Big Farm Small Farm

About 4 years ago we joined Facebook.  We put it off for a long time, until we started to notice things.  We noticed people jumping right into the middle of already-started-on-facebook conversations.  Then they would laugh over a picture that was shared...then they would have to catch us up on what was going on.

It appeared the choice was to join and keep up with the times or not join and stay in the dark, picking up whatever pieces of information you could here and there and piecing them together to get the whole story.  So we took the plunge.

Shortly after that we started our calf counts, a daily report of how many calves were born during calving season.  It's a fun way to keep people informed of the day's events during our busiest time of the year.

As you've probably assumed, many of our friends are dairy farmers.  A good handful of them are seasonal producers, who have a yearly calving season, similar to ours.  Our farm is small in comparison to most of them.  We will calve 137 cows this year, and many of our friends are up around 300 or more.  You can imagine what their calf count updates are...double or even triple ours.

The dairy industry as a whole, especially its higher-up representatives have taken on this "bigger is better" assumption. When you meet a dairy farmer for the first time they'll ask:

1. How many cows do you milk?
2. How many acres do you own/rent?
3. What's your rolling herd average? (lbs/cow/year)

...Then, before you even know it they have already made a judgement for or against you on whether you are worthy of their acknowledgment, time, or companionship.

A couple of years ago, when the dairy industry was in conflict with itself over pending legislation, a farmer, who owns a farm substantially larger than ours pointed out to me that 25% of dairy farms (the large ones) provide 75% of the milk supply, and the other 75% (small farms) provide 25% of the milk.  He was a little taken aback when I responded with "So what? God loves us all the same, 1 cow or 1000."

The size of your farm, your bank account, your family, your house...doesn't matter.  It does not make you more special or inferior.

Its hard to not feel intimidated sometimes.  When we read what others have going on, we often compare ourselves.  If they can handle 15 calves/day, why does 7 almost overwhelm us here?  Can you imagine how many people laugh or think "big deal" when they read our calf counts?

You know what? It is a big deal...to us.

Every farm's situation is different.   At this season in our lives we are perfectly content milking around 100 cows.  It is about all we can handle.  On this farm its Rick and I, one part time employee (right now), and five kids.  Two of those kids can dress themselves and actually help a little outside.  The other three have to be helped and watched. Every. Single. Day.  We could have not had so many kids and milked more cows (there is only so many hours in a day). I'm glad we choose the kids.  We could milk more cows and hire most all the work done (if you can find people to do it, who share your standards) but we like to work-so we have to limit it to what we can do.

I have to admit it-I'm guilty of asking the first two questions, but not for the reasons that you think.  I always ask the first two questions so I can immediately figure out what the stocking rate would be for a pasture based grazing system.  Its a horrible habit of mine!  Farmers are probably thinking I'm making some sort of judgement about them, and I'm not.

We enjoy reading other farm's calf counts, and we enjoy sharing ours.  Its neat to be to sit down at night and know what your neighbors are dealing with, even if you didn't get to visit with them that day.

Big or small, best wishes to all our farming friends!

...let the counting begin!

Field Trip!!!

This week we had two field trips! On Monday, my dad, Rick, and the two older boys went to "baler school" at one our favorite New Holland dealerships, Burnips Equipment.  They offered educational sessions on how to operate and maintain balers, discbines, wrappers and other hay equipment.  The main focus for our crew was the baler.  They arrived mid morning, enjoyed the sessions, and had a great lunch.  The kids wrote a report when they got home, drew some pictures, and we sent a copy to the dealership in appreciation. 

 

When I asked the kids what their favorite part was, they said:

Kid #1 "Lunch! Oh, and I had three donuts! But I really should have backed off after two..."
Kid #2 "The food! The food was great!"

....hopefully they brought home more than just extra calories!

Wednesday, we had a day off of school to celebrate Rick's birthday.  We made homemade ice cream, cake, gifts, and had a trip down to the neighbor's sugar shack.



We own a Cuisinart ice cream maker, but today we got out the bigger, traditional ice cream maker.  We're dairy farmers-we like A LOT of ice cream!

Here we are at the largest producer of maple syrup in our section of our township of our county....
 

Did you know it takes 5 gallons of sap, and the amount of wood shown to produce 1 cup of maple syrup?
 

Each of the kids got to take home a 1/2 pint of syrup!

It was fun to get out and do some learning away from the school room.  Reading, writing, math, spelling-those are all important, but some of the best lessons come from everyday life.

Go ahead and enjoy some fresh Michigan made maple syrup-preferably over some homemade ice cream!






The Story of Us

March marks many milestones for us-the day we met, both our birthdays, and our wedding anniversary!  It's a good thing we're not milking so we can celebrate all those events.

When people learn that Rick is from Pennsylvania, they often ask how we met.  Rick will laugh and say "She just drove in the drive one day!"  And well, that's exactly how it happened.

In the summer of 1999 I had done a college internship near where Rick lived and worked. However, that summer he went out west on a custom harvest crew.  Must not have been our time yet.  The following March (3rd, to be exact) I went back down to tour some farms and take pictures and measurements of retro-fitted New Zealand style swing line parlors for my Dad, who I was working full time for.  My former boss had suggested that I go to the farm that Rick was working on.  It ended up being a 4 hour tour.

I was sure he was "the one".  But, I didn't want to mess this up, so to be sure I sent Dad down to check him out. I disguised it as Dad going to a pasture walk with his boss and the farmers dad knows down there, but I think we all knew what was going on.  If Dad approved, well then we would proceed.

Later that summer, I was very clear with Rick.  Given our distance I made sure he understood my plans.  I said "I'm going buy the second farm and start a dairy."  He responded with "sounds good to me."  So it took about 30 seconds to determine our lifelong career.

In August he proposed to me.  When I came home with the ring, my Dad and I had a very touching conversation. It went like this:
Dad: Its okay if you want to move down there.  Its not that far away.  (Read: I'm not going to hold a grudge and be angry or bitter if you, my last child, moves away and leaves nobody to take on the family farming tradition.  I might be a little disappointed, but I'll get over it. Don't stay here for me and your fifth generation farming roots.)
Me: There's no opportunity for us down there. We're buying the second farm and starting a dairy. (Read: Move away from here? Really? )
Dad: Okay then. I just wanted to tell you that.

In making the wedding plans, it went like this:
Mom and Dad: You have to get married during the dry season or in the fall.  We can't have a wedding during calving or haying.
Me: I guess its March then.  This driving once a month to Pennsylvania is getting expensive. Not to mention the phone bills.

I'm sure that's how everyone picks their wedding date, right?

So that was planned, and within a year of meeting we were married.  I can't say that its the ideal situation, having all those special days in one month-but when they occur doesn't matter, only that they do occur.

For my birthday this year Rick and the boys made me this mason jar light fixture/chandelier.  I absolutely love it! Its the perfect size for the room it was created for, and it fits our personality and the character of the house.

This year we will celebrate our 13th anniversary.  Its hard to believe its been that long!  Most likely we'll be outside prepping for calving and caring for the new arrivals.  We might go out to dinner, but at this point in the dry-season budget it won't be anything over the top.  One advantage of all these special days happening in March-there's no overspending on gifts!

So our hair is a little thinner and our waists a little thicker, but 13 years later our love is deeper than ever!
(see-I can wear a dress and be all romantic... occasionally!) 

My niece is also getting married this March! She is the first of our nieces and nephews to marry. I have to say, they picked a great month!  We are so excited for them and look forward to sharing our anniversary month with them.

In a week or so we'll break out the happy birthday banner for Rick, and once again enjoy some cake, ice cream, homemade cards from the kids, and a break from the daily grind.  It will most likely be the last "ha-rah" before the real fun begins!

Happy March!

D.I.Y. Projects!

Ever wonder what we do during the dry season?

Most years we try to catch up on projects that get neglected during the year when we're busy with calves, hay, and regular chores.  Often the projects are house related, since those are easiest to work on during the cold winter months.

This past year we planned to remodel and re purpose our living room and enclosed front porch areas during the dry season.  Over time I found myself not inviting people over and feeling embarrassed over the condition of the rooms.  As our family grows, our needs also change.  We have come up with a better way to organize parts of the house to meet those needs.

In January we had seven new windows installed.  The change is incredible!  Our old windows were single pane aluminum, and were in horrible shape.  I used the curtains to hide them rather than enhance them.  All of Rick's work cutting wood to heat the house escaped through the windows, and they would condensate, frost, and produce mold on the inside...yuck!

Living room before:

 

 

Here the new windows are taped and the room is ready for paint.  In this room we had 2 regular size sofas, a love seat, the corner sectional piece, chair, toy cabinet, the treadmill, the toy barn, and the TV/media cabinet.  It was wall-to-wall furniture.  Although it was nice to be able to seat a lot of people, all the furniture made the room feel small, and the toy storage was spread out through the house, some in the front porch and some in the living room.

 

So, we made the front porch into a dedicated toy storage and play place. I do not have a before picture of the front room (who needs a reminder??).  It was very dark paneling and a cement floor. We painted, installed window blinds & valances, special sub floor panels that will control condensations, and some clearance carpet.  Rick did all the floor trim by himself with the miter saw I got at Menards on black Friday.  Who knew he was so great at trim? :) Here is the finished product:

 

entrance into front porch area from dining room

To see or not to see....our choice!

To the left-a small electric fireplace heater, throw pillow, and totes of toys.  All the toys are sorted by likeness-blocks, Lincoln logs, baby toys, puzzles, etc.  We only get one tote out a time.

The toy cabinet, moved in here from the living room.  Fisher Price Little People toys on top, although they don't look great here.  The bench is also for storage, with a couple of pillows for a cozy place to read or play.

In the cabinet are all the toys that do not have a tote, or their tote does not match the décor.

 

The electrician is coming tomorrow to install a light fixture and an outlet in this room.  Now, all the toys will be stored here.  This will help us keep the volume of toys under control, too. It also gives the preschoolers a place to play where the 1 year old will not be able to interrupt them, when the door is shut.  The exception to the toys is that some of the older kids do have some things that are special to them in their rooms, that they do not want the little kids to have access too, such as Lego's.

 

With all the toys out of the living room, it gives us more space to enjoy the room with a more open feel.  We disposed of one of the largest sofas that was in the worst shape, and the sectional piece.  This is the (mostly) finished living room:

 



The paint is "Grey Stone" and we used a combination of shades and cordless blinds for the windows.  The valances are black and grey.  The floor is prefinished hardwood.  No more allergen hoarding carpet!

The new furniture arrangement.  Placing furniture 12" to 24" away from the wall makes the room appear larger. It also keeps the walls in better shape....for awhile.  There's no great place to put the treadmill, but it gets used daily, so that is more important.

We're having a custom corner cabinet built here, which is why the trim is left undone.  It will be later in April or May until it is done. I'll post pictures then.  So excited!

We also need to install new outlets and switch plates in the living room.  The rugs are a little awkward, but later in the year I will be shopping for new furniture, which will not be blue (!!).   I have a couple of items for the walls, but am undecided about exactly where I want them.  After filling all the holes with putty though, I can say that command strips are my new best friend!

 

 

So we spent the first 3 weeks of dry season on the house project.  The next three will be outside getting ready for calving!  We have a parlor to wash and do regular maintenance on, hutches and calf pens to prepare, and fences to put back up.  Hopefully the weather improves soon!

 

Special thanks to our neighbor who helped Rick install the wood floor, and for those that gave Rick helpful hints on how to do the trim work.  Thanks also to Mom for waiting in line with me for over an hour at Menards on black Friday! Sometimes just having the right tools makes all the difference.

Happy organizing!
-Terri

 







1 year down!

This month will mark one year since we began our blog!  Our first post was about a trip to Rick's sister's farm, where we toured their compost bedded pack barn.....then we built one!

The cows have been in the barn for almost 6 months now.  It is working out quite nicely.  We finally got the tilling and bedding system down, and the cows seem to be comfortable, especially given the weather this winter.  The most popular housing in our area is a free-stall barn, so many people are unfamiliar with how these barns are managed.   Here's a quick peek:

The rotary tiller incorporates the manure and bedding, creating the compost.



It mixes up the manure piles and makes a nice, soft, fluffy bed for the cows.

Next, new shavings are spread on top using the spreader.

New bedding material is added every other day during the milking season, and every third or fourth day during the dry season.

 

Ready for the cows!

 

 



Later this Spring when the cows go out to pasture, we'll use the compost for fertilizer on the hay fields, pasture, and our garden.  If you need a pick up load for your garden, let us know!

Don't forget to visit the farm's FB page ( Grazeway Dairy ) to enter the first day of calving contest. You could win a farm shirt or mug, your choice!

Have a great day!

-Terri