Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Before we have our traditional Thanksgiving gathering with our family, we'll be

caring for the baby calves,

milking and feeding the cows,

and making sure the new babies arrive safely.

I'm thankful for America's dairy farm families, just like mine, that are committed to providing safe, high-quality milk and dairy products for your family to enjoy not only on holidays but everyday of the year.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Celebrating Dairy Time

Life is full of moments and milestones. 

Ryan and I reached the milestone of thirty years of marriage today, November 24th.

Being a city slicker, I've had a lot to learn about moments with a dairy  farmer.  Actually, I've learned to live by dairy time. We use clocks and watches and cell phones to keep us on time but we could function on the farm without them because everything we do is centered around caring for our dairy cows.

First of all, the cows come first. I'm not complaining, it's just the way it is. Dairy cows get milked twice a day, the same time every day of the year including weekends and holidays.

The dairy farmer started me off right by incorporating my first lesson in dairy time with the wedding planning. Our wedding was at noon so our farmer friends could come to the wedding and be home in time to milk their cows and the wedding date occurred after the silage harvest.

I may resist dairy time sometimes , but never the love of the dairy farmer!

1944

1984

                                                                             2014
                      I'm looking forward to more moments and milestones that happen on dairy time!

Thanksgiving Dairy Shake

I'm not suggesting that any recipe can take the place of the traditional Thanksgiving  pumpkin pie topped with whipped cream or ice cream, but you may want to ease into the holiday  season with Pumpkin Cheesecake Shake.  It meets one of my most important   requirements for a busy schedule---easy!

You'll find Pumpkin Cheesecake Shake  and other delicious, nutritious dairy recipes at DairyMakesSense.


Pumpkin Cheesecake Shake


Ingredients:

1 can (14 ounces) pumpkin,chilled
3 ounces reduced-fat cream cheese                        
1 container (6 ounces) low-fat  vanilla yogurt
2 cups low-fat milk
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
6 teaspoons graham cracker crumbs,optional



Preparation:

Place all ingredients (except graham cracker crumbs) in a blender and blend until smooth. Pour into glasses and top each serving with a teaspoon of graham cracker crumbs, if desired.

Servings: 6

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Araminta Richardson, my childhood piano teacher, was a remarkable person and obviously very patient when you think about the many hours spent with a variety of students. She traveled every month to small towns in Northwest Arkansas and Oklahoma to offer an opportunity for young people to not only play the piano or organ but to create an army of pianists and organists  for future service to the churches in our area. 

Students from across the area  were brought together for several Christmas programs in Bentonville.

Not all came willingly, but we had a lot of fun practicing!

As I prepare music for our church service this week, I'm thankful for my special friend, Araminta, who lovingly taught me a skill that I could use in service to the church and for my own enjoyment.

Dairy Q&A

                                                                     Question:
                       How does a calf stay warm in the winter?

     Answer: 

 For the first three months, our calves live in a clean, dry individual pen called a calf hutch. Our hutches are made from fiberglass that  provides protection from wind and bad weather, allows ample space for the calf to move freely and protects them from other calves in the herd.

When the weather gets really cold , like this past week when temperatures dipped into the teens, we add sawdust shavings or straw inside the hutch for extra warmth and comfort.

Twice a day  each calf receives a measured amount

 of warm milk and grain and is  monitored closely for any signs or symptoms of illness. 

Happy Harvest

A lot happens from the beginning of harvest until the last load of chopped sorghum  crop is on the way to the silo. Weather changes  and mechanical challenges are constant  reminders of the need for a dairy  farmer to find his happy button and bucket of patience.  Weather conditions definitely stood out on Saturday afternoon as the last round was made by the chopper for  the 2014  harvest season. 

 When we began harvest, the days were longer and much warmer--at least 40 degrees warmer!

Although freezing temperatures over the last couple of weeks   changed the sorghum from green to brown, 

it will still make great nutritional silage for our dairy cows to enjoy this winter.

With the prediction of snow and colder temperatures, 

I'm pretty sure the chopper is happy to head to the shed 

 and settle in for a long winter's nap!

Happy Harvest from down on the Arkansas  dairy farm!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Celebrating Veterans Day always reminds me of how fortunate I am to live in America.

I'm thankful that our family has the freedom to farm and that the freedom to farm allows other Americans to follow their dreams and ambitions.

Dairy Farm Fact:

More than 51,000 U.S. dairy farms provide

 milk, cheese, and yogurt to  the United States and other countries.