The new year is rolling up fast and so is Zeus's first birthday!

Hello everyone!

I hope this message finds everyone well and enjoying holiday time with Family!  I have come to the realization that things will never slow down and/or I will never be very busy so I am gonna just start rolling with it.  That being said I realized yesterday that it has been a month already since my last post and wanted to share some updates. 

I will start off with some pics of Zeus.  The first pic is from our vacation in the beginning of August, just 4 short months ago.  This was when we arrived at the outer banks and my wife was getting everyone some lunch.  Zeus was sitting in the passenger seat watching the people outside the truck.  The second pic was taken yesterday while waiting on my wife to run into the store to get some cheese from the Minerva Dairy.

Please note the height of the headrest on the seat and the height of Zeus's head. He grew so much in just four months!  He is 76 lbs now as well as tall enough to put his paws on my chest and look me almost eye to eye when standing on his back feet.

These two pic were a couple of days ago.  He and I ran to town for some oil and diesel fuel.  He likes to sit on my lap while I am driving.  He is way to big to ride completely on my lap like he did when he was a tiny puppy so we compromised and he puts one paw on my lap and, believe it or not, he can see out of the windshield while setting like this.  It has got to be kinda humorous to see us at a stop light like this! 

I was able to grab a quick pic at a red light.  He was not greatly impressed!

We also got to make a last minute hay run to the Cleveland area yesterday.  I had a customer who was running out of hay and straw quickly due to the cold weather that came earlier this year.  Been waiting all week for the ice to dissipate so I could actually get the trailer out of here to haul the hay.  Once again I am so happy to have my truck fixed and running properly.  Zeigler Diesel did an awesome job and the truck is running like it did the day I bought it.  Was so nice to be able to haul a load of hay without being nervous the entire time that I would be stranded because it wasn't running correctly.  Thank you again Justin and Doug!!! Keep up the awesome work!

We have had two litters of piglets out of two of our new gilts.  The first was the blue but and this is her litter.  We also had one of our Berkshire gilts farrow a week after this litter was born.  She had 4 live ones and two still born.  The best part is they are close enough together that the piglets are sharing both sows for eating so they are growing really fast.  Once we get this all figured out we are gonna try to get the sows to farrow either all at the same time or in two different groups two or three months apart.  We are having to keep these two gilts and litters penned up because the four that are left from the litter last month are too big to be with these piglets and just a little too small to wean them off.  If they are all born within a week of each other it is easier to plan for an work through and also much much easier for weaning and feeding when they all are running together and about the same size. 

We also got to visit Wisconsin at the beginning of the months for two of our best friends wedding.  The kids got to make some really great friends and I got to meet the family of my buddies new wife.  

It was awesome to be there for them during this awesome time of their lives.  I know they will do well as they compliment each other fabulously and they have a wonderful family to support them any time they need it.  

You know being die hard BUCKEYES  and being in Wisconsin we had to do an OHIO pose for the photo booth.  The brides sister in law photo bombed us but we still got three good ones in the strip!!!  LOL!!!  

About two years ago my buddy wanted to make a present for his future wife.  He does construction work so I gave him one of our cherry bench slabs.  We went out into the woods and found two very old tree stumps for legs.  I finally got to see the finished product before we left for home.  I must say he did a phenomenal job!

I will wrap up my post with this little story.  I was working on my milk tank/sprayer to fix an axle issue yesterday.  I purchased at an auction and it is just an old dump truck that someone cut the front off of and made into a trailer to haul a water tank.  It is pretty rough underneath and I am having to do some pretty rough, very redneck, not worthy of any praise, welding to keep it together.  I already deleted the springs on one side early in the fall because they were completely broken and the axle was falling off.  Well, the other side is now going as well and since one side is welded solid I need to make the other side solid so it doesn't break everything loose.  

To do this I needed to torch a lot of stuff out of the way and then do some rigging to blog the axle solid.  Now, There is absolutely no way to clean any of the parts I am welding so I am having to keep the welder quite high to burn through all the junk and rust to get to the metal  I need to join.  

Now, we have lived in this house for over 12 years now and we have burned the little screw in fuses out many times here and there.  However, I have never burnt one of the main fuses coming into the house.....until last night.....after all the stores were closed....if they would even have these fuses anyways.  

Here is how you burn this fuse.  First of all, we have a 60 amp service to the house.  That was common 75 years ago and since the previous owner was an electrician he knew how to make it work without any problems.  Also, because it was only 60 amp service, back then you got a reduced rate on your electric.  Today the average service to a house is minimum 200 amp and many are 400 if they have shops and stuff like we do here on the farm.  So, I am welding through 60 years of junk in the shop, there are two 500 watt heat lamps on for the pigs, kids and wife cooking in the house, water well turned on as well as the furnace on top of all the lights that were on.....fuse blown!  This happened at 6:30 on Christmas eve.  It was only one pole of the service so we still had 120v to part of the house, however, the furnace and water well are both 240v so they were not going to turn on.  We also did not have any backups.  I only knew one person to call in a situation like this, a great friend of mine and someone who has helped me on more projects than I can count at work as well as at home.   Jeff Fisher of Fisher Power and Electric.  He was, and is, the only person that had this ancient fuse, not only in stock, but was available so I could stop and get a couple from him. My wife sent him a jar of Homemade vanilla bean raspberry jelly and a jar of homemade jalapeno jelly as payment.

I will be sure not to make this mistake again and will weld in shorter segments with breaks as well as be sure that unnecessary items are turned off when I am welding.  I will also be checking into addressing some of the electrical issues we have here with all that is going on.  I have been trying to hold off on upgrading our electric service until we build a new house, but, we may not have a choice!

Have a wonderful day with family today!  I will be writing my annual new years day post next weekend.  Be sure to watch for it.  

Happy Holidays everyone, 

Kenny

Some updates from the farm and an interview for National Public Radio (NPR)

I know it has been a while since I have posted.  As the year is winding down things got super crazy for a while.  We had seeding work for winter cover/spring feed crops to get planted, final cutting of hay fields to make, and a lot of corn stubble to bale!

  Good news we have enough bedding, bad news is we are gonna be phenomenally tight on hay! We are reducing the herd this fall to bring the numbers down going into winter.  We are finally at a point where we can be selective on who we keep based on production rather than solely if they are female and bred!

 I want to update everyone on our puppy Zeus....whom, while still a puppy, doesn't look like one!  He still likes to sit on my lap but has to do a good job of balancing to stay there.

He is 71 lbs. already and is only 8 months old.   He is tall enough to see the table top without getting on my lap and when he stands on his back feet he can touch my face with his nose! 

He is also outgrowing his dining spot.  I wish I had a recent picture of him in the tractor with me but I didn't get one the other day when we were out.  Needless to say he fills the new tractor cab more than Daisy filled the old tractor cab.  When he lies down in the cab he literally covers the entire floor space accept for exactly where my feet are at!   

He does enjoy going with me in the tractor and is getting much better at listening when we are out in the field.  However, I can tell when he wants to go home and play because after about 2-3 hrs he will start getting rambunctious in the cab and I either have to send him home with my wife or let him out to run in the field for a little bit. Hopefully my wife will be able to get him into some cattle herding training this winter so he can help with that in the spring.  

As most of you know we installed a buffer strip for the heavy use pad to catch any run off from the feeding area.  After the first winter we found that it was not adequately stopping the runoff.   So, to fix this and get the containment that we needed I decided to re-engineer the area to get the control we need.  I installed two reverse swales, to catch and slow any runoff from the pad.  At the bottom is a small settlement pond for all particulates to settle out of the water in.  Literally an hour after I finished installing we had a massive downpour that filled the pond overfull and a hole washed out in the bottom berm.  The good thing is it did not drain all the pond, just some of it.  So, I have decided that after the seeding establishes I will put the overflow for the pond in where the washout occurred.  Furthermore I will be adding an additional buffer area in the flat bottom to catch anything that gets past the settlement pond and restrict access from the cattle to this area as well so it remains fully functional.  As you can see in the picture below the oats are providing an excellent quick cover crop. The alfalfa, clover, and grasses I planted are well protected right now below all of the oats.  Even though I would love to let the cows out to eat this off right now I have to wait for it to freeze so that they do not tear up the freshly graded soil and the tender young seedlings.

We also finally had another litter of piglets.  Even though she only had five, they were all born healthy and have been doing great.  They are almost three times this size already and are continuing to grow quickly since they have milk for 10-14 piglets to divide between the five of them!

The interesting part about this is the fact that for two years and four litters in a row this sow refuses to have her piglets in the pig shed.  She nested in the pig shed for 4 days before she had the piglets and the night she gave birth she destroyed another gate to get out of the pig shed and went over to the cow shed to make a final nest and give birth.  So, since having them she has been sharing the entire cow shed with only two other residents who are in there due to sore feet. 

Each year I get two alumni tickets to a home football game for the buckeyes.  My wife and I were excited to have perfect football weather for our annual date night at the Horse Shoe where we had our first date. 

To wrap up this post I wanted to share information on another interview I got to do about the EPRI/AFT nutrient trading project we have here on the farm.  A reporter for The Allegheny Front based out of Pittsburgh PA. asked to interview us for a news report she was doing on this new program.  If you click on the link you will find the report she posted about it.  This story is also airing on NPR and has started to gain some more attention.  As I have stated before I am excited to be on the front edge of a new way of thinking and I am happy to see this gaining attention and bringing the topic up for more discussion.  Coming from my background I know that, for the most part, farmers around the world want to do the right thing.  The only thing holding them back is finances.  This type of program allows them to make a change that not only benefits the local community but the entire world.  Furthermore, I know that as a whole, most farmers want to be involved and be a part of what needs to change, they do not like to be told what to do.  So, this gives an opportunity for the farming community to regulate itself rather than be regulated by someone else!  

For more information please visit the following;

The Allegheny Front

EPRI - Electric Power Research Institute

American Farmland Trust

NPR West Virginia

As I type this post I am looking out the window at approx. 3" of snow on the ground.  Yesterday morning at 8 am it was 65 degrees and windy, Friday was 74 degrees and beautifully sunny.  Now begins the long wait for spring and a new calving and growing season!  In the mean time the animals and I will be bedded down and waiting out the cold trying to stay warm!

Have a great day everyone!  Thanksgiving is coming fast.  It will be nice to have a break in the craziness that has been as of late!

Kenny

For the love of a Ford! 6.0L heads and more!

So, as anyone who follows my blog knows I have a 2005 F350 with teh 6.0L diesel.  I fell in love with this truck the first time I drove it and I have made the decision to own it till either it or I reach the end of our lives.  The only weakness this truck has is the stock 6.0L engine.  It was a failure from the day International built it, however, over time all of the issues have been addressed and corrected and once the modifications are made the engine is great and the truck is awesome.

Well, that time came for my baby.  Anyone who has followed me for a while may recall a few years back when I had the flat bed put on and some engine work done.  The major part of that engine work was done by Gearheads Garage in Louisville ohio.  This work included putting new injectors in the engine.  That was were the road to ruin began for me and I will dive into that so that anyone needing to have this kind of work done will know going into their project what can happen if you hook up with the wrong garage. 

When replacing injectors in any diesel engine there is a lot to be said for delicacy and professionalism and skill.  The smallest slip in any of those categories will cause huge issues down the road.  When the injectors were put in by my previous garage one of the injector cups was damaged and allowed excess diesel fuel to leak into the cylinder under low load.   Under heavy load this cylinder would fire and the pressure from the firing would blow past the seals and cause what felt like a miss that my last garage could not figure out.  This would also allow for diesel fuel to push into the coolant around the injectors.  We also found two other injectors that had the seals damaged during installation that were also allowing diesel fuel to leak past into the coolant. 

We also found the glow plug wiring harness damaged and not working correctly as well as the injector wiring harness.  The turbo charger only had one bolt installed out of three and all of the bolts on the up pipe were loose.  There were a lot of little things all over the engine that were not correctly put back together which lead to the eventual failure that I experienced.

The end result was 90%+ of the coolant being replaced with diesel fuel and excessive heat being created from the leaking fuel and ruined coolant which took out the head gaskets and cracked the heads. 

  

The above picture is off all of the parts that were ruined, there are more in the box at the end.  The heads, head gaskets, turbo charger needed cleaned and rebuilt, wiring harnesses needed repair or replacement, new up pipe, glow plugs, all eight injectors were trashed and they only had about 20,000 miles on them and they should have lasted 200,000.

To replace the heads the cab needs removed which allows for proper access to everything without damaging other stuff.  With the cab off we were also able to properly undercoat the cab.  

 

It looks odd to see it all pulled apart but so easy to get to everything properly!  The great news is that the bottom end of the engine is still in excellent shape which was not expected with all the top end problems!  That is our  win in this little endeavor.  

Since we had everything pulled completely apart I leaned on the professional for advice.  Just like people come to me for advice with farming and Landscaping, I decided to listen to the advice from the engine professional!  Justin suggested using the upgraded parts that will last the life of the truck.  For starters, the new exhaust manifolds are much larger and flow much better. 

The turbo looks like brand new after the rebuild, actually, I think it looks shinier!  The specialist that rebuilt it also upgraded the bearings and thrust washer so it will perform better and last longer. 

A shot of the engine before the valve covers went on.  I thought I was going to have to buy all new injectors because my previous garage told me that you cannot use rebuilt ones as they do not last.  Truthfully, the only difference between an OEM brand new injector and a rebuilt one is the outside case.  Everything inside is new.  The difference in cost is where it is at.  To replace all 8 injectors again I was looking at $3k-$4k, to have the new ones I already had rebuilt.....$1000.  

The only disappointing about getting everything completed is realizing all the shiny new parts are hidden underneath and behind everything you can see when you open the hood!  What you are looking at is the fully reconstructed engine with the new upgraded up pipe installed. 

Now, while I want to tell everyone that upon completion we started the truck and I drove it home and everyone lived happily ever after....that wouldn't be fair.  Justin tested the truck and found some more small issues that he quickly and correctly repaired that were issues out of his control that were not found till we had it up and running.  Once testing was complete and we thought we were good I brought it home.

I decided to drive it to work the next day to get some miles on it and because I missed driving it for 3 weeks.  Half way to work it shut down on me.  Had it towed in to the garage to see what was up.  Upon inspection Justin found that one of the brand new ProMax heads that he installed has a defect in the casting that allowed one of the injectors to break loose. 

According to ProMax, this is only the 3rd one of these heads this has happened to out of the 10's of 1000's of these they have produced and sold.  So they sent a replacement and will be covering the cost of the head gasket.  The disappointing part about it is that they will not be covering Justin's shop time to reinstall, the other gaskets and stuff he had to re-service to be sure it was all perfect again, and they shipped the parts via ground shipping.  No expedited shipping or overnight shipping.  Not the customer service that was expected since the original order came through a day quicker than the replacement!  

At the end of the day Justin got it back to perfect and I was able to bring it home Saturday and put it to work!  It runs like it did when I first test drove it and fell in love with it.  It starts correctly, doesn't shudder under full load, fuel mileage is up, and everything is finally functioning as it should.  I cannot wait to put it through its paces next weekend hauling its first heavy load since the rebuild!

Now, a note on my new garage and the garage that I will stay with for the long haul.  My only regret is that I didn't meet Justin sooner for it would have saved me a lot of grief and money.  Justin has over 15 years of working in the diesel industry and has been working on trucks like mine as well as semi's and other diesels for the same length of time  As it turns out my truck was the first to go into his new shop and the start of his new career on his own.  He services all different types of diesels and when I visited I saw every brand in the shop!  He can do pretty much anything you want to do from mechanical work to programming!  His shop manager Doug is also very professional and knowledgeable and does great work!  They make an excellent team and I know that in the very near future finding a spot to get work done will be tough because they will be busier than they could ever imagine!

A huge thank you to Zeigler Diesel Performance for the professionalism and the skills!  They are in Canton Ohio, look them up.  If you need diesel work, go here and get it done right the first time!

Have a great week everyone, take in the great weather before the snow hits.  The time will come all too soon when you wish you had spent these days outside in the sun when you had them!

Kenny

Lisa's first fair experience and Ohio State Buckeyes Football game with the family!

Well, I will start off with our two newest arrivals!!  The first is Peanut, my son's cow, with her just born baby bull!

The second is Crescent Belty.  I thought she was bred but didn't have a clue when she was due because she wasn't pregnant in December at the herd check.  Judging by the delivery date she was probably bred just before or just after new years!  She also had a little bull. 

This brings our count to 19 total so far this year and 18 alive, my daughters little baby heifer from Lilly passed away this summer for an unknown reason.  That brings our count to 10 bulls and 9 heifers total which is a much more balanced average than the 70%+ heifer rate we have been running for several years now.  The great news is that in 18 months we will have a lot of beef for sale!!!!

I have also picked up some more wrapping work which has been a blessing of income that was greatly needed for the farm.  Hoping to get some more going into fall before we put everything away for the winter.  

Next up I want to talk about the fair.  This was the first year my daughter showed at the fair and the first time we have went to a fair as a family since they were old enough to know what it was all about.  I was nervous about Lisa getting into the fair with the way she was acting leading up to the fair.  However, once she walked in the ring I was completely relieved!   She did awesome.  She didn't place in showmanship and learned the importance of working with the animal with full show equipment ahead of time. Due to him not being used to her walking him with the show halter he was a little fussy the first time in the ring and then laid down on her.  Not to mention, she is pretty tiny and he wouldn't keep his head up!

The second day was the market class where they evaluate the animal, not the person showing the animal.  She placed sixth in her class and it was a tight one.  

The best part was as she was leaving T-Bone laid down on her again....only this time she didn't get flustered!   She smacked him on the but and jerked his halter and he popped right back up and she earned a round of applause from everyone at the show!

I have been teaching her that the important things to learn are to work hard, have fun, take care of the animals, and market your animal as best you can.  She listened to everything she was taught including the marketing part.  She ended up selling at the highest price of any of the feeder steers at the fair!  She is extremely happy and is ready to do it again next year.  She has already made plans for when to get the steers and is planning on taking her beef steer next year as well!

Next up, my baby went into the shop last week.   I knew this day would come as it does for every 6.0L Power Stroke.  It was time for new heads and head gaskets.  However, what we found after the shop got the engine torn down as more than we anticipated.  Turns out the shop I used for all the work in the past didn't do as good of a job as I previously thought.  We found many issues including incorrectly installed injectors and damaged wiring harnesses.  When the project gets wrapped up I will post pics of everything and get everyone information on my new shop for my truck.  This guy is doing a great job and is unbelievably knowledgeable!   I cannot wait to see....and feel....the end results of the work.  I also know that my baby is gonna have a lot of work to do to pay for her upkeep as well cause this is comparable to open heart surgery in cost as well as invasiveness!!

Last up is our annual family football game trip.  We only get tickets to one non-conference game and one big ten game this year through my alumni association.  The good thing is I get four tickets to the non-conference game so we could take both kids!!!



About two minutes before half time a major storm hit.  They finished the half but the second half was delayed for a little over an hour.  It was a major downpour that partially flooded the field.  We, unlike my brother who was also at the game, were dry as a bone the entire time because our seats are under the press box!!!



A pic of us all in our seats!  It was a great game and a wonderful time with the family!

I have a lot going on this weekend doing some changes to the buffer strip for the conservation project that I will post pictures for after complete.  I also have an interview with a radio personality out of Pittsburgh that I will discuss after it is complete next week as well!  I can't wait!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Kenny

Summer farm updates and Vacation 2016 pics!

Hello everyone!

I want to apologize for not posting for a while.  It has been a rough and trying summer so far.  We have had approx 2" of rain total since early June, normal would be 8-9" in the same time frame.  So the crops are hurting bad around here.  Gonna be tight on hay this year for sure!

We also lost my wife's father this summer as well.  He will be dearly missed and was a great man.  I will always remember the first time I met him.  As a young college grad, just starting my new job, I flew with my "then fiance`" to Japan to ask her parents for permission to get married.  I practiced during the 14.5 hr flight to be able to ask in Japanese.  Apparently I made a good impression cause they said yes! 

As you can see Zeus is getting much bigger!  We just weighed him this morning, he is 6.5 months old and weighs 53 pounds!!!  It is looking like he will most likely be around 95-100 lbs at maturity.  

I have been picking up some new custom work this year with the wrapper.  Some day soon I will need to start advertising some to get some more work.  This is way to expensive of a machine to have sitting idle during the growing season.  As usual, if I get a call to help someone out I get it done, I just haven't went looking for work yet.  Next year I will be beating the streets to find work for it! 

This is also my daughter's first year in 4-H!  She purchased and has raised two calves for the fair this year.  One is a Dairy Beef Feeder named T-Bone and is the Holstein to the left.  He is the one going to the fair.  The other that you can only see a part of is a bull calf that is a Shorthorn x Red Holstein cross.  Lisa purchased is and raised it and will be giving it to me to cover the costs she incurred with feed and everything.  She has been washing, walking, and feeding them both mostly by herself with our help.  It wasn't until just before vacation that we separated the boys from the herd to give them their own hay and feed supply.  Her plan currently is to use the money from her 4-H career for College.  She already selected a beef steer from this years calf crop to take next year.  I cannot wait to see how she does as the fair is less than two weeks!

With all the things going on this year we decided to extend our annual vacation to Frisco North Carolina on the Outer Banks so we could be on the beach a little longer.  We normally go for six or seven days on the beach, this year we did nine days on the beach.  It was just what we needed!  

This was Zeus and I and the kids waiting on Mom to get lunch when we arrived in Avon NC on our way to Frisco NC.   He road shotgun the entire way down.  As soon as the truck starts moving he lays down.  As soon as the truck stops he gets up to see what is going on and what we are going to do!

He definitely likes the water.  He also learned a great lesson on not drinking sea water.  His last day he drank a bunch while we were out in the sound together catching crabs and got sick.  It didn't last long and he was fine by supper but he had to learn since he wouldn't listen to me!

Here is the camp site.  It was cloudy the first night and we had some light storms but out of 9 days we only had a really heavy rain one night and it wasn't nearly as bad as in the past years.  The ocean is in the back ground but is not highlighted due to the cloudiness.

We had an awesome haul crabbin and clammin and fishin!!!!  Total count for the trip was over 200 clams, 20 blue crabs, 1 spanish mackerel, 3 blue fish, and 12 mullet!  

The pic below was of the kids playing on the sound side while the wife and I were fishing.  We all had a great time and it was a cozy little spot.  Next year we are planning on going later in the year when the weather is still great for swimming and the fish are actually there to catch!

We were able to get a family picture again this year with our newest family member.

It was so different this year without Daisy.  She will always be missed.  We are forging new memories with Zeus and since he likes the water and Daisy did not this opens up some new opportunities for fun.  He will actually go clamming and crabbing with us and play in the water when we give him the opportunity.  The down side is that Daisy was so well behaved at camp and at the beach and when possible would be able to go without a leash and not have to worry about her running off.  We will most likely be putting Zeus through a training class so he listens better and sooner.  He is learning but needs to learn quicker!

Lastly I want to say thank you again to our friends in Hatteras NC, Eddie and Gail!  They own A. S. Austin Company in Hatteras NC and are the nicest people you will ever meet!  If you ever go to Hatteras be sure to stop in and say hello.  Eddie is a treasure trove of knowledge of the area and you will never be disappointed!  I am greatly looking forward to getting to do some fishing with Eddie next year.  That is the other reason for going a little later in the year is so he is not so busy and able to take a break and go fishing!

Well, we have been gone for a couple of weeks so there are some items to address before I start work tomorrow :(.  Gonna be a crazy fall so this break was absolutely needed.  

Have a wonderful day everyone and talk with you again soon!

Kenny

Customer Party 2016 and some other happenings!

I would like to start off saying thank you to everyone who was able to make it to the party Memorial Day weekend!!!   As usual it was a blast!  I wasn't paying attention this year and only got a couple of pictures of the fun.  These pics were of the water balloon fight.  A few of the guests decided to change it up a little this year and it worked great.  After filling a tub with water balloons they made the kids all stand at the wagon to wait for the start of the fight.  When they yelled go it was game on!!!

It took about 30 minutes with four adults and all the children and two hoses to fill the balloons.  The entire balloon fight lasted about 2 minutes!    We also decided to utilize the garage this year in case it rained.  This turned out to be a good idea as we did have a brief shower that didn't really make the ground wet but it would've made a mess for eating.  Plus the garage kept the winds from blowing things around while everyone relaxed after eating.   We are already planning to do this again next year but we will be sure to have it better organized for more space next year.   If anyone has any photos of the party please send them to me or Natsuko.   We have been keeping them and I want to start showing some of them from past years at our future events!

I wanted to post a few pics of Zeus.   Those who were able to make it to the party got to meet him.  He is growing very fast and is currently 30# and is very tall and long!  

These pics were from last weekend.  He was waiting for my wife to get done fixing breakfast and noticed I was taking his pic so he had to pose for it.  

He also fully believes he is a lap dog.  He absolutely loves to lay on my lap when I get home from work or on Sunday morning after I finish my breakfast.  I am not sure how much longer he will be able to do this since he is already spilling over both sides of my lap.  It is quite an interesting balancing act for him to stay on my lap comfortably right now!

I also picked up some new farm ground this year.  I had about 30 acres between two different farms that I plowed the day after the party.  Last week during the week I spent my evenings working it down the for the first pass and then my brother made the final pass on all of it Friday.  It is now ready for planting.  

I am using dads transport disk and spike tooth harrow hooked in tandem.  The disk chops up the sod and other clumps and the harrow levels and fills the holes.  I have one more field that I plowed yesterday and will be working down today and then I am ready for seeding.  The seed I ordered in the spring ended up being a larger quantity than I was expecting.  This ended up being a great thing because now I have enough Oats, Sudex, and Hay seed to seed all the new ground that I got after I ordered the seed!!!  If all goes well it should be a decent year with plenty of feed for the cows.  I am drooling waiting to see what next year brings since it takes a year before the newly seeded hay ground starts to produce at full volume!

My wife and I went out to check the cows Friday night.  Naturally baby girl found us as soon as we got out there and posed for a great pic with my wife!!!  My wife has been working with the cattle since she is not working at this time and is starting to get it figured out.  However, she still has a long way to go in telling when cows are about to calve.  Shortly after this pic was taken we found a calf that was born at some point in time very early in the day.  Great news is that it is healthy, mom is doing great, this was her first calf, and of course it was a heifer!!!

Lastly I am happy to state that we finished up the last field of first cutting silage hay for dad yesterday!!!!!  This is the fastest we have been able to do it yet.  My brother kept mowing any time he had a chance while I was doing all of my hay and tillage and also helped by raking for me and helping move my hay.  The last 40 acres dad mowed while Martin and I were baling, raking, wrapping, and tilling!  It was great to see dad out on the tractors again.  He and I used to do this together and it was great to see him out with Martin and I to get it done in short order!!  Now all they need to do is hit it with some Nitrogen and lime and let the rain come for a nice second cutting.

The pic below was from yesterday.  When I was a kid we moved one bale at a time from up home to the barn to where we fed the hay.  At 8-10 minutes per trip...6-8 if you were hauling ass...it took several days to move all the bales down and used an enormous amount of fuel, time, and equipment wear and tear!  Dad was able to get our first bale wagon about 4 years ago and the last week of  2014 I found an even bigger one that was a super buy.  Now we can haul 23 at a time for silage bales and if dry we can haul 30!!! in four trips we moved 84 bales of hay and wrapped it all in a total time of 2.5 hours.  Even though it was fun as a kid to move bales I would have been in heaven to have been able to do it this way!

Well, I am out to check the cows and then go get my cousin's bull.  I sorted out all of the heifers that are related to Legacy and we are using my cousin's Lineback bull to breed them.  Not only is he smaller but he is not related in any way which allows me to keep Legacy longer by not having to worry about him breeding his own progeny.  We sorted them out from the herd last night and they are penned on the lot for the next week or so.  After he spends a week or so with them there we will turn them all out on the pasture together.  We also let Legacy out with the rest of the herd last night so we should start seeing our first calves the third week of march next year, I can't wait! With the addition of the new heifers that brings us to 29 breeding age females.  My goal is to be at 40.  If I wanted to I could be there now but with the need for cash flow I am only keeping the best heifers and selling the rest.  Plus, there is always a couple of cows that do not end up pregnant and are sold in the fall which is why I still need to keep a few heifers each year as replacements.  Still, 30 is the bottom end of where I want to be so we are pretty much there.  It is gonna be wild knowing I will have more than 20 -30 calves to pick from and possibly sell next year!

Have a great day everyone!!!  Enjoy the summer, it will not be here for long and it will be cold once again.  

Kenny