Quick!
2 days left to view this video for free on Mercola's website...
http://www.mercola.com/
Good information to help you be more aware of the controversy surrounding vaccines.
Some key points:
1. The decrease in childhood illnesses (measles, polio, diptheria) happened BEFORE vaccines became widely used... not after. This means vaccinations cannot be credited as the sole reason these illnesses are no longer epidemic.
2. Ingested heavy metals (mercury, aluminum) are taken fairly quickly and entirely out of the body. Heavy metals in shots are taken into the bloodstream and circulate for a very long time, that's the reason they are included in vaccines, to make the effect last longer. Damage to neurons is a known effect of heavy metal toxicity.
3. Autistic children seem to have a genetic inability to get rid of mercury accumulation in the body like other children... giving vaccines to two different children may have entirely different results due to predispositions in their genetic makeup.
Thursday, November 3, 2011
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Another Year
What happened? I can't be 22... last year I was 18, I think...
It is kind of scary how fast time flies. The past four years I've been milking cows and learning about farming, teaching piano, learning about nutrition and using herbal medicine. Preparing the best I could for an unknown future... marriage, a home and family of my own, but being open to the possibility I would continue working from my parents' home for a very long time.
So much I don't know. It's humbling. If the Lord tarries, here's to another year of discovery! Possibly a lot of changes, too.
I've posted this quote before, but I love it. So you get to see it again ;)
If there were a choice between... on the one hand, the heights and the depths and, on the other hand, some sort of safe, cautious middle way, he, for one, here and now chose the heights and the depths. ~ Sheldon Vanauken
I, for one, chose the heights and the depths.
Wednesday, October 26, 2011
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
True and Sad
Someone sent out an e-mail with these great quotes and I just had to post them...
Enjoy :)
1. In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm and three or more is a congress.
- John Adams
2. If you don't read the newspaper you are uninformed, if you do read the newspaper you are misinformed.
- Mark Twain
3. Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But then I repeat myself.
- Mark Twain
4. I contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle.
- Winston Churchill
5. A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul.
- George Bernard Shaw
6. A liberal is someone who feels a great debt to his fellow man, which debt he proposes to pay off with your money.
- G. Gordon Liddy
7. Democracy must be something more than two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner.
- James Bovard, Civil Libertarian (1994)
8. Foreign aid might be defined as a transfer of money from poor people in rich countries to rich people in poor countries.
- Douglas Casey, Classmate of Bill Clinton at Georgetown University
9. Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.
- P.J. O'Rourke, Civil Libertarian
10. Government is the great fiction, through which everybody endeavors to live at the expense of everybody else.
- Frederic Bastiat, French economist(1801-1850)
11. Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.
- Ronald Reagan (1986)
12. I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.
- Will Rogers
13. If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free!
- P.J. O'Rourke
14. In general, the art of government consists of taking as much money as possible from one party of the citizens to give to the other.
- Voltaire (1764)
16. No man's life, liberty, or property is safe while the legislature is in session.
- Mark Twain (1866)
17. Talk is cheap...except when Congress does it.
- Anonymous
18. The government is like a baby's alimentary canal, with a happy appetite at one end and no responsibility at the other.
- Ronald Reagan
19. The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of the blessings. The inherent blessing of socialism is the equal sharing of misery.
- Winston Churchill
20. The only difference between a tax man and a taxidermist is that the taxidermist leaves the skin.
- Mark Twain
21. The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly is to fill the world with fools.
- Herbert Spencer, English Philosopher (1820-1903)
22. There is no distinctly Native American criminal class...save Congress.
- Mark Twain
23. What this country needs are more unemployed politicians.
- Edward Langley, Artist (1928-1995)
24. A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have.
- Thomas Jefferson
25. We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office.
- Aesop
FIVE BEST SENTENCES
1. You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity, by legislating the wealth out of prosperity.
2. What one person receives without working for...another person must work for without receiving.
3. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.
4. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it.
5. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they worked for, that is the beginning of the end of any nation!
Enjoy :)
1. In my many years I have come to a conclusion that one useless man is a shame, two is a law firm and three or more is a congress.
- John Adams
2. If you don't read the newspaper you are uninformed, if you do read the newspaper you are misinformed.
- Mark Twain
3. Suppose you were an idiot. And suppose you were a member of Congress. But then I repeat myself.
- Mark Twain
4. I contend that for a nation to try to tax itself into prosperity is like a man standing in a bucket and trying to lift himself up by the handle.
- Winston Churchill
5. A government which robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul.
- George Bernard Shaw
6. A liberal is someone who feels a great debt to his fellow man, which debt he proposes to pay off with your money.
- G. Gordon Liddy
7. Democracy must be something more than two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner.
- James Bovard, Civil Libertarian (1994)
8. Foreign aid might be defined as a transfer of money from poor people in rich countries to rich people in poor countries.
- Douglas Casey, Classmate of Bill Clinton at Georgetown University
9. Giving money and power to government is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.
- P.J. O'Rourke, Civil Libertarian
10. Government is the great fiction, through which everybody endeavors to live at the expense of everybody else.
- Frederic Bastiat, French economist(1801-1850)
11. Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it.
- Ronald Reagan (1986)
12. I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.
- Will Rogers
13. If you think health care is expensive now, wait until you see what it costs when it's free!
- P.J. O'Rourke
14. In general, the art of government consists of taking as much money as possible from one party of the citizens to give to the other.
- Voltaire (1764)
16. No man's life, liberty, or property is safe while the legislature is in session.
- Mark Twain (1866)
17. Talk is cheap...except when Congress does it.
- Anonymous
18. The government is like a baby's alimentary canal, with a happy appetite at one end and no responsibility at the other.
- Ronald Reagan
19. The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of the blessings. The inherent blessing of socialism is the equal sharing of misery.
- Winston Churchill
20. The only difference between a tax man and a taxidermist is that the taxidermist leaves the skin.
- Mark Twain
21. The ultimate result of shielding men from the effects of folly is to fill the world with fools.
- Herbert Spencer, English Philosopher (1820-1903)
22. There is no distinctly Native American criminal class...save Congress.
- Mark Twain
23. What this country needs are more unemployed politicians.
- Edward Langley, Artist (1928-1995)
24. A government big enough to give you everything you want, is strong enough to take everything you have.
- Thomas Jefferson
25. We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office.
- Aesop
FIVE BEST SENTENCES
1. You cannot legislate the poor into prosperity, by legislating the wealth out of prosperity.
2. What one person receives without working for...another person must work for without receiving.
3. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.
4. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it.
5. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they worked for, that is the beginning of the end of any nation!
Monday, October 24, 2011
Patch
Praise God for allowing Christi and I to be there to help with the birth... got to finally help pull a calf... God is so good.
(All pictures credit to Christi Davis Photography)
Friday, October 14, 2011
Beautiful Friendship... and all the rough spots too ;)
How often I hated watching friends drift away as I was growing up... early on, it was when they went off to public school, or different churches, then college, and recently it is falling in love with :gasp: a BOY and getting married.
I have difficulty being vulnerable with people, so when I form a close friendship, it hurts terribly if anything happens to tear them away... it feels nasty, awful, depressing... you name it, that's a broken friendship.
That's why I started this courtship wanting to remain in touch with my dear friends. Have I succeeded?
It's hard to gauge... by e-mail, yes, in person not so much.
Priorities for married folks ought to be...
1. God.
2. Spouse.
3. Children.
4. Work (you could argue with the order on this one, but providing for #2-3 is kinda important).
5. Friends.
So us in-betweens have a dilemma... we have someone who is somewhere between #2 and #5... but definitely closer to #2 than #5... yet because they are not yet the significant other, it doesn't seem quite right to other friends who are left out.
I still feel guilty that I am not there for my friends as much as I used to be... and that I'm not spending a lot of time culturing our friendships and helping them to grow.
But if you think about it, how would the person you're in a relationship with feel if you told them that your friends are equally important to you and thus you spend more time with them instead... this other person who is already sacrificing their own time and wanting to spend the rest of their life with you in the closest possible human relationship... what are they supposed to think by that statement?
Whose fault is it? The one 'lost in love' or the 'dejected rejected'?
Change is always hard, but maybe we're looking at this the wrong way.
It's the difficult seasons that shape us... for better or worse, depending on what we do with them. I want my friendships to deepen - not stay the same. Maybe I disappear off the map for a while... maybe in a year I come back, "Why, hullo stranger!", for a time of renewing and deepening friendship. And since I firmly believe everyone should get married :insert big wink: ;), hopefully by that time we'll both be married and have a lot of new common concerns/interests... but if not, we can still have the cool and unique opportunity of learning and encouraging each other by what God is doing in our life, single and married alike.
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Turkey butchering on the fly...
We've been getting drenched here in the Willamette valley over the past couple days... cool and wet fall weather is my favorite time of year... as long as there are no broilers or turkeys being raised at the time. Then it's nothing but misery and worry. Birds do not have a will to live.
That is why I randomly decided to hand process our turkeys yesterday so they would be safe in our freezer. Isaac, Sarah G. and I (the other two had no choice - I'm such a slavemaster XD jk) hung the birds from the clothesline post, slit the throats, hand plucked, gutted, and froze the birds. We didn't have a pot big enough to scald any but the smallest female, but plucking was surprisingly easy except for the wings.
Pigs ate the entrails, chickens pecked at the scraps and feathers on the ground, and there are 120 lbs of turkey meat sitting in our freezer. Now I can relax and enjoy fall.
Good times :)
That is why I randomly decided to hand process our turkeys yesterday so they would be safe in our freezer. Isaac, Sarah G. and I (the other two had no choice - I'm such a slavemaster XD jk) hung the birds from the clothesline post, slit the throats, hand plucked, gutted, and froze the birds. We didn't have a pot big enough to scald any but the smallest female, but plucking was surprisingly easy except for the wings.
Pigs ate the entrails, chickens pecked at the scraps and feathers on the ground, and there are 120 lbs of turkey meat sitting in our freezer. Now I can relax and enjoy fall.
Good times :)
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
These Folks Need Facts
Things like this drive me nuts.
I read an article http://www.healthy.net/scr/Article.aspx?Id=777 . Great, other than this quote:
No, when calves drink milk, it completely bypasses two of the stomach compartments: the rumen and reticulum, by means of the esophageal groove. It is digested in the omasum and abomasum by enzymes... much like human children digest breast milk.
It is an error to say that all milk is not a good food for humans, simply because pasteurized milk is a known contributor of many health issues. In a non-compromised/lactose sensitive individual, raw dairy products provide their own enzymes for proper digestion and are a great food for children and adults, when used to supplement a natural whole foods diet.
Lol. Peoples. :P
I read an article http://www.healthy.net/scr/Article.aspx?Id=777 . Great, other than this quote:
"Cows have four stomach with which to digest their own milk. Cow's milk is just not fit for human consumption, especially not when it's full of bovine growth hormone and antibiotics. Don't feed your children cow's milk. They just don't need it; in fact it's bad for us all unless you are dying of starvation and its the only available source of protein. The only "healthy" dairy product for homo sapiens (that's us) is yogurt, which is already partially digested with enzymes."
No, when calves drink milk, it completely bypasses two of the stomach compartments: the rumen and reticulum, by means of the esophageal groove. It is digested in the omasum and abomasum by enzymes... much like human children digest breast milk.
It is an error to say that all milk is not a good food for humans, simply because pasteurized milk is a known contributor of many health issues. In a non-compromised/lactose sensitive individual, raw dairy products provide their own enzymes for proper digestion and are a great food for children and adults, when used to supplement a natural whole foods diet.
Lol. Peoples. :P
Sunday, August 21, 2011
One Sad Necessity
Little Dorrit lost her voice this morning...
I can't imagine anything more sad than a calf going hoarse from mooing after being separated from it's mom...
...except maybe a mama cow who looks like she's crying while she moos back.
Sad necessity... baby was tearing up mama's teats with her sharp teeth and was growing far too tall to reach the low udder to drink. She'll be happier on the bottle until we wean her in a few months.
I can't imagine anything more sad than a calf going hoarse from mooing after being separated from it's mom...
...except maybe a mama cow who looks like she's crying while she moos back.
Sad necessity... baby was tearing up mama's teats with her sharp teeth and was growing far too tall to reach the low udder to drink. She'll be happier on the bottle until we wean her in a few months.
Monday, August 8, 2011
Farm Updates
Last week I found a buyer for Chestnut, one of our Angus/Jersey cross heifers. We still have Cocoa for beef, so business-wise I think it was a good decision to sell one animal before winter and high hay prices hit.
Baby Dorrit is a testimony to the benefits of leaving the calf on its mother, she's huge and very healthy. We're just struggling to put weight back on her mama, Mattie, who is giving at least 7 gallons of milk per day - right off her back, of course. :bangs head on desk: I love Opal, my fat wonderful cow... she's a brick, still giving almost 4 gallons a day, steady as you please. Jani will be dried off in a week, getting big with baby due mid-October.
Both Mattie and Jani tested as A2/A2, which is a praise, and I may get our 14 month old Jersey heifer Shiloh tested just for kicks. She's a gorgeous animal, I'm impressed that she has performed so well on just grass.
I wish it was all roses, though... Mattie came down with the first case of mastitis on our farm. Hopefully it is improving, and only one teat is affected.
I caved in... and bought two piglets... lol, I'm nuts. They escaped their pen the first day, and luckily we got them back in before the cows trampled them to death. It has since been quiet for the past few weeks. Then Sunday night someone opened their pen door and they escaped again. Isaac and all the kiddoes enjoyed the wild pig chase... the pigs' owner, not so much enjoyment :P
We bought 10 ton of premium eastern OR orchard grass hay to fill the barn. Very spendy, but good for the animals. Grain will need to be purchased next month, and then we should be set through December.
Baby Dorrit is a testimony to the benefits of leaving the calf on its mother, she's huge and very healthy. We're just struggling to put weight back on her mama, Mattie, who is giving at least 7 gallons of milk per day - right off her back, of course. :bangs head on desk: I love Opal, my fat wonderful cow... she's a brick, still giving almost 4 gallons a day, steady as you please. Jani will be dried off in a week, getting big with baby due mid-October.
Both Mattie and Jani tested as A2/A2, which is a praise, and I may get our 14 month old Jersey heifer Shiloh tested just for kicks. She's a gorgeous animal, I'm impressed that she has performed so well on just grass.
I wish it was all roses, though... Mattie came down with the first case of mastitis on our farm. Hopefully it is improving, and only one teat is affected.
I caved in... and bought two piglets... lol, I'm nuts. They escaped their pen the first day, and luckily we got them back in before the cows trampled them to death. It has since been quiet for the past few weeks. Then Sunday night someone opened their pen door and they escaped again. Isaac and all the kiddoes enjoyed the wild pig chase... the pigs' owner, not so much enjoyment :P
We bought 10 ton of premium eastern OR orchard grass hay to fill the barn. Very spendy, but good for the animals. Grain will need to be purchased next month, and then we should be set through December.
Saturday, August 6, 2011
Country Courtship
Isaac and I, walking cows home for milking ;)
I enjoy spending lots of time with Isaac these days... :D
These past few weeks I have met with and talked to many godly ladies, younger and older, about this courtship. To be honest, I feel as though my communication 'quota' (yes, strange as it may seem, I'm a girl who has one of those) has been exceeded by 200%. There's a lot of pressure to get married, and do things the 'right' way, so it has been a struggle to be patient with myself. I'm different than everyone else, move at a different pace, and have different struggles to work through. For a while I'm going to focus less on getting advice from other people, and work on communicating with God and Isaac. Just the three of us :)
"May the peace that passes all understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus."
The lyrics to one of my favorite songs by John Michael Talbot:
Shepherd me, O God beyond my wants,
beyond my fears, from death into life.
God is my shepherd, so nothing shall I want,
I rest in the meadows of faithfulness and love,
I walk by the quiet waters of peace.
Gently you raise me and heal my weary soul,
You lead me by pathways of righteousness and truth,
my spirit shall sing the music of your Name.
You have set me a banquet of love
in the face of hatred,
crowning me with love beyond my pow’r to hold.
Surely your kindness and mercy follow me
all the days of my life;
I will dwell in the house of my God forevermore.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Fences
Courting comes with at least a few boundaries, which I compare to fences...
You see, I use electric fencing. A certain voltage runs through the fence charger from a battery and sends pulses along two strands of poly wire enclosing the field. It's purpose: to zap anything touching it and the ground.
Cows prefer to think of themselves as 'above the rules'. You tell a cow to do something, and it will do exactly the opposite unless it was their idea in the first place. Even if it was, they take fiendish delight in orneriness just for the sake of being difficult.
One evening, I haltered our milker-mamas and the new baby and walked them home along the road... leaving the three yearlings in the field. Halfway through milking, I hear Caleb's, "...um... Emily... EMILY".
Three bellowing heifers galloped up the driveway, herded by one of our cattle-raising neighbors. I didn't say a word, remained calm and tight-lipped, opened the gate and gave each a slap on the rump and they went into the field.
In their anxiety to be with the rest of the herd, they had broken through the fencing. Perhaps the grounding rod wasn't in contact with enough moisture on that dry day, or maybe a branch was shorting out the wire... Or maybe it wouldn't have mattered.
I naturally want to fight rules and boundaries, just because they are there. Look at all that roadside vegetation and freedom waiting for me on the other side! And I have to be content with my acre of vetch, clover, and grass. Can't people understand that as a mature Christian, I wouldn't run too far away, and these rules are totally unnecessary?
What my cows don't realize is that those cars racing along the road outside their pasture can do damage. Major damage. They don't realize that a cow running down the road has more chance of being stolen. They are too busy wanting freedom from restraint to realize the purposes behind it.
In the same way, I'm too busy fighting the fact that there are boundaries to stop and appreciate some of the other reasons they exist.
When Isaac went to obtain both sets of parental permission and blessing before even telling me of his interest, I react by wondering, "why couldn't you ask me first? It is ultimately my decision, not theirs, since you obviously aren't wanting to marry my parents..." Others would tell me it wasn't fair that I did not know beforehand, that they couldn't have done it like that. What they do not know is that the very reason my decision was easier, was because I knew both that God speaks through parents, and that all doors were already wide open. That my natural desire had a deeper foundation I could depend on.
Sometimes certain boundaries are like cross-fencing: those single strands of flimsy wire within a field to keep cows from eating the next days' grass. To a cow, these wires don't keep them safe, there's no reason that they can see for keeping them from eating more of their OWN grass, and they are much easier to break through if hunger strikes.
Like Isaac and I don't go driving alone together - in my mind I think, "we are two Christians, have been shown trustworthy, and have just begun a relationship, I don't think it's a big deal right now"... and I can't see beyond myself to realize we are setting an example for our church and families by the things we do.
Thank you, Isaac, for your example to me.
Thank You, my heavenly Father, for showing me what it means to respect fences.
You see, I use electric fencing. A certain voltage runs through the fence charger from a battery and sends pulses along two strands of poly wire enclosing the field. It's purpose: to zap anything touching it and the ground.
Cows prefer to think of themselves as 'above the rules'. You tell a cow to do something, and it will do exactly the opposite unless it was their idea in the first place. Even if it was, they take fiendish delight in orneriness just for the sake of being difficult.
One evening, I haltered our milker-mamas and the new baby and walked them home along the road... leaving the three yearlings in the field. Halfway through milking, I hear Caleb's, "...um... Emily... EMILY".
Three bellowing heifers galloped up the driveway, herded by one of our cattle-raising neighbors. I didn't say a word, remained calm and tight-lipped, opened the gate and gave each a slap on the rump and they went into the field.
In their anxiety to be with the rest of the herd, they had broken through the fencing. Perhaps the grounding rod wasn't in contact with enough moisture on that dry day, or maybe a branch was shorting out the wire... Or maybe it wouldn't have mattered.
I naturally want to fight rules and boundaries, just because they are there. Look at all that roadside vegetation and freedom waiting for me on the other side! And I have to be content with my acre of vetch, clover, and grass. Can't people understand that as a mature Christian, I wouldn't run too far away, and these rules are totally unnecessary?
What my cows don't realize is that those cars racing along the road outside their pasture can do damage. Major damage. They don't realize that a cow running down the road has more chance of being stolen. They are too busy wanting freedom from restraint to realize the purposes behind it.
In the same way, I'm too busy fighting the fact that there are boundaries to stop and appreciate some of the other reasons they exist.
When Isaac went to obtain both sets of parental permission and blessing before even telling me of his interest, I react by wondering, "why couldn't you ask me first? It is ultimately my decision, not theirs, since you obviously aren't wanting to marry my parents..." Others would tell me it wasn't fair that I did not know beforehand, that they couldn't have done it like that. What they do not know is that the very reason my decision was easier, was because I knew both that God speaks through parents, and that all doors were already wide open. That my natural desire had a deeper foundation I could depend on.
Sometimes certain boundaries are like cross-fencing: those single strands of flimsy wire within a field to keep cows from eating the next days' grass. To a cow, these wires don't keep them safe, there's no reason that they can see for keeping them from eating more of their OWN grass, and they are much easier to break through if hunger strikes.
Like Isaac and I don't go driving alone together - in my mind I think, "we are two Christians, have been shown trustworthy, and have just begun a relationship, I don't think it's a big deal right now"... and I can't see beyond myself to realize we are setting an example for our church and families by the things we do.
Thank you, Isaac, for your example to me.
Thank You, my heavenly Father, for showing me what it means to respect fences.
Civil War Dresses
Sarah and I finished our civil war dresses... and got a chance to don them at the Willamette Mission reenactment :)
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Exciting News
I guess I'm just now finally processing the fact that Isaac and I are courting.
:insert big grin:
For a long time I didn't allow my hopes to grow, wanting him to ask, and it's taking me a while to figure out that I can at last get excited :) Eeek :D
Thanks, God, I see Your work already and am glad You're the beginning, end, first, last, our hope and our future. That's security.
:insert big grin:
For a long time I didn't allow my hopes to grow, wanting him to ask, and it's taking me a while to figure out that I can at last get excited :) Eeek :D
Thanks, God, I see Your work already and am glad You're the beginning, end, first, last, our hope and our future. That's security.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Another Blessing
I feel so richly blessed... Mattie delivered a big heifer calf today. Name will probably be Little Dorrit ;) Daniel and I drove up, I saw Mattie standing out in the field looking noticeably thinner and occupied with something in the grass. The baby was still all wet, so I think we missed the birth by less than 10 minutes.
This was the first calving where I allowed all six cows to be in the same field, and I loved watching how they gathered around the baby protectively when our neighbors came over to look, and took turns butting the dog away, butting each other away when they got too nosy, and helping the baby to her feet and nudging her toward her mamma when she got confused.
This was also the first calving where I offered the new mamma a big bucket of warm molasses water. She loved it, I think the sugar offers a good pick-me-up to replace all the energy they lost during labor.
Thank you, God, for my cow girls.
This was the first calving where I allowed all six cows to be in the same field, and I loved watching how they gathered around the baby protectively when our neighbors came over to look, and took turns butting the dog away, butting each other away when they got too nosy, and helping the baby to her feet and nudging her toward her mamma when she got confused.
This was also the first calving where I offered the new mamma a big bucket of warm molasses water. She loved it, I think the sugar offers a good pick-me-up to replace all the energy they lost during labor.
Thank you, God, for my cow girls.
Thursday, June 30, 2011
So True
"There's something about getting up at 5 a.m., feeding the stock and chickens, and milking a couple of cows before breakfast that gives you a lifelong respect for the price of butter and eggs." ~Bill Vaughan
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Lol!
Found this quote in 'Keeping a Family Cow' by Joann S. Grohman...
Just kidding, but a cow is indeed a generous creature...
"A young fellow wantin' a start in life just needs three things: a piece of land, a cow and a wife. And he don't strictly need that last."
Just kidding, but a cow is indeed a generous creature...
"With my cow, I am able to serve exceptionally fine food and I am not stingy with the butter and cream. My cow supports my chickens so I always have eggs. She also gives us a calf so there is no meat shortage. Her extra skim milk supports a pig so there is no bacon and sausage shortage. And she provides fertilizer for the garden so there is no vegetable shortage. The cow is a generous animal. She improves life for everybody."
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Farm Happenings
Pictures are courtesy of Christi Davis Photography...
A swarm from our bee hives...
...and me knocking them into a bee box.
Hand-milking Opal out in the open field.
Harvesting lettuce...
Strawberry picking...
Oregon yum-ness :D
Definitely my kind of lunch.
A sneak preview at Thanksgiving Dinner...
Christi serenading the cows with her guitar music...
My sweetheart, Shiloh.
Concentrating very hard on picking out the tune to 'Scarborough Fair'...
A swarm from our bee hives...
...and me knocking them into a bee box.
Hand-milking Opal out in the open field.
Harvesting lettuce...
Strawberry picking...
Oregon yum-ness :D
Definitely my kind of lunch.
A sneak preview at Thanksgiving Dinner...
Christi serenading the cows with her guitar music...
My sweetheart, Shiloh.
Concentrating very hard on picking out the tune to 'Scarborough Fair'...
Monday, June 27, 2011
Girl Power
Here's to awesome girl power.
We came...
We sawed...
We conquered...
There was a dirty task to be done, and we did it.
With humor...
And a high sense of accomplishment...
Some of us went a little overkill...
We came...
We sawed...
We conquered...
There was a dirty task to be done, and we did it.
With humor...
And a high sense of accomplishment...
Some of us went a little overkill...
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Midnight Adventure
My friend's mom had her baby this morning around 4:30 :D In between visiting at the hospital late last night and getting up early in the morning, I'm exhausted, but it was so worth it! We missed getting to see the birth by just a few minutes, but I got to hold little Leah Grace while she was still red and newborn-beautiful :)
New life is so amazing.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
He must Increase
"Hope that is seen is not hope... but if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance." ~ Romans 8:24-25
Oh you guys, I appreciate your encouragement and "way to go's", but if you happen to see anything praiseworthy, meditate on what Christ has done, 'cause it's definitely not me. My hope is still and ever will be in the One who made us and gives us every breath.
" 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the Lord of hosts." ~ Zechariah 4:6
Monday, June 13, 2011
Alternative Treatment Seminar
Dr. Paul Dettloff, a highly acclaimed vet from Wisconsin, came to Oregon to teach a basic seminar on alternative medicine for large animals (sheep, goats, cows), and a friend and I decided to see what it was all about.
What a whirlwind event. Five hours of intensive discussion, lectures and information overload.
Overview: the most effective medicine is prevention. Healthy animals can only be cultivated by starting with the three pillars: 1. highly-mineralized soil, 2. full-stemmed forage, 3. high brix. Supplementation is essential, as well as culling to improve animal genetics. Beyond this starting point, well-made herbal medicines have the potential not only to equal conventional treatment, but exceed the current standards while caring for the whole health of the animal and not allowing harmful bacteria to mutate out of control.
Here are some of my notes for perusal...
Alternative Treatments
Aloe vera supports the immune system by suppressing cortisol, a stress hormone. Dosage is 1 oz. per hundredweight, 2x a day. Has 10 different uses, including: heals the epithelium, synovial joints, and is also anti-inflammatory.
Vit. C and other antioxidants scavenge debris and stimulate the Thymus gland, which is directly responsible for producing T-cells in the immune system. The tincture form lasts up to 18 hours in the bloodstream, as opposed to only 4 hours when taken in powder/capsule form.
Humates: think gut health. Cryptosporidem and coccidiosis prevention in calves, improved forage utilization in adult animals, etc. Dr. Paul's Calf Start contains humates: dosage is 1/2 oz. per day for four weeks after calving, and 3 days at weaning.
Arnica: use for hemhorrage, trauma, injury (best combination is arnica, comfrey and colloidal silver). Either herb or homeopathic form works.
Burdock root: use for fatty liver prevention in cattle.
Garlic: many uses, typically only off-flavors milk when wild onion tops (flowering) are eaten fresh. Dried garlic is not a problem in typical dosage.
Lavender essential oil for wounds/foot sores.
ACV is a precursor to carbonic acid... which in turn liberates calcium for absorbtion (aha!). One of the best forms of supplemental calcium is Oregonite calcium. ACV also helps alkalinize the system (the appropriate pH of a cow's rumen is 6.5... most animals feed a lot of grain becomes dangerously acidic: acidosis).
Supplements for dairy cattle should include (all free choice, loose minerals) kelp, Redmond sea salt, humates, and a 2-1 or 1-1 blend of calcium/phosphorus.
Animal Health
What to look for when purchasing an animal:
* Shiny coat (long-haired in winter)
* Thymic swirl (on neck above brisket) will reflect sunlight
* 'Happy lines' along body
* No red tinge (shows copper deficiency, parasites or stray voltage)
- Look at ear/tail of Jerseys
* Strong feet/legs.
* Wide (think heavy-set) body.
- Calves raised on milk replacer will be 'two-stories' (tall, all legs), often ears will be wider than the rest of the body, thin and anaemic.
* Eyes - alert but not jittery (indicates too much potassium in diet - i.e. NPK fertilized hay.
* Talk for a few minutes to the animal, rub along the cowlick and down the neck.
* Cows - test for Staph A and Johnnes
* Goats - test for Johnnes
Johnnes disease: many scary similarities to the human Chrohnes disease. Iron with a hydrogen atom added has an added positive charge (acidotic state), and has been linked with Johnnes. Cause: GMO corn and changes in gut flora. Johnnes is usually caught/transferred before the age of 6 months, adult cows rarely get it.
Assisting calving: In a breach birth, run hand up right side of calf and down left, check for cord caught around the left leg. Be patient and pull slowly. In uterine torsions, vulva looks more puckered. Don't be afraid to get in there and have a feel around, but know when you're beat and call for help.
Ketosis: treat with ACV, molasses, Dr. Paul's Wellness Tonic, and some grain.
Pressure points: at the insertion of the milk vein, towards the animal's head, put you finger in the little hollow and press to help with milk let-down. To stop bleeding (especially from the udder), pull back on the pin ligaments (towards the head) until stitching is in. There are also pressure points along the back/neck when meeting a new animal, to calm them.
Soil Health
Rather than thinking in terms of NPK fertilizer, the CEC (Cationic Exchange Capacity) of the soil should be about 60% Calcium, 15% Magnesium, and 5% Potassium.
Field amendments in a wet climate like NW Oregon are almost always deficient in Calcium, Sulphur and Boron. For soil improvement, use Gypsum and apply foliar sprays containing Solu-bor annually.
Foliar spray for your pastures/lawns:
In a 2-gallon container, mix:
3 oz. ACV (cationic activator)
4 oz. Liquid Fish (protein)
3 oz. molasses (energy)
3 oz. liquid kelp (trace minerals)
4 oz. humic/folic acid
1/4 C. Redmond salt
1 quart raw milk (beneficial bacteria)
2 oz. garlic (barrier)
optional: Solubor (boron) and Sulfur (1 oz.) as indicated by soil test
What a whirlwind event. Five hours of intensive discussion, lectures and information overload.
Overview: the most effective medicine is prevention. Healthy animals can only be cultivated by starting with the three pillars: 1. highly-mineralized soil, 2. full-stemmed forage, 3. high brix. Supplementation is essential, as well as culling to improve animal genetics. Beyond this starting point, well-made herbal medicines have the potential not only to equal conventional treatment, but exceed the current standards while caring for the whole health of the animal and not allowing harmful bacteria to mutate out of control.
Here are some of my notes for perusal...
Alternative Treatments
Aloe vera supports the immune system by suppressing cortisol, a stress hormone. Dosage is 1 oz. per hundredweight, 2x a day. Has 10 different uses, including: heals the epithelium, synovial joints, and is also anti-inflammatory.
Vit. C and other antioxidants scavenge debris and stimulate the Thymus gland, which is directly responsible for producing T-cells in the immune system. The tincture form lasts up to 18 hours in the bloodstream, as opposed to only 4 hours when taken in powder/capsule form.
Humates: think gut health. Cryptosporidem and coccidiosis prevention in calves, improved forage utilization in adult animals, etc. Dr. Paul's Calf Start contains humates: dosage is 1/2 oz. per day for four weeks after calving, and 3 days at weaning.
Arnica: use for hemhorrage, trauma, injury (best combination is arnica, comfrey and colloidal silver). Either herb or homeopathic form works.
Burdock root: use for fatty liver prevention in cattle.
Garlic: many uses, typically only off-flavors milk when wild onion tops (flowering) are eaten fresh. Dried garlic is not a problem in typical dosage.
Lavender essential oil for wounds/foot sores.
ACV is a precursor to carbonic acid... which in turn liberates calcium for absorbtion (aha!). One of the best forms of supplemental calcium is Oregonite calcium. ACV also helps alkalinize the system (the appropriate pH of a cow's rumen is 6.5... most animals feed a lot of grain becomes dangerously acidic: acidosis).
Supplements for dairy cattle should include (all free choice, loose minerals) kelp, Redmond sea salt, humates, and a 2-1 or 1-1 blend of calcium/phosphorus.
Animal Health
What to look for when purchasing an animal:
* Shiny coat (long-haired in winter)
* Thymic swirl (on neck above brisket) will reflect sunlight
* 'Happy lines' along body
* No red tinge (shows copper deficiency, parasites or stray voltage)
- Look at ear/tail of Jerseys
* Strong feet/legs.
* Wide (think heavy-set) body.
- Calves raised on milk replacer will be 'two-stories' (tall, all legs), often ears will be wider than the rest of the body, thin and anaemic.
* Eyes - alert but not jittery (indicates too much potassium in diet - i.e. NPK fertilized hay.
* Talk for a few minutes to the animal, rub along the cowlick and down the neck.
* Cows - test for Staph A and Johnnes
* Goats - test for Johnnes
Johnnes disease: many scary similarities to the human Chrohnes disease. Iron with a hydrogen atom added has an added positive charge (acidotic state), and has been linked with Johnnes. Cause: GMO corn and changes in gut flora. Johnnes is usually caught/transferred before the age of 6 months, adult cows rarely get it.
Assisting calving: In a breach birth, run hand up right side of calf and down left, check for cord caught around the left leg. Be patient and pull slowly. In uterine torsions, vulva looks more puckered. Don't be afraid to get in there and have a feel around, but know when you're beat and call for help.
Ketosis: treat with ACV, molasses, Dr. Paul's Wellness Tonic, and some grain.
Pressure points: at the insertion of the milk vein, towards the animal's head, put you finger in the little hollow and press to help with milk let-down. To stop bleeding (especially from the udder), pull back on the pin ligaments (towards the head) until stitching is in. There are also pressure points along the back/neck when meeting a new animal, to calm them.
Soil Health
Rather than thinking in terms of NPK fertilizer, the CEC (Cationic Exchange Capacity) of the soil should be about 60% Calcium, 15% Magnesium, and 5% Potassium.
Field amendments in a wet climate like NW Oregon are almost always deficient in Calcium, Sulphur and Boron. For soil improvement, use Gypsum and apply foliar sprays containing Solu-bor annually.
Foliar spray for your pastures/lawns:
In a 2-gallon container, mix:
3 oz. ACV (cationic activator)
4 oz. Liquid Fish (protein)
3 oz. molasses (energy)
3 oz. liquid kelp (trace minerals)
4 oz. humic/folic acid
1/4 C. Redmond salt
1 quart raw milk (beneficial bacteria)
2 oz. garlic (barrier)
optional: Solubor (boron) and Sulfur (1 oz.) as indicated by soil test
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
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