Life of a Farm Blog

Haven’t had much time to post lately, but Mattie wanted to share with everybody that we got our first set of spikes. Spikes are young males that are brought in to make sure the eggs are fertile. As with everything on the farm Mattie was right in the middle of it. It makes me really happy that she enjoys the farm. The spikes are kept in a pen in the middle of the houses until they mature enough to get out with the older males.

Garett also wanted to share that we’ve made some more additions to the farm lately. He has adopted a stray dog and named it Buddy. Seems to be a really good tempered animal and loves to run and play with the kids. Just goes to show you that it doesn’t take fancy things to make you happy.

In addition to the spikes and Buddy, we also aquired another horse. As usual I just couldn’t say no! A neighbor had her for sale and Madison had to have her. What we’ll do with her I have no idea. We could always ride her, but we have been discussing training her for a buggy. Yikes one more thing to buy.

We also wanted to mention our special visitor here on the farm a week or so ago. Rick “Demonmaster” Young came by and spent the night with us on his motorcycle tour. We felt priveliged to have Rick for the night and hope he finds the peace he deserves. For everyone that has the time you should follow his stories!

Things finally appear to be slowing down a bit in the chickenhouses so hopefully I’ll be able to take a little more time to post. We’re still planing to keep a diary for Farm and Ranch Living magazine in the next few months and Garett has made me promise to take him fishing too. Well as always tons to do so I better get at it! Be sure to check out all the new pics we’ve added!

It’s that time of year again already. Hay time! Unfortunately this is a rough time of year for Garett. He has allergies that really get him down. Between the hay and the pollen he’s pretty much attached to his nebulizer. Every 4-6 hours on bad days. It doesn’t seem to slow him down too much though. He has some trouble getting his breath, but he keeps pluggin along.

How have I made it this long without a cab tractor? I would not mind to drive the 7010 for days on end. I see how folks are able to farm such large acreages now. The cab and air makes it so much easier. I actually look forward to cutting hay this year. The 7010 does a great job with the disc mower too. The 6000 had some trouble with the 8 ft cut in tall thick grass. I’m really happy with the rake I bought last fall, although I’m going to have to replace the tires on the dolly. They’re dry rotted and only hold air for a day or so at a time. The Vermeer roller is still holding up great, but after riding in the cab of the 7010 I kicked myself for not having the dealer install the twine tie box on the 7010. I was not nearly as comfortable out in the sun on the 6000 rolling hay as I would have been in the cab on the 7010. I meant to install the box myself, but time got away from me. I thought I would find a good used square baler and not roll so much this year, but they seem to be as rare as hen’s teeth. Looks like new may be the way to go for me. I just hate buying something and having to work on it.

Everyone is getting in on the fun here. Hay has been cut on every farm around. Just like most years I’ve been hopping from field to field rolling up what couldn’t be done with slow or broken down square balers. Most folks here would rather have squares, but I don’t think anyone local has a square baler newer than the 80’s. That could be a good niche to get into. It will most likely take a year, or even 2 if we build another set, to get the chickenhouses lined out where I can get away a lot. After that I’m hoping to lease some of these run down farms and get the pastures in shape to cut and sell square bales from them.

Well, as always there is a ton to do and I’m not getting it done sitting here so I’ll close for now. Be sure to check out the pics I’ve added and check back soon!

We’ve been busy as beavers trying to keep everything caught up here on the farm. Seems something new is showing up every day. It’s kidding season for the goats so about every other day we are finding new baby goats. Madison is thrilled with the new babies. That’s the first place she goes when she gets off the school bus. She has to check on those babies. Of 14 mom’s we still have 10 to go so I suspect this ritual will continue for a couple more weeks.

Kaylee is thrilled with her new arrival too. I finally broke down and bought a truck. Not exactly what I wanted, but not the $30,000 I had expected to spend either. I ended up with another Chevrolet 6.5 turbo diesel. This one has a lot more power than the older blue one. Hopefully with a few power upgrades I can make it tow what I desire comfortably and keep it reliable. Doesn’t seem like I tow much any more anyway. First up I have to put a gooseeck hitch in it. Instead of trying to sell “old blue” I’ve been kicking around trading to an older GM muscle car, an ATV, or a combination stock/horse trailer.

It’s time for the 50 hour service on the 7010 so I’m hoping to make it to the Mahindra dealer this week to pick up the stuff to do it. While I’m there I’m going to see if he can get me tires for the dolly on the rake I bought last fall. Both of them are flat. They look really dry rotted so I figure it’s best to just replace them. I also have to pick up the box that operates the twine tie on my Vermeer roller. I don’t want to take the box off the 6000 in case I ever need to use it as a back up. While I’m there I’ll do my usual poking around. I’m in the market for a good square baler and I want to kick the tires on the smaller Mahindra’s I’m considering for cleanout at the chickenhouses.

 Well tons to do so I best get to it! Be sure to check out the pics I’ve added to the site! Thanks for reading and check back soon!