat at, dirt to fall down in and people's attention to grab. Oh and did I mentioned my nerves to fry? If I could put this girl in a metal suite of armor, I think I might. She's right in that phase of toddlerhood where she wants to walk everywhere and is pretty good at it, but still hasn't grasped the concept of realizing that ground is a tricky surface to tackle sometimes. The path was like any good hiking trail: uneven and rocky. So for the first few meters I was basically making a circle around her just in case she fell. (I can totally admit that I have first-time mom written all over me.)

Eventually the path evened out a bit and I could instead concentrate on taking photos that make my heart melt like this one.



That's a keeper, for sure.

We didn't walk too far on the trail. Just enough to get Aliyah's cheeks red and our feet dirty since both Sebastian and I wore flip flops. I'm excited to go back with the intention of actually hiking , maybe even buying Aliyah one of those hiking carriers, and going much farther in.



After our mini-walk, we got a bit of rest and breeze in the visitors shelter, where we also discovered Aliyah's modeling skills. Or rather, her ability to stare people down, with the breeze conveniently blowing through her locks to make her look like she was trying to model.



Next we hopped into the car and made our way to the Chapel of the Holy Cross. Wow. The views were absolutely stunning. Another breathtaking moment. Two in one day. Arizona you are growing on me sooner than I expected.



We drove home and Sebastian, in all his trivial knowledge, let me know that a sea of clouds miles ahead of us on the road were rain clouds and that the streaks coming down that looked like fog, were in fact, rain. I disagreed, but figured he might be on to something when I saw this...



It was ca-razy. Loads of rain pouring down. So much that we actually pulled off to the side of the road, along with a few other cars. It didn't last long, and we were back on the road shortly. Alright, Sebastian, I'll admit it now. You were right. :)

Aliyah did wonderful the entire trip. Understandably, she sometimes gets fussy being confined to the carseat, but she was completely content babbling to her stuffed elephant and "reading" books. I always know when she's had a fun time because for the next few hours she is in this completely content stage. As a mother, it's a great feeling to know she's happy.

We had such a good time that when we got back we decided to go to a park and let Aliyah run around a bit. A perfect end to the evening. Sebastian got to kick the soccer ball around, Aliyah got to run around, and I got to sit in the grass once again in awe of my surroundings and my beautiful little family. Maybe Arizona won't be so bad after all.