Joy Mayfield visits Grace Girard in Wisconsin

Yes, the “Farmer Wants a Wife” reunion aired in May. But another, much happier reunion took place last week.

Joy Mayfield came to Wisconsin for the first time to visit her co-star and New Caledonian Grace Girard.

And the Floridian managed to cross off quite a few things from her Dairy State bucket list while she was here.

Cheese curds? That’s good! Kringle? That’s good! Custard? That’s good! Days at the lake? That’s good!

But the main event of their long weekend together was XRoads 41 (pronounced Crossroads 41) in Oshkosh.

“We understand each other. We love each other so much,” Mayfield told the Journal Sentinel. “I love doing anything with Grace.”

In the latest season of “Farmer Wants a Wife” (filmed last fall and airing this year), there were four farmers, each with a posse of flirts trying to win their hearts. Girard, a University of Wisconsin-Madison alumnus, and Mayfield, a mammogram technician, were both competing for farmer Brandon Rogers and quickly became friends along the way.

In an unexpected twist, Mayfield decided to quit the competition before heading to her hometown. Rogers ultimately chose Girard as her partner. While Rogers and Girard didn’t end up getting along, she ended up finding love in her own backyard.

Through it all, Girard and Mayfield have remained close friends, seeing each other about every four months, even though they live on opposite sides of the country.

“We’re definitely forever connected by being on the show together and that experience,” Girard said. “Getting back together is like we never had any time apart.”

During the holidays, Girard traveled to her family’s home in Naples, Florida, and visited Mayfield, who lives in Jacksonville. In April, the two traveled to Texas for the Two Step Inn music festival.

“That’s when I realized I loved going to concerts and I loved going to concerts, and I especially loved going with Grace,” Mayfield said.

Last week, Mayfield flew to Wisconsin to attend another music festival with her best friend.

“(Mayfield) is so much fun,” Girard said. “We always have fun together… She’s just a great girlfriend. She loves to have a good time and she’s willing to talk about anything and everything, from serious things like your relationship, to silly things like what you’re going to wear the day after the festival or how we’re going to take our next Instagram picture.”

From Kringle to concerts, here’s a look at Mayfield’s journey to America’s dairy country and his friendship with Girard:

Behind the Scenes of Grace Girard and Joy Mayfield’s Friendship in ‘Farmer Wants a Wife’

Just days after living on Rogers’ farm with him and his other partners, Girard and Mayfield had already found a friend in each other.

“I think you quickly discover who the people around you are going to be in an experience like this because it’s so emotionally intense,” Girard said. “I think we quickly figured out how each other worked and how our personalities could mesh. And we continued to do that.”

Mayfield said the two women have “always been attracted to each other.” She describes herself and Girard as “girly” girls who are drama-free, free-spirited, kind and love their family and friends.

“It’s kind of funny because her name is Grace and my name is Joy, and we’re always really happy,” Mayfield said.

What did ‘Farmer Wants a Wife’ stars Grace Girard and Joy Mayfield get into in Wisconsin?

On Mayfield’s first night in Wisconsin, Girard’s boyfriend Trevor Jung, the city of Racine’s director of transportation and mobility and a delegate to the Democratic National Convention from Wisconsin, wasted no time introducing her to the Racine delicacy, the Kringle.

While Mayfield expected it to be a small pastry, she said it was “almost like a pizza, it was so big.”

“I took one bite and I was like, ‘Oh my God, this is so good,’” Mayfield said. “I had to go over and over again. It was so good I couldn’t stop eating it.”

As Girard worked at her job as a communications associate and Mayfield studied for her upcoming mammogram registration exam last Thursday, they took a lunch break to eat wood-fired pizza at Marguerite’s in downtown Racine.

“(Downtown Racine) was so cute,” Mayfield said. “I loved it… I wish I could have explored it a little bit more.”

On the way to the music festival that night, Mayfield had his first food truck experience. They stopped at Taco Felíz, outside of Woodman’s in Menomonee Falls.

“I’m not kidding, I’m not being dramatic at all. It was the best Mexican food I’ve ever had in my entire life,” Mayfield said.

That night and the next two were spent at XRoads 41, where the duo saw Brooks & Dunn, Old Dominion, Turnpike Troubadours, The Red Clay Strays and Shaggy. It was there that Mayfield sampled the ice cream, which she called “really good.”

They spent their days up north hanging out at Girard’s grandparents’ house on Lake Waupaca and pontoon boating on the Chain of Lakes.

Mayfield had been on the St. Johns River before, but Waupaca was “completely different,” she said. It reminded her of the North Carolina coastal towns where the movie “Safe Haven” was filmed.

“It’s like old-time America, the people are very friendly. It’s a very small town,” Mayfield said. “It’s quiet, peaceful and serene.”

Does anyone else remember that cheese curd issue while filming “Farmer” that Girard shared on TikTok?

Girard’s mother had sent some cheese curds from Wisconsin to the farm. Rogers and Mayfield? Not impressed. Joy tried breading some and putting it in a deep fryer.

“We seriously slaughtered them,” Mayfield said. “We don’t even know how bad they were.”

Last week, when Girard and Mayfield went to TJ’s Harbor for dinner with Girard’s friends, Mayfield got to taste Wisconsin cheese curds. This time, the right way.

“They squeaked to me,” Mayfield said. “I know that’s what you want in cheese curds. … I think they’re really delicious.”

Girard plans to vacation in Florida again this winter and will visit Mayfield then.

And would Mayfield ever return to Wisconsin? “Yes! I would love to!” she said. “I definitely would.”

A Look Back at Grace Girard and Joy Mayfield’s Time on Season 2 of Fox’s ‘Farmer Wants a Wife’

Last year, Girard applied and was cast in Season 2 of “Farmer Wants a Wife.” The show was filmed last fall and aired this year.

Girard felt something with Rogers from the first date they had on opening night. She would become a source of calm and comfort for him during the ups and downs of the season.

The two have shared several special moments together: their near-perfect solo date, when they revealed they were falling in love with each other, and her visit to Wisconsin to meet his and Girard’s family which was a hit with hers.

But leaving her family behind and moving more than 1,000 miles away always remained heavy on Girard’s heart.

Rogers’ interest in Mayfield was evident from the start, which would end up being the straw that broke the camel’s back for some of his girlfriends. Not our girl Grace, though.

Rogers and Joy had a rocky first date followed by a redemption arc. This included a breakthrough, becoming a favorite among her loved ones, and an incredible second date. But, having previously only brought one person she was “completely in love with” home to meet her family, Mayfield decided to bow out of the competition before the hometown visits.

At this spring’s reunion, it was revealed that Girard and Rogers were no longer together. They split shortly after filming wrapped, but remained very good friends.

Earlier this summer, Girard began a new relationship with Jung. They are both outgoing, have a “deep commitment” to their families, enjoy being on the go, making friends and entertaining, the couple told the Journal Sentinel in June.

In our interview this week, Girard shared that she and Jung are “doing really well.”

So what does Mayfield think of his girlfriend’s man? “He looks like a real Wisconsinite, just like Grace,” Mayfield said. “He’s just like her, but in a male form.”

What has ‘Farmer Wants a Wife’ star Joy Mayfield been up to since filming?

After filming, Mayfield returned to Jacksonville, where she works full-time as a mammography technician.

She “studied hard” for her entrance exam, which she will take in October.

Although she was in a relationship for “a very long time” after the show, she said, she got burned out and took a step back from it for now.

Eventually, she plans to move to a place with a more “country” lifestyle and four seasons.