Monday, April 4, 2011

I LOVE THE MEMORY OF OLD RED BARNS.

General Conference

This weekend is our church's 181 st. Annual General Conference. It is held every six months. There is music by members of the church and by The Mormon Tabernacle Choir and many talks given by the apostles and general authorities and by our prophet Thomas S. Monson.

It is such a spiritual feast and uplift...a time to regain our strength as the world beats down on us. If goes through April 2-3... Saturday at 1o:00-12:00 and 2:00-4:00 and on Sunday at 10:00-12:00 and 2:00-4:00. There are so many great talks that will uplift you and bring you peace and strength, I hope you can tune in, if you can, go here...

http://lds.org?lang=eng

and this channel has great programs and movies going all the time...

http://radio.lds.org/?lang=eng

I hope you will be able to tune in and strengthen your spirit too.




I love RED...I would love to have this old red truck...

I would load up my big golden retriever Cougar, and we would go for a ride, just to show off!
Maybe we would drag main street and bit and go for an ice cream cone and you know I would
buy one for him too!


~I LOVE old barns~

This big old fellow has been sitting by the side of the road since I was
just a little kid. As we would go to Park City, Utah to visit my grandparents
we would pass by it. Over the years it has become quite the landmark and it
is still such a beautiful sight sitting at the bottom of the mountains.




~I really LOVE big old RED barns~

I grew up on a 300 acre dairy/dry farm in Idaho...what a great life for a kid! I didn't really know that we were poor farmers, life was so grand everyday for me but I know it was hard work for my parents. We used to have a big red barn and a white wooden fence that went around the front yard. I used to spend many hours just learning to walk that fence..it was so much fun.


There is nothing like the peace that filled our farm...days of laying on the green grass and staring up at the big puffy white clouds that floated quietly by...imagining that I could see elephants and all kinds of things, creatures of every kind...great entertainment!


See that big opening up in the top of this barn...

Well... me and my brothers had a big heavy rope that was tied in the loft of the the barn. We would get a hold of that rope, climb the ladder up to this opening, sit down on the frame of it and slide our little bottoms over to the middle of the opening. Then we would wrap our legs around the rope and jump off the opening....we would swing way out into the loft and finally drop through a big opening into the pile of straw below...what a fun time that was, a day of great play!


A perfect little barn for a herd of sweet little goats.


Our barn had a big loft in the top of it.

It was such a beautiful barn, dad kept it painted up red and the inside was so nice too. Local dances were even held in our barn..what nights of excitement and fun that was, what memories!


Barns just seem to have a soul don't you think?

I can just imagine all the little critters that have
found refuge from the cold in this good old barn.


They sit so regally across this country.
Some have been left behind, that is sad to me.


Some have been around since the 1800's and are still being used.


Nothing as beautiful as an old red barn surrounded by white snow and sunshine.


Do they speak to you too...or is it just me?


This old fellow could tell some mighty fine stories I am sure!



This one looks like it housed milking cows.

Me and my brothers used to jump on a cows back just as it was headed into the barn to be milked...it was quite the fast ride and we had to duck out heads and tuck in out legs so we didn't get knocked off as the cow went in through the door way...farm kid excitement..it was the best!


Love how they housed the baby calf's at our farm too, it was so fun to feed the babies, we always had a favorite one to love on. My brothers and dad did all the milking, me and the kitties just stood around and watched them work. My work was in the house but the funnest kind of work I got to do was to drive the tractor as dad and the boys tossed the bails of hay high up onto the hay trailer and then stopping for a delicious packed lunch... listening to dad's stories...those were fun days!


Do you love the old RED barns that still grace our country?

If you haven't noticed them, please do as you cross the country...
they each have a lifetime of stories in their old bones and a heart full
of memories for every child that ever played inside their walls... I know!


Have a great weekend my friends, I will be spending time this weekend
with family...eating and playing and watching General Conference.




53 comments:

Val said...

I hope you have a wonderful weekend!!! Those barns are gorgeous!

Tracy said...

Enjoy conference weekend!! It's always a "good thing"!!

It was fun to hear your memories of you barn and life growing up on the farm!! I too LOVE old barns!! They do have a soul and a story!!

pollydove said...

Wow Julie! What great pictures you found! I am with you on the red barn love! It warms my heart when I see one, and I agree that they really must have a soul too. How lucky to have grown up on a farm ... I'm a little envious of that kind of a childhood! Sounds like you really appreciated it too.

Enjoy Conference weekend - it is always such a wonderful time! ;)

Paula said...

Oh~ I just love red barns too.... I'll have to show these to my Hubby- he loves barns of all kinds!
I hope you have a wonderful, uplifting weekend, Miss Julie!

just call me jo said...

I love old, red barns too. It's a thing of the past fast being replaced and torn down. Darn! Enjoy Conference.

BEAR's Mom said...

good things for the soul
church conference and
old red barns.
have a great weekend!
BEAR HUGS
~victoria~

Cherie said...

Julie I am a barn girl too and especially red barns. That is why when we had our last family pictures taken I looked and looked until I found specifically a RED barn that we could be photographed with. It was everything I hoped.

I tried to get my daughter to have her reception in a red barn - tee hee.

I always stop to photograph barns - There is something magical about barns! (And I'm a city girl born and raised - who knew!).

Debby said...

I love old barns as well. I love the barns in Pennsylvania. I also love being able to read your blog again.

Mildred said...

Wishing you a blessed weekend Julie. I really enjoyed the red barn photos and your childhood memories. As I am learning my way around our new city, I saw a road named "Red Barn Rd.!!!" Looks like I'll have to take a drive with my camera and share with you!

NanaDiana said...

What a wonderful post! I love barns too...and we have lots of them in Wisconsin. I live in PA as a kid and I grew up on a dairy farm. However, we were FORBIDDEN to swing out and drop into the hay mow!;>) I loved being a farm kid too...and I never knew that there was any other kind of life until I left home.

There is just something special about living off of, and close to, the land, isn't there? I only had one younger brother but we had a fun childhood...even though there was a lot of work involved in farming.

This was a great post. I am charging my camera battery to download the pictures I took Julie. We are leaving tonight or in the morning for a couple of days so I will do the post about my special package when we get back.

Hugs to you- Diana

Cheryl @ The Farmer's Daughter said...

Hi Julie, I love old barns...red or just weathered looking. I spent many hours playing in ours on the farm growing up. This is a great post! Thanks for stopping by my blog and have a wonderful weekend.

Gloria said...

What a great weekend you will have. Family & church are always wonderful for weekend enjoyment!

I hope it is full of beautiful memories for all of you!

xoxo Gloria

Tammy@Beatrice Banks said...

I love barns too! I always look for them when driving down country highways. The red chevy truck is my favorite. Your idea sounds wonderful. Reminds me of riding in one when I was a little girl with my uncle as he bailed hay. It really is the simple things in life isn't it?
Have a great weekend.
Tammy

Tracy said...

Julie,
I'm in love...the third one from the bottom is just like my grandparents' barn with the grassy hill up to the barn...
I do think barns speak to me and have a soul..all the happenings within are so magical!
Thanks so much for sharing a part of you with us!

Happy@Home said...

I've never lived on a farm, but I adore the barns and farm settings. It looks so peaceful to me. I loved hearing about your childhhood memories on the farm.
Enjoy your weekend.

janis said...

how exciting about your church conference! and the Mormon Tabernacle Choir? very cool!
I would love that old chevy truck too! I always wanted an old truck. my youngest daughter drives a truck and is adorable in it.
Barns? oh yes! LOVE them too! we have some neat round ones here in Indy. There is something about old red barns that make you feel nostalgic. Thank you for sharing these great pictures.

Suzanne said...

I'm really looking forward to conference too!

Love big red barns. Your photos are fabulous. Each one must have an incredible tale to tell!

no spring chicken said...

I love red barns too! This one accompanying my comments sits atop my refrigerator. I'd give just about anything for that old red pick-up too! Blessings, Debbie

Lucy (aka rharper) said...

Long ago I lived in Brigham City and going back to BC from Logan through Sardine Canyon, there was an old red barn with, I think, a huge Pepsi Cola ad on it? I may be wrong about the Pepsi. But it was there in '66 when I lived there and gradually just went with the ages. I always forgot to take a picture of it because for one thing never had a camera. But two years ago, my cousin and I went up to Idaho on the old route through Logan and up from there. I told the driver that I had my camera and I WAS going to get a picture finally of that barn.

It wasn't there anymore.

:(((((((

GardenofDaisies said...

I love old barns too! My husbands great aunt painted an old red barn, and we have it hanging on our family room wall. Wish I lived out in the country where I could see more of them. (And that is a fun kids book! Great reading for the little ones!)

Doreen said...

Hi Julie,
Thanks so much for stopping by and visiting my blog and very first post and giving me a nice welcome. I was quite honored to have such nice visitors. You have a beautiful blog here. I just loved the red barn post and comment about barns having souls. I have always felt like there is so much life there even when they have long been abandoned. Thank you for sharing this. Have a great weekend!

Jessica Heights said...

Old barns certainly are lovely! :)

Tanna at The Brick Street Bungalow said...

Julie, that is a beautiful collection of red barns!! They speak to me, too. Thank you for sharing these old beauties. Enjoy your Conference. Blessings ~ Tanna

Jacqueline said...

Loved your post about General Conference. What a great idea! We took the YW to the YW broadcast last weekend. Hopefully it will be nice weather for conference.

I love, love, love red barns. Wisconsin was full of them. I just saw an Oprah with Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand (reliving The Way We Were) and she has just built a huge red barn home on the coast of CA. Look it up, it was so amazing!

gnee @ Singing With Birds said...

Enjoy Conference Julie. We have been crazy busy with our family the past few weeks and are looking forward to some quiet time and so love the renewal these most wonderful meetings afford us.

Loving all your red barns here and that snazzy red pick-up!

Mimi Sue said...

I love barns too! My grandpa always used to say you could tell if a farmer was good or not by the condition of his barn. Usually in better shape than the farmhouse! Your grands are sure cute. Looking forward to conference this weekend too. Mimi

Ann-Marie ~ Brambly said...

I want a barn and goats at Brambly. I'll take that red pickup,too. Have a beautiful weekend.

Ann-Marie

Liesl said...

You do have lovely barns in the USA, thanks for sharing those pics and some childhood tales..I still like to lie on my back in the grass and watch the clouds...

Marie said...

I just love conference weekend and I just love barns. I don't know what it is about barns, but I could look at them for hours. I wish I could find a book filled with nothing but barn pictures. That would suit me to a "T"! xxoo

Ann said...

I've always loved the look of a barn. Even the old ones that are falling down. I can't pass one by without looking. They do have a lot of character I think

Leslie said...

enjoy the conference. I am with you on the red truck and the barns. I especially love the idea of a barn wedding.. if only I weren't so young and anxious when I was married. : )
Have a fantastic weekend.

thesedaysofmine.com said...

Oh, yes, I love old barns too. Back in January, hubby and I drove to Michigan (from our home in Virginia). I was almost hanging out the car window taking photos of the barns in Pennsylvania and Ohio. Even did a blog post on them!

Susan R said...

One of the most inspiring things is a big red barn. I don't know what it is, but they just do something for me.
Loved this.

Cindy said...

I too grew up with Red Barns. It was where the milking was done...and the hunt for earth worms to go fishing.Many a hour in the loft as children playing cowboy and indian and of course hide-n-seek.It was in the red barn where I had the accident of loosing my finger.I never held it it against the old barn.I disobeyed the rules!Life lesson learned the hard way.
Always geese and ducks wandering thru the passage way.Loved the old red barn!Thanks for sharing all your gorgeous pictures.Someday I hope to build a red barn.Have a great weekend!!

Hugs Cindy from Rick-Rack and Gingham

Saimi said...

Those barns are amazing and seem to have their own personality. My parents have one on my old homestead growing up. It has stone walls on the bottom half then the traditional red sides on the top half. We used to store our hay up in the loft. That barn is as old as time but it's still standing and still in use!

I love listening to Conference!

Garden of Egan said...

That is a great post. I love the pictures of the barns. I am fascinated by them as well.

You would look so hot in that old truck! Stop by and pick me up on your way to drag Main!

A Vintage Chic said...

We're enjoying Conference weekend, too--our favorite times of the year!

LOVE that red truck and all those beautiful barns! Great photos!

Hope the rest of your weekend is just as wonderful, my friend!

Julie

Grandma Yellow Hair said...

Honey what sweet memories you have of your old red barn. It was great that you shared them with us.
I hope you enjoy your conference weekend.
Miss you
Maggie

Gypsy Heart said...

I too love old barns...and of course, the red ones are the best! Hope you have a blessed weekend ~

xo
Pat

Karen Deborah said...

Barns do speak to me too. They speak of a freer life. Nobody made you kids put on your helmets and knee pads first, or you may have never swung off a rope.
I'll arm wrestle ya for that truck! That is a beauty!
Enjoy your conferences this weekend. I am sure you will be spilling joy next week. You always spill joy but maybe more so. I like the FB badge, did you get a new sporty do? I love the hair cut makes you look very young!

Maria said...

Hi Julie!
What a beautiful post! I love all that you did here... the red barns as well!
They are such a part of our countryside. The soft glowing photos here make me want to print them all and frame them! Any one of them would make a great wall painting.

Your new look is fantastic, Julie! I'll bet it feels really fun to wear your hair like that!

Thank you for stopping by my sister's blog. She is just starting out and already feels really great about venturing into this new territory!
The world is filled with friends in Christ... thank you for being one ♥
blessings to you ~ Maria

Catherine said...

I love American red barns, the colour is beautiful. I want tyo paint my garden shed with this red, but it's difficult to find here!
Have a great week!

KentuckyFarmGirl said...

I am also a barn lover! The old barn on the farm that I grew up on from birth til I was 19 is about to fall down. I need to take some pics of it just to hold on to the memories we had as kids playing in it.

Midlife Mom said...

I have always loved barns my whole life. Like you I grew up with barns and had fun playing in them, jumping in the hay and riding the cows. We weren't supposed to chase the cows when we were riding our ponies but sometimes we were naughty and did. If Grampie had caught us he would have given us a whack on the behind with his cane! ha! My barn is red, of course it isn't old and so doesn't have all the history but we are making out own history and my grand kids LOVE being out there with the horses and ponies. I love taking pictures of old barns too when I have my camera with me which is almost all of the time. I'd love to do a coffee table book of old barns. That's on my bucket list! ha!

Connie said...

I love old barns but I don't have the memories you do. You were quite the farm girl! Have a beautiful Sabbath listening to conference.

Deila said...

I love your red barn portfolio. you had a great childhood, so many good memories, I could see you on the rope and the cow! No wonder you live where you do now. Beautiful. I want it too.

Sue said...

Beautiful absolutely beautiful, I too love barns. Thanks for sharing.
Sue

Scrappy Girl said...

I love a beautiful big barn. Freshly painted or worn around the edges...both are equally gorgeous! Happy Monday friend!

Kerin said...

Conference was wonderful! It is always so hard for me to chose a favorite talk.... they are all so up-lifting and inspired :)
Who doesn't love a barn ?! And, I love the red ones best too :)
Have a happy week!

Rocky Mountain Woman said...

I love old barns also....

I grew up on a dairy farm also and I believe farming and everything that goes with it, gets into your blood and there is no way to ever get it out!

You can take the girl off the farm, but you can't take the farm out of the girl is my philosophy....

xxoo,

RMW

judy said...

Hi Julie,
♥ YOUR blog! I have been following your blog for a long time!
I remember the OLD Park City barn too!What a landmark it is! Have you ever visited the OLD BARN in Midway? ♥ it! Hope I signed in correctly!
Kind regards! Judy

Cheryl said...

Loved all of the pictures of the old barns. A barn filled with cows on a cold winter night is so comforting. I loved doing chores as a girl at home on my parents dairy farm. Still like the old barns and hate to see ones falling down and not taken care of. To me they represent a much simpler time.

Gooseberry Patch said...

What a heartwarming collection of barn photos...stirred up memories for us too! Thanks for sharing your thoughts.