Tuesday, December 8, 2015
Practical Farm Kids
You might teach in a farming community if this is the snow boot of choice to wear to school.
Lost in Life
Sorry it has been so long since I have posted. As the title explains, I have been simply lost in life.
Having a nearly four month old little farm girl keeps me busy. I love her beyond what words can explain. I have had plenty of moments where I have felt like posting, but life just got in the way. I will never apologize for spending more time with Baby Farmgirl though.
As most of you probably know, our school was also busy dealing with a tragedy in November. When you sign on to be a teacher, you know that you are signing up for helping kids deal with all sorts of emotional moments throughout their time in your classroom. Whether it is the loss of a grandparent, divorce of parents or simply the loss of a pet...you learn to say what needs to be said and give the student love and support. In other words, being a teacher has served to somewhat prepare me for being a parent.
One moment I NEVER felt I would deal with, however, was the death of a student in such a tragic situation. I won't go into too many details because there is already enough that has played out in the media, but we lost senior Luke Schemm while he was playing a fantastic football game.
I can't say that I knew him the best. He hadn't taken my class since he was in junior high. But in such a small school you talk to all kids on almost a daily basis just because you see them in the hallways every day.
The day that we arrived at the faculty meeting after hearing the heartbreaking news will forever stick in my mind. It was silent. If you have ever been to a faculty meeting at our school, it is usually full of laughter and teasing. But this day it was just silence. Silence shattered every few seconds by sobs or sniffles of the teachers that were dealing with grief in their own way, while trying to wrap their head around how they would help their own students deal with this very personal grief.
There is so much to take from that day. A lot of sorrow, but I will also remember how we weren't bound by legislation or rules about how to handle the situation. We dealt with it as it came. Whether that meant bowing our heads together and praying as a staff or if it meant praying with or hugging students as the moment required. I have often been so scared to "overstep" boundaries in terms of my faith while teaching. But on this day it was what we needed.
As the first bell rang for the day to begin, students filtered into the auditorium to be addressed by the superintendent. He talked to them as sobbing and sniffling once again filled the room. But as the grief overtook us, he called our attention to the fact that clergy and counselors from all over the area had come to help us through it. As we turned around to where he was pointing, I nearly started crying from what I saw. There was a line of people surrounding all of us in the seats. All of these people had come to help us. Whether they knew us or not, they had taken that time to devote to us. While I fought back the tears, one thought and scripture ran through my mind...
That is what God knew we needed. We didn't necessarily need them to talk to, but we needed to know that they were there if we needed them. HE was there if we needed HIM...which we so desperately did.
I guess I am talking about this now partly so you might understand a little bit more about the situation. More about what it means to be a teacher when you might be so quick to criticize them about low test scores or mistreating your child. More about what it means to be a believer and what it has helped us to get through in the past month.
I'm so thankful to have my Savior with me everyday. And I'm so very thankful that Luke had him also. There is no way to explain how much that knowledge has helped during this time. Heck, Luke is getting to see Him face-to-face. Something I strive for everyday. If I can sum up this entry, it would be by saying this.
Having a nearly four month old little farm girl keeps me busy. I love her beyond what words can explain. I have had plenty of moments where I have felt like posting, but life just got in the way. I will never apologize for spending more time with Baby Farmgirl though.
As most of you probably know, our school was also busy dealing with a tragedy in November. When you sign on to be a teacher, you know that you are signing up for helping kids deal with all sorts of emotional moments throughout their time in your classroom. Whether it is the loss of a grandparent, divorce of parents or simply the loss of a pet...you learn to say what needs to be said and give the student love and support. In other words, being a teacher has served to somewhat prepare me for being a parent.
One moment I NEVER felt I would deal with, however, was the death of a student in such a tragic situation. I won't go into too many details because there is already enough that has played out in the media, but we lost senior Luke Schemm while he was playing a fantastic football game.
I can't say that I knew him the best. He hadn't taken my class since he was in junior high. But in such a small school you talk to all kids on almost a daily basis just because you see them in the hallways every day.
The day that we arrived at the faculty meeting after hearing the heartbreaking news will forever stick in my mind. It was silent. If you have ever been to a faculty meeting at our school, it is usually full of laughter and teasing. But this day it was just silence. Silence shattered every few seconds by sobs or sniffles of the teachers that were dealing with grief in their own way, while trying to wrap their head around how they would help their own students deal with this very personal grief.
There is so much to take from that day. A lot of sorrow, but I will also remember how we weren't bound by legislation or rules about how to handle the situation. We dealt with it as it came. Whether that meant bowing our heads together and praying as a staff or if it meant praying with or hugging students as the moment required. I have often been so scared to "overstep" boundaries in terms of my faith while teaching. But on this day it was what we needed.
As the first bell rang for the day to begin, students filtered into the auditorium to be addressed by the superintendent. He talked to them as sobbing and sniffling once again filled the room. But as the grief overtook us, he called our attention to the fact that clergy and counselors from all over the area had come to help us through it. As we turned around to where he was pointing, I nearly started crying from what I saw. There was a line of people surrounding all of us in the seats. All of these people had come to help us. Whether they knew us or not, they had taken that time to devote to us. While I fought back the tears, one thought and scripture ran through my mind...
"A great cloud of witnesses.."
That is what God knew we needed. We didn't necessarily need them to talk to, but we needed to know that they were there if we needed them. HE was there if we needed HIM...which we so desperately did.
I guess I am talking about this now partly so you might understand a little bit more about the situation. More about what it means to be a teacher when you might be so quick to criticize them about low test scores or mistreating your child. More about what it means to be a believer and what it has helped us to get through in the past month.
I'm so thankful to have my Savior with me everyday. And I'm so very thankful that Luke had him also. There is no way to explain how much that knowledge has helped during this time. Heck, Luke is getting to see Him face-to-face. Something I strive for everyday. If I can sum up this entry, it would be by saying this.
"Don't let this day be wasted. Tell others you love them. Pray to your Lord and Savior. Don't be afraid of what this world will say. It just isn't worth it."
Wednesday, October 21, 2015
Dad's "Sweet" Tooth
A tradition that has lasted at least four generations on our farm now is planting sweet potatoes. I think I've mentioned before that I don't even like to eat the things. But planting and harvesting them each year is something I have very fond memories of. As kids my grandpa would assign my sister and I jobs to help him with planting. We would either poke a hole in the ground with the stick so he had a hole to place the plant in, or we lugged a small cup of water to water the plant after he had placed it in the ground.
This summer, I was pregnant with my sweet Baby Farmgirl while I helped my dad plant them. However, I didn't get to help with the harvest because she was a little hungry. But she is the fourth generation in our family to help ;-)
But my dad is always quite proud and glad to share the bounty of his sweet potato crop. So here are some pictures of his crop this year.
We usually wait until after the first hard freeze to harvest the potatoes. But some pesky rats forced dad's hand this year. It is hard to know how big this potato would have been, but dad lost a big part of his crop to the rats. Dad doesn't remember ever having this problem before.
We should have some pretty healthy rats around our place. They sure did a number some of the potatoes.
I noticed something else different on the potatoes this year. I'm not sure if you can see it in the picture above, but the potatoes looked like they had veins running down the side of them. Weird.
This summer, I was pregnant with my sweet Baby Farmgirl while I helped my dad plant them. However, I didn't get to help with the harvest because she was a little hungry. But she is the fourth generation in our family to help ;-)
But my dad is always quite proud and glad to share the bounty of his sweet potato crop. So here are some pictures of his crop this year.
This is my hand holding the largest potato. I think Dad said it weighed 2 1/4 pounds.
That would be a meal in itself!
Some of them had some splits in them and you could also see the rat teeth marks on this one.
Dad also said the most potatoes he got off of one root was over 8 pounds.
Seeing how big these guys are almost makes me want to eat a sweet potato...almost.
Wednesday, September 30, 2015
Weaning Preparation
It is the time of year that is typically very loud around our household. This is about the time every year when we wean the calves from their mothers. This usually requires sorting the calves from the cows and then putting the calves in a corral while their moms are in the pasture right next to it. And both those corrals and pasture are within two hundred feet or so of our house.It is loud because the cows and calves are always looking for each other and it involves a lot of mooing and bawling.
This year my husband wanted to try a slightly different approach after hearing that it had worked fairly well for a neighbor of ours.
These are what I call nose flaps. I'm not sure if that is the correct term, but it fairly accurately describes them.
They look sort of ridiculous, but they have a very smart function. After these are placed in their noses, they can remain with their mothers to reduce the stress of weaning. However, the placement of the flap actually prevents them from being able to drink from their mothers yet still be able to drink water and eat grass.
Weaning is always a stressful event no matter if it is humans or animals. Yet, it is a necessary event to take place. That's why ranchers are always looking for the least stressful manner in which to do it. Along with the nose flaps, we also give them a couple of shots meant to boost their immune system during this time. If you are like me, you know that the most stressful times in your life are when your body and immune system take the biggest hits. It is necessary to keep the calves in the best health possible to allow them to get through the process of weaning and also to keep them gaining weight and growing like they need to.
Now, in theory, the nose flaps seem ingenious. However we did figure out some drawbacks. For starters, they aren't the easiest things to put in.
Some of the calves also lost the nose flap almost immediately after being released from the chute. We just kicked them out into the smaller corral and kept them all there together until we were finished. This created a confined space with the calves bumping and rubbing up against each other and created many opportunities for the flaps to be knocked out. Those that lost the nose flap had to then be run back through the chute again. Lesson learned for next time.
Sitting on the sidelines while working cattle is never easy for me. So Baby Farmgirl and I headed outside for a bit to check out the action. As soon as I got her outside she seemed right at home with all the commotion of the gates and mooing cattle. It is hard to decide when it is ok for her to be outside (there is usually a lot of dirt in the air along with it usually being pretty warm days when we work with cattle), but we also want to give her as much exposure to our way of life as we can. It's never too early to start learn what our family loves to do.
This year my husband wanted to try a slightly different approach after hearing that it had worked fairly well for a neighbor of ours.
These are what I call nose flaps. I'm not sure if that is the correct term, but it fairly accurately describes them.
Weaning is always a stressful event no matter if it is humans or animals. Yet, it is a necessary event to take place. That's why ranchers are always looking for the least stressful manner in which to do it. Along with the nose flaps, we also give them a couple of shots meant to boost their immune system during this time. If you are like me, you know that the most stressful times in your life are when your body and immune system take the biggest hits. It is necessary to keep the calves in the best health possible to allow them to get through the process of weaning and also to keep them gaining weight and growing like they need to.
Now, in theory, the nose flaps seem ingenious. However we did figure out some drawbacks. For starters, they aren't the easiest things to put in.
Casserole Kindness
It seems that I have been oblivious to a lot of things during my life. After having Baby Farmgirl, I have figured out that I was clueless about the western Kansas etiquette after someone has a baby.
You see, this photo might look like a lowly ol' casserole dish. But it is so much more.
During those first sleep-deprived weeks, my husband and I were just struggling to get from day to day and learn the joys and tribulations that come with having a child. It was all I could do just to keep her fed, let along figure out meals for the adults in the household.
This is where the casserole dish comes into play. I'm not sure if this is a custom in other parts of the country or world, but I have to contend that I feel like it is something fairly unique to small communities. You see, when we were barely functioning, we had neighbors, friends, and family members showing up at our house with meals! It...was...AWESOME! My high school friend actually sent us home from the hospital with one meal and breakfast burritos in tow.
It is safe to say that my husband and I were very well fed. My mother filled in the gaps when we didn't have a meal already supplied and she would call us to tell us she would be bringing us a meal. And if she wasn't bringing us a meal, she was bringing us dessert (which in my husband's opinion is probably better).
You see, this casserole dish represents so much more than keeping us physically fed. It represents love, thoughtfulness, compassion and so many more things. We were being fed physically and spiritually. I am horrible at writing thank you notes. I always intend to and then the moment gets away from me and months later I still haven't managed to write any. Then I just hope that my countless thank yous to them while receiving the gift will suffice.
So, in case any of you reading this are the people that supplied meals or showered us with gifts for our dear Baby Farmgirl, please know that you are not forgotten. We love you all so much and can never thank you enough for all that you have done for us. I only hope that we may one day be able to repay the kindness that you all have shown us.
Oh, and days after we had been receiving all sorts of house guests, I realized this was the sight that greeted them as soon as they exited their vehicles to walk up our front sidewalk.
Nothing says "welcome to the farm" like the dogs leaving a strategically placed jaw bone from a deceased animal in their pathway. Nice.
You see, this photo might look like a lowly ol' casserole dish. But it is so much more.
During those first sleep-deprived weeks, my husband and I were just struggling to get from day to day and learn the joys and tribulations that come with having a child. It was all I could do just to keep her fed, let along figure out meals for the adults in the household.
This is where the casserole dish comes into play. I'm not sure if this is a custom in other parts of the country or world, but I have to contend that I feel like it is something fairly unique to small communities. You see, when we were barely functioning, we had neighbors, friends, and family members showing up at our house with meals! It...was...AWESOME! My high school friend actually sent us home from the hospital with one meal and breakfast burritos in tow.
It is safe to say that my husband and I were very well fed. My mother filled in the gaps when we didn't have a meal already supplied and she would call us to tell us she would be bringing us a meal. And if she wasn't bringing us a meal, she was bringing us dessert (which in my husband's opinion is probably better).
You see, this casserole dish represents so much more than keeping us physically fed. It represents love, thoughtfulness, compassion and so many more things. We were being fed physically and spiritually. I am horrible at writing thank you notes. I always intend to and then the moment gets away from me and months later I still haven't managed to write any. Then I just hope that my countless thank yous to them while receiving the gift will suffice.
So, in case any of you reading this are the people that supplied meals or showered us with gifts for our dear Baby Farmgirl, please know that you are not forgotten. We love you all so much and can never thank you enough for all that you have done for us. I only hope that we may one day be able to repay the kindness that you all have shown us.
Oh, and days after we had been receiving all sorts of house guests, I realized this was the sight that greeted them as soon as they exited their vehicles to walk up our front sidewalk.
Wednesday, September 2, 2015
Baby Rookies
As most of you already know, we have welcomed our own Baby Farmgirl. That will be how I refer to her on here and I probably won't really post many pictures just to be on the safe side.
I wanted to do this post as a letter to Baby Farmgirl about what we, her parents, have learned during her first few weeks of life.
Dear Baby Farmgirl,
The following are just a few things we have learned in the nearly 3 weeks we have known you.
#1. Our lives are no longer our own.
I'm sure there are so many more things that I want to put on here, but here's the kicker....I'm sleep deprived and can only remember things so long.
For now we are enjoying the $30 purchase me made yesterday at Walmart. The cheap little bouncy chair is giving me the most relief since we had you. When I first placed you in it yesterday, you laid back, gave a little smirk and went right to sleep. Now, if we can only get that same reaction out of you at 1 in the morning when you are screaming at us that you don't want to go to sleep. One step at a time, Baby Rookies, one step at a time.
Love you so much,
Momma Farmgirl
P.S.
This is how your hair looks the majority of the time and we think it is adorable when it sticks up. I hope that you are still satisfied when it does this as you get older. This or a ponytail are about the only options your fashion-challenged momma will be able to handle ;-)
I wanted to do this post as a letter to Baby Farmgirl about what we, her parents, have learned during her first few weeks of life.
Dear Baby Farmgirl,
The following are just a few things we have learned in the nearly 3 weeks we have known you.
#1. Our lives are no longer our own.
- It took us a bit to realize this, but it was confirmed for us before we left the hospital. When you spend over 6 hours waiting on a four-day-old baby to pee, it is a humbling experience. The lights they had you on for your jaundice ended up dehydrating your poor little body and you had to pee before they would allow us to leave the hospital. The best words in the world that day were the words your daddy yelled at around 8 o'clock that night. "The line turned blue!" You see, the awesome diapers they had on you had a little yellow stripe that turned blue if you peed. There was a lot of checking the line that day, and your dad and I (along with the nurse on duty) were ecstatic when it finally turned blue.
- It was quite embarrassing to change your diaper for the first time at the hospital. Thankfully the nurses did not laugh at us and answered every ridiculous question I had. Your daddy stood there and told me how I should be doing it...but certainly didn't do it himself. We talk to you with excited voices the entire time we dress you. Things like, "Annnndddd, there we got the second arm!" This isn't really for your benefit. It is mostly to make ourselves feel good about the huge accomplishment we just achieved...and then you promptly spit-up or poop on whatever we just got you changed into.
- I think it is a man thing. I have problems seeing you cry (it breaks my heart when the tears start) and have a hard time stomaching it when we have to suction out your nose, but when it comes to cleaning up the mess you leave behind on the towel during your sponge-bath, I guess I have the stronger stomach. I thought your daddy was kidding as he was gagging and running out of the room. Long story made short and a lot of laughter later...he wasn't kidding.
- Your daddy and I still haven't figured out how 8 lbs. of sheer will can dominate two full-sized adults and render them useless.
- We made that mistake once...and won't make it again. And now that I said that, we will probably forget it the next time we go somewhere.
- From your fuzzy little ears to your beautiful little face, every last bit of you is a miracle and we are so blessed.
- Before you were born, I was scared senseless to be a mom. I'm still scared, but now I understand why it is worth it. People kept telling me all the negatives of having a newborn and that only fueled my anxieties. But when I see your beautiful blue eyes staring at me, or when you snuggle up against me, or when your tiny little fingers tap ever-so-softly against my skin while you are eating, you steal my heart. And don't tell anybody this...but you have stolen your daddy's heart, too ;-)
I'm sure there are so many more things that I want to put on here, but here's the kicker....I'm sleep deprived and can only remember things so long.
For now we are enjoying the $30 purchase me made yesterday at Walmart. The cheap little bouncy chair is giving me the most relief since we had you. When I first placed you in it yesterday, you laid back, gave a little smirk and went right to sleep. Now, if we can only get that same reaction out of you at 1 in the morning when you are screaming at us that you don't want to go to sleep. One step at a time, Baby Rookies, one step at a time.
Love you so much,
Momma Farmgirl
P.S.
This is how your hair looks the majority of the time and we think it is adorable when it sticks up. I hope that you are still satisfied when it does this as you get older. This or a ponytail are about the only options your fashion-challenged momma will be able to handle ;-)
Wednesday, August 12, 2015
Cuteness Overload
Since I have been talking about them this summer, I figured it was probably about time to include a few more pics of the puppies that have taken over our farm this summer.
They are cute as can be and very enthusiastic to greet visitors!
It is hard for them to contain all of their wiggles, so a picture of all of them is very difficult to get. I got all but two in this picture. Yep, that's right, there are 10 of them!
Hey there cutie!
"C'mon guys, don't you wanna come out here and have fun with me?"
Monday, August 10, 2015
Being a pregnant Farmgirl
So, now that the baby is almost here, I'm going to write a few things that I might or might not have known about pregnancy before. And when you are a pregnant farmgirl, well, it just makes it that much more entertaining for some people. This is a bit long and I won't be the least bit offended if you don't read it. I added some pics from the internet to give some illustrations ;-)
#1. The references between you and pregnant farm animals are endless.
I have been known to make a few of these references myself in the past. But when you are surrounded by farmers in a farming community...well, farmers aren't exactly known for handling things in the classiest way sometimes. You have to learn to take it with a grain of salt when someone tells you, "You're starting to look like that ol' gray sway-backed mare!"
#2. You are suddenly not allowed to do things you have done for probably the last 30 years...and will immediately be allowed to do them again as soon as the baby is out of your body.
Suddenly I wasn't supposed to lift more than 20 pounds (and apparently a bowling ball is nearly that much although I swear it felt lighter). I probably also wasn't supposed to be crawling over fences (but that was the best way to get into the barn to see the puppies). I wasn't supposed to push around furniture (hey, they could have done it before I finally did). I wasn't supposed to use the riding lawnmower either (but I asked the doctor and they said it was fine as long as it wasn't on the side of a huge hill where the mower would roll over.)
#3. When I DID want to use pregnancy as an excuse to get out of something, they weren't having it.
You know, things like doing the dishes, carrying a huge laundry basket full of clothes, cooking a meal, cleaning up mouse poop, vacuuming, dusting, etc.
#4. I did kind of miss my feet.
I could still see my feet and reach my feet if I needed to. But the summer time is the one time I actually paint my toenails because I wear flip-flops all the time. The last time I was able to paint them was in May before high school graduation...and it involved a lot of grunting and shortness of breath. My husband refused to paint them for me, so I had naked toenails through the summer.
#5. No one tells you that now when your stomach growls, it sounds like it is in your chest. And that is simply because that is pretty much where it is now relocated.
I still can't get over hearing my stomach growl that close to my face. It is just a very weird thing to feel.
#6. Simply getting off the couch is now a very serious accomplishment that I think should be considered a new Olympic event.
I miss the days of not having to find a handhold on the couch to pull myself up with, or using my husband to push off of when I need to get up off of the couch. It isn't pretty folks. And it is a multiple-stage process.
#7. I really, really, really, really miss my jeans.
Spandex or elastic becomes a girl's best friends during pregnancy. You appreciate it much more when you really drag out wearing your regular jeans and pants until the last possible moment before switching to maternity clothing. Wearing the regular pants isn't the most pleasant thing in the world when you feel like your body is being cut into half every time you try to lean over an pick something up. However, wearing non-stop clothing with elastic around the waistband gets a bit tiresome. Especially when those pants stretch out while wearing them and you spend half the time pulling them back up.
#8. The pregnant body and all the awkwardness and uncomfortable things that go with it are an endless source of amusement for my husband and pretty much any man.
Enough said on this one. A man will just never fully be able to understand it.
#9. Going to the county fair while nearly 9 months pregnant means that you will never be able to walk from point A to point B without the following conversation.
Acquaintance: "Hey there! So you still haven't had the baby?"
Me: "Nope"
A: "How are you feeling?"
Me: "Fat" (It just got to where I didn't know what to say)
A: "Oh, you don't look fat. But I feel for you having to be pregnant during the hot summer."
Me: "Thanks"
A: "So have you had any contractions yet?"
Me: "Nope."
A: "When are you due?"
Me: "A week and a half."
A: "Well, next year you will have a little one with you at the fair."
Me: "Yep"
A: "Enjoy this year while you can."
Me: "Thanks."
Then I would walk about 10 steps and repeat the same conversation with someone else.
#10. When you go to a birthing class with your husband, you are already aware of some of the things that come along with pregnancy because of watching cows birth calves for years on end.
At one point the nurses teaching the class discussed that some people want to see the placenta after it has passed and they asked if I would want to do that. I quickly said, "Why would people do that? I'm a farmgirl, I've seen it plenty with cows...so I'm good!"
Well, if you made it to the end of this, CONGRATS! I hope it was at least a little on the entertaining side. Hopefully next time I make a post it will be with a little one napping soundly somewhere close to me.
#1. The references between you and pregnant farm animals are endless.
I have been known to make a few of these references myself in the past. But when you are surrounded by farmers in a farming community...well, farmers aren't exactly known for handling things in the classiest way sometimes. You have to learn to take it with a grain of salt when someone tells you, "You're starting to look like that ol' gray sway-backed mare!"
#2. You are suddenly not allowed to do things you have done for probably the last 30 years...and will immediately be allowed to do them again as soon as the baby is out of your body.
Suddenly I wasn't supposed to lift more than 20 pounds (and apparently a bowling ball is nearly that much although I swear it felt lighter). I probably also wasn't supposed to be crawling over fences (but that was the best way to get into the barn to see the puppies). I wasn't supposed to push around furniture (hey, they could have done it before I finally did). I wasn't supposed to use the riding lawnmower either (but I asked the doctor and they said it was fine as long as it wasn't on the side of a huge hill where the mower would roll over.)
#3. When I DID want to use pregnancy as an excuse to get out of something, they weren't having it.
You know, things like doing the dishes, carrying a huge laundry basket full of clothes, cooking a meal, cleaning up mouse poop, vacuuming, dusting, etc.
#4. I did kind of miss my feet.
I could still see my feet and reach my feet if I needed to. But the summer time is the one time I actually paint my toenails because I wear flip-flops all the time. The last time I was able to paint them was in May before high school graduation...and it involved a lot of grunting and shortness of breath. My husband refused to paint them for me, so I had naked toenails through the summer.
#5. No one tells you that now when your stomach growls, it sounds like it is in your chest. And that is simply because that is pretty much where it is now relocated.
I still can't get over hearing my stomach growl that close to my face. It is just a very weird thing to feel.
#6. Simply getting off the couch is now a very serious accomplishment that I think should be considered a new Olympic event.
I miss the days of not having to find a handhold on the couch to pull myself up with, or using my husband to push off of when I need to get up off of the couch. It isn't pretty folks. And it is a multiple-stage process.
#7. I really, really, really, really miss my jeans.
Spandex or elastic becomes a girl's best friends during pregnancy. You appreciate it much more when you really drag out wearing your regular jeans and pants until the last possible moment before switching to maternity clothing. Wearing the regular pants isn't the most pleasant thing in the world when you feel like your body is being cut into half every time you try to lean over an pick something up. However, wearing non-stop clothing with elastic around the waistband gets a bit tiresome. Especially when those pants stretch out while wearing them and you spend half the time pulling them back up.
#8. The pregnant body and all the awkwardness and uncomfortable things that go with it are an endless source of amusement for my husband and pretty much any man.
Enough said on this one. A man will just never fully be able to understand it.
#9. Going to the county fair while nearly 9 months pregnant means that you will never be able to walk from point A to point B without the following conversation.
Acquaintance: "Hey there! So you still haven't had the baby?"
Me: "Nope"
A: "How are you feeling?"
Me: "Fat" (It just got to where I didn't know what to say)
A: "Oh, you don't look fat. But I feel for you having to be pregnant during the hot summer."
Me: "Thanks"
A: "So have you had any contractions yet?"
Me: "Nope."
A: "When are you due?"
Me: "A week and a half."
A: "Well, next year you will have a little one with you at the fair."
Me: "Yep"
A: "Enjoy this year while you can."
Me: "Thanks."
Then I would walk about 10 steps and repeat the same conversation with someone else.
#10. When you go to a birthing class with your husband, you are already aware of some of the things that come along with pregnancy because of watching cows birth calves for years on end.
At one point the nurses teaching the class discussed that some people want to see the placenta after it has passed and they asked if I would want to do that. I quickly said, "Why would people do that? I'm a farmgirl, I've seen it plenty with cows...so I'm good!"
Another Project Completed!
Today I put the finishing touches on the last painting project I have been updating you on. I just had to put another coat of white paint on in a few spots, finish the brown parts and then have dad cut off the top 10 inches of the board.
Here it is before the top 10 inches were cut off:
During the project, I had quite a bit of company in the big shed. For one thing, the very first day I was in there, at least four or five mice went scurrying away from pretty much right under where my project was situated. I talked to dad and we got that situation remedied as much as we could. We relocated the project away from the seed bags and then he put out some mouse traps.
I think I still heard a few mice today, but at least I had the dogs to keep the mice away...oh wait. This is about as motivated as our dogs get while in the shed. I think my dog did raise her head once when she heard a mouse. I promise they are alive. They really like laying on that cool concrete though. Mom and dad's dog isn't exactly the smartest one once in a while. It cracked me up the day that he moved from his previous spot to under the trailer, that was parked inside the shed...apparently it was cooler in the shade ;-)
Here it is before the top 10 inches were cut off:
I think I still heard a few mice today, but at least I had the dogs to keep the mice away...oh wait. This is about as motivated as our dogs get while in the shed. I think my dog did raise her head once when she heard a mouse. I promise they are alive. They really like laying on that cool concrete though. Mom and dad's dog isn't exactly the smartest one once in a while. It cracked me up the day that he moved from his previous spot to under the trailer, that was parked inside the shed...apparently it was cooler in the shade ;-)
Anyway, that might be it for big projects for a while. The biggest project of our lives is about start. This week is a when our baby is due! She will probably have a flair for the dramatic though and take her own sweet time making her entrance into the world ;-)
Thursday, August 6, 2015
Necessary Vaccinations
I might not have done exactly what the nurse said, but I did make sure I did the least amount of work today that I could. We have had some calves in our herd getting sick and have actually lost one or two. That is somewhat rare for this time of year. There are a couple more now that are sick. Now, this is where I get fed up with the "Chipoltes" of this world. In their high and mighty view, animals that do not receive any vaccinations or anything of that nature are better for us to eat.
Well, in my rancher view, do I want to see a sick calf and just sit there and stare at it as it suffers and drags through the hot summer days to probably die later from something I could have helped prevent? I don't know about you, but the choice seems fairly obvious and any medications are out of their system LONG before they even approach the time to be sent to the market. Even if the calf would survive without any intervention, during the time it was sick it would drastically lose weight and muscle because of its inability to eat and digest the nutrients it needs to grow. A sickly calf is not a pretty sight and might also fall behind the herd and have to die all alone.
So, this morning we gathered the cattle into the corrals. In order to get them from one pasture to the other and not have them scatter and run through our yards and gardens, we like to implement what my dad refers to as the "Redneck corrals."
They work pretty well and it is much easier to drive multiple vehicles into place than haul panels by hand and possibly take hours to get them set.
Once we got the cows sorted from the calves, we ran the cows through and gave them a quick dose of fly spray. The flies this summer are horrendous. I would guess each cow carried at least 200-300 flies on its back. Can you imagine having those blood-sucking pests on you day in and day out and not having any way to get them off of you other than a tail that isn't long enough to reach them?
Next we ran the less experienced calves through the alley-way and chute. They had been through the alley only once before and their lack of experience definitely slowed down the process. Once they were each caught in the head gate, they received fly spray, a vaccination for respiratory illness and a shot of vitamins.
As you can see, it takes a few people to make this run smoothly.
- My uncle in the back of the picture is the one that was responsible for pushing them through the alleyway.
- My cousin in the blue shirt then lifted the gate to let them into the chute area.
- My little cousin in the orange shirt was in charge of placing the bar behind the back end of the calf so they couldn't back up. Since the calves are so much smaller than the cows, they have a lot more room to move around and get turned around or caught in odd little spaces. So the goal is to eliminate as many options as possible so they go for the option that is the easiest for them and for us.
- My dad is the one running the head gate. As soon as the shoulders of the calf push it forward, it locks into place and ideally their head will be caught to help hold them somewhat still while we give them shots and whatever else needs to be done.
- My job was to sit there, be 9 months pregnant and write down the tag numbers of the calves that had been worked so we had an accurate count on how many had gone through.
My little cousin is the next young cowgirl to carry on our family tradition of hard work and spunky-ness. My dad was joking that he was going to catch her in the chute when she had to go in there really quick to retrieve her bar that had fallen down inside. She didn't miss a beat and said something like, "Well, the calves don't punch but I do!"
At some point, my little cousin and I might or might not have gotten distracted by some cute distractions that were in the barn right behind us. Just like there might or might now have been some tag numbers that got missed being written down during this time.
Anyway, we did get the job done. We ran 90 some head of cows and about 80 calves through the chute and back out to pasture before lunch. My mom is always the unsung hero on days we work cattle. She effortlessly puts together a meal that more than fills our bellies and tickles our taste buds. It is the best way to end a long morning!
Monday, August 3, 2015
FAIRly wonderful
I spoke in an earlier blog about our fantastic county fair. I never tire of hearing the wonderful things visitors say about our community and the fair that we put on each summer.
We attended the Friday morning beef show. It is about the only place you will see a determined little 2nd grader who weighs about 60 lbs. try to impose her will on 1,315 pounds of muscly steer. It is pretty funny. But don't you dare tell that little girl that she can't do it. She basically leans with her entire body weight and finally the steer might relent. Oh, and that little girl won Grand Champion Market Steer with her animal.
We attended the Friday morning beef show. It is about the only place you will see a determined little 2nd grader who weighs about 60 lbs. try to impose her will on 1,315 pounds of muscly steer. It is pretty funny. But don't you dare tell that little girl that she can't do it. She basically leans with her entire body weight and finally the steer might relent. Oh, and that little girl won Grand Champion Market Steer with her animal.
Here is a photo of the division champions being judged.
A livestock show is also probably the only place you will hear the judge say he is now going to "go out and slap our champion." Generally, slapping the winner isn't considered a good thing. But in the world of livestock, it is the ultimate compliment to see the judge head towards you, slap your animal on the rear, then remove their hat and shake your hand.
When we were in 4-H we didn't spend near as much time handling and taming our animals as some of the competitors...so if the judge ever headed my way, my heart skipped a beat thinking maybe I had won and then it was immediately followed by a fear that my steer would kick the judge if he got slapped on the rump! For the record, I never won and the judge never got kicked ;-)
Saturday was a long day for everyone. It was filled with a 5K run/10K bike ride early in the morning, followed by the parade, then a fundraiser hot dog roast at one of the city parks, the Little Wrangler Rodeo, swimming at the pool, turtle races, a fundraiser BBQ for the Wallace County Ministerial Alliance, the livestock auction, the final night of the carnival and finally the fireworks. And yes, this 9 month pregnant lady went to almost every single one of those events except for the early 5K run/10K bike ride. I was worn out by the end of the night!
However, no matter how worn out I was, waiting around for the fabulous fireworks was so worth it. My poor piddly camera on my phone does the fireworks absolutely no justice. But I was so taken by the sight of the fairgrounds crowded with hundreds of people, and every single person stopped in their tracks with their eyes looking up to the skies, that I had to take a picture to at least attempt to capture the moment.
So, another fair is in the books...and most of the community probably took naps on Sunday ;-)
Just a wee bit stuck
The sprinkler goes pretty low in one place to cross a dry creek bed. We had enough rain that it softened up where the sprinkler crosses. It has been stuck before, so my dad and cousin filled it in with some dirt and packed it the best they could. But after the last rain, welp, the pictures speak for themselves.
Auto found himself a mud hole to cool off in right behind one of the sprinkler tires. He was pretty proud of himself.
Have no fear, the sprinkler is unstuck once again...probably until it needs to cross the creek bed again.
Wednesday, July 29, 2015
More progress pics
Sorry about the abundance of posts on this subject. There is just a lot of progress this week and it is easier to post pics while I work than waiting until the end and having tons of photos to post. So here are the progress photos from this morning.
Doing a bunch of flowers, leaves, trees, etc., has always been hard for me. I've finally figured out through the years that it works best to not get too detailed, but instead focus on the overall shape and contrasts of darks and lights. The viewers are a lot smarter than we give them credit for at times and I think they'll be able to figure out this is a bouquet of flowers.
Fancy little flowers around the head.
The man is looking snazzy with his tie and shirt all finished up. Actually, I think I have the man more or less finished.
Finished the morning off by getting the skin colored on the girl.
Tuesday, July 28, 2015
Painting Progress
I'm plugging away at the latest project. Here are some photos from progress the past week or so.
I got the dog finished. I started by trying to block in the areas that would have some darker shading to them.
Overall I was pretty pleased with how it turned out.
Then it was on to the girl's dress. It is hard to see in the photos, but I used a combination of pink, white and gray to do the shading. The pink adds a nice little bit of color so it contrasts with the white background. The gray is tricky because it quickly overpowers the other two colors.
I'm getting ready to head over and work on it again this morning.
Not quite sure what I'm going to work on, but I'll have photos for you soon enough!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
