Real Farmwives of America: How Did I Get Here?

I am so excited. Today my pal over at 3 Kids and Lots of Pigs launched "The Real Farmwives of America"! 

While I am not technically a farmwife, they are graciously letting me play too since I grew up on a farm and now talk with and work with farmwives everyday, helping them put a face to farming for consumers like you... 

So, how did I get here: a freelance writer (and now speaker--eek!), communicator, trainer and consultant for people and organizations, primarily in the agriculture field?

Well, I guess it starts back on the farm...

My family has farmed about as long as I can remember. When I was a baby, we had about 25-30 pigs back when they were raised a lot differently than they are now. 

Mom tells me that this pig was lovingly named Elsie after my grandma! Ha!

When I got a little older, my family raised meat birds for our freezer.

Here I am at about Miss Add's age helping remove stones from the field.

And here I am with Lighting, a horse my dad's dad gave him when he was a kid.

But the two things I remember most are cows and hay. Funny how those two little things can teach you so much.

One year my dad's 100 head herd had a quirky predicament. Ya see, several of our cows began having twin calves. Double profits, right? Nope... two mouths to feed and lower weight = predicament. When the first set were born, dad used it as a learning experience for me and Aunt Lou. 

He told us if we would supplement feeding by bottle feeding the calves in addition to their mother's milk, we would get the profits. We were game! Then came sets 2, 3,4 and 5 and Dad decided that this learning moment needed to become a chore moment...ha!

We got paid for the first set, but the other sets were deemed part of doing our part on the farm.

Yes, those are curlers in my hair... sometimes a farm teen's gotta do what a farm teen's gotta do.

Anyhoo, the summer of cow fertility was a great learning experience that taught me commitment, perseverance, flexibility, sometimes you get more than you bargain for and that the world isn't always fair. And that hard work buys you your first cd player and trampoline ;)

Hay--oh, hay. I loathed hay. It interrupted vacation schedules and delayed hot dates and movies with friends. 

But here is the secret. I secretly loved it. The teenage me now has to kill you for hearing that...just sayin'. 

I loved that we all worked together as a family. I loved that I could pitch a hay bale-- a feat that some boys in my class couldn't claim. I loved the sense of accomplishment. 

So, there you have it, the foundations of my work ethic that have got me here today. 

I reconnected with my roots in agriculture while serving as the Communications and Outreach Director for the Indiana State Department of Agriculture. That is where I met one of the mentors that changed my life, Anne.

Anne has the incredible ability to see things in other people that they can't see themselves at first. 

Under her leadership and through her friendship I found my life's passion and took the leap to the world of consulting and living my dream of a life full of purpose, passion, encouragement, problem solving, influence and creativity in an industry I believe in.

Well, there you have it. If you want to learn more about the people who grow your food, or if you just want to meet some super cool people, check these gals out:

The Real Farmwives of America

o   Heather at 3 Kids and Lots of Pigs

o   Amy & Liz at 2 Maids A Milking

o   Amy at A Latte with Ott, A.

o   Marybeth at Alarm Clock Wars

o   Leah at Beyer Beware

o   Jennifer at Farmgirl Follies

o   Jeanette at Fence Row to Fence Row

o   Lauren at Four Ransoms and a Farm

o   Jane at Going Jane

o   Cris at GOODEness Gracious

o   Meggie at Hoosier Farm Babe

o   Jent at My Front Porch

o   Katie at On the Banks of Squaw Creek

o   Whitney at Life is a Highway and Mine’s Surrounded By Corn

o   Lana at Walking the Off-Beaten Path

o   Denise at Who is the Grown Up?