82-Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 4, 2003
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MICHELLE KUNJAPPU
Lancaster Farming Staff
PARKSBURG (Chester Co.)
The Stoltzfus children, like
many farm children around
Pennsylvania, enjoy a busy life
style on their family farm in
Chester County.
David Lee, 9, Sadie Ruth, 8;
Anna Mary, 6, Leon, 4, and Es
ther, 2, are joined by newest si
bling Chris, four months old.
They are the children of Amos
and Barbie Stoltzfus.
Fourth-grader David is up at
5:30 for breakfast and to gather
eggs when the hens are laying. As
8 a.m. draws near, he harnesses
the family pony for the
20-minute trip to school, if the
weather permits. The pony waits
in the school's meadow until
school is over at 3:00.
When he gets home from
school, he works alongside his fa
ther to help feed the steers or
gather eggs in. Besides the pony,
he lets the family’s work horses
into the barn, where they anx
iously await the grain that David
feeds them. Although it may not
be one of his favorite jobs, he also
cleans up after the horses, sweep
ing straw from the barn’s alley
ways into the horse’s stalls.
After chores are done, he en
joys reading or putting puzzles
together in the wintertime.
Anna Mary, first grade, and
Sadie Ruth, third grade, also
wake up at 5:30 and may help
their mother pack lunches
usually a sandwich, a fruit drink,
and chips and help with the
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breakfast dishes before they head
off to school. The girls are espe
cially enjoying learning sign lan
guage besides the traditional sub
jects taught at school.
When they get home at 3:30,
after quickly changing their
clothes and washing their lunch
boxes out, they may help their
mother make dinner or set the
table. Chicken and chipped beef
are some of their favorite meals.
After school they also enjoy
playing school, jumping rope, or
reading. The girls leam about the
Alps as they read through the fa
mous “Heidi” books by Johanna
Spyri, or about the early pioneer
days of the West as they read the
“Little House on the Prairie” se
ries by Laura Ingalls Wilder.
Besides reading, they can get
creative as they use stamps, col
ored inkpads, and heavy paper to
make Christmas greeting cards.
They also like to babysit their
youngest, four-month-old brother
Chris.
The children also enjoy work
ing with their grandfather in his
chicken house. After a short hi
atus, the 12,000 chickens have
begun laying eggs again, which
means that the Stoltzfus family is
again spending more time in the
chicken house.
Besides traditional farm ani
mals, the Stoltzfus children also
have a pair of English Mastiff
dogs who recently presented
the Stoltzfus family with cream
colored, dark-eyed puppies to
play with on the farm.
Leon, 4, helps older brother David feed the horses.
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From left Anna Mary, 6; Emma Lynn, 8; and Sadie Ruth, 8, work together to get the
dishes done.
Their cousin, Emma Lynn
Stoltzfus, 8, in third grade, may
come over to enjoy afternoon ac-
When the hens are lay
ing, David often helps gath
er eggs.
tivities with the sisters. Emma, The family has lived on this
who lives on the dairy farm farm, for five years now.
across the street also helps at Qn A Barbie’s farm,
home during milking time. She ... ’
can put the milkers together or e y have 125 head of cattle and
wash udders after milking. 300-400 hogs, plus raise com,
The summer offers different hay, and tobacco. Two driving
activities for the Stoltzfus family, horses, one pony, and 10 work
£££££ i rSi“ g , t ■ «—«« - <*«-
tion.
ing silk the corn,
or hulling the
peas, they also
ride the pony
around the farm
or play softball
when their cous
ins come over.
Although he
may help in the
hay field or pick
up stones from
the fields, David
also finds time
off to fish in the
farm pond and
may bring back
catfish for the
frying pan. He
also is learning a
little carpen
around W °the After the horses are in, David gives
f arm , them the grain that they are anxious for.
One of David’s jobs is to let these paint horses in and
out of the bam each day.
Two driving horses, one pony, and 10 work horses are
part of the farm.