We've found EGGS but still empty nests!

Hurrah!!  This morning we are celebrating our breakfast with our first freshly layed eggs from my 5 hens!  Charlotte and I each had a boiled egg which tasted sweet and fresh, even though they were a little small in our eggcups.  Four eggs found in the straw barn, not in the nesting boxes I've provided for them.  These four little eggs have cost alot of money so far (£50 for buying the hens, £200 for the hen hut plus feed costs)!!!  Ah well, as my daughter commented, we know where they've come from!

It's been a hectic week this week and it's only Thursday.  I've done many talks in Nottinghamshire this week so seem to be going out on the same roads everyday.  It made me think that I don't usually have to commute to work as most others do, driving the same journey everyday, twice a day.  The best thing for me is the return journey home!  I love coming home, to my new puppy waiting for me, to the calves and horses all waiting for me to feed them.  It's a kind of love they all have for me!  Perhaps I'm feeling the "empty nest" syndrome, now may daughter is 18 and totally independent of me and Harry away at boarding school.  So my dear "Beatie" cocker spaniel has filled that gap somewhat, as well as the horses and the baby calves.   I don't think Mark has the same "empty nest" feeling, especially when he comes in for his mealtimes as Beatie jumps all over him and he isn't the greatest dog lover.

New purchases arrived on the farm this week.  We've invested in some rust - as Mark puts it.  A new sheargrab for the John Deere tractor to cut into and grab silage from the clamp then take to the feed troughs.  The top jaw is like a serrated knife and cuts the silage so it has a flat surface face at the clamp.  Meant to keep the clamp face fresher........ or that's what they've told me.  The other new equipment is a dump trailer to do the muck carting from the farmyard to the fields.  I'm not excited about these as much as our boy is down in Somerset.  Keeps texting me, "has it arrived yet Mum?".  He's home in a couple of weeks so guess what he's doing when he comes back!

We've got another school visit tomorrow, although in two groups and shared with Saya in Owston who does the same scheme as we do but for arable farming, it's 65 junior aged children plus teachers and assistants.  Think it could be fun and hope they all wear wellingtons as its very wet today and plenty of puddles around the place.

The milking herd stayed inside last night for the first time, so this is it,  the winter routine has started!  They have still got the option of going out into the fields during the day after morning milking but the grass has lost any fresh growth and no feed value so we're feeding silage daily in the feed troughs.  The milk yield has dropped since mid Sept and we're down by 600 litres.  Makes a big difference especially as we're meant to produce 2000 ltrs daily for Clawson Dairy.  They are desparate for milk and can't get enough at the moment, according to them, the whole country is short of milk.  Funny that when we still only get 27p per litre!

New life on the farm and a feature on East Midlands Today!

May I introduce you to "Beatie" our new puppy.  She's a darling black cocker spaniel and at 10 weeks old, quite a bungle of energy.  It's just like having a new baby in the house.  Only Mark isn't good at babysitting or should that be "puppysitting" when I have to go out.  I will put a photo on my blog page once I've asked daughter how to do it!

Alas, the other recent additions to our farmyard, the chickens, are still not laying!  As my mother is such an expert, I asked for her opinion last weekend and she stated it's because they're not old enough!  Getting quite impatient now as I need eggs to bake cakes with for my Farm Walks refreshments and also for the school children to find them in the nesting boxes!!  Will have to be patient then.

Talking of school children, last week East Midlands Today filmed us for Somerby Primary School visit to the farm on World School Milk Day.  They brought their iPad so they could zap Lady Shamrock's QR code, (which I stencilled on her side for the day) and learn more about the cow and how she produces milk for us.  Lady Shamrock is so used to this attention now, she was calm, stood still and took it all in her stride.  The children behaved for the camera too and some were asked why they like coming to the farm.  Bringing their breaktime milk to drink whilst on the farm, made the item a success.  I was well proud of the overall result!  Next stop Countryfile!!!

Hectic Holidays and Anniversary Treat

Wow, what a busy August and first week of September!  It's our 20th wedding anniversary today, so to celebrate Mark took me out for a Burger King lunch - with Harry on route to Somerset, romance is lost on him.  We took Harry back for his final year at Brymore School.  He is now a Senior Prefect, so has some duties of responsibility, which include looking after the new intake of year 9 boys.

We've also been away for a few days to western Ireland, Gallway and the Connemara mountains.  That was a beautiful quite place although we did spend a large chunk of one day viewing a marvelous herd of dairy cows! (I'm quite used to it now after spending our honeymoon in Scotland visiting herds).

With all the fine weather over the past few days, it was go, go, go on our farm. Fetching bales of straw, for the winter bedding, stacking them in the barn and when that was full, a huge stack of round bales outside!  Using our rather ancient tractors day in, day out, put them under alot of strain - so one broke down on the main road with 24 round bales on the trailer!  After clearing the dirty fuel filter, they got it going again, but it highlights how old our Massey Fergusson is.  Anyway, the boys are happy that all is "safely gathered in" on this farm for another year.

Last week we (Mark, Harry and me) ventured to the NEC to visit the Livestock and Dairy Event show.  We spent most of the day talking to people we already know!  Visiting these wonderful stands of pristine milking plants and robots, wonderful new implements to deal with manure or dirty water, ordering 6 new water troughs and getting a quote for a new youngstock shed, was like supermarket shopping for dairy farmers.  Harry likes spending money we haven't got so the wish list just got longer and longer.  As the event is sponsored by Barclays Bank (our bank) they have the Premier League Cup on display accompanied by two guards!  It was good to have a close up look. 

After a tiring day out, I drove the hour it took to get home with two sleeping boys!  Arrrrrr, they missed their afternoon nap again.  I, on the otherhand, had something to eat, then went straight out again to give a talk to Crick WI that night.

It's all started up again this week.  Four more talks and two farm walks this week so need to keep going.  I've enjoyed having my August break, taking the kids out on their horses competing and seeing old friends.  Charlotte and I are Autumn hunting this Saturday too, so another hunting season approaches.

Olympic pause!!

Sorry guys for not doing any blogs, but the Olympics were unbelievable and I have been glued to the TV for the past two weeks.  All the ironing is up to day though!!

Now they're over, life returns back to normal (or as normal as can be on our farm!)

Our new residents are six white hens, who are not laying yet as they're not quite old enough.  But they've been set free from their pen by daughter Charlotte!  Now they roam around my garden, the neighbours gardens, Mother-in-Laws garden, the hedges along the lanes and anywhere else they can escape too.  I've warned the village shop and village pub, if they see six hens strutting there way along High Street, call me!  Although when it rains, they are all safely gathered in the hen house sheltering, not daft are they?

We also had another visitor last week, of the human kind.  Ursula Stricker from Switzerland stayed with us as an IFYE exchange student.  We were her last family of six, during her stay in the UK.  Many, many moons ago, I was an IFYE exchange student and went to USA for six months where I was hosted by 7 families!!!  It all brought back many happy memories.  Ursula spoke fabulous English and is studying to be a primary school teacher!  Charlotte and Harry have been invited back to Switzerland for some skiing too, as Ursula is a ski instructor especially to children...... that will suit Harry then!

As for the farm, more cows have calved and one even had twins.   Last Sat, Mark asked Harry, me and his brother Simon to fetch a cow and newborn calf in from the field.  By the time we got there, she'd had another calf.  We put the calves in the quad bike trailer and as long as the mother cow sees them, she will follow the trailer all the way home!  Easy peezy!

All for one and one for All - #SOS Dairy

Last night, Mark and I went on a peaceful protest outside Asda chilled distribution plant near Lutterworth.  Probably 100+ farmers and their wives, children and employees, with a dozen tractors and implements, staged a quiet protest blocking the entrance for 4 hours late into the night.    Police were in attendance but no action needed from them.  We are passionate about the state of our industry and we need to stand together on this.  The press have grouped us as the Dairy Coalition!  All for one and one for all!  If we can continue to gain the publics sympathy and support, that's what the retailers are frightened off, loosing customers!

Although many of the major retailers and processors have rescinded their planned price cuts for today, the next step is to secure this for the longer term.  It's very worrying that so many consumers take milk for granted - they will soon shout when there's  none left on the shelves!

If you feel you want to support us, then follow the news as it happens on #SOSdairy on Twitter or blog @SaveUKmilk.  Both will keep you informed of the various stages.

Everything on the farm should be pregnant!!!!

According to my husband, ALL the females on this farm should be pregnant EXCEPT the wife, the daughter and the dog!  And so it be. 

We're "AI"ing cows every day this month, using sexed semen for the Ayrshire's and  hopefully, if they hold they'll be lots of baby heifer calves born next April.  Mulberry, our Ayrshire bull, is still living with 115 ladies, who should be in calf but if in three weeks time they come bulling again, Mulberry should pick them up and serve them "naturally".  Notice how many times I mention "should"!  We're dealing with mother nature here and life sometimes has a different idea.  Will keep you posted as time goes by.

New additions to the farm.  Our hen hut is now occupied with 6 pullet White Leghorn hens.  Harry has done a deal with cousin Ben who's into poultry, and we've been to fetch them today.  I wonder how long before Mr Fox comes to visit? Grandma Barbara loves hens and was delighted with them.  Good, as she might be asked to do alot of "shutting up the hens" especially when Harry goes back to school.

Another new arrival was a new heifer calf born this morning to a home bred heifer cow.  It was her first and they are doing really well.  I've just been out to the barn this evening and stood quietly watching the calf dancing and skipping around the shed whilst mum stood still and watched!  How quickly calves find there feet and run about, just a matter of hours.

At last Summer has arrived over the weekend, and we're all doing the lawns and weeding the over due flower beds.  As we try to sleep with the bedroom windows open, I hear the familiar and constant "mooing" of Doreen, No. 71, who's been separated from her baby today and gone to live with the milking herd.  I apologise now to all our neighbours around this side of the village, who might also be trying to get to sleep!  Don't worry, it won't last more than a couple of nights, and Doreen will have forgotten who she's left in the barn.

Finally, daughter Charlotte (who was named after a cow no less) has started full time work today.  She came home very invigorated and so grown up!  To celebrate, she's taken Harry and herself to the cinema to see the new Batman film.  Now I feel very middle aged as I've had my birthday over the weekend too.

Ohh humbug!

A Happy Husband!

Every Tuesday there's a Cattle Market in Melton and Mark's just come home from taking 6 gorgeous four week old Limousin calves to sell.   They sold well - and six more to go either next Tuesday or the week after.  We sell all the beef calves and only keep the Ayrshire heifer calves for rearing and after two years they become milking cows!

Another reason to be happy is we're drilling for water and found it only 15 foot down!  There's always water on top of a hill - "Jack and Jill went up a hill to fetch a pale of water!"  The plan is to use the borehole water to fill all our cattle troughs throughout the farm.  Thus making a big saving on our water usage and bill!

We're waiting for the first Hereford calves to be born, but as yet, not one has emerged.  Last night an Ayrshire cow No. 71 otherwise known as Doreen,  has produced her second calf and guess what, it was a Limousin again.  Obviously Diesel (the Limi bull) was keener than Ferdinand (the Hereford).  Doreen produced over 8000lts of milk in her first lactation so a very special (cash) cow!

The weather - although wet again yesterday - is forcast for a dryer weekend for the East Midlands.  Boy we need a break!  Harry is filling our tanker of dirty water twice a day to keep on top of keeping it off our yard, like a great big dirty shallow lake.  Harry's been a great help since home from school.  It's costing me though!

As I said, I've got a very happy husband today - makes a change!