Imagine you and your partner are full-time farmers, and you enjoy your lifestyle so much that you decide to take on another full-time job on top of farming, then double or triple the work you do for your second job over the next several years. Sound crazy? Well, trying to farm and raise three kids is like having two full-time jobs and it does seem a little crazy at times– but of course we wouldn’t have it any other way.
My husband, Pete, and I have a small farm in central Kentucky where we grow organic produce, keep a few farm animals, and also raise our most precious crop, our three children. Kelby is 6 years old, Deanna is 4 years old and Jonah is 8 months old. We live about 600 miles from our closest relatives, so without any family around to help out, we’ve had to find some creative ways to combine childcare and garden chores.

Our farm truck has proven to be our greatest asset in this venture. Some of our fields are some distance from the house, so we are always sure to pack the truck with the essential items needed to keep little kids happy for a couple of hours: water or juice, snacks, toys, extra diapers and favorite blankets. Many a nap was taken in the farm truck, parked under a shady tree within earshot of Mom and Dad. Deanna sometimes had a hard time settling down at naptime, but a trip or two down our long winding driveway usually took care of that problem. The truck was the kids’ entertainment center as well, especially after they learned how to change the radio station and honk the horn. When the truck gizmos lost their appeal, Pete would strap on the kid carrier and wear a child on his back while he continued to work. Not the easiest way to garden, but a happy child is more important than your own comfort when you really need to get things done.

When the kids were old enough to sit in the gardens without stuffing their mouths with dirt (at least it’s organic dirt!), then a trip to the field or greenhouse began to include toy tractors and trucks, buckets and shovels, and anything else we could think of that might be amusing to a 2- or 3-year old. Forget the 4’x4’ sandbox, now here was some dirt to move! It was amazing to see how true to their gender our kids are: our son would play for hours with trucks and tractors, while our daughter would prefer to make dirt cakes and serve tea in the garden. And on an especially hot summer day an occasional spray with the hose or a clean muck tub full of water keeps our kids plenty happy and within our sight while we wash the vegetables in the barn.

What’s the best thing to do if you have to spend a lot of time in a garden? Eat, of course! The summer our daughter was barely a year old we raised sweet corn so delicious you could eat it raw, which she happily did…and we discovered a great teething toy! Our older kids have learned the joy of picking their own snacks. Raw peas, beans and cherry tomatoes are big favorites, and they’ve even been known to munch on the occasional spinach or lettuce leaf, topped off with a nasturtium flower. I must say a word of caution about introducing children to berry crops, however, unless you don’t really care if you have any left over for yourselves or your customers.

Occasionally there are moments when a child notices that we’re doing something that might, just possibly, be sorta fun, and they want to “help” and I use that term loosely. Of course, we encourage those moments as much as possible, in preparation for the time when these small people might actually become useful to us. Sometimes we’ll give them a harmless job, like stacking empty pots or carrying a pepper over to the basket, but if they really want to help transplant or harvest, we let them. An immature squash may be plucked, a tomato might get squished, a little seedling may be stepped upon, but it doesn’t really matter when the value of the experience lies in the fact that they are there with you every day, learning how things grow and about the cycles of nature.

Despite our best efforts to keep the kids occupied while we work, there are many times when we just have to stop what we’re doing and kiss a boo-boo, check out a cool bug, help build a road or escort a child back to the house. At times it may be frustrating, at other times it’s a welcome diversion. “Gee, I’d really love to finish weeding this long row in the hot sun, but Jonah’s getting hungry so I guess I better go…”
Sometimes you just can’t do it all yourself. One summer, when our older kids were 2 and 4, old enough to get bored hanging out with us but still needing full time attention, we hired a neighbor high school girl to watch them four mornings a week. I really needed the kid-free time in the garden in the morning and I enjoyed my time with the kids out of the garden the rest of the day. It’s been our experience that it’s a lot easier to find a good babysitter than a good farmhand.

Parenting full-time while farming full-time is not easy, but there are plenty of rewards. We see our kids growing up healthy and strong, with plenty of fresh air, exercise and good food. We watch Kelby and Deanna become best friends as they lose themselves in their imaginary world while remaining within our sight. We know our kids are being educated in the ways of nature, living their lives in tune with the turning wheel of the seasons. And it’s really great when they fetch you a cold drink as you sink into a chair at the end of the day.

Our ultimate goal as farmers is to produce healthy food in a sustainable manner. Our ultimate goal as parents is to produce healthy, happy and wise children. And we feel truly blessed to be able to do both at the same time.

Brenda and Pete Cashel own Terrapin Hill Farm in Harrodsburg, Kentucky.