When you start the morning asking your kids if they’d like apple pie for breakfast, they know something is up!
You see, we’ve been reading Farmer Boy 
And since there was leftover pie, I decided to throw our plans out the window and build some memories.
The kids were thrilled when I suggested spending the day bringing Farmer Boy to life. So what did we do besides eat pie for breakfast?
Here’s a look at some of the things we did.
Pick Some Projects
I asked everyone to pick a project or two inspired by the book. After some discussion, everyone set to work. The kids worked on:
- Making candy
- Starting a braided rug
- Hand crocheting a friendship bracelet
- Creating tin can “lanterns”
- Creating a ring toss game to represent the county fair in the book
The Food
There is so much food in Farmer Boy! And we wanted to recreate some of it. So we opened up this amazing cookbook:
(Thank you Mindy and Drew for the book!)
And we decided to make:
- Doughnuts
- Molasses pulled candy
- Fried apples and onions
Each of these played a role in Farmer Boy. It was a fun (and tasty) way to bring the book to life.
Some Pictures and Details from Our Farmer Boy Day
Now that you know the gist of what we did, here’s a more in-depth look.
Four of the kids used tin cans, a nail, and a hammer to create lanterns. We borrowed some candles from Grandma (thanks!) and tried them out.
I found some old shirts for Ellie and helped her measure them and cut them. Then, she started braiding them. Her project isn’t quite done, but she’s been working very hard on it!
Milking the cows is a regular chore for Almanzo. And though I have milk cows, I’m currently not milking. They’re getting an extended break before calving in the spring.
Since Simon wanted to milk a cow, we filled a glove with water. Then we tied the top. Using a thumbtack, we made a tiny hole in each finger. Then Simon could milk to his heart’s content.
Many of the other kids wanted to try too, so we went through quite a few gloves. 😀
Everyone loved the molasses pulled candy! It was a simple recipe, with only a couple of ingredients.
After Quiet Time
Our afternoon snack was doughnuts. Though I must say, I’ve never made these so they roll themselves over in the hot grease like Mrs. Wilder describes. Nevertheless, they tasted wonderful!
We did some typical afternoon chores after our snack. Some were similar to those described in the books. We fed the pigs, cows, rabbits, chickens, and sheep. Then, I split some firewood and the kids stacked.
We were pretty thankful we weren’t trying to load huge logs on the sled like they did in the book.
After chores, the kids worked a bit more on their projects while I made supper.
The kids’ lanterns and a fall leaf runner made the table festive for the evening supper.
For our supper we had roasted pork, fried apples and onions, and macaroni and cheese. Lots of tasty food!
After supper we played one final game. When the kids talked about the county fair chapter, we brainstormed different activities we could try. Since we have a lot of old junk in the basement, ring toss won.
We got out some old glass Coke bottles, six rings for canning, and set everything up. It was a fun way to end the day!
Farmer Boy Day was a Success!
After all the fun on Farmer Boy Day, the kids went to bed happy, tired, and full of new memories.
Every once in a while, throwing away your plans and doing something different is the way to go.
Have you ever done anything similar? I’d love to hear all about it in the comments.
