Tomorrow morning is the last Milking

I can't believe it tomorrow morning is the last milking if the money comes through. Jon and I are taking off work to help mom and dad out. It is bittersweet I guess. We are so excited that Dad and Mom get this break however, it will be weird to look across the field and not seeing the steins as we call them. Oh well there are a bunch of heifer's we have have already bought to replace them and more coming in when the final payment is in. I am sure Dad and Mom will enjoy getting to sleep in since Dad has not gotten to since he was 16 unless on vacation, and that did not happen very often I can remember 3 vacations that we went on and spent the night somewhere. As for all the fairs and far off rodeos that was my mother taking us Dad always stayed home and milked he would come then leave but never went to the far away stuff. Then when I moved out he would leave Jon and I with it some and they would take off somewhere. Then they got one hired hand after (the hired hands) his Dad died he was 15 and a great hand. Matter of fact I don't know what we would do with out him. Anyway tomorrow is bittersweet I guess for our family. Even my kids this morning said what are we going to do when we get home from school besides check the beef cattle no getting up the milk cows and helping Papa start milking, no washing down the milk barn in the summer time. I think Bob will really miss it. Duchess she won't but then she is 5 and all she did was help clean up or get the cows up in the summer time when we did not have bulls in with them. I guess we will see what tomorrow brings.

One of those Crazy weeks

This week has just been nuts. Seems like I have spent more time on the road that anything else. We live about 25 miles from where we work and then the kids go to school about 15 min from our house to town. Monday Duchess had gymnastics, Tuesday I had parent teacher conference for Bob, Wed was church, and Thursday was parent teacher Conference for Duchess. I hate weeks like these I feel so drained. Hurry hurry it seems. So I got nothing accomplished this. I guess I will be making up for some of it this weekend. I am so excited my husband is starting to work on the house again. We live in my Great Grandparents house my Grandma was born in this house and I love it. It still needs so much work. We have so much to tell our grandchildren and our kids about this house. When we married and we lived in what I always called the summer kitchen it was where all the canning was done and that was the gathering place in the summer when I was little. We had no kitchen cabinets no sink in the kitchen. Jon worked for a Poultry Supply store and they went together and got us a grill that was the best wedding present ever. I did dishes in the bathtub. We lived like this for about 2 1/2 months or so. When I cooked it had to be on the grill, electric skillet (thank goodness for electric) or slow cooker. I hated it then but I don't think I would want to change it now. We were re doing everything in the house and the Kitchen was the first project. It is still not done still on Plywood floors but as Jon says it is the best floor you will ever have and easy cleaning just take the shop vac to it. However, we started the house before we married about 6 mo to a 1yr before we married in July we will be married 12 years. It is time to start on the house again and get the floors all done don't you think? We ran out of money then saved then something happened to the Angus Bull we had so we had to buy another with the money I had been saving. Then we saved again and then something happened at the barn with the water and all the pipes had to be replaced out there so there you go welcome to farm life. But I can't say a whole lot we gutted a 2 story house that is over 100 year old house that has so many memories of good and bad times and as Jon says we have a roof over our heads, a wood stove to keep us warm what else could you ask for. So true, especially since it got so cold we had our first fire last night for the winter it felt so good. Even though it is taking Bob, Duchess, Jon, and I to keep Chief from getting into it. He tells us Hot but he is not scared. I will have to take some pictures of the house so you can see what we have done. Things are slowing down now with the fairs over with anyway for my family they are my sis and her family leaves next week for the American Royal in Kansas City to show some pigs. And my parents have decided to call it quits with the dairy farm which is another story. Dad (or Papa) has milked since he was 16. Its kind of sad in some ways. Jon laughs at me I will miss not seeing those black and white cows out there. I keep telling him to let me start milking but Jon and Dad laugh at me for even wanting to. We are keeping some heifers so if things don't work out we have about 75 to start milking next fall.

You know you're a farm wife...

I had to post this it is from BB's Blog she is a Farm wife in TN and it so true from me growing up and to now. I love the one if your date was at a Bull Sale that has happaned several times.


If your name is taped to the side of a cake pan;
If you call the implement dealer and he recognizes your voice;
If the vet’s number is on the speed dial of your phone;
If you know how to change the flat on your car, but can’t because the spare is on a flatbed;
If your second vehicle is still a pickup;
If your husband has ever used field equipment to maintain your yard;
If you’re in the habit of buying food stuff in bulk;
If a "night out" involves the local 4-H club;
If the word "auction" makes you tingle;
If you’ve ever washed off each other with a pressure washer;
If "a little bit of lunch" involves 6 courses and a dessert made from scratch;
If taking lunch to the field is as close as you get to a picnic;
If your rock garden was hand-picked;
If you can mend a pair of pants and the fence that ripped them;
If the shopping list in your purse includes the sizes of: filters, tires, overalls, chains, belts, lights, cables, spark plugs or shotgun shells;
If "Farm", "Ranch", "Country", "Cowboy" or "Antique" is in the name of your favorite magazine;
If your tan lines are somewhere below your shoulder and above your elbow;
If you ever went on a date to the bull sales;
If you’ve ever called your husband to supper, using a radio;
If being taken out to dinner has ever included a talk by a seed corn dealer;
If your driveway is longer than a stone’s throw;
If your mailbox looks like a piece of farm machinery;
If your wading pool has ever doubled as a stock tank, or vice versa;
If the daily paper is always a day late;
If you have a yard, but not a lawn;
If you have lots of machinery and each piece is worth more than your house;
If the neighbor’s house is best viewed with binoculars;
If the directions to your house include the words, "miles," "silos," "last," or "gravel road";
If the tractor and the combine have air conditioning and an FM radio but your car doesn’t;
If your storage shed is a barn;
If you measure travel in miles not minutes;
If your farm equipment has the latest global positioning technology and you still can’t find your husband;
If you consider "hot dish" a food group;
If your husband says, "Can you help me for a few minutes?" and you know that might be anywhere from a few minutes... to six hours;
If you plan your vacations around farm shows or calving or planting or harvesting;
If grass stains are the least of your laundry problems;
If your refrigerator contains medicine....livestock medicine;
If your car’s color is two-toned and one color is gravel road brown;
If you knew everyone in your high school graduation class;
If you’ve entertained the romantic notion of living in an old, country farmhouse with a fireplace;
If you use newspapers to help keep the kitchen floor clean;
If you’ve ever said, "Oh, it’s only a little mud.";
If you need a pair of vice grips to run a household appliance;
If you've used the loader to reach the windows when they needed washing;
If you’ve ever discovered a batch of kittens in your laundry basket;
If dinner is at noon and lunch is before and after dinner;
If you shovel the sidewalk, with a skid loader;
If quality time with your hubby means you'll have a flashlight in one hand and a wrench in the other;
If you know the difference between field corn and sweet corn;
If you buy your husband's "dress" socks at Campbell's Supply;
If family "pets" include deer, coons, pheasants, squirrels, foxes or birds:
If you can make a meal that can be ready in six minutes and will still be ready in two hours;
If your basement is really a cellar;
If "sharing a cab" has nothing to do with a taxi and everything to do with getting across the field;
If your job in town is considered a farm subsidy

SDC in the Fall

We went to Silver Dollar City on Saturday. We picked the kids up from school on Friday and spent the night and got to take Jon's mom out for dinner for her birthday I am just a little late it was in Aug. Oh well that is me I am always late on stuff like that. I always feel so bad seems like she always gets the short end of the stick on her birthday. Its at the end of Aug school is starting we are super busy with cattle starting to calve and the Fairs are getting ready to start up. I know excuses excuses. Cheif gives the best hugs anymore.

I love taking pictures of the triple C's and their Daddy.

Bob is somewhere up there.



Bob is so good to help out with Cheif.




Cheif loved the goats the Duchess and Bob thought we needed to get him one but
I don't think so we would really have Old McDonalds Farm.

I don't get to many pictures of Duchess and I.

Duchess loves the roller coastes especially Powder Keg!

But we had so much fun. We love going up in the fall it was such great weather not to hot not to cold it was wonderful. We even got to see one of our favorite groups Big Smith they are country some southern Gospel and rock a little mix they can sing about anything. They play once a year at George's but we have never got to go see them. That means we would have to find a sitter. If the kids can't go we usually don't go either. Our day will come one of these days its time for our kids right now. Even though I would love to at least have one weekend once a year or even every other year I am not picky. That will come too soon enough. Chief is 16 mo old already seems like it was yesterday that Bob was born. Bob is 10 and started raking hay this summer (yes he can drive a tractor better than our 17 year old hired hand and probably knows more about what to do than he does too) That is another story to tell. Duchess will be 6 and its like she is going on 13 wanting to pick out her own clothes loves to go shopping. Which I am not much of a shopper so everyone in the family gets a kick out of this she is like her Nana.

Anyway we had fun at SDC can't wait to go back at Christmas time and see all the lights we usually go around Thanksgiving so it gets me in the mood for Christmas.

Have to excuse all the pictures at the first I am trying to figure out how to do this but I will have to play with it.

coughing kids

Well this past weekend seemed like it lasted forever. Don't get me wrong I just hate being stuck inside all weekend with sick kids and myself. We did get to venture out Saturday night for our 4-H clubs banquet and then we were out on Sunday too. I did get a closet cleaned out but that is about it. I will be so glad when this stuff passes.

I am looking forward to this weekend as no we aren't going to anymore shows till after January even though the kids and I are trying to talk their Daddy into letting us go to a show Thanksgiving weekend in Oklahoma. We are going to go see the kids grandparents they have not seen them since the end of July so they are so excited. We are just going up for one night but be back on Saturday night. I can't wait either I love to go up there during the fall I love the weather and the trees and stuff. Hopefully I will have some Pictures when we get back.