The cows are out ... on pasture!

It's so exciting to let the cows out on pasture for the first time in the spring.  I called my mom ... the boys and I went over ... and the cows were super loud in the barn!  They knew.  They'd seen people in the field getting ready all day.  

Part of having the cows out on the field is making sure that they have a close water source.  They drink the equivalent of a bathtub full of water a day.  (Which sounds ridiculous and makes me thirsty.)

Our water tanks are made of cement, and like all cement, sometimes they crack and leak.  Kris was looking at the patching with Ty, and then the boys started trying to fix it right away.  They built rock and dirt dams.  It didn't staunch the flow much, but I liked their attempt.  We're going to look at plastic liners next.

Then it was time!  We opened the gates and the cows came running out!

Kris, do you hear something behind you?

They ran, ran, ran!  All of these are pregnant cows.  They're dried up, which means we're not milking them until they have calves - right out here in the pasture.  (For more on drying up, read here.)

 They stopped as soon as they came down the lane and started eating.

It's so nice to see the cows on pasture.  The green grass, the blue sky, the 70 degree weather - all perfect pasturing and spring weather.

We had another sign of spring, too!  Our team member Adam brought back out the U Mad Bro tank top!  He faithfully wore this shirt all last summer.  His dedication made my boys love that shirt and they all now have one.  I didn't get them - Santa did.

So, it's spring, the cows are out (in the only good way possible), and no one's mad - it's one of the happiest times of year on the farm.


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