We got a baby.................calf!

We got our first calf last week, he was born on a cold but sunny day, and was a little slow in coming around, so we had to warm him in the hotbox at Kim's dad's place. A bottle of newborn booster milk, some heat and he was ready to go. He's about a week old now, and doing quite well, running and jumping like he has springs on his feet. We've been calling him Buster, it seems like the frst calf we get each year gets that name, so we'll keep up the tradition.

Like babies of all kinds, calves can be frustrating, two can be born in similar circumstances, and one will thrive and one will struggle to live, or perish. The calf is the "harvest" for a cattleman, and to lose one is to lose a portion of the crop for the year. Even so, dealing with a weak calf can be a struggle, you never really know if what you're doing will work, and if you have it in a warming box, you can't keep it away from it's mother too long or she might not claim (bond with) him/her.

Calving time is wonderful though, seeing the newborns stuggle to their feet and take a few hesitant steps over to mama to look for that first drink of milk. Then just a couple of days later, they're running and jumping around like its really easy.

Springtime is full of wonders on the farm, seeing the grass green up, the flowers poking up, the new calves romping in the pasture, all bring home the sense of renewal that comes this time of year. Soon we will also be getting new kittens (as if we don't have enough cats already) and they're so much fun to watch, their little tails sticking straight up as they follow mama around and begin to explore the world. Jumping, pouncing and ambushing each other, they almost seem to be playfulness embodied.

Soon it wil be planting time and the beginning of another cycle, one that traces back to man's humblest beginnings as farmers, placing seed in the ground and hoping and praying for a bountiful harvest. We farmers are always so optimistic and full of hope this time of year, when everything is possible and the hot, scorching, dry days of summer seem so far away. Yes, spring is a wonderful time!