"Have you got your wood in yet?"

In Vermont, most of us have mixed feelings about the coming of fall weather. We love the summer and look forward to its warmth and lush foliage. However, summer is short here in the Green Mountain state and days without snow are limited. Seeing it come to an end can be disheartening. One time a visitor asked me what months of the year we have snow on the ground. I watched her count each month out on her fingers as I said, "From November to April we can count on having snow." She looked at me astounded as she realized that 6 months out of the year our predominate color is white.

As August draws to a close, there is a nip in the air alerting us to the coming of autumn. Yards are full of piles of wood waiting to be stacked before the first snow arrives. The leaves on the trees are beginning to have a hint of color and some trees have even completely unleashed their red and orange hues. The garden beds look shabby as the summer plants begin to fade and leaves begin to turn brown and overlooked weeds abound. And today, the school bus came down the road to bring the neighbor children home.

As I change my mindset from summer to autumn, I look for the last remains of summer's color and warmth so as to not be disheartened. However, the neighbors keep reminding me that autumn is approaching as they constantly ask, "Have you got your wood in yet?"

Summer Vacation

I recall many elementary school teachers asking me to write about my summer vacation. Then, everyone in the class would stand in the front of the classroom and read their papers out loud. In memory of all those papers, I am going to tell you what I did on my summer vacation.

We were blessed to take a trip to the Outer Banks in North Carolina for a family reunion. I discovered the Outer Banks about 25 years ago when a college room mate and I took a small two man tent and camped on a windy, buggy, sand dune in a National Park along the Outer Banks. The Outer Banks became one of my favorite places to go. The beaches where we stayed were fairly secluded with just a handful of people, sea gulls, sand dunes, and sea grass. There was a sense of restfulness and comfort in the rhthym of the ocean waves. During the next five or six years, I introduced my new husband to the Outer Banks as well. We would go several times during the summer, camping at the National Campgrounds. Then we moved far north to Vermont. Trips to the Outer Banks have become few and far between. I think I have only been three times in the last 18 years.

This summer we were blessed to have a family reunion at the Outer Banks. It is amazing and sad to see the changes that have occured since my first camping trip so many years ago. Vacation homes line the shores and stores dot the towns that were once quiet fishing villages. But the ocean has remained the same with its comforting rhythm and the Hatteras lighthouse, though moved from its original location, still stands tall warning ships of the rugged shore line.

Being there was truely a time of rest from all that we do here on our farm. It is when I leave our farm that I realize just how busy every day here is for me. Finding myself a little restless, I did some knitting while away. I learned two things while on vacation: how to knit a mitten from the finger tips down and how to carry two colors of yarn while knitting by taking one color in each hand. It was nice to have some of our wool yarn in my hands and to not have chores pulling me away from my knitting.

Upon arriving back at home, we found that our neighbors had carefully tended to all of our animals, garden, and greenhouse. Everyone here seemed happy and healthy as though we had never been away.

A Community of Supporters

It was exactly a year ago that our border collie puppy, Tess, was diagnosed with OCD (Osteochondritis dissecans). OCD is a disease of the cartilage that affects the shoulder joint. Tess was put on restricted activity and was seen by 4 different vets and had numerous x-rays to determine the extent of damage to her cartilage. She was also put on an expensive medication for 5 weeks.

Luke, our 10 year old son, began making and selling organic dog treats to help raise money to pay for the vet bills that had accumulated in a short period of time. We began listing Tess's Treats in our farm's online shop, http://www.woolhandcrafts.etsy.com and it didn't take long before Luke's story and "Tess's Treats" were spread around the globe. One woman who lives an hour away and owns many gas stations offered to sell the dog treats in her busiest stores. A "dog friendly" B&B in Virginia purchased Luke's dog treats to give to their guests who brought their four-legged companions with them. A businessman in California began purchasing Tess's Treats to give as gifts to his dog friendly clients and an artist in North Carolina who makes greeting cards special ordered candy cane dog treats to give out with her dog line of Christmas cards. The most amazing customer was a woman in Singapore who ordered several bags of Luke's dog treats and paid more money for the shipping than the dog treats themselves. She wanted to support Luke's efforts to raise money for his puppy. It amazed me how that little package could possibly make it all the way around the globe. A few people sent us checks and said there was no need to send dog treats, they just wanted to help with our efforts.

Luke carefully recorded every order on a spread sheet and kept track of his expenses for ingredients, packaging, and shipping. He also kept track of vet expenses and what needed to be paid for. Our dining room table became the center of all of Luke's activities both baking and packaging. Tess continued to heal and remain on limited activity as we waited to see if she would need surgery. Within 6 months time, Luke had made enough money to pay for the vet bills and had even nearly enough money to pay for the surgery should it be needed.

In January, after the Christmas frenzy of baking and mailing dog treats was over, we all reflected on what had just happened over the past few months. Our entire family was astonished at the out pouring of support Luke had received. We had found a community of supporters from all around the globe.

Luke wanted to show his appreciation to his customers by donating a portion of his money to the New England Border Collie Rescue Association http://www.nebcr.org/. He wanted to help other border collie dogs who were in need. Luke continues to donate a portion of his profits to NEBCA. This weekend Luke was invited to attend their fund raiser in New York called, Dog Dayz. Luke sold his dog treats and had fun with Tess. Tess won a blue ribbon for her dock diving which Luke was very proud of!

Thank you to all of you who have supported Luke in his efforts to help his dog, Tess and to now help other border collie puppies. You can still buy his dog treats by visiting our online shop at http://www.woolhandcrafts.etsy.com.