help my son realise his dream of owning a farm

When my son was nearly 2 1/2 (he is now 17) told me this story which I wrote down (and added photos to each caption, printed it & got it bound). Cleaning out his room I recently found it again.

M dreamed of the day when he would be a farmer, driving a tractor on his farm.

M thought he would like a cow on his farm.

M said he would name his dog Sam.

J & E can help look after M’s horse when they come to visit.

M’s farm would have a pig sty.

M would keep chickens so that he could have eggs for breakfast.

M would look forward to all his family visiting him on the farm.

When I was a kid I played with plastic farm animals & toy tractors. My son plays with real tractors & real animals.

Today he graduated with his level 3 certificate in agriculture (dairy) – with merit & received 2 prestigious awards.

He’s returning to complete his level 4 certificate next year. I feel extremely proud about his accomplishments & he still gives his dad a hug at 17 :-)

It was great having Mr 16 back home for his sister’s 21st. On the way back to farm school he got a call to say one of the herd had a breached calf & asked if wanted to help. He was excited at being able to assist.

My son entered the novice category of golden shears – the national sheep shearing championship.

He’s training to be a dairy farmer but had great pleasure in beating some of the trainee sheep farmers!

I’m really proud of him.

I wasn’t sure how Mr 16 would react when we showed up at his school on Saturday, but he was thrilled (in a cool unassuming way) to see us – especially because we brought a goodie bag.

He took his younger brother for a ride on a farm quad & their John Deere tractor. It’s easy to spot the country boy & the city boy!

He really seems at home on the farm & is really loving it!

Today I took my 16 year old son (who we lovingly refer to as Farmer Brown) to farm school for the next 40 weeks.

It was a real mixture of emotions – happy for him, but sadness at not having him round as much.

He’s really excited about learning about farming and he’s mature enough to make good decisions & get on with the other cadets.

My son was offered a job on a 3,000 cow dairy farm once he finishes at the farm school later in the year. he is so excited.

He got the job by showing an interest & chatting to the owner. His passion has opened a huge number of opportunities for him.

Mr 16 got to drive an old steam engine while staying on a family farm over the holidays. He sent me a text saying he was having a great time.

My son is off to a family farm for a few weeks on Xmas Day before going to his 40 week course to become a dairy farmer.

For a 16 year old he is very mature & his passion for farming is an inspiration.

This is him with his 3-legged border collie that he was given.

My 16 y/o son is off for another week on a dairy farm. He just loves it. Then he’s off to a crop farm after Xmas. Then it’s off to farm school.

He seems so grown up.