Dairy FarmHer Anniversary

Although I knew I was marrying the farm and the dairy farmer 

thirty three years ago, 

I did not realize that I would become a Dairy FarmHer.

                                             
                                            It's been a thirty three year transformation from
                                        city girl to Dairy FarmHer but it's been a grand journey.
                                                 Thank-you to the dairy farmer for sharing
                                                          his passion for all things dairy!
                                       

                                 I never thought I would be teaching children about dairy farming,
                                     

providing dairy farm tours for all ages of consumers,

or working everyday  with my husband 

and our 4th generation dairy farmer sons 

down on the dairy farm producing

 high quality milk for your family and mine.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Like the varied spots on our spotted Holstein cows, 

every group of dairy farm visitors are unique.

I love to see the expression on the face of the child or adult that 

suddenly understands how we work on the farm to produce

 a great product that their family enjoys.

                                       
                                       I'm thankful to  connect with consumers to share how
                                we work everyday to care for our animals, produce  nutritious
                                          milk and give them a feel for life on a family farm.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

What's not to love about sharing our dairy story?

It's not always easy to fit in a dairy farm tour but it is 

worth every minute I spend sharing with consumers

 of all ages how we work every day to produce nutritious

 milk by caring for our animals and the land we call home.

                       
                              I'm thankful for the parents and children that brought their desire
                            to learn how we produce milk and  for sharing their beautiful smiles!
                                                   Baby calves always bring out the smiles!
                                                             

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Our cows enjoy a balanced nutritious diet every day. 

It's one of the most important ways we take care of our dairy cows 

everyday and in return, they provide us with nutritious milk.

This was one of the messages I shared during this past week 

with a small group of children making their first visit to a dairy farm.

Touring the feed barn and watching the cows eat is one 

of my favorite stops on the tour.

I consider it a privilege  to be able to share with children and adults 

 how we care for our dairy cattle  everyday

 during  a farm tour.

I'm thankful for the opportunity to provide 

the perfect show and tell for all ages!

                                             
                               

                                         
                                               

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Dairy farmers across America support the Fuel Up to Play 60 program

 that empowers students, with the support of adults, to take a 

lead in making healthy changes and have a positive 

impact in their communities. 

We loved providing a tour of the dairy farm  for students involved

 in the Fuel UP to Play 60 program in Rogers.

Seeing the cows up close and personal in the milk parlor was

 the perfect opportunity to get answers to their questions.

While waiting for Domino's pizza, students also learned from others 

about food production.

I'm thankful for the students and teachers involved in Fuel Up to Play 60,

for a program that is making a positive difference

 by improving life long health habits,

and

                                              to be a dairy farmer producing a nutritious food
                                                              for my family and yours.

Dairy Truth Telling

My mother-in-law never gave any farm tours. It wasn't necessary

 because in her generation, every one she knew lived on a farm or had family

 that grew up on the farm and knew where food came from.

 Her generation didn't have fears about how their food was produced,

In fact,  many of her generation  were happy and grateful  to just  have food.

It's quite a change ninety years later.

We now have at least three generations of consumers with no direct 

connection to a farm or family that were connected to a farm. 

Opening the barn doors and inviting consumers to the farm  is now an 

important way we   farmers can share

 how we produce food for  all of our families.

It's a great opportunity for dairy truth telling!

When it comes to food,we have a lot in common, no matter what age:

We love to eat!

As I prepare for a  dairy farm tour this week, it's my hope that our visitors

 will learn the truth about dairy farming  and experience the commitment 

we have to providing high-quality milk and dairy products by taking good

 care of our cows and the land we call home.

If you can't make the tour, you can find more dairy truth telling

 at Midwest Dairy and DairyGood.

Arkansas Dairy Question

What would it take to get you to become an Arkansas dairy farmer?

With fewer than 60 dairies left in the state of Arkansas, this is a thought provoking

 question for these University of Arkansas animal science students that visited

us down on  our dairy farm Saturday morning.

Ryan  gave information and answered questions about dairy

 production,animal welfare and environmental issues.

I got the easy questions about calf raising.

Of course, no dairy farm tour would be complete without a little dairy promotion.

We served string cheese,ice cream and a sample of Fairlife chocolate milk 

with a touch of education about dairy promotion  funded

 by dairy farmers across the nation.

My question from down on the dairy farm:

                                             What's not to love about being a dairy farmer?

Milk Lover's Spring Break

What do I  love about spring break?

The opportunity to share what life is all about down on the dairy farm!

 My spring break happened today,

 on just an ordinary day down on the dairy farm,

  with  two young families wanting

  to know more about where their milk comes from.

All farm visits include watching the cows eat. It may not be the most exciting

place to visit but it's my favorite spot to explain how

 the cows eat a balanced,nutritious diet everyday  to produce high-quality milk. 

Spring break gave me  the opportunity to share how we care for our dairy cows

 everyday from the milking parlor to the feed barn and all the chores in between

 that are required to care for our land and the animals but most of all,

 I've got new friends that share my love for milk!

A Dairy Passion Pledge

When we were planning our wedding thirty one years ago, I didn't think it was too

 unusual for the dairy farmer to want to toast our special day with a glass of milk.

After all, producing milk is a dairy farmer's passion.

Turns out, that milk toast was just the beginning

 of my  lifetime pledge for dairy passion.

November 24,1984

                                       We feel blessed to be able to share our love for life down
                                               on the dairy farm with consumers of all ages.

How could I not love this smiling dairy farmer?

I took the dairy passion pledge.

Licking Fear Down on the Dairy Farm

We don't usually think of a dairy farm visit as a life changing experience but that

 was what we witnessed on a recent farm tour with middle school students.

 This young man in the wheelchair had a fear of animals.

When he cried at the sight of our friendly farm dogs, 

I was concerned that this trip to the dairy farm  might not be a good experience.

His teachers were kind but firm and continued to comfort him as they explained to him 

that the animals would not hurt him. The other students would hold his hands

 and talk to him as we traveled around the farm.

The miracle really unfolded by the time we reached the baby calves. 

He continued to cry at the sight of the calves, but as his teacher talked to him and pushed

 him closer to one of the baby Holsteins and 

other students were showing him how the baby calf would lick their hands, this frightened boy,

 reached out for his own experience.

One lick from a baby calf brought the biggest smile.

 The expression of sheer joy on his face was priceless.

Licking  fear of an animal  was a milestone for this special student.

Miracles do happen when we least expect it.

Dairy Farmers Fuel Up

Last week we provided a dairy farm tour for students from Helen Tyson Middle School.

These weren't just any students--these were Fuel Up to Play 60 students!

Sharing our farm with Fuel Up to Play 60 students made the day  even more

 special because as dairy farmers we are very proud  to be founding partners

 of this in-school health and wellness program that encourages

 physical activity and good nutrition among youth.

Through the Fuel Up to Play 60 program,  we're helping students

 create and implement activities that reward them for making healthy 

choices and create positive  change in their school.

There's nothing more inspiring to a dairy farmer than to 

share his passion with a young person that wants to know

 how milk gets into his glass,

what cows love to eat,

how calves are raised,

and

                                                   how Domino's  pizza shows up at the farm!
                                                             
                                                                         


                                                                           

Dairy Spring Break

Triple A Farms, also known as Anglin Dairy, was the first  stop on the spring break tour for University of Arkansas animal science students  in search of  knowledge about different types of dairy production and the day to day activities on a dairy farm.

 

Only one or two of the students had ever been on a dairy farm so I'm pretty sure we provided the start of a unique spring break--much more entertaining than a  sunny, sandy beach!

 

 

The cows were curious about visitors in the feed barn but they kept on eating!

The students saw first hand that dairy farmers care for their cows by providing a nutritious diet.

 

                                                                                   
Although the baby calves are the last stop on the tour, it's always the favorite for any visitors!
These calves are the future of our dairy farm and it's easy to understand that we make it a priority to get them off to a healthy start with individual care and attention.

 

                     A fun dairy spring break tour  always ends with plenty of cheese, milk, ice cream
                                                                                  and
                                               a lot of smiles from both farmers and students!

                                                                               

Dairy Delivery

A point of interest on every tour of our dairy  farm is the little shed building we call the 'maternity barn'. It's special because it is like the labor and delivery room of a hospital--not sterile like a hospital but a place where we can assist  in the delivery of a calf if the mother is having difficulty. 

 

Yesterday this heifer  needed assistance while giving birth to her first calf  so she was walked from the pasture by our house  to the maternity barn for assistance in delivering her baby.

 

 

On a recent tour of the farm with a group of Northwest Arkansas  registered dieticians, the maternity barn was empty but these soon to be mothers couldn't resist having their picture taken before delivery!

 

                                                   Can you tell that we were having fun?

                                
                Although we didn't have any deliveries on the day of the tour, I  did enjoy sharing
          how we work everyday to produce high-quality milk by caring for our cows and the land.
               I appreciate how these registered dieticians tell what dairy delivers to consumers!