Family-fest

Dad had his sixtieth birthday celebration on October 13 of this year, and since the family was in visiting, he decided to host his own birthday fête by having a family prairie-fest. 

Prairie-fest was an event hosted here at a Providence Prairie years ago. The entire clan would pitch in and help set up old-fashioned pioneer type activities and games, dress in period style clothing, play music, give demonstrations, hold contests, and help guests enjoy themselves. It was a time of roasted hot dogs and burnt marshmallows, hayrides, and potato sack races!

It was exciting bringing down all the old equipment from the haymow in the barn. Most of it hadn’t been pulled out and used since our last Prairie-Fest some six or seven years before. 

Stilts were leaned against the hitching post, the water pumps, washboards, and clothesline were positioned in the driveway, a group of corn gatherers set off for the field to get some of the unharvested cobs for the corn sheller, a small corral was set up for the pony-hops, two-man and cross-cut saws were placed by logs to saw on, and a bonfire was started in the fire ring in the center of the drive.

The barnyard took on a whole new look, as games and old-timey stations were set up here and there.

Many of the nieces and nephews didn’t remember what Prairie-Fest used to be like, since some of them were toddlers or babies, and the rest hadn’t even been born yet. 

They were excited at all the preparations taking place and looked with wide-eyed wonder at all the things they didn’t even know existed here at Providence Prairie!

When Tuesday, the day of the party rolled around, everything was ready. The rest of the family arrived late-morning/early afternoon. In the end, thirty out of thirty-one members of the family were able to make it. It was such a fun day! 

We started off by roasting hot dogs and munching on other goodies that everyone had brought or made, then it was on to the activities. 

Some were on stilts, others jumped rope, there were cross-cut sawers, and races on the pony hops, games of graces and corn grinders, water pumpers and laundry doers!

In the middle of all the festivities, who should appear but Prairie Man! The mysterious unidentified visitor of all our family-prairie get-togethers. Swooping down from a roof top, he glided through the crowd, his cape blowing behind him from the speed of his movements. There were knowing smiles on older faces and looks of amused confusion on the faces of younger ones, who had never seen Prairie Man before. 

But he does not stay long, one kiss for his lady and he vanishes. A few minutes later, our oldest brother Trey arrived, disappointed to have been absent during all the excitement. He misses it every time!

Later on, we set up the game stations. Each adult supervised a different game and gave out little prizes to the contestants. There was an obstacle course, ring the bottle, duck bobbing, can toss, put the chicken to sleep, and others. Mama handed a number of tickets to each of the children and it was cute to see even the littlest ones pull their tickets out of their bag whenever they came to a new station!

Towards evening we once again roasted our supper over the open fire and then enjoyed the cakes made for Dad’s celebration. As the darkness settled, there were stories and laughter around the fire and singing by the initial McDaniel family singers. It was then time for some to return home, so the barnyard was picked up of anything that couldn’t stay out for the night. It had been a day full of fun with so many memories made. It was truly a family-fest.

~Halayah