Sampson

Hi folks, Jon here. I'm a little nervous; this is my first ever blog post. It's okay, you don't have to cheer so much; I'm not about to break my arm patting myself on the back, either. Mark's been bugging me to post something, anything! So it's my turn, and if this goes well I will probably do it again sometime.
Anyway, enough of that. Let me tell you about someone very close to me. In fact, he's sitting on my lap right now.
Meet Sampson. A.K.A. The Black Death, Shadow Stalker, Thief in the Night, Destroyer of Rodents, Lord of the Top Shelf.

The bathroom sink is one of his favorite places to sleep; it's like his own personal little tub. This animal really looks like a cat, but half the time he acts like a dog. He loves to be outside, and when he isn't massacring rodents, he is equally at home wandering among the cows or chilling with the chickens. It's a good thing the chickens are about the same size as he is, otherwise he might try to eat them more often.

Six Years Hard Time...

Jill gave these boots to me for Christmas when we were newlyweds six years ago. It was a really huge sacrifice. At the time we were both in college and starving financially. I was working outdoors in construction, and it was winter time. I had a pair of really cheap work boots that were not waterproof, and aside from being very uncomfortable they really just thrashed my feet. Sometimes I would come in from work and the soles of my feet would be covered in blisters. It wasn't because the boots weren't broken in, I had been wearing them for months. They were just poorly made. The new boots made all the difference in the world. It really touched me to be the recipient of her selfless sacrifice.

The old timers have a saying..."use it up, wear it out, make do, or do without". The time has finally come to retire my beloved boots. Jill and I have talked about it a little bit, and it is somewhat sad for both of us, but I guess they're just boots aren't they? It is kind of funny how an inanimate object can resurrect old bits and pieces of your life. Dust off the memory bank, so to speak.

So long boots.

R.I.P.

Merry Christmas!!!

Multiple choice quiz...

Choose the answer that best completes the sentence.

The cow shown below in PHOTO 1.1

a.) is just feeling really festive.

b.) is trying to cover up a bad hair day.

c.) is succumbing to fashion peer pressure.

d.) really has no idea what is going on.

e.) actually does know what is going on, but just happens to have a really good sense of humor.

PHOTO 1.1

Sweet Heart

No... really, that's her name, and the shoe fits. She is really sweet and gentle. We are actually just babysitting her for some friends for awhile. Cow-Sitting??? She is kind of a pet, I think she enjoys the extra attention. Isn't she beautiful?

Starbuck

She wasn't really expecting a photo shoot, so we caught her at her worst. Burdocks in her bangs...cowlicked hair... mud on her dainty little hooves. Oh well, you can see by the second photo that she still managed to strut her stuff. When she was born, I thought she was going to be a good cow someday. She is tall and long, with a good build on her frame. She has a gentle disposition. Really, she has got it all going for her right now. Someday she could be the "Boss Cow". Just in case you didn't know it, cattle have a matriarchal society. It is actually the most dominate cow that calls all the shots in the herd. The bull is just along for the ride, contrary to what most people think.

Starbuck 2 years old

She's totally posing...

Any day now...

The new calves are going to start coming any day now. After the first one comes, it is kind of like when you're making popcorn the old fashioned way on the stove...pop...pop........pop...POP!!!POP!!!POP!!! Somedays there are two or three new little ones there. It is really funny to see how quickly the new calves form their own little pint-sized herd. They are like a bunch of grade schoolers, the way they run around, and what with all the mischief they raise. They are very curious, but at the same time very flighty. If you hold really still they will come and sniff and lick you. We turned the bull in with the cows back at the end of March. The gestation on a cow is pretty close to that of a woman. (283 days or so...) Interesting... I know...

Here is a picture of a calf that was born in early 2009. We call her Starbuck. I will take her picture tomorrow, so that you can see what she looks like now. She is beautiful, and was one of five heifers that we kept for breeding.

Starbuck

Cows at Work

Yesterday was really beautiful and sunny. I was able to snap a few shots of the cows in action during their breakfast. It was nice to see the sun after so much rain.

Briars

Cows Munching

Moo....

Ready for planting

The poor man's bulldozer

There is a never-ending battle here at the farm. The enemy is steadily and relentlessly advancing. This "enemy" doesn't rest, he doesn't take holiday, or go on vacation. He doesn't sleep in, or work half days. He is dedicated and motivated to conquering our farm. He has even gone as far as calling in allies from Russia, I kid you not! Here is photographic evidence...

Russian Thistle

So we are constantly battling the briars and thistles, which seem to do amazingly well here in pretty much any condition or circumstance imaginable. If left unattended briars can tear down a good strong barb wire fence in only a few years. Also, where the briars grow, the grass cannot. Cows need grass more than they need briars.

Last year we did an interesting experiment with the cows. We learned that if we put their salt lick in the middle of a briar patch, they would tramp out the briars in that area. It is really awesome. It looks like an explosion happened in the middle of the briars, totally annihilating " the enemy".

This winter we are feeding the cows in the briar patches. Rather than spending time with the tractor and other machinery, we are letting the cows do the work. Each morning we move the feeders to a new location so that the cows are constantly clearing more and more briars. It looks really muddy right now, but in the spring we will plant grass, and we will have more grazing area for the moos. And that is why cows are called... the poor man's bulldozer.

Moby Duck

Last spring we decided that we needed some ducks on the place, so i bought 4 cute little ducklings. There is really only one thing more cute than a baby chick, and that is a duckling. So when I came home one day with four cute little baby ducks, as you can imagine the girls were beyond thrilled. Especially Eden, our two year old. You see the ducks were kept in a box where they would stay warm while they were little, and thus they were easy prey for a two year old. Suffice it to say the ducks very well could have been loved to death at the hands of a toddler, but that was fortunately not in the cards. Well, as it turned out, one of the ducks was big and white, so we named him "Moby Duck".

Moby was a gentle giant, but he was slow. By default he was the one that Lia could most easily catch. He was always a good sport about it though. He never hissed, or bit, or hit either of the girls. Despite occasional bouts of captivity at the hands of a sweet little girl, Moby lived a happy, peaceful life. He was free to roam the whole farm with his three duck friends. It could have been a fairy tale ending, but alas it was not meant to be. One day I came home to find Moby floating face down in the creek. After a bit of investigative work, we arrived at the conclusion that it was my father-in-law's dog, Meg who whacked Moby. After Moby, the raccoons did away with the two girl ducks. We are down to one drake, and the poor thing has nobody but the chickens to hang out with.

Awesome Possum

Last night at approximately 9:30 p.m there was a disturbance out at the chicken coop.

It turns out this little chap is the one that has been giving the chickens such a hard time lately. Incidentally it was his craving for peanut butter that was his undoing. Only too late did he realize that it was a trap! The night before last I cut one of the legs off of Lia's (our 4 year old) tights, and stuffed it full of peanut butter, and then hung it in the live-trap. Sure enough, just like grandma Hansen said it would... it worked like a charm.

This morning the girls were thrilled to see a "real-live" possum in action. Well ok, there really wasn't that much action. He didn't even play possum. He just kind of sat there. But it was awesome. The story did have a happy ending. The possum was safely returned to the wild. Maybe he will be back to visit someday, but I doubt it. There are plenty of busy roads between him and me right now. The odds are definitely not in his favor. However, with a little bit of luck and some "street smarts", he could very well make the journey. I would then have to name him "Sancho the homing possum."

Another day... another chicken attack

Today started out with copious amounts of rain, but it did get better. Rainy days are good for paperwork and pencil pushing which, thanks to the way the world works these days, there is plenty of on the farm.

These are last year's calves. They range from 8 to 12 months old. The smallest ones weigh around 350 lbs, and the biggest ones are closer to 700 lbs. Note how they totally dig the cedar tree shelter. It's really a very popular new hangout.

This is a first person perspective of being attacked by a chicken. Ok, not really. Our chickens just really love people, because usually people=food.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step...

What does a farmer do to occupy the time? Have you ever wondered what really happens, and how things come to be? Well, now is your chance to tune in and find out because the Chronicles of Sweetwater Farm have officially begun. We aim to post once a day and share what we are up to. So without further ado...

Today, we cleared out some of the debris that came down almost two years ago in the landslide. You can read about that here... Seattle Times, we made the front page! I am pretty sure that it will take us at least five more years to get fully caught up from all of the damage. We have come a long way, but there is a lot more left to do.

In a nut shell, today we sorted through a big pile of trees, rocks and dirt and carried the sticks, stumps, and logs away to be burned. We also moved some fence so that the calves can take shelter under the cedar trees in the pics. A cedar tree is even better than a barn, because it does a really good job of keeping the cattle dry, and also gets lots of sunlight, and the sun keeps parasites from building up like they do in a barn. Bet you didn't know that. Nothing too exciting really. But it takes time and energy.

Before...

After

Summer!

Here is what we are up to:

We do pretty much all of our own work. Sometimes our awesome friends help us.

Just in case you have ever wondered what farmers might occupy their time with, here is a list of some things we have been working on in the last 12 months.

1. Feed Cows, Pigs, Chickens
2. Manage Pastures
3. Build/Repair Fence
4. Move chicken tractor
5. Capture stray cattle
6. Doctoring cattle
7. Delivering calves
8. Clean out barn
9. Repair farm equipment
10. Operating heavy equipment ( Dozers, Excavators Dump Trucks etc.)
11. Diesel engine work
12. Metal working (welding/torching)
13. Machine shop work (working with metals this is where you have to be precise, things are measured in thousandths of an inch)
14. Painting equipment
15. Structural buildings (Steel and wood frame construction)
16. Roofing (Steel, Wood shingle, Composite)
17. Seeding grass
18. Cutting briars, clearing brush
19. Gardening
20. Keeping the orchard up
21. Beekeeping

he list is long and varied. The depth and range of the projects is quite exciting. Farmers always have an abundance of work, but usually not enough money to pay someone else to do it. This means that the farmer has to figure it out.

Barn Upgrade: We are re-modeling the barn by installing a new feeding system that will save us time, and make the cows even happier. But really... how much happier can these bovines really become. I think we're splitting hairs. Incremental gains... diminishing returns, yada yada... Well anyways the project involves a lot of concrete. We need to be done with the whole thing by the time the snow starts to fall in November.

Hay: Cut/Rake/ Bale. We will be putting up around 250 tons of hay between now and the end of July, (most of it by hand.)

Fencing: we have about 8,000 feet of five strand barb wire fence to build.

Giant Cow Sign: We are putting Glenoma on the map. We are building a big steel sign to go in the pasture along the highway. The design is ready, we just need to start cutting and welding. It is going to be awesome! If you are ever headed east on Hwy 12 you won't miss it. Trust me.

Bridge: We need to put in a 40 foot bridge across a small river/large creek.

Pigs: We've got two beautiful gilts (young female pigs) that will be having their first litters sometime in November. These pigs are very social. They enjoy busting out of their pen at least once per day to come say hello, and to see what we are working on.

Chickens: We have 100 Heritage Red Chickens coming this Friday (July 9). We are going to raise them on the pasture. This will compliment and help the cows because 1. the chickens eat the flies that bug the cows, and 2.) they fertilize the fields with high quality natural fertilizer.

newest members of the farm

meet the slug patrol

Clabbered Dirt, Sweet Grass

Clabbered Dirt, Sweet Grass

This is an excellent read. If you are interested in seeing what farming used to be like this book will show you.

It got five star reviews from Amazon.com. You will see why after reading just the foreword (to read the foreword click on the hyperlink above and go to "search inside this book" then type foreword) It would be very difficult to read this book and not make the connection between the land and the people.

For me it was interesting to see where some of our family traditions came from, and how living and working in time with the seasons really affects the family lifestyle. It is a short but satisfying read. Definitely worthwhile. If you have read it I would like to know what your thoughts are.

Barbecued Short Ribs

For best results, make this recipe a day ahead. Refrigerate overnight, and before serving remove any hardened fat on top.

Ingredients:

• 5 to 6 lbs. short ribs
• 4 Tbsp. butter
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 large onion, peeled and chopped
• 2 ribs celery, minced
• 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1/4 tsp. freshly ground pepper
• 1/4 tsp. allspice
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. prepared mustard
• 1 1/2 Tbsp. cider vinegar

1. Melt the butter in a large casserole or dutch oven over medium heat
2. When butter is melted and hot, brown the short ribs, a few at a time. Remove and drain on a paper towel.
3. Pour off excess grease, leaving just enough to coat the bottom of the pan.
4. Add garlic, onion,, and celery and saute for about 2 minutes, stirring constantly.
5. Stir in flour until smooth.
6. Stir in all remaining ingredients.
7. Return ribs to the pan and add 1 cup of water.
8. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer for 1 1/2 to 3 hours, or until meat is very tender when pierced with a fork. Remove loose bones before serving

9. Serve on top of rice, egg noodles, baked or mashed potatoes.

Serves 4

-Recipe from Cooking with Helen McCulley Beside You

Beef Stroganoff

Beef Stroganoff Recipe

-by Mary Edwards (formerly Mary Hornby...aka the baby of the fam)

Ingredients:

• 8 oz egg noodles
• 1 pound ground hamburger or sliced round steak
• 24 oz sour cream
• 8 oz sliced mushrooms
• approx. 6 green onions, chopped
• approx. 1/2 cup water
• olive oil
• flour
• Lowry's Seasoning Salt
• salt and pepper to taste

Instructions:

Cook noodles according to package instructions.

In a large saucepan, fry beef on medium high using enough olive oil so that the meat doesn't stick to the pan. (Hornby beef is very lean.) Once the meat is cooked all the way through, add a few tablespoons of flour and stir, soaking up the excess grease. Slowly add the water while constantly stirring. Once water is fully incorporated (which should happen very quickly), add sour cream, mushrooms, and green onions and mix thoroughly. Add salt, pepper, and copious amounts of Lowry's until it tastes just right. Reduce heat and stir occasionally, until mushrooms are tender. Serve over egg noodles. Enjoy!

Beef Stew

• 2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt or seasoning salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 3 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 cups beef broth
• 8 carrots, thickly sliced
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 3-4 potatoes, diced

1. Toss stew meat with flour, salt, and pepper until evenly coated.
2. In a large, heavy bottom pot, heat a few tablespoons of oil. Add stew meat, turning occasionally until browned.
3. Remove stew meat, and saute onions until translucent. Add garlic and saute until fragrant
4. Combine Worcestershire sauce with broth, and slowly add to hot pot with onions. Use a whisk to scrape up browned bits from the bottom of the pan while adding the liquid.
5. Return the browned stew meat to the pot, along with bay leaves, paprika, carrots, and celery. Turn heat to low and simmer, covered, until stew meat is just tender, 1-2 hours.
6. Add potatoes and continue to simmer , uncovered, until potatoes are cooked through, 15-30 minutes.
7. If stew needs thickening, dissolve a bit of cornstarch in liquid and add to the stew. Return to simmer.
8. Remove bay leaves and adjust seasonings to taste.
9. Serve with crusty bread slathered with butter and a crisp, green salad.

Welcome!

The newest crop of calves has started to arrive ( a little earlier than usual).