Meet Isabelle!

Isabelle (top left)

We added a new member to our family last Friday. Her name is Isabelle and she was born in Cambridge, Wisconsin at the beginning of July. She will be living at the Hinchley's Dairy Farm until sometime in mid-November when we will bring her home to Chicago. Our only hope is that she doesn't grow to be too large before then! Gabriella picked her out and named her all by herself. We plan to visit Isabelle at least one more time before we bring her home.

Yes, Isabelle is a turkey. A lovely hen that will be pecking around the farm-yard getting herself fattened up to be our Thanksgiving star. So all you weak-hearted animal loving people out there, if I can do this, trust me--you can too. First of all, knowing where your food comes from is very important. And don't we all plan to eat turkey on Thanksgiving? Secondly, what a great life lesson for our children to truly understand the reality of farm-raised animals. Sure baby turkey's are cute, but wouldn't you rather eat Isabelle than some nameless frozen piece of meat from who know's where that you pick-up from your grocer's freezer? I know that Isabelle will be living the life of an animal I feel comfortable eating and that's something to be said. So even if she grows to be so large that she won't fit in our oven whole, we will divide her up lovingly and share with others!

We visited this dairy farm in Wisconsin last week while my parent's were here visiting from California. We all milked a cow, petted calves that were one day old, fed chickens and goats. Saw hens laying eggs, rabbits, cats, a hoop-jumping dog and alot of dairy cows and corn fields. The Hinchley's actually farm 350 acres of corn, soybeans, etc. Pretty impressive. Not to be missed is also the Sassy Cow Creamery where we indulged in ice cream and brought home butter and cheese from the cows in the pasture outside the creamery. Yummy! It was really alot of fun. No, no we're not thinking of giving up the urban life, but a turkey named Isabelle in Wisconsin will do for now :-)

Gabriella holding Isabelle after selecting her

Pa, Nicholas, Nana & cornfields


Dairy Cows!

Three turkeys

Ducks! Nicholas was thrilled! He's in love with ducks!

One day old cow

Great football hold

Riding through the corn


Mr. Rooster, Pa and Nicholas

At the Sassy Cow

Heard of free-range chickens?

Look at Papa milk!


Ella said this was her favorite thing we did.

Bunny with a bunny