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maryjane

7072 Posts


Posted - Aug 12 2018 :  3:21:21 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
I'm needing a break from outside work (much nicer now that it isn't 104 degrees) so thought I'd start next week's chitchat today.

I've been in my orchard pulling unripened fruit off my trees because they're so loaded this year (I'm afraid I'll lose branches otherwise). While I was there I thought I'd introduce you to "Peachy" and "Keen," both of them gifts. They're doing great and maybe I'll get peaches in a couple more years.





This morning, I spent a couple of hours attending to bees. You'd think bees would be more self-sufficient but mine aren't. Anyway, all my hives have queens (it pays to check on them weekly I've discovered) and they're loving my two new fields of oregano.



And this smaller, triangular one across from our spur road.



And right at the end of that is a raspberry patch covered in ripening berries. In a few days, we'll be pickin' (a sweet red rose bush lives with them--good for house bouquets).



Pumpkins are as big as a person's head already.



My Davis Austin roses continue to do well.



Hubby having a hoe down.



And our little patch of lawn (the only one on the property) where we sit every evening with Jasper on our laps.



What's new on your farms?




MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~

NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Aug 12 2018 :  6:46:06 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
What peace and beauty. And the peach trees, looking "peach keen." Nick in the garden, raspberries and honey harvest, Sweet smelling roses and a quiet haven with Jasper at the end of day. It brings a smile.

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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txbikergirl

3197 Posts


Posted - Aug 13 2018 :  5:43:33 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
lovely photos maryjane, thanks for sharing. love the little patch of grass!

glad you and janet are doing well. we are still in the 90s this week, but mornings are down to 71 - and man doesn't that feel downright COOL after months of heat and humidity! trying to spend at least a few minutes outside with a cup of coffee each morning to refresh myself ;.>

had a great "last girls monday" today, last one of the summer. skating, lunch, therapy, gymnastics. even fit in a bit of school supply shopping, its great to still see kids get so excited about pencils and paper. it is so rewarding to have the little things mean something!

tomorrow we have our first appointment with a new therapist for our middle. this is a trauma specialist and i am excited to see how it works. middle has done so well this summer, so much growth, but lover and i need a little help to keep moving her forward.

well i am off to bath and book ladies, and of course my goblet of milk! take care, have a wonderful evening.

Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy")
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farmlife

1413 Posts


Posted - Aug 14 2018 :  09:51:29 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
It's always good to get help when you need it, Cindy. Sounds like you and Patrick are on the right path with her. Janet, how's Darla doing? Is the edema better? Blissful pictures, MaryJane.

I think we have turned a corner with Miss Elli Bellie today. She has been a bear to milk since giving birth a week ago tomorrow. (It's good to remind myself it hasn't even been a week yet.) The dreaded milk stones were back and she was so sore that my normally very placid cow was anything but! Some information I've found says they can be linked to lime and others say it has to do with calcium. They are very hard little balls that are apparently quite painful to shoot out through the teat canal. For Elli they seem to form when the milk sits in her udder, so freshening and drying off are when I notice them. Last night and this morning I was able to milk her out to a wrinkly state and she seems like she's on the downhill side. I'm starting to think that her losing a quarter has been a good thing for her. I've just been in charge of milking the rear teats and Poppy is taking care of the front one. That's been enough management for both of us. I'll try to take a picture of Elli's "broken" teat tonight. You would not believe how good it looks! It's been exactly two weeks since that injury happened.

At this very moment we are having a thunderstorm with pea sized hail. It seems a little strange since it has been one of the cooler days we've had lately and it's so early in the day. Bring on the moisture I guess in whatever form it takes.
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txbikergirl

3197 Posts


Posted - Aug 14 2018 :  5:00:18 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
glad to hear miss elli bellie is turning the corner for you, thats a relief. milking should be a relaxing and enjoyable time, not something to dread ;> and we have all been there! also glad the icky teat is healing, that still gives me goose bumps.

we had rain sunday, 1.3 inches in about half an hour. it was a good excuse to sit inside and play cards with the girls, and they love looking at all that water coming from the sky in sheets.

have a nice evening ladies.

Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy")
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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Aug 14 2018 :  5:44:22 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Good evening ladies. I'm sorry I didn't get you answered earlier Keeley, but it's a mad house here. Glad to hear Elli is doing better, hard on the nerves. Darla is doing quite well. The hardness has left the front half of her udder and the back half on the same side is improving daily. It's not as hard as granite anymore. I'm not exaggerating, it was rock hard. When I milked her this evening, and this is with the calf nursing, just out of the two effected teats, 1.5 gallons of milk. And the 1 gallon came out of the front teat. The other side was nursed dry by the calf. I continue to massage with Dynamint after every milking. I had electrician and carpenter here today, and my neighbor lady brought down apples, and the other neighbor brought me tomatoes, peppers and melon. So I will be making apple pies for the freezer tomorrow. Nice to have such thoughtful neighbors. Joe brought me home a truck load of sand for the cow's weather pen, so we just finished dumping that and taking it in a wheelbarrow at a time, but thankful to have it. I'm showered and need to fix a light supper then going to do some reading and it will start all over again tomorrow. Nice to have rain Cindy. You received a nice amount. We are overcast and had a few sprinkles and a short shower but not enough to help. Have a great night all!

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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CloversMum

3486 Posts


Posted - Aug 14 2018 :  7:20:14 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Good evening to all,
Afte our son’s wedding and major well issues, I’m hoping life will settle down to a dull roar. I’m milking all my animals just once a day, the cows in the morning and the goats in the evening. Cecily and I used my favorite farm vehicle to do chores tonight.



We giggled lots!



Clover is giving me over 4 gallons a day while Betsy shares just over a gallon with me while saving the rest for Sweet Baby Ray. BlueBelle will be AI’d come September, I hope.



I’m marking her cycles on the calendar so hope to avoid needing a CID-R for her. I got straws from a mini Jersey A2/A2 bull.

I’ve been watching all of our hummingbirds that have been swarming our feeders. Such fun creatures to watch!



Good night all

Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens
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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Aug 15 2018 :  3:51:57 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Charlene, you girls look like you're having a fun time. And that photo of your hummingbird with the sun in the background is pretty. We're still enjoying the buzzing and goings on of the hummers. The time for them to leave won't be long now.

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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farmlife

1413 Posts


Posted - Aug 15 2018 :  8:21:31 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Janet, so glad to hear that Darla is doing better! Charlene your cow girl is beautiful.
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maryjane

7072 Posts


Posted - Aug 16 2018 :  11:06:54 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Great pics Charlene. Thanks! Calendar-quality hummingbird photo (and mom and daughter also:) Cindy, I sure do hope your new therapist puts a few good, new-to-you tools in your already journeyman-level toolbox. I remember taking a class on the U of I campus right after Nick and I (and kids) became a blended family. We threw out a wide net (pre-Internet) in an attempt to rake in ideas as to how to do it best. One set of parents in the room said the biological parent should always do the discipline and the adopted parent should be a buddy. (Of course, parents enjoy the benefit of pillow talk and behind-closed-doors planning.) Anyway, that little tidbit SO worked for us. It was life-changing really. I remember Meg was being a rascally teenager one day and she and I were all worked up over her reticence to hang clothes on the line. Nick stepped in and said, "Meggie, hop in, I have to drive to town for combine parts." They ended up stopping for donuts and killing extra time. The subject of the clothes was never brought up between them, but when she arrived home she hung a batch up without being asked and hence forth never balked. I suppose it felt like she had a partner in crime. Plus, what kid doesn't have lots of mixed emotions about a step-parent stepping into their lives?

Well, today I have a symphony of bawling cow/calves. I didn't put the two calves in with Maggie last night or this morning (they're only with her for 10 minutes each time), and then this morning she gave 3 gallons of milk. The two calves are sounding mournful and pathetic and Maggie is shaking her head at everyone BEGGING to see her calves. They were relatively quiet for most of the night but today not at all. I predicted we'd pay the price for what an amazing mom Maggie was to take on Daisy's calf. In the past, by the time I've had momma and calves together for a month or so JUST for nursing, the weaning is uneventful. But not this time! Maggie needed a flank rope and hobble for milking; she's pretty upset. We're taking bets. Mine is three days.

Yesterday, Ashley had a great grate cheese day. Grated cheese in the freezer is a quick meal for busy parents, so Ashley processed several wheels from our cheese cellar using the Cuisinart.





Green beans coming on strong.



Full-size pumpkins already!



And full-size watermelons that still need ripening but are getting thumped every day.



I looked up the white-spots-on-our-raspberries problem and discovered it was a result of the 104 degree days we had.



Those are all dried up and we're back in business. Here's what hubby picked this morning. Actually, he picked three of these for the freezer. Janet, I'm thinking cast-iron raspberry pandowdies this winter.





And of course, the lovely surprise rose that lives with our raspberries begged me to take its photo.



Ashley is making Goursin cheese today (soft cheese with fresh rosemary and garlic).



Alexa is making a coffee cake (in a bundt pan) that has a coffee swirl throughout and huckleberries topped with a huckleberry glaze.



Brian was kind enough to go to the woods this past weekend and bring her back a bounty of huckleberries.



Last week's rendition "wasn't quite right yet." It tasted fine to us but we'll never say. We'll take as many trial runs as you want to make, Alexa.




MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~
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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Aug 16 2018 :  1:31:38 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Delicious looking produce, from cheese to huckleberries to red raspberries, and a definite yes to the raspberry pandowdy! Joe's hired help just came back from Montana with some Huckleberry jelly and Huckleberry coffee as gifts to us. I haven't tried them yet, but Alexa's coffee cake and donuts sound good. I don't believe we can grow huckleberries around here. So you have quite a treat! I'm thinking I may need to pull the calves away from the momma's even though they are only 3 months old. I'm thinking they are pulling Darla down too much, so it's back to the bawling again, but may be the rest Darla needs to get in better condition. I tried it earlier but felt sorry for the little guys, but it's back to the separation routine again.

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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maryjane

7072 Posts


Posted - Aug 16 2018 :  4:34:51 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
My little guys are starting to sound hoarse. Get out your ear plugs, Janet. Lizzy is in with them because they need to learn how to use the BarBarA. And Maybelle is in with Miss Daisy and mooing Maggie.

Connie said she'd be up for her first-ever blood draws (tail) to see if our three girls are indeed pregnant. Wouldn't you know it, she nailed tailed it first time on all three. Do you know how many times I've seen a vet unable to find the tail vein? Anyway, I just got word from Biotracking that Maggie, Maybelle, and Lizzy are all pregnant. Ian was with all three for only a day when each of them were in heat at around the same time. What a one-shot guy! Maggie is due April 7, Lizzy due April 8, and Maybelle due April 12. Perfect timing. I'll get all my calving done at once and then raise the three kids together. I'm going to wait until early next summer to get Daisy pregnant again. In fact, I think I'll get her and her daughter, Buttercup, pregnant at the same time. Phew. Cross that off my list.

MaryJane Butters, author of Milk Cow Kitchen ~ striving for the stoicism of a cow standing in the rain ~
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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Aug 16 2018 :  6:19:52 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Congrats on the pregnancies. That's always an awww moment here, but then it's different with AI. Not always a one-shot success. I wonder if I put Millie in with the boys if that would help. I haven't seen them use the BarBarA, but haven't just stayed and watched. Millie loves the BarBarA, prefers it over anything else. So that may be a good option. I like having the calves close together as they have a playmate. Darla just has one area left that's hard, size of baseball. I look for that to clear out in the next week. Milk amounts are back to what they were, so things looking up.

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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CloversMum

3486 Posts


Posted - Aug 17 2018 :  5:06:30 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Congrats on the pregnancies! Woohoo!

I have a question regarding the Bar Bar A waterers. Did you get the one with a chew guard? And do you always place them outside or can they be put inside a barn? We are ordering some for our new barn and want to know what is the best placement of them.

Thanks

Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens
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CloversMum

3486 Posts


Posted - Aug 17 2018 :  5:18:50 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
And did you get the bar bar a waterers with the chew guard or without?



Clover was being a good second mama to Sweet Baby Ray while I milked Betsy. It’s getting close to the time that I need to separate Baby Ray from Betsy so we can get enough milk from Betsy. He’s growing like a weed so is getting plenty. The neighbors should love us.

Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens
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CloversMum

3486 Posts


Posted - Aug 17 2018 :  5:23:10 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
And coffee cake swirled with actual coffee and topped with. Huckleberry glaze sounds divine. And it looks so too! Yum.

Summer is quickly drawing to a close. I’m needing to turn on the light in the shelter when I milk now and my youngest has just one more week of summer vacation left. We finished up our school shopping via the web (!) which I love so I don’t have to leave the farm to go shopping.

Chore time but any advice regarding the bar bar a waterers would be helpful. I’m so excited to finally be getting some for my animals. The plan is to get two for the cows and two for the goats. I just need advice on chew guards and placement of the waterers, inside or outside the barn.

Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens
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txbikergirl

3197 Posts


Posted - Aug 17 2018 :  5:25:59 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
good evening everyone, TGIF. hope everyone is in for the night and enjoying some rest and relaxation.

all that food, cheese and goodies is making me salivate mary jane, so lovely.

i agree with your ideas about parenting mary jane, lover boy and i have actually applied that bio-rule to our in-laws... he handles problems with his and i handle problems with mine, makes things go much smoother and not as many feathers get ruffled. our middle kiddo has had such growth this summer moodwise, i think the pressure of getting off to school each morning was making her anxious; she really embraced being at home for the summer (which i didn't think she would as she LOVES school) so it gave her confidence and just let her settle into the family as well as the other two have. she is still our handful, so we now have her with two separate therapists and hoping we can indeed learn even more to help her.

we started going to a cowboy church this summer, its great. not too big, not tiny... just right. the girls already have some school pals that attend, and they do great country western church songs each week. it is a true family church, so that is nice. the kids aren't kept separate from the parents the entire service, only the last 30 minutes do they go out to their own sunday school. anyway, they have a "cowboy daycamp" tomorrow for all ages and they'll do things like attempt to catch greased pigs, rope calves, tug of war over true mud holes, obstical course with ice bath at the end, etc. they had it earlier this year, but as an all night "lock-in" for 6-10 graders wherein they didn't sleep but did that stuff all night long from 9pm-6am (eldest loved it)... so lover boy and i get 9am-3pm alone tomorrow while all three get to have some fun and get dirty. parent date day!

lover boy made the 6-hour round trip for our organic feed today, i got a reprieve as it was our babysitters last day and i also had haircuts for the girls lined up. we also went and got new backpacks and new lunchkits, so the girls are grinning ear to ear.

take care ladies, enjoy your weekend. hug your cows!


Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy")
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CloversMum

3486 Posts


Posted - Aug 17 2018 :  5:29:25 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote


Just received this beautiful photo of my son and his bride! My uncle was the photographer. They’ve been married just two weeks now!

Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens
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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Aug 18 2018 :  03:02:59 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Charlene your photo of your son and his bride is beautiful. Love the backdrop. We have three BarBarA's and don't know what we'd do without them. It has saved many steps and heavy buckets of water. I didn't buy them with the chew guard. With your goats you may consider it, but I would call and ask them for their advice on that matter. I did have one installed in the barn with the cement floor, in between the two stalls so that when I have two to three cows, and calves inside, they may all have access to it. No hoses, no buckets needed. Kids heading back to school already. Things move so fast. Seems as if they just got out and here we are in Aug. already. Back to School. I never liked seeing that phrase when I was school age.

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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CloversMum

3486 Posts


Posted - Aug 18 2018 :  6:44:49 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Thank you Janet for your help with the Bar Bar A waterers! I’m looking forward to no frozen buckets or electrical cords attached to heated buckets this winter. Trying hard to make things easier for the animal care.

Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens
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CloversMum

3486 Posts


Posted - Aug 18 2018 :  7:42:38 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote


No question as to what side had already been milked out! It always amazes me how much Clover’s udder deflates! Lol. And only a crazy cow lovin’ gal would even dream of taking such a photo much less posting it here! So here you go, for laughs!

Loving life and family on our Idaho farm, Meadowlark Heritage Farm; A few Jersey cows; a few alpacas; a few more goats, and even more ducks and chickens
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txbikergirl

3197 Posts


Posted - Aug 19 2018 :  11:40:53 AM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
happy sunday ladies! loving the cow udder, we are always looking for the full udder and then the deflated ones when done ;>

charlene, the photo of the newlyweds is so beautiful. congrats! we too love our barbarAs, couldn't survive without them. just make sure to install them per instructions, as all that rock and gravel, etc is so necessary.

janet, we are back to school tomorrow. our middle is excited, the eldest not so much, and the youngest happy to be with friends again. i can't believe that this will be our SECOND back to school photo of them tomorrow, it seems like yesterday that we had only had them two weeks and were bundling them up for their first day of school!

take care ladies! i am off monday and tuesday this week, looking forward to some quiet time while everyone is back to school.

Firefly Hollow Farm , our little farmstead. Farmgirl living in the green piney woods of East Texas on 23 acres with a few jerseys, too many chickens, a pair of pugs and my Texan hubby (aka "lover boy")
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NellieBelle

11214 Posts


Posted - Aug 19 2018 :  3:38:46 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Oh Charlene! Look at that flashy two-tone udder. :) Cow loving crazies we are! Both cows gave a little over 5 gallons today. I imagine once the stress of separating them from their calves and they start eating regular again things will pick up again. Darla's udder is almost back to the way it was. Just a bit of hardness above the one rear teat. And as reported, milk production good. Now for the bawling to calm down. Calves are not as bad as the mommas. Cindy, even though I didn't want my summer vacations to end, I still got excited when buying school supplies and always had butterflies on the first day back. May your girls have a great school year ahead.

To laugh is human but to moo is bovine. Author Unknown
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farmlife

1413 Posts


Posted - Aug 19 2018 :  8:29:18 PM  Show Profile  Reply with Quote
Clover's udder is super pretty! Elli's udder is very chapped right now. I'm thinking I need to get out the exfoliating spa gloves and do a little roughing up. :)

What's worse. . . weaning or heat cycles?
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