Summer photos

So... we last left off with us all going to Seattle to meet a couple of students from my program who were coming to Wenatchee for a class on orchards.  They did indeed come, and we ran them around a lot to see tons of apples,



cherries (being packed),

people (especially in orchards),

processors (like cider makers),

and some good scenery.

Kiddos continued hanging out Washington-style...

 

 until we went to Minnesota to swing on swings,

and look for frogs,

and walk up hills,

and put on life jackets

 

to ride on boats

and to drive boats

And then we came back to Pittsburgh and moved ourselves here...




above the garage at the farm campus of my university (i.e. top floor)

and we get to visit with lots of baby chicks.




Meanwhile, the goats came east to live in Pittsburgh too, traveling in a truck...

Here's a picture from one of their stops (Minnesota)



and one of their temporary home, until we figure out all the rest of the logistics...

 

and one of their sheep-y companions.

We stayed in Pittsburgh for a week, and then we went on the road again, this time to NY to swing,

and visit,

and swim,





and splash,



and blow out candles,



and to go to a wedding

 

And now we're back, and school has started for all of us.  Here's a picture from the first day of dairy class, making cheese and ice cream.



So we are navigating a new system of everyone being out of the house most of the day every weekday... I suppose we'll get the hang of it soon enough.  Until then, I'll leave you with some giggles.

p.s. There was a question that came out of my last post on what I meant when talking about liking the "broader culture" in Wenatchee.  Mostly, I like that the way that agriculture is integrated into everyday life in Wenatchee -- for most of the people who live there, not just for a small subculture of, say, foodies in a larger urban area.  People in the locker room after swimming talk about what's growing (or not growing) in their garden, what they're canning, and how to cook with it -- not because it's hipster, just because it's normal.  Even though most people in Wenatchee don't even work in agriculture at this point, they still know what's in season when... and it's a mainstream sort of knowledge.  So I seem to like that this connection to food and agriculture cuts broadly across the community and becomes part of the fiber of everyday life, rather than being seen as a specialized thing that only certain subcultures are interested in.  That's probably part of what I miss, living now in Pittsburgh.