Farm Happenings
The link to Kailey and Caleb’s latest video, A Christmas Special, which has nothing to do with the farm is below. We appreciate another amusing, fun, short video. I definitely witnessed a different personality in both of them. Thankful it’s just a video!
Greetings from the Mentink Family!
December is surely here – snow to shovel, chimney smoke in the air, icicles hanging from the barn, hats and gloves, drifts of snow blanketing the fields, everyone hauling tissues around… and what a year we are looking back at!
Early this spring, we packed the family van and drove to Wyoming for a vacation – the first in almost five years! Spirits were high as we set off on a Friday evening, leaving the farm in Grandma and Grandpa Lemburg’s hands for a few days. We stayed at a cabin in Cody, Wyoming and went sight-seeing during the day. With all the stuff we had to remember to bring, thankfully we didn’t forget anything – well – anyway, not anything too important (Quote: “What! Did you just say that nobody packed toothpaste?”).
We went through most of Yellowstone National Park and saw a lot of wildlife, including a few bears! It was really beautiful country, especially since we went at a time where all the snow was melting and there were waterfalls everywhere. It was quite the adventure, but what a cheer would have gone up as we crossed the Nebraska border coming home – would have gone up, that is, if most everyone wasn’t asleep. Home is where the heart is, and we intend to keep it here at our farm in Nebraska – at least for another few years – until we hit the Amazon. . . just joking.
We have a long list of things to do that will probably keep us busy for a little while yet. This year, many of those projects around the place were crossed off, including a second bathroom! Dad has been in high demand these past years – and he’s still booked for a while. A few toys on his wish list (…alright, so they are actually farm equipment) have been travelling here from around Nebraska and Kansas the past few months. Mom has taken on milking not one, but two cows twice a day, named Saucy and Lanette. “Daisy,” “Sassy,” and “Bossy” have also taken their turns as family milk cows recently – oh, and another cow who didn’t stick around long enough to earn herself a name because I’m pretty sure she was related to the cow that jumped over the moon. There’s a large commitment of work and time that comes with running a family farm, but working together, it all gets done, and we have been very blessed this year. As we look into this next year, we are eagerly expecting another little Mentink in April! And speaking of the Mentink children – here’s a brief glimpse at each of them.
Alena (18) is frequently buried in words – either reading a book or – writing a book! After her graduation from high school this spring, she has been earnestly pursuing her dream of writing a book, a historical fiction account centered in the 1800s. When she’s not writing, she enjoys walking, sewing, cleaning, and is highly skilled in washing dishes, much to her younger siblings’ delight!
I (Kailey, 15) don’t enjoy washing dishes that much. Driving a tractor or training a horse sounds more appealing to me. Much of my time and energy this year has been spent on training a sweet, young mare named Queen who has privileged me with a first-hand experience of falling off a bucking horse. Around that, I enjoy photography, videoing, playing piano, cooking noodles, and reading.
Caleb (13) is the one I run to when genius burns, which is why he’s always the one shown high in the treetops, being dunked with a bucket of water, or bullfighting (See our recently-created YouTube channel “Mentink Family Farms”). Along with his feisty partner Snowball – more commonly known as Doughball or Little Dog – Caleb has “declared war on rats”. He has also attempted to trap badgers – but thus far, the only sight or trace of them is the large holes and mounds of dirt they leave everywhere – but if there’s a will, there’s a way, right?
Aiden is the only eleven-year-old on our whole farm, and makes the best pancakes. Some of the things he enjoys are: boating and swimming in our Grandpa’s pond (when it’s warm, of course), reading Hardy Boy books, and creating model train sets – and there seems to be a station popping up on a table in our basement.
Annika (5) is learning to read, and has conquered the ABC’s, shapes, and counting to 100. She enjoys spending time outside building forts, riding a horse, and exploring the tree line behind the house with Asher. When she isn’t outside, she enjoys helping with dinner, “coloring on paper, eating popcorn, and playing with balloons”.
When I asked Asher (4) what he liked or enjoyed doing, he responded, “Tractors . . . combines…” and then shrugged. “Anything else?” I asked. He shook his head. With some hard thinking, we finally found a few more things he likes: hanging out with Daddy, playing Legos, playing with the dogs, and decorating Christmas trees. A few months ago, he moved from the main floor of the house to the boys’ room upstairs, and we’ve heard of a couple pillow fights since.
Abigail is our sweet, little two-year-old. She loves kitties – or “Meow Meows” as she calls them. A few of the “Meow Meows” are quite tolerating and allow her to play with them, but she finds that others run away when they see her. She likes playing with her big siblings Nonney (Alena), Day-Day (Kailey), Boppy (Caleb), Den (Aiden), ‘Er (Annika), and the Ya-Ya (Asher); and she’s excited to be an older sister too.
I might add that this year has really flown by, but isn’t that what we say every year? “Last year was nice and slow, but this year . . .” Yeah, next year will be like this one – but even faster, right? Maybe we all need to slow down and enjoy this season, refusing to get caught up on gifts and shopping and Ebenezer Scroogeing (that just got a red-underline from the spell check). What if we set apart time to soak in our blessings; to be with family; to dwell on the real reason for the season – Jesus, and as we celebrate His birth, we reflect on our many blessings, and wish you all a merry Christmas!
The Mentinks (i.e. Kailey)