January 1, 2006 New Year's Day Sunday
I was not planning to stay up to see the New Year in but it was 10 minutes to midnight when I got through washing bottles, so I stayed by the radio. I feel like I did not get nearly enough done in 2005.
The cows were still antsy this morning. Helen whapped me with her nasty tail. It was not wet, just crusty. I tied it up with baling string after which she settled down. But even Jasmine seemed irritable. She lifted her off hind foot. I said a firm "No" and there were no further shenanigans until I turned them out. Then there was a cow fight between Emily and Jasmine. Jasmine gave Emily a thorough drubbing.
I am trying to get the house cleaned up. The furnace smoke has made a scum on all the mirrors and pictures. Of course the walls and mouldings are also bad, but they will have to wait, probably 'til Doomsday.
Today I got along slightly better with my milk flood. I got pro-active and skimmed six gallons. I set the cream for churning, put some skim into plastic gallon jugs in the buttery to freeze up for a later time. The buttery is a pretty good deep freeze, I just set things on the table and they freeze. Then I poured the rest of the skim into a 5 gallon bucket which I set to clabber for cottage cheese or chickens. All this so as to make room in the fridge for another six gallons tomorrow. I also made butter. The refrigerator is crammed with yogurt, cottage cheese, crème fraiche and kefir along with the usual cream and butter. I was looking today at a very old cookbook, "Cooking With Cream" written by a Wisconsin farmers wife. It contains 120 recipes. If I had any time I would get cookin'.
January 2, 2006 Monday
Jasmine's heat continues. She put on a major show today that even involved Helen. I stayed way out of the way of three revolving cows.
It is so hard to keep their premises even reasonably clean. I went out today on errands, first time since December 22, and bought shavings. When I spread them, Jasmine was ecstatic. She put her face down in them and sprawled around.
There is now some hope I can get Jasmine bred on her next heat. Sally L gave me some straws which are at a farm in MA. I have spoken with the Maine Genex coordinator and he will pick them up and bring them to my technician, hopefully in time although he would not promise.
The dairy farmer where I buy bob calves called today. He has one for me. Now to figure out how to get it here.
January 4, 2006 Thursday
The shavings are making a big difference in my happiness. The poops are a lot easier to carry out and both cows were cleaner this morning. I raced into town and bought three more bales to have ready.
I had more energy today. Maybe it was a "steak high", something that many have reported. I had a package with one steak and cooked it for myself last night, not the sort of thing I often do. On the other hand it might be because Sally is coming so soon. I know she will be a big help in dealing with the milk flood. We now have it worked out that Max will pick her up with his van and they will stop for the calf on the way here.
I have not done much to get ready for her except for vacuuming her room. I remembered how she hates ladybugs ever since last year when one climbed into her ear and about drove her crazy. Clusters of them have been over wintering in there above the windows.
Tonight while milking the pulsator suddenly stopped for no good reason. The vacuum seemed to have failed again. After banging things around a bit it started up. Poor Helen was streaming milk and wondering what was wrong.
After I let the cows out Helen and Jasmine had a head banging fight. Helen stood her ground as she pushed on Jasmine's head, but Jasmine was hopping mad and was literally jumping up and down. I finally got tired of watching and got busy with my fork, but it appeared to be a stand-off. Afterwards I saw Jasmine race over and give Emily a good bump. I gave them one of my best bales for lunch. Maybe they had a "hay high".
Last night I soaked ww flour to make biscuits according the Kendra's recipe, but then I decided to add yeast. This morning I made it into a couple of very nice loaves of bread.
January 6, 2006 Friday
I forgot to mention a horrible thing that happened yesterday morning. My barn water tap was frozen. I had forgotten to plug in the heating pad that I keep draped over it, although it was not a cold night. I am surprised it froze. I defrosted it with a hair dryer. As soon as it was thawed it began shooting a great geyser of water. The brass casting was split like an over boiled weenie. Only a small portion of the stream was going through the hose that fills the tank and I had to just let it spray all over everything until the tank was filled. Later I went down and bought what I hoped was the correct new brass fitting with a lever. Martin says they are all now made in China to a low standard.
Last evening there were many distraught calls from Sally. She was at Logan Airport and unable to find the minibus transport on which she had a reservation for Portland. The minibus was calling me but I was little help. She does not have a cell phone. Finally, the shuttle left without her but continued calling from the road until it got sorted out that she would take a big Trailways bus. It was all so upsetting at the end of a long flight, but she finally made it to Portland where Mark met her and took her to his place. This morning Max picked her up and they drove to the dairy farm and picked up the little bull calf, now a week old and well fed on colostrums. They reached here about 3pm. The calf has a lot of white on him and is lively as can be. I had Sally give the farmer $50 although he only asked $15. But he kept it a whole week for us and the little things are so precious. We introduced the calf to Helen and Jasmine this evening, but did not push the relationship. They all were friendly.
Sally looks good. Her hair is still shiny black. She has already made two batches of butter.
She and Max fixed up the calf, still nameless, in a cozy room with a heat lamp. He has had 3 quarts of colostrums in two feeds now.
Max repaired the frozen, broken faucet using the part I bought. What a relief.
I got a present from my John in Australia: an alarm clock that goes "Moo".
We got about 4 inches of snow yesterday.
Today's weather: bright and cold, around 17F Sally named the calf Fred. He is a totally bouncy, leaping and running little fellow with tiny twinkling feet. She had him spend some time today with the cows and this evening when Jasmine was in her stanchion and already letting down we brought him in to try sucking. Before he could begin to get the hang of it Jasmine had kicked him three times. She is mannerly with the machine but did not fancy Fred at all. Helen seemed disappointed not to be given a chance and was doing her calf moo. I guess we will let Helen and Fred have a go in the morning although from a management standpoint it would suit me a lot better to have him on Jasmine. Sally fed Fred the last pint of colostrums and hand milked some of Helen's milk for him. So far we have been a bit skimpy with his feed but if tomorrow he still shows no intestinal problems we will increase his milk a bit. I think today he got barely a gallon. His back end is clean. I don't know what he weighs but he is small. He has broken color, fawn and white with nearly half being white.
Sally made more butter today and started a batch of feta. I made cottage cheese according to a method on my forum that involves no heating of the curd, just cold water washing. It turned out very well. It is now in the fridge on paper towels as recommended. Max and Mitra and family will be here tomorrow. I will see how they like it. I plan to feed them one of Rafe's salmon which he caught from the Chilcoot River that runs by their house in AK.
January 8, 2006 Sunday
The thermometer was down to 6F this morning. This is getting pretty nippy. However, things take a bit less time in the barn now with Sally racing around. We put Fred on Helen this morning. I don't know if he ever spent time with his mom, but he did not take long to master sucking direct from the cow. Helen is perfectly cooperative except when he butts her. He butts often. Sally gave him a midday bottle, then we put him with Helen again this evening with the same results. Helen did some more kicking but caused no injuries. The way he butts you can't blame her.
Max and Mitra and the girls came for a late lunch. We served one of the salmon that Rafe caught. He brought it here frozen. It was very good of course. I also served a vegetable medly with some of my rutabaga and a beautiful golden colored cauliflower. Mitra made on of her famous salads and we also had brown rice. Before lunch Max whipped up a couple of excellent tarts, one apple, and one blueberry. We also had some nice organic wine given me by Mark called Our Daily Red.
Mitra liked the cottage cheese made by the method I recently learned.
January 9, 2006 Monday
When we came downstairs this morning the door was wide open and it was 41F in the kitchen (It was 6F outdoors).When Rafe was here he repaired a big draught around the kitchen door with insulation tape. Now the door has to be slammed to reliably latch. Obviously, last night I did not slam it. I hope I do not make this mistake very often.
The pulsator refused to work this morning. Also, the vacuum pressure was way down on the pump, I suppose because it was snowing. I had to milk using the old finger flipping trick. Such a nuisance. This evening I oiled the pulsator and also turned the vacuum pressure way up. One or the other or the combination cured the problem.
It snowed for much of the day and traffic was creeping, so I did not go to town. Sally and Bagel took a walk around the fields. I stayed home. My gimpy hip joint is noticeably better, but not ready to plow through snow. I discovered that if I toe out it is better.
Helen is not so sure she likes Fred. She hung around outdoors this evening, obviously to make a point. This morning I had to put the kicker on her to permit him to suck and did the same this evening. Sally thinks she may decide to just bottle feed him. I have no doubt I could use Midge's method with success on one or the other of the cows, but maybe bottle feeding will be easier all around.
January 10, 2006 Tuesday
We put Fred back on Helen this morning, but I had to use the kicker. Later Sally said this was making her back awfully tired and she said she would just as soon use the bottle. Of course, Helen did not know this. When I opened the door to let the cows in this evening none were to be seen. I found Jasmine alone in the barnyard standing in the dark. When she saw me she came bolting in. I had to jump out of her way she was so anxious to get to her dinner. But where was Helen? She was standing way out in the snowy pasture with Emily at her side. Clearly, she was making a point about Fred. While I got the machine on Jasmine, Sally spent five minutes coaxing her back in with grain. When she perceived it was a Fred-free zone she settled right in with perfect manners. Sally gave Fred his bottle.
Sally and I stopped over at her little house. Everything was in good order. In the middle of the floor there is a great heap of business-like innards to Rafe's boat: cables, galley, head, sails and more. The rain and snow melt swollen river was racing past.
January 11, 2006 Wednesday
Sally and I had planned a trip to Farmington today but cancelled due to a forecast for freezing rain. 9pm now and still no rain or snow, so we might as well have gone. Sally made more feta and churned butter. I got a lot of mailing done.
Sally and Bagel walked around the fields. My hip is a lot better. I can now stand on my left foot. But I am not quite ready for a walk.
This evening when I put the machine on Jasmine she kicked at it. She has never done that before. I tried again and she kicked again. She finally got me to understand I was putting the cup that belonged on her rear teat onto the front. She knew and didn't like it. What a princess.
Fred spends time each day playing in the beefer pen among the cows. He runs in mad circles around the room. The cows show no signs of being mean to Fred and Emily would like to play.
Sally and I cooked the meat for a terrine. We used beef neck meat, beef tongue and tail and a pig's trotter. These simmered all afternoon with interesting herbs and spices including some of the bay leaves that her daughter Rosemary brought last year from Croatia. The stock is fantastic. She has chopped the meat up small and will cover it with the jellied stock. I have a handsome oval French terrine given me by my daughter Marcia.
January 12, 2006 Thursday
Our jellied terrine is delicious. We ate some for dinner. Sally also made a sour cream date pie that is mighty tasty. The sour cream had been in the fridge just covered with plastic wrap for about a month. The top half inch was nasty but the remainder of the cream was perfect. If it had been in a tight jar I doubt it would have been much good.
We went to Farmington this morning and met Max. We took him three gallons of milk. Sally and I went to lunch at Homestead Restaurant. Max popped in and joined us at our table and finished off the leftovers. Sally went to the thrift shop and picked out a new wardrobe of plaid shirts. She also bought a nice print at a new gallery. It is a scene painted somewhere on the Maine coast.
I heard a disturbing report today of the visit by friends of mine to the pediatrician with their week old baby. The baby was crying a lot and the new parents were distraught because the little boy, breastfed entirely, had not had a bowel movement for three days. The baby had passed meconium properly. Nonetheless the pediatrician ordered an X-ray to see if it had a blockage. He also urged the mother to switch to formula. I am shocked that a doctor would order such an invasive measure on a newborn. I am also disgusted that a pediatrician would be ignorant of how normal it is for a breastfed baby to go several days without pooping. Breast milk is a low residue food and is often so completely absorbed that it takes days for volume to build up. I remember one of my babies going 10 days. To urge a switch to formula is deeply irresponsible. It is a recipe for turning the baby over to the medical profession; it becomes the possession of the doctor.
January 13, 2006 Friday
Sally mentioned today how good it was that her shoulders were not aching. Because her goats have been dry she has been without raw milk since she was last here nine months ago. She says it has been impossible to find a comfortable sleeping position. Now after just one week here during which she has been stuffing herself with every sort of raw milk product and many glasses of milk she announced as she leaned over the sink that she was free of pain. Raw milk is well known for overcoming the pain of stiff muscles.
We decided to try Fred in with the cows tonight. It is not a cold night and the cows seemed to be asking for him. Neither of them wants him to nurse but they clearly felt he belonged in with them. The outer door is closed so they are all confined to the barn. We left a little light shining down from the hay mow.
I fixed a couple of Max and Mitra's pork chops for dinner. I sautéed them with a little toasted sesame oil, then removed them to the warming oven and in the same pan sautéed apple slices, onion, and some of my homemade sauerkraut. This was excellent.
Little Fred got along just fine in with the others and it appeared to us that Helen had fed him. Tonight we were not so sure, so Sally took him a bottle. He is starting to copy the others and nibble hay. Emily likes him a lot.
Sally made a farm-style hard cheese today, the one from KFC. I made cottage cheese.
No other family members are visiting. It was above freezing and rained steadily all day, so there were no winter sports possible.
January 15, 2006 Sunday
It is a quiet indoor day for sure. It rained all day yesterday and pounded the snow into an ice sheet between the house and the barn. It rained more until much of the ice was gone, then during the night it changed to snow. It has snowed lightly most of today and there is a high wind from the NW. Great swirls of snow are to be seen when looking towards the barn. The chickens are comfortable without any added heat thanks to Max having lined their quarters with insulation. They are laying plenty of eggs, 7 to 11 a day.
16 January, 2006 Monday
Our thaw is officially over. It was down to 6F this evening.
So far as we can tell, Freddie has not been able to nurse Helen again, so he is having a bottle. I have little doubt but that as he gets bigger he will manage it. Helen is not so very difficult. She gives her "calf moo" when she hears him bellow as he does sometimes if he must wait for his feed.
Sally made a fine pumpkin pie today using frozen pumpkin from last year. It was a heritage pumpkin called Long Pie. She made a lard crust and I of course made a pile of whipped cream.
My vacuum pump is making a noise I don't like, a sort of dry chuffing sound. This is not the motor itself. Is sounds more like something chafing on something or maybe dragging. It is not intermittent.
January 17, 2006 Tuesday
Yesterday continued very cold, but today started out at 12F and warmed up to 27F. It sure makes barn work easier.
Sally took another cheddar cheese out of the mold this morning.
Little Fred is doing fine in with the big cows. Emily, now nine months, is attached to him and makes sure to know where he is all the time. They are cute together. Yesterday and today we had sunshine, so we let them all out together for awhile. We shut the barnyard gates so they have a limited area to roam. We saw Fred in the sunny lean-to baking himself.
Sally and I went out on errands today and missed Max. He came for milk and did several things of a useful nature while here including filling the wood box. Sally and I went to the Free Store, a jolly Catholic charity that takes donations but gives away all the items. Sally got some nice flannel work shirts and some wool skirts for her braided rug project. She works on this politely at every meal, waiting for me to finish eating. I am very slow due to my missing teeth. We had a lovely dinner of oyster mushrooms and more of our jellied meat over achioto rice and a salad.
While shopping today I went to Radio Shack and they sold me a good clock radio for half price. The man said nobody is buying them anymore. My existing clock radio is now 15 years old and has become unreliable. I can't get NPR without thumping it. Now, of course, I risk brain cramps having to master the programming instructions for the new radio. For backup I have my new cow alarm son John sent from Australia. It says moo. But it does not give the news.
January 18, 2006 Wednesday
It rained all night and all day and was strangely warm. The thermometer reached 47F this afternoon before beginning to drop.
When Sally brings Fred into the main hall of the barn for his midday bottle all three of the girls stand staring at the door waiting for him to return. She could feed him out there among them but wants him to have the training in leading. Also, it is best he not be among them while still in his feeding frenzy in case Emily might allow him to suck.
Due to poor planning I did not pick up feed yesterday and could not get it delivered in this weather. So, I had to go to Dixfield and pick some up at the hardware store seven miles away. The roads had been sanded, so driving was safe enough but I needed to run the windshield wipers at fast speed.
Sally and I worked over at her little house for awhile today. Everything in there is damp due to the rain and no heat turned on. She will go tomorrow and build a fire.
Last night I studied my clock radio handbook and thought I had everything right, but no, it did not go off this morning.
January 19, 2006 Thursday
In her stanchion Jasmine has been eating out of a small wobbly pan. I found a large square one that has been under the barn eaves full of ice. Two days of thaw allowed me to knock out the ice. I dried it in the sun and put it in her stanchion.
Tonight when Jasmine stuck her head into her stanchion she took one look and fled. I managed to get her back but she stood trembling without actually putting her head through. It took a lot of stroking and coaxing to keep her from fleeing again. Sally crept around behind with the "real" pan and set it down inside the new one with more grain and I popped in the bolt. She tried several times to wrestle her head out of the stanchion which is a bit large for her. She actually had her head out once but did not realize it and I was able to push her forward and snap on an accessory clip. She continued to tremble the entire time she was being milked and I had to clean up a number of "contributions". This was so strange. Sally and I both had the idea that something unpleasant in her past was associated with such a pan. I have never used this one for anything bad. It just had water off the eaves. I wonder what morning will bring. Of course Helen detected trouble and had to add her fifty cents. I even had to tie her tail when it came to be her turn to be milked. She is always second. I need the whole time Jasmine is milking to get Helen Pigpen clean
Jasmine'e production was down a bit this evening I could tell, but with the two of them I continue to have close to six gallons a day to put in the fridge.
January 20, 2006 Friday
Jasmine was a bit hesitant this morning. She had not forgotten the evil pan. She looked through her stanchion and saw the old familiar pan back in its place and stuck her head in. This evening she barely hesitated at all.
While Helen and Jasmine are in their stanchions Sally ties up Emily and Fred in the hall. The cows can't see them but know they are there. Sally feeds and handles them, then leaves them there while she mucks out. After this she puts them back out. The cows really do not like this. They don't think the kids should be sent out alone. This is when Helen begins whapping me with her tail.
We are having another strange thaw. Lots of rivers in Maine are flooding.
I need to find some more hay if I can. I called my hay man and learned that he is in Florida. His friend answered the phone and said he would have a look around but hasn't called back.
It was warm again to day, 47F and windy. Much of the snow has melted and ice has formed. There is a great deal on the way to the barn and in the barnyard. I was out on the deck tossing away some vegetable trimmings and saw Jasmine slipping on ice in the barnyard. She fell twice, got up, fell again and lay there. I called Sally and we ran out with the bucket of salt. By the time we got there she had floundered to a place with better footing and was standing. Her underside was dripping with brown ice water and she was shaky and limping. We threw salt around in case of future incidents. Sally put out some of the best hay to entice them all back indoors. By this evening Jasmine had only a slight limp. A big wind came up by late afternoon. Emily was in heat all day. This made both cows nervous this evening. They peed and pooped buckets. I had to tie Helen's tail.
As is well known, Helen is goofy for apples. I found another bag of rotten ones; she especially loves these. Sally brought some to her in her stanchion. After I turned her loose she went to Sally, who was directing cow traffic, and sniffed both her hands. She would not leave until Sally opened both hands and spread them out to prove she was out of apples.
Max, Mitra and the girls and Martin and Amy joined us for dinner. Because of barn chores I always fix something ahead of time. This time it was a cassoulet of white beans and vegetables with stewed chicken and shortribs. I braised the chicken, which was a rooster my grandson, Rafe, and his girl friend, SallyB, dressed off in December together with the ribs all last night to insure tenderness. This was a tasty dish. I also made dinner rolls. Mitra made another of her great salads with much chopping help from Shireen and Amy. Sally made an apple gooseberry crisp. It was a jolly meal.
January 23, 2006 Monday
We got our snow back today. Actually, I did not miss it myself, although it did seem strange to see almost bare fields. But after breakfast it began snowing hard and did not stop until we had about four inches. My neighbor who plows came and cleared the front yard and driveway. He always chats a while. He said many of his friends had been terribly disappointed by the lack of snow. Some had bought new snow machines and paid 22K. I had no idea people paid money like that to race through the woods. Yipes.
Sally is going to switch Fred to the teat bucket tomorrow. He is getting mighty forceful with his bunting. He is all soft and plushy now and so far has not had a moment's illness. He is so much happier being in with the cows than he would be alone in a stall. He sleeps right next to Emily. I have not caught him chewing his cud but I think he must be. He does eat hay and his stool looks dark and the way it should for a young hay nibbler.
January 25, 2006 Wednesday
Yesterday we popped in on Max and Mitra in New Sharon. They gave us a lovely lunch which included brown rice prepared according to Sally Fallon's recipe from the Forum. This involves soaking in something like yogurt, which I think is what Mitra used. Whatever it was it was delicious. I will surely try it. I have my own method which is equally good, but it is nice to have a change. I measure the brown rice, two of liquid to one of rice. Using the pan in which the rice will be cooked, which must have a tight fitting lid, I sauté the raw rice in some kind of fat, usually olive oil or butter, but chicken fat is very good as is coconut oil. I add some seasoning, often a little curry powder, coriander or cumin and often some dried or fresh herbs, and salt. After the rice is hot and well coated with fat I pour on boiling stock, bring it back to the boil, and put on the lid. It can then go in the moderately hot Aga oven or be cooked on the stove top at a low temperature for 40 minutes. With this method brown rice does not become gummy; I prefer to use short grain rice for this method. The grains remain quite separate. If any is left over it is excellent cold with vinaigrette and some chopped green onion, cashew nuts and raisins.
Sally has completed the fine wool shawl she has been knitting for her daughter, Rebecca, to wear at her wedding in March. She of course spun the wool herself. It is ivory colored and lacey. The pattern is called "Feather and Fan" and there is also a lace border. Sal washed it and spread it out on a bed to dry. It is triangular and six feet tip to tip.
Max came over today to help with throwing 50 bales of delivered hay into the barn. It is not especially good, but smells OK. He also split a lot of kindling and helped Sally to move some furniture over at her little place across the river. He also took my re-order package for a reprinting of Keeping a Family Cow to the PO.
January 26, 2006 Thursday
Sally and I were putting a few rotten apples on the cows feed, since we had the apples and they love them, but Helen, especially, gets so goofy that we have stopped. Also, Sally has stopped putting Emily and Fred back out early before the cows. This also keeps them quieter. They feel the young 'uns should be close by where they can hear them breathing. When I say these measures keep them quieter I mean less treading, tail swishing and pooping.
This morning during chores Sally noticed Bagel staring down towards the bottom of the field. There was a large white dog like a German Shepard down by Muffins grave defecating. I have not seen any such dog in the neighborhood and wondered if it could have been a coyote. Later Sally walked down there to examine the scat and reported that it was definitely a dog.
This noon I noticed Fred chewing his cud. It is the first time I have seen him do it. He lines up with the others at the hay feeder.
January 27, 2006 Friday
Little Fred has been so very healthy that I suspect the antibody production that I count upon from Helen and Jasmine is surely working for him too. They do stand next to each other breathing. Then he gets milk that is very fresh. If cold, Sally brings it just back to blood heat.
Today Fred did something that might have killed him, antibodies or not. In expectation of a visit from my vet, Sally put Fred into his box stall. He ate almost an entire hay string that should not have been on the floor, but was. The only reason Sally noticed was that a wad of sheep's wool from one of Abby's cat nests was stuck to the end of the string and he had not swallowed it. It was sticking out of his mouth. Sally pulled the string out of course. Out vet said it might have killed him.
We were going to have Fred disbudded and castrated and a supernumerary teat that we had somehow overlooked removed from Emily. As it happened, our vet stopped in only to tell us he would have to reschedule. He had developed truck trouble and needed to head for the repair garage. He took a quick bite of lunch before leaving.
Jasmine should have been in heat yesterday, but there was not a sign. Maybe she blew her circuits with her excessive display last time. The AI coordinator who agreed to bring semen up from MA has not done so. I could not have got her bred in any case.
Jasmine continues to come in clean, cleaner or cleanest, but Helen is worse or worser. This morning I thought she could not be much dirtier unless she went swimming in a manure lagoon, which is about what it amounts to. The abnormally warm weather means sodden bedding in the low spot where Helen likes best to lie. It is clean when she lies down but by morning is a mess. The "deep bedding" plan that works in the rest of the room does not work there. By golly, next summer I want a whole load of gravel in that room so that the ground level is higher than outdoors by at least 6".
I work on cleaning her until my white terrycloth mops come back white but it gets aggravating for both me and Helen. Not to mention Sally, who is now doing the forking out. I suggested today that she go ahead and put down a whole bale of hay in the low spot and keep doing that every day until it becomes a mound. It made a big difference tonight. Helen was almost as clean as Jasmine.
Granddaughters Shireen and Roshan are here for an overnight while their parents, Max and Mitra, are out with friends. They did a lot of cute drawings and played in the playroom with blocks and cars and little tractors that once belonged to their father. I have lost so much, but amazingly, some of these toys have clung to my life.
January 30, 2006 Monday
Ever since Sally has piled up hay in the low spot Helen has been a lot cleaner. What an improvement! This method saves me about ten yucky minutes and makes the cow encounter more pleasant. I can't spare much more hay, though. I counted bales today. I have enough to last until the end of March. I will have to find some more.
Jasmine acted stroppy today. We did not catch any mounting but she bellowed several times and kicked sharply when I was putting the machine on her tonight. I called my AI man to see if the straws had been delivered but they have not. If she is in heat in the morning there will be no use calling for insemination, darn it.
January 31, 2006 Tuesday
There were no further signs of heat today from Jasmine, but I am pretty sure there were footprints on her back. I am going to mark the calendar anyway. Sigh.
I think I forgot to mention a few days ago that Sally made fantastic cream cheese. We must definitely have some on Feb 14 to make Coeur a la crème.
We got about 4" of new snow last night. It made a picture perfect world. But I fear I am getting to be a grouch. The first thing I think of it paying for more plowing.
February 1, 2006 Wednesday Today's weather was Winter Perfect. Temp was about 28F, the new snow ornamented everything and the sun shone brilliantly. Max came down for milk, then Sally and I convened with him at Weld for a look at the two camps. Everything was in order at Martin's. Marcia and Jack's is a busy building site. They are having improvements done. Two bedrooms are now one with a fine lake view, the house has all new windows and insulation has been added. Bagel and Lulu enjoyed each other's company and were well behaved dogs. Max took measurements to see if a moving van will be able to make it down the access road. Answer: not without removing some neighbor's trees. Perhaps the movers can create a staging area at Martin's camp. Max wished he had brought his skis for a run on the lake. Tonight there is a new moon in a clear sky full of constellations.
Sally has been working daily on Emily to get her accustomed to more handling. I had her in good shape as a young calf, but it did not stick. She now will let Sally lead her to her standing to be clipped to her rope before she gets her pan of feed. She allows brushing and handling all over her body now. She will be a classically beautiful Jersey with nice manners.
Having exhausted the leftovers, I made us a nice dinner of pork chops, home fries done in pure beef fat which produces the very best flavor, and the vegetable dish I invented about 25 years ago called Dazzling Winter Sunset. It appeared in the La Leche League cookbook from whence I notice it has been taken up by at least one gourmet magazine without giving credit. It is a nice use for winter vegetables. Shred equal parts of carrots, beets and rutabagas, stirfry in butter or other fat, adding a little salt and a dusting of nutmeg. It is attractive, fast, and people end up liking and eating those winter veggies.
I did the porkchops by another recipe I made up. Rub the chops with a little Thai garlic chili if you have it, or omit this. Grate about 1 teaspoon per chop of fresh ginger (or a pinch of dried), and pat on a thin layer of peanut butter. I prefer the chunky variety. Fry in the fat of your choice. I use health food store peanut oil if I have it, but coconut oil is excellent, or lard. Don't crowd the pan. Cook gently until lightly browned on both sides. Swirl a little soy sauce in the pan. Pour the pan juices over the chops when they are on the plates.
Every time I have done chops this way they have been a big hit, nice and moist.
February 2, 2006 Thursday
Poor little Freddie is walking pretty carefully this evening. My vet came today and castrated and disbudded him. He did the horn buds with an iron and the castration with a scalpel. Fred was anesthetized. Doc Cooper also removed two extra teats from Emily. He gave her a light shot to calm her down. Sally had installed a new ringbolt in expectation of a struggle but Emily was altogether well behaved. She trusts both me and Sally. She marched right back in this evening to her place, so we know the experience was not too awful. Doc Cooper remarked on what a fine looking Jersey heifer she is. She is the right weight, no pot belly, and has a straight top line. She also has a pretty face with black and white eye liner.
February 3, 2006 Friday
Fred and Emily both seem to have forgotten their surgeries. The wounds are small and dry. None of Dr. Cooper's surgeries here has ever become infected. I am also able to report that my hip pain is gone. I carried the milking machine yesterday and have no after effects.
In other barn news, my hens have suddenly stopped laying almost completely. For the last few days I have gotten only 3 or four eggs and half of those are from the wild hens that live in the rafters. They have had a lot less clabber lately. That doesn't help. Also, following my last electric bill, I stopped providing extra light and heat. Not that is has been really cold. Most nights their water does not even get a skim of ice, so they are not suffering. Milk production is not what it was either. I was getting six gallons a day and now it is not much over five. They don't like that last hay I got. Martin is buying a spike for the Kubota so that we can handle round bales. Now I just have to call around and find somebody to deliver. This should not be difficult.
It started out today with sleet falling, then it turned to rain for most of the day. Great puddles formed on the pasture. Sally and Bagel took a long walk to explore them. Near the river she found a lot of black feathers and thought perhaps the fox had taken one of my black hens, but close inspection revealed that it was a crow. She also found where a naughty beaver had cut down a 6" diameter maple. She was pretty mad about that. The riverbank needs all the help it can get.
Martin came up for dinner and an overnight. Amy had plans for tomorrow with her girl friends. I baked one of my big fillets of Copper River Red salmon and served it with a curried cream sauce and brown rice cooked in a rich stock. And a salad of course. I also made a cheesecake using homemade cream cheese and cottage cheese.
Martin hopped out early today and went to Osgood's tractor sales and equipment and bought a spike to affix to the Kubota for moving round bales. None of us is quite sure how to attach the spike, but no doubt the guys will sort it out. Now I have to figure out where to buy a couple of round bales. He also bought a serviceable trailer from somebody who makes them locally and puts them out by the road. It is a snappy looking red item made of expanded steel and welded beams. It is the sort of thing people use to pull around their snowmobiles. I did not even know he had a snowmobile, but he says he has a Polaris. I expect that the trailer will be used mostly to move furniture and other domestic items. Maybe he will bring his tiller here for me to borrow. Sally, Max and I today got the idea of planting a patch of some kind of grain as an experiment; something that we could feed to cows and pigs. I have never grown any small grain, only corn, but it has to be a good idea. If I borrowed the tiller, a Wheel Horse, Max might till an experimental plot.
Martin worked some more on his Ford 9N Century tractor, but it still would not start. It has rained so much and wind again tore off his tarp. Perhaps everything about the tractor is too cold and wet. It rained again most of yesterday.
No rain today, in fact it was very warm. The guys were in shirtsleeves. They then went up to Weld to see if it was possible to ski and fly Martin's new kite on the lake, but it was very slushy. They filled two 5 gallon containers for me from a public spring.
I took a shovel and cleared enough of the ice off of the cows' outside ramp so that there is at least an 18" wide path up it that is safe for them. This ramp is made of Martin's CorrectDeck boards. It is in its second or third year and looks like new.
I have another batch of cream cheese hanging up dripping. It is so good! There is a new milk customer now taking milk from the outside milk sales fridge. I have not yet seen who it is but he or she took two gallons yesterday and another two gallons today.
February 5, 2006 Sunday
On Saturday Martin and Max took a walk along the river and noted that the spring line had burst and was pouring water into the river. They came home for tools and fixed it. We all hoped that the near end was also open and spring water would reach the kitchen, but no such luck. Sally and I walked down today to see if it had fallen apart. The place where they repaired the line is now under water. It has rained an enormous amount on the frozen ground and everything is flooded down at the confluence of the river and Hutchinson Brook. I did get to see where a beaver, with whom Sally is much annoyed, has with impressive neatness cut down two trees and nearly felled a third.
February 6, 2006 Monday
Today was fair and bright, but now Canada is sending down some colder air. I think our prolonged thaw may be over. Mitra says her iris is coming up. Many buds on trees and shrubs have also swelled. I do hope all the fruit is not destroyed.
I made a successful chowder with shrimp and scallop bits that my fish man sells at half the price of whole scallops. It was really good. I also made gingerbread according to a UK recipe that calls for treacle and Golden Syrup. This also was a success. It took me twenty minutes, though, to find my tin of Golden Syrup. Lord knows how many years ago I bought it on speculation. I knew it was here somewhere and refused to abandon the search until I found it.
It was so warm and sunny that the cows spent a lot of time outside. When they do this, clean-up is minimal. Clean-up has been a lot more pleasant in any case since taking serious measures to build up the low spots in the Beefer Pen.
So far I have not located any round bales, but surely will soon.
Everyone else in the family agrees that growing grain is a good idea. I think a patch 50'x100' might be a manageable experiment. I am leaning towards trying barley.
The hens are not laying. Mitra thinks they might be in a moult.
February 8, 2006 Wednesday
We have our cold weather back. It was about 17F this morning, but 0F is predicted for tonight. It was clear and bright, so the cows stood in the sun much of the day.
A friend of mine who is a former dairyman and hopes someday again to have a cow stops in occasionally to see if I have any butter to sell. He was here today and we looked at my cows. He admired Emily and remarked on her straight topline. I suppose some day I will have to part with her.
I weight taped Helen this morning at a bit over 1100 lbs and Jasmine at something over 800. They both look pretty good, I think. Production has fallen off a bit. Today we only got 4 ¾ gallons.
Sally started another cheese today. She has been spending a lot of time over at her little house spackling and taping the walls for painting, but today was too cold to work there. She stayed here and worked on her fiber projects. She is well along on a small, light colored blanket with little threads of pink. She is also making a braided rug and a pair of gloves of Jacob wool.
February 9, 2006 Thursday
This morning it was down to 7F, but eventually warmed to near 20F. It was bright and clear all day. Sally took a tour around the North Field with Bagel to check the integrity of the fence. We want to let the cattle out to roam that area. There is so little snow that they will enjoy nibbling the old dry grass. Freddie can get more exercise and Helen has always loved standing under the pine trees that border the field and baking herself on sunny days.
At 10:15 we left to meet with Mitra for lunch in Farmington. My eyes were gravelly due to staying up too late last night, so I asked Sally to drive. One sees so much more of the countryside as a passenger. I ordered fish and chips, Mitra had a chicken pot pie and Sally had a fish sandwich. Sally went across to the bookstore and ordered me a copy of "The Empty Tank" by Jeremy Leggett. We then went to view Mitra's parents' condo on the rural outskirts of Farmington. It has a fine setting surrounded by birch trees. Max completely repainted the interior for them and the place is all newly furnished. The parents don't like Maine winters so will only be using it in summer.
After seeing the condo Sally and I drove out to Whitewater Farm Store where I bought feed and frozen lamb and sausage. All their products are locally grown and of the highest quality. The owner knows all his suppliers and is particular as to feeding practices.
Sally made dinner tonight. She cooked up a variety of meats I had accumulated in the freezer - kidney, tongue, heart and some pork that needed using. She cubed them up small and served them in a gravy sauce over rice. There was enough to freeze for a generous pot pie some day.
We got 5 ½ gallons of milk and four eggs, a high for this week. I found a new nest just started in the hay mow.
February 10, 2006 Friday
No one will guess what I saw today! I went out around 10:30 AM and found Jasmine standing is a sunny spot feeding Fred. She looked totally relaxed. I don't think he got a whole lot but I will be surprised if he stops snacking.
Emily was in heat today. This made for a lot of yelling and stomping about when they were all let loose after evening milking.
Helen had a great string of slime today. I guess it does not mean much. She is not due for another three months.
It was down to 7F this morning and tomorrow we are to expect sub zero temperatures.
It was -7F this morning. Could have been worse. The sky was clear blue all day and no wind. Sally and I walked all the way around her 17 acre field. It was too cold for her to work inside her house much.
I taped Emily at 669lbs. I guess she is about average for a 9 month Jersey heifer. She is in satisfactory condition and always looks happy. She gets very little grain.
I actually got 8 eggs today. I guess that means the hens are not in a moult.
February 12, 2006 Sunday Most of the northeast coastal area has suffered a severe blizzard today. We got nothing but a few gusts of wind and ½ inch of snow, just enough to make the ice patches more slippery. Max is disappointed. He got back Saturday from a week of work on Cape Cod hoping for some X-C skiing. All he got was a walk in the woods with dog Lulu.
Max and Mitra and I are contemplating getting some ducks this year. I said I would buy them if they would set up the shelter. They have a tiny, trickling stream that runs behind their hen house. So far it has not dried up in the summer, although it is barely a foot wide in places. This should keep the ducks happy without running the risk of stagnant water such as killed my last ducks.
I only got four eggs today and two of these were from my rafter hens.
I made three loaves of whole wheat pumpkin bread today from a Halloween pumpkin that has been waiting patiently on the back stairs.
So far I have not located round bales, but Max says that tomorrow he will inquire in his neighborhood.
Good news on mini straws for Jasmine's next heat. The Genex coordinator brought them up from MA and has left them with my regular technician.
February 13, 2006 Monday
So far we have not detected Freddie nursing again from Jasmine. It would be surprising if he does not.
The cows have a low opinion of those last fifty bales of hay I got. Sally threw down a bale and left for the house with the milk this morning. I looked in on them and all three were lined up staring at the door when I opened it as much as to say, "Is that all we're going to get?" When Sal throws down the top grade hay they know it before they even reach the Beefer Pen. They hurry down the aisle for it.
Max has found a farmer in his neighborhood who will sell me round bales for $25, but will not haul them.
Our dairy products turned out strangely today. Sally's feta went all granular like dry cottage cheese. She put it into my Lithuanian cheese press to see what we can make of it. This press consists of a pair of boards hinged together at one end. You wrap your curds and set the bag between the boards. There is a lock-down screw arrangement that squeezes down on it.
My butter behaved much the same. I set it last night to culture which it did beautifully. It also churned beautifully although it took a long time. But, the butter lumps would not come together when pressed; it tastes perfect and so does the buttermilk. Sally finally packed it in somebody's recycled "Move Over Butter" container.
And then a further disappointment … my Homestead2 cottage cheese to which I had been looking forward formed a beautiful delicious curd but it went all soupy when I tried to wash it. It is hanging up in a bag now to see what I get.
At this evening's milking the pulsator quit when I got to Helen. I isolated the problem in the air hose; it had developed atherosclerosis. I couldn't even blow through it. Fortunately I own a second hose. I have revived the old hose with hot water in the kitchen sink.
The moon tonight is magnificent. It is surrounded my small puffy clouds with silver borders.
February 14, 2006 Tuesday Sally and I opened the gate to the North Field and were encouraging the cows to pass through when Fred came forward and slipped a little bit on an ice patch. Sally ran for the salt so the cows would not slip. And then we saw it: Helen jumping Jasmine. We immediately closed the gate. Even with salt we certainly did not want acrobatics on ice. I made frequent observations during the next two hours before deciding to call my AI technician. He has some straws of mini Jersey semen for me in his tank. He came about 3pm. I hope I did not err in calling him today. Jasmine was certainly sliming and he claimed she seemed ready internally, although I find they usually prefer to say something encouraging. How I hope she settles! If so, she will calve about November 20.
My granddaughter Rebecca, Sally's oldest, is to be married March 25. Sally has always wanted to give her a cow just like Pa and Ma gave Laura in The Little House book which she read with her children so many times. But that is not something one does without being confident of its reception. Now, sister Rosemary reports that Rebecca was heard to say that she would welcome an IOU for a cow! So let us hope Jasmine does not disappoint us. Rebecca met Jasmine during her visit here in November and was much charmed.
There was a Cardinal today on the bird feeder, the first I have seen for a long time.
I made a dinner today that is made early in the day and popped in the oven. It is always delicious.
Lamb Shanks with Brown Rice and Vegetables.
Put one or two lamb shanks in a heavy ovenproof casserole. Cover them with the following: 1 cup of raw brown rice, short grain is best. 1 chopped onion Several peeled garlic cloves Other veg you think of such as celery, carrot, eggplant, fennel, bell pepper Add salt and pepper and rosemary or other herbs Snipped dried tomatoes and/or pine nuts or olives if desired Pour over it a quart of tomatoes or a pint of tomato sauce and pint of stock. It must have a quart of liquid. Cover the casserole tightly and put it into a slow oven for about 4 hours. If you are around, check after three hours to see if it is done early or needs more liquid.
No doubt a slow cooker would suit this recipe.
February 16, 2006 Thursday
Wednesday was a roller coaster ride. The vacuum pump motor has been making funny noises. After I finished milking Jasmine and tried to put it onto Helen it gagged, sputtered and quit. Sally went back to the house for a bucket and milked Helen by hand. I began to think dark thoughts of drying Helen off early. There is a man in a nearby town that travels the state servicing vacuum systems for dairies. I spoke to his wife and got his cell phone number and gave him a pathetic call. Darned if he didn't show up here at the house at 4pm, shortly before milking time. He had been installing a system for a new organic dairy north of here and stopped in on his way home. By now wouldn't you know the motor started right up again, but it was still making its chuffing sound. He diddled around with it for awhile and removed the muffler, a small screwed in fitting made of some porous material. He said it was clogged. He said "I think if it were me I would just run it without the muffler. If it gives you any more trouble, call me." It has not.
Of course I have been checking Jasmine for bleed-out. Sigh. Today I saw it. There goes one straw.
February 18, 2006 Saturday
I could not write the diary yesterday because the power was out. We had some pretty wild weather. First it was 40F, and then a great storm of wind and rain hit the state. Sally went ahead of me to the barn at milking time and discovered that the wind in its violence had blown out the big front door of the Beefer Pen where the cows live. It was being kept from completely opening by bits of board. The wind had also lifted the 12' metal front gate off its hinges and spun it away. So, if the cows had gotten out they would have been free to get on the road. She stood there holding it together until I followed. Together we secured it.
The very moment I finished milking Helen, whom I milk second, everything went black. I did some hand stripping in the dark whilst murmuring to the cows in case they were nervous, but it did not seem to bother them a bit. Sally was in the hayloft where, as my Grammie used to say, it was "darker than the inside of a cow." Finally a shaft of light from a passing car enabled her to locate the trap door that hay drops down (don't want to step through that) and the top of the stairs. The cows walked back to the beefer pen as though they had full daylight.
The Aga does not depend upon electricity and I had made a spaghetti dinner earlier in the day. Sally and I dined by candlelight. Later in the evening Martin and Amy arrived pulling his little trailer with a pile of pallets for farm use. They ate spaghetti and then went on to camp where they found all in good order. Martin is getting together with Max today to bring me some round bales.
Martin arrived about 10:30 this morning with three great rolls of hay. Two were on the little trailer and one in his pickup truck bed. He got the spike on the Kubota and was soon well on his way moving bales. Max arrived about 11:00 and we all got involved. Max brought along a 60 lb tub of crystallized molasses that he had picked up for me. The cows spent a very happy day going back and forth from the new hay to the molasses. The last time I looked in on them little Fred was finally getting his turn.
It is very cold. The sun shone most of the day but an evil cold wind seldom let up. The thermometer sank throughout the day and now after dark stands at zero.
Despite the cold, Max, Martin and Martin and Amy's houseguest, Florian, went ice skating. They went to a small lake called Hill's Pond that is more sheltered. Martin later took his kite out on Lake Webb and whizzed around on skates.
Everyone came here for dinner. Mitra made pulled pork burritos, Amy made a large and lovely salad and I roasted a pork butt. The pork was all from Max and Mitra's pigs. I totally forgot to prepare the mashed potatoes but we seemed to have enough to eat. For dessert we had the almond cake that Sally made on Friday. It is the one from Baking With Julia. I made it for DD Abby's wedding and Sally made it for her DD Rosemary's wedding. In March Rosemary will be making it for her sister Rebecca's wedding.
For decades I have routinely made a menu list and a list of tasks in order of execution for every dinner party, however small. For some reason I did not do that this time. Had I done so I would not have forgotten the potatoes.
February 20, 2006
News from yesterday… Martin had the breakers off for light fixture repair last evening.
The milking machine behaved very badly both morning and evening. The pressure at the gauge was satisfactory, but insufficient pressure was reaching the cow. At one point when pressure failed completely and I was dancing around trying my various tricks, Sally made the astute observation that Helen had her front foot planted on the hose! It was surprisingly difficult to get her to pick it up. I finally told Sally to kick her on the back of her foot; this did the trick.
Later in the day Martin brought the filter into the house for cleaning. He thought the clogging in the filter looked calcareous and suggested that I put it to soak in vinegar, which I did. I set it on the Aga to dry out over night.
Martin found a manufacturer's site on the internet to order new filters. Great news. The old one is crumbling.
Sally had noticed that Freddie was not as lively as formerly and did not smell good. Martin observed that he was limping on his left front foot. With Sally's help I picked up his foot and sniffed it. It smelled nasty. I thought it best to soak it in a strong solution of bleach. All we managed was a good sozzle before he kicked the container across the room.
Martin and his friend did a huge dump run for me in the morning. Max and the girls came in the afternoon after ice skating and did another huge dump run with the van containing a shocking accumulation of barn trash. I am sure the whole farm feels relief.
Martin and Amy joined us for a supper of glorified leftovers and took some food down to son Mark. Now that he is in med school he must study all the time and I seldom see him.
February 20, 2006 Monday President's Day
I reassembled the milking machine filter this morning and the machine worked just fine.
Freddie appears completely recovered. He was back to bouncing about and his foot smelled fine. It is hard to credit that one little treatment could fix a limp but I guess it did. We stuck his foot in bleach water again this morning anyway.
The weather has been in a near zero pattern for several days but it is sunny. The wind has died down.
Evening Sally and I took a walk along the river on her side to inspect for downed trees following the Friday night wind storm and also to see a unique tree. She brought home a little branch the other day and tentatively identified it as Liquidambar. I have not seen one around here. They are not hardy in Zone 4. This one is leaning over the river which would modify its climate.
There is one very large tree fallen in the river on Sally's side and a large spruce has broken off 6' up and fallen in the river on my side. Both trees would aid in bank protection if we can manage to secure then from floating away.
Tonight the milking machine worked fine on Jasmine but lost its vacuum power when I got to Helen. After some fiddling around I removed the muffler which was extremely hot. After about five minutes the pump resumed making vacuum. I guess the thing was clogged again and over heated. Helen was much irritated by the delay and made her usual comments. We are still getting about 5 gallons a day. Eggs are still way down but today I got five.
Freddie is back to his old bouncy self.
February 21, 2006 Tuesday
The cows love their new hay. So far they are not wasting it. Two bales are secured so they can't be tipped over. One is perched up on top of the hay feeder so they have to reach up to get a mouthful. It is obvious that they are enjoying never having to wait for feeding time. Also, the hay is good quality. Production was up a half gallon today.
The milking machine behaved well today.
Sally and I took another walk along the river today. She picked a bunch of witch hazel twigs to make lotion from a recipe in a book borrowed from Janene in Texas.
February 22, 2006 Wednesday
My 11 month old heifer, Emily, is attached to Freddie. Ordinarily at milking time she is front and center coming in for her grain snack. Tonight Jasmine and Helen came in but Emily would not until Sally went outside to see what was wrong. Fred was on the wrong side of the fence and she would not leave him alone. As soon as she saw that Sally was rescuing him she went on in.
My dear milking machine that means so much to me lost vacuum tonight halfway through milking Jasmine. I finished her by hand and Sally went to the house for a bucket to milk Helen. I will put Helen on OAD milking now if the problem is not solved in the morning. The milk total today was 5 ¼ gallons. We would have had more if the machine had not quit.
February 23, 2006 Thursday
I conferred with Martin about my thought of removing the old filter and just leaving the glass jar on since it appears to be the old filter that is stopping proper vacuum. He seemed to think this would not cause immediate damage so that is what I did this morning. First I had to unfreeze the jar where it screws on. I used a hair drier and wet cow towels. Without the filter it worked like a champ both this morning and this evening. This made me very happy.
Max picked up some heavy nylon rope and brought it today when he came for milk. We figure if we secure our blown down trees to the bank they will divert water and help to stop scouring of the bank. Sal already went over this afternoon and tied a rope on her tree.
February 24, 2006 Friday
Sally L. in California says that it was pointed out to her when she worked at Cow Central, that sometimes there is bleed-out even though the cow has actually successfully bred. So, I will cling to a little hope for Jasmine settling.
I started OAD today with Helen. I will continue to bring her in at milking time for her grain and mineral feeding unless she proves hard to dry off. Evening production was down only ½ gallon, which is just about what I estimated she was giving. Sally for the first time sampled Jasmine's milk and agreed it has overtones of coconut.
On Thursday night I began simmering a large rooster from the freezer in the Aga simmer oven. It took until dinner time tonight to actually get tender. But both the meat and broth were delicious. I plan to follow Rose's chicken hanging advice with the next roosters we kill and see if I can get a tender bird.
For tonight's dinner I sautéed shiitake mushrooms with elephant garlic and created a sauce with the chicken broth. I served this over slices of chicken on rice.
Freddie's foot is troubling him again. Curing it with two dips really was too good to be true.
I am now drying off Helen. I don't think it will be difficult. The only thing that worries me is that I can't wash her udder without stimulating letdown, so she is going to be very dirty for awhile, which I don't like.
It did not get above 16F today and there was a cold wind. Tomorrow is expected to be the same but colder, and Tuesday more of the same. It is sunny, which helps. The lean-to is a sun trap and the cows stand outside there eating the round bale that is tied to the front of the old Moline tractor.
They are making short work of the round bales. The one that was perched atop the hay feeder was eaten down enough so that yesterday it dropped down into the feeder. #2 bale tied in the corner and defended by pallets is half gone. They love being able to eat all the time and not wait for us to throw down hay.
I took a chance today with leaving the heating pad off of the barn water tap; this was a bad decision. It froze under the hose clamp and now leaks.
February 27, 2006 Monday
During the night something causes the breaker to pop on the circuit that served the barn water tap. This meant the heat tape went cold. I put the heat tape and the heating pad on an extension cord and plugged it into another outlet in the barn. The cows had very little water all day but about 4PM it finally thawed. However, ice had split the brass fitting exactly as happened earlier this winter. This time the whole faucet broke right off. There is an on/off lever ahead of the tap, so water did not just spurt out. But to fill the stock tank I had to jam the hose into the open pipeline and hold it together as best I could. Water went everywhere and I got good and wet, which at 5F was not a lot of fun.
Helen has now skipped four milkings. Her back quarters were pretty full this evening but the front ones were still soft. I will milk her out in the morning.
My vet stopped in and Sally and I gave him a nice lunch. I had made two carrot cakes on Saturday, given one away and frozen one. I thawed that out for lunch. Sally made biscuits to go with a good stew which I also had frozen. It was a nice break from thinking about the barn water.
Something besides foot rot was the matter with Freddie's foot. He was hopping around today with no evidence of favoring any foot.
February 28, 2006 Tuesday
Max came over this morning with parts for my water system and before long he had it repaired. The cows had been waiting for their water and all took a drink.
Something is still popping the breaker on the circuit where the freeze-up occurred. I left it all day with just the submersible water heater on it. Max modified the wall so that it can be plugged in with no extension cord in case that was the problem yet this evening it was off again. All the wiring was new less than a year ago.
Max put the new air filter into the milking machine pump.
Little Jasmine is giving a bit more than 3 gallons a day. That little cow loves to eat. She eats all day. The cows have the two round bales that were indoors eaten down to the point that Sally piled what is left of them into the hay feeder. They will have that finished off tomorrow I believe.
March 1, 2006 Wednesday
After milking Jasmine this morning we poured her milk into a waiting bucket and then I put the machine onto Helen. Her udder was not under stress but was getting heavy and I thought it best that she be milked out. Very likely this will be the last time this lactation. Milk that has been inside a cow for three days begins to taste "cowy" so we saved it for Freddie. He had no objection to it.
The cold weather continues but at least today there was little wind. Sally continues to work on her house. Now she is collecting up old boards and plastic junk from behind the house.
March 2, 2006 Thursday
It was a bit warmer today. Jasmine is holding steady at a bit over 3 gallons. Today it was 3.5. Helen's udder was in excellent condition today. It is soft and she is barely making any milk. Emily was in roaring heat. I got five eggs. One free range layer has a hidden nest somewhere, but I can't find it.
March 3, 2006 Friday
I was told to expect a lot of waste with the round bales but so far there has been none. Sally has made barriers of the pallets Martin brought. They eat the round bales so well that Sally has been spreading some of the poorer quality hay from the loft for bedding.
Jasmine gave 3 ¾ gallons today. We have seen Freddie apparently sucking a couple of times and one of her quarters is consistently less full. But he certainly is not taking a great deal, if in fact he is taking any. Sally has been feeding him 1.5 gallons/day in three feeds but we are considering cutting him back to one gallon. He now drinks from a teat bucket, so what we may do is keep giving him 1.5 gallons but split into two feeds. Tomorrow I will weight tape him. He is looking extremely good. He has a thick plushy coat and a cheerful bouncy disposition. I noticed today he was chewing his cud and napping cuddled up with Jasmine. He usually chooses Emily.
The weather was disagreeably cold and windy today, although there was sun for an hour or two in the morning. Sally worked for a short while over at her house but then returned to work on Rosemary's bridesmaid gown in her nice warm bedroom. We thought better of our idea of taking a walk along the river.
I got six eggs today.
The weather has moderated somewhat, although it is still windy. Sally and I walked down to the river with my new length of rope and she secured the fallen tree so it will help hold the bank rather than washing away down the river.
Sally is concerned for the care of her goats which are at home in Alaska. Her son, Rafe, and his girl friend Sally (another Sally!)have been staying there and caring for them. They need to leave soon and have not found anybody to take over the goat care. It seems that the goat Sally had bred just before she left for Maine may not be pregnant, which will mean my Sally will have no raw milk until next year when she comes back here. Goats only breed in the fall in Alaska. Goats are important to Sally. She has been keeping and milking goats since she was 12 years old and there is not much she does not know about them.
Max and Mitra came over today for milk and a meal. The girls were at a sleepover. I served a tamale pie. It has pretty much all the same ingredients you find in lasagna except it has corn meal mush instead of pasta. I spread a layer of mush on the bottom of the pan, layered on a cooked mixture of ground meat and sausage seasoned with chili powder, then a layer of mixed veg including tomato paste, a layer of homemade feta mixed with homemade cream cheese and four eggs, a final layer of corn meal mush, and shredded cheddar. Everybody liked it a lot.
Sally and Mitra took a lot of pictures in the barn.
March 5, 2006 Sunday
The thermometer reached 30F today and there was considerable sun. The persistent wind still left us feeling cold when outside. I kept a fire going all day.
Emily taped at 725 lbs. She will be 1 year old in April. Freddie taped at 180. He is 2 months old. He gets 1.5 gallons of whole milk/day and a couple of cupfuls of grain along with all the hay her cares to eat and access to the molasses lick. I consider his weight to be pretty good. It is well ahead of the average shown on the tape. But, if he were on a cow he would no doubt gain faster.
Helen is still making milk.
I opened the gate to the River pasture but the cows did not choose to go out.
Jasmine gave 3.5 gallons. It all got used or sold and I had to turn down two customers.
March 6, 2006 Monday
Sally and I went to Farmington today. We stopped in at a horse boarding barn where my daughter Marcia may decide to board her horses. The young woman who is barn manager was socially inept and kept me standing around in the tack shop for more than five minutes while she talked on the phone. This sort of thing makes a poor impression, but some aspects of the place look OK. However Marcia thinks the sand in their indoor arena may be too deep for working her horses on. She says 2" is as deep as they can work on without damaging themselves. Other than that it is a fine arena.
We also went to the health food store. There were more shoppers than usual. I was in a line of six or seven recognizably vegetarian people at checkout. Sally and I both were struck by how pale, tired and generally unhealthy they and the clerk appeared. There seems to be a vegetarian "look". Do they aspire to this or do they just not admire anything about physical appearance beyond thinness? They all had a grey complexion and a couple of them had circles under their eyes too dark to ignore. The checkout gal appears to have lost another 10 lbs since last I was in there and Lordy, she is so slow. She picks up each item and fondles it, turning it over to find the price before deliberately placing it in a bag.
Back at home, Sally found a horizontal beam at ground level in the barn that had a broken and rusted nail sticking out of it. Perhaps the winter storms shifting our post and beam barn have worked it out. It seems likely that this was the cause of Fred's limp. He is fine now. He has not had any immunizations, so I hope he does not develop tetanus. Hopefully, if his injury was from this nail it was superficial.
March 7, 2006 Tuesday
Among some things in the barn attic Sally found a bag of her sheep's wool from two years ago. It is nice light colored wool and she was thrilled to discover it. She is working extra hard to finish her projects. She leaves on the 20th of this month.
Sally is buying me a puppy. She feels I need a little "doorbell". My old Muffin used to bark when people came to the house until she got too deaf to notice. But, Bagel never does. The puppy is a male West Highland Terrier. It will be ready on Saturday. I would have preferred a female but they did not have one. I met both of the puppy's parents. They were nice, friendly family dogs. I hope Bagel will learn to accept it. He is extremely friendly, so I doubt he will stay aloof for long. I think I will name the puppy William.
March 8, 2006 Wednesday
This morning there were little signs suggesting that Jasmine was coming into heat today, the very day marked on the calendar. There was that slight puffiness of the vulva and her udder was obviously less stuffed with milk. Sally and I took frequent observations all day and Jasmine soon dispelled all doubt. I wanted to see unmistakable standing heat before calling AI. At evening milking Sally and I watched the cows in the barnyard through one-way glass (a window covered with old cobwebs) for about ten minutes until I finally saw her stand solidly for Emily. I called my man. He will come in the morning which I hope will be just the right time. He will bring my second and last straw of mini Jersey semen.
Jasmine's production for today was way down, just 2¾ gallons. She has been giving a strong 3½. Her milk tasted a bit different. There was no particular flavor, it just was not as sweet. That little cow does love to eat. She trots in like a pony to get her feed.
I have not had to milk Helen out again. Her udder is resolving nicely.
March 9, 2006 Thursday
The AI man arrived about 10am. He did not sound terribly optimistic about Jasmine's state of fertility. He said he could not find any slime and her cervix was closed. But I will remain hopeful. Her vulva was still puffy, her milk tasted the same this morning as it did yesterday, and her production today remained down; 2¾ the same as yesterday.
Yesterday'S weather was quite mild. I thought to myself, "Much more of this and the skunks will wake up." This morning we were greeted by a strong smell of skunk in the barn. Now it has started to snow, so perhaps they will go back to sleep.
Another hen has started laying. She lays a khaki egg.
March 10, 2006 Friday
It snowed last night, about 3" of damp snowball snow.
During
breakfast Sally and I observed a bird fight on the feeder. A blue jay and a much
smaller bird were facing off and the jay was giving way. I got the binoculars
and saw that the challenger was a starling. Those darn things are back. It must
be a sign of spring. A few minutes later a big crow drove them both off. He
wanted the piece of suet that still had a large piece of kidney in it. He jammed
in his beak and did a backwards lift-off with it but it was too heavy for him
and he only managed to carry it about 20'. It fell on the snowy lawn where he
stood over it alternately pecking and looking for cats.
Max came today for milk. He installed a new sink spray hose. How we have missed that hose for the last few days. It is hard to wash the milking machine without it. Then he got out the Kubota and removed the manure pile from behind the barn. All is nice and flat again. Afterwards we gave him a piece of my Victoria fruitcake, a lovely cake stuffed with dates and raisins that is made with applesauce. Sally also gave him some of her home made smoked salmon from Alaska.
Jasmine's production is back to normal. She gave 3¼ gallons today, not quite where it was before she was in heat, but close.
The snow is melting fast. Water is seeping down the granite foundation blocks in the cellar.
Martin and DIL Amy are on the way here tonight in his truck bringing my new book order. I have made them saffron bread and peanut pumpkin soup.
Tomorrow I get my new puppy.
Off we went today for my new puppy, William. He is a nice, plump, seven week old West Highland Terrier. He rode home in Sally's lap. He did not seem unduly alarmed by all his new experiences, in fact he is playful and adventuresome between long naps. He likes Jasmine's milk very much.
Max, Mitra and the girls and Martin and Amy were here for dinner. Mitra made one of her famous salads. I made macaroni and cheese and a roast leg of lamb. The lamb was raised locally and was absolutely delicious. The guys were picking at the bone after dinner. For dessert I served another one of my Victoria fruitcakes.
Lulu, the black dog, came along with Max and Mitra. Neither she nor Bagel seem to have more than a passing interest in William
I plan to put William in a cat carrier in my room for the night.
March 12, 2006 Sunday
Willy had a few bouts of crying during the night. I tried letting him sleep on my bed but even that made him nervous. Bagel did not like the sound of him and asked to leave the room. But really, Willy did quite well. He did not wet in his carrier and in the morning I carried him straight downstairs and outdoors where he immediately widdled.
Sally was up ahead of me. I found her on hands and knees cleaning up broken eggs. Just seconds before I arrived my fat old cat, Sissypuss, had jumped up and knocked over a basket of six eggs. Sigh. Yesterday the hens actually produced six eggs and there they went.
We took a walk around the field. The weather was a quiet, spring like 40F. We took William along, expecting to have to carry him. Instead he insisted on walking most of the way, bouncing along with us on his little short legs. Every so often he would get tired and yip to be carried, but soon was struggling to be back on his feet.
About half of the time he runs to the door to pee on the newspaper.
Bagel is still worried about him and needs plenty of reassurance.
Jasmine gave 3 gallons today.
March 13, 2006 Monday
Last night William yipped for a long time after I put him to bed in his carrier next to my bed. This time Bagel did not try to leave the room. I finally got the idea of draping my bathrobe over his carrier. He settled down at once and did not cry again until morning. There was moonlight coming in the window. I don't know if it was the smell of my bathrobe, being darker or warmer that turned the trick. Tonight, besides the bathrobe, I am heating a brick to put in with him. That was Sally's idea. She was afraid that he might chew on a heating pad. William wants so badly to play with Bagel, but Bagel is not ready. He looks perfectly miserable when William dances around yipping "Let's play!" Mostly Will follows me and Sally around trying to pull off our socks or mortally wound my slippers. I understand Westies were bred as ratters. The way he shakes my slipper, if it were a rat it definitely would not last long.
Virtually all of the snow is now gone. The cows wander the pastures looking for grass. They love to do this even though they have hay. Jasmine gave 3 ¼ gallons today.
March 14, 2006 Tuesday
Last night with Willy went a lot better. I think the hot brick in a cloth bag was a comfort to him. Or maybe he is getting used to his new life. He certainly is a happy little guy.
It was warm again today. Sally is trying to level her driveway for the flatbed that will be bringing Rafe's boat before long. As the ground thaws she scrapes off an inch from the high side of the driveway and moves it to the low side. What some mothers won't do for their kids!
I forgot to put in the pin in Jasmine's stanchion this evening. She waited politely until I took off the machine and got my Dixie cup and filled it with the last few squirts. Then when I drank some and started to refill it she said she'd stood there long enough and began backing away. She moves daintily but inexorably.
Jasmine gave 3 ¾ gallon today.
March 15, 2006 Wednesday
Jasmine dropped back to 3 gallons today for no reason I could tell. It has turned cold and windy. The cows barely left the barn. Perhaps roaming the pasture for last year's leftovers over the last few warm days prompted a rise in milk production yesterday.
There were 8 eggs.
Max came over for milk and as always did some little jobs around here. He nailed up a barrier to stop Jasmine knocking over the cat food and milk from their feeding shelf. The cows pass this on their way back to the Beefer Pen. Reaching out as she goes by and knocking over the cat food is her favorite trick.
Later on, Sally and I went out on errands. We took both dogs with William in a carrier. They were well behaved except that Bagel expressed his disgruntlement over sharing the back seat with a carrier by getting into the front passenger seat while we shopped. He looked quite self conscious and funny sitting there.
When we got home Sally spotted 7 or 8 wild turkeys in the Pocket Field. Last time we walked there I noticed lots of their droppings, but this is the first time Sally got to see them.
William is making rapid progress with learning to use the paper by the door. If I notice when he wakes from a nap I carry him outside at once. That results in a pee just about every time.
March 16, 2006 Thursday
What a surprise we had today! I heard "Hi Mom" behind my back and thought it was Sally. I turned around and it was Abby, my daughter who was here for a long time and now lives in PA. She had just taken a job doing live-in elder care in Castine, Maine, and drove this way to surprise me. She could not stay long. She had three more hours to drive and starts work tomorrow. Abby adores puppies and immediately made friends with Willy.
Later Sally and I took a walk around the fields with the dogs. I expected to have to carry Willy but every time I picked him up he squirmed to be down and running. Only it is more like hopping. His legs are so short and the ground is so lumpy that every tussock is an obstacle. He sure has a lot of energy. He drinks all he wants of raw milk and I have started him on raw meat. I gave him bits of the heart and venison that went into the chili I made today.
Jasmine gave 3 ¼ gallons today.
March 17, 2006 Friday
I am increasing the grain for both cows by a half a pound a day starting today. Helen is no longer making milk, so I am not very worried that she will start producing. But I will keep and eye on her. This only brings her up to 1.5 scoops. I will gradually increase Jasmine from 2 scoops to 3 scoops. At this time of year (from now until the grass grows) it is hard to keep the weight on them.
Freddie was limping again today. We soaked his foot in bleach water morning and evening. I cleaned his hoof thoroughly and there is absolutely no smell or tenderness. I am beginning to wonder if he sprained his shoulder. He is clearly reluctant to put weight on his left front.
Sally and I drove to Weld for a look at DD Marcia and SIL Jack's camp. A crew has been working there most of the winter insulating and putting knotty pine paneling upstairs. Downstairs they are refinishing the hardwood floors from a very dark brown stain to a light honey tone. The floors were still wet but everything looks good. The lake is still solidly frozen.
Bagel is now willing to briefly tolerate Willie's efforts to play. I do not leave them together at all, just in case Bagel should lose patience.
The weather continues cold and windy, but Sally and I went for a walk anyway, taking the dogs. When we returned through the barnyard all the cows were standing around watching. I was carrying William, but Jasmine could see him. She ran right after us. No dogs allowed, I think I heard her say. I scooted up the ramp and into the barn with him.
March 19, 2006 Sunday
This is Sally's last day before she returns to Alaska just in time for her daughter's wedding. Today was busy every minute getting ready. All the same, we found time for a little walk. Sally recently repaired the wind chime she made a couple of years ago for me to hang by Muffin's grave. She carried it down and hung it back up. It should now withstand many winter storms.
We left William taking a nap and invited only Bagel along. All the cows followed us. It was very funny to see them trying to chase Bagel away. Even Helen tried to run.
At evening milking I forgot to put in the pin on Jasmine's stanchion. When she finished her feed, with the Surge belly milker still attached, she backed out of her position and left . . . just marched away with the machine still maintaining suction on her teats. It pulled off from the vacuum hose which flopped down and started sucking shavings. Out in the main aisle she got stopped by Freddie's rope; it was stretched right out and she thought better of tangling with it. About this time the surcingle let go and the machine flopped down. Amazingly, nothing spilled. I marched her right back to her stanchion and finished milking. Silly little cow. I told her to never do that again. What I am really hoping is that I never again forget the pin.
Jasmine gave 3.5 gallons today. I got 8 eggs. I found two new nests.
There is no snow at all, but the weather remains unseasonably cold. It was 10F again this morning.
There is a great storm sweeping across Townsville, Northern Queensland, Australia, where my son and his wife live.
March 20, 2006 Monday
Yet again today, 10F. Sally left today for Fairbanks. Max drove her to the bus in Portland. It is a complicated trip and she won't arrive until sometime tomorrow. She will have to hit the ground running. Being the mother of the bride at Rebecca's wedding next Saturday she is in great demand.
Rebecca, like all Sally's kids, grew up hearing and reading the Little House series. She longed to get a cow as a wedding gift like Laura. That is not possible for her at present. She and her young Dane, Torsten, have yet to build a house on their land. But Sally and I have a plan. We are giving her a copy of Keeping a Family Cow with a Certificate For One Cow inscribed on the title page. So, one of these days she can claim a Coburn Farm Heifer. I got through the evening chores by myself without too many mishaps. Poor Fred ran in to suck on his blue teat bucket before I had the milk poured into it. He did not give up, no, not Fred. He just kept sucking air until I poured in the milk.
March 21, 2006 Tuesday
Sally called early this morning from her Motel 8 in Seattle and again after her safe arrival in Fairbanks. Her husband Tom met her. He took a little time off from his -50F job at Prudhoe Bay.
Chores this morning were a rush because of my dental appointment, but the cows were cooperative. This evening was another story. Not only did I go out somewhat earlier than they have come to expect, but I was wearing something different and I wasn't Sally. They are accustomed to her letting them in. Jasmine did not hesitate and neither did Fred (this time his milk was ready) but Helen and Emily stood outside and looked suspicious. After a few invitations I gave up and milked Jasmine. While the machine was on I left her alone and tidied the Beefer Pen. Finally when I had the machine off, Helen got up her nerve and came in for her snack. As I was turning them all out Emily slunk in but I told her she was too late, party's over.
Jasmine did not like being left all alone while being milked and pooped four times.
She gave slightly less than 3.5 gallons today.
March 23, 2006 Thursday
Yesterday when I went to the barn I hooked William's string on a branch. I told Bagel to watch him. I don't know if Bagel understood me or was going to do it anyway, but he sat right nearby and stayed until I got back.
Bagel has started playing with Willy outdoors. But he won't let Willy have his bone. I supervise closely. Today Max came over with Lulu. She is friendlier with Willy.
It looks like Emily is coming into heat. She is a week ahead of Jasmine so it will be next Wednesday or Thursday before she gives me the news.
I am sitting here nervously awaiting a trucker with my grandson Rafe's boat. It is to be delivered across the river at Sally's little house. It is now dark. I hope the trucker is not lost. But there is no direct route up from New Hampshire where he picked up the boat. I talked to Rafe about 4pm and he said it was on the way. Sally said the trucker paid little attention when she tried to tell him how to get here. After milking I drove over to her house to see if it was there. It was not. I can see her house from here and I am looking out the window every few minutes to see if there are bright lights in the driveway.
Jasmine gave 3.5 gallons today and it is all sold or spoken for already.
I cooked up a beef kidney from the freezer and gave some bits to Willy. He was crazy about it and it seems to have given him a kidney high. He has now pulled off my slippers and one sock. A Company Store catalogue is in tatters.
March 24, 2006 Friday
The boat, which is a 32' steel hull sloop, was delivered last night after dark. When I finally realized it had arrived I went over to look at it and found the trucker just finishing the job. This boat is enormous. I can't believe Rafe can take it out single handed and hope he does not try, although he seems to think he can do it. The trucker brought the boat on a very long trailer and backed it perfectly into a pretty narrow space next to the house. Rafe intends to attach a roof to the house so he can work under cover. It will have to be a very high roof. Rafe expects to return to Maine next week. Tomorrow is his sister's wedding. Sally called and said all the Danish relatives got together last night for a sit down dinner and there was great jollity and many cries of "Skol!"
Three days in a row now when I have gone out to do the midday chores I have taken William along and tied his string to the little rowan tree that is halfway to the barn. Then I asked Bagel to stay. He sat about 10 feet away and did not move until I came back. This was comforting to Willie and he too sat quietly with no yapping.
Also, today Bagel definitely initiated play with William. They played together about ten minutes until I got tired of standing there.
Mitra and I are going tomorrow to Portland to my DIL Amy's baby shower. Max and the girls will stay here. I am hoping the girls will give Willie a shampoo. He is starting to smell like dried pee.
I saw some very minor signs of heat in Emily on Wednesday. I have seen nothing else unless I count Jasmine deliberately butting her a lot of times. However, this butting seems more to do with Jasmine wanting to take over responsibility for Freddie. Jasmine now will not leave the main aisle until Freddie has headed down the corridor to the Beefer Pen. He wants to fool around and explore. I have to drag and pinch to make him go ahead of Jasmine. Until now it has been Emily that made sure to stay with him at all times.
Jasmine gave 3.5 gallons.
What a fine day. Mitra drove us to Portland (about an hour and a quarter) to attend DIL Amy's baby shower. WE found our way quite well. There were about 25 ladies present. Amy's friends are very creative and there were many lovely gifts. The most interesting may have been a mustard colored mat about 20"x30" of felted wool. It had lines of stitching running longitudinally of slubbed thread about an inch apart all over it. The thread was cerise and extended from each row as a 3" fringe.
Afterwards we stopped in to see Mark and granddaughter Hailey in the beautiful home where he is house-sitting for friends now in NZ. When we got home Max had a delicious meal waiting of roast beef, mashed potatoes and green beans and excellent gravy too. I poured out a quart of applesauce and Shireen added some of my frozen raspberries for a quick dessert. Afterwards I milked my cow.
During the morning Shireen and Roshan, 10 and 7, with help from Max, shampooed Willie for me. When I got home he not only smelled sweet but was beautifully white.
The cows were all well behaved. I was late to the barn and they were all in a row at the gate murmuring.
I forgot to mention that yesterday I made a pound of butter, the first in about a month. There just has not been extra milk to skim.
By now Rebecca and Torsten will be married. I heard about a few crises that took place earlier in the day. Some of the flowers had died - all the iris - and her sister Rosemary had to scout the city of Fairbanks for more. Rosemary was worried about her cake. It sounded like an engineering triumph. It had four layers of almond cake - the Martha Stewart recipe - including the meringue dacquoise layers.
March 27, 2006 Monday
There is no new grass and won't be for a month. There is plenty of dry dead grass from last year and a few wintered over green wisps at the fence lines. The last couple of days there has been a bit of sun and it warmed up into the 30's. The cows spend quite a lot of time moseying around the pasture nibbling. For the first time this year I even heard their bells out in the pasture during the night. They apparently are eating enough to kill their appetite for my low grade hay. I throw it down but it is not being eaten. They stare back up at me through the hay drop saying, "Well? Expect us to eat this, do you? Think again." So I give up and throw down some of my remaining high quality goods. There is not a lot of it left but maybe it will last until Martin is able to bring some new stuff.
This morning I raced off to the dentist. He numbed my mouth before studying the X-rays given him by the hygienist. He said "Hmmm" and scraped around a bit and announced there was nothing wrong with either of the teeth in question. The hygienist had misread the X-rays. What a thrill! I have no dental insurance so must pay out of pocket. This reprieve was like having a couple hundred dollars handed to me.
The teat bucket we have been using for Freddie has been getting leakier each day and yesterday became useless. Fred is three months old now but I would just as soon keep him on milk a bit longer. This morning I tried serving milk in his grain pan but he could not relate to that at all. He went without milk and mooed at me often all day. This evening I removed the nipple from his familiar blue bucket and put duct tape over the hole. With a bit of encouragement he drank his milk tonight.
Fred's foot still troubles him frequently. There is no heat in it. His ankle is not swollen or tender. Again this morning I cleaned out his hoof and there is no particular smell. Sometimes he scarcely favors it whereas at other times he is reluctant to walk. This is so puzzling. Since Sally left I have taken to putting the machine on Jasmine and leaving to clean up. She has not been completely letting down and I even got worried about mastitis. Then I had the thought that perhaps she was just expressing her objections to my not sitting next to her murmuring sweet nothings. I tried that tonight and proved my theory correct. She let down fully.
March 29, 2006 Wednesday
The pulsator on my Surge has been quirky lately and this morning would not behave at all. I was able to make it function by moving the slider back and forth with my finger, a tedious and ultimately painful exercise. Consequently I was forced to dismantle the thing and clean it. That was the problem all right. This evening it worked fine.
One of my neighbors came over this morning and negotiated to borrow the Kubota so he would have two tractors on site for his manure spreading job. He got a load of chicken manure from the deCoster egg farm. He will now lend us his spreader later for spreading my manure piles. We have been wishing we owned a spreader. Now I can forget about that for another year.
Max came over for milk this morning and brought along his shop vac. When he was farm sitting last Saturday he observed that my vacuuming was not getting into the corners - so true. I have an ancient wheeze of an upright Hoover and its accessory hose attachment is long gone. He did the entire downstairs including ceilings. What a guy. I was as pleased as if I had been given a coupon for a massage.
There were no signs of heat in Jasmine today unless you count her licking Helen a lot. But tomorrow is really the day that will give the news one way or the other.
Willie has been jumping up and down trying to make it up onto the couch. Today he managed it. First he attacked the pair of sock monkeys, then my hair (I was lying down.) I guess I will retire my more valued cushions. Max brought him a little collar and leash today. I had hoped to be able to hitch him while I go to the barn. The collar proved defective so he is stuck with his hay string a little longer.
My grandson Rafe has returned. He is going to do some carpentry for Max and Martin. DIL Amy wants a bay window in her baby's room. Max and Mitra need a new deck which will made of CorrectDeck. Rafe also aims to work on his boat. The people who delivered it failed to bring along the mast so something will have to be done about that at some point. Rafe expects to be here six weeks.
March 30, 2006 Thursday
Yesterday or today Jasmine should have come in heat if she is not bred. I am permitting myself some cautious optimism. I did not see any overt heat activity. I did notice that the cows were huddling more than usual and tonight I thought her vulva looked just slightly puffy compared to this morning.
My vet came by today. I gave him a nice lunch of chili I had frozen while Sally was here. I also had a cake. Rafe joined us. The vet looked at Freddie's sore foot and confirmed foot rot. He gave him a shot of penicillin, gave me some iodine to put on it and Terramycin to put in his feed.
Rafe took both dogs for a nice walk. He reported that Willie kept up without difficulty. He also saw that the spring line is separated where it crosses the brook and no water is pouring out.
March 31, 2006 Friday
This morning I had to stop kidding myself. Although the signs were subtle, I decided Jasmine was in heat. Gloom. I called my AI tech. As always he was slow to arrive. He said he was sure she was in better heat than last time. I used a Genex bull called Roulette. I don't know a thing about him except Phil said he is highly fertile and is short. So we will see.
Rafe left today to visit his friends in Bar Harbor. I made egg salad with 8 eggs and he made sandwiches of it all. I think he will be OD'd on eggs. He went to College of the Atlantic and still is fond of the place. I expect him back Sunday.
Fred was still limping today. By sneaking up with the medicine dropper while he is drinking his milk I am able to get the iodine on his foot. The antibiotic powder in his grain does not slow him down at all.
I found a new nest with six small flawless blue eggs. It is of course one of the bantams. I left her two.
The weather today, like yesterday, was warm and lovely.
Well, Jasmine certainly pulled an April Fool's joke on me. After showing no further signs of heat all of yesterday, about mid morning today she exploded. I have seldom seen such jumping and humping. She was standing at 10am and still standing at 6pm. I did not call AI back. The prospect of paying him another $40 was too depressing. Darn it.
It is raining today, the first rain in weeks. We had the driest March since 1874 or some such. This is a very light rain.
In order to use up some of the eggs which my hens are finally laying, I made Portuguese Sweet Bread. I cut down on the sugar and used my last two cups of whole wheat flour, the remainder white, and five eggs. I got two beautiful shining golden loaves, a cheerful sight.
I also made 1.5 lbs of butter from 3 quarts of cream, just what my churn holds.
April 2, 2006 Sunday
Freddie is still a little touchy with his infected foot but I am not seeing any actual limping. It is getting better. It is tetracycline I am putting in his food, not teramycin. He walks along nicely now.
The dogs and I took a short walk to the river. Yesterday's rain raised it a bit but it is low for the time of year. I stopped at the veg garden and checked for thawing by sticking in a shovel. It went right in to the top of the blade without hitting ice. I could definitely plant carrots. This is a good two to three weeks earlier than normal.
Sad news came to me last night. My very dear Cousin Marcia, much loved from childhood, passed away last night from cancer. What a void she leaves in the hearts of her family.
April 3, 2006 Monday
Rafe returned today. He had a great time with his friends out on Gott Island, a resort community, where they are doing carpentry. On the way home he bought a table saw, a chop saw, a reciprocating saw, and a bunch of hand tools to add to what he already owns. Besides working on his boat, he is planning to do some renovations for his uncles Max and Martin.
He took the dogs for two nice walks.
April 4, 2006 Tuesday
Winter came roaring back. We are having an all day sleet storm. Rafe drove to Biddeford (2 hours away where Martin and Amy live) to pick up a van and trailer load of CorrectDeck for Max and Mitra from Martin's plant. The driving was not good. On the steep hill approaching Max and Mitra's house it was too slippery and he could not make it. Patrolmen came to direct traffic and the Town came out with sand. He was able to back down the hill to a driveway and turn the load around. There is another less steep access road on the other side of the hill. It was ten extra miles of driving but he made it ok and unloaded the boards.
Fred's foot must feel a lot better. He raced in tonight at the head of the pack to get his dinner. He gets a half gallon of warm milk in a bucket and a small scoop of grain. He also likes the mineral mix I sent away for from Countryside Natural Products in VA. Rafe built a box across one corner of the Beefer Pen for the cows to have free choice minerals. Fred can't reach it. I saw him licking spilled mineral off of a beam lower down so I spread some down there for him. I drew a design with my fingers in the minerals in the box so I would be able to tell if the cows were eating it. On the first day they did not but now they have started eating some. I was going to make up Pat Coleby's mix as recommended by Midge but the man at Countryside talked me into his mix. It seems to have pretty much the same formula. The ingredients are: Kelp, dicalcium phosphate, calcium carbonate, salt, magnesium oxide, hydrated sodium calcium aluminosilicate, diatomaceous earth, sulpher, garlic, dehydrated apple cider vinegar, copper sulphate, vitamin E, sodium selinate.
Willie teases Lemur all the time. Lemur is my deaf and blind cat. Today she was on a stool and he was darting around barking at her. She knew he was there. I suppose she can feel his breath. This time she reached out her paw and nailed him good. It was one of those occasions where the cat can't seem to get her claw back. She had him hooked like a bass right on his lip. He was dancing around and pulling back. I was kind of afraid to stick my hand into the middle of this for fear that Lemur would think I was part of the problem. Willie has a strong terrier spirit and did not even squeak although there was blood. I soon took the risk and picked Lemur up and put her in the cellar with a treat. She likes the cellar.
After supper Rafe built a huge fire in the kitchen fireplace and set the chimney on fire. Thanks to my habit of maintaining a lot of backup supplies, I was able to lay hands on three boxes of baking soda. I shook them onto the fire which reduced it but it was in the chimney and burning creosote. Rafe put the logs into a metal garbage pail and carried them outside. We stood out in the rain and watched the chimney for quite a while. It seems to be out.
I think I have had about enough excitement for one day.
April 5, 2006 Wednesday
Sometime during the night a power pole went down. We had no electricity this morning. It took me a while to fit it together in my brain that this meant I had to milk by hand. Then I stalled around until 8 o'clock before facing reality. Jasmine stood to perfection. I had not hand milked since last fall and got awfully tired about halfway through. I quit, leaving some milk behind, kind of a no-no for various reasons. I think I got most of it back this evening; anyway she gave three gallons for the day which is close to her usual production.
I have watched Jasmine closely since she was in heat and have not seen any bleed out. I suppose there is a remote chance that even though bred too early she may have settled.
Rafe took the van and trailer back to Biddeford today and spent the afternoon working at Martin's plant. He enjoyed seeing the plant in action. It is a great hive of cheerful activity that runs 24/7.
April 7, 2006 Friday
Yesterday Jasmine had a very little bit of slime which I wiped off with a paper towel. There was no blood in it.
She is still giving 3 to 3.5 gallons a day. I am giving her, but not Helen, a couple of handfuls of alfalfa cubes on her feed night and morning. I don't know who is eating the free choice mineral but it is disappearing.
Nearly every doorknob in my house has been out of business for years, some for as long as I have lived here. Efforts to fix them have failed. Rafe went out and bought four new sets. But when he took apart the 100 year old doorknobs he was so impressed with their workmanship that he was reluctant to replace them. Their problem was that the spring that is supposed to return the hasp had in each case broken. He devised a way to repair all but one by blocking part of the brace the spring was in so that the shortened spring would function. The house has shifted so much that on one door he had to move the striker plate and another door had to be planed down nearly an inch. Rafe owns a lot of tools, being a carpenter, including a power plane so the work went fast. With the doorknobs functional I was able to retire the system of baby gates I have been using to reduce Willie's opportunities to roam the house. Rafe also fixed a hazardous ramp in the barn and reset the barrier bar where Helen stands at milking time. Now I can get past it with the milking machine more easily.
I pan fried a couple of grassfed Jersey tenderloins for dinner, reaffirming the tender tastiness of same.
This morning I taped Helen at 1117 lbs, Jasmine at 740, Emily also at 740, and Fred at 271. Fred gained less than 50 lbs in the last month perhaps because of his foot rot, perhaps because we cut him back from 1.5 gallons of milk to one gallon. I can ill spare this milk right now and half the time I mix up powdered milk that I have on hand. I prefer not to wean him yet because with any kind of luck when Helen freshens I will again have too much and he will be a good customer for some of it.
Emily is about to have her first birthday. She has long legs and will be as big as her mom no doubt.
What a busy day! Rafe went over to Max and Mitra's and built their pig house. Max is still out of town. I ran around getting the house cleaned up for dinner here tonight and made lemon bars. My one TV show, Victory Garden, comes on at 12:30 and I watched that. Martin and Amy came up from Biddeford bringing the makings for salad. Amy has one more month to wait for her baby. She seems happy and relaxed. Mitra and the girls came over. The girls bathed Willie again. He looks adorably white and fluffy after a bath.
Mitra helped with the evening barn chores.
For supper Mitra made Iranian rice and another of her superb salads. I made a cauliflower stir fry using one of the new orange cauliflowers. Rafe brought salmon from Alaska which he had caught in the inlet in front of their house. I baked it with lemon butter and fennel.
Mitra's dog Lulu played endlessly with Willie. He seems to be tireless and had a wonderful time.
Right at dinner time Martin stepped out the door and there was a wild bird sitting on the floor, frightened and confused. He carefully picked it up and brought it inside. It was a woodcock. None of us had every seen one up close like that. After we had all had a good look he took it out on the deck to fly away. It disappeared into the gathering dusk. I can't imagine how it happened to fly into the buttery.
Jasmine gave 3.5 gallons today.
April 9, 2006 Sunday
The sun was bright all day today - at last. I don't believe it got above 40F but everyone agreed it was a fine day. Rafe took an early walk with the dogs, Willie bouncing along as usual.
I made rye bread using the recipe from DanMa. It is excellent.
Martin came down and did some farm tasks including moving the stock tank back outdoors for the summer. The cows were much confused by the change. They grazed for a long time today and were sufficiently satisfied that they gave insulting looks to their 2nd rate hay tonight. It does not look to me as though there is enough grass to be worth grazing but they disagree. Obviously they are getting something. Jasmine's cream is changing from the thin cream of winter to the heavy cream characteristic of spring grass. This evening for the first time this year Helen and Jasmine were out grazing side by side on the knoll as darkness fell. Emily and Freddie didn't bother.
Rafe is gone this week to Max and Mitra's house, being joined there by another carpenter friend, to build them a new deck. It will be a CorrectDcck of course.
April 11, 2006 Tuesday
I have now heard the wild geese flying north and the dogs and I saw a large hen turkey cross the field. Monday I did some garden prep. The ground is clear but I need manure brought down.
Today I took both dogs with me to do errands. Willie rode in a crate. He was perfectly behaved and did no yipping even though I was a long time in the library.
April 12, 2006 Wednesday Well, I got a revolting shock when I got down one of my cheeses. A mouse had got in and excavated out about half of it. I never had this happen before. Now I will have to revise my whole cheese storage plan. I have them hanging in individual onion bags from pipes in the cellar. This is so aggravating because my lovely cellar has just the right conditions.
The cows say spring is here. They slept outside. It makes for a lot less clean up.
A man came today and cleaned my chimneys. Mitra found him. It is very hard to get anyone to do it. He spent his working life in New Jersey before retiring to Maine. I guess when he discovered how starved we are for chimney sweeps he decided to take it up again.
Jasmine has given 3.5 gallons each of the last few days.
April 13, 2006 Thursday
Here's another Spring First. The cows did not come up at milking time this evening. I yelled my fool head off, not a musical note I fear, and got no response. There was a lot of wind and I could not see them or hear bells. After a while I gave up and decided to do like Heather (simplynaturalfarm) and just skip it. But about 7:30 I relented and went out to see if they were in. They were, and Jasmine gave an extra half gallon for a total of 4 gallons today. I also got a dozen eggs again. If they are out of sight in the morning I will start closing them into the close-up paddock at night.
With some help from Bagel and Willie, I got a row prepared for carrots. Tomorrow I will run down and sow them, with any kind of luck.
April 14, 2006 Friday
The weather today was perfectly lovely, balmy and bright. The cows were once again sleeping down on the pasture by the river. I could see them from my window when I first got up. Later they ambled up for milking right on time and did the same this evening. Jasmine gave 3.5 gallons. I had very little pitching out to do because after eating their hay they went back outside to soak up rays. They are refusing the poor quality hay so I am dividing the good hay up into more than one feeding.
My daughter Sally called from Alaska. She wanted to tell me about the bizarre decision of some group of state officials. These zealots have formed a committee for bird flu preparedness. They say they plan to quarantine the town of Haines by blocking the access road and right now everyone should lay in a month's supply of food in case they really do it.
Son Martin and wife Amy are arriving shortly for the weekend. I am making them Chinese Hot and Sour soup. It is a last minute thing. I have four little bowls of things to add in succession at the last minute.
Earlier today I made hot cross buns. They are half whole wheat but look like 100%.
Later: The Hot and Sour soup was a hit.
We did not get much sun and there were some sprinkles but the air was warm and balmy. Max and Mitra and the girls came over for an Easter egg hunt and dinner. Martin worked around here much of the day while Amy stayed at camp with her feet elevated. Her baby is due in three weeks and her feet are swelling. Rafe is back now too.
Martin is trying to run new electrical wire for lights over the Aga. It is proving difficult. The wiring in this house is old and confusing.
Max made two pies for our dinner, apple and blueberry. I had made a nine egg pound cake which I did not serve. I sent half of it home with them instead.
William, my puppy, had a wild good time with the girls and their dog Lulu. He managed to fall into the fish pond and had to be rescued by Shireen. What with the sousing and digging holes wherever he finds a bare spot, he was filthy. Mitra gave him a nice bath and carried him around in a bath towel until he was dry and warm.
Helen also looks like her feet hurt. She is due the same day as Amy, May 10. She is bagging up a little bit. I don't know which of them is eating the free choice mineral but it is disappearing and I refilled the box. The only one I see eating it is Freddie but he does not eat out of the box. I put handfuls of it down on a low beam for him.
Jasmine gave four gallons today.
April 17, 2006 Monday
Big excitement for me this morning. I walked into the kitchen to the sound of running water. My spring line started up during the night and the granite cistern was filled and running over into the outfall as it is meant to do. This lovely spring which enlivens the kitchen with living water freezes along the line in winter. It is a great event every spring when it thaws. The line has a problem with leaks and develops air locks. Rafe worked on it last Saturday and Martin on Sunday. I am not sure what made it start to run.
Our weather is overcast and drizzly but in the 40's and 50's so the grass is able to grow a bit. I see the cows out there with their heads down finding a little. The grass or something has boosted Jasmine's production to close to four gallons. Today it was over four gallons.
Helen is looking huge and uncomfortable.
April 18, 2006 Tuesday
Although it got up to near 50F, today was overcast and windy. It was not tempting to work in the garden. I put the dogs in the car and went out on errands. Willie is a whirlwind when playing around home but goes right to sleep in his crate. I have it on the back seat with the door towards Bagel so he can see that he is not alone.
Sally in AK has a litter of adorable baby bunnies, so she reports. These are meat rabbits. I am not quite sure how she ever manages to kill them. But she somehow does. She has also ordered baby chicks from Murray McMurray. She shortened up her order so as to improve her chances of receiving them before the power crazed bureaucrats decide to prevent poultry shipments.
Grandson Rafe returned this evening to pick up more lumber for his projects at Max and Mitra's house. He is starting a duck house. They are going to have a regular little farm in their beautiful clearing in the woods.
Many buds are at last starting to swell. The willows have a golden cast. Along the edge of the barn there is a little green froth of tansy showing.
Jasmine gave a strong four gallons again today.
April 19, 2006 Wednesday
The dogs and I took a tour down to the veg garden where I have not been for several days due to uninviting weather. I found that my garlic is poking up, also the lovage. The buds of the Balm of Gilead are beginning to swell and get sticky.
I dug a large hole up by the house for a peony that was displaced last year by some septic tank work and never properly replanted. I hauled a cartload of manure for it and added lime. After all this neglect I want it to have a good life.
Before leaving again for Mitra and Max's house, Rafe got my modem line replaced. It had been out for three days. What a nuisance that was!
My neighbor Leonard came again and borrowed the Kubota.
At milking time only Helen and Jasmine were there waiting. Emily was way out in the pasture grazing. Before I was done Freddie showed up but Emily missed her snack. It is good to know there was enough grass out there to hold her interest.
April 20, 2006 Thursday
On Coburn Farm it was the best of times, it was the worst of times. The best part was the perfect balmy sunny weather. I did some more fun soil prep for my veggies while Bagel and William observed.
The worst part was that Helen has torn her teat. It is not as bad as last year. It is only about a half inch long. I usually brush her while the machine is on Jasmine. For several days her udder and one teat were dirty but I don't do much with her udder now while she is dry beyond feeling all four quarters daily to be sure they are healthy. But she has come in twice all clean due to lying in the pasture, except for one teat. I decided to wash it off just to be sure there was nothing wrong with it. As soon as I got near it she kicked and my heart sank. I put the kicker on and worked on it both this morning and this evening but could not get off all the caked on manure. Just a little bit is on there but I am just trying to soak it off, not pick it off, in case I disturb a scab. She got me good across the eyes with her tail. That really hurt. She has about 20 days to go on her pregnancy so theoretically it could be healed before she calves.
Before leaving this morning for several days of carpentry work on Martin and Amy's house, Rafe attached another stud on the cow's ramp which will make it easier for Helen to make it up. But there is no proof that is how she stepped on her teat. She may do it when arising. I may put the cow bra on her once I have that teat clean.
This will really mess up my experiment with milk fever prevention and free choice minerals by adding a level of stress.
I made a batch of the yeast raised biscuits that were posted on the Forum by Lesli. I only made half the recipe but it still made a lot. It is an interesting dough, extremely tender yet easily handled. The nearest thing I can compare it to is restaurant rolls but with more flavor. It has that light almost cottony texture even though I used about half whole wheat pastry flour.
My neighbor, Leonard, borrowed the tractor again today to help with spreading chicken manure. When he brought it back he graciously spent about 20 minutes scraping and smoothing my rutted driveway.
Jasmine gave 4 gallons and I got 13 eggs. And I heard my first spring peepers.
April 21, 2006 Friday
I got the scabbed on manure off of Helen's teat. I held sopping wet warm cloths on it. I hope I did the right thing. The wound looks healthy and pink. I applied pure vitamin E to it. I don't believe it still hurts her. I instructed her firmly not to kick or switch her tail and she minded me, which she certainly would not have if it actually hurt. She is getting so big that it is painful to watch her walk and she is beginning to bag up.
Emily has been acting quite naughty when she comes in, dancing around and shaking her head and not letting me catch her to tie her up. She has missed her grain snack a couple of times because I don't give it to her when she is stroppy. She hates that. This evening when she danced away from me I threw the pitchfork at her and chased her out. Then I followed her into the beefer pen and threw it at her again (handle first of course, I just wanted her to know she was in trouble). She stood there looking sorry so I asked her if she wanted to go back in and try again. She walked back in and stood nicely. It will be interesting to see if the lesson lasts until tomorrow morning.
I finally got my row of carrots planted, then dug another row and turned in rotted manure and lime. These are just 12' rows so the accomplishment is not huge. The first row is a cultivar called Bolero, the second is Purple Haze, which as the name suggests is purple. I also got one area of comfrey covered with tarp before it emerged. I pinned the tarp down tight with old steel electric fence rods. I am hoping to kill the patch with solarization.
The dogs were terribly disappointed that I was only walking as far as the veg garden. Bagel went and had a look at the river by himself and Willie, who was tied up, dug some nice cool holes.
Jasmine, who is the hungriest, was the only one who came in for noontime hay. I threw her down a bale of the poor quality just to see what would happen. She refused it, just stood staring up at me. So I threw her down a private lunch of the good stuff.
Jasmine behaved exactly as last time she came in heat. Yep, today was the day. I saw mild but unmistakable signs of heat about 10AM. Then in the afternoon, nada. This time I vowed to wait for further demonstration of standing heat. I saw just one little attempt, although I watched for a long time. Last time she did this, then quieted down and came into roaring heat the second day after. So, we shall see.
Emily came in quietly to get hooked up this morning, but this evening was again skittish. She did not get her grain.
My little hen that was setting inside an outside barn wall was just a pile of feathers this morning. Something got her in the night, poor thing. I suppose it was a raccoon. I put her cold eggs in the dustbin.
I've been getting a bit of gardening done. I need Max to come and connect up my water hoses. Unless it rains, germination will have to await water laid on. So far I have in carrots and lettuce.
Max got home today from Cape Cod, the job being ended. While he was gone Rafe built their duck house. It is so cute that the girls are claiming it for a play house.
The big news today is that my son Martin's wife, Amy, had her baby. She went into the hospital yesterday with high blood pressure and today was delivered of Hannah, 6 lb 7 oz at 3 PM by C-section. She was 19 days early. Martin held her for 15 minutes, then handed her to mom. She began nursing immediately and was still nursing 45 minutes later when he called. She is reportedly blond with traces of curly hair, and very pink and pretty. Pictures are promised.
April 23, 2006 Sunday
The report from the hospital seems to be good. Martin stayed overnight and held little Hanna for a long time so she would stay quiet and let Amy rest. Like all hospitals, this one makes a specialty of coming in to wake you up and ask if you are sleeping well. This is a teaching hospital so they make an extra effort.
Rafe is at their house doing carpentry. The plan had been for him to get this work done before Hannah was born. He will still be at it when they come home next Tuesday. But, babies usually sleep through anything.
Meanwhile, back at the ranch: Not a whiff of a sign of heat today from Jasmine. I have dropped them from three bales of hay a day to two. They are grazing diligently, but still come in at meal time to look for hay. If it is the lower quality hay they distain, they just stand there waiting.
I planted a row of golden beet and prepared a row for tomorrow. My rhubarb is pushing up its first knots of crumpled leaves. I tented some wire over it to stop chickens from eating it. There is quite a lot of forsythia in bloom. Most years I get no bloom and I was ready to whack it all out. The mild winter made the difference, no doubt.
Willie is being very cute. Of course now a lot of my sweaters have holes in them and he has pulled much of the fleece off of my slippers. Some of the small rugs will have to go to the dump. Mostly I keep him away from the rooms with the better rugs.
April 24, 2006
Monday After a worrisome period during which Hannah was too sleepy to eat, Martin now reports more enthusiastic feeding and plenty of elimination. She sleeps on mommy's breast and is getting stronger fast.
April 25, 2006
Tuesday Just as Martin, Amy and Hannah were about to leave the hospital a pediatrician came in and listened to Hannah's heart. She said Hannah has a heart murmur. Plans for leaving were set aside. They went for an echocardiogram. Hannah has a ventricular septum defect. It was not detected at birth because apertures, which shortly close, are normal. It is not serious enough to impair her color, which is a nice pink, but they were told to expect her to be drowsy and weak. She will see the pediatrician ag