"Cow" girl STRONG!!!!

December 17, 2012

These wonderful young ladies are my daughters.......

 Lindsey & Bailey celebrating cinco de mayo

 



They are both beautiful, loving, compassionate young ladies and true "cowgirls" at heart.  They both possess such inner strength, courage and bravery.  I'm so proud and blessed to call them my own.
Two days ago as the evening was setting in, i noticed one of our cows was showing early signs of labor. I kept a watchful eye on her until dark, getting excited that a new baby calf would be hitting the ground by morning.

  I was babysitting my grandbaby that night and she loves looking at the cows.  So before we retired to bed we thought we would ride out and take a look at momma cow from the vehicle on the roadside.  She was laying out in the field secluded from the others like a good momma cow does entering labor.  After returning to the garage and getting grandbaby out of the car, i felt something grab hold of my back.....I was stuck in a slouched over position....Not good!!!!! i thought.....needless to say, with the help of my youngest daughter we retired to bed, since that was the only position to relieve the pain.  Morning came and grandbaby was stirring around in her bed ,and it then came to mind i need to get up and check on this cow.  Well, getting up and out the bed was not an easy task, but i managed to get grandbaby and walk to the kitchen to get coffee on.  It was a foggy morning, but as i looked out my kitchen window i noticed something i did not want to see............ A momma cow down, and it looked very grim. Through the night she must of moved several places and ended up at the right spot for me to find her by just looking out the window.  I yelled out to my youngest daughter to come downstairs right away.....She ran out the door and to the front fence, she yelled back to me " mom, shes alive and the calf looks stuck".  I put a call in to the vet and he said it might be awhile till he can get to us. I called my oldest daughter and she was  already on her way to come pick up the grandbaby.  We have had calves born here with no problems thus far.  But go figure!!!!!!!!!! These things happen when the Hubby is out working away from home.  I tryed not to panic, and dug through the cabinet to locate an OB chain for calf pulling that i knew hubby had purchased for "just in case" measures. My daughters reassured me "Mom we can do this"....................

AND THEY DID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
My "cow" girls in action.....priceless.......determined, strong and brave....

The calf was already dead when they got to her.  One of the calf's legs were not in correct position. And we had no idea how long she had been trying to push him out.  By looking at the momma, she was exhausted.  As i stood on the front porch slouched over with grandbaby standing at my side, i coached the girls to reach in and find that other leg. Without hesitation, they eagerly worked at getting that calf out.  Shortly after, the vet arrived and he gave her antibiotics and anti-inflammatories.  The girls assisted the vet at attempting to get her up, but she was wobbly and would not stand.  We were instructed to try to keep her siting up and roll her to switch sides from time to time, to keep her blood circulating. He said it may take a few days for her to get up, could be a pinched nerve from trauma during birth. Or it can be permanent, only time will tell. I thought to myself......how am i gonna manage this!!!! hurt back, hubby away......hmmmmmmmmm

Yesterday she was scooting around and switching sides on her own.  I thought YES!!!  thank you Jesus.....We don't have to manhandle her on our own..

Momma cow laying down

By last night she was able to stand.  Thank you Jesus again!!!!!! no permanent paralysis.

This morning she is up and eating on her own.....

It would have been a bull calf.......... while it's so heartbreaking to loose a calf, i feel blessed we still have the momma.  Cows are strong animals, I'm reminded by hubby, and mother nature is an awesome thing to witness.  Watching my girls run out there and do what they could to try to help this mom was also amazing. 

I too........Have such strong amazing daughters......Thank you girls, for being there for mom and not being scared to "COWGIRL UP"               Love you both....


                    Sheryl

Fall harvesting

December 4, 2012

The fall garden is looking pretty good. We have had several pickings on our mustard greens in spite of the lack of rain and warmer than usual temperatures.

Haven't picked any turnips yet, but i don't think they will be much longer.  The leaves are beautiful but taking a little longer to make a bulb.

A few scenes from the lettuce patch.  Looking pretty good............

mesclun blend variety

We also have some kale, parsley and shallots along with buttercrunch lettuce growing in this raised bed.

buttercrunch lettuce

Cabbage is also looking good, starting to form a head. Hmmmm hope they are ready for New Year's Dinner.......

cabbage

I wanted to give brussel sprouts a try, my hubby loves them, and that's one thing i have never grew before.  I was curious as to how they grow, and couldn't wait to watch the little sprouts grow and produce these little babies.

brussel sprouts

Not many of the plants survived the drought,t but it's been neat to watch these grow.


The pok choi was growing beautiful also, but the warmer than normal temps have forced it to bolt, it has gone to seed now.

Chopped up and stir fried with onions and smoked sausage. 

Reminds me of smothered cabbage.........for you Cajun gals who have never tried this cruciferous vegetable.


Linking up to Backyard Farming Connection , click over to read some interesting stories from other homesteading enthusiast.



                 Shery

Missing blogland

November 5, 2012

Wow!!!! it has been awhile since i had time to do any posting or catch up on all my fellow bloggers.   Now that daylight savings time is here, we will be indoors earlier, i may be able to catch up with all of you.

October has been a busy month.  We sold the small herd of cows we had here to make room for a few better quality cattle.  I guess you can say we started with what we can afford at the time, to be able to purchase better and grow from there.  We purchased three Brangus cows already bred, they expected to calve starting sometime in December.  Sorry no pictures at this time.

It was also time for our male lamb to serve his purpose for our family.  He was a cross breed so his purpose for us was to put meat in the freezer.  We did this process ourselves.  Sorry i didn't think you would want pics of this event.  But that's what homesteading and farming is all about.  For those of you that think raising and butchering our own animals is inhumane,  raising our own food is our goal.

We had the opportunity to entertain my baby sister and her family in the month of October as well.  Here in our community we have a week long fair with animals, crafts, music, exhibits, and a midway.  We all got to spend a few days at the fair and the kids had a ball......

Bailey was a sport and rode the coaster with her little cousin Trey....He was looking brave on this ride.........Hands in the air.......

Not sure about this one.......... he insisted he had rode the ferriswheel before, i don't think he did by the look on his face.

They got to help Bailey with chores. 

 

"LADY" loved all the attention

Enjoyed this visit with my sister ......

 

I also lost my dear Grandmother in the month of October.  She was 91 yrs old, and was loved by many.

 She wasn't ill long, she had a very good long life.  I'm blessed to have had her in my life.  She has taught us all the love of cooking, which she took great pride in.  This snapshot is taken of her signing her cook books, she had published late in life.  She also loved to sew and make her own clothes.  She was a wonderful homemaker.  She was an inspiration to us all.  We will miss you Maw Maw.


We finished the bathroom remodeling, got all that wallpaper off, got it painted and new flooring.  To save some money i tryed revamping the old light fixtures by spray painting them with that textured paint. 

It turned out pretty nice....plus a $avings......gotta love that....

This is a before pic after wallpaper was removed, mirror was taken down, and those ugly brown cabinets.......

This is a after shot, all we have left is to change out the faucets on the sink.

It was hard to get some good shots of this bathroom, but you get the idea.....It was long overdue for a face lift.

Now we have started on the stairway railing and spindles.  This has always bugged me from the day i bought this house....This staircase was not safe for little ones, I taught every child that came to my house to walk up them stairs holding the wall all the way up and around.  Now that my grandbaby is getting around and climbing, we decided that this cannot be put off any longer.

Before pics...

 

Work in progress:

Notice the difference in the height of the railing, and the width of the spindles.....Makes a grandmother feel a little more at ease.......

I hope November doesn't go by so fast....Trying to get these projects done before the holidays........
Promise to not stay away so long.....I can't wait to read your stories......


Live Simple.......................Sheryl

Good-bye summer, Hello september!!!!!

September 5, 2012

WOW!!!! where did time go.........The last i was here was in July.....gosh!! i didn't think i got that busy.  Well let's see........The end of July was getting ready for school to start and get supplies and uniforms ready. The first of August we took a trip to Oklahoma with my youngest daughter, where she competed in an AQHYA world horse show for her FFA judging team.  Our trip there was nice but while there Oklahoma experienced record heat of 112 degrees, and fires broke out everywhere.  Got back and the school year started, and then a hurricane came knocking on our door. 

 

Jessie 17 mos. & Bishop

 

 

We all hunkered down here on the farm to weather out the sporadic, unpredictable track of hurricane Isaac.  The winds were not that bad here on the farm, but we did get lots and lots of rain. 14 + inches.

 

 

We Lost power for four days.......Hot and humid, everything sticky......

 

 

Lot's of cleaning up to do afterwards......

 

 

But.........everything checked out fine.......the family was safe....the animals were safe....the farm was spared.........We thank the good Lord!!!!!!!!!

 

Our thoughts and prayers go out to all those who lost homes to flooding and to all who still are without power. 

 

Gonna get busy with a fall garden soon......just wanted to let you all know we are still here.  More later...........

 

 

 

        Live Simple.....................................................Sheryl

Rainy day picker upper

July 28,2012

It's been one of those off and on rainy day weekends,but we don't mind...... we will take the rain to make up for the lack of, not very long ago.  I don't know about you, but rainy days makes me want to curl up and sleep all day.  But i can't let myself do that, so i wanted to share with you what i whipped up this afternoon...... an easy homemade iced vanilla latte..............
Yep........a nice afternoon picker upper, to get me up and moving, literally.
You don't need any fancy machines to whip up this refreshing drink, just a little arm muscle.

you will need about 1 cup of milk, you probably can use half & half cream, or a little of both.  I only had 2% milk which worked but I'm sure adding the cream would have made it that much better.

Ok.....This is where the arm workout comes in.......Ooooops....i forgot to tell you that making this drink requires a little workout before you get to indulge.  Pour the milk into a jar with a lid, making sure the lid is screwed on tight.  Now shake, shake, shake..........you want to get a froth going on.  Put on some music and get out your chair and shake, shake, shake...... it's a picker upper in two aspects, a jolt of caffeine, and a work out.....     come on....you can do this.....
Mine built up a froth in about 10 minutes.....  see that did'nt take long.

This is a great way to use some leftover coffee, which i had some left from this morning.  The recipe calls for a strong brew coffee or espresso.  I guess it depends on the strength you like your latte.

Pour the coffee into a mug or glass with ice, to your own taste, leaving enough space to add your milk and other flavors.

I added a little vanilla, cinnamon, and drizzled honey on top for sweetness.  You can create your own flavors, and top with cream if you like.  This can be done hot as well, by hand mixing the milk over a low heat on the stove, but i prefer a cold one, and i liked the shaking of the jar method better.

Now doesn't that make you feel better, knowing you had a little workout before indulging, and it's HOMEMADE!!!!!!!!!!!

Just a little something for a rainy day....


             Live simple.....................Sheryl

Louisiana shrimp and garden fresh veggies

July 24, 2012


Hi everyone, earlier today i was trying to figure out what to cook for dinner.  The past few weeks i have been trying to eat out the freezer to make use of what we have stored, and try not to run to the store for something to cook.  Sometimes it's a challenge to come up with something that everyone will love.  I, on the other hand can make a meal out of a few fresh vegetables and some leftover meat.  With rumors spreading that the cost of groceries will be on the rise again soon, we all need to  practice making use of leftovers, and to become more creative in the kitchen.

My peppers caught a second wind, with the much needed rainfall we have been getting, my plants jumped up and made some beautiful peppers.   So I pondered on what to do with them tonight.........Hmmmmm i love some stuffed bell peppers.  We ate deer loin over the weekend, and deer/pork ground meat burgers yesterday, so i have had my fill of meat the past few days.  While digging through the freezer, i found a pack of shrimp that i put up earlier in the year.  When i do get to put up shrimp in the freezer, i savor each and every pack, knowing they are far and few between.  The past few years Louisiana shrimp were expensive, so i don't splurge often on such a delicious southern treat.

Well it looks like our taste buds are in for a special treat!!!!!!!!!!!  I decided to stuff the peppers with a shrimp and kale mixture.  My husband has been on a diet watching his carbs, so stuffing with rice was out the question.  He suggested i use some kale to help with the stuffing part instead of the rice, and since i have alot of that in the freezer, i thought Hey..............that sounds good.

I cooked onions, celery, bell pepper, garlic and tomatoes down until wilted, added the blanched kale and let it cook down about 15 min.  Threw in the diced shrimp seasoned to your own taste and a handful of fresh parsley.  Wilt that down a few minutes, careful not to overcook the shrimp. I added a little bread crumbs to absorb any liquids, and stuffed the peppers then topped each with a little more breadcrumbs and a pat of butter.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 20-30 min.  The peppers were blanched before i filled them with the stuffing. 

This with a green salad and leftover blackeye peas is" what's for dinner" at our house tonight..........

How are you being creative in the kitchen?  What sort of dishes you are making to stretch the budget?  Would  love to hear about them.


              Live Simple........................Sheryl

blogger giveaway

July 16,2012

Hi friends, just wanted to share with you a great giveaway.  Berte, From River Bend Farm is celebrating 100 followers on her blog with a giveaway.

  She is an awesome lady, with a big texan, christian heart, that blogs about her chickens and horses on their farm.  Click on the link above and follow her blog and you too can be entered into her giveaway.  Read some of her stories and happenings around her farm.  She has the cutest chicken house, you just have to see it.


         Live Simple....................Sheryl

Double Stuff

July 12, 2012

Our Belted Galloway cow "Oreo" had her calf this morning. It's another double stuff Oreo looking calf. How exciting!!!!!!!!!!!!!

She was not bred to a purebred Galloway bull this time.  We wanted to throw something else into the mix and bred her to the black bull we had. 

This is the whole "Oreo" family, "Maggie" ( in front), was her last years calf born 7/29/11, and the new baby born today 7/12/12. 

Not sure if it's a male or female yet.


While trying to get pictures of the new baby this evening, a parade was passing by and getting in my view.................

 

A parade of lambs............  Rosie leading the pack, followed by Jolie, and the two new girls Shiloh, and Ellie.  They adjusted fine, grazing happily with the rest of the herd.  They will be bred this fall and winter and be lambing for us in spring next year.  If anyone is interested in purchasing lambs, contact us.  We will have both registered purebred St. Croix and unregistered St.Croix/Katahdin cross.


    Live Simple.......................Sheryl