Reading Time: 4 minutes “Guess what! Guess what!” Trina Hanson shouted to her husband Tom as she rushed into their house in the suburbs of Raleigh, North Carolina, after another long workday. “You won the lottery?” Tom guessed. “You know I don’t buy lottery tickets! Really, guess!” Trina shrugged off her backpack and pulled her sweater over her head. […] Read more
Hanson Acres: A long way from home, but hardly on her own
It’s a good thing you can never really leave the farm behind. Just ask Trina
Hanson Acres: It’s mid-winter. The wind is blowing. This is farming?
When the Hansons set off for a break, it seemed such a great idea
Reading Time: 4 minutes By the kids’ week-long break from school in mid-February, Elaine was getting a little stir-crazy. “I know we’re not taking a big holiday this winter, but maybe we could just get out of here for a couple of days?” she said to her husband Jeff. “Maybe Minot?” It was the third day in a row […] Read more
Hanson Acres: Untangling a problem on a long drive
As snow fills the countryside, the Hansons ponder an even knottier mystery
Reading Time: 5 minutes “Do you think it’s because we live on the farm?” Elaine asked her husband Jeff. When he didn’t answer she turned to look at him. He was gripping the steering wheel and staring straight ahead, hypnotized by the falling snow caught in the SUV headlights as they drove down the Trans-Canada highway in the dark, […] Read more
Hanson Acres: Part of a team he wants to play for
Mark comes a long way, and it turns out the Hansons do too
Reading Time: 4 minutes Mark Edwards slipped the poolside waiter one of the moist bills he’d stashed in his shoe for tips. The man passed a piña colada to Mark and one to his brother, plastic glasses filled with ice and decorated with mini paper umbrellas. “Keep them coming, Juan,” Mark said. Juan smiled and headed back to the […] Read more
Hanson Acres: A season for new traditions
Family is family, even when Christmas takes a few surprising turns
Reading Time: 4 minutes “Pass me that bowl of popcorn before you eat it all,” Elaine demanded. Her nine-year-old son Connor tried to answer, but it came out as a grunt, since he was busy jamming a fistful of popcorn into his mouth, spewing almost as many kernels onto the carpet as he ate. “Can the next movie be […] Read more
Hanson Acres: This moment links us all
At the church, each Hanson finds their own way to say what needs to be said
Reading Time: 5 minutes A wild-sounding pack of kids swarmed through the church basement, even getting between Gladys Argue and the dainties table. “Cut that out!” Dale Hanson called in the direction of the herd. “You kids take this circus outside.” At least five small hands made one last grab for the brownie tray as the pack ran for […] Read more
Hanson Acres: There’s this time to say your piece
The Hansons knew the day had to come. Somehow, the family pulls together
Reading Time: 4 minutes Jeff Hanson clenched and unclenched his fists. He felt the cool end-of-September breeze as he waited on the church steps, but he was sweating anyway. At least his suit jacket would hide the evidence. He hoped he wouldn’t have to tell his wife that she’d been right. “Lots of people wear jeans to funerals,” he’d […] Read more
Hanson Acres: Time to really clean up
Back in the yard, Elaine saw the grain truck parked in front of the house. She went in, calling Jeff’s name
Reading Time: 4 minutes Harvest had been going well for the Hansons. “Haven’t had a year like this with no breakdowns for a while,” Jeff Hanson mentioned to his father, Dale, one morning when they were out in the yard getting their two combines ready to go. “Don’t talk like that, you’ll jinx it,” Dale said. Sure enough, before […] Read more
Hanson Acres: Long summer days on the farm, a season for hope
When the weather doesn’t co-operate, it’s time to focus on life’s essentials
Reading Time: 4 minutes Jeff was the spotter, perched on the edge of his seat in the back of the boat watching his six-year-old daughter Jenny and two similar-sized girls clutching onto the inflatable tube at the end of the yellow rope. Greg was driving his boat in loose circles on the South Saskatchewan River, making it just hard […] Read more
Hanson Acres: There’s one more job waiting
When Elaine fires up the sprayer, it isn’t quite the experience she signed up for
Reading Time: 4 minutes “I’m not sure,” Elaine said. “It runs so fast.” Her husband Jeff laughed. “I’ve ridden with you in the car. Fifteen miles an hour is nothing like the speed you like to drive!” Elaine rolled her eyes, not even bothering to point out that she didn’t use the car to spray herbicide on a delicate […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
