Happy Friday Hive! I know, I know, I am seriously slacking on my blogging. I know, I suck. We had an unexpected second shooter who was able to capture our entire rehearsal dinner and I am not so patiently waiting for those photos to arrive. So, until they do you are stuck with lots of promises to not suck at life for much longer. I am eager to start my recaps and share our special day with the Hive, however until that time I am going to let you into my world and share with you one of my favorite ongoing series posts - The Secret Life of Bees!
I started thinking about this post when I first got accepted to the Bee. I kind of had a moment of panic because well, I am not very interesting and don't really have any deep dark secrets. Having to think of things to share with you - well let's just say it was kind of hard. I don't think I am the most unique person out there (oh who am I kidding I'm boring) but there are some interesting things I can share.
1. In order to know me better you need to know a huge part of me. I have a special needs brother who is my entire world. Hive meet Brother Barn:
Photos personal
My brother enriches my life so much more than he could ever understand or I could ever put into words. Being six hours away is tough at times but we certainly try to stay in touch as much as we can. Growing up with him, as tough as it was sometimes (we fought a lot) has taught me incredible patience and understanding, something that has benefited my marriage greatly. My brother and Mr. Farmer have a wonderful relationship and for that I am incredibly thankful. I shouldn't have been worried but people are insanely cruel at times, so I tend to be very protective of my brother and introducing him to a whole new family was a little nerve racking for me. I didn't want to overwhelm him but everyone was fully prepared and the introduction was totally smooth.
Having him in my life helps me to appreciate the little things in life that are so easy to take for granted. Being independent. Having a job. Getting married. Being healthy. Having a family. Owning a home. All of these are things that my brother wants in life but are difficult for him to achieve or highly unlikely. I love my brother so much and he truly has shaped who I am as a person and as a wife to Mr. Farmer. He is continuously showing me and teaching me things about myself and for that I will be eternally grateful.
2. I have a seriously love for dill pickles.
There is a jar of pickles in my refrigerator at.all.times. I have been known to eat an entire jar by myself in one day, no shame folks. I am really lucky though because my family has an extensive garden (part of my brother's therapy) where Mama Barn grows cucumbers to make me pickles. Every time I travel home Mama Barn sends a few jars of pickles home with me. She even cuts them into spears the way I prefer because well my mom rocks. I trade her the empty jars for fresh jars. I suppose one of these days that I will have to learn her recipe so that I can carry on the tradition, but until then I am going to enjoy being spoiled by my mama!
3. I hunt.
Out of respect for those that don't understand or agree I won't post any photos but it's been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. One of my youngest childhood memories was hunting with my daddy at the age of 5. As women my mother and I are in the minority, but it's so much more than the thrill of the hunt for us. It's a huge part of our family tradition and that alone is what makes it appealing to me. I could care less if I am successful in my harvest or not, but the time spent with my family and friends is invaluable to me.
I remember being a little girl and telling my grandfather how I couldn't wait to go bear hunting with him when I was big enough. He would say, "Bianca (what my name would be in Polish) when it's time we will go and get you your bear." Well 15 years later I made that dream come true and on the last day of our hunt, I was successful. I did so with my grandfather sitting right next to me, even weeks after a major car accident rendered him incapable of turning his head. He was there because it meant a lot to the both of us and he wasn't going to miss it for the world. Those are the memories that still make me tear up inside and that's the reason I load a gun every year and wear my orange and camo with pride.
4. I am a HUGE dog lover.
It's pretty bad, well I mean it's never a bad thing but I can't even watch an ASPCA commercial without bawling. A movie where the dog dies? Heart-wrenching! I cry big ol' alligator tears. If I know the dog is going to die in a movie, I won't watch it simply for that reason.
I grew up with dogs my entire life and my home would not be complete without one. Thankfully Baby Berkley takes care of my need for a cute furry creature, however it's a constant struggle because Mr. Farmer is NOT a dog lover. They don't give him the warm fuzzies like they do for me. He did not grow up with a dog inside the house and is such a neat freak that it some times causes issues. I just want to have Baby B around all the time but Mr. Farmer is more of a pat on the head, good dog type of guy. He likes them but is not nearly as passionate about them as my family or I am. I would rescue a whole bunch of them if I could. In fact I joke that if I hadn't met Mr. Farmer that I would be a dog lady. Between Mama Barn and I - we would totally own a rescue organization if we could.
Mr. Farmer might not be a huge dog lover but he does have a weakness. He is kind of a sucker for a Labrador so of course when stepdaughter K wanted one last year, daddy was oh so happy to oblige. Seriously though how could you say no to her!?
He grew up fast!
So we have our Winchester, K's dog outside and Berkley inside. No need to fret though, when it's cold Winchester does come inside, we aren't heartless. It's the best of both worlds for us. Berkley is still getting used to spending more time outside during the warmer months and Winchester is getting used to being inside at times, but hey it's all about compromise right!?
5. I can't drive a tractor.
Shocking I know! Despite being married to a farmer and spending plenty of hours in a tractor I still don't know how to drive it. I once drove six hours to see Mr. Farmer, woke up the next day and spent 13 hours driving around with him in the tractor planting, only to wake up on Sunday and drive another six hours home. All of that with a pinched nerve in my neck. That's real love right there folks! I literally spent 25 hours on my butt, driving. Seriously though, I haven't the slightest idea how to drive one. Mr. Farmer has tried to teach me but every time I get in the driver's seat I panic. There are too many buttons, levers, gears, pedals and things I can break that I start to have a panic attack. Heart racing, palm sweating, feel like the world is ending and that I could die, it's pretty horrid. That's a really expensive piece of equipment and what if I break it?! Mr. Farmer assures me that I can't break it but I just can't seem to get myself in the driver's seat.
6. I'm a Packer fan.
Big surprise being from Wisconsin and all. Mr. Farmer is a Vikings fan. It's basically forbidden love. He said he would never date a Packer fan and I said I would never date a Vikings fan. Well........it happened. Football Sunday is always an adventure in our household and quite entertaining. I am a die hard and no matter what, refuse to support the Vikes and he refuses to support GB, even though I have the better team (obviously)! Although I think I am getting him to come around because this season he did purchase this for me:
He has a constant battle going with my mom who sent him a Packer schedule last year just to irritate him. Mama Barn is known for pranks and jokes. He turned around and sent her a Vikings pom-pom only to see this the following day on his Facebook wall:
They really do love each other I promise! This year Mama Barn bought him Vikings duct tape as a peace offering. We shall see how long it lasts. We do have some teams that we can agree on because we both love football but the passion we feel for our beloved teams can't come close. Needless to say we argue nonstop about who has the better team, (clearly I do) and are always trying to get the other to jump ship. Sorry babe it's just not going to happen.
7. I love the number seven.
That Packer jersey above has a number 7 on it for a reason. Mr. Farmer also has a Vikings jersey with the number seven on it as well. You see Mr. Farmer and I have a strange love for the number. We met at a restaurant called Seven (totally our favorite in the Cities) and the first time we spoke since meeting was March seventh. Our first date was April seventh. We were married in the seventh month. We fly out for our honeymoon on January seventeenth. I met Mr. Farmer when he was 37. I was 27 when we got married. It has become a special number to us and we have decided that anything special needs to have the number seven in it. We are weird, I've accepted it.
So there you have it folks. A little light shed on Mrs. Barn. Tell me a bit about yourself and what makes you unique. What makes you - well you!?
