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Faye & Anna Kathryn: Down on the Farm

by Kathy Hoyman; Illustrated by Pat Aubuchon

22 pages; Saddle stitched; Illustrated children's book; catalogue #06-1837; ISBN 1-4251-0080-5; US$10.96, C$12.60, EUR9.00, £6.30

Learn about Faye and Anna Kathryn and their adventures. They not only get bellyaches from green grapes but are chased by ducks, geese and bumble bees. Join in the fun! Imagine yourself in their place as you experience life, "Down on the Farm".

This is a fictional story based on facts. The book is dedicated to my mother who now resides in Fombell, PA. My mother was an only child who spent her days on the farm with her cousins exploring the wonders of the world. As a child, my mother would tell us of the adventures that she and her cousins went on while visiting the farm. The farm no longer exists but is overgrown with weeds and berries. If you look hard enough, you can find the outline of the barn stone where the house and barn stood on Gundekunst Road. I live in Apache Junction, Arizona with my husband, Denver. I am a practicing obstetrical nurse in an urban hospital. As I bring small lives into the world, their adventures have just begun, just as my mothers were: "Down on the Farm".

I grew up in rural area outside Pittsburgh, PA with one older sister and one younger brother. As a young girl we had our adventures in the small woods in Fombell. We made believe what wasn't real.

I started writing when I was at Riverside High school. I and some other classmates wrote the headers and paragraphs for the year book. It wasn't until years later after I graduated from nursing school and was working on a degree at Slippery Rock University that my professor in English Composition 101 aroused my interest in writing short stories for children. I had written several short stories for his class that sparked his interest. Most of them were real life experiences with a touch of sensationalism to make them more enjoyable for the reader. None of them were ever published. But every time I look back and reread them, I have to laugh and smile about the adventures that led to the story.

I started a column at Valley Lutheran Hospital that was called 'Ask Kathy' in the Valley View. It was all kinds of questions and answers about women's health and caring for babies. When the hospital merged with another hospital, the name of the paper changed and the column was dropped.

While flying from Arizona to Pennsylvania, I recalled some of the escapades that my mom had told me and jotted them into a story on a paper napkin. I remember my grandmother telling us stories over and over again, but without them being written down we are inclined to forget and those memories are forgotten.

I now live in Apache Junction Arizona with my husband, Denver. We have three boys, 2 grandchildren, 2 step grandchildren and 3 foster grandchildren. I practice OB nursing at the local hospital in Mesa, where my adventures have not yet finished. I still can be heard laughing at my misadventures at church, at work and at home.

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