...And Then There Were 9...

We have tried numerous times over the past few years to have our black lab Murphy bred, without success.  As a result, although she hasn't been spayed, we were pretty unconcerned about her becoming pregnant on her own.  Well not on her own, but you know...promiscuously!

Over the past several months we have occasionally seen a male German Shorthaired Pointer roaming the neighborhood.  The last time I saw him was July 1st, which would coincide with what happened here last night...

Murphy is now the proud mama to nine adorable puppies!  Three are brown, and six are black.  They look mostly like labs at this stage, but several have some white on their bellies, and we assume they will change their looks as they get a little older.

Let the fun begin!

Preparing To Fill Silos...2016...

It's that time of year again.

Late August...school has started, the weather is s l o w l y turning cooler, and the silos are quickly getting empty.

Behind these closed doors is the silage room...

We store the feed carts in here and lock the doors so that the cows can't get in them and eat themselves sick!  Yes, they would do that!  (It happened one time, and the cow almost died.  After she recovered, she didn't have much of a desire for corn the rest of her lactation!)

Here also is access to the silos, which are almost completely empty, as you can see.  The unloader is resting on the last few inches of silage in the east silo...

This is looking up into the west silo...

This is the old tile silo at the other farm.  Several years ago, Jim put a plastic liner in the silo to make it airtight.  Each year we have to put another plastic liner over the doors.  That's the black strip that is hanging down from the top.  After the silo is full, Jim will cut the plastic off over each door from the top down, so he can open the door and toss the silage down the chute into the cart below...

This afternoon we walked through the corn field that he plans to chop, cutting samples of stalks throughout the field.  We ran them through the chopper and will have the silage moisture tested to see where we're at.  It's too green right now, we know for sure, but once we have the moisture sample back we'll have a better idea of when we might be able to fill the silos.  It can be a nerve wracking process, because we want a moisture level between 66% and 69%, and it also has to suit the custom chopper's schedule!

We bought one load of silage last week to hold us over until we can chop our own corn.  Every year is different, so we'll see how this one goes!

4th Cutting...Already...

The summer has just been flying by...but yet the horrible heat and humidity have made it feel like it's dragging on forever!  We don't remember long stretches of weather like this for a while.  The last two days, however, have been a little better, with a breeze and lower humidity.  :) :)

Jim finished up baling fourth cutting alfalfa yesterday afternoon, stopped to help milk, and then finished wrapping around 9 pm.  I never thought about the view from this field before, but it's the highest field on our farm,and you can see for miles in all directions. The moon was gorgeous...but of course the picture doesn't do it justice...

Jim's mode of transportation to and from the field...the trusty 100...

I got to do something new last evening.  It's been so horribly hot, and we like to get the cows out of the barn in the evening as soon as possible.  Jim or Eric have been taking round bales to the meadow for the cows to munch on in the late evening and overnight.  Neither one of them was available to do it last night, so I got the honors.  I've run the skid loader before, but never moved a round bale.  Piece of cake!  I dropped it in place and removed the plastic and netting.  When Jim came by with the wrapper to wrap the hay bales, he stopped and flipped the rack over the bale and it was ready to go...

The cows know just where the rack is when they head out of the barn for the night...

They can't all fit around the rack at once, so the stragglers have to find something else to eat for a while until it's their turn.  There's always plenty, as it lasts for several days.  They come into the barn so much more content in the mornings when they've had a bale put out for them...

We're ready for the fall like weather to come any day now...the heat and humidity have taken their toll...on us and on the cows.  The milk truck driver told us this morning that milk pounds are way down this week.  All the trucks are about 4000-5000 lb down from their normal loads.  The cows hung in there for so long, but finally said "enough".

How's the weather where you are?  Is the summer flying by or dragging on?

Refrigerator Dill Pickles...

The heat and humidity are back in full force these past few days, and I have little ambition to get things done other than what's absolutely necessary.

However...my tomatoes are ripening fast, and I've picked bushels (literally!) of cucumbers, so I'd better get busy canning.  I was planning to make salsa today, but we are having to unexpectedly replace one of the pressure tanks in the basement, so that's on hold.  You can't can without water!

So...since my day has been all mixed up today, it's time for another recipe!

These were the simplest pickles to throw together...

Refrigerator Dill Pickles...

3 1/2 cups water
1 1/4 cups vinegar
1 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp sea salt
4 cups cucumber spears
2 cloves garlic, whole
2 heads fresh dill (can substitute dill seed if fresh dill is out of season)

*Stir water, vinegar, sugar and sea salt together in a saucepan.  Bring to a boil; remove from heat and cool completely
*Combine cucumber spears, garlic cloves and fresh dill in a large glass or plastic container.  Pour cooled vinegar mixture over cucumbers.  Seal container with lid and refrigerate for at least 3 days.

I made these on Tuesday.  I know it's not been three days yet, but I cheated and tasted a dill pickle spear this morning.

They're nice and crispy, and I think we're going to enjoy them!

House Finch Family...

Little bird, little bird, what do you see?

I see a human looking at me!

This is the third family of house finches that have been hatched in the hanging baskets on our porch this summer...

Apparently they like begonias!