Your Flying Farmer – Tackle Smash and the Days We Choose

As I write this, my son is moaning that he is hungry. It is past his bedtime, and he keeps asking, “Can’t I eat anything?” You would think there is no food in this house at all, and that he doesn’t have a mother who gives him everything he needs. It’s funny how brushing the teeth of a young, growing boy can suddenly trigger deep pangs of hunger. When there is no longer an option for eating, that’s all he wants to do.

As the year turned over into a new chapter, did you feel those same pangs? A hunger for more days in the year 2025? When the time had come, were there more ideas, plans, and to-dos than days left on the calendar?

Sometimes when we reach the end of something, we finally realize what we should have been doing all along. Every change can bring reflection. New years, new seasons, birthdays, holidays — they all do this to us. When the cold weather came this year, it surprised me, as if winter hasn’t shown up every year of my life. My paramotor sat all summer long, wagging its little tail like a puppy waiting for me to come out and play. Turns out the warm weather flew by — and I didn’t. Not nearly enough. By fall, it had earned the dignified title of “hangar queen.”

We recently celebrated my hungry son’s seventh birthday, and I found myself wondering if year number six got enough “tackle-smashes” in to allow the seventh year to arrive properly. My one consolation is that boys in their seventh year still require a good tackle-smash on a regular basis. Some things, thankfully, don’t change overnight.

As the new year settles in, and “Quitter’s Day” is already upon us, it’s time to actually do what we mean to do. To all those who started and already quit their resolutions — don’t worry. Maybe you were just a little too ambitious! Today is the day to start what you really intend. Instead of letting the calendar fill itself, choose what will fill it. As Scripture says, “Choose this day whom you will serve.” (And no — not yourself.)

I was talking with a couple of young dads recently, and they were telling me about a dedication class they were attending at church. It’s a moment where parents intentionally say, “I will care for and teach this child the Lord has given me in the way he should go.” I love conversations like that. I love talking with intentional fathers. The world desperately needs more of them.

The Bible speaks plainly about this responsibility: “Listen! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. Love the LORD your God. Teach these things diligently to your children. Teach them when you’re at home and when you’re away, when you lie down and when you rise.” (Deuteronomy 6:4–7, loosely paraphrased.) Parenting, it turns out, isn’t something we squeeze in when we have extra time.

I was also listening recently to a podcast by Greg Gifford, where he talked about being purposeful in raising children. He described choosing specific, intentional discipleship goals for each child based on their age and maturity. The responsibility of raising a child into a capable adult belongs primarily to the parents, and it helps to have a plan rather than letting kids flounder in their own understanding.

We could drift through life as accidental parents, figuring things out as we go and hoping it all works out in the end. But I don’t think anyone wants to arrive in the land of accidental teenage mania and wonder how they got there.

I once heard an illustration about a man traveling to his favorite holiday dinner. Along the way, he stopped at every snack shop he passed. By the time he arrived, he was so full of junk that he didn’t even want the meal he had been looking forward to all day. In the same way, we can accidentally fill our lives — and our children’s lives — with distractions that are not necessarily bad, but not nourishing either. Neutral things that crowd out what truly matters.

These days we’ve been given are precious. They are limited. And once bedtime comes, the kitchen is closed — whether we like it or not.

Maybe the new year isn’t about finding more days, but about choosing the ones that come!

Meet your farmer – Jonathan Gerdes. He and his wife run a farm-to-table raw milk dairy and farm airbnb in Caledonia, Minn. If he isn’t in the barn, you can find him dating his wife, playing with his kids, leading youth group, or flying in the sky. Visit gerdesfreshfarm.com for more info. 

Baked Macaroni & Cheddar

This is the kind of supper that happens when the day has been long, the milk tank is full, and you remember that good dairy has a way of fixing more than just hunger.

1 pound elbow macaroni or similar pasta

4 tablespoons butter

¼ cup flour

3 cups whole milk (Fresh raw if you come get it!)

½ cup heavy cream

2½ cups sharp farmstead cheddar, freshly grated

½ cup mild cheese (colby, monterey jack, or young cheddar)

1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)

½ teaspoon black pepper

½ teaspoon dry mustard (optional but recommended)

Pinch of paprika or nutmeg (optional)

½ cup buttered breadcrumbs or crushed crackers (optional

topping)

 

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the pasta until just tender. Drain and set aside.
2. In a heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Sprinkle in the flour and whisk continuously for about one minute. This should smell slightly nutty, not browned.
3. Slowly whisk in the milk and cream. Keep whisking as the sauce thickens, about 3–5 minutes.
4. Reduce heat to low and stir in the salt, pepper, dry mustard, and paprika or nutmeg if using.
5. Add the grated cheeses a handful at a time, stirring until melted and smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning.
6. Combine the cooked pasta with the cheese sauce and stir well.
7. Pour into a buttered baking dish. Top with buttered breadcrumbs if desired.
8. Bake at 350°F for 20–25 minutes, until bubbly around the edges and lightly golden on top.