Tom & Brenda's Family Journal

This has been a big week for Busy B's Farm.   After 60+ years of starting guard over the farm, the silo was worn out and had become a danger for anyone in the yard.  Big chunks of concrete would occasionally fall off the top without warning.  It was very clear that removal was our only option. I took a few pictures from inside the silo in the past few days. Looking up the silo from the inside The ladder which Tom climbed daily as a youngster to shovel  down silage. Tommy and his family and our neighbors all gathered to watch from a safe distance. The work started with taking off the granary off from around the silo. Once the granary was taken off, Dave, the contractor, used a sledge hammer to knock holes in the bottom of the silo.  He had a chain attached to guide the direction of the fall.  The plan worked well. This video shows the last two swipes with the sledge hammer.  But there were many swipes before that. ...

 Busy B's Farm-When we bought Tom's parent's farm in 2010, we decided to bring back the name Tom remembered from his childhood.  We aren't sure if we have it exactly right, but we are definitely busy Benedicts, so we are going with Busy B's Farm. The barn was standing when Wally and Marge purchased the farm in 1948 from a couple of bachelors.  Family lore tells us that the men held poker games to get  money to build and add to the house.  I have no idea if any of that is true, but it makes a great story. Wally added the silo to the barn shortly after moving here.  The silo has stood faithfully for at least 60 years.  In 1959 the cows were sold and the need for the silo ended. A few years ago our barn was voted by the community as the prettiest barn in Bowne Township.  We have been very proud of the barn and every morning we enjoy the view of the field and barn out the breakfast nook windows. Time changes things.   But the wor...

Tom gave me the count from the field this morning.  One deer, two Canada geese, two sandhill cranes and four turkeys. Looking out our back window, he was watching the wildlife in our field.  The corn was just planted this week, so we still have a clear view of our early morning visitors. Our farm is situated just right for bird watching.  There is a swamp to our east which gives birds a place to nest and live.  We also have several bushes and small trees around the garage and house which gives the birds cover so they can fly in and eat. We really enjoy watching the birds and the number of feeders in the yard shows just how much. There are five feeders in front of the family room window and seven more over by the garage.  All 12 feeders stay busy all winter long with a variety of species.  There are book identification books by each window so you can look up any unusual sightings. Last December we had a visitor to the feeder that was looking fo...

Kristen & Chris have purchased their first home.  It is an exciting time for them.  We traveled to Ohio on Thursday.  We moved some boxes last night but today was moving day.  This picture was taken early on the morning of moving day.  This is the garage as we started loading.  They rented a 16 foot truck plus our truck, Chris' dad's truck, Kristen's car & Chris truck.   They have a full basement that is now full of boxes.  These pictures aren't quite in order.  Both dads trying to help Chris replace the door that had to be removed to get furniture in.  Now it is evening and we're enjoying watching the Michigan game in their new family room.

I know it has been months since I posted on this site.  Once we return to Alto and I go back to work, I haven't got much time to post.  Also, there's the issue with social media vs. blog.  Which is the best way to keep my friends and family up-to-date on what we are doing? What do you think?  Do you like to read about us in this blog or is blogging not the best way to keep up with us in this technology-rich world? I'd like to hear from you.  For right now, I'll post a few times and see how it goes. Here's a few pictures from the past months. This is Tom cleaning the snow off the roof of our cabin.    There has been lots of snow up there this winter.  I had shoveled out the door so we could get in and check the cabin.  Every thing was fine. Tom and I try to volunteer every year at the Grand Rapids Auto Show in February.  We host vintage cars.  We have fun finding outfits to fit the time period of the old cars.  This ...

After years of taking pictures with a small point and shoot camera, Tom and I bit the bullet and invested in a better camera to record our life. Now I just need to learn to take great pictures with it. It is a Nikon D5100 and I'm learning lots but have a long way to go. This is one of my first attempts at being artistic with the shot of our barn. We celebrated Jen & Tommy's birthdays last weekend. Madelynn made and dec orated the cake. We had a fun family time. We returned to the cabin on Sunday after a week in Alto that was packed with fun times. We were able to help Jennifer move into her house and she is starting to get settled. She seems as happy as can be to be back in her own space. We loved having her live with us the past year, but she is only a 1/4 mile away from us now. My parents came out to visit us at the cabin when we returned. We have lots of fun with them and I'm so thankful to spend so much time with them during the summer. Of course, I'm tr...