Milk

Milk is obtained from cows through the process of milking. Laura, Ma, and other members of the family milk Spot the cow in order to gather pails of milk to use for drinking and cooking at home. To the modern reader, milk is a simple convenience, but to Americans of the nineteenth century, it was a hard-earned blessing. Milk represents almost a luxury to the Ingalls which they use each day.

Wheat

Wheat is the main crop that Pa sows for growing while homesteading along Plum Creek in Minnesota. Wheat is a difficult but valuable crop to grow. It can be sold at a high price, and can be used in baking and cooking. Pa intends to use money from the wheat crop to pay down debts and provide more for his family and their homestead. Unfortunately, Pa’s first planted wheat crop is destroyed by...