Fireman's Field Days

Farmers worked hard in the summer.
We also played hard!

Those were the days of volunteer fire departments.
The siren would go off and could be heard for a couple miles away.
The first ones to the department would get the location
and head out with the trucks.
Volunteer firemen farmers would converge on the site.

Volunteer firemen also had a band at each department.
All were recruited if they could play an instrument.
The old farmer's oldest daughter played a glockenspiel.
Then every weekend over the summer a different department hosted
a field days event and parade.
They all marched in each others parade.

 

The field days involved many booth of games.
Dart throwing, ping pong balls tossed into ivy bowls.
(With a gold fish in each!),  hammering a nail into a 2x4
(who could drive a nail with one blow?), knocking down the weighted critters,
target shooting, and on and on. 

Guess who always came home
with a 50s ruby or green glass ivy bowl and a goldfish!

So this was actually a lot of work too, building the booths,
volunteering to run them, barbecuing the chicken, parading.
But the work was on the host department,
you got to enjoy everyone elses!

What do you remember about field days? 

Did you ever run a booth or march in the parade?

Easter Egg Hunt

   If you have been reading my blog, The Old Farmer's Daughter

you know the Old Farmer was a big kid at heart! 

Every year the night before Easter the whole family

gathered around the big round table in the kitchen
and we colored the hard boiled eggs in colored dyes. 

 Overnight the magic happened courtesy of 

The Old Farmer hiding the eggs and a basket for each child. 

Usually it was still winter in our neck of the woods so

the big hunt was held in the large dining room. 

There was a basket in the corner of the bay window. 

A blue egg in the middle of the snake plant! 

One under the radiator! 

One egg was missing...the Old Farmer hinted,

warmer, warmer, oops cooler, warmer, warmer, HOT ! 

Where was it? Aha! Climbing on a chair it was found

overhead in a flower wall pocket!

Then off to church in our new Easter clothes and hats.  

Back home to a breakfast of hard boiled eggs and coffee cake. 

Dinner of ham and deviled eggs. 
And chocolate bunnies for desert. 

HAPPY EASTER from THE OLD FARMER"S DAUGHTER!