July 5, 2010. Chevy Chase, Md. A Farmer's Wife.

It takes a special kind of person to be a farmer's wife. I suspect it is essential to be born into a farming family in order to be a successful wife of a farmer. Look at Tammy, married to Bryan, the farmer son of our good friends the farmers Alan and Helen. Tammy's parents are farmers so she knows all about life on the farm. She seems very happy with her role and certainly energetically carries out her duties. And what a lot of duties there are.

She is the Mother of five , ages five to fifteen. She milks one hundred cows every morning and evening. She prepares lunch and dinner for the men every day, a different number of men depending on the tasks of the day. She organizes and tends a large garden, and twice a week takes her produce to the Farmer's Market in Cumberland. She is an excellent baker and keeps the restaurant in Clearville, 'Mike's Place' supplied with pies, amounting to twenty pies a week. She cleans our two houses. All vegetables not sold or consumed she will can or freeze. She helps whever Bryan or Alan need an extra hand on the farm. For instance, Tammy helped load the bales on the elevator both Sunday and Monday.

In addition to her work at the farm she attends every game played by any of their children and as the children are strong and are used to taking directions all four older children are highly prized on their school teams. She does it all with not a care in the world. If you were to ask her if she liked her job she will tell you a definite "Yes". What she enjoys about being the wife of a farmer is the variety in her life. She is always needed and she is always in charge, definitely a winning combination for her. But her hours are long and much of the work is tiring but she would not trade her job for anyone. I am amazed with her competence and enthusiasm. Certainly I would have made a rotten Farmer's Wife!!