Tag: farmlife

change

The Next Chapter

2chicksandapen

As I began to put this post together the month of August was fast approaching. A turning point. A new chapter for many stories in my life.

A new school year. A fresh start for my youngest but sort of a restart to high school post-pandemic. So many emotions around a this particular subject after the past year and a half. New computer to get ready for the scheduled digital days and a proactive plan for any sporadic shutdowns. Imaginary pom poms for all the moments I want to cheer loud and proud for….but of course when you have a teen you would know that isn’t cool. To make myself feel good, I’ll use my imaginary poms!

Year 2 as a farmer begins without hesitation. Year one was fun. Full of learning, adventures and many firsts. Visions and dreams collided. Hard work was done. So much planning for now and the future. Broke the piggy bank a few times but you have to spend something if you want to build something. Off I go to leverage the earth to see what it will allow me to produce on the farm. I’ll say a few prayers and engage a few resources along the way. Forward progress on the farm is what farm life is about. And of course I want to tell everyone about it. Check out the last batch of flowers from the farm. They are absolutely gorgeous. See for yourself. #3splitzfarm

A new fitness regimen. August 1st marks a new venture for me. A slight step away from CrossFit, the sport I have enjoyed for many years. Taking a little break to do some customized programming to see how my body reacts. Maybe tone a bit. Maybe strengthen different muscle groups. Going to take 6 months to see how I do. I figure I have a 50/50 chance of being successful during this time. A coin toss basically. Will I decide I miss my sport? Will I miss my specific routine? Will I like my new environment? Will I train hard enough away from the constantly varied workouts of CrossFitting 5-6 days a week? Many unknowns for sure. One thing I know for sure is I’m responsible for my progress thus I need to kick my own ass at times.

I am sure I will share updates on my next chapters. Obviously, my life story has more than three chapters. This is just the three that I decided to highlight in this post. Those who know me know change is really the only constant in my life. While many fear change, I embrace change.
New year on the farm. 365 days of growth ahead. New school year for the youngest. 365 days of what should be amazing memory making opportunities. New fitness year. Half the year I will try something new. The other half will be planned based on my first half performance. The beauty of mapping your world. hundred points customizable by me, for me. 

Change fuels my soul. Change of reasons or seasons in a nutshell. Both reasons and seasons keep me chasing my dreams. Many won’t understand how change makes me tick harder faster stronger. Adaptation. Sitting in status quo anything is not my style. Onward. Upward. Forward. My choice is always bold never old. 

3Splitz Farm, giving

Quilted Pieces

2chicksandapen

The spring plants on the farm have done their work. Now we are barreling full bore into summer. Veggies are coming along. Zinnias and sunnies are sprouting. It’s all very exciting.

One of the truly interesting things I’ve discovered this year as a new farmer is how generous plant people can be. I’ve learned so much from being involved in farming communities online. From instagram to facebook and beyond, plant people are always sharing their successes and shortfalls. How to pinch certain flowers and why. What kind of spacing and setup to use in a garden. Arranging irrigation. Protecting against pests. So many people just lay it all out there and it’s wonderful. I read. I learn. I bookmark. We’ve bought tubers and seeds and seedlings from so many of these farmers. We grow from them, in our minds and in our soil. In turn, we pour what we are doing back into the community, hoping someone else is inspired or aided by the ups and downs of our farm’s development.

Another unexpected surprise is, the more I talk about the farm to friends and colleagues, the more people share stories, tidbits, and even actual plants with me. So many people have life stories about farming – summer at grandma’s farm, shelling peas on the porch. Farms and gardens bring up so many memories. Then there are friends at work who walk up to me and just hand me a bag of bulbs. “Here’s some elephant ears from my garden.” “I divided my iris this weekend and thought of you.” All these beauties are now growing in our ground, from the gardens of friends, family, and other farms from all over the country.

In my foray into self-taught art as a teen, I fell in love with quilts. I wanted to learn to quilt for a while but never did. I still admire the beauty and artistry in a well-made hand woven quilt. And although I appreciate a symmetrical pattern, my eye and heart is always drawn to the crazy quilts. All kinds of colors, mismatched pieces, not at all perfect. Instead, perfectly imperfect and unique. Little pieces all stitched together to make a beautiful whole.

I think of our farm as a crazy quilt on land. Pieces from all over. A little here a little there. Colorful, a little wild. Interesting. Unexpected. We have several patches of sunnies that are measured and in straight lines, but I’ve also put in a patch where I kind of just put things every which way. No measuring. Mixing seeds together. Maybe it will look like a terrible wreck. Or maybe it will be the wild, textured abundance that we are hoping for. It’s all coming together in a place that is distinctly ours. Nowhere else in the world quite like it.

3Splitz Farm

A Little Sunshine

2chicksandapen

This cute little mason jar full of freshly picked flowers has so much meaning. It’s fresh from the farm to my table.

Planted, sprouted, trimmed and packages to-go by my farmily at 3Splitzfarm. A new farm that is sprouting in many ways.

The garden. The livestock. The visitors, the flowers. All designed and labored by the farm family. So much pride. So much love goes into each delivery.

As days turn into weeks, weeks turn into months and months turn into years. Our farm story is evolving. Some years our corn will be plentiful. Other years another crop may struggle. We never know what nature holds for our little farm.

What we do know is we have dreams. We don’t mind hard work. We live to see the fruits of our labor in whichever form it produces. We love sharing our story with the world as well.

From how to start to how to maintain to how to survive all that gets thrown your way. We document it all to share virtually as well as in books. A benefit of 2 Chicks also being 2 farm girls.

Sometimes we have a pen in hand. Other times it’s a tractor or pruning tool. You never know what adventures we shall share with you.

From our farm to you. Enjoy this virtual flower arrangement. We will be soon selling flower subscriptions and delivering special treats through your community to make others smile.

3Splitz Farm

Meet SnoCap

2chicksandapen

It’s just a name, right? Snocap isn’t just a name, it’s a new family member. Temporary or permanent? Not sure yet. Four legs. Varied markings. Flowy mane. Totes a heavy weight around too. Makes some sounds that make one turn their heads.

Snocap is a newbie on the farm. A paint horse. She is unique and already so special. She arrived a day before my birthday. Unplanned in a way but planned in another way. I’ve been looking for the right horse for some time now. The right time. The right temperament. The right price.  the right situation. Many factors were hinging on my decision. The choice wasn’t made lightly.

I wasn’t sure if I would lease a horse or buy a horse. I didn’t know if I should consider adopting a horse. Is fostering a horse even an option? I had to make sure I had a detailed care plan in place since I may not always be on the farm 24:7. I had so many items to check off the “I am ready” list. Today seemed like the readiness factors were in the rear view for a foster opportunity. Today seemed like a good day to choose Snocap. The visitor of sorts is checking out the place. I am learning about horse caretaking.

Opportunity was in front of me. I took the chance. I knew when I met her she was the right temperament to come hang on the farm. No bucking or wild behavior when we met. I made the commitment to see if she would be a fit for our farmily. Now it’s time to build memories and see if she warms up to the new environment.

She came from a muddy pasture that was her temporary home while we prepped for her. A good bath or rain shower and some TLC will have her ready to relax in our pastures where she can eat all the grass she wants and dip her toes in the stream. 

For now Snocap is chilling on the farm with a few visiting friends aka horse buddies. She makes lots of poop piles and has the sweetest personality. Still evaluating to see if she will stay with us forever. Need to give her a ride and she if she is the one.

Welcome to the farmily Snocap! We hope you enjoy your stay. Having horses in the pasture has been very rewarding on many levels. Oh how I would like to eat grass all day, loaf around and just watch all that goes on around me. Oh to live like a horse and be wild and free.

Over the past few weeks Snocap has had to take more than the usual rest. My neighbor watched her lay down in the pasture more than she should. My caretaker felt her legs were not 100%. Her legs seem tired and she may be a few years older than we initially thought. 

She is healthy but timid around the other horses. She may not be the one for me to call my own unfortunately. I may never find the perfect match but I can always check out opportunities and foster to get my horse fix for now.

Although I have enjoyed feeding her, talking to her and brushing her she is going to find her way to a permanent home not too far away. Excited for her new beginnings but will also be sad as she departs our farmily. So funny how we can get so attached to animals in such a short time. I will miss feeding mints to my pal Snocap.

It’s been so much fun being a host family to some horses in our local community that needed a crash pad for a few months to escape the mud slides in their pasture. Wonder which horse friends we will tell you about next. Maybe it will be goats instead. Who knows what farm friends we will have in the coming days.

nature

Rain, #2

2chicksandapen

The forecast was rain all weekend. The breaks in the clouds would seem to be at odd times in the midst of the storm(s). It’s the raining season yet the to-do list grows. Off we go to battle the elements.

Day 1 seemed okay. Not too much rain on the humans however the puddles and mud were abundant from the days and hours before. Thank goodness for some mud boots. We put in yard work where we could. We played a little too because we could.

Day 2: 100% rain. How disappointing! We wake early to the sounds of roosters. Off to walk the dog and feed some peppermints to the horses. It’s so cute to hear the horses crunch on the hard candy mints. They may even like the hint of fresh breath in the morning. The mints are just as refreshing to them as they are for me giving them.

I opted to be beat the rain storm from point a to point b. It worked. I was about an hour or so ahead of the eye of the storm. The cute little pup and I decide to take a little nap by the window on this rainy day.

Ah how the rain can just drain even the most energetic pup and say it’s time to nap. Zzzz  zzzzz to the sound of the rain and its anthem. A little thunder. Some big booms. The large drops of rain. Then the fierce and fast rain that goes on for a long time. Reduced to a little soft spit of rain. I watched the storm from my window. Dozing in and out of sleep. Now it’s time to rise.

The sky still appears grey but the sun wants to poke through. The birds are back to chirping. The trees are being quiet although the leaves are on the ground from the winds that just shook them about. My crew snoozed while another crew entertained themselves at the other end of the rain storm.

It’s funny how the rain can hit one’s day. This was my rainy Sunday. Hoping for sunshine and lollipops next Sunday.