Walnut Grove: Happy New Year 2017!

Below is our annual New Year's Letter. I've been woefully negligent with updating the blog this year, so I have included lots of pictures in the post.

Happy New Year!

Here’s hoping this letter finds you in good health and spirits. For us, 2016 could very well be called “The Year of Unfortunate Events,” with a political election that left us feeling like we were living in the Twilight Zone and losses of great personalities both famous and familial. But we try to look ahead with optimism that we are indeed riding an arc that bends towards justice, peace, and a healthier planet. So with that in mind, let’s start with the child(ren):

Thomas is growing like pigweed in July. He is seven years old and in first grade in the Walnut Grove Homeschool. He is a whiz at math but still learning to read on his own. He loves Berenstain Bears and Dr. Seuss, and we are slowly working our way through the Harry Potter series (that’s a lot of reading by Mommy!) I guess it’s never too early to introduce the heroic model. Thomas is in his last year of Kindermusik and has mastered several songs on the glockenspiel, including “The Lion Sleeps Tonight,” which he picked out by ear. He is also following in Lance’s footsteps by becoming a Cub Scout and is getting geared up for his first Pinewood Derby. He continues to improve with his Spanish. In June, he and his cousin Olivia traveled to Minnesota for a foreign language camp (Thomas took Spanish and Olivia took French). Thomas came home saying he wanted to learn Norwegian next! By far, Thomas’s favorite pastime is playing with his Legos. He especially enjoys building armies of hybrid knight/ninja/Jedi/monsters. He also enjoys collecting State and National Park quarters and other trinkets. He has reached several milestones over the last year, including losing two more teeth (for a total of four), learning to ride his bicycle and scooter, and learning to skip (harder than you think). Luckily, there were no broken bones this year.

Thomas turns seven!

Lego Mania

Spanish Camp

Kindermusik Recital

The Wounds of a Bicyclist

Riding Bicycle!

Scout's Honor

Scouting for Food

In addition to being school marm for Thomas and farm manager for Walnut Grove, Heather continues to play in the symphony and work with her Junior Apprentices at Exchange Place. This year, she took on the ambitious task of creating and hosting a fundraiser for the JA program. “A Serving of History: Foodways on an Antebellum East Tennessee Farm” proved a great success and brought in funding for sorely needed period costumes for the apprentices. You may remember from last year’s letter that Heather was working to acquire American Guinea Hogs for Exchange Place. Though raising piglets wasn’t really in the plan, she ended up with a pregnant sow—“Millie”—who gave birth to four female piglets in June. The piglets, while an unexpected challenge, proved a charming addition to Exchange Place. Of course, piglets don’t stay piglets for long, so plans to turn them into “pork” quickly unfolded. We roasted one as a suckling pig at the JA fundraiser. Another—“Lute”—was chosen as Millie’s companion (and thus earned a stay of execution, at least for now). The other two, which are collectively referred to as “piggies,” came to Walnut Grove. They will be butchered this winter—playing a role in Heather’s relentless quest to learn how to produce a fine country ham.

Thomas trying out the stilts

Heather and her Junior Apprentices

Millie's Piglets!
(with Cousin Jackson)

And speaking of country ham, one of the finest producers of this Southern delicacy—Mr. R.A. Phillips, Jr. (“Granddad”)—turned 100 in February. The whole family traveled to west TN to help him celebrate with a community gathering and a special meal at the Catfish Hotel, one of the oldest family-run restaurants in the country. Granddad still lives on the family homestead—Stony Lonesome Farm—and is a model of self-reliance, though he gets some help now from caretakers. On a sadder note, Heather lost two of her beloved uncles this year: Uncle Bob in April and Uncle Roy in June. Uncle Bob was a consummate jokester and collector, who would buy a box of junk for the one Johnny Cash record in the lot. He also loved cats and considered a purring feline one of life’s best therapies. Those who know Heather can see how much Uncle Bob rubbed off on her (Johnny Cash and cats, etc.). Uncle Roy was a gentle, kind man who lived as those his glass was half full despite a challenging life. His wish was to die at home—the same house he was born in—and Heather’s mother nursed him faithfully for two years to make sure he could do so.

Family photo at Christmas
(Granddad is 100--and Heather is stealing a kiss from him!)

Thomas and Granddad enjoying catfish

Lance is still working at the VA and serving the veterans in our community. To celebrate the end of his tenure in the Navy, he is letting his hair and beard grow out. Ironically, he looks more like a sailor now than before! He enjoys working with Thomas’s Cub Scout pack and teaching the cubs about everything from birdcalls to proper hygiene. In October, we enjoyed a nice, long trip to Cincinnati to visit Lance’s sister, Kim, and his niece, Olivia. As usual, we took a history adventure, visiting Ulysses S. Grant’s birthplace, the John Rankin House (look this guy up—he was amazing), Harriet Beecher Stowe’s House, The Johnny Appleseed Museum, and the Wright Brother’s Bicycle Shop. We ended the excursion with a trip to Paint and Bake (on Olivia’s request), where Thomas crafted a “one-eyed Zombie” elephant.

Visiting Grant's Birthplace with Aunt Kim and Cousin Olivia

We welcomed a new feline to our menagerie this summer: Minerva Sue came to us from Aunt Kim who found her and her two sisters in a cardboard box on the road. Minerva has the typical active personality of a kitten, which our other cats, Ollie and Pippin, take with varying levels of patience. The other animals carry on as usual as if to say, “Oh, another cat. Cool. Cats don’t eat grain or hay.”

Thomas snuggles with Minerva

Ollie snuggles with Minerva

The only significant farm loss to report is Heather’s beloved 1989 Toyota truck—the same one she took to Wake Forest—which “died” on the way to pick up Mamaw’s Christmas tree. This tragedy left us with the stressful task of finding a replacement over the holidays (and a team of horses, while Heather’s dream, wasn’t really a practical option). After a fairly painless negotiation, we purchased “Big Blue,” a 2008 Chevy Silverado that is tricked out with automatic locks and windows, air-conditioning, AND a four-wheel drive system that doesn’t involve getting out of the truck and locking the wheels! We feel spoiled.

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So, come visit us in Tennessee and we’ll take you for a spin!