Making Fun a Priority

It is easy to be swept away by wind gusts of work and necessity. To forget about the joys of life, the fun times we had as children, the useless entertainment that keeps us alive and sane. We often justify our obsession with work with statements of fear; “They are only getting half of the produce they order at the local grocery store. What if they don’t get any?” or statements of greed, “We could sell these pumpkin starts for 5 dollars, the honey for 8, birch syrup for 12, raspberry transplants for 5…” and on and on. Perhaps we use statements like, “God gave me this body to work, so I am going to use it,” or “Life isn’t about doing what you want, it’s about doing what you have to.”

Either way, our family is trying to move away from fear-based thinking by creating more of a balance between work and fun.
So…
We pulled a kite out of the shed to fly the other day.
Savanna sprinted up and down the driveway holding the kite behind her trying to have it lift off laughing like her daughter behind her. Eventually, we found the perfect wind tunnel that lifted this big blue whale up and sent it flying.

We pulled the bikes out of the greenhouse to ride on our country road. Primrose gets so excited when she sees the bikes leaned up against the trees that she tries to put her helmet on and then literally doesn’t want to do anything besides ride. So we have been making it a priority to ride down to the creek every day to watch ducks land on water and ice melt. Dad brings a pack of Fruit Snacks for Prim, which she shares with everybody, and while we enjoy watching snow melt on the roadsides while waiting for cranes to arrive, we plan for a long bike trip in the fall/winter of 2024.

We tapped 11 trees this year with hopes of making birch syrup. It has been fun to have an excuse to walk in the woods while harvesting the sap, but it can also be exhausting when you’re tired and on baby duty. Carrying Primrose on the back and a backpack full of sap on the front while maneuvering over melting snow can be a workout. We filled a 65-gallon rainwater barrel to the tip-top and finally started boiling it down to render syrup. Let the fire begin!

Mama has been having fun using her new sourdough starter. I wish we had more pictures to share of her creations because they’ve been incredible! Waffles, pop-tarts, peanut butter cookies, bread, and soon-to-be coffee cake. I always hoped to marry a baker and I must admit, it is sweeter than I imagined.

All in all, we are doing a decent job this year striking a balance. We are marking off days on the calendar for camping trips and festivals, prioritizing the things we love (other than work, because we LOVE farming and working with the land), and being reminded everyday by our daughter’s excitement that we must make it a point to have fun every day.

Until next time, remember to have fun out there, and leave a comment below to let us know ways that you have fun.