Dollop & Scoop – No. 13

Here's a look back at our week...

Flying kites

You know those activities you plan to do with your kids, but never seem to get to them? Well, flying kites used to be one of those activities for us. It seems like we talked and talked about it, but never got around to it. Until last Saturday. The sun was shining, there was an incredible south wind, and we actually had kites because Glen reminded me to pick some up last time I was at the store.

It took a couple minutes for Dan and Monika to figure out how their kites worked, but once they got the hang of it, we had a lot of fun. Good, old-fashioned, unplugged fun. Until their hands got too cold because they forgot their gloves in their excitement.

But there's more unplugged fun to come. The charger for our iPad has been "mysteriously" missing for about a week now. Dan told me at supper tonight, "I didn't watch television or play on the iPad at all today and I had a lot of fun." He took a hike out to the back pond to look for the dead fox that Monika and I found on our hike on Sunday. Then he finished reading his book while sitting in the tree in our front yard. (He also did his chores and harassed his sister.)

I'm not opposed to electronic fun, but I'd much rather see my kids enjoying the activities life on a farm has to offer. Maybe the charger will show up when the snow flies again next fall.


Tractor girl

Daphne's favorite place to be now that it has warmed up some is in the tractor with Grandpa or in the skid loader with Dad. And she's quickly learning how to operate both machines. If you look close in the picture, you can see that she's got one hand on the steering wheel and one hand on the throttle; one foot is on the brake, and the other is on the clutch. I'm sure I'll blink and she'll be driving the tractor for real.


Three little pigs

Our pigs arrived this week. (We actually got four pigs, but the fourth one wouldn't pose for the picture.) After not getting pigs last year, their arrival generated much excitement. Daphne climbed right into the hutch with the pigs when they first got here. It's so adorable to hear her say pig in her little toddler voice.

Dan and Monika and their cousins played in the hutch with the pigs for nearly an hour the other day. Monika thinks the pigs are "just too cute" and Dan wants to know if we can get a saddle for a pig so he ride them when they get bigger.

I'm excited to have pigs again, too. I like their antics and the entertainment they provide. It's super fun when we get gentle ones, like these pigs, that let the kids play with them.


Lots of babies to feed

We have a lot of baby calves right now and a whole bunch of them haven't graduated to the calf feeder yet. We house our newborn heifer calves in groups and bottle feed them for 10 to 14 days before moving them into the pen with the automatic calf feeder. During those two weeks, we train them to drink independently using bottle holders. And, I tell you, these bottle holders are the best. I would have lost my sanity a long time ago without them. We use them in the group pens (tied on with twine string, so we can move them as needed) and for the bull calves in hutches (secured to the cattle panels with zip ties).

*     *     *     *     *

As always, thanks for reading, and have a great week!