Zoom's Transformation

Last October during a virtual farm tour on our dairy farm,

the students found out how we raise  baby calves that are born

on our farm.  One of the students thought the name ZOOM

was a perfect name for the youngest calf on the farm 

that particular day.   Of course, we agreed!

She's been called Zoom ever since tour day but

she is also identified with her ear tag number of 3381.

That number identifies her in our computer records that

document information about her growth and development

and assist us in making management decisions as she grows

and develops into a milking cow.

At three weeks after the tour, I could tell that 

Zoom was growing  but

changes are very obvious at three months!

Zoom no longer looks through the wire panel--

                                                                   she's looking over it !

                               Over the next couple of weeks, we will be getting 

                               Zoom ready to leave her calf hutch and enter life in

                                   a small pasture with a few of her herd mates. 

                                    I'll miss the everyday interaction with Zoom

                                    but I will love  watching her continued growth

                                      and development  into a healthy dairy

                                  cow that produces  nutritious   high-quality milk.

                                           

                                               

                                               

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

As fall progresses, the time clock is ticking to get the crops harvested.

We planted sorghum in the late spring hoping it would make 

a crop in case drought might not allow the survival of our corn silage crop. 

So, you might call it our farmer "just in case" insurance policy.

I'm thankful for this crop that will be added to our dairy cow's feed ration 

for producing high-quality milk

                                                                         
                                                                                  and
                                           for the third and fourth generation dairy farmers
                                                  working together till the end of daylight

                                                     
                                                to harvest the crop down on the dairy farm.

Happy Veteran's Day!

During World War II, Ryan's mother, Bonnah Lyn,  milked cows in this old barn that sits in the middle of our dairy farm while his Dad was stationed in Japan as an army medic. As a multi-generational  dairy farm family, we appreciate the sacrifices that our family made for our country--it was definitely  a team effort. 

  We will forever be in debt to the men and women who have served and are serving  our country in times of war and peace.

Happy Veteran's Day!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

I went to check on this group of calves that were moved from the hutches to the pasture a few weeks ago. They're all doing great and I laughed to see who was leading the group of Holsteins--our little orphan beef calf, Lucky. 

Lucky will join the beef cattle herd when she gets a little older but for now she seems to be enjoying life with the Holsteins.

I'm thankful to work every day on our family dairy farm 

raising and caring for animals on the land we call home.

Dairy Farming Benefits

Although working with family doesn't always create a stress free work environment, I feel really fortunate to work  with my family everyday on the dairy farm. 

It's a rewarding experience and what I consider as one of my dairy farming benefits  to see my sons share in the daily responsibilities of caring for our dairy cows and the land we call home.

 

One of our daily farm chores  done every  morning and afternoon is the calf feeding. Yesterday afternoon  I beat Cody to  the tractor driving job, so he fed the calf on the bottle while

 

 

Casey fed the calves that drink milk from the bucket.

 

 
 

 

 

  This tractor driver, besides being a great calf feeding tractor driver,  provides benefits to the hard working dairy farmer sons  

 

                                       
                                             with labors of love from  dairymom's kitchen!

Food With Integrity

Ryan's parents, Bill and Bonnah Lyn, would have been married 70 years today. 

 

 

 

 Even though they are no longer with us, not a day goes by on our fourth generation family farm, that we are not reminded of their sacrifices and  efforts to utilize every resource available for us and the next generation. They lived and farmed with integrity.

 

 Although our fourth generation dairy farm has changed in the technology used and the number of cows being milked has increased, the practices we use are ethically grounded, scientifically verified and economically viable.

 

 

 

We are proud to be a  part of the American food system that  maximizes efficiency, meets the growing demand for food and provides consumer choice.

Like our parents before us, we live and farm with integrity for today and the next generation.

 

What questions do you have about agriculture and today's food system?

I'll be happy to get you an answer.

#FoodWithIntegrity

 

 

Happy Father's Day

 

All the world's a stage,

and every father plays a supporting role.

---Anonymous

 

 

I can't imagine having grown up without all the men in my life! My blessings increased when I married a third generation dairy farmer and became part of the farm family. Although Ryan's Dad is no longer with us, we have great memories, traditions  and lessons learned that come only from a farming father.

 

Hope you're planning to make great Father's Day memories of your own!

 

 

 

Happy Father's Day!

Dairy Farm Nursing

Last week was a scheduled  appointment for Dr. France, our veterinarian, to come to the dairy farm for herd health examinations. My favorite part of  any herd health  check-up day is finding out if the cows are pregnant. I'm sure this is because I worked as a nurse in a women's clinic and cared for many pregnant women before working full time on the dairy farm! Proper management of the cow's health and pregnancy status is important to the production of high-quality milk and the sustainability of our family dairy farm.

After being milked and before entering  the feed barn, ten cows are walked into the  management area that allows Dr. France to examine the cows with as little stress as possible for the cows. As soon as the group of ten are examined, they will walk on to the feed barn to eat and then to rest in the pasture.

Even though I don't wear my nursing uniform to work anymore, as the dairy farm nurse I prepare for herd health and the doctor's arrival by gathering the breeding and health information about each cow from our computer records. During the herd health exams, I am looking at each cow as they enter the exam area, providing information about each cow to the doctor and then recording the exam results that will be added to the computer records to manage the care for our cows.

As a dairy farm nurse, I  love  caring for  these pregnant mamas....

and their babies...

 

 and providing  high-quality milk for you!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Although I enjoy seeing beautiful places and experiencing life in a big city like Chicago, my favorite part of any trip is returning home to my family and the dairy farm.

.                                                                                     

      I'm thankful for a safe trip home and for  these two sons who
                       managed the farm  while we were away.

Assignment: Dairy Tour

Today's lab assignment for University of Arkansas Food and Hospitality students was to tour a real dairy farm. It doesn't get any more real than to watch cows being milked,smelling the silage in the feed barn, or getting a juicy lick from a baby calf. I love the questions these young consumers ask about the farm and the conversations that are started about how we work every day to produce a safe nutritious product by caring for our animals and our land.

Petting the  baby calves always seem to be the highlight of the tour and I must admit, I love listening to the laughter of the students as they pet the calves and take pictures. It's a great place to explain how these heifer calves are the future for our family farm. 

Although I don't get to give the grade for this lab assignment,

I do  appreciate the opportunity to share our family  dairy story!

Love's Circle

While baking Valentine cookies for my family, I realized that some of the most extraordinary moments of love that I share with my family  are found in the most ordinary times on ordinary days as we work together on our family dairy farm.  On this special day of love and friendship, I wish to share with you a passage from the book Thoughts of Gold written by Leroy Brownlow:

Circle of Love

     The more we love the closer we approach the likeness of God.
     Build a circle of love. For love changes things. It converts a shack into a palace and turns a hamburger into a feast. It smooths the rocky road, and pulls down the hills. It gives courage because it stands with us. It makes pain less painful, sorrow less sorrowful, and joy more joyful. It takes some of the disappointment out of failure, and puts more delight in success. It does because of its ability to share, and much of what life is all about is sharing.
     A ray of love is what we all need--to give it and to receive it. So let love shine and shine and  shine, in me and on you, in you and on me.

                                                                  Happy Valentine's Day!

True Dairy Gals

Yesterday we traveled to Springfield,Missouri, to attend our Dairy Farmers of America Cooperative summer information meeting. Members from Arkansas,Missouri, and Oklahoma met to receive updates about our cooperative's business and the challenges we face in the dairy industry. It is also a very social and fun time for the entire family. The minute you walk in the door, you can find all kinds of free ice cream bars and milk mingled with information booths about dairy promotion,new dairy products and services that are available from our cooperative.

We look forward to this event because it allows us an opportunity to visit with other dairy farm families that we don't see at any other time. For the last thirty years, Mrs. Betty Clark from Arkansas has been attending these summer information meetings with her daughters and granddaughter. It is definitely a family affair for three generations of true dairy gals that have grown up on the dairy and continue the family dairy tradition on their own farms. Each year the gals wear shirts with the True Dairy Gal label. After the meeting, you may find them together at the Ozark Fair or shopping at the local mall. Where ever you find them, they will be having a good time!

These True Dairy Gals represent not only the commitment that it takes from the family farm to produce safe,high quality milk and dairy products, but also the importance of family to each farming operation for multiple generations!

Dairy Farmers Party

Dairy farmers have been partying in June since the first National Milk Month in 1937. That first celebration of milk was sponsored by chain stores to help stabilize dairy demand during periods of peak production. It's been called "June Dairy Month" since 1939. You can learn more about the history of June Dairy Month at http://www.midwestdairy.com/. Dairy farm families are now celebrating in a variety of ways to share how we work everyday to produce a wholesome, nutritious product. Offering samples of the many products produced from milk is the fun part of the party!



June Dairy Month really starts on the farm with every dairy farm family. Ninety eight percent of all U.S. dairy farms are family owned.


Each dairy farm family has their own unique story about their family farm. Farming with our family is not only a business, it is our way of life. The family makes the farm! Our farm began in the early 1920's when Ryan's Grandfather purchased the farm where we live. He produced apples,pigs, chickens, and milked a few cows. Ryan's parents raised broiler chickens, milked a few cows and had a beef herd. In 1972, Ryan started milking 17 cows and has grown the dairy to 300 milking cows. Our two sons are the fourth generation to live and work on our farm. In 1972 when Ryan began dairy farming, there were over 300 dairies in Benton County. In 1985 there were 119 and today we are one of 18 dairies remaining.


We take great pride in working to provide wholesome and nutritious milk for all consumers. June Dairy Month gives us a perfect opportunity to promote our product and celebrate what we do everyday. I hope you will party with us by enjoying your favorite dairy products this month!