Gahh NOOOOOO!!!!

How can it be?!?!

Where has the summer gone?!?!

In case I'm not making any sense...

College starts back up on Monday!!

NOOOO!!! I don't wanna go!! I am dreading it. Particularly the first week, seeing as I am taking Blink, my winning Senior Heifer from Altamont to the Fonda Fair. Which will make going to class those first few days somewhat difficult. Oh well. I have been a good girl and gone to my classes every other year despite wanting to take my heifers in. They will just have to survive without me for a while. Classes never really do much those first few days anyhow. And I will make it to some of them. And I am really looking forward to the show, it should be fun, fingers crossed. I just can't believe summer is over for me. Where did it go?

Oh Man!

Finally.

Blink. I was in the process of getting her topline up.

We're home.

Mandy. She was about half bagged at this point.

It was a long week. But fun. I tied with some great people. Got half frozen Saturday when a cold front moved through. And just generally exhausted myself over the week of my 'vacation'. Hope everybody's week was as fun filled as mine!!!

Mandy again. Side view.

Wow

Man am I beat. Four animals at the fair and I am as tired as if I had a dozen or more (been there, done that got the tshirt, so I know). It has been such a long week. But I have been tied with some great people. One of which keeps going every morning and bringing me back coffee. I am too exhausted, and desperately need to head to bed so I can head back over to the fair early again tomorrow for the last day, or I would put up my own post.

Instead, why don't yah all head over to Northview Diary, and check out all Mom's posts on the cows and show time. She's got some lovely photos of Mandy.

Over Head...

Dad, Alan, Becky and I went over today to get my straw and hay into the fair, set up the stall signs, and do up the beds for the cows. It only took about an hour to get everything in and set up. We made up some good long beds, so that the cows will have plenty of room this year. And if I do say so myself the over heads for the cows look pretty nice. If I had known I would have so much space this year I would have made up a second set of lattice for over top, but not knowing there was no way I could. Oh well. Next year.

The whole stall top.

Me, trying to figure out which signs still need to be straightened.

The farm sign Mom painted many years ago. Sorry, it was kind of glary in the barn, so it didn't come out so good.

An example of my animal's individual signs.

Oh Man, Is It Really Time Already?

Unfortunatly, I can say, with a fair amount of certainty, that yes, it is that time again...

Show time that is. I have my decorations for above the cows all set up and ready to go. We (Alan and I) just need to take them over and put them up against our stall fronts. This year we are going to be tied with some very long time friends, and totally awesome people, so we should, from that perspective at any rate, have some fun. Then Sunday we are taking the straw hay and feed (some of which, the beet pulp, I am going to get as soon as Daddy dearest returns with my pickup) in the morning, with the two heifers, Blink and Blitz, as a second run in the afternoon. Then Monday morning, as soon as milking is done and we've all eaten our breakfast, Mandy and Lemonade, will head over. Then Tuesday morning the fair officially opens to the public. I am excited, and yet at the same time am totally dreading the whole thing. If they give us the grief they have the last few years it will be awful, specially since I really don't like fighting with people.

Anyways, I will probably not be on for most of the next 7-10 days. I'll be kind of busy. I generally head over around 4 am, and head back home around 9, 9:30 pm, so most of the day is spent sitting by my cows, this year probably mostly with my feet propped up on a hay or straw bale. I promise to give updates on the goings on over there, and I will catch up with everybody afterwards.

BYE!

Pictures from Past Fairs

I know I have mentioned this before... but I have got one truly awesome older brother. See, recently he was apparently cleaning, and came across a bunch of photos he had taken of me and the rest of the family showing at Altamont. They're from 2005, when Mandy was a two year old. It is kind of creepy, the one picture I mean. It is nearly identical to one he took last summer of Mandy and me. I've got to admit I am thrilled to have them, because the ones we took didn't come out half as good. Thanks big bro, can't wait to see you at this year's fair (and no, we don't need you to show, so you are safe, no need to wear sandals like you threatened last summer)!!

Senior Two Year Old Class

On another note, I got a letter from the college yesterday. I have apparently received the SMART grant again. Which is kind a Christmas in July kind of thing. Makes me very much less stressed, because books for 21 credit hours don't come cheap.

Senior Showmanship

Stuff that makes for a really long day...

I finally decided today was the day...

...To start getting this spring and summer's calves registered...

...And to get the fair entries done...



...And finish my scholarship application for Pennfield Feeds (which really wasn't too bad, I just had to proof it a bit)...



All of which lead to mammoth headaches.

The whole bunch of work.

See, for starters, Holstein Association USA's registration forms are not known for their ease. They are down right complicated. They have this EZ program for the computer, but that is actually even worse than the paper blanks. So I tend to shy away from the computer program, unless I am in a real hurry. One big problem with the EZ program is that we have young daughters on both really really old bulls from AI studs, like pre 1980, and from our own bulls that Dad has bought and raised. If the sire of a calf isn't from the studs over the last say fifteen years, the program is determined the bull is not a legitimate sire, and causes all kinds of grief until the user manages to over ride what ever the problem is. Which tends to put me in the one headache too many category to use it. Plus I am really not all that fond of computers. They are great...when they are actually working, but I tend to manage to make them not work.

A finished registration paper. What the end product looks like.

Then there are the Altamont Fair entries to do. They really aren't much easier. Mostly because this season they decided to put everything on the web. From entry blanks, to rules and regs, all the necessary information is on the net..in pdf form...which our computer hates. So it took me more than three days just to get stuff to load between error messages, and having to get into contact with the actual fair office to get all the pages I needed to do my cows entries. Then I had to transfer them from this computer to the one in the main office with a printer. The other one has internet capabilities, but is slower than molasses in January. And naturally the printer didn't want to cooperate. Guess who I went to with that issue...My wonderful Mommy. Who fixed the problem. I printed out two sets of the blanks, even though I needed five or so, and then just used the copier to get everything I needed.

Heifer list so I know which calf goes with which cow.

At which time the even bigger headache causing activities started...



Acutally doing the entries themselves. Which required finally picking which animals were gonna get entered. And this year I was smart. I put at least one animal in all my immediate family's names (nyvolfan, darling big brother, we would like to include you in this list, no you don't actually have to show, I do know better than to try that one any more (yeah right, and if you believe that I got a bridge to sell yah), but we need your signature on the blanks) so I could get everybody passes. And so Frieland Ex Spec Camry (Dad), Frieland Ex Spec Junie (Mom), Frieland Ex Spec Lemonade (Becky), and Frieland C Alpha Zulu (Alan) were entered for everybody. I have the blunt of the string, as this is my project...aka my vacation. I entered Frieland Z Mandolin Rain, the new mommy, her yearling daughter Maqua Kil Blitz Mendocino, Frieland Zander Foolish, Maqua Kil Zander Spruce, and Frieland Chilt Blink for myself. Then I put up the fees for Best Three Females, and Daughter-Dam. I don't plan to actually take the majority of the ten animals, should I enter one for big brother too. I kind of just want a small string this year, so I am not so totally stressed when school starts up. Plus with just four or five, I can relax a bit more, hang out with my friends and enjoy my 'vacation' as much as possible.

Hope to see everybody there. This promises to be yet another crazy and fun filled fair. As of yet none of the actual events are up for the fair week itself. But I can say that right now it looks like the dairy classes will again be held Thursday morning and night (with just Holsteins we're only showing in the evening), and beef will be late Friday. Be sure to stop by and sit a spell with us if you swing through the grounds. We're happy to sit and chat awhile. And Mandy is almost always looking for a few more pets.

And of course my ever present cup of coffee. It is about the only thing that will give me enough energy to keep going.

Hmmm...Babies sure do get big in a HURRY!

We had an interesting morning. For the most part it was relatively routine. Get up, milk cows, feed calves and such. We were down to the last bit of milking, and Mom and I were sitting on the concrete bench like thing that runs along the one back wall, talking about making up some stalls for the babies in the main barn. This will require moving some older heifers out into pens, and then moving the little calves into their stalls.

The talk moved to which animals would be put in pens and where. One former 'Name the Calf' contest heifer, Takala, will just be run in with some other yearlings, as she is no where near ready to breed, along with Magma, our first and currently only red Holstein. Then there are two others, the Blitz and Medina, a big March yearling by Kenyon (who is also Takala's sire). We breed most of our replacement animals either Jersey or Shorthorn, based on calving ease as a result of the calves being so much smaller than the average full blooded Holstein.

But these are two of my best babies. Medina has a lot of potential, and I am really fond of her sire. The Blitz is just a wonderful animal. Big and sleek, she is really fairly correct and I am anticipating a decent show season with her if I can keep her growing the way she is. I really really want to breed them both to an old Holstein bull, Cal-Clark Board Chairman. Pretty much anyone familiar with the Holstein breed knows him. He was the sire of To-Mar Blackstar. Who was one of the most influential bulls the Holstein breed has ever seen. I've got one other Board Chairman daughter left. A coming five year old out of my old Straight Pine Elevation Pete daughter.

Mom told me I'd better weigh them both, as she was uncertain as to whether they would both be big enough to breed to a Holstein and be able to safely have the calf. Blitz we figured HAD to be big enough. She stands next to her mammoth dam, and looks good there. Medina we weren't to sure on. She looks big, but looks can be deceiving. We figured if she was over 675 or 700 lbs we could be pretty safe.

So after milking I dug out my weight tape so that I could get a relatively accurate assessment of their actual size. I figured first I better do Medina. She can be a bit screwy at times, though all in all she is nice to work with. I slid the tape around her barrel, made sure it was good and tight, and checked the reading...

And darn near fell on my head. She weighed in over 900 lbs, just barely, but over none the less. I thought maybe she would be over 800, maybe up to 850, but not THAT heavy. I told Mom who was coming to see what I had gotten for a weight, and she didn't believe me.

So I weighed the Blitz to see where she fit in. Because if Medina, who is the smaller of the two, weighed that much, Blitz was gonna be big. The Blitz's weight equaled 968 lbs, with me rounding down.

And then our next question became, if they are THAT heavy, what is Mandy, the tallest cow we have, weighing in at. Well we got our answer of 1468. She is a big girl. Alan wanted to weigh Bayberry, his show cow, who came in just a bit lighter than that, around 1430. We have some heavy cows. And yet they are still extremely dairy. My goal is to one day have a ton plus cow. It will be a long ways off, but I'd say we have made a good start.

And both my babies are DEFINITELY getting bred to Board Chairman. Now if they'll just settle and give me some heifers...

Three Down Three More To Go

Whoo Hoo....So anyways, I can officially say that my summer 'vacation' is nearly here. I have got three of my finals done, with just three more to go next week. All my papers are handed in and taken care of. I do have one more on line quiz and agbusiness discussion topic left (who wants to do those for me?), but they shouldn't take more than a few minutes.

And then, 10:00 next Thursday, I will truly be on break, at least until August.

Which means its time to start getting the show stock ready. Can't wait, so excited about the stock we have this year. Mom is already talking about getting their vet work done. A few still need to have their registration papers put together and sent to the appropriate organizations. We're already looking at which cows, yearlings and calves are going to be gotten ready. Right now it's looking like Mandolin Rain, her Blitz yearling Mendocino, Lemonade or Junie (one or the other, not sure, Lemmie's fresh but kicks, Junie will be dry but due the first week of Sept, not good to truck cows that are that pregnant), Hooter and Hazel for the Jerseys, Camry, Blink, Encore, and Chickadee to round out the Holstein babies. That gives me 9 or 10 to draw on for what will probably be only a six or seven head string this year, as I simply can't handle a full 12 cow string this summer on my own. That 32 mile drive every morning down winding foggy back roads at 4 or 5 am to milk all the cows is just not going to be conductive to living through the week. I was so tired after last year's fair that I literally could barely move to load up all the cows on Sunday night (which I definitely need to give my thanks to a certain friend and his boys and nephews for helping out with that again and apologize for how dirty they got). So we'll take a smaller string, have a little more relaxation time, maybe not have to be there so late show night, and be back to 'full power' next year, when I won't have college looming around the corner.

COME SEE US IN AUGUST! You can see photos of some of the girls over at Maqua-Kil Farms http://maquakilfarms.blogspot.com

And the 2007 Altamont Fair Will Be Held...

...August 14th through the 19th. If all things go as past years have, we will be showing Thursday about 10:30 am and 6:00 pm with the Jerseys in the morning and the Holsteins at night. I'm already excited. Altamont is always a good time for everybody. Its a little bitty tri-county fair that still has plenty to do and see. Hope everybody has a chance to come out and enjoy the sites, sounds, and, of course, tastes of a small county fair.

Fall of 2007 and the END of the Spring 2007 School Year

Well, as of 10 oclock this morning I am all signed up for my fall classes, with the exception of ANSC 272, which is artificial insemination. AI requires students head down to the registrars office and have them sign you in. They have meetings at 10, so going down now would be a total waste of time. But I got into all my other courses no sweat. Without the 22 credit hours I am going to be taking next fall, I have 111 out of a total required 126. Not too shabby, specially since I also have to complete a 15 credit hour internship. Which will put my total up to 148 credit hours. Hows that for a four year Bachelors degree.

I personally think I have got some pretty awesome classes next fall. Some (mainly Technical Communications (COMM 301) and History of World Civ (HIST 103)) are just to fill up some of the general and upper level elective slots that I haven't finished yet. Others, or rather one other, Advanced Ruminant Nutrition, are just going to be plain painful, mostly because of the butt head who teaches it. He's smart as they come, and about as exciting as watching paint dry. Actually, the paint drying would allow for a vast amount more interaction. But I get to really look foward to the rest of my courses. For instance, AGBU 420, Agricultural Policy, and AGBU 442, Agricultural Credit, are both supposed to be taught by Mr. Maxwell, and he is just plain awesome. There will be a lot of work involved, but he is so hyper and fun that the classes, even though Ag Credit is 6-9 at night, should be very engaging and will likely keep the boredom level low. Then I have a class with my advisor, JT, Dairy Herd Seminar (ANSC 412), which should be loads of fun. If for no other reason than JT is one of those professors that really likes to be involved in his classes and keep them mentally stimulating, without being a lot of pointless work. Then my last class is Internship Orientation, ANSC 380. With the individual who is in charge of that this year it will probably be a whole lot of nothing. And probably rather useless.

I think I am most looking foward to AI though. Rumor, and the former prof of the class, has it that Ivor Jones should be teaching it this year. And I just adore Ivor. He was responsible for finding Zenith for me, as Dad wouldn't let me use Durham because of low milk production and him being a CVM carrier. Not to mention Ivor is smart and really knows his stuff. Not that the last teacher didn't. He was actually Ivor's predecessor at Select Sires, so they come from the same basic background. I would have loved the class either way.

And perhaps the best news of all is that I have NO classes on Fridays. Completely free. Which means I can work with my cows at home. And maybe go out to Ohio or some other neighboring state and go to an actual really good rodeo. Plus, on the days I do have class, I don't start til 9 or 9:30, which means I can either sleep in a bit, or go out and help Mom and Dad in the barn. Course, I also don't get done at school til 9 pm on Monday and Tuesday, which means I will probably need that extra little bit of sleep.

As everything stands right now there are, counting this week, 3 full weeks of classes left, and then four days of finals. All the classes will be completely done on the 17th of May. I am really looking foward to being out for the summer. Basically....IT'S FINALLY SUNSHINE AND SUMMERTIME!!!

HOPE TO SEE YAH ALL AT THE FAIRS AND RODEO!!!!