The Daily Visitors

This blog is about some little visitors that are very near and dear to my heart. If you have ever been lucky enough to be in our gift shop around lunchtime, you may have met these little visitors. Their names are Zoey, Owen and Ellie and they are absolutely adorable and I just happen to be their incredibly lucky Great Aunt.

My sister and brother-in-law (the founders of Meadowbrooke Gourds) are the people these little ones call Nanny and Pappy or as Ellie calls him Bappy. Ben and Denise open their front door every morning to these little bundles of energy, each one having their own unique personality. So, this all began about three years ago when Owen was born. He was the only grandchild at the time and Ben would bring him down to see his mom, Ashley, who works back in production and visit with everyone in the buildings. Nine months later, Ellie joined in the visits and not long after that Zoey joined. Both of Ellie’s parents, Brandon and Emily, work here and Zoey’s mom, Kara and soon to be step-father, Nathan also work here.

Everyday around noon, we can hear Ben’s gator coming and know that within a few moments, the gift shop is going to hear lots of giggles, little feet running around and every so often crying. Ellie will be yelling “Mama” and Zoey wants to “work”. They have a shopping cart they push around as they “shop”, bicycles and scooters to ride and if I happen to get an order in, they love the bubble sheets to jump on and make as much noise as possible. They learned quite quickly where the snacks are and how to use the water machine. They have even helped check people out. We are teaching them very young! 😊

Owen is almost 3 and has the best sense of humor. He loves to tell stories and can often be seen riding the tractor around the farm with his Pappy or Mom. He loves jumping in puddles, riding his bike and his giggle is absolutely contagious. He has the most adorable dimples. Ellie is two and the more emotional of all of them. She loves to be scared and afraid of nothing which is a bit scary. She loves to climb on anything and is really starting to talk. She lets you know what she wants and loves to draw and color. She is very smart and has a very caring heart. Zoey is four and is the sassy one! She has the prettiest blue eyes and curly blond hair. She is the mother hen to the younger ones and is very sweet. She tries to keep order but has her hands full with Owen and Ellie as they run everywhere. Zoey loves to talk and help wherever she can.

I am also excited to let everyone know that soon we will be adding a fourth visitor. Sawyer, which is Owen’s little sister, was born at the beginning of February, weighing in at 9 lbs. 12 oz. and is beautiful. She has lots of dark hair, has started to smile and coo and hardly cries unless she is hungry. The other kids adore her, Ellie thinks she is her baby doll and it looks like she will fit right in as she gets older. Owen is a great big brother and loves his sissy.

If you are ever in the store and hear the commotion caused by our visitors, I hope you just smile and continue shopping thinking the visitors must be here! They certainly bring a smile to my face each and every day and I feel so fortunate to be able to see them every day as they grow and to spoil them as much as possible.