couple #1, couple #2 and couple #3

We had another calf born today, as well as one on Sunday right before we left for church. That leaves us with 3 on the ground and we think 3 more yet to calve. Newborn calves are cute. Evidently coyotes must think they are cute too, because we had one eye balling them earlier today. Elizabeth ran outside and it took off.

We are getting ready to sell part of our herd probably next week, so this is a great time to calve. Everyone that is born to a momma we were selling is more money. (I think I hear a new dishwasher calling my name.) We intend to build back up the herd we keep, mainly Angus, and we have already had 2 added to it.

Sunday afternoon I took the girls and 2 of their friends ice staking in St Joseph. They all had a really good time.

New Life on the farm

Today we awoke to find we have a new calf. Last month I had told my husband I thought we had some new calves on the way, but this one was a total surprise. It is a pretty brownish-red color, like is Grandma. Its Grandma is a red shorthorn, but its Grandpa and Momma are Angus. Not sure about the daddy. Momma is named Ms. 54 (its her ear tag number) and is very very gentle. She loves to have her ears scratched. She is a first time momma and doing a very good job. The baby has been up some but doesn't wander too far from momma. It is nursing good and momma is staying right with it. I just wish she had had it a few days ago when it was warmer. Seems like that is a trend here on the farm, to have calves on the coldest days.

The girls put a heat lamp in the chicken coop last night. They also added more hay in the rabbit hutches and the pigs house. We had several inches of ice this morning in water tanks. Just a few days ago it was 70 degrees. What happened??

I just updated the prayer list on my sidebar. It was good to remove several, as they have been answered by our Awesome God. Susie's cancer is gone, Gracie's adoption is complete and she is now at her new home in America.

On the home front, I made some real good thrift store buys this week. In the last 3 weeks, we have managed to kill 2 vacuum cleaners. I went thrift store shopping and found a canister one (I hate bags), 2 velvet dresses for the younger twins for Christmas, some shirts for Emily, a pair of insulated carhartt coveralls, a couple books, and 2 educational math computer game CD's. All for under $30. Not bad in my opinion. The math games have been a hit. Rebecca hates doing her math and this is a good fun way to do some math and she doesn't realize she is learning from it.

cow hide anyone??

We have a large (white fur) cow hide from a full grown steer. It is large enough to cover a chair or loveseat. $100. If interested, let me know! Right now it has rock salt on the skin side of the hide. I am not opposed to shipping it (at your expense). Unique-comes with a couple of bullet holes....

I figure somewhere out there someone who tans hides would love this one.

Found the missing cow

Elizabeth and her sisters found the run away cow this morning. As hoped, she was in the pasture with the other cows. That is a huge relief. No fun in chasing down a cow in 30 degree weather...

My parents return today from Arizona. They have been there visiting my aunt who has cancer.

This evening we also have a library class to attend and later in Liberty we may attend a storm spotter class. The girls and I are already storm spotters (we were trained last year) but I think it would be good to go to as a refresher. We may also get to see some new footage of last springs local tornadoes. If we do, they will get 2 hours of science for it. A lot of homeschooling is hands on. More interesting than reading it in a book.

Poor Rebecca is having to redo several math pages. She didn't read her symbols. She missed the fact that it was a review and did the problems as multiplication, when some of them were addition and subtraction. Next time she will work a little slower. That is another plus of homeschooling. In a public or traditional school setting, they would most likely be marked wrong and recorded as a failing grade, as the class needs to move on. However, I hand it back for her to redo it. A lot of things we redo until we get it right. That's how we learn. Causes less frustration.

Tomorrow we have homeschool coop. This semester I am teaching 2 classes on the American Presidents, and one on Missouri. Emily is taking: debate (2 hours long), snack shop (they run the concession stand and learn to order inventory and take money and make change), and volleyball. Elizabeth has baton, scrapbooking, spanish and ooey gooey science. Rebecca has scrapbooking, watercolor, repeat art (deals with patterns in art) and ooey gooey science.

Elizabeth and her cow

This is Elizabeth and Hershey, her cow. The mom is a shorthorn and the dad and angus. She plans to AI Hershey with angus. Then she would like to show the calf for 4H.

Right now Hershey is in "cow jail", the feedlot, as Hershey has an uncanny way of escaping the pasture. We 'think' we have found where she is getting out at...maybe. However, until that fence is redone, Hershey will remain in the feedlot. Hershey has an older sister 'Ms 54' that we also plan to AI to angus.

Ms 54 also has been know to escape a few times a well, but hasn't lately. Actually their mother used to and Ms 54 was born at the neighbors during one escape. So, maybe this escaping from our pasture is in their blood....
I have noticed that when the cows get out, they go to the neighbors. However, when the horses get out, they head straight for my garden and then they root their feet into it and refuse to leave.