When I was small my Dad used to squeeze my upper arms between his thumb and his forefinger and chant.. “and the muscles on her scrahwny arms stoock oot like spiders knees”. Always in a broad and deeply pretend Scottish accent. I would scream with laughter and wriggle away, long sunburnt arms pumping my skinny self along the beach. My spaghetti thin bendy legs flying up behind me. When I was little I knew I could fly actually I am sure I still could, I just choose not to right now, thank you very much. I am practicing being grounded. 
Anyway back to my Dairy Maids arms. Yesterday at the feed store the woman at the check out asked if I needed help picking up a mineral block. I picked it up and smiled thank you, but I am a lot stronger than I look. She was gracious but disbelieving. I am not brawny much to my despair. But I am fast developing milkmaids arms.
Here is why. Every feed bag of oats weighs 50 pounds. Every bale of hay weighs between 60 and 70 pounds -some are heavier) Every morning I carry three buckets of water over to the barn from the house for the milking. Full, big buckets about 4 gallons of water in each. And we all know now that there is 8 pounds in a gallon. There is no running water in the barn remember.
After the milking I lift the milk bucket which has between 40 and 50 pounds of milk in it. (Imagine how much Daisy would give if she had four healthy quarters!) I then carefully divide this milk into six containers. One for Sheila and Poppy, one for the plonkers, one for the chickens, one for the peacocks, one for the cats and dogs, one for the bobby, one for the old dog and one for the house. Holding that amount of milk up and pouring carefully into containers works the muscles very well.
Then the water is used to clean the milking hoses and bucket. First clean water is pumped through, then an acid is added to the next bucket and pumped through, then a clorine solution to sterilise it all again ready for the next milking. Between each of these required washes I tighten the lid and bending my knees I pick up the milking bucket and shake it up and down to make absolutely sure both the bucket and the hose and the cups are cleared of any old milk.
(Look above: see how Daisy’s ear is close to her milking bells – top screen left – I ring these bells and open the gate when it is time for her to come in to be milked. If I take too long rinsing and cleaning before the milking she rings the bells with her ear! With HER EAR! Banging the bells with her ear saying ‘Come On, get a wriggle on!’. That cow is such a cow!
Anyway, that done I add the old rinse water to the pigs milk.
Then I carry each of these buckets to their recipients. The Bobby is now drinking out of a small bucket and Marcel is weaned (though sticks his wooyl head in the Bobby’s bucket of milk anyway) so there is no need to fill bottles as well now.
For the next few days I am doing this entire workout three times a day, usually twice a day.
Later I carry buckets of water to anyone in a pen. After dragging hoses about to fill the big troughs (from my one outside tap) .
Yesterday I collected a full 5 gallon bucket of restaurant scraps. It was so heavy I could hardly get it high enough to swing it into the boot of the cooking oil car. Full of twice baked potatoes and noodles and cake. (No wonder Sheila has trouble with her weight). That will keep Poppy and Sheila going for few days.
You see what I mean? I like my milk maids arms.
And in the not so distant future I will be hauling two chicken tractors down the fields three times a day! No need for a gym membershop round here!
What shoe size is your pig?
Good morning. I hope you have a lovely day.
The kitchen pig! I am training her to stay on her cushion instead of standing in the middle of the kitchen moving to and from as I move to and fro. She is getting it too. Good little piggie.
I hope you have a lovely day.
Your friend on the farmy
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
47 responses to “Dairy-maid’s Arms”
I totally relate to your work ethic and farmy workout routine. My husband’s employer has a wellness program where we log our “workout” hours on a spreadsheet. I used to work out at the company gym before we moved to this ten-acres. I get a more of a well-rounded workout here doing my daily chores than I ever got in that gym. People can say all they want that I’m just skinny or lucky that I have a high metabolism, but the truth is – I work my patootie off on this place keeping active with every day work. We farm girls are a tough breed… and I’m proud of that!! We all rock, don’t ya think? LOL
It definetly sounds like a great workout… 😉
Yup me too with the weight lifting, 30kg feed sacks, one hose that gets hauled between the pigs bath and the vege patch, then water from the bath to the pigs in 15 litre buckets. But the hardest is moving the electric fence every week. The line is 400 metres, it gets rolled in, the fence posts are moved then the line is rolled out again, all done on a hill, AND you have to keep the line taut the whole time else it all goes to hell in a hand basket. Very good for the abs and triceps, but I am seriously exhausted when I am done particularly if I dont do it at the crack of dawn before it gets hot. I liked this post, lots of farmy detail. I hope you can beat that damned Mastitis, so frustrating. Have you had time to make any cheese yet?
The best kind of workout…mine is picking up my 60+ pound little man! Lovely post for a lovely day….
What intelligent farm ‘pets’ you have Celi!
We have a lot of plans for our future farm and your blog discusses a very good reason why it’s important not too take on too much too fast. The body needs time to build more muscle and adjust to the added responsibility it takes to run a farm of any size.
So, you and Clover have another thing in common, besides a deep love of cute kitchen pigs, you both have fantastic toned arms. (Her’s from rock climbing) Chloe thanks you very much for the photo; she’s saved it to her favourites. 😀 I love that first photo of poor Marmy looking into the kitchen. I so recognise those cat ears of hope…lol. Hope you let him in.
Poor Marmy,,,,kicked out because of a pig, no less. When I was younger I had great muscles, too. After we lived on our farmy for a couple of years I said we needed some water out in the barn and the garden and everywhere else. Took us two years to get all the pipes in. DH did the trench digging by hand. As far as I am concerned, it is the biggest convenience on the place. More than hot water, even. A bell ringing cow…music in the barn.
I’ve met you, Celi, and I’m amazed that you can lift and lug the weight that you do. You should sell weekly memberships on the farmy. Just one week on the farmy and your customers would be in the best shape of their lives. I was in the yard with Max and the wind shifted a bit, there was a chill in the air. Looks like we’re heading back to normal again. We did have 3 very good days, though, and there are plenty more ahead. Have a great day, Celi.
Every post is so precious! You make me smile and giggle with delight! I know you are working so hard….but it is good work and you must be satisfied to your very soul! Thank you so much for opening a wee window to your world for me to have a peek in. HUGS
Hey Celi .. Hard work is what it is called and lots of it! Good for you! Glorious pics xx
I was just going to ask when you found time for a daily gym workout, but strangely enough I see you don’t seem to think you need one! *chortle, chortle*
I have had my daily exercise just reading through what you do…I am absolutely whacked. Now I need a rest..
your piggie must be really tiny, can you measure the length and height please…..
mind your back doing all that lifting
Whew, I’m tired after reading all what you do! Just be careful of your back!
My puppy rings a bell hanging on the back door when she wants to go out, if I don’t hear it the first couple of times when it’s a gentle tingle, she gives it a good hard whacking against the door…that brings me running. I have a daily workout too in my little urban homestead, hauling bags of chookfood, bales of hay and sugarcane mulch and water buckets…tiring but satisfying.