Off the Farm

One of the most challenging aspects of dairy farming is maintaining that delicate balance between work and family.  Living where you work creates special challenges.  Where many people leave their place of employment and go home, we technically are always "at work".  Many aspects of the business are handled in the house, including finances, phone calls, record keeping and meetings.

So just when do you quit working for the day?  How do you convey the message to others that you are no longer "at work?"

We make quite an effort at keeping certain parts of the day for family time.  This does not mean that we are always doing something fun with the family. This means the time is spent doing something that benefits  the family. Examples would include church, meals, laundry, housework, schoolwork, or time reading or watching a documentary with the kids.  This takes quite the effort to carve out this time, and sometimes it just doesn't happen.  We have spent many evenings hauling hay, paying bills or going back out to finish chores.  The trick is keep the big picture in mind and not let that become the new normal.

Even more difficult than carving out our own time, is conveying the message to others.  People know that we are here.  Even if we are "off" it is assumed that we are available for anything and everything farm related.  One very cold and snowy Sunday afternoon a couple years ago, three men showed up to look at the parlor.  We stalled at the door.  We said "its Sunday.....we just put in a movie....chores are at 3...." but they just wouldn't budge.  They said they could look at it themselves.   Trying not to be rude,  Rick put on his coveralls.  Our parlor and milk storage is no different from other food production businesses.  I doubt other businesses would let people wander around whenever it suited them, without an employee or owner present.  This is just one example.  There's salesmen, evening phone calls....

We've figured out that to really be "off" you have to be absent.  Removing ourselves makes us immediately unavailable, and only available to those who have our number (like our hired team members and family).  It also allows us to not be distracted by unfinished work that we see every time we look out the kitchen window.  Ultimately we would like to be able to be off and home at the same time.   This will go on the list of goals, with the steps needed to get there. Until then, I'd like to share what we did on our last weekend off.

Mom watched the kids (Thank you, Mom!!), our team members milked the cows (Thank you!!) and Rick and I stayed in Pentwater at the Hexagon House.  It was an excellent stay! Matt & Sandy, the Innkeepers, were wonderful people who are obviously in their element with the B&B business.  The breakfast was very tasty, the coffee always hot (and available), and the conversation intriguing.  The house was warm, comfortable and clean, with many amenities to enjoy.  check it out:

Hexagon House



We browsed antique shops, went biking, walked out on the piers, watched movies, enjoyed a bonfire, visited 2 state parks and the Frederik Meijer Gardens. All in 48 hours!

Thanks, Matt & Sandy, for a wonderful stay!

-Terri