Cows, Cows, Cows!

Things have been so busy around here, and quite frankly, I am having a hard time adjusting to some of the changes that have been happening lately. As most know, my Mom has Alzheimers, which is progressing. Some of our family also moved far enough away that visits are not possible very often. So, as much as they are having positive things happening, here we feel the fact that they are not here deeply. I am happiest with my family close..lol It is just who I am.
With Mom, this disease is just brutal. Watching someone you love, slowly lose their entire life of memories is just rough, no matter how you look at it. So many times I am just not fit for man nor beast as they say..
Hopefully I can get back into writing here for those who are interested in the crazy happenings here on the farm. Lots of things HAVE happened, and more are sure to be in the works!
I will start with a few happy things, like new cows! I mean really, who doesn't want more cows?! We found two really sweet girls at a local dairy, and they were a perfect fit for our farm! The best part, is we not only found cows, but we also made some friends. Nothing like finding friends who are honestly GOOD people. Shout out to Sara and Earl! They have been a HUGE help with all the questions that I have about cows in general, which if you know me...is A LOT of questions!
Well, here they are! The new girls, in all their cuteness!

Renee!

This is Renee! She is due in October and I cannot wait! Nothing like a little calf to make your day brighter. We are just so excited to see what she is going to have, Yay! 

SweetPea

This is SweetPea, and she is a real beauty! She is open, which means she has not been bred yet. Or at least we are pretty sure she is not bred. We will have to take care of that soon though, lol Hmmm...Where to find a man for SweetPea?! Right now, she is "in milk" so she is quite hungry as you can tell by her head stuffed in the food pan!

Squirt

And...Here is Squirt! She is a little heifer, who is just beautiful! The best part, is the is actually SweetPeas baby! So yea, keeping the family together, lol Well, sort of together, as they are separate since Squirt was just weaned when we got her and to stay that way she will have to be out of the pen with her milky mama!
We still have the rest of our little herd, and Eleanor was just at the vet yesterday being "AI'd", or Artificially Inseminated. I am really hoping that it all went well and she will bring a little calf into the world next summer. Go Ellie!

Eleanor

Here is the little beauty! Hasn't she grown! Seem like only yesterday she was a little bitty thing flying around the round pen kicking her heels up in the winter sunshine! She will hopefully be a Mama soon! I love this cow!!
Well, off to take care of farmy things, more later, so stay tuned!  Leave a comment to let me know you were here, I love getting feedback!

Making Butter!

Today was butter day! Well, it was actually Tuesday, but since I have to dry off Flossie in another month I have been trying to save as much milk as I can to at least make yummy butter! If you have never made butter, then maybe this post will be a little interesting! I know it never ceases to amaze me when the cream suddenly turns into yummy yellow butter!
First, you need one of these. Well, maybe not your very own, but at least what one can give you which is cream. For me, cream comes from Flossie.

For Flossie to make delicious milk with lots of cream she needs plenty of food, such as this green grass. She will munch and munch all day long.

Yet another tractor! Mmm green green grass!

 The grass is cut, dried and rolled for her and the rest of the animals to have during the winter when the pasture is all brown and dead! Flossie gets all the hay and grass she can eat and also mixed feed twice a day.

Pud'nins trusty tractor and a nice roll of hay!

All hooked up and my goodness, look at that baby bump!

Twice a day when she has her breakfast and her supper I clean her up till she is squeaky clean, disinfect her little milk faucets and hook the milker up so it can do it's job.

Flossie gave all three gallons one warm summer morning!

 The milk goes into the house, gets strained and put into jars where it will get chilled and the cream rises to the top. Then I scoop it off, and into a bowl it goes. Well, in this case it goes into a kitchen Aid mixer bowl.

Mix Mix Mix

Butter breaking, or forming, is the coolest thing. Watch the video very carefully and you will see exactly when it goes from being cream to butter!

THEN, after you actually have butter the fun is not over.  Now you have to pour off the buttermilk, which is great in pancakes and biscuits. Then take your butter and add cold water. Stir and mash the butter under the water, changing frequently. When you stir the butter, and the water stays clear, it is washed enough. 

Now you keep mashing, and the water will work its way out of the butter. Time to add a little salt, stir well, and then store in the refrigerator. Yummy!! 

This is the butter that I keep in my fridge. Not the prettiest picture as we well, use it in cooking and since I didn't have a new bowl I just snapped a picture of the one I am using! This stuff is delicious! Spread it on one of the fluffy homemade rolls and you will be hooked for life on fresh butter!

Fluffy, yeasty, toasty and yes, buttery rolls! Yummo!

 I didn't get any pictures of the washing and pressing as it is hard to take pictures of yourself, lol One day I will try to corral some of the kids to take a picture of that process as well. The main thing I was hoping to show was the moment your cream turns to butter, which I find so fascinating! Hopefully this was at least a tiny bit interesting and if you have any questions or comments please, really, leave a comment below!

Looking a lot Like Fall

Fall on the farm is almost as busy as summer. We have to get all the animals settled and make sure they will have what they need for the cooler temperatures. Not to mention getting things squared away for the people here on the Backwards Homestead! As busy as it can be I will say, Fall is one of my favorite times of the year. The temperatures are much milder and the colors of all the leaves are just amazing!

Fall Sunset

This Fall we have two expectant mamas. Flossie is due in January/February and ClaraBelle is due anywhere from October to, well, we aren't too sure, lol Both girls are getting all round and although Flossie is not due for a while she looks massive!

Little herd of girlies!

Flossie having breakfast

ClaraBelle getting a little nibble of hay

We did manage to get the roof on the side shed off the barn, but still have to get the end boxed in for the expectant girls so they can stay warm and dry when the weather gets nasty. When you have animals it seems the winter preparation is never completely finished. There is always something that needs attention. Like hay, which Pud'nin has been baling like crazy!

Trusty Tractor

Square baler and yet another trusty tractor

The little piggies are growing like crazy. We only have two left that we will be saving for ourselves. The rest have gone on to their new homes and from what I hear they are getting fat and sassy. Charlotte is enjoying the smaller crowd and in November will go back in with Wilbur for a little couples time, lol

Wilbur

Charlotte and babies

Baby piggies having breakfast

Hard to believe that before we know it snow will be blowing and we will be looking for the coveralls. I know that it is coming, and I sure am hoping that it will not be as icy as last year! But no matter what the weather, we will be out and about making sure the Backwards Homestead is running smoothly!

Ellie's Big Day!

Eleanor is getting to be such a big girl! It seems like yesterday that I was waiting for Flossie to go into labor and wondering if I would have a little bull or a little heifer. But then she was here, and we have been so thrilled with her and how she has grown.

Baby Eleanor and a proud Flossie

Now she is half as big as her mama and full of her own unique personality! She is stubborn, independent and she can drain a huge udder in no time flat. But she is also so smart, she can walk on a lead and stand to be groomed already. One of these days she will follow in her Moms hoof steps and be a great milker! But for now, she is still learning the ropes.

Ellie taking a break, lol Her halter is NEVER on!

Pud'nin walking Eleanor

As she grew, her pen began to be smaller and smaller. Not only that, a cows gotta have grass! We would let her out on a lead twice a day to munch the sweet clover, but she yearned to go with her Mama out into the big pasture. She wanted to meet the "others". She would moo to Porter and Clarabelle over her fence, and they would come lay with her by the back of her pen. The only real thing keeping her from the great big pasture was Twister. Yea, Twister the turd horse!

Twister!

Well, we waited, and soon it was summer and Lee and Cayce had plans to go to Wranglers for the weekend. We figured that since horses cant count, that we would use that time to let the little one out in the pasture to get to know her herd mates. That way she could get over her jitters, they could run and jostle without drawing attention to themselves and getting chased by Twister.
It worked like a charm! We let Ellie out with her Mama that first morning and she was so excited! She sniffed all the new things that were there for the sniffing. She ran and bucked, kicking her hooves way up in the air, softly making little happy Moos! Never before had Ellie been able to stretch her muscles and run full out as far and fast as she wanted. It was bliss, she was in heaven!
But, lets think of Flossie for a minute, this had been her sanctuary out in the pasture, the place where she could stay, head down, munching grass without a care in the world. Then we let her little wild child out into her peaceful place! She was not as happy as she could have been, she was trying her best to keep Ellie under control, all the while Ellie just went about her business, ignoring the plaintive moos of her Mama! Ellie would run in one direction, Flossie would follow, telling her to slow down, to look where she was going! Ellie charged ahead, oblivious to her moms warnings. Flossie shot us a look that clearly said 'Thanks, Thanks SO much!"

Mom and girlie!

Soon all her shenanigans got the attention of Porter and ClaraBelle. So over they came to see what was happening, and to see what could be running and jumping! Not to mention, why was Flossie mooing and running after that streak of kicking brown!?
With a few false starts, a little mounting action (cows, geez!), and lots of playing tag they were finally out grazing side by side. Our little herd of four.

Mr. Moogurgles and The Oh So Scary Day!

I have been slacking! I swore I would post at least every week and this spring has been SO busy! There is no way to catch up in one post, so I will touch on a few of the highlights here on the farm. But bear in mind, if I ramble, I am having to take medicine for a back injury!
First off we have managed to get not one, but three gardens tilled and planted! I am so excited because that means more for for us to put up for the winter.

The apples and other fruit trees did manage to keep their fruit through all of the freezy temperatures, which also makes me very happy! I am totally out of blackberry jam and cowboy candy, so come on little plants! Winter makes me so darn droopy, so when we get to garden and see all the green plants poking up through the dirt, I could not be any happier!
We also had a huge issue with cow love earlier this month! Flossie needed a man, and Mr. Moogurgles was more than happy to fulfill her every dream. But in the process he hated anyone and everyone who even looked at his woman!
Roger and I go to feed one morning, and he has jumped the fence.  I figured this out when I rounded the barn he greeted me with a roar from the middle of Flossies pen! Ok...I yelled at Pud'nin that we had a problem! Mr. M. did not like Ellie. At all! So he was busy trying to toss her over the moon! How rude! We did manage to whisk her out, after he tried several times to punt Pud'nin!
So, here we are, with a amorous bull, in with our cow. I have to milk her. There is no choice. Pud'nin is so brave! He distracts Mr. Moogurgles with a bucket of feed. (Obviously Mr. M. is a typical male), which he promptly butts with his head after grabbing a nibble! I grab Flossie, and we run to the barn. Mr. M. Is NOT happy...We start milking Flossie and we hear his bellowing out in the pen. I am very nervous, after all, I have seen the running of the bulls on television! Plus, my shirt was red!! I was doomed!!
I sneak to the back of the barn, lay flat and look under the wall...I do NOT see his feet! O.M.G! I tiptoe to the front of the barn, slip out the front door, pressed against the wall...sneaking, ever so quietly sneaking..Just as I peep around the edge I see the blue feed bucket flying through the air and hear a roar from Mr. Moogurgles!! Believe me, I did not waste time getting back inside the barn! I yell at Pud'nin. " He is out!!" We quietly close the sliding door on the barn, and click the latches.

Now we wait. We have the object of his affection, in the barn, and he knows it.
I am now standing with Flossie, on her lead right behind the closed door, and then I hear it...then I see it!  He is snorting, UNDER the door! Dust is flying up in the air, he bellows...Flossie, betrays us with a MOO!!! I tell her she is a traitor, darn love sick cow!!
We hatch a plan. Desperate times call for desperate measures! We want to live!! We will wait for him to go back around the barn, then we will open the door. Then I will run with Flossie to the gate, getting her IN the pasture. If all works well, he will then see her, run through the gate, and voila, all is well.
We are holding our breath, waiting for our opportunity. Finally I hear him attacking the blue bucket again, so I know he is around the side of the barn. Ever so slowly, we open the door...I make a break for it while Roger goes to make sure Mr. M. is not coming.  I open the gate and get Flossie to lumber in the pasture. Then I hear it....the pounding of hooves!
At this point I realize the flaw in our plan....I am now IN the pasture, holding the gate, with Flossie on her lead. IN THE PASTURE. To get out, without shaking the hoof of the bull, I will have to either go through 4 strands of hotwire, or over the gate. I look up, he is still coming, I am yelling at Pud'nin, unhook the hotwire, get the gate, unhook the wire!!! He is running back and forth trying to do what I said...I was looking at the strands of fence, they were so close together...I am not a small woman. To get out, I was gona have to straddle an electric fence. Or, maybe this?

 Hmmm, not a pleasant thought, but, the other option was to manage to jump on a swinging gate, at the same time a really mad, lust blinded bull, came bellowing through, while letting Flossie off her lead. After one more consideration of the parts of my body that might be zapped by the fence, I chose the gate hurdle. Amazingly, I made it over, and slammed the gate. Never think that a fat older lady cannot get her booty off the ground with enough motivation! A raging bull on one side, and getting your nether region zapped by an electric fence, instant motivation!!
Now we have yet another problem. Flossie had to be milked, twice a day, plus Ellie has to nurse, at least twice a day. Mr. Moogurgles, could not have cared less about either of our problems, he had his own wooing and mooing to tend with.
So twice a day, we had to have one of the guys, or sometimes two, stand guard with a hot stick, while we stole Flossie for a few minutes. He stood at the fence, bellowing, and literally kicking dust over his back like a cartoon bull!

 That, was the longest week ever! I can only hope, that he managed to do his job, and Flossie is with calf. If not, we are in for another Rodeo in about 2 weeks! HELP!
Hey! Don't be afraid to leave a comment, I would love to hear from anyone who reads the posts! :)

Springtime On The Farm!

Busy days around the farm. Warm weather brings a lot of work with it cleaning up all the mess that Mother Nature left during the winter. Flowerbeds to clean, leaves to rake, sticks and limbs to pick up. Not to mention all the spring animal chores like cleaning their pens, fence repair and making sure they are ready for the new season. Even though it is a lot of work, I can say that it is just so wonderful to see the flowers blooming and the sun shining!

I even managed to plant a few things in the garden! Yay me! Pud'nin tilled me up a small plot and I put out some cabbage and broccoli. I also planted some peas, lettuce, spinach and onions. It is always nice when it is time to garden. My favorite time of the year. Earlier this year we found a couple of the little greenhouse thingys on sale at Tractor Supply. We picked them up and I did manage to get some seeds started in there as well. Not many, but it will be nice to get an early start on a couple things. I will say that the wind has made the greenhouses a challenge, I have to tie them to the fence to keep them from blowing away!!

Such cute little things!

I checked yesterday and the seeds are actually sprouting, Woot! I am pretty excited, and I also planted some cabbage in a big pot that I have in the yard. It works like a charm every year. Keeps me from having to buy the plants from the store.

Look! Baby Cabbages!

Flossie and Eleanor are doing great too. Ellie is growing and is just beautiful! The only negative is that the little piggy is getting almost ALL of the yummy Flossie milk! She is quite the eater, lol She is eating hay, grass and will even belly up to the feed trough with her mama for her share of feed. She is leading pretty good, but a but stubborn! Hopefully we can get her all ready to be a milk cow like her Mama! It will not be too long before she will be old enough to wean, and I am sure she and Flossie will not be happy about that little bit of news. We are trying to figure out how to get Flossie and Ellie out in the pasture, but I am worried that once Ellie hits the open range, she will be hard to get back out to train. Not to mention that Twister can be a real turd and I do not want him to hurt her..Then we have Keg, the steer. He is just too aggressive for us to go out in the field to get her or Flossie. It is past time for him to go to freezer camp, but I actually have NO room in the freezer for him at this time. Seems nothing is easy when it comes to the farm life!

Here's my girls!

Ciskgo in the afternoon sun

Princess and Elvis are adjusting very well to their new home and they have become best friends. It has been really good for Princess since she is getting older and the huge pasture was sometimes a challenge for her as far as getting up to the barn at feeding time. Now we can keep a close eye on her and she does not have as far to walk to get to the food and water.

Elvis saying hello!

Time for a Spring Brushing!

We also have a few chicks this spring. We have Silkies, Buff Orpington and Polish Crested babies. We also have several eggs in the incubator. I sure hope we have a good hatch and can sell the little fluffballs to make a bit of money here on the farm. These guys need to pull their weight a little bit, LOL! Here are a few pictures of the little cuties!

Getting ready!

Chickies!

Little Polish Crested

Buffies enjoying the great outdoors!

Look at all these eggs! They were all laid right here on the farm! We are having a bit of an issue with Jayne getting in the chicken house and eating the eggs, so not so many eggs these days. We are working on persuading her to stay out of the henhouse, and I am sure she will get the point soon, She is a smart girl!

Can't you just hear them peeping!

The piggies are also getting along just great! Hopefully we will have the pitter patter of little hooves this summer. I know Wilbur has been wooing Charlotte and although she does not seem as impressed as she could be during the day, who knows what happens in the pig pen at night!? Here is the happy couple.

I am especially excited about something that is not even an animal! Pud'nin made us a fire ring! Yea, I am SO happy. He made it from the rim off an old tractor tire. Took him a while to cut the old tire off, but now I have not only a nifty flower bed, but we also have this nifty fire ring! Last night we all went out and roasted hot dogs and made s'mores. It was so nice, Sadly, I do not think we gone ONE picture..BOO!!! We were just having so much fun I suppose. But, I do have a picture of the fire ring filled with wood and ready to go.

Too Cool!

Well, that is what has been happening here on the Backwards Homestead. Now off to do a few more things on the endless list of chores! It looks like it is going to be a beautiful day, so lets all get outside and get some warm and cheery sunshine on our faces!

Sunny Morning

Today was really sunny which was really nice! Even if it is freezy cold! The animals are beginning to look much better with the warmer temperatures, and also getting a bit of Spring fever. Funny how a little sun can make you feel so much better! Wilbur is settling in nicely, and he is even having quite a bit of interest in Charlotte. (Ahem). lol She is not quite ready to make things facebook official yet, and is giving him a bit of the cold shoulder. I imagine if things go well, and Wilbur can manage to woo Charlotte successfully, we will have piglets by August at the latest. Cross your fingers!
Here they were at breakfast waiting for me to serve it up! He was chasing her around when we arrived, but nothing like a bowl of corn to postpone romance! As you can see, they were not as gentle on their feed bowl as I would have liked. Getting in their pen and fixing their pan twice a day is getting old! Especially when you have to go in with two rather massive piggies. Let me tell you, when they were named LARGE Blacks, they were not kidding, lol

Flossie was all itchy from all her winter hair coming off. She decided to have a scratch on her hay roll! Can we say eww! Who wants hair in their hay? Not me! Right now she looks all splotchy and almost mangy! I brushed and brushed her yesterday, so maybe soon she will be all sleek and smooth.

You also get a pic of Ellies booty! Darn calf, should have cropped that out, but such is farm life. :) The rest of the cows come up and visit with Flossie and Eleanor every day. I would let Flossie out in the pasture, but I am worried that Ellie might be a booger to catch, and Twist might not be too welcoming either. Hopefully we will have a pen for Ellie when it is time to separate her from Flossie, and then we can start training her to be a calm and obedient milker when she grows up! She sure is looking lovely, all stocky and full of energy. I must say, she is one of the prettiest calves we have had here on the farm. I am quite proud of Flossie and Mr. MooGurgles, they made a fine little baby! Here the others are visiting.

Here is Ellie in her Cameo, all vogue and glamorous! Hasn't she grown!

Porter was out of the family picture this morning, he was busy getting a big drink of water. He has really come out of the winter looking fine and fit. I was a bit worried this last winter when it was so darn cold. He was only about 5-6 months old when winter started, and the other cows were not as accommodating as they could have been. He was basically the outcast,:( Now he is one of the herd and is growing quite fast!

Pud'nin and I also had some big helpers this morning, or should I say some new livestock! Here they are looking of of the trailer.

 

Look out, they can be wild!!

Payton looking through a piece of ice that was on the water trough, Cool!

Kaelis face when Grandpa was telling her that all the straw in the compost pile was what they made Mini Wheats out of...Really Grandpa?!

Here are a couple more pictures of my helpers. Even Blu thought he would get in on the action! But I will say, he was probably hoping for a bowl of milk. But, these days Eleanor is getting the bulk of that, so he will just have to wait until this afternoon! Jayne was off chasing squirrels, so I will have to try and snap a picture of her today too, but let me tell you, the camera has to be fast to capture that girl! She is a fireball!
I know that I am really enjoying this sunny weather! Stay tuned, before you know it I will be starting the garden and getting the new chicken pens ready for our new projects! I know I can't wait!