Why Maine?

farming with children in Maine, how did that come to be and why?  well as I said before I started my life in Lebanon Connecticut a quaint close community of farmers, and I attended a farming high school. somehow I ended up in Middletown Connecticut. with 2 small kids on a postage size lot with no room for livestock except a gold fish in a relationship going no where. my mom was in maine taking care of my grand parents long time Mainers, traveling the unitarian minister road from town to town every 3 years. so I grew up loving maine from ocean to its mountains.

my parents were big on experiences back in the 70’s and one of them was our twice yearly trips to old sturbridge village in sturbridge Massachusetts. I have a deep indebted love for homesteading. the horse power we use here on winterberry, the milking short horn cattle the same breed that has been used by old sturbridge village for as long as I can remember. baking in wood fired ovens same here with the winteberry kitchen. and even the same old breed of sheep romney sheep. many similarity’s that I just can not let go of, almost like I grew up having them on my farm. but not the case at all.  I have raised my kids with alot of those old yankee values that I learned at old sturbridge village and growing up in a farm community.

I called a real estate agent here in maine, I asked for old farms he sent me photos of lots of places none that did it for me. so I came up on a april vacation in 2001 when gil was 1 years old as I was driving by, my farmhouse now, it had a 4 sale sign in front I called right there Allie Hunt the agent met me there in 5 min. I put a deposit on the house the next day. it took me until july 24th to move in. I never looked at another farm this was home from the day I saw it. I have never felt like a owner I am winterberry farm’s keeper, I am her advocate for as long as I am here. this farm like all farms have a pulse a heart a life of there own.

I’ve been following my intuition ever sense and what a road it has led us down.

no matter the season, heat of summer or fridge t air of winter I am honored and feel the luckiest person in the world to be given this opportunity to raise my children on a farm.

mary perry