January Reflections

January is in full swing...

freezing weather and high winds,

 a little fog,

lightning but no rain,

a little sleet,

 single digit  temperatures followed

by 

70  degree days...

 

but what can you say?

It's crazy January!

The calves are handling crazy weather better than the 

farmers.

I will say, January also gives time to reflect on some

of the fun times of the holiday season...

and a special Christmas gift of a visit from 

my friend Nancy.

Life on the farm just can't get any better when you 

have the love of family and friends.

It's that love that keeps us going on the 

toughest days.

 

Century Farm Barn Preservation

More than one hundred years ago, this barn was the hub of the everyday

farming operation.  Ryan's grandfather Grover milked cows

 in this barn and used it to store hay and grain.  During World War II, 

Ryan's mother milked cows in this

same barn while his father was stationed in Japan.

Even though  the everyday activity of this barn has changed,

it is still used for storage and provides a reminder

of its history on  our century farm. 

  

It seemed the right thing to preserve this part of our 

farm history by adding new tin and new doors to 

this important part of our family and farm history.

The barn certainly dresses up my calf pictures!

More importantly, the barn can continue to

be used daily and preserved for others to enjoy

as our  rural farming area in Benton County

continues to blend  into city life.

 

 

Thankful Thursday

Pictures don't always tell the whole story. 

After the first cutting of hay this spring, we were faced with drought

conditions. What hay we did harvest was extremely expensive

due to increased input costs such as fertilize, diesel and even the 

net wrap.  There is no such thing as cheap hay this year!

There were times this summer during the drought

 combined with extreme heat, it was doubtful that we

 would have another cutting of hay .

 I'm thankful that the rain did begin to fall and we were 

able to get a badly needed  second cutting.

Farmers in many areas are still dealing with drought

conditions and are buying hay to feed their beef and

dairy cattle.

I'm thankful that we were able to provide  hay to a 

Texas farmer friend this week and for the 

                                                blessings we receive in sharing our bounty.

Thankful Thursday

   In 1919 a land deed was recorded in these historical record books

  at the Benton County Circuit Clerk's office.  

Earlier this year, I made my journey to the office to locate the

 recorded deed  for our farm so that we could make application to

                the Arkansas Century Farm Program.                

.                                                As I turned the pages in those big old books,

                     I felt like I was stepping back in time looking at the names on each

                          page, hand written with the most precise beautiful penmanship.

                                      When I found  the recorded deed for our farm, 

                                                     I felt like I had struck gold!

Even though I have only been a part of the farm for 37 years,

I have been blessed to be a part of the ongoing farming operation, raise

the fourth generation on the farm, and enjoy sharing our love of the farm 

with the fifth generation.

Before leaving the Capitol,

we made a stop at the Arkansas Treasurer's office

so Hattie could check out where our state tax dollars are kept

and the chance to hold almost a million dollars!

I couldn't help thinking about how proud my mother-in-law

Bonnah Lyn would have been on this special day 

for our farm and family.

Without a doubt, she would say,

"my family, the best crop I ever had!"

Thankful Thursday

Although our daylight hours are silently 

slipping away as fall approaches,

the hours in September have been packed

with weaning calves and cattle working.

Each calf has received a new ear tag for 

identification, vaccinations, and wormer before

being moved to a new pasture. 

It wasn't a rodeo but it was fun to watch the 

calves kicking up their heels and showing off

as they were released from the head chute.

We decided it was their reaction to the cooler

temperatures we were all enjoying!

Even though we are not milking cows on the farm,

we are still raising babies in the hutches.

These calves are from our cows

 that are being milked at other farms. 

Their care requires feeding milk and grain 

twice daily and monitoring them

 closely for any illness. 

Living on the farm isn't just all work!

As you can see,

Hattie and Breck make life exciting and fun.

                                      I'm thankful for our life on the farm and for the jobs

                                                      of raising calves and kids!

Thankful Thursday

Just before Labor Day, the square baler was pulled out of the shed, greased and

oiled, and sent to the field for what almost seems like an outdated practice.

The making of small square bales is a might more tedious than 

driving the big round baler down the field.  

You have decisions to make on the size of the

bale and the tension of the string. It proves that there is an art

  to farming and a lot of patience and praying with each bale

 that scoots out the shoot!

With the help of  the hay accumulator, a skid loader,

and a long trailer, the job of storing the hay is greatly 

 improved from the days of  a hay hauling crew that 

bucked each bale on the trailer in the field then

 unloaded and stacked  them in the barn on

 a 100 degree summer day.

I'm thankful for all the modern machinery that 

makes it possible to produce food for our calves and cows,

for the rain that we have been blessed with in this 

late summer season,

                                                                                  

                                                                                 and 

                                                 for these farm dogs that love life on the farm!

 

Thankful Thursday

It was a bitter sweet moment as I watched the group of 

bred Holstein heifers being checked by the veterinarian

before being loaded on a truck for a trip to their 

new home in Texas. 

The heifers will be having their babies in just

a couple of months.

 

We have almost three years invested in the  daily

           care of each of these heifers.

I was with them on their first day on the farm

when we moved their mother to the milking barn and

I became their caretaker feeding them with a bottle.

I'm going to miss seeing their babies !

I'm thankful to have married the dairy farmer 

that has shared his calling with me  to be a caretaker

of these beautiful animals and a steward of the 

land we call home,

                             
                                                        the continued daily work on the farm,

and

for the opportunities that appear through transitions

in life on the farm.