Making Rope

Yesterday was a long, yet enjoyable day with family & friends. It started out with a trip to the zoo in Clay Center- small, but nice for the money (which is free, so well-worth the trip). Then we headed up to my grandfather's farm for a meal catered by the local grocery store. It was absolutely delicious! Fried chicken, potatoes & gravy, corn, potato salad- YUMMY!

The afternoon was the highlight of the day for my boys I think. We got to enjoy making rope, something I hadn't done since I was much younger. Most of the folks that were at the farm yesterday were inlaws or newbies to the Pacey bunch and hadn't ever seen rope be made before. Growing up only a couple miles away, I remembered quite well how rope was made and always enjoyed picking out my colors. And when I was younger, we had sheep, calves, and our horses to use our ropes on. Now, they are more of just a keepsake, and used when we need to tie a load down in the pickup.

It's not easy to make rope- there are many things that have to be 'just right'. However, it gave us a sense of what my mother grew up knowing how to do as she was one of 13 children on the farm that was mostly self-sufficient. They milked their own cows, had eggs, and made most all of the stuff that they needed to survive, including rope! :) So, it gave us a bit of history as well as some fond family memories that we will forever cherish as we realize how incredibly precious our time is with those we care about so much.