Dairymom Supports Wear Red Day

It's a fact that heart disease is the leading cause of death for women in the United States. Although we can't control  age,  genetics or  gender, we can know the facts about lifestyle changes that can lower the risk for heart disease and make sure we are aware of the signs of a heart attack. National Wear Red Day  (the first Friday in February) is a perfect opportunity to increase our knowledge and  raise awareness about heart disease and share information with our family and friends.

 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states these  risk factors  may increase your chances of getting heart disease :

•  Excessive alcohol use
• High blood cholesterol
• Diabetes
• Diet high in saturated fats and cholesterol
• Family history of heart disease
• High blood pressure
• Obesity
• Physical inactivity
• Tobacco use

To reduce your chances of getting heart disease:

• Know your blood pressure
• Talk to your doctor about whether you should  be tested for diabetes
• Quit smoking
• Discuss checking your cholesterol and triglyceride levels with your doctor
• Make healthy food choices
• Limit alcohol intake to one drink a day
• Lower your stress level and find healthy ways to cope with stress
• Get 30 minutes of aerobic activity at least 3 times per week

According to the CDC, sometimes heart disease may be silent and not diagnosed until a woman experiences signs or symptoms of a heart attack, heart failure, an arrhythmia or stroke.
Common symptoms that may occur include:

• Unusually heavy pressure on the chest, like there's a ton of weight on you
• Sharp upper body pain in the neck, back throat, abdomen  or jaw
• Severe shortness of breath
• Cold sweats (not hot flashes from menopause)
• Unusual or unexplained fatigue
• Unfamiliar dizziness or lightheadedness
• Unexplained nausea or vomiting
• Fluttering feelings in the chest (arrhythmia)
• Signs of stroke that may include:  sudden weakness, paralysis or numbness of the face/arms/legs; trouble speaking or understanding speech; difficulty seeing in one or both eyes, dizziness, sudden and sever headache or loss of consciousness.

If you are experiencing these symptoms or someone you know is having a heart attack, call 9-1-1 immediately. Treatment works best if given within 1 hour of when symptoms begin.

You can find more information about heart health at Go Red for Women, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and National Dairy Council.

National Wear Red Day will find me wearing red under my pink coveralls but more importantly, I plan to renew my commitment to make the lifestyle changes  that can make a difference to my heart health.

                                                       Happy National Wear Red Day!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

 

 I'm thankful for the beauty of winter,

 

 

 the promise of spring,

 

 

and

 

that no matter the season,

 

we're producing high-quality milk by caring for our animals and the land we call home.

Snow Day Down on the Dairy

I wasn't surprised to do chores in the snow since it all happened on Sunday, but  it was an extra bonus to  enjoy the beauty of the freezing fog this morning  that decorated everything around us including the fence surrounding the calf hutches.

 

 

The calves weren't one bit impressed with freezing fog!

 

 

Snow and fog didn't stop them from coming quickly

 to enjoy their warm milk and grain.

Cheese Makes the Game

No matter which NFL team you're pulling for, I hope  cheese will be part of your  party   action to contribute good nutrition  that includes  high-quality protein as well as calcium,phosphorus, and vitamin A. I've collected our favorite snack foods for the game but I think I may have to add this Dairy Makes Sense recipe to the list just for fun!


Co-Jack Cheese Crisps



Ingredients:

Non-stick cooking spray
1 package (8 ounces) finely shredded Colby-Monterey Jack Cheese


Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat rimmed baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray. Place 2 teaspoons Colby-Monterey Jack cheese mounds 2 inches apart on baking sheet. Press mounds gently with fingers to flatten. Bake until mounds are thin, bubbly and golden, no more than 6 to 8 minutes. Immediately transfer crisps to paper towels with a metal spatula. Serve when crisps have cooled completely.

Hint: Baking too long will make crisps too hard and not easily removed from the baking sheet.

Tip: May be baked one day ahead and crisped before serving in oven at warm setting, for 4 to 5 minutes.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Today I drove to Little Rock to attend the Arkansas Farm Bureau Winter Commodity Meeting and finish up our policy resolutions procedure that was postponed due to icy winter weather in December.

 

I had a lot of great conversations with friends from across the state and was happy to receive the latest information about farm policy and issues that affect us on the farm.

 

 

I'm thankful for the leaders of  Arkansas Farm Bureau

that work together

 

 

to analyze problems and seek solutions to help achieve educational improvement, economic opportunity, social advancement, and promote the county, state, and  national well-being.

 

                                                                                  
                                     Most of all, I'm thankful God made a farmer just for me!

Superbowl Cheese Team Wins the Game

I'm rooting for the cheese team--that's the dairy cows that provide all that milk for the delicious cheese that is part of every Superbowl celebration at our house!  In preparation for the big game, I'm collecting a few recipes for game day  that fit our criteria for fun, easy and cheese filled!
This recipe can be found at Dairy Makes Sense.


Confetti Quesadillas

Ingredients:

2 cups fat-free plain yogurt
1 cup finely minced cilantro
1 teaspoon cumin
12 soft corn tortillas
1 cup(4 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Monterey Jack cheese
1 cup(4 ounces) shredded reduced fat Colby cheese
1/2 cup fresh corn kernels or black beans
1/2 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
1 red bell pepper, finely minced
1 jalapeno pepper, finely minced

Preparation

Line a large strainer with a coffee filter or paper towel and place over a mixing bowl. Pour yogurt and let sit until some of the liquid has drained away and yogurt is consistency of sour cream. Transfer to small mixing bowl. Stir in cilantro and cumin.

Preheat large skillet over low heat. Line up six tortillas. Divide cheese, corn, cilantro and peppers among tortillas, then cover each with a second tortilla. Place a tortilla on dry skillet or grill and warm until cheese is melted an tortilla is slightly golden. Flip and cook other side until golden. Cut into wedges and serve. Repeat with remaining quesadillas. Serve each wedge with a dollop of cilantro yogurt dip.

Entertaining Idea: Make these ahead and serve at room temperature, or set up an assembly line "grillside" and let guests select their own blend of cheese and "confetti."

January Delivers Spring Down on the Dairy

How often do we get a 60 degree January day on the dairy farm? Not very often this year!

Although Mother Nature was just teasing us today with a spring-like day, it   was  a perfect day

    for welcoming a new calf into the world. 

 

 

We're always keeping a close eye on our cows to ensure a healthy delivery, but it was nice to know that this baby would be born on a much warmer January  day.

 

 Our calves are usually born in the pasture but with the extremely cold January days that we have experienced,  we have been moving  the mamas to the maternity barn close to calving time  so the baby would be born  in a more protective environment.

 

With tomorrow's forecast for twenty degrees, it looks like we'll be back to the maternity barn for delivery!