Here, in my unheated bedroom. ICE on the inside of the double glazed windows. Makes me feel right at home. I have never lived in a house with heated bedrooms anyway. Now whenever you see those silly christmas decorations with the sprayed-on ice around the glass, you can say. I don’t think you really want ice on the inside of your windows. It means it is too cold for comfort.
The Breeder (the woman who bred Daisy) sent some extra milk over yesterday for Sheila. Raw milk is high in easily digested enzymes and protein which ovulating pigs need.
The weather man described yesterday as Bitterly Cold, though with a stern unsympathetic sun I added. I was certainly feeling bitter about the cold but felt better after a bath. The sun I am always grateful for.
Today they are, of course, forecasting more snow. I still like snow. But I don’t really need anymore. Still there you are – it is a winter. Winters of old they say. Just like the winters in the 70’s. Wait. The 70’s are Old?
I am happy for a few days without wind.
It is Saturday here. 35 days before Daisy is due to calve. I would refer that she does not have to actually calve inside the barn. So hopefully the snow is gone by then and a little warmth has come back. But I think we are going to have a late wet spring. One way or another there are exciting days ahead.
Good morning. The Powers that Be have decided that I need a new milking machine. This is being paid for by the Matriarch’s farm. If this were a sustainable self sufficient purchase I would be milking by hand. But Daisy is a big milker (lots of milk) and I have chosen an electric pump on wheels to selfishly make my life a lot easier. One has been ordered and will soon be dispatched. The inclement second hand pump that I was using will become the backup parts pump. As I will be milking in a little over a month, and we will be having lambs in between, I need to start getting all these things in order.
From now on I am going to try and actually publish the my little weblog AT dawn, so I will check the time of our dawn and have it go to air at exactly the right time. Then I will walk out the door to start work. That might be fun! You can watch the days grow longer with me. What do you think? There is a lot of light before the dawn.
I hope you all have a lovely day.
Your dawn friend on the farmy,
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
58 responses to “you did not believe me?”
I remember the winters of the late 60’s and early 70’s. We had snow drifts high as the garage’s and half up the corn cribs and barns. King on the mountain was a favorite outdoor game for us kids… there were plenty of mountains around to throw your siblings down! Your writing brings to mind so many winter days of my youth in Nebraska. I can feel the bitter chill in those photos, but there is beauty there just as much. Sheila with her snout in the bucket is my favorite photo, but all of this series of winter blue are appealing.
I’ve noticed the dawn is slowly coming earlier and it makes me smile every time that thought registers. Plus the light is sticking around longer in the evening. It always amazes the kids that I notice. I tell them you can take the girl off the farm but you can’t take the farm out of this girl. Weather was so much a part of our life and weather forcasting while I was growing up was not near as long range or accurate as it is now so you paid attention to what was happening around you.
I remember the winters of 77-78 and 78-79 very well. While this winter is cold and snowy I think they were worse. Which could be due to the fact I had to be out in those winters working on the farm for hours and now I have little to do outside other than shovel. When the weatherman starts comparing this year with 35 years ago I at first think that has was a long time ago. Then it hits me that was when I was a teenager and nooooo it can not be a long time ago. lol I know in the late 70’s that we would get drifts that were over my head (5’6″). The drifts would be so tightly packed that 1500 lb cows could walk on them without falling through. They did too, right over the fences. In fact dad became concerned because one drift formed over the back side of the old chicken house (which was taller than me) and he was afraid that a cow would climb the drift and fall into the chicken house. Nobody would have been happy about that, us, cows or chickens. We spend a few hours shoveling the drift out because it was too cold for the tractor’s hydraulics to work and we would have had to shovel the machine shed doors open just to get to the tractor.
It is wonderful that you are getting a new vaccuum pump. They make milking so much easier and quicker. Hopefully the treatment worked on Daisy and she will freshen mastitis free. It might be a good idea to change the inflations on your milker and throughly disinfect it before using it on her again or on Queenie.
Ice and frost on the inside? I do believe you, Celi! On our honeymoon we went to the Indian lands, in the Four Corners area, and camped in various places. One morning we woke up to 30 degree weather (not nearly so cold as you) near the *Mittens and there were frost crystals on the ceiling of our little tent. Hot breath will freeze apparently. As well, we currently have had problems with our toilet bowl freezing up on the Mountain Farmlet. This brings me to a couple of questions for you:
How do you bathe without turning into a popcicle when you get out, and how do you keep your toilet from freezing?
Inquiring minds want to know. 😀
BTW, If you don’t know about Monument Valley and the “Mittens” you can see visit here to learn about them and see some excellent photographs of them. 😉
http://www.sandstonetours.com/About-Monument-Valley
We had ice on the inside of our bedroom windows in early January when it got down to 5 here…which is really cold for here. But it wasn’t pretty like yours, it was a big sheet that you couldn’t see through! That’s a lotta snow. I know that hot bath is one of the best parts of your day right now! 🙂
Oh C.! Ice on the inside of your bedroom windows?? I bet you have to wear a hattie to bed! You have had such a cold, bitter winter…I guess that will make spring all the sweeter! Love Sheila’s snout in the bowl photo! 🙂 I wonder…have the little warmers that you pop in your gloves and boots helped at all? I hope so! I would probably pop some in my bed, if I were you! Ha!
Even though I do not live on a farm or even in the country right now…I still get “up with the cows” as we say down South..I always rise before dawn just to watch it happen. It is my way to ease into my day without any hubbub. So I will think of you as you rise before dawn to care for your farmy whilst I am right here in downtown Nashville surrounded by buildings and traffic and my cup of coffee.
We had some ice round the inside edges of the bedroom windows a month ago. I set the heat to go off overnight, but I am well hidden under a 13 tog down duvet with only my mouth and nose showing. In very severe weather, I leave the electric blanket on low over night. I am constantly medically warned not to get cold. 😦
I only get time on the weekends to read everyone’s blogs, and a quick post on mine, but I love to catch up on the goings on of the farmy.
WONDERFUL! Did you get a Surge Milker? Having a good milker is so important. The other nice thing about a good milker is when the teat is done the milking teat just drops off…no more over doing, therefore, no more mastitis in that quarter! I am so excited for you. I so understand the necessity and the importance!!! YIPPEE!!! Now you need a bottler and a cream separator. I would send you ours but we donated the bottler to the museum.
Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
*♥´¨) ¸.-´¸.-♥´¨) Happy Valentine’s Day¸.-♥¨) (¸.-` ♥♥´¨
Our bedroom has ice inside as well…the other 1/2 hates a hot bedroom..but it does get ridiculous!
We’ve had enough snow in the Northeast as well, cold as well. Sitting in the living room the other nite, she mentioned she hates when the furnace comes on, she sees $$$$$ just flying around the house. Oil & electricity are out of sight this year! Glad you’re getting a milking machine, save your fingers.
Icing up inside double-glazing is a new one on me!
*does lots of shuddering*
‘;It’s always darkest before the dawn.” and “Press on to the dawn.” hugs O Intrepid One. I adore Sheila; One of my writing students follows you now and we talked about your blog in class!
Sheila looks very cute with the bucket.
The new milker is a very good idea – I remember reading about you milking by hand 😉
Yes.. that was not my best day.. c
Wow. Diamond clear cold days, Celi, and I can see the wind would add a most unwelcome chill. Glad the new milking machine is on its way!
In the winter we usually live in only that part of the house that has the kitchen, bath, and dining area. Bedroom is never heated and I actually crack the window open a bit. Luckily I don’t have to sleep alone, lol. As one of those people that doesn’t do mornings, I am aware of only of longer days in the afternoons. I have also managed to corrupt my morning person husband and two cats. Now we sleep in until almost nine AM or until the cats decide it is time to get up. Luckily we are retired from regular jobs and can do as we please. When we first moved here twenty years ago, we were snowed in for weeks at a time. We had to snowmobile about a mile to our neighbors house where we kept our truck and then pack everything back from the store. We could not keep our half mile driveway plowed out because the winds would fill it In with snow almost immediately. I agree that winters are not like they used to be. I am happy that you are getting a new milking machine. It will make life easier….I am all for that. Raw milk for Sheila…yum. Yesterday we finally got about 3 inches of snow….not enough to make much of a difference, but it is a start. I think you got all our snow this year.