Celebrate Eat Better,Eat Together Month

October is designated as Eat Better,Eat Together Month. Family meals are great opportunities to eat nutritious food,enjoy each other's company,share conversation and laugh together. Even when schedules are busy and we struggle to sit down together, I try to keep ingredients on hand that can easily be fixed for a  quick,nutitious family meal. Chili or soup is a favorite fall or winter family meal for us.

 Pepper-Jack Cornbread Muffins make a great addition to any quick and easy meal. I found this recipe in the October 2012 Country Living magazine but made muffins rather than cornbread sticks. It was an instant family favorite and goes perfectly with a big glass of milk!

Pepper-Jack Cornbread Muffins

1 (8.5oz) box Jiffy corn muffin mix
3/4 cup creamed corn
2 large eggs
3 ounces pepper-Jack cheese,grated (about 3/4 cup)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In a medium bowl, combine all ingredients. Stir until batter just comes together; do not overmix.

Fill 12 paper-lined muffin cups with about 2 tablespoons batter. Bake until golden on top and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean,about 12-15 minutes. Serve with butter.


Option: May use cast-iron cornbread stick pans--Set 2 cast-iron pans in the top third of oven until hot, about 15 minutes. Mix batter; carefully remove heated pans and brush each stick mold with butter.
Fill each mold with about 2 tablespoons batter. Bake as above. Remove pans from oven and using a sharp knife, release sticks. Serve warm with butter.

                                                   
                                                  Happy Eat Better,Eat Together Month!

Sunday Specials

 

Fall has arrived!  The flowers in my yard (what have survived the drought) are taking on a brighter look as the days are cooler and shorter. I love to watch this season of transition and appreciate the reminders of how blessed we are on the dairy farm even in the midst of extreme drought challenges.

                                                Sunday Blessings to you and your family!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

 

We've  been baling and wrapping hay this week that will be used to feed our dairy cows. Even though drought has severly affected the amount of hay for harvest, I'm thankful  for every bale that is harvested and for these two sons that work diligently every day on our family farm.  

Celebrate World Milk Day

 

Routine is part of our every day life on the dairy  farm--feeding our cows,milking the cows, feeding baby calves and all the other chores that happen in a day to take care of the land and our animals.One of my favorite dairy farm  routines is   having a new calf born on our farm.  This mama gave birth just a few hours ago and I wanted to share this 'first kiss' picture in celebration of World Milk Day!

 

Routine for this baby today includes resting in the field with her mama, a bottle of colostrum to provide antibodies to protect from disease, and a name tag placed on her ear. Tomorrow she will be taxied to the calf raising area and become part of my daily routine! You can find more information about dairy routine and what's so good about dairy at Dairy Makes Sense.  

 

Hope you're having a dairy good  Wednesday! 

Scouting Naughty Armyworms

Just before we received our first inch of rain in the midst of our exceptional drought, our tractors and seed planting equipment were kicking up the dust planting haygrazer and millet seed in hope of growing a desperately needed fall forage crop. Thankfully, we have received enough rain to green up the pastures and the newly planted crops are growing. Now we are facing another challenge--those naughty fall armyworms! With a little moisture,warm temperatures and humidity, fall armyworms  have been reported in Northwest Arkansas. Besides being extremely naughty in devastating a crop or pasture, they are also ugly to look at!

According to the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension, fall armyworms are one of the most devastating pests of pastures,hayfields and crops with damage appearing almost overnight. Here are a few armyworm scouting tips:

• Diligently scout pastures,hayfields and cropland by examining at least 10 one square foot samples at random across the field.
• Include a few samples in areas of abundant growth because this is where female armyworm moths prefer to lay eggs.
• Chemical control is needed when 3 or more worms per square foot are found. If chemical control is necessary, there are a number of insecticides available for control. It's important to read label instructions before purchasing and follow harvesting and grazing restrictions.

 

As we drove from pasture to crop fields Friday night scouting for those naughty armyworms, I couldn't help but feel like I was on the look-out for a desperate criminal that's out to steal our crop. Exceptional drought continues to provide plenty of challenge as we're scouting for those naughty armyworms!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

  

                                                                                  
             I'm thankful for the rain we received in the last week that watered our millet crop, 
        brought cooler weather for our cows to enjoy and encouraged our drought weary souls!

2012 Nutrition+Physical Learning Connection Summit

Ten years ago the 16th Surgeon General, Dr. David Satcher, released the report about the need to prevent and decrease America's obesity epidemic. Food insecurity, poor dietary choices and lack of physical activity are still contributing factors that are being addressed by a variety of concerned groups and organizations. It's been stated that there is a growing amount of research that shows a link between proper nutrition,physical activity, and academic achievement. Now we need a plan to take our knowledge and research to  work through the barriers that keep preventing us from conquering childhood obesity.

For the next couple of days, the 2012 Nutrition + Physical Activity Learning Connection Summit will be taking place in Arlington,Virginia. The goal of the meeting is to identify knowledge gaps, draw meaningful conclusions, highlight practical approaches to leverage the current science and move the agenda forward on working with and through schools to enhance children's health and readiness to learn. This summit is presented by the GENYouth Foundation, in partnership with the National Dairy Council, National Football League, American College of Sports Medicine, and American School Health Association.

 

As a dairy farmer, I'm very proud to produce a nutritious product and support programs like Fuel Up to Play 60 that are striving to educate children to make healthy food choices and increase physical activity daily to ensure lifelong good health habits.