Farmers and Fencing

No, I'm not taking up a new hobby that involved swords, however, there are days. . .

My musings have been less this week, thanks to good weather. The girls have been spending quality time outside, while Joe has been busy as ever starting to plant beans. However, with planting season and good weather comes big equipment, both driven by the farmers and those delivering things, fixing equipment, and just stopping by to check on progress.

This makes me nervous. Anna just learned to ride her bike on two wheels, which is HUGE, but it just makes another tot-vehicle for her to ride around on, with the potential to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Our driveway is the hub of activity, since it hooks onto the machine shed. Thus, when fertilizer is delivered, it's delivered 20 yards from where we ride on our concrete. When the planter comes to fuel up, it is parked steps from our swingset. When the chore tractor, chore truck, semi, Dad's truck, etc., etc. .. you get my drift. It's dangerous around here.

However, after having two tragic pet losses and with all this farm equipment and oddly fast traffic on our gravel road (where ARE these folks going????), we still do NOT have a fence. Being a cattle farmer and son of a livestock man, I consider Joe to be an amazing fence maker, repairer, fixer. We even received Uncle Ab's post hole diggers for our wedding present from Joe's dad. . . still to this day, I'm a little confused about the gift, but it's an heirloom, so I'm going with it.

My question is why do I continue to allow this to be? I have three children under the age of five, all of whom I strap in, buckle up, make them wear helmets, use baby gates, and cut food in tiny strips, but when a semi rolls into our lot to hook onto the arm-ripping auger, I just wave and continue to let them tool around the yard.

What is WRONG with me???

I guess I just trust that the farmers are looking out for my kids. I trust my girls' judgement and hope that they follow our "concrete only when the equipment is running" rule. The girls, for as young and as fearless as they are some times, have a respect for the farm equipment. They understand the danger, even at their small age.


However, with Amelia just weeks away from her first steps, I have found myself dreaming, measuring and pricing white fence. Even though my kids have demonstrated good judgement, it only takes a second for something terrible to happen. And, thus, Joe groans as I turn a post into a "honey-do" list. . . hey, it worked with the landscaping!!