Indian Time - A Voice from the Eastern Door

Sunday we got chilly weather but we spent the afternoon outdoors. But before we could head out we found a surprise in our family truck. A stray cat from the neighborhood had weaseled its way in through a window that wasn’t all the way up. When my husband tried to shoo it out, it ran loops around the interior before finally flying out the passenger door.  

Our little family headed out to a family farm called Breezy Maples Farm a few minutes outside of Massena. It’s a family farm that is open for visitors to enjoy.  Big Brother liked the horse ride, feeding the head butting goats and picking out his pumpkin to bring home to carve. Little Brother loved the sandbox that was full of dried corn instead of sand. He spent a good portion of our visit in there pushing around trucks and digging. We had to carry him away to the wagon ride.

The wagon ride around the property was sweet and short. We were told stories about each horse on the farm and shown an impressive pond that is fifteen feet deep and the husband of the family fishes in it. Yes in the middle of a field they have a fishing pond! It has a spring continuously feeding a fresh supply of water into the pond so that it makes it possible for the different species of fish to thrive.

Big Brother and I bought feed to share with animals. The goats were funny. There were two of them and one of the goats was determined to eat every morsel of food and not let the other smaller goat get any. They’d head butt each other fighting over a spot at the fence. Big Brother and I started trying to trick the greedy goat. I’d pretend my cup was full when it really only had a bite left in it while Big Brother would run to the other side of the pen to feed the patient smaller goat. That poor little one would get a few bites and that greedy goat would run over and ram into him starting yet another head butting war.

Little Brother returned to the corn box after our wagon ride. The farm also has free roaming ducks. They walked right up to Little Brother. I thought he was going to pet them they were so close. But while he was checking them out and talking to his new friends a few kids who have probably never seen ducks so close, ran up and chased them away.

Finally after awhile we told the boys it was time to go pick their pumpkins so we could head home. Big Brother quickly picked a big one that we had to carry for him. Little Brother had to really look. He walked around all the pumpkins before pointing out the one he wanted. He thinks he’s so much bigger than he really is. My husband carried their pumpkins back to the truck for them while they took in the end of the original version of Chicken Little in the chicken coop theatre.

Right before we got to our vehicle my husband showed us a duck egg in the grass. Big Brother wanted to bring it home and try to hatch it but we explained to him it belonged where it was. The mother would be back to look for it. We loaded the boys and their pumpkins and headed home. On the drive, Big Brother pointed out that we had a spider web in our truck. It was right near my head. So I did what any scared of spiders mom does, I flailed around like a spider was on me before calmly dusting away the webs. Just as I settled back into my seat Big Brother says, “uhhh mom I found the spider...” I turn to see it hanging right above his head. Instinctively I squish it with my bare hand. I turned around creeped out wondering how crazy I must look to my kids. First I flake out thinking a spider is on me but when one is about to land on me then I go and kill it. Our afternoon was creature filled, starting out with the stray cat and ending with a hairy spider.