The Chicken Grandma!!

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Friend Faye (https://thechickengrandma.wordpress.com/) in northwest Iowa is the fourth blogging friend John and I have visited. It is the most marvelous thing to meet someone you’ve known only through the computer. Maybe this time I’ll call it instant bonding. Faye and Larry came out to greet us, and there was not a moment of silence after that.

Because of Faye’s blog name, I wanted a photo of her chicken coop. She did a post on the building of it, using reclaimed materials. Farmers are resourceful, and I’m convinced Faye and Lar can fix or recycle almost anything.

As one of her girls wandered by, I asked Faye if she touched them. I should have asked if she petted them. She scooped up a black one and let me pet it. The answer is, she picks them up from time to time to keep them used to human contact. Their grandchildren would be disappointed if they couldn’t get near them.

Faye with a chicken and John and Larry in the background

Faye offered us peach iced tea and pie. When setting up a meeting with a blogger, I suggest we just sit and talk. I don’t want people diverted from conversation, because there is never enough time to say and hear everything. She asked in such a way that I knew the treat had been prepared. Additionally, I had seen photos of some of her creations in a post. Only a fool or someone on a restricted diet would have refused. Both the tea and the pie were superb.

We didn’t talk with our mouths full, but the conversation never flagged. We found out Larry likes motorcycles as much as John likes trains. Faye had photos of some trains on her camera and shared them with us. I wanted to know what crops they grow, and the answer was corn and beans. I thought that’s a little different from where I grew up in Tennessee, where we grew cotton and beans. They live way out in the country, so I asked where they bought groceries. Ten miles in any direction was the reply.

The land in northwest Iowa is beautiful – fairly flat and very green at this time of year. Before we left home, John showed me a Google map of the area. Everything, and I mean everything, is square. The land was laid out in squares when it was settled, so all the roads run in straight lines. What a contrast to the roads in the mountains of NC that go in endless circles!

We laughed a lot as we talked. I can’t remember all that we found amusing, but the conversation was most enjoyable. I wanted a quick refresher on their three sons. One lives nearby, but the other two are further away, meaning they don’t see their children and grandchildren as often as they’d like.

Faye knows birds and mentioned pigeons. I remembered pigeons from the three areas I’ve lived in. When a black and white bird flew over us, I asked her what it was. A pigeon. It’s coloring was not familiar to me, but the flight pattern was. When I described a bird I’d seen on a bridge, she thought it might have been a red-tailed hawk.

Larry and Faye talked about cracklins, if I have the name correct. It’s something he loves and she could happily live without. Pigs are raised in the area, and sometimes they are given one. After the good cuts are taken, they render the lard. It’s a messy job they do in the barn. They heat the bits and pieces. Faye likes to use the lard (fat) for pie crusts, and the meaty bits get crunchy and are frozen for later use.

I loved the story about French toast. When the boys were growing up, Lar occasionally cooked breakfast for them. They were active, always running about the farm, and they were bottomless pits. Four pieces of bread fit in the skillet he used. The boys could eat much faster than he could cook. His solution was brilliant. After every two pieces of toast, they had to drink a glass of milk or water. That no only slowed them down, it filled them up.

This was just a taste of our time together. Faye and Lar are warm and caring, the kind of folks you are instantly drawn to. As we were leaving, I took a quick picture of them with John. This was an event to remember and to share with others. When we were back on the road. I just sat and savored our visit. How blessed we were to have that marvelous time with Faye and Larry!

Faye wrote a lovely post about our visit. Read it here and get a bonus — the recipe for her pie shown above.

Published by Anne Mehrling

I'm a retiree who loves to write about life in the mountains of North Carolina.

Published

54 thoughts on “The Chicken Grandma!!”

  3. Anne,
    God bless you ! To go looking for your blogging friends until you meet them and to enjoy them is a blessing from God. Cherish those moments for ever, Anne. Much thanks to John for indulging your whims and friendships. He is a great guy.
    I am glad you could meet the Chicken Grandma. I wish you could meet others too and tell us their stories through your blog too- rabbitpatchdiary, threepsandq, and Walking, writing, wit & whimsy too.
    Love you Anne,
    Susie

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  4. How lovely to be able to meet other bloggers. Last week I went to visit Harriet Rycroft who was launching a book about the gardens at Cotswold wildlife park. Blogging and social media leads to lots of friendships. All the best Anne. Karen x

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  5. This is so fantastic!! How wonderful you two were able to meet. I absolutely love hearing about the girls, too! The best part of blogging is meeting so many amazing people. Thank you for bringing a smile to my face this morning 😊💕

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  9. What a wonderful visit! I love when paths cross with my blogger friends. I’m currently visiting Laura from The Wandering RVer and having a marvelous time. I’m so happy you got to meet and enjoy the time with thechickengrandma! Bloggers unite (imagining the touching of secret rings and activating creative writing powers)! 🙂

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      1. I’m hoping we get the chance to meet someday! Looks like the Carolinas aren’t in the cards this year after all, however, we will be getting to meet one of our “grandkids” that lives in Ohio, if all goes well!

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  16. The pleasure was all ours Anne. When you and John left my husband commented that it had been like visiting family….and he was right!
    It was so much fun hearing about your family and what you had been doing and seeing on your travels.
    When I think of your visit I just get a big smile and fell like giving one of those big sighs of contentment. I have a feeling we could have spent an entire day or more together.

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    1. I’m still reveling in the memory of our visit. The photo of the three of you is on my desktop, so I smile at y’all several times a day. We would have loved more time together. We saw the last of our people last night in Indianapolis. Got home this afternoon. What a trip!

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  17. These adventures you are having are so wonderful. Great idea for the toast and milk. They look like ownderful people, indeed, and I love that you had such a great time talking with them. I loved the line, “It is the most marvelous thing to meet someone you’ve known only through the computer.” It reminds me of a time 5/6 of my writing group were yakking in a hotel room, and one of them suddenly called out, “Hey, wait, do you realize this is the first time we have all met in person?” We looked at each other stunned, then laughed. We were such good friends and already so comfortable with each other, that fact had escaped us 🙂 Internet friends are awesome.

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    1. Your realization that you were in a room together for the first time was amusing. Yes, internet friends are awesome, and so are great nephews, cousins, classmates, and friends that we saw on this trip.

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  18. What a fun visit this was Anne and how nice that you got to hook up with another fellow blogger. I like that you got to meet one of the girls as well. The pie looks delicious. Faye, Larry and John are are smiles and they all are wearing blue – that struck me right away as I looked at the picture.

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      1. I imagine David was happy to see you home again, as it was a little lonely with just himself, unless Logan was visiting on a daily basis? Are John $ and Rose and Sadie gone?

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        1. I doubt Logan knew when David was home, because that car is in the garage when it’s here. David went hiking with $ and Rose on Sunday. I think David was alone several days while we were away, but I don’t know how he felt about it.

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  19. Pingback: Friends That Feel Like Family – The Chicken Grandma

  20. I’m so impressed at your initiative in seeking out your blogging buddies in person. This meeting looked like so much fun. It makes me think I should arrange a meet-up in my town.

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  22. It is such fun to connect with blogger friends who become personal friends in real life. We were so happy when you two came through and stopped to see us. I am getting ready to meet another favorite in the next few weeks. Can hardly wait.

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