Eating pie; dancing in the rain

Two quintessential summertime activities happened at Farm Dover yesterday – one planned; the other happened spontaneously when a rain cloud let loose in the back yard.

It all started with the arrival of our cousins and their grandmother, a tradition now in its fourth year. Nathan – almost 11, Julia – almost 7, and Frances – 4, were put to work immediately. They harvested (and tasted straight from the garden) nasturtium blossoms and leaves, carrots, beets, shallots, green beans, squash, zucchini, potatoes, chard, blackberries, raspberries and okra. Once their buckets were filled, they switched out of straw hats and into aprons. Nathan was in charge of the sharp knife and chopping; the girls each artfully arranged the vegetables on pizza crusts. While the pizzas cooked, we stuffed squash blossoms with herbs and ricotta and fried them up for appetizers.

Nathan and Julia's dad (cousin Jonathan) and girlfriend Becky joined us for lunch. Just as we finished eating, the rain started coming down, a rainbow appeared, and the kids disappeared to change into their bathing suits and then ran out to dance in the rain: quintessential activity #1.

They followed up their rain dance with an ice-bucket challenge: each child, one by one, drenched with a bucket full of ice water. After which, they wrapped themselves in oversized beach towels and gathered on the back porch for quintessential activity #2: enjoying a slice of Anna's peach pie and a scoop of ice cream.

Before the afternoon ended, they played pool and ping pong and hiked our two trails through the woods, stopping along the way to pick wild blackberries and climb a tree.

While here, they reminisced about previous visits (2013, 2014 and 2015). I hope they add to their memories the afternoon they danced in the summer rain and ate pie on the back porch at Farm Dover. I know I'll remember it fondly always.

Already looking forward to next year....