Farm Fresh….how I love those words!
Anything fresh-from-the-farm just fills my heart with pure joy….fresh eggs, fresh milk, fresh fruits and vegetables, fresh jams and jellies, buttermilk biscuits, hot-out-of-the-oven, and a golden-crusted fresh baked pie of course!

Just imagine…chickens cluckin’
in the barnyard,
pecking corn on the ground, a mighty-proud rooster perched on a white rail fence, crowing at the sunrise… fluffy-yellow chicks scurrying to catch up to big-mama hen….cows-a-mooin‘…farmer-a-whistlin’… his aproned-wife ringin’ the dinner bell…time for a hearty country breakfast…scrambled eggs, hickory-smoked bacon, biscuits ‘n’ gravy, grits, homemade strawberry jam and biscuits, a sweet slice of last night’s apple pie and good strong coffee. Ahhh…gimme that country life!

We can learn a lot about life by observing the farmer. When a farmer wants to have a harvest of corn he has to plant the seed. He can have sacks of seed in the barn, but until he plants it, it won’t do him any good. Once the seed is planted, he has to nurture, water and tend his cornfield in order for it to grow. The same is true for our home and families. If we want to harvest a happy home with strong family relationships we must sow seeds of love, understanding, forgiveness, goodness, and grace. We need to plan ahead to create happy memories and create a home our family wants to come home to. Like the farmer, we sometimes have to be self-sacrificing for the benefit of our loved ones to reap a harvest of blessings.
  
“…For whatever a man sows, that and only that is what he will reap.” Galatians 6:7
farm girl3
We can’t all live on a farm, but we can incorporate a “Farm-girl” attitude in the way we approach life! Remember my story of Beulah? She lived her life with Gumption, Grit, and Grace. That is the farm-girl way. (you can read Beulah’s story here “A Little Gumption Goes A Long Way” 
 
We can dress “farm-girl vintage” like my dear, adorable and sassy friend Catiena (we used to be chatty next-door neighbors when I lived in California!).

We can decorate our homes with old-fashioned goodness….glass milk bottles, old white enamel dishpans, creamy pitchers, vintage linens, well-worn breadboards, old coffee pots and bread boxes, canning jars, and white-washed picnic baskets, just to name a few! Things that remind us of the good-old-days. Wholesome days. Honest-to-goodness, breath-of-fresh-air days. It’s good for you to surround yourself with sweet little reminders of farm-fresh beauty because beauty inspires!                                    

We can fill our homes with kind and loving words, tenderness, patience, a gracious nurturing spirit, comfort, encouragement, guidance, cleanliness and order, joyful music, fresh nourishing food and homemade treats. We can say Grace at the table for God’s provision. We can take our family to Church on Sundays, to instill in their hearts truth, hope, and joy. These are all the things that will make our family feel safe, loved and cherished. It’s really all about back-to-basics homemaking. Simple and sweet.

The home should be a warm sanctuary

from the storms of life

for each member of the family.

~ GiGi Graham Tchividjian, daughter of Billy Graham

front porch andy griffith2

I love the Rascal Flatts song “Mayberry”, the lyrics go like this….

Sometimes it feels like this world is spinning faster
than it did in the old days

so naturally we have more natural disasters

from the strain of a fast pace

Sunday was the day of rest
Now it’s more a day for progress
and we can’t slow down
because more is best
It’s all an endless process
Well, I miss Mayberry
sitting on the porch drinking ice cold Cherry-Coke
Where everything is black and white
Picking on a Six String
Where people pass by and you call them by their first name
watching the clouds roll by…

Dicks-5-10-Hitoric-Downtown-Branson
One of the reasons I love living in the Ozarks of Southern Missouri (Branson) is the down-home Mayberry feel. Old town Main street has quaint little diners, a real 5 and Dime general store that dates back to the 1940’s, a barber shop, shoe store, drug store and lots of other shops in between. Folks say a friendly “howdy” as you walk by, and you almost expect to see good old Deputy Barney whistling down the street. I live just ten minutes from town on an old homestead, surrounded by neighboring farms, and in the spring and summer, I can hear an old rooster cock-a-doodlin’ across the valley. I may not live on a working farm, but I’m a farm-girl at heart.

home decor jan. 2009 0071

I love bringing that same wholesome goodness into my home. I think I got kicked by old Bessie the cow because I started painting and decorating everything in shades of Milk-White! I was ready for simplicity, and a cleaner, fresher look! What I call Fresh Farm Style! The beadboard above my stove mantel used to be Red until I gave it a fresh coat of Swiss Coffee White from Home Depot! 

Well, I hope you enjoyed this bit of farm-fresh goodness!
If you did, leave a comment and let me know! 
I always appreciate the time y’all take to leave me words of encouragement,
they mean more to me than you’ll know! 

Thanks for stopping by!

Hugs and Blessings!

Aunt Ruthie

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