Glen is always asking me, "Why don't you sit down to eat and rest your feet?"
Well, there are a couple reasons why I eat standing at the counter…
• As soon as I sit down, somebody will need something from the fridge or the counter or the stove.
• If I sit down, somebody will inevitably climb up in my lap and decide that the food on my plate is better than the food on their plate, even though the food is the same.
• If I sit down, I'll fall asleep.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
You couldn't pay me to do that!
We called the damage in and the adjuster came out the next day. He agreed that we needed to repair the roof, especially since the barn was in such good shape. Our barn was built in 1981, so it's relatively young.
We hoped to have steel put on the roof right away last fall, but by the time we were done getting bids and finalizing the claim, we were the third barn on the carpenter's list of barn roofs to do.
We figured we'd have to wait until spring, but the recent warm spell cleared the snow off the roof and gave the carpenter a window of opportunity to put the steel on now.
He spent a couple days prepping the site and the roof and marking the steel. The first piece of steel went up last Friday. They (the carpenter and his son) finished by noon on Saturday.
It was pretty amazing to watch the process. You couldn't pay me to climb up onto a round barn roof and man-handle sheets of steel the way our carpenter was.
It's even more amazing to see how nice it looks now that both halves of the barn roof have steel on them. (I would have taken a picture of the finished roof, but it's once again covered in snow!)
Friday, March 4, 2011
"I already am."
Dan had his dentist appointment on Wednesday. Not only did Dan do a super job staying relaxed and keeping his mouth open for the hygienist, he also made quite the impression on the dentist.
After the dentist finished examining Dan's teeth, he started asking Dan about our farm. Of course, Dan didn't need much encouragement to tell the dentist all about our cows, calves, chickens, cats, and dog.
The dentist asked Dan if he helped with the farm work. Dan nodded vigorously.
Then, the dentist asked Dan if he was going to be a farmer someday. Dan was quiet for a moment. Since he was sitting on my lap, I couldn't see his face. But I figured he was getting ready to tell the dentist that he was going to be a pirate or a rescue hero.
Then, very matter-of-factly, Dan told the dentist, "I already am."
The dentist's face lit up with a smile and he said, "Of course."
I nearly beamed with pride. Later, I could hear the dentist telling some of the other staff what Dan had said.
That night, Dan was exceptionally helpful in the barn. When it came time to bed the cows with shavings, he and Monika were right by my side with their little shovels. Monika could barely reach into the wheelbarrow, but she kept at it.
By the time we were done, there were shavings everywhere — and the task probably took half-again as much time as it would have by myself — but I could tell the kids were proud of the job they'd done.
There are many days when I'm concerned that our kids spend too much time in the barn (and that Glen and I spend too much time in the barn), but moments like those on Wednesday remind me that there's no better place to raise our children.
After the dentist finished examining Dan's teeth, he started asking Dan about our farm. Of course, Dan didn't need much encouragement to tell the dentist all about our cows, calves, chickens, cats, and dog.
The dentist asked Dan if he helped with the farm work. Dan nodded vigorously.
Then, the dentist asked Dan if he was going to be a farmer someday. Dan was quiet for a moment. Since he was sitting on my lap, I couldn't see his face. But I figured he was getting ready to tell the dentist that he was going to be a pirate or a rescue hero.
Then, very matter-of-factly, Dan told the dentist, "I already am."
The dentist's face lit up with a smile and he said, "Of course."
I nearly beamed with pride. Later, I could hear the dentist telling some of the other staff what Dan had said.
That night, Dan was exceptionally helpful in the barn. When it came time to bed the cows with shavings, he and Monika were right by my side with their little shovels. Monika could barely reach into the wheelbarrow, but she kept at it.
By the time we were done, there were shavings everywhere — and the task probably took half-again as much time as it would have by myself — but I could tell the kids were proud of the job they'd done.
There are many days when I'm concerned that our kids spend too much time in the barn (and that Glen and I spend too much time in the barn), but moments like those on Wednesday remind me that there's no better place to raise our children.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
It's all a blur
Falling snow. Blowing snow. Bitter cold. Fresh cows. New calves. Sick calves. Sick kids. Sick me. Endless days. Sleepless nights. That was our February. Looking back, it's all a blur.
I'm convinced that sleep deprivation leads to memory loss. So, if I wasn't writing about this right now, down the road we'd never remember just how ridiculously grueling the past month was.
Thrown into this mix — and this is what I hope to remember — was Monika's potty training.
For the record, it wasn't my idea to start potty training in the middle of one of the worst winters I can remember. I was thinking that summer would be a great time to tackle this feat.
No, potty training was mostly Monika's idea. Because of that, the process was a piece of cake compared to convincing Dan to use the toilet. No stickers, no M&Ms. Just pure self-motivation on Monika's part and a few high-fives on our part.
The challenge has come with going potty in the barn. Here, there was a significant advantage to potty training a boy. Between dragging the potty chair along to the barn, wrestling with her snowpants and all her layers (and remembering to change her out of her sleeper!), and trying to keep her little bum warm, I definitely think it would have been a better idea to wait until summer.
At the same time, it sure is nice to be mostly done with diapers.
I'm convinced that sleep deprivation leads to memory loss. So, if I wasn't writing about this right now, down the road we'd never remember just how ridiculously grueling the past month was.
Thrown into this mix — and this is what I hope to remember — was Monika's potty training.
For the record, it wasn't my idea to start potty training in the middle of one of the worst winters I can remember. I was thinking that summer would be a great time to tackle this feat.
No, potty training was mostly Monika's idea. Because of that, the process was a piece of cake compared to convincing Dan to use the toilet. No stickers, no M&Ms. Just pure self-motivation on Monika's part and a few high-fives on our part.
The challenge has come with going potty in the barn. Here, there was a significant advantage to potty training a boy. Between dragging the potty chair along to the barn, wrestling with her snowpants and all her layers (and remembering to change her out of her sleeper!), and trying to keep her little bum warm, I definitely think it would have been a better idea to wait until summer.
At the same time, it sure is nice to be mostly done with diapers.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Milk makes a difference
Glen was in to have his teeth cleaned last week. Since we don't have dental insurance, we have our routine dental care (cleaning, exam, x-rays) done at the St. Cloud Technical College Dental Clinic.
Dental care is provided by students in the college's dental hygienist program. At the end of each cleaning/exam, the student's work is evaluated by an instructor.
During this evaluation, the instructor struck up conversation with Glen. The conversation started with how neither the student nor the instructor could believe that Glen has never had a cavity.
The instructor then noticed that Glen was wearing a University of Minnesota t-shirt. She asked if he was a fan. He told her he was an alumnus.
The instructor asked what he studied, because her son was currently at the University. He said he had a degree in animal science.
She asked if he was using his degree. He told her he was a dairy farmer.
She asked if he had grown up on a dairy farm. He said that he had.
"So, that's why you have such great teeth!" she said. "You drink a lot of milk!"
It's good to see that at least some health care professionals understand the importance of milk in our diets.
That importance was made clear in the United States Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services new Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which recommends consuming three servings of fat-free or low-fat dairy products daily.
Around here, we consume far more servings of whole milk, cheese and other dairy products than recommended. Hopefully, our children's dental health will benefit, too.
Dental care is provided by students in the college's dental hygienist program. At the end of each cleaning/exam, the student's work is evaluated by an instructor.
During this evaluation, the instructor struck up conversation with Glen. The conversation started with how neither the student nor the instructor could believe that Glen has never had a cavity.
The instructor then noticed that Glen was wearing a University of Minnesota t-shirt. She asked if he was a fan. He told her he was an alumnus.
The instructor asked what he studied, because her son was currently at the University. He said he had a degree in animal science.
She asked if he was using his degree. He told her he was a dairy farmer.
She asked if he had grown up on a dairy farm. He said that he had.
"So, that's why you have such great teeth!" she said. "You drink a lot of milk!"
It's good to see that at least some health care professionals understand the importance of milk in our diets.
That importance was made clear in the United States Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services new Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which recommends consuming three servings of fat-free or low-fat dairy products daily.
Around here, we consume far more servings of whole milk, cheese and other dairy products than recommended. Hopefully, our children's dental health will benefit, too.
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