Wintertime Rabbitry

Originally, my Rabbitry name was Heathertoft. 
 

The fondest memories of childhood I have are from times spent at a place up near Boyne city. It was a large, old house that my parents co-owned with some other people, right on the drive in to the ski and golf resort and hotel, Boyne Highlands. The house itself was called the Heather House, because a ski hill at Boyne Highlands called Heather's Run faced the property. 

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I grew up skiing in Winter, and playing in the forest and swamp near the Heather House. Many times I horrified my mother by bringing home all manner of critters...mostly frogs, but sometimes turtles or snakes, or even salamanders. Sometimes my dad would put on big rubber wading boots and wade around in the swamp just beyond the back yard, scooping golf balls out of the murky waters where they'd been abandoned or lost by their former owners.

In other words, the Heather House was the happiest place in the world to me. The name Heather became synonymous with childlike joy, wonder, and discovery.

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Eventually the Heather House was sold; one by one, the owners sold their share and that meant us, too. I haven't seen the old Heather House since; it has been many years since I traveled north from my Muskegon home to ski there. The name, however, still held significance to me.

 

When I began keeping rabbits, I decided that somehow, my rabbitry and my future farm should incorporate the name "Heather" into it. A bit of research and I discovered that the suffix "-toft" means homestead. That is exactly what I want someday: a homestead of my own, a place of wonder and joy. 

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So why the change?

Honestly, I got sick of so many people thinking my name is Heather, and thus misgendering me and assuming I'm a lady. That got old real quick, believe you me! And if it wasn't people assuming my name is Heather, it was assuming Heathertoft was my surname and that led to a lot of confusion. Having to explain that no, that's not MY name, first or last, got frustrating. It became clear I needed a name for my Rabbitry that isn't a source of confusion or misunderstanding! So, back to the drawing board.

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I thought long and hard about what I love. One of the things I love the most is winter. I ski, and I love snow. Here in Michigan, our winters are pretty epic. Winter is literally my favorite season. I decided to choose the name Wintertime, because it's my favorite time of the year. What could be better than naming one thing I love (rabbits) after another thing I love (winter)? I recently made the change official, by registering my rabbitry, the Wintertime, with the ARBA. And I couldn't be happier!