Spring is just around the corner, even though it doesn’t feel like it with more snow and single digit forecasts! The farm is perking up and we’re looking forward to all kinds of spring babies……kids (goats, not mine!), chicks, turkeys and calves! Yes, calves! Introducing four new  jersey and jersey cross calves!

Everyone in the house is excited! The calves are getting cozy in the front parlor of the old milking barn. Dan and Nathan took the trailer to pick them up last Saturday, and we all got to help bottle feed them in the evening. All of them only days old. I confess, it’s been a looooong time since I bottle fed an animal of any kind, so my forearms and hands were shaking from exhaustion after fighting with a little calf to eat for over 30 minutes, as they tried to learn this “bottle” thing. Dan was doing two at a time! Since that first day, Dan picked up some holders and they’ve been drinking bottles like it’s second nature! Dan uses a pitchfork to scoop out the manure and it cracks me up that Nathan begs and whines when he doesn’t get to “scoop the poop!” I can’t wait to share that story when he’s older. Well, Dan and I used to playfully argue over who would change Nathan’s diaper when he was a baby, but, well, things change! 

 Nathan, Natalie and I picked out three names so far and the fourth is under discussion. The black calf with the white spot on his nose is Smudge, inspired by a story book we read written by a Vet in England. The story is of a little boy who was given twin lambs and named one with a white spot on it’s black nose Smudge and the sister was named Smartie.

The brown calf with the white spot is named Star, inspired by a children’s series developed to share the stories of Laura Ingalls Wilder. The book we read was about Almonzo, when he was a boy caring for the livestock, and one of the horses was named Star. The all brown calf is named Brownie, for obvious reasons. And Nathan wants to name the baby calf Brownie 2. Dan’s experience growing up on a diary farm advised us to wait to name the calves to see if they “make it first” and he was right. The baby didn’t survive after a cold spell and refused to eat. We lost him a few days ago. So sad. The others are healthy and tucked into their straw beds with heat lamps. 

Dan and I decided we are going to try our hand at turkeys once again. Several years ago we enjoyed raising Royal Palm turkeys for meat, a striking black and white bird, but had trouble with the local wildlife stealing them for their Thanksgiving dinner. But now, we have donkeys! Yes, the donkeys presence has significantly decreased any fowl foraging from foxes, mink and other predators, so we’re going to try again. Fingers crossed. 

Other farm business includes ordering more bees for our hives, since the Queen went AWOL last summer and our hive naturally dispersed, leaving us with little honey and no viable hive. A rooster has been arranged to make a visit to the farm, so we can have chicks once again this spring. And our rented Billy goat just left after spending a month with our Nannies. Last year we didn’t have a single kid! We were so disappointed. That Billy goat didn’t prove to be useful at all, even though we bought him with rave reviews. So, we are hopeful that this Spring will not be a repeat of last year. 

Last summer I only canned cherries, and I am badly in need of produce, so we’re gearing up for gardening. December and January the seed catalogs pile up from the mail and I spend lots of time browsing through all the pictures, circling and making a “wish list.” At some point in January or February Dan and I plan what we’ll plant and we “edit” the catalogs because, well, I just can’t grow everything and I struggle with realistic expectations. This year I am really excited to try and grow mushrooms! We ordered an innoculated log for shitake mushrooms which we’ll probably put in the grove. I hope it’s everything I’m dreaming it will be! We’re also adding a few blackberry bushes to our orchard of mulberry trees, raspberry bushes, apple trees, cherry trees and pear trees. This will be the fifth year for the orchard, so we should get a handful of fruit from our dwarf trees. 

In N&N news, Natalie is suddenly getting her “Dracula” teeth (four at once!)and has been miserable for the last week, waking up screaming several times in the night. It was rough on everybody. Poor thing. After two weeks of total health for the whole family, Anna is once again sick with a cold and ear infection. So last week Natalie would wake up 2-3 times the first part of the night, and Anna would wake up 1-2 times in the wee hours of the morning. I was exhausted! I think I’m still recovering!

Natalie can count to 13 without any prompting and loves to say, “ready, set, go!” Other phrases she often says are “Wummy! (Yummy!) when she helps me cook supper and Wow! It’s pretty cute. She loves to imitate me, and when I’m trying to catch a few extra winks on the couch while they play, she’ll put me to bed by rubbing my cheek, kissing me and saying “feel bubber, Mommy,” (feel better). It’s pretty cute. She gets dressed by herself and most of the time can zip her coat by herself, put on her shoes and mittens.

Nathan can’t quite get the zipper thing yet. It’s tricky. He clears his throat a lot now, and when I asked what he was doing, he told me he had “throat boogers!” I had a good laugh! He loves to be in charge and play “Follow the Leader” lately imitating penguins by waddling. Natalie just tags along. Anna can nearly sit on her own, rolls all over the place, eats her feet, laughs and giggles at the kids’ antics and has a beautiful smile. She loooves to eat and take baths! A girl after my own heart! 

And that’s the news from this dracula-teeth-and-dreams-of-spring week on the farm! 

This week will feature a photo diary of all the happenings since the weeks of December flew by. It was before Christmas when I last posted, the Advent season which now seems a distant memory. At the front of the agenda these days are weathering blizzards and stir crazy kids with cabin fever! My best defense is to get the kids outside as much as possible, exercise, good rest, plenty of water, and lots of inside and outside crafts! 

The main events that have occurred since my last post are as follows: Natalie turned 2 on December 16th!, sickness and more sickness with a week of giardia/diarrhea for a 2 and 3 year old (THAT was rough!), Christmas festivities, New Year’s celebration, the death and funeral of Dan’s Grandpa Brouwer, a 4 day weekend on my own while Dan attended the funeral in Missouri with 2 sick kids, an ice storm, and then a few good blizzards! We are now on the good side of health! Woohoo! 

Anna turned 6 mos. a few days ago, and is such a joy! She laughs hysterically at the antics of Nathan and Natalie. She loves her Jumperoo, which is why it was a minor crisis when the seat latches broke! Thankfully a good friend came to the rescue, using her tent straps to repair, and it’s good as new! She can almost sit by herself and hates to be left out of anything. She has an iron fist and holds on to toys and objects for dear life, hoping to get them in her mouth! She loves to be outside with the kids, who pull her around in the baby sled. She talks to me in the afternoons when the kids are sleeping and we have some great one-on-one time when toddler energy isn’t being thrust in her face. And when I get around to it, she’s ready for baby food; pureed pumpkin from our garden has always been our first offering. And now, pictures…..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I know there are a million little bits of news in the last month, but I’m sticking with the highlights! It’s 9pm Wednesday night and we just put the kids to bed 30 minutes ago, after playing outside on a huge pile of snow for an hour! It was completely calm and balmy in the 30’s after a high of zero or -1 the last few days! The kids and I forged a path up the pile, which at the top puts us in the Maple tree, and then I fashioned a slide. Tonight Dan helped start on a fort, so we stayed up later to enjoy some rare beautiful winter weather! 

And that’s the news on this birthday-Christmas-New-Year’s-blizzard month on the farm! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I had every intention of writing this on Monday, then I had a little setback with downloading pictures, and now I’m staring down Friday and the week is nearly gone! Arg! 

The acreage is covered in sparkly, fluffy snow and the weather has been frigid, so we’ve been stuck inside. Anna and Natalie both have a case of the classic runny nose but otherwise all is well, health wise.

It is a HUGE priority over here to get outside, and so with the exception of the last few days where the high is below zero or single digits, we go out! We bundle up in our snow pants and scarves and Nathan pulls up the sleds to the back door by the time I get the girls dressed and ready, and we’re ready for our “sleigh” ride! Nathan loves to pull Anna, while I pull Natalie, and often I find myself in a what feels like a video clip of “Rocky Balboa” doing winter training for his next fight while I heave the two sleds, walking or running. It’s quite a workout! Adriaaaan! 

On the days where it’s mostly calm, sunny and thirty-something, we track animals in the snow, mostly a crazy rabbit that runs circles around the yard (Bugs Bunny?), the cats and some pheasant. We hunt down huge icicles and eat them and make a choir of snow angels. One day Nathan brought his huge icicle inside and dipped it in his apple cider we were having to warm up! 

We embrace winter over here and try to remain joyful in this season of hibernation. Nathan and Natalie put on their little aprons and helped me make homemade pies for our extended family Thanksgiving feast. I had 2 little mini pie plates left from my days of Farmer’s Market, so they rolled out their own crust from my scraps and put the leftover pumpkin filling in, and that was their snack for the afternoon. They loved it! I was exhausted, but pleased to make those kinds of good memories! Although, I confess, I told Dan I should never volunteer to make/bring those kinds of foods to our family gatherings! Next year I might volunteer to bring napkins or juice!! 

As part of the Winterfest activities in Luverne, we attended the Children’s Puppet Show. It’s always a little chaotic and hectic bringing 3 under 3 somewhere by myself, especially if I have to nurse Anna, but they did great! Santa Claus showed up and gave all the kids candy canes, and they couldn’t have been happier! I was calculating how long it would take for them to recover from their sugar high! 

The first Saturday of the month we finally broke out the Christmas tree and the few decorations I have. Natalie was trying to put the stockings on her feet and they went up to her hip! It was pretty funny, and then Nathan joined in and they were walking around in Christmas “stockings.” As a fun little festive gift, Nathan helped me dehydrate orange slices, grapefruit slices and apples, which we put in bags with cloves, star anise and cinnamon sticks to simmer on the stove as a Christmas spice room fragrance. 

That same Saturday we had our monthly potluck and opted for soups. I made a hearty beef stew and pull apart rosemary-garlic bread–so addicting! Friends brought a spiced butternut squash soup and salad with fresh raspberries for dessert. Prior to our meal, we had a sort of “Winter Olympic Games” with a sled pull and log toss. It definitely got our hearts pumping and our lungs burning and we were ready for some warm soul-ful food! 

In N&N news, Natalie turns 2 on Monday! So it’s a busy time here preparing for a birthday and Christmas! Nathan is in his first Christmas program at church on Sunday. Natalie can now go down the steps by herself, which still makes me nervous on our 100-year-old steep wood steps, but I just stand nearby and hold my breath. She just yells, “No! No!” if I even attempt to help or have my hands nearby to “spot” her. She is also potty trained now, and doing awesome. She loves her Minnie Mouse undies and being a big girl! So 2 toddlers in undies! Woohoo!! Natalie LOVES to play baby and anything Elmo and Cookie Monster. So on her birthday I’m making Monster Cookies, and we will eat them Cookie Monster style! 

Anna is rolling all over the house and everything within her grasp goes in her mouth! It has been a little shock to the older kids to realize that when they try to love on her, she grabs their hair with an iron fist and doesn’t let go! “No! No! Anna! ” they tell her. 

I haven’t seen much of the animals lately, since it’s cold. On the “nicer” days, I pull the 2 older kids around on the sled to do chores, but I struggle to lift haybales, so I leave the goats and donkey’s to Dan’s care, and collect eggs and feed the cats. 

And now, we just wait for Christmas! Nathan asks every day where his presents are and tells me he wants them “right now” in spite of all my lessons on how Christmas is about Jesus’ birth and it’s His birthday we’re celebrating! Nathan loves the tree lights and turns off all the house lights so we can see them better! 

And that’s the news on this sledding-and-rolling week on the farm! 

Happy Thanksgiving! We are in for a bit of the snow before we feast on turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes, cranberries and pumpkin pie!

Last week was a blur, after we returned from our first road trip to Joplin, MO as a family of five for our cousin’s wedding! 10+ hours in the van, 2 exhausted parents, and 3 little people! But we made it, and that’s all that matters! Friday morning we woke the kids up, left their jammies on, put a waffle in their hand, loaded them in car seats and took off. 

The two older kids did great, all things considered. I bought these fancy trays that clip on the car seat that they can use to color, read, eat food. It has compartments for crayons, stickers, play-doh, or whatever, as well as a spot for water and snacks. Best purchase ever. I loaded down the floor storage compartment in our mini-van with books, new stickers, little cars, magna-doodles, chalk and chalkboards, puzzles, magnet games, and TONS of snacks! We stopped quite a bit mainly to feed Anna and go to the bathroom (2 kids potty training), but then met up with a friend and her 4 kids at the Kansas City Zoo for a 3 hour break! 

It was a GREAT opportunity to run off some steam and have fun seeing polar bears, kangaroos, camels and penguins all with friends we don’t see often! The weather couldn’t have been more perfect “fall” weather for us! 55-60F and sunny with little wind!! A dream come true! We didn’t even wear our coats until it got dark! 

Once at our friend’s house, we figured out our sleeping arrangements. Nathan and Natalie fell in love with their little girls’ room, with a bed on the floor for Nathan and shelves loaded with books and a cool canopy surrounding a plush kid-sized chair. Natalie swooned over the little cradle and baby with a big doll house and stuffed animals. They couldn’t have been happier! (I did pack some melatonin gummies to help them sleep, just in case!) 

The next morning the kids jumped on the trampoline and helped me collect beautiful fall leaves outside. It was so nice, we decided to have a little lunch picnic on the deck! Yep! My eyes are closed, because it was SO bright! 🙂 

At the wedding there was some juggling and managing with feedings, and naps, but overall they did great! We had some help from family and loved at least seeing everyone! 

The trip back went much smoother! Anna learned how to sleep in her car seat and slept for nearly 3 hours, while the older two had fun playing with me sitting in the back. The only downside was Natalie developed a fever the night before, but got two naps on the way home, so plenty of rest. We landed on our home place on Monday and I decided we should stay home all week to recover!

In the meantime, Anna surprised us by rolling over for the first time at 4 months exactly! While we were eating supper, Anna was playing under her activity mat on the floor in the living room. I looked over and she was on her stomach! The Jumperoo is also her favorite thing to do now as well! 

Nathan and Natalie and I spent a few nice days outside, foraging for winter berries, pine cones and greenery for a homemade wreath. 

Before we left for our trip, Nathan helped Mike Rust combine corn. I had a good laugh when he was recounting the day he helped “Neighbor Mike” combine corn, and I asked him who was driving the tractor and grain cart. He thought about it, smiled and slowly said, “Christopher Robin!”

 

Nathan has been transitioning into not taking naps, but every so often he really needs one. Usually I just put him in my bed with a pile of books to read for “quiet time” until the timer goes off, or I come get him up. The other day I said he needed to sleep and sent him back to bed when he tried to get up. He insisted he didn’t need a nap! It got quiet, and I found him on the floor, next to the bed with a blanket sleeping like this….

In N&N news, it was the best of times; it was the worst of times! One minute they are playing so wonderfully, being gentle, kind and caring. Sharing toys or snacks, and acting with sincerity. The next they’re at each other’s throats, yelling, pinching, hitting, pushing. Usually because Natalie “messed up” Nathan’s toys he was playing with, or Nathan took something Natalie wanted or is especially hers like a blankie or doll just to rile her up. Throw Anna in the mix and it can be either chaos complete with crying, meltdowns and tantrums or absolute bliss as they run and jump around Anna trying to get her to laugh! Most days it’s a mix of both! Raising little human beings is hard and wonderful in the same breath! 

Natalie is getting more teeth again. It’s hard to tell the progress since the threat of being bitten is very real! She is talking like crazy! Instead of using the word ‘not’  or “don’t” in a sentence, like, “I don’t want the apple” she’ll say, “apple, no?!” and shake her head. It’s so cute! She repeats everything I say, which has been a wake up call, as I hear her say often “In a minute!” when I ask her to do something or come. She’s polite even when she’s angry and will cry or yell “thank you.” She is ready to potty train too, I just need to get more “unnies” as she calls them. Her hair is impossible to tame! It’s so fine and long. She always wakes up with a huge tangled mess. Most days, I just put it in a pony tail, or headband until bath time. 

They are both becoming experts in getting dressed by themselves, although socks are still tough. Natalie loves to “flip” her jacket to put it on herself and often gets upset when I don’t let her do it by herself. 

Nathan is like a little sponge. He recounts events or lessons that I thought he didn’t even comprehend or hear. They both LOVE watching “Elmo” or Sesame Street on Youtube before nap time. It often starts with a “word of the day.” I was so impressed when Nathan was trying to tell Dan one morning, but all he could get out was “nickel”, when I realized he meant “pumpernickel” and informed us it’s a kind of bread! He’s also in the habit of trying to eat his meal or snack like Cookie Monster, which Mom doesn’t like very much. One time as he made a huge mess stuffing an oatmeal apple muffin in his mouth, I asked him if he thought Cookie Monster’s Mommy thought that was a good way to eat? He said no. Right answer! 

I love this time of year! The holidays, the food, the family, the friends! I have so much to be thankful for! Have a great week celebrating and spreading gratitude! 

And that’s the news for this road-trip-and-wreath week on the farm! 

I can’t believe I’m doing this. 

My nearly 2 year old and 3 month old girls are sleeping, and on a rare day off Dan took Nathan to help friends harvest. Thanks to awesome friends, supper is already made for tonight, and I’m caught up on laundry and dishes! So…..since I got 8 hours of sleep last night, I’m feeling ambitious and writing a blog! Well, not too much writing. I’ve been wanting to just post pictures of our summer, especially now that the cold is setting in, and white stuff will start flying in the near future. 

(Edit: I wrote this on Tuesday afternoon, before snow started flying. After a 7 mos. “maternity leave” I had to re-learn how to upload photos and learn all the updates to WordPress.)

WARNING: Looooots of photos to follow. 🙂 

The big event of the summer was our little Anna Rose being born on July 19th at 9lbs. 9 oz. and 21 inches. I was 42 weeks exactly. It was an emotional birth in many ways. Tears over giving up what I had planned to be a home birth, but joy and laughter at her arrival! 

Before Anna arrived and made us a family of five, I kept pretty busy. First, there was the Buffalo Days parade in June. I tried out my new-to-me double stroller for the first time. Love it! 

There were many walks in the morning and bonfires in the evening, popsicles, swimming in the kiddie pool (I squeezed in occasionally to get relief from the heat), and we celebrated with fireworks on the 4th of July, the day before I was due!

 

 

 

 

Time can basically be summed up as B.A., “Before Anna” and A.A., or “After Anna.” 

 

 

The other major incident of the summer was a freak accident playing where Natalie fell off the bed and landed on her face, splitting her nose open and having to get three stitches at the E.R. Anna was 9 days old when it happened. I did not have it together. Thankfully it was a Sunday and Dan was home to help me get everyone in the van while I was freaking out from all the blood. I told Dan I always thought I’d be taking Nathan to the hospital first! 

Then, a thunder storm popped up out of nowhere on our way home from the ER, and with pouring rain, and lightning, a huge buck with antlers jumped out in front of our van and we hit him head on! Air bags went off, the van died on impact and it was pitch black. Thankfully no one was hurt, but our van was totaled and I lost it for a few minutes, then calmed down when everyone was fine. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These days we are a true family of five. Anna is nearly 4 months old already and laughing and sleeping great! Nathan is potty trained and Natalie is close behind. We are taking our first big road trip to Missouri soon for a cousin’s wedding, so it will be interesting to see how an 8 hour road trip goes with three littles! I’m armed with car seat trays, stickers, play-doh, books, music, toys, snacks and games! I know I took a really, really long “maternity leave”, but I hope to write again soon! 

And that’s the news from this summer on the farm!