Sonlight Garden

Starting Again

When we packed up our farm three years ago, when all of the equipment was sold, after the horses had found new homes and we had buried our Jersey cow Rosie; I dried my tears and told Terry I was done. I was done farming, done with the work. I was tired and spent and emotional. Terry had set up a rental home in a subdivision up here in Kentucky and I was so ready.

Over the course of the three years we had looked at different homes for sale, all of them in neighborhoods, but nothing worked out. Not to mention our home still hadn’t sold in Florida. Still. Last winter our landlord had asked if we had intended to renew our lease for a fourth year. I just couldn’t do it. I had to get my family settled, I was tired of living out of boxes. The rental home was very nice. We made it work. But it wasn’t our home. We were in a holding pattern of sorts and I was starting to feel myself sink. Maybe it was the endless gray winter days, but I knew something had to change.

Also, over the course of time in the rental our minds and hearts started to shift. We had lived and experienced both lives with our family; life in a subdivision and life on a farm. After many discussions over the years we knew where our hearts were. We wanted our younger children to have the kind of childhood Joseph and Julia had. Our bigger kids learned about life and death, and the birds and the bees by taking care of those animals on that 5 acre plot. So many great life lessons to be had with this lifestyle.

We want them to be able to go outside and run around whenever. We want them to have to take care of animals and mend fences and muck barns. We want them to learn how to feed themselves from the animals and plants that they work so hard taking care of. We want them to grow up with the hard work of a farm.

Well, we started searching the internet and found this place. We went and looked at it and saw the potential. The house had been on the market for almost a year. Our house in Florida was still for sale but we prayerfully decided to go for it. We went in with a “bless it or block it” prayer. We went in real low with a closing date to extend 3 months later. The owner accepted it! Do you know what happened next? Two weeks later we received an offer on our home! Our Lord works in mysterious ways doesn’t he?

Okay...the whole point of this blog post...our first Kentucky farm animal. Introducing Pepper.

 

Isn’t she sweet? Even sweeter is the family we got her from. I met Jennie via the internet soon after we moved up here three years ago. She was living my old life except here in Kentucky. She was also a big, big prayer warrior for me when I was pregnant with Thomas. I have only been in her company twice in real life, and never long enough. I feel like we are kindred spirits and I could sit over a cup of tea or two and talk to her for hours. Her family? They are just so sweet, just like her. Okay, I’m going to stop gushing! The Friday after Christmas they delivered Pepper to us. I started to cry when I went to pet this little Jersey, but I quickly pulled it together.

Finally! Finally we are home!

For Rosie

We had Rosie put down today. I know I did everything I could for her. Thank you to everyone who prayed for us and your kind words and actions. I am so blown away at how giving people are. I will be forever grateful. Mary came and took the calves today. The cows are gone, the pasture is now empty, but my heart is full.

This is a repost from February 2008

She Waits

Every morning as I open the blinds to my bedroom to greet the new day, I am met with her face staring back at me. She makes sure that I notice her by letting out a loud MOO. "Yes Rosie, I know you are waiting" I answer. She knows our routine. She knows I am going to open that blind every morning. She knows that I am going to be out soon to give her her hay and relieve her of her burden. It does not matter how long it takes me to get moving in the morning. I have to sit in the quiet and have that first cup of coffee. I sit and have my quiet time with God. I say my morning offering and ask the Blessed Mother to intercede for me as I start my day "Pray for me to be the Mother that you are, patient, kind, loving, Holy." Sometimes it takes me over an hour to get outside since I first opened the blind. But still, she waits by that fence until I come out the door with my coffee in one hand and a bucket in the other.

I like to think that she enjoys the rhythm of the morning as much as I do. It is predictable, it is constant. We can't take a day off. We have become friends this cow and I. I talk to her in the quiet of the morning, I milk her and she munches on her food, her eyes half open. She is content. I appreciate her for the milk she provides for my family. I do feel blessed to have this cow. I like to think that she appreciates me also........That is what I like to think. But in reality, I really think she just wants her bucket of food!

ICU~ intensive cow unit

Well, Rosie is still down. She can't walk by herself. She is still sitting in the pasture being waited on. We bring her, her food, hay, and water. We have lifted her with the tractor every day. Her front legs are just to weak for her to get up. I had another vet come out and check her out. She looks good to him, just a down cow. He said he has seen some cows down like this for up to three weeks!! (this is where I screamed NOOOOO in my head). How did all of this start? Well, when we found out we were moving I let the calves in with her full time, so that I wouldn't have to milk. It was one less thing to do. Well I didn't up her feed like I should have and those calves just depleted her. She was overworked and under paid. The poor thing, I feel awful as this is really my fault. 

Some people may think I am crazy for nursing this cow like this. I think some of my neighbors do. But you work with these animals every day and you talk to them and they provide for your family. You really love them. Like you would love your dog. Now, if this was our beef cow I probably would not be taking these measures. But a dairy cow is different. 

Thank you for your prayers for her and us. This has been one of the hardest things I have gone through. It has been emotionally and physically draining, but this to shall pass. 

Rosie is getting better. She is sitting by herself and we don't have to roll her back up any more. She is also scooting herself forward. Which is great because I don't have to shovel the manure out from behind her. I didn't wake up during the night to check on her, so that was good. When I woke up this morning and looked out the window, she was sitting there chewing her cud, looking as content as could be. She will get there, just praying sooner than later.

Rosie

I had big plans for this week. I am supposed to be purging and de-cluttering and packing up our home but I have a down cow. She has been sick since Monday. I want to write a beautiful long post about my "cow buddies" and about my awesome neighbors with tractors and man power, and about my children who have been dealing with a cow consumed mom and about Joe who has once again stepped up to the plate and gotten up with me during the middle of the night to move a 700lb cow, and about my poor husband who feels helpless and bad because he is not here, but I am exhausted. We are on day three. She looks better today. If you are the praying kind could you send up a prayer for Rosie. We have to get her up on her own and soon. 

 

 

 
 
 

Not your typical day

We were all set to have a productive day. I had started our morning routine and we were getting ready to hit the books. We wanted to get our school work done in time to join friends at my friend Mary’s house for an afternoon picnic and bon-fire and to visit our cow Rosie who had just calved a month ago. Mary has been keeping my cow Rosie for the last 14 months.

 Mary called me mid morning and said she had to cancel our plans. She sounded upset and I asked her what was wrong.  “ Maddie died last night.” she cried.

Maddie is one of Mary’s five Jersey cows, one of her best cows. She explained to me her night. Maddie came in for her pm milking with a swollen face and foaming at the mouth. She was up all night with her in the pasture by her house, trying to keep blankets on her to keep her warm. She tried different homeopathic remedies. She called the vet out twice. The vet thinks she ate a toxic weed.  Around 4am Maddie took off through the pasture, plowed through barbed wire fences and headed down to the wooded swamp on the far edge of their property.  They located her early in the morning. The poor thing had finally died. I feel so sad for Mary. You really form a bond with these animals. You work with them every day and they feed your family. You truly do appreciate them.

 Mary also wanted me to come and pick up Rosie. She was afraid the other cows may get into whatever she got into and she didn’t want another tragedy.  She also needed help. Maddie was in the woods and we had to get her out of the woods and onto a trailer. She wanted to bring the cow in for a necropsy to find out exactly what had happened to her. I loaded up the boys and we headed over there.  I am not going to go into the sad details of how we got the cow out of the woods, except to say that it was a huge challenge. When I walked in there, and saw where she was, I thought to myself, “this is going to be impossible”.  I am also going to say that I am so proud of my boys. Joe went right in there to help without a moment of hesitation. The maturity he showed blew me away. He is becoming quite the young man and he gets this whole farming lifestyle. He knows life and death.

Someone out there helping asked me how I knew these ladies. I smiled and said “through the cows” “us crazy cow ladies, we get addicted to these Jerseys and this lifestyle and we form a bond. We are there for each other.”

 So why am I writing about all of this? Well I always want to remember how Joe became a young man right before my eyes. I want to say how thankful I am for these friendships with these women. They are always there when you need them. Mary has taken my cows for me my last two pregnancies, without a moments hesitation.

 So now, instead of two Jerseys in the pasture I have four. Once again, we will set a knew schedule to our days as I set up a new milking routine with two cows.  I am thankful for these animals and how they provide for our family.

 

Randomness

I was going to post the Simple Woman's Daybook today, but there is going to be nothing simple about this week. We have a packed week with the doctor, dentist, meetings, grocery store, and practices. I really should be sitting here and writing out a master plan for the week or I will forget something.

 Well, the pigs are settling in. I think they are really obnoxious but I am getting used to them. There is literally no food waste in our house which is fantastic. That part I like. They have become our new watch dogs. Every time someone walks outside they start squealing and making pig noises, LOUDLY. The other night when we arrived home from trick-or-treating the kids said. "The pigs are sleeping. Everyone be quiet so they don't wake up".

 I have started separating Rosie and the calf at night because the calf has been taking all of the milk. the nerve! The minute Rosie senses any movement in the house she starts mooing away,  which then starts the other cows mooing. And they don't stop until they are fed. Then I step outside to do the morning chores and the pigs start "squeal, squeal, snort, snort" The horses then decide to join in. I have started singing "Old MacDonald" when I walk outside every morning. It really is quite comical. Ahhh it is so nice to be needed.

 The landscapers are almost done. We are putting up a picket fence around the garden beds to keep the dog out. It looks so pretty so far. Notice how I said dog and not dogs. Our Renegade died last week. He was one of CC's puppies from her first litter. He got into something toxic the vet believes. Unfortunately, we don't know what the something toxic was which is a little unsettling. The kids have now started asking when we can get another dog, but I don't think that is going to happen. One dog is just fine. Dogs don't get into as much trouble when there is only one.

 Well, I am going to get off of here and start my day. I am going to try and post before and after pictures of the garden beds this week. Have a great day!!

Appalachian Splash

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is Appalachian Splash. We are "looking" at Splash as a potential horse for us. She is 5 years old, half Arabian and half Paint. She is very sweet, with very nice ground manners. Very important with a lot of little children around.

 We are looking for another horse with the same type of personality as our horse Dixie. A horse that the girls can go and tack up and take on a trail ride all by themselves. Julia did this a couple of weeks ago and had a blast. Even Catherine our next "crazy about horses" girl  rode her. We'll see.

Our Newest Addition To The Farm

WARNING: GRAPHIC COW BIRTHING PICTURES!!

 Well we were getting ready to load up into the van last Thursday to get to our Dentist an hour away. We were twenty minutes ahead of schedule. (a small miracle for us) I get Amelia clicked in her seat, the rest of the children are starting to pile in the van. I glance over to the pasture just to see what Rosie is doing. She was acting a little different in the morning. Her udder wasn't HUGE but had looked a little bigger. Her tail looked as if it had flattened out a bit. I thought birth may be possible that day, but then again I have been saying that for the last month. Anywhoo, Rosie kept sniffing the ground and walking in circles. That was definitely different. I tell the kids that Rosie is going to deliver, We run over to the barn, Joe runs back to get the camera. I take the camera and go into the pasture with her to see how she is progressing. When I noticed the calves feet starting to come out I told the kids they could quietly come into the pasture with her. We were able to see the whole thing!! God is so good. I have been praying that we would be able to see Rosie give birth.

 Oh and the other cool thing. I was able to assist. Nothing major but I played a little part. When the calf came out it landed with it's head under it's body. It wasn't breathing and Rosie was not getting up to start to clean it off. I tossed my camera to the kids and ran over and lifted it's head out from under it's body. I pulled it's legs and drug her closer to Rosie and then nudged Rosie and said "Hello!! you are needed over here, I am not going to lick off your calf." I lifted the calves legs and saw little tiny teats! Yippee, a heifer (girl).  Rosie came to her senses, stood up and did her job. Daisy, our mini Jersey was there to offer support also. We then ran from the pasture, children climbed in the van, I ran inside and cleaned up and off we went. Oh, and we ended up being late for our appt. but it was so worth it. So here are some pics.

 

 

 

 

 

Puppies!!

Aren't they cute? Don't you want one or two or six? Our black lab CC had puppies again, with our neighbors Australian Shepard/Blue Heeler mix again. They are free to a good home. We kept a pup from her last litter and he is the sweetest dog. Oh, and speaking of her last litter, this will be her last litter. We have her appointment made to have her fixed. These pups really are a nice mix, and they have been handled from day one by children. They are great family dogs.

She Waits

Every morning as I open the blinds to my bedroom to greet the new day, I am met with her face staring back at me. She makes sure that I notice her by letting out a loud MOO. "Yes Rosie, I know you are waiting" I answer. She knows our routine. She knows I am going to open that blind every morning. She knows that I am going to be out soon to give her her hay and relieve her of her burden. It does not matter how long it takes me to get moving in the morning. I have to sit in the quiet and have that first cup of coffee. I sit and have my quiet time with God. I say my morning offering and ask the Blessed Mother to intercede for me as I start my day "Pray for me to be the Mother that you are, patient, kind, loving, Holy." Sometimes it takes me over an hour to get outside since I first opened the blind. But still, she waits by that fence until I come out the door with my coffee in one hand and a bucket in the other.

I like to think that she enjoys the rhythm of the morning as much as I do. It is predictable, it is constant. We can't take a day off. We have become friends this cow and I. I talk to her in the quiet of the morning, I milk her and she munches on her food, her eyes half open. She is content. I appreciate her for the milk she provides for my family. I do feel blessed to have this cow. I like to think that she appreciates me also........That is what I like to think. But in reality, I really think she just wants her bucket of food!