It's Our Year

It's a new year, full of possibilities and opportunities 

to make life better for myself and  those around me.

As stated on Facebook,

From down on the dairy farm,

Happy New Year!

                                     

                                                           

Christmas Blessings

Merry Christmas!

Even though we will be doing our usual everyday chores of 

feeding, milking and caring for our dairy cows and calves, 

we always find time to celebrate together as a family.

From down on the dairy farm,

we wish you joy within your home,

love within your hearts

and happiness that all comes through 

the greatest gift that was given to us...Jesus.

Christmas Blessings!

Dairy Farmer's Thankful Thursday

                                       There's no doubt, down on the dairy farm, we are
                                                               Undeniably Dairy!
                                     This new logo is supported with our Dairy Check-off
                                      dollars to help us promote dairy through out the year.
             

When the farmer said he would like to have one of these projectors 

that displayed the Undeniably Dairy logo, I sprang into action, almost like

Dancer and Prancer, to order it as a Christmas gift.

It only made sense to give the gift early so it could be enjoyed.

Getting a good picture has been a little difficult but

projected on the old hay barn on Anglin Road,

it's an Undeniably Dairy awesome sight!

It's not just a logo for us, it's the life we live and love 

everyday to make sure you have cream for your coffee, 

milk on your cereal, cheese on your pizza or 

yogurt in your morning smoothie.

I'm thankful to be a dairy farmer!

                                             

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

December is full of celebrations!

I'm thankful for the happiness new life brings, 

for watching the expression of a child's first site of 

Santa riding in the community Christmas parade,

and enjoying  our dairy traditions 

                                         
                                                               down on the dairy farm.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Last week Benton County Farm Bureau Women's Leadership Committee

received the title of most 

Outstanding Women's Committee for 2018

at the Arkansas Farm Bureau Annual Convention in Hot Springs.

 Chairwoman Brenda Patton  organized our committee,

diligently reported every activity, and used her creativity to bring us 

new ideas and ways to promote,educate and inform children and adults about

 agriculture throughout Benton County.

I'm thankful for Brenda's leadership 

and 

for the years of service and friendship I have enjoyed 

with this outstanding group of women.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Thanksgiving has come and gone but

it has left a great appreciation for all the blessings 

we enjoy on the ordinary days down on the dairy farm.

Enthusiasm for eating is obvious at the feed wagon

or the family table!

I'm thankful for the crop growing season and harvest 

of the crops  that has produced 

the silage and hay that our dairy cows are enjoying each day.

Dairy Dream

Then

(November 24,1984)

and now

we're still livin' the dairy dream today

and 

celebrating thirty four years of life together down on the dairy farm.

                 
                                          I now know that the pair of pliers and pocket knife
                                            Ryan gave me on our wedding day was no joke!
                               

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

"Give thanks unto the Lord, call upon his name,

make known his deeds among the people.

Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him,

talk ye of all his wondrous works."

I Chronicles 16:8-9

As a child I only thought about Thanksgiving as   the one day of eating at Grandma's 

house and the few days out of school but thankfully,

I have lived long enough to understand and enjoy 

this  season of Thanks that brings me to be more aware

 of all the blessings

in my life, many that I easily take for granted.

.

I'm thankful for our home,

the dairy cows that provide nutritious milk for my family and yours,

                                                                   
                                                                             and
                                                    for family life down on the dairy farm.

                                                       Happy Thanksgiving!
                                                           

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Even though I have been serving in this position of Justice of the Peace

 for nearly six years,this was the first year I had a campaign.

From the filing day in February to November 6th,

I have gained new appreciation for the entire process of a campaign.

The best part of campaigning was meeting new people that live in my district.

I appreciate all those who allowed me a spot for signs on their property, 

for the politeness of those who answered the knock on their door

and accepted my card or took a moment to talk about how I could

represent their interests.

I'm thankful the campaign is over and grateful for the opportunity

 to continue serving the citizens of Benton County.

Most of all, I'm thankful for the blessings I receive daily

as a citizen legislator in Benton County,

                                                     
                                                                       a dairy  farmer,
                                                                              and
                                                                       

                                                             Sheriff Callie's Grandma!

Salute to Veterans

Thank-you to all veterans who have served in the military

in wartime or peacetime.

Your dedication to country is what allows the rest of us

 the freedoms that we enjoy everyday and often take for granted.

Veterans Day began as "Armistice Day" on November 11,1919, 

to commemorate the end of World War I.

President Eisenhower officially changed the name to Veterans Day in 1954.

According to Veterans Day Facts at www.history.com:

-16.1 million living veterans served during at least one war
-5.2 million veterans served in peacetime
-2 million veterans are women
-7 million veterans served during the Vietnam War
-5.5 million veterans served during the Persian Gulf War
           -Of the 16 million Americans who served during World War II,
 about 558,000 are still alive

Ryan and I appreciate the service of both of our fathers.

They were proud to serve  and instilled in us an appreciation

for all those who continue to serve our country.

                                                       Happy Veterans Day!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

I've been to Baker Elementary for many different volunteer programs but

this time I was a speaker for Career Day.

Actually, I found out, I was the first farmer that had ever come to 

their Career Day event. Needless to say, I felt pretty special.

It's not every student that is invited back to where their school career began!

I'm thankful for modern technology that allowed me to 

carry our farm from classroom to classroom on a power point

showing  what we do everyday

 to care for our animals and the land we call home

and produce the milk they enjoy everyday at school or home.

                                       Many thanks to our dedicated teachers and counselors
                                      providing experiences like Career Day for every student.
                                       

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

As fall progresses, the time clock is ticking to get the crops harvested.

We planted sorghum in the late spring hoping it would make 

a crop in case drought might not allow the survival of our corn silage crop. 

So, you might call it our farmer "just in case" insurance policy.

I'm thankful for this crop that will be added to our dairy cow's feed ration 

for producing high-quality milk

                                                                         
                                                                                  and
                                           for the third and fourth generation dairy farmers
                                                  working together till the end of daylight

                                                     
                                                to harvest the crop down on the dairy farm.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

                                                             
                                           
                                     Everyday is an adventure when you are two years old.

I'm thankful for every "Grandma"  moment I 

spend with Hattie down on the dairy farm

looking at the calves,

picking crab apples to feed the squirrels,

or

playing hide and go seek on a crisp fall day.

We are blessed in so many ways to share our family

 farm experience with the next generation.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

I'm thankful that even though the view across the pasture of

 our 4th generation  dairy  farm has changed dramatically this past year,

                           
                                our family farm values of providing high-quality milk by
                                             caring for our animals and the land has not.
                                           
                                   
                                                           
                                                 

Fall Dairy Recipe

Happy Fall,Ya'll!  As I was browsing through the recipes on the Midwest Dairy website, I found a recipe just made for filling the kitchen with the smell of fall...Baked Apples with Cinnamon Yogurt Topping. 

Just reading the recipe brought back memories of my childhood when my Mother would bake apples in the fall or winter. The sweet smell of cinnamon and apples would fill the house. I'm ready to make some fall memories with a little dairy...how about you?

Baked Apples with Cinnamon Yogurt Topping

Ingredients:

4 Granny smith or Gala Apples with or       without skin

1/4 cup unsweetened apple juice or apple cider

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions:

For Baked Apples

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8x8 inch baking dish with non-stick cooking spray; set aside.

Core and thinly slice apples. Place apples in a medium bowl and toss with apple juice. Mix brown sugar, cornstarch,cinnamon, nutmeg and salt together in small bowl. Sprinkle over apples and stir gently until apples are coated.

Pour apples into prepared baking dish. Bake 40 minutes or until apples are slightly browned at edges and sauce is bubbling.

For Yogurt Topping

2 1/2 cups low-fat plain yogurt

1 teaspoon honey

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Line a colander with several paper towels and place over a bowl to catch drips. Pour yogurt into colander and allow to drain refrigerated about 30 minutes. Spoon yogurt into a small bowl and stir in honey and cinnamon.

For each serving, top 1/4  of the warm apples with 1/4 of the yogurt topping.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Foggy mornings are sometimes challenging when you are looking 

for new calves that may have arrived in the early morning hours.

The gathering of these expectant cows around the new baby  was a 

beacon as the fog began to lift.

It's that mothering instinct that always shines.

                                       
                                       I'm thankful for the beauty of new life as we transition
                                                into the fall season down on the dairy farm.
                                                                                   
                                                   

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

We were happy to see Gittlein's custom chopper pull into the first corn field yesterday. 

Harvesting of any crop is a big deal but our corn crop is especially

 important to our dairy cows diet   through the winter and early spring.

All the corn we raise is chopped and hauled from the field to the 

silo on the dairy farm.The chopped corn will go through a

 fermenting process and become the silage that our  dairy cows 

will enjoy eating with other grains and hay.

It was my good fortune to be offered a ride around the field 

with my oldest son Cody.This was our view  of the chopper as 

we drove down the field side by side so the corn could be

 blown from the chopper into the truck.

With three trucks running to haul the corn to the silo,

it gave us opportunity to catch up on a little mother-son communication

 as we waited for our turn to pull up to the chopper.

                                              I'm thankful for the harvest of a good corn crop,
                                      the unexpected opportunities to spend time with my family,
                                                                                  and

                                                           
                                                     to share  life down on the dairy farm
                                                              with multiple generations.

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

When my job of delivering net wrap to the field was complete,

 I took advantage of the opportunity to ride around  with Ryan

 in the truck and trailer to haul bales to the wrapper.

This crop of hay-grazer will be used to feed our dairy cows this

fall and winter in their daily feed ration.

Even though we work together every day on the farm, 

we're not often all working on the same job.

I savored the moments as I watched the farmers working together.

  

                       

                                             
                                       I'm thankful for this crop that grew in spite of the drought
                                                                               and
                                           for the steadfast faith and hard work of the farmer.                                                                               

                           
                                         

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Even though we have a daily routine that includes milking our cows

 and feeding all the animals on the farm, today was anything but ordinary.

During fall or spring calving season, 

it's not unusual to have from one to three calves born.

Today we had a total of nine new babies!

It was anything but a routine afternoon  as Ryan and I worked to

give each new calf a bottle of colostrum and vaccinations to prevent illness.

I'm thankful for these kind of interruptions of our daily routine

that bring smiles to our dairy farmer faces

                                                                                  and

                                         for the new crop of calves for Hattie  to help  feed!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Emergencies involving large animals can occur at any time in any community.

Who do we call when we need help?

Agencies that deal with public safety.

Last week  the Benton County Farm Bureau Women's Committee,

Benton County Cooperative Extension, Farmer's Cooperative and Purina 

were  involved in organizing a training event  for our emergency workers

to learn how to handle large animals in emergency situations.

Experts in animal handling provided hands on training to 

men and women who work

for our community fire departments, police departments,

 and county sheriff''s office.

                                   
                                           I'm thankful for the sponsors of this event and the
                                                   men and women who took advantage of
                                              specialized training for large animal rescue.
                             

September's Smoothie

How are you celebrating  the first day of September?

So far, we're celebrating birthdays down on the Arkansas dairy farm.

I think that calls for a September Smoothie!

If you need a quick,nutritious, refreshment  for your action packed Saturday,

try a Apple Yogurt Smoothie I'm sharing from Midwest Dairy

                                 Apple Yogurt Smoothie

Ingredients:

                                                       2 cups low-fat vanilla yogurt                                                         

1 medium Granny smith apple,cored,

    peeled and diced

  1/2 cup orange juice

  2 tablespoons honey

 5-6 ice cubes.

                                                                       Directions: 

                                Mix all ingredients in a blender or food processor until smooth.
                                                                 Pour into 2 tall glasses. 

                            Garnish with sliced almonds, fresh mint and dollop of honey, if desired.

                                                          Happy September!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

As we hurried to get the baby calves fed before the storm moved in,

 I noticed this heifer standing away from the rest of the herd.

It's a pretty typical behavior of a cow or heifer  in the process of calving.

On closer examination, my suspicions were confirmed.

Within an hour, without any assistance this

heifer gave birth.

I'm thankful for the miracles we experience everyday

 down on the dairy farm.

                                                   
                                   

August Hay Day

It looked like Saturday morning was the day,

an August Hay Day.

I could see the determination on  my son's face as he prepared 

the machinery and moved to the field.

No matter what, hay cutting was happening.

If you drove across Northwest Arkansas on this August Hay Day,

it was obvious that many farmers were feeling that same determination

 with hay fields mowed or in the process of being mowed.

We've been waiting for nearly two weeks for the prediction of 

scattered rain showers to move out so hay harvest could begin.

Drought conditions during April and the usual hay cutting 

months of May and June, have created a hay shortage for

 farmers across Northwest Arkansas.

It's the unexpected rain in August that has made our

makin' hay when the sun shines  possible.

It's even possible that August rains will produce enough hay to 

replenish what was lost in our  first cutting.

That calls for a celebration down on the dairy farm

--an August Hay Day!