What I find in my washer and dryer

I think everyone knows how thrilling it is to find a $5 bill in your washing machine when you least expected it...(free money,right?) And I think everyone knows how annoying it is to find a that stray pen, marker, or tube of lipstick that has now made its mark on each and every piece of clothing that was in the laundry...grrrrrr.....

From time to time though, I find these:


And I have to smile, because I know that I am one of the very few momma's whose children have a habit of putting soybeans in their pockets and forgetting about them. Such is life on the farm!

Lessons Learned

I've been away from the keyboard for awhile...and I have been loaded down with farm stories the whole time. I often write them in my head when I sit down to feed bumpkin baby, or as I'm doing dishes, or as I'm drifting off to sleep. Somehow they never make it to cyber space, or even to my journal. I don't know where my time goes these days. Life with 3 children ages 6 and under is a juggling act-- a challenging, hilarious, often seemingly impossible juggling act. Then you add life on the farm with 13 animals to that... Then you add Christmas... Gee, I'm sure glad I don't "work" full time!

(that was a joke)

I can't possibly write about all that has happened of significance here in the last 2 months. I will however, make a top ten list for you, hope you enjoy!

A list of lessons I have learned from the recent happenings on the farm

10. Eggs don't go bad when you forget to collect them ... one day we found 14 eggs in the chicken coup. There were only 4 chickens laying eggs, so it had been a few days. Oops! Farmer Wife was preoccupied with bumpkin baby I guess.

9. My weekly article is well liked and greatly missed... I have been told that people have called the paper several times wanting to know where my article is and that even a letter to the editor came in demanding they publish my article again and how dare they fire me! Wow, that was so sweet and I am so flattered by my following of readers.

8. I was told by a new friend that I could tell if Sweetums was pregnant by feeling the upper right side of her back and looking for calf movement. I stared at her for a long time and I would be willing to bet money that I saw something moving in there. My daughter told me it was just breathing, but I have had a baby in my tummy, and I know what it looks like when they move-I saw something in there! (I guess in March we'll see who was right)

7. Rain in December is never a good thing. The farm rarely has seen the amount of rain in December as it did in 2009. The problem with this is that we are finishing up our harvest then, and the rain not only prolongs our work efforts but it also puts the late harvesting crops, specifically cotton and soybeans, are at risk of mold and disease. Nothing like added stress at the end of our year!

6. There is such a thing as organic diapers! Is this as funny to you as it is to me? It is actually the cotton that is used in the diaper lining that is certified organic. I had a coupon for these diapers, so I bought them and used them on bumpkin baby...I don't think he noticed any difference between these and the non-organic cotton diapers because he certainly treated them both the same.

5. When you give a couple of farm kids a shovel, they can and will dig a giant hole. Our 2 older kids started digging before the bumpkin baby was born, and they worked diligently on this hole every day. One of them would dig for awhile while the other one supervised, then they would switch when their arms got tired (or broken as they put it). This hole kept them busy for a good week until farmer husband realized how deep it had gotten and deemed it unsafe to be in the yard where kids and animals and grown-ups walk around. He told me it was about 3 feet deep! As I have said before, these kids can work!

4. The chicken eating fox is alive and well. I won't go into the whole story in order to protect the innocent, but we are down to 3 chickens. That still gives us 21 eggs a week-I think that is sufficient for a family of 5 (when only 4 of them eat table food).

3. The saying "the more the merrier" is so true! Bumpkin baby has made such an incredible addition to the farm and we love him dearly. He has met all the animals and they have gotten to sniff his tiny head.

2. The ratio of one adult to 3 small children and 12 animals is not exactly ideal. During our last few weeks of harvesting, farmer husband has been working unusually long days which has frequently left me to hold down the fort longer than I am comfortable with if say, things got out of hand in the pasture. Thank goodness that the livestock has managed to behave themselves and stay inside the fence! I can honestly say that if one of the goats or even our maybe-pregnant-cow wandered off after escaping from the pasture during the past 2 months, I probably would have simply waved good-bye and yelled "Write when you can!" as they sauntered out of sight! There is just only so much I can do from my command post these days, and keeping the humans alive is taking top priority!

1. At the end of the day, amidst all the foolishness and mayhem that farm and country life bring, I still would choose my life over any other. I still feel the most content looking out into the pasture and field that are my front yard and enjoying the small town that we live in. As our life in the country continues, I thank God everyday for giving me what I never knew I wanted-the peace and quiet of being the farmer's wife.

Well you can't stomp us out and you cant make us run!

My 6 year old daughter loves country music. The other day a Hank Williams, Jr. song “Country boys can survive” came on the radio. I looked at her and her eyes were half closed and she said to me, “This is my song, Mama.” “I know sweetie,” is all I could say without laughing. This week both of my kids have shown me that country boys (and girls) can survive… in fact, they thrive.
I have mentioned before that I love watching my children grow up in an environment that is so conducive to learning. By learning, I’m not talking necessarily about academics, although farm life has plenty of science and math lessons. I am more talking about the every day life lessons and skills that are learned when you are free to roam the countryside.
The kids were enjoying the cool weather last week, and played outside quite a bit in the afternoons. I saw that they had entered the pasture, (without asking permission of course-I suppose in this situation it was easier for them to ask for forgiveness) armed with ropes and blankets. I sat on the porch where I could see and hear them, but where they wouldn’t notice me. Sweetums was off grazing and therefore ignoring the kids. The goats, however, were quite interested in their afternoon visitors. This was all part of the plan I learned as I watched. The kids took turns roping the goats, loading them into the milking stall (well, it has never been used for such activities but one day…) putting a blanket on top of them, waiting a few minutes, and then releasing them. This went on for awhile, each goat getting his turn and proper attention. I couldn’t believe how well the goats took to the activity, but then again these goats were bottle fed by us and wrapped in blankets and taken for stroller rides when they were babies. So I suppose they’ve always been used to this type of treatment. When they were released from the milking stall, their treat was a few pieces of corn. My children, 6 and 4, can work animals! (And no, they are not for hire)
Not only can they work animals, but the 4 year old can now do the nightly animal feeding and gather eggs. The 6 year old can now tend a fire and steer a tractor. I’m telling you what, these kids can work! To them it isn’t work, though. It is the excitement of another day on their farm. I can’t begin to explain to them that these activities far surpass anything they could be doing in a city neighborhood. I know one day they will tell stories about the things they did as kids and probably think I never knew what they were up to. Little do they know that I not only knew exactly what they were doing, but I was actually in favor of it! In the words of my daughter’s song… “Country folks can survive!”
Today’s column will be my last for a little while. We are eagerly anticipating the birth of another bumpkin into our family. I cannot wait to see the interactions that will take place with our new addition. Thank you to everyone who reads and supports my writing, I’ll be back before you know it!

Feeding the World instead of just the Foodies

I read an article in the Sunday October 18, 2009 edition of the Tallahassee Democrat that disturbed me. It was an article about a small family owned farm in rural Georgia that is part of an upcoming farm tour put on by New Leaf Market in Tallahassee. This farm tour features several organic and natural farms, some of which are located in Jefferson County.
The quote from the article that bothered me so was this: "Eleven of the farms on the tour are certified organic, and the rest are all natural and stay away from the conventional agribusiness way of farming," New Leaf's Cristin Burns says. "The products they're producing are healthier because they're not using artificial chemicals, pesticides, herbicides, antibiotics and hormones. Generally, they have a philosophical belief in the way they farm and in providing products that are free from harm."
The reason her quote concerns me is two-fold. The first reason is that she claims that products produced on organic/natural farms are healthier than the products that are produced on conventional farms. To date there is not sufficient research to back this claim. In fact, there are just as many “food scares” with organics as with conventional products. Remember the spinach scare in 2006? That was organic spinach that had e-coli bacteria on it causing several deaths. And just yesterday I read about an organic baby food that was being recalled due to botulism. So organics are not free from harm and should not be touted as so until it is scientifically proven. Moreover, the USDA and others have done significant studies on the amounts of residual antibiotics, hormones, and pesticides in food that comes from animals/plants treated with such and have proven that the amounts are trace at most and show no significant difference between their organic counterparts.
The second reason I am troubled by her quote is because she is stepping on one type of farmer in order to promote another type of farmer. If one can afford organic food and believes it is the best option for them and their family, by all means they have the freedom to buy it and enjoy it. But when those same people choose to put down the conventional farmers in the process, I cannot be silent. I therefore chose to write a letter to the editor of the Tallahassee Democrat in response to the above published statement. It follows:
As the proud wife of an American farmer, and part owner of a small family farm in Jefferson County, I have some concerns with Cristin Burns’ quote in the article “Down on the Farm” printed on Sunday October 18. She contrasts the “conventional agribusiness way of farming” (as she puts it) with the farms on her upcoming tour that have a “philosophical belief in the way they farm and in providing products that are free from harm.” What is being left out of a loaded comment such as hers is that the conventional agribusiness way of farming (versus a purely organic farming model) is what brought America from a third world country to a first world country. It is also this exact model that keeps our grocery stores full of safe, affordable, and abundant food and therefore our fellow man from starving. Furthermore, we as traditional conventional row crop farmers most certainly have strong philosophical beliefs in the way we farm, and strive to provide products that are free from harm. I stand behind all American farmers, conventional or organic, who tirelessly work to provide the food, fiber, and now fuel that we all enjoy on a daily basis. (end of letter)
It is great that so many people have taken a recent interest in where their food comes from and also how to support local farms. In this process however, we have seen first hand that misinformation from the media can serve to negatively impact conventional American agriculture. As conventional row-crop farmers, our family plays a significant role in providing the food staples that the world needs in order to continue eating. As long as there are mouths going hungry, conventional agriculture will be what feeds these mouths. We are proud to be a part of the big picture of feeding the world.

Me and Preggers?

Well, at least we know one of these ladies is expecting. But maybe both...

Back to Bumpkin Land

When I was a little girl, I loved watching Little House on the Prairie (that was one of those red flags to my family that I was really a country girl at heart). I always thought it was interesting that Maw and Paw would “go into town” only every so often. I would get as excited as Laura and Mary were upon their return to see what they had brought back for them as gifts from the country store. It was usually fabric or candy. I thought that was funny…why would you need fabric? Why was candy such a big deal? I went to town daily-I lived there!
Well, now, the tables have turned. I refer to making a trip to Winn-Dixie as “going to town” and because I am out in the country, it isn’t convenient to go every day or on a whim. I don’t need fabric, but the kids do look forward to the days we go into town and they can get some little treat at the store.
Recently my parents took both children for a 3 day vacation to their house to give me a stay-cation at home. This was quite thrilling for the kids, of course, because this was 3 days of intense spoiling. They went to the zoo, the donut shop, the indoor bounce-house playground, out to eat several times, the beach, and probably several other things that they aren’t revealing. All of this took place in a much bigger city than the one they are used to, with any and everything your little heart desires within a 5 minute drive. Of course the children had to be constantly reminded not to dart out of the house into the yard without an adult. They had to be instructed on busy streets, watching out for cars and stranger-danger. They weren’t in Kansas anymore… or Jefferson county!
When they returned home, they promptly greeted each and every animal with open arms. My country mice had returned from the city! They were most amazed at the fact that the donut shop was so easily accessible…little do they realize now that there are some things that are better left uneasily accessible! And just yesterday, my 6 year old said to me at dinner, “We didn’t go anywhere in the car today!” She had become so accustomed to going, that staying just felt odd. I said, “No sweetie, everything we needed today was right here.”
I’m very grateful for the convenience of stores and shopping. Let’s face it, they are necessities of life. But it is so nice to not go anywhere in the car each and everyday just because you feel the need to go into town. And it is so nice to have all my bumpkins under one roof again.

Animal Update

So many of my readers (and friends and family and extended family) have asked for an update on our animals so I think it is time.
Our four remaining chickens (of the original 9) are doing great. They are laying beautiful brown eggs daily and seem to be quite proud of themselves. The “rooster” (if you read my article several weeks ago) is not a rooster. The children and I have come to accept that now. But she is the first lady in the pecking order. When we bring them food scraps to distract them as we gather eggs, she is the one who gets first dibs on what there is to choose from. The other day I gave them a few pieces of stale French bread. It was funny to watch them eat the middle of the bread out and leave the crust! I don’t eat crust on bread, and neither do my kids, so I guess the chickens are really part of our family.
The kittens continue to leave treasures on the front door step several times a week. Recently they’ve been leaving a small green frog, no longer “with us” but perfectly in tact. I’ve told them to please leave the frogs alone…they eat bugs. So the next morning after my discussion with them, they left half of a mouse. I think I prefer the frogs.
My daughter’s vacation Bible school fish, whom she refers to as her only “pets”, are thriving. We have had a few incidents where one of the kitties was in her room and was caught with wet paws and a longing look in his eye…I think he tried to go fishing. I can say with 100% certainty that out of our 13 animals, these 2 fish are by far the easiest to take care of. Not the most entertaining, but definitely easy. And with our 3rd baby due next month, I am placing more value on the easy than the entertaining these days.
Mallory, our beloved Native American Brown Dog (a very rare breed, if you’ve never heard of it), turned 9 recently. For once being a cat hater, she is doing remarkably well handling the feline presence in her territory. She still won’t allow them to snuggle with her, but she does allow them to live, so I suppose that is more important. Snuggling can happen in time.
The three billy goats gruff are also enjoying life. The continue to have head-butting fights each morning to see who is the strongest, and after that is established, they go about grazing, sleeping, and following their Mama cow around the pasture. Whenever she goes, they follow. When she says jump, they say how high. That is just their lot in life and they don’t seem to mind it.
Now the moment you’ve all been waiting for-a Sweetums status update (and no, she isn’t on Facebook). Let me pause here and say that I get stopped in restaurants and chased down in parking lots for people to ask me, “Is the cow pregnant?” With so many people pulling for her and wondering about her, I think Sweetums has become a local celebrity. The farmer refuses to have my precious cow officially “preg-checked.” He says that all signs (and lack of certain other signs) point to her being with-calf. I do agree with him here, but I would really love to know for sure. She has not come into heat since returning to our pasture in late June. She will not allow us to skip even one scoop of corn, which she gets in the evening. If she hasn’t had her dinner, she will moo and bellow at us until we give it to her, even if it is 10 o’clock at night. Once she gets the corn, she is quiet. There was one morning when she was mooing for food, which is very unusual because she is only fed at night. I started out to go feed her and the farmer said, “You are a push over.” I said, “You don’t mess with a hungry pregnant woman. I know how she feels!” So I fed her an extra scoop of corn that morning and we exchanged a wink. Her middle is really getting big. But then again, she never misses a meal, so this could be deceiving me. Her calf, if their really is one in there, should be due in late March. So until then, or until I finally convince the farmer to get me some real proof, all I’m able to answer your questions with is, “I sure hope so!”
So there you have it. The 13 animals are all doing what they are supposed to by continuing to bring us laughter, frustration, and bewilderment. Can’t wait to see what may happen today…