Earth Day Delivery

                                             

This is Taylor looking through the fence at Hazel's new baby. Hazel finally decided to have her calf on Earth Day. She was born in the little paddock next to the barn some time after noon while we were all up at the house baking.
We all paraded out to the barn to see the new baby. It's a beautiful reddish brown heifer. She has soft eyes with long eyelashes. She looks like she has on mascara and eyeliner.
Emily commented how appropriate that she was born on Earth Day. So we've decided to name her Gaia.

Hazel is home

This is Hazel in her new stall. We let her out yesterday for the first time in her little personal pasture next to the barn. She should calf in about 10 days. Anybody want to make a guess on the time and date?

IT"S TWINS!

This is our other White Park cow. She was so huge yesterday Brian and I had to help her roll up on her belly so she could stand up. . .

Today she had twins!

I took this pic when the second calf had just been born. Isn't 10x zoom wonderful? She was still licking it to clean it up. I'm sure it will be just as white as the first on in a few more minutes. 

I'm posting more pics on our facebook page... check it out!

NAME THE CALF CONTEST

This adorable little girl needs a name. Can you help us out?

We've decided to have a name the calf contest. Just email your calf name to: kissmygrassfarm@hotmail.com

When the committee {that would be my mother- this is her favorite cow's calf} has made her decision we'll contact you via email so you can collect your prize.

What prize? Well we are offering a framed farm photo of your choosing. We'll post all of the possibilities a little later.

Contest ends March 31. {That's my moms's birthday}So send in those heifer names now!!

And on the first day of my vacation...

Mom's White Park cow had her calf.

A "skunk" baby like last year, but with more white on it's legs. And this year it's a heifer, so we'll be saving her to replace her momma.

Other news from the first day of vacation:

The Wenglar sows won't cooperate with Brian's no stress moving technique. They refuse to go into the stock trailer to eat. There's just enough yummy grass and it's warm so they've been ignoring the treats in the trailer completely.

In the morning after breakfast, Emily and I started 2 loaves of bread in the bread makers. I don't like the way bread turns out when it's baked in the breadmaker. So we use the dough setting then bake in the regular oven in standard bread pans. Letting the bread maker do the kneading and raising means we can go do something else. Only this time the bread slipped our minds. God Bless my mother who noticed and got the dough out before it flowed over the pans.

Brian and I worked on the barn some more. He's just about got the roof on the south side done and I've got all the sow stalls laid out. I've got boards on the back walls and I'm starting to put up the hog panels. Each stall is 8' X 10' with a corner sectioned off in the back so the piglets have a place to get away from mom and snuggle.

We helped Anders get two loads of his things moved over here and he and Emily put them all away. They also got their teepee poles oiled with the second coat. They hope to be living in the teepee by the weekend.

It was late when we all got in from working, because we didn't want to waste any daylight. I grabbed a quick shower and threw together some dinner. Dinner was beef stroganof over whole wheat pasta, salad and brownies for dessert.

By that time my pillow was calling so the dishes got loaded into the dishwasher this morning.

We have a new cookie!

Double Stuff, the Belted Galloway FINALLY had her calf this evening. Baby Oreo is doing just fine. I'll post pics as soon as I can get some tomorrow.

Dexter bull + White Park cow = skunk

Yep that's right now we have a skunk calf. lol
We bred our Dexter bull, Will to our 2 White Park cows. White Park calves are usually white with a black noses, black in their ears and black "freckles" on their backs and legsThe crossbred calf came out with a black body and head and a white stripe down his back like a skunk.
Looks like 2009 is in black and white around here :)

What a surprize!

Brian called me at work last night. He never calls me at work unless something is wrong so my heart skipped a beat as I picked up the phone.
"It's a girl!" he laughed.
"What do you mean 'It's a girl!' Did Brandy have her calf?"
"Nope," he said. "Rosie did!!"
I was speachless, Rosie wasn't even showing any signs of being close when we checked her yesterday morning. We thought she'd be at least another 10-14 days.
It seems my sister was coming up to visit and noticed a calf in our field, so she told Brian. He didn't really believe her since we have sheep in that field too and she could have been mistaken. He asked her to look again on her way out the driveway. She called him back from her cell phone "Yep, it's a calf!"
She stayed and helped Brian get Rosie and her new dunn heifer into the barn with the others.
This little girl is the biggest of the Dexter calves so far. She's beautiful and perfect. Her momma is very protective of her. Rosie staked out the warmest corner of the barn for her baby.
Guess what we're naming her?
KMGF Grass Kissed Evening Surprize!

Of Winter Gear and frosty mornings...

IT's COLD!

I've been trying to get up and do chores on my days off before Brian wakes up. He really needs to take it easy on his foot until after he's had his surgery on the 30th and recovered for 6 weeks. So this morning I glanced at the thermometer; -10 degrees, looked out the window; tree limbs waving in the wind- and wondered how many layers I could put on and still be able to walk.
Turtle neck, followed by polar fleece hoody, over leggings with sweatpants, 2 pairs of socks - 1 cotton, 1 insulated hunting socks. Next comes the Carhart subzero overalls, then the balaclava with the hood of my polar fleece jacket pulled up over it. Finally on top of it all was my Carhart coat. Add 2 pairs of knit gloves and boots. There that about does it. I can't find a scarf this morning.
I step over the dogs in front of the heater on my way out. They aren't moving. First I feed the big hogs and then the small hogs. They aren't moving either. They just look up at me from their hay nests and snuggle back down. Then up the driveway to check the cows and their babies. Everybody's up eating hay.
Nursing mommas need lots of water. The ice on the water trough in the barn has to be broken. It's nearly 6 inches thick. I close my eyes with every whack of the pick to avoid getting ice slivers in my eyes.
By now my eye lashes are full of frost. Thank goodness there is a heater in the other water trough. A couple of bucket of water from the heated trough get carried over to the mommas' trough in the barn. Then a quick head count of cows, horses and sheep and I'm headed back to the house.
I stop on the way to feed the cats and fill the bird feeders...
Here is a "self portrait"! Note the frost in my hair!
IT's really COLD! :)