The Abscess

The weeks and weeks of rain paid off with a nice cutting of hay.  I hope to be mob grazing next year with movable fencing and then keep standing hay for winter. This year, though, we needed to get some hay put up for winter food for cattle and sheep.

It is always nice to get the field cut. It looks tidy and trim. I am hoping we get some good rain the next few weeks so that it will grow nice and tall before the first frost in October.

Molly has yet to fully recover from foot rot. Her back foot is still bothering her so I had the vet come out and tend to it.

Cows are not like horses in that they do not volunteer to have their feet held up and inspected. We got Molly into the milking stanchion to feed her grain and then proceeded to tie her back foot and pull it up and out with a rope so the vet could look at it.

He cleaned it all out of muck and then saw the issue. She did have a considerable abscess on the bottom. He slit it open and was able to get a fair amount of thick pus out.

She is still not walking very well, although some swelling has gone down. We gave her another antibiotic shot last night, hoping to see more rapid improvement in a day or so.

In the meantime, I am keeping her close so I can watch her and feed her.

I have 4 cows I am sending to a neighbors farm to  be bred by his beef bull soon. While sorting out those 4 cows, I noticed one had a huge and hard udder. 

Annabelle has been dry for several months, but I brought her in to see if it was a milk issue.

I was not an udder full of milk, but it was swollen and very hard, so I had the vet check her out too.

It was an abscess as well, so he slit and drained the huge volume of pus. I do not know how she got this infection, as it could have come from a simple poke by a twig. It was gross though and I am sure she feels better with it drained.

I am also keeping her close to watch her and make sure it keeps draining some. 

Meanwhile, Indiana and Willow got to spend a night with their grandparents. I was in charge of their chores and discovered one of Indy's pigeons had escaped. I tried for two days to catch her but failed. Luckily nothing got her during the day or night, and Indiana was able to catch her. 

Finally, I am slowly getting my homeschool books and activities and schedule figured out. One activity Rose wanted to do was sew a quilt for her bed.

I found a free pattern that is quite simple and pretty and then we ordered her fabric. She has it sorted out and should be ready to start sewing this weekend. The pattern uses pre-cut fabrics known as a Layer Cake.  I am excited to see her finished quilt top!

Also, in preparation for the school year, I am decluttering and deep cleaning the house....room by room. It will take me an entire month, but so far I have deep cleaned one bathroom and the laundry room. I focus better when the house is clean, and I know the days will get more hectic as the wedding of Journee and Jared gets near. Like I said, one room at a time. I have a list of all the rooms and I mark them off as I finish them. 

Happy Thursday Ya'll!

Peace,

Sam

Rain. More Rain.

 This image sums up my life right now. Demanding baby, demanding farm. Exhausted me.

"Nap when the baby naps" is the most often heard term a mom will hear when raising babies, but the reality is that meals must be cooked, other children must be cared for and the laundry must be washed. Add to this list the farm must be managed and you have my situation today.

This post is not to complain about all the many chores and demands, but to rather explain that there are days when the farming gets tough.

We have had lots of rain this year, which is a stark change from the horrible drought we suffered last year. The hay is thick and the grass recovers quickly. It has been so nice.

Except it has been hard on my herd of cattle. Although the cows have lots of dry pasture to stand in and graze, they tend to stand in water. When it rains inches upon inches within a few days, the ground becomes very wet. 

I knew that the wet ground could be an issue for my sheep and horse, but it seems the cows have suffered most. We have been battling hoof rot over here.

4 cows had hooves that were swollen and sore. A call to the vet confirmed the issue and we began treatment right away.

This girl, Ivy, had the skin break open above her hoof and there was a ulcer type of sore. We managed to get copper sulfate on the wound daily and it has healed up nicely.

 My girl Molly, however, had the worst case with all four of her feet swollen. After several treatments she now has only her back feet swollen, but one back foot is so bad that she will not put much weight on it. 

So we are still giving her medicine for pain. We are also feeding her grain to get some weight back on her, since she has lost many pounds. Poor Molly!

This morning she had a little puss oozing out from her foot, so I am hoping it will drain and start to heal.

I have been bringing cheddars out from the cave and this one is particularly yummy. I had run out of cheesecloth, so instead of wrapping it with lard and cloth I rubbed it down in olive oil and Thai Spices that I purchased from a local spice company. The results are delicious, and this 7 pound wheel is nearly gone! 

The baby turned 9 months old last week. He is crawling every where and getting into anything within his reach.  It always amazes me how quickly a baby can move and get into things.

It has been super hot every day here, with high humidity. The result is a heat index of 100 and greater. The only way to spend the day is in air conditioning or in the pool. Even the pool feels like bath water, but it is still refreshing. 

ome homeschooling supplies are starting to trickle in from various suppliers. My main focus this year is STEM, and I have purchased a couple of robotics sets. The kids are excited to get started. 

You might have noticed the blog look differently, thanks to photo bucket. I have been working on fixing broken widgets and expired photo bucket photos. Thanks for sticking around while I clean house here.

In the meantime, send good thoughts this way for my cattle and I will post updates!

Peace.

Sam

Family Field Trip

Devin is home for a nice stretch so we decided to visit a museum nearby.

The Tellus Science Museum in Cartersville, GA.

We pass this place when drive to Atlanta and I had always wondered what was inside. I decided that a visit was in order!
Yesterday's family field trip proved that this is a rather fun museum.

 Excuse the blurry pictures, but it wasn't until we left that I saw my lens was on the wrong setting for indoors.
At any rate, we were able to see some wonderful dinosaur models. We also got to see real fossils from the era.
There was another exhibit with minerals and gems that the boys especially loved. Those kids love rocks.

There was a model of a mammoth skeleton that I especially liked. It's cool to see how large the things were up close.

There was also an exhibit with old cars and space shuttles. We even saw a display to scale of the Kitty Hawk.

Looking inside a real Mig fighter jet showed us how many switches and gears those jets use! I honestly don't know how pilots fit in such small spaces or learn everything on the jets.

Of course there were some awesome rock specimens outside available for climbing and photo taking too. It gave us some fresh air before going back inside for a planetarium show.

The kid also got to pan for gem stones (pretty rocks) as part of the ticket price. They each came home with a small bag of treasures.

They also came home with shark teeth that they dug from the archeology dig exhibit.

We missed Quinn. She had to work and missed out on the trip. We brought her a gift from the gift shop though.

After the fun day, we stopped at Steak and Shake for dinner, something we rarely do with this large family.

I bought a year pass, so I plan to go back throughout the year. They are building a solar house for display, and they also have an observatory for use on certain nights.

We did take a couple pictures of me and the baby, so we have proof we were there too...and I brought home a shark too as well :-)!!

This was a fun school day and a short break from farm life!

Happy Thursday Ya'll!!

Greener Grass

I have found Fridays to be my one day to sit and enjoy the morning. Because of the many projects I am wrapping up before starting school and having this baby, I have been extremely busy.

One major project I started was to write up a junior entomology curriculum for the younger kids. I searched high and low for a bug program for the boys to no avail. Everything was geared for much younger kids, and Zeb is especially ready for something with more detail. I will post an update once I am finished.

                        ****One of many bugs Zeb has found around the farm and admired****



This was also a summer of no rain. It was very dry and hot until late July. We finally started getting some rain and the grass finally decided to grow.

In fact, it was too dry for a cutting of hay in June, but we should get a good cutting in a week or so. This should, along with all of the pastures, give us enough food for the cattle this winter.

A couple of days ago we moved all of the cows into the yard around the house.

                                   ****Valentine and Molly****


No fancy landscaping over here. I use cows to mow the lawn and I honestly do not care if they munch on bushes.
Not to offend anyone with beautifully landscaped yards, but I truly find more peace in watching my cows graze the yard. Grass based farming has so many advantages and we are blessed to have the ability to farm in this manner. Thank you Joel Salatin for all of the inspiration!

                       ****Baby Chance, who is not so much a baby any longer****


They were very excited to move to fresh grass and spent a good part of the moment jumping and bucking their way across the yard. We will let them graze a few days before moving them again.

Journee's elderly goat has spent each morning, now that they are cooler, basking in the morning sun on the drive. I have washed the drive twice this week of goat droppings, but it is a lost battle.

                   ***Brownie. One of the steers ready to process this fall***


Our next big project is too get a blueberry orchard planted. This would be an easy task, except we must fence the orchard to keep the cows from chewing down the bushes. Devin will be better able to tackle the project once Dragon Con is over.

We spent a good deal of time Tuesday sewing the finishing touches on some cosplay costumes for the Dragon Con event. I know it will be  great time for everyone attending.

Moving the cows, cutting hay and prepping school supplies must mean one thing: Fall is almost here.

It's time to soak up these last few days of summer and that is exactly what I plan to do this weekend.

Happy Friday Ya'll!!!

Sami

A Post for Sean

Of course it nice when a friend kindly points out that the blog has been silent for over 2 weeks and that even a simple cow picture would be worth the time.  :-)

Community theater has been a great occupier of my time, but it has been a nice change from my regular life. This week we are in tech rehearsals and the play will open Friday...with a BANG! The group of people I am spending my evenings with on stage are wonderful and I am so very grateful for this opportunity.

Naturally, my home and farm life has not stopped for even a second, and since I am not able to juggle everything....no person could....I have decided to let a  few things "go" for now. This is my way of saying the kids are fed and the clothes are washed, but the house is a disorganized mess. I hope to catch up after Thanksgiving.

We have kept up with school fairly well, and yet there is always a nagging shadow that hangs over my head. Perhaps we need to do extra math lessons or read more history.

Then I remember why we home school. That nagging cloud of doubt really need not disrupt the natural rhythm of home educations.

Indiana decided to sew a costume for Halloween, so I snapped a picture of her cutting her fabric. This is truly a skill that I love and it warms my heart that she can sew and that she has the flexibility in her day to spend time crafting a costume.

 Quinn did have class at the college, but she came home and spent a good amount of time looking at different pottery projects, deciding what she wanted to create in her next pottery class.

I almost fretted over the fact that Rose was not doing "serious language school work", until I reminded myself that an hour playing with letter tiles was serious language work. Hands on learning is usually better than a workbook, in my opinion.

 The swimming pool was ready for a winter cover, so it was "all hands on deck" to help Devin get the pool cover on and fastened. Chores are an important lesson in life.

 Zeb, my insect loving child, caught several bugs and examined closely their wings and legs. Living in South means there is never a shortage of bugs in the yard to catch.

 Playing on hay bales is near the top of the list "Fun Things To Do on a Farm." Willow and Rose spent a good while jumping from bale to bale.

 Finally, a good game of kick ball with an oversized yoga ball is never without a great deal of entertainment. Or maybe they were playing "keep away."

There have been many days where my schedule did not go as planned and even more when things on my list didn't get finished...or even started.

That's OK.

The kids are growing and learning, and I think I am doing the same.

If you are in my area, you can come see the play at the Dalton Little Theater.

If you are not in my area.....thanks for sticking around while I took a short break.

Oh, the cows? They are all fine, and here's a cow picture just for you Sean. :-)

                                      ***Annabelle***

Happy Hump Day Ya'll!

Crazy, Busy, Wonderful

I am here. I am still here. I have been unbelievably busy.

The farm responsibilities have been one reason life has gotten hectic these last few weeks. Milking cows and moving pastured chicken can eat up some time.
We actually built a new chicken tractor to move the chickens in and I have been quite pleased with it too!

 This tractor will hold 100 birds and I can move it with my lawn mower. It has a rope that I loop on to my ball hitch and I slowly pull it forward. It is tall enough inside that Willow can move with it, making sure no birds get squashed in the process. It has, so far, been a great tractor with lots of ventilation.

These birds had been in a barn stall for WAY too long! I was glad to get them on grass and get my stall mucked out. After I cleaned it out, I spread a fresh bale of straw down.

I also moved my sheep up to this paddock near the house. They will be ready for shearing in a few weeks, but I did notice their eyelids look a bit pale. This, of course, means they likely need to be wormed. I will get some natural worming remedy on order so that I can take care of it sooner, rather than later.

The new calf Annie is 2 weeks old now and doing great, AND she now has a friend.

Yesterday we were preparing for Fletcher's birthday celebration when I noticed Belle was in active labor! 12 minutes later she had a new heifer calf! This one is also part angus, but she has some white on her belly. Such a cute calf!
I let the middle girls name this one, so they named her Twilight.

This brings me to milking 4 cows in the morning and 2 in the evening. I have one more cow due this fall, but she will not calve until early November. (I think)

I was glad to notice Belle in labor so that I could call the kids outside to watch. It was quite a busy day!

Of course the increased amounts of milk we are getting is requiring that we step up the cheese making. I bought Indiana her own set of turkey roasters so that I could teach her how to make cheese. She started by making her first wheel of Havarti. I made a batch of Camembert and together we used up 12 gallons of milk! It will be nice to have some cheese making help.

In addition to the increased farm chores, we have been busy with school. Journee has officially started nursing school and Quinn has started duel enrollment.
I admit that I was scared Quinn would really struggle with her classes because at home she was not a super dedicated student. However, she has done quite well and really enjoys her classes. I write this as an encouragement to any home school moms who worry about their kids doing well in college. Quinn has seemed to embrace her education and has taken great responsibility with her assignments.  Perhaps she was bored at home and needed a challenge?

Finally, I am in a local theater play that opens in October. I haven't done any theater in a very, very long time but decided to start back, or at least try. I was given a great role and am very excited to be doing something outside the farm and house. Of course this means I am very busy several nights a week at rehearsals, but it has been well worth it!

This is why I have not been updating as I should. So much has happened that I wanted to share, but I am exhausted by the end of the day. Hopefully, now that some cow calving is done, I will see a slight slow down to my daily routine. ( I just made myself laugh out loud!)

Here's to a great week for everyone!

Happy Monday Ya'll!



A Good Day

There are days that home schooling is just plain overwhelming! It is difficult enough on its own, but if you add in a farm and a milking cow (or two or three) it can be a daunting task to accomplish anything some days.

Then there are days like today when it all becomes clear again. You remember why this path is the right one and the tasks at hand are worth the effort.

 It's not everyday that you can wish outside with all of the kids to witness a new calf being born. Then you have all of the topics that come up for discussion such as colostrum, afterbirth, milk fever, engorgement, and umbilical cords.

Hands on science.

 Lucy finally had her calf, an Angus cross baby. A heifer. I have not named her yet.

She is a strong girl and is up jumping around and playing and searching for her first meal. This is the biggest challenge too, as Lucy is quite old in age and her teats are very low to the ground.

She is an attentive and protective mother, though, so I am leaving them alone for a few hours.
The world is a classroom and a farm is the only place I would want my kids learning their science and math and reading.

It is a good day.

Plus, we can always have lots of opportunities to learn about the various bugs while we wait for the new calves to appear.

Happy Friday Ya'll!

My Senior Girl

My big girl is finished with high school. Home school high school. Actually, she has finished her last two years in dual enrollment at Chattanooga State. Her last two years were in college. BUT she is now finished with high school and starts college this summer. Confused?
This is home educating in a nut shell. No one program or plan fits every kid, so we adjust as needed and the kids are happier and better educated because we can make such changes.

Anyway, no big graduation ceremonies. No big diploma. No cap and gown. However, we WILL be throwing her a party the end of this month. We love a party around here. Party, cookout, back yard fire. We are all about having fun.

I decided to make up some announcements/invitations but needed a photo or two of my girl to put on them. We went outside and snapped some pictures of my girl...and her dog.
Here are the senior pictures of Journee (and Zelda).

Oh, and we had to take a photo or two with Yoda. He is, after all, in all of our photos. We are nerds and can't help it. Now, this looks to be more of an engagement photo with the Jedi Master....just laugh along. We all know Yoda is way too old for my girl:-)

So what's next for this girl? She will take Anatomy and Physiology II and Nutrition this summer. She plans to transfer to Dalton State College in the fall and start her way into the Bachelor Nursing Program. Yeah, I think this kid is awesome and she will go far!

Happy Monday Ya'll!