Farm School Finale

Temperatures spiked near 100 two summers ago and instead of the usual tractor-pulled hay ride and harvesting veggies during farm school, Farmers Erick and Wendy led us to the edge of the meandering Snoqualmie River. Nobody had swimsuits or towels and nobody cared. With 1 yr old Sara in my arms and 3 yr old William by my side we waded and splashed, cooled off, played and dug in the sand. It was beautiful.

I was reminded of that beautiful day last week when Farmer Erick showed us their irrigation system that pumps water from the river into their pipes and sprinkler system. “You don’t think we’d ever just turn these on for fun, do you?” he asked. The kids, having been taught all summer about how we don’t waste irrigation water when washing our hands off or getting a drink from the farm’s spigots, answered with a sober “no” but you could see a glimmer of hope in their eyes.  Farmer Erick did not disappoint.

A few tarps and one huge strip of plastic sheeting were placed on a hill, made secure with concrete bricks and then he let the irrigation pipes gush. The kids hesitated only for a few seconds before venturing into the flood but once they got started, the slipping and sliding was beyond fantastic.

William plunged in with all of his clothes on, didn’t even take off his hat... Sara did just the opposite

 

Photos were cropped and chosen carefully so Sara won’t despise me in her teen years (as if I can control such things).