We Are City People

We are raising city kids. When I say that, I mean my kids do not have any knowledge of country life, living on the land, or what it means to have real chores early in the morning.

I realize that my husband and I are city kids, too. My husband has often said if you looked up "city boy" in the dictonary, there would be his picture staring back at you. He grew up on the East Coast and Houston so his big city roots are deeper than mine. However, I grew up in a midwestern city that is surrounded by small towns, corn fields, cows, and all rural life that you can imagine. You would think that would qualify me to be a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll!

I should know something about country life. I should be able to gaze upon a field in the midst of harvest and know the crop that is planted there. To be honest if it's not corn I have no idea. Soybeans, wheat, alfala they all look the same to me. Cows they all look alike too. Yes I know some are black, brown and spotted but I don't know what is a hefer, agnus or milk cow.

In college, I had dreams of marrying some big rancher, living in the western part of my state where cows outnumber people, and becoming a famous author. I romanticized how much fun it would be to have a big farmhouse miles from neighbors and raise a huge amount of children. We'd drive to the "big city" for necessities once a month and then stock up for the long winters.

Reality is that I married a Texan who owns a pair of Justin Boots, but never wears them except for "dress up " and works in an office building driving results around instead of cattle.

While I wouldn't trade my life and family for anything, I occaisonally wonder if I'm missing something. Shouldn't I have some knowledge of farm and ranch life? Maybe it's time our family took a little tour of a farm, took a trip to a dude ranch, or took off for a jaunt through the woods on horseback instead of leather seats in a minivan so we could see a different lifestyle upclose and personal. OK, maybe the dude ranch is a stretch, but you know what I am saying. I wouldn't have to get the "spa" package!

Never has the knowledge that I am raising "city kids" been more obvious to me than this past Saturday when we went to see the Nebraska Cornhuskers Football game (should I say NU crush OU) . Before the game, we let the big kids hang out at Husker Nation tossing footballs, practicing their kick offs and just enjoying the "big game experience" before the actual game. It was there on that little field that I saw my son, C, try to rope a calf.

Hello City Life! He was so out of his element. The younger rancher-college student tried his best to show C how to hold the rope, how to use his wrist and arm to gather the rope, and swing it around. It was like showing an eskimo how to water ski.

Let's just say that it's a good thing C is planning a career in the areospace/engineering industry and doesn't have big dreams of owning a ranch ....