WATER: PART ONE.

On Memorial Day Weekend, our friends Sarah and David, with their two lovely kids, came to visit the farm and help with the RAM pump. We had purchased the rest of the pipe required to get it going and needed someone with some expertise in plumbing to help me figure out what in the world I was doing––someone like David who actively wanted to spend his vacation working like crazy.David is not only an engineer professionally, and has been building his own beautiful house, but he possesses a really great mind for these types of projects (if you need an engineer for anything, give him a shout!). I cannot tell you how valuable it was to have him every step of the way. I learned a ridiculous amount.Briefly, to explain how the pump works without electricity, I'm going to adapt an analogy our neighbor's use for their RAM: Pretend you have a room full of water balloons. On one end is a door, on the other is a small, water ballon-sized hole. Now imagine you open that door and quickly add another balloon, slamming the door back before everything falls out (think: closet full of clothing). This new balloon puts enough pressure on the other balloons that it forces a balloon out the other side. Do that seventy times or so a minute and you'll have a fair amount of balloons forced out over time. That's essentially what's going on inside the pump. The water traveling down hill is the person hoarding water balloons. An air tight tank with a check valve is the room. And the water balloon-sized hole is the pipe leading uphill. No electricity required. (If you have a better analogy for how the RAM works, please feel free to tell us!)First we had to clean out the spring and build the dam––which was strangely fun. I even got to carve "J + H" into it––you know, like the pros do. Anyway, in the dam we laid a small bit of PVC which collects water. That water then runs into a 35 gallon reservoir tank we situated a few feet away. From that reservoir tank, there are 77 feet of galvanized pipe that lead downhill to the pump.The water travels down that pipe, gathering the momentum needed to make the pipe function. And really, the first half of the day––from seven to noon––was spent just getting all that ready.(I can write a more detailed rundown of how we did everything if you'd like––and you very well may, who knows––but I'll just give you the gist for now.)I had bought some of the wrong fittings so we ventured back to town to swap them out and finish the project. And by the end of the day, we had the pump working––that is to say, we had the pump pumping water through four hundred feet of pipe, uphill over seventy feet of elevation––all powered by water. Unfortunately, that was as far as we could go, because well, we didn't yet have the holding tank.But we bought one this weekend! So next, all we need is the piping to get it down to the house––thus the "Part One" element of the title––and we will officially have water in the cabin. And it only took two years! Uh, two years so far.But big big thank you to David and Sarah. Couldn't have done it without you! Getting Water: to be continued.... hopefully soon.- Jessehttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwGfmrYuXnA

SOMETHING SPECIAL.

When Further was born, we really didn’t have to buy much of anything. First of all, cosleeping, breastfeeding, cloth diapering and babywearing cut out a lot of the big-ticket items all new parents “need.” But mostly, we were very blessed – the beneficiaries of many wonderful hand-me-downs and gracious gifts. When it came to clothes, the few things we personally bought were from secondhand shops or Goodwill. This, I feel, was reasonable. There is little sense in dressing a newborn – essentially a tiny pooping, peeing, vomiting, drooling machine - in organical white lace onsies all the time.On the other hand, I did spend a chunk of change on yarn – beautiful yarn that I used to make our baby hats, sweaters, mittens, pants and stuffed toys. This is because these things will last and become precious heirlooms that we can use for any hypothetical future children and perhaps grandchildren one day. These things are worth saving. And that is how I feel about Further’s new clothes from Red Creek Handmade. Further was picked to be a brand representative, and we feel like it is a perfect fit. Kate makes all of her clothes with organic, naturally dyed linen – and these clothes are meant to get dirty. They are meant to be worn by tough kids. They are meant to last, to be well-loved, to be passed on to the next generation. And because of this, they cost a little more than a Goodwill onesie.Supporting makers, artisans and crafters who are doing good work is a goal of ours. It is always a balance, of course. We are dirty, hard working folks who can tear through a pair of jeans or boots in a month. We need a wardrobe of grundgy work clothes, just like Further needs a number of dirty, poop stained Carter’s outfits he can ruin. But we also are trying to invest in a few future heirlooms, some well made, quality products. – from people like Kate at Red Creek, from websites like Etsy, and from craft vendors at our farmers market. The hard truth is, if we are promoters of local, organic food, we should also try to support this same standard in the other things we “consume,” even if it means spending a little more.- Hannah. 

THIS & THAT.

Some random photos from the past week.Our bees swarmed! Unfortunately, this photo was taken with an intense zoom lens and they were at the very top of a very tall tree. We decided to leave them alone.This is what happens in the spring after a big rain - the mint and the weeds quickly threaten to take over and we suddenly have chaos in the backyard.  The hens are not laying in the coop - so we have Easter egg hunts every day!The kittens are living in the outhouse per usual. Potato patch, looking good!

VISION.

There have been a million changes to my vision in the past decade or so of my life, but three that really stand out. And by vision I don't mean, "My vision for the world," or "My vision for the future." I literally (okay, and as always, somewhat figuratively) mean how I see.The first came in 2007. I was in Burgundy, France, where I was staying at a small Bed and Breakfast for the night on a trip through wine country. The B&B had this beautiful patio and garden area for guests where I spent the evening reading Michael Pollan's Omnivore's Dilemma for the first time. After that day, I could hardly put the book down. And when I returned to the states a few days later, I couldn't stop thinking about what I was eating. The entire world of food was suddenly punctuated with giant question marks––where did it come from? How was it raised? What's in this? My blissful ignorance about food was irreparably destroyed by that book. Never again could I ignore factory farms, or artificial ingredients, or the impact those things have on ourselves and our environment. My vision, in this sense, was forever altered.The second change came from farming itself. I remember I returned to New York for a visit after my first year interning and the city looked tangibly different to me. It wasn't just a city of buildings, bars and concrete, but I could suddenly see Nature, creeping up out of the cracks in the sidewalks. I could see yards, parks, trees, animals. I noticed flowers and insects. I had lived in New York for nearly five years and never once did I really consider how much nature was there. Not enough, some might argue––I might argue––but more than I'd ever seen.And the most recent, and arguably most profound, change to my vision has been parenthood. My God, has parenthood changed my vision. I recently went to the market and all I could see were the kids. I saw infants and thought of Further in his first month on the planet. I saw toddlers and thought of his next few years. There were a few awkward teenagers, tall and gangly and uncomfortable. That, I couldn't help but think, will one day be Further. If I had never become a parent, I would have probably never noticed the other fathers, the other Furthers, the other mothers and families. But now I see them. Now I understand them. Now I get it. Now, I love it.What I appreciate about these three changes is how complimentary of one another they have been. The concern I developed for food through Omnivore's Dilemma pairs nicely with my newfound appreciation of nature and my life as a parent. I care about the future of this place for Further. I care about it for myself and for Hannah and for all the other parents. Nature, I care about Nature for every reason. Sometimes I admittedly wish I could just go back to fast food and laziness, but it's just not possible. I can't unlearn those things. Not as a parent. Not as a lover of food and Nature. Not with these eyes. Never again.- Jesse.