Hello Folks,
Aunt Eunice here. The “peepers” are calling, robins moved in even before that and a number of groundhogs are out and about. The farm had its Spring Clean Up on Saturday April 6 and looks like a shiny new penny. We’d like to thank all the folks who came out and helped.
School groups came out yesterday for the first day of Spring Farm Tours. On this historic tour of a traditional homestead, children have the opportunity to observe a typical day on the farm, visit with the animals, and learn something about family life in 19th century rural Pennsylvania. There is also time to visit the one room school and have a “science” lesson on simple machines and play some old fashion games. It’s nice to see the classes as they absorb information about the past and have a good time while doing it.
Today was Egg Day for the April preschool class. They observed frog eggs from the pond, and learned about chicken eggs and how babies hatch out of them using their egg tooth. They dyed eggs in natural materials such as onion skins and red cabbage. They also examined the eggs of the largest of birds, an emu and ostrich. Their little eyes grew almost as big as the ostrich egg as they saw just how large an egg can be. After a story they all headed down to the farm and had a chance to meet the latest additions to the farm family, baby chicks. Such fun! I feel young as a spring hen when I join in the activities of their class.
Speaking of eggs, this is Easter week and the perfect time to start a family tradition of an Easter tree if you don’t already practice it. It is a great activity for your children or even adults. It adds quite a festive touch to the yard this time of year. The original Quiet Valley family was Lutheran, but if you aren’t it can simply be an Egg Tree, a celebration of spring. The egg tree traces its roots to Germany. There, it is known as Ostereierbaum, or Easter egg trees. It is also popular in neighboring Poland, Austria, and Hungary. In the Guinness World Record race for the tree with the most eggs, a red oak in Rostock Zoo earned top prize for its nearly 80,000 egg display. The Easter egg tree tradition is centuries old, but the origins of the story have been lost over time. In the U.S., Easter trees are especially popular in the Pennsylvania Dutch region, but you can find pockets of the South that embrace the tradition as well.
If you would like to learn more about the farm Quiet Valley’s first event of the year is coming up in May. Farm Animal Frolic is on May 18, 19, 25 and 26 and it is a great chance for you to see all of our wonderful farm babies. They stay little for such a short time so come on out to Frolic and visit them while you can!
Thanks for checking in and don’t be a stranger. Aunt Eunice