How went my Saturday...

It's not often that I give a real journal entry, so here's what happened on this good day.

I woke up at 6:00, realized I was in my own new quiet room, and thustly rolled over and snuck another 30 minutes of sleep. My bed is right under a southeast facing window, and come summertime I'll be rising at 5:30 with the sun, like it or not. Best to enjoy sleep while you can.

Marcus and I headed out to the barn around 6:45 after some Bible time, and Mattie and Jani were waiting by the gate. Luckily Opal hasn't caught on to the routine yet, and by the time I had let in Mattie and Jani, she finally caught sight of what I was doing and starting jogging up the hill "MOOOOO" (which is cow-ese for "NOOOOOO"). She is miffed already about being put on dry cow rations, and to listen to the sound of Jani and Mattie munching grain without her... well, it was just too much.

A milk customer came to pick up their milk order while I was milking, and we chatted about the new farmette they are moving into soon. Milking done, I headed into the house while Marcus finished taking water to the calves. Showered, changed, and helped mom tidy the house while I waited for the tuba player to arrive.

I guess I need to explain: for the past three years, I have been paid to accompany a tuba player for his public school instrumental competitions. Great experience, and I have to say that contemporary music is awesome because if you goof up on the numerous cadenzas and ridiculously complex million-accidental chords, no one can tell! Anyways, so he and I performed at the local high school this morning.

Afterwards I stopped at the local farm store for some stakes and wire for inner fencing, had a good chat with a guy about spring and cows and all that jazz. Then on to the grocery store for some Breyer's ice cream since Daniel is treating us to Organic Root Beer floats tonight :D At the store I bumped into Charlotte, a gal I've gotten to know over the past year since she also started up a raw milk dairy. We chatted while the ice cream melted and got updated on each other's cows and when calves are due.

I drove home, changed again, headed out with my arms loaded with stakes, wire, and wire cutters. The spring weather is beautiful. It felt so good to be outdoors again in a t-shirt, working out in the fields. The fence needed some repair from the winter, I had to lower the top wire since we no longer have a 6' tall Holstein, and I set up several internal paddocks. I'll test the fence charger on Monday.

Back home I went, moved Mattie and Jani from the corral to the lower field with Opal, spent some time with the calves, cleaned up a bunch of wire from the summer chicken house, some that the calves had torn out, and the temporary orchard wire. Then a milk customer came to pick up some manure and I helped them get situated. Mulched a patch near the raised beds with leaves to kill the grass so I can plant some squash later, and mulched part of the center island. Tulips and daffodils will be here soon! Tidied the hay barn, cleaned up the last of the wood shavings, watered the calves, and scratched the cows' ears.

Inside, I grab a second lunch (I'll admit it, I eat more than my brothers), and a friend calls me on the phone :D We talk for a while, and then I head out to snap some pictures of Opal and plaster them all over the internet :P Now I'm waiting while the chicken stir-fry fries without me stirring it.

Did I mention we get root beer floats tonight? :P

It has been a good day.