Talk About Weathering The Storm...

7:55AM. I moaned and rolled over in bed, fumbling for my alarm. I hit snooze for 5 more minutes. I'd gone to bed on time last night, 10PM, but didn't feel sleepy until 11PM. So much for my exhaustion issues. I tossed and turned for another 45 minutes. Just as I was drifting off, my golden retriever puppy, Elsie, starts whimpering. Urgently. She needed to make an urgent trip outside. Quickly. Once that was taken care of and she finally fell asleep so that I could fall back asleep it was nearly 12:30AM. So nope, I didn't wanna get up this "early".
8:00AM. I turned the alarm off but curled back up. Elsie was starting to wake up, I doubted she'd let me sleep much longer anyway. I did NOT want to go milk that cow. She was stubborn. And annoying. And...and...disgusting. Not for the first time I ask myself why we even have cows. Oh yeah, I remind myself, major saving on milk. Plus it tastes better. But then, is it really worth the extra work? I guess so. I throw back the covers and make myself get up. I wake Joshua up because he's my milking partner. I let Elsie out to use the great outdoors and find that it's drizzling but it's not stormy at all. Weird. I bring Elsie back in and find Josh waiting for me. He wants to know why he's milking and not Mama.
"She has a headache, Josh." I explain. He's grumpy now. "How do you know?" I try not to feel exasperated. "Maybe because she's not awake and getting ready to milk right now? Because she told me last night that she did? Or maybe I know because she was awake at 4 this morning." "All you had to do was tell me that." I'm frustrated now. We need to get going. "Josh, I know what I'm talking about, I don't just say random stuff. Now while we've been here arguing, you could've been getting the bucket of water ready." He stalks off. I finish getting the gallon container and milking cups. Don't worry, we're friends again in five minutes. That's just how brothers and sisters are ;)
I decide to take Elsie with us this time. She and Latte (the cow) don't get along too well but I'm going to let her run around free so if Latte charges her, Elsie can get out of the way. I feel sorry for Elsie. She hates the picket line, she's too mischievous to stay in the kitchen, and she's not fully potty-trained so she can't roam the house. And I can't let her loose outside unless I'm with her. I take her for walks twice a day, but I'm in my senior year of high school and I've got to get school work done. So I decide to let her roam around while we milk and hopefully Latte doesn't have a fit.
We wait a little while for the drizzles to stop and then head up to the Back Pasture. The Front Pasture has a milking shed but the back doesn't. I can't wait until we move them to the Front again! But for now we make do. The dark clouds are rolling in and fog mists around us. We need to hurry if we want to stay dry. I carry the bucket of water and Josh carries the box of supplies. Cleaning Latte is a big deal lol. Anyway Elsie is so happy to be free and running around sniffing everything. She finds a um...*cough*...fresh cow patty. And a...well...*gag*...a little snack. I shudder every time she...yeah.
ANYWAY Latte, as I previously mentioned, is very stubborn. She kicks and messes and gives us plenty of grief. But probably the worst inconvenience is that she won't have a milk let down unless we let the calf nurse. This means that, to get the highest amount of milk that we can, we have to milk her first and usually we get about quart. A very precious quart because we definitely work for it. Since her milk hasn't let down all the way it's very difficult. It's like wringing out a rag that's hardly wet. Definitely defines the muscles in your hands and arms! A drizzle has started back up. Great. I'm tired and now I'm going to be wet and tired. Elsie keeps popping into the pen and we have to chase her out or risk Latte having a "cow" ha. ha. Funny right?  Ok maybe not ;) But Elsie ain't allowed inside with Latte because the last thing we need is Latte tearing out of the stall...again. But Elsie picks up pretty quick and runs around but stays within sight and gives up on coming inside.
After we get our desired quart, we back Latte out of the milking stall halfway, rope the calf - who is HUGE now and almost as stubborn as his mama (literally, we've had him drag us across the the pasture while we hang onto the rope! No joke) - and let him nurse. After about two minutes we pull him off which, let me tell ya, is very difficult. Usually takes two people. He's big and strong and stubborn and HUNGRY. He doesn't want to leave her. One person tugs and strains on the rope and the other slaps him on the rump. We prevail and get him out of the pen and move on. Elsie is interested in him and that keeps her preoccupied for a little while :D We wipe Latte's teats off again and now milking is like wringing out a sopped rag. Ah, so easy! Even still, it's not as easy as our other cow Nutmeg who's half Jersey. And SHE isn't as easy as HER Mama, Ginger, who's a full Jersey. Latte is 3/4 Angus, 1/4 Jersey.
Anyway, back to the subject, the rain is falling heavier. It's funny too because Joshua brought up his bulky "waterproof" coat. I had asked him why. "So if it rains, I'll be dry!" He cheerfully explained. Well, he turned out to be the smart one I suppose. I'm just out there in my rolled up jeans, and spongebob t-shirt with the sleeves cut off. The rains keep on and I'm getting soaked. "Hurry!" I call to Joshua. His little hands are pumping as fast as they can but it's not really fast enough. I already switches sides with him while we were working on the first quart. Latte is the hardest cow to milk and Josh is the smallest milker. It's funny to watch him though, he's way cute ^_^. So my side is somewhat done, but the rain is just pouring down. And then I realize, we're getting more milk than the usual a-little-less-than-a-gallon amount. We have a little less than a gallon but the froth from milking has filled up to the top. And we still have a ton of milk left to milk! We need another container. Josh and I are laughing hysterically at milking in the rain. He looks like a wet cat with his not-so-water-proof jacket on and the hood clinging to his wet face. I weigh the options. THE two most important things about a milking cow is to keep her (1) healthy and (2) keep her milk supply as high as possible. To keep her supply up you have to milk every drop out. Then the calf gets what you couldn't get, thus raising the supply. Yeah, it's complicated but you get the idea. To keep her supply up or to raise it we need to milk her out. And for some reason we are suddenly getting a major load of milk today! So on one hand is: We're already wet, we're getting a ton of milk, and Latte - for once - is calm. On the other hand: we've got the usual amount, more actually, we're soaking wet, and we want to be done. Finally I decide....We need another container. "Josh!" I laugh. "I'm going to run back to the house real quick and grab another container. Keep milking!" His little hands are still pumping furiously as the rain pounds down on him. "Okay!" He calls back. I dart out of the pen and call for Elsie. She comes bounding alongside me as we dash through the pasture, out the gate, and into the van. I drive down to the house, burst out of the van and Elsie leaps down beside me. We run up the steps and into the house. I need to put Elsie in her crate. So we run through the house (GASP I know lol) and I pop for a half a second into David's room. He's got his huge headphones on listening to music while he does school work. Gianna and Mama are still asleep. Christie is doing her school work. "Hey, put Elsie in her crate real quick? I'll be back in a minute," I gasp to him and then run back into the kitchen. I'm out the door when I suddenly stop. Did he hear me? Growling in frustration I go back to check. Elsie is still standing in the hall, wet. I peek into David's room again, he's totally oblivious. "David, can you-" He can't hear me with that stupid contraption on his head. "DAVID, can you put Elsie in her crate for me?" Nada. I step into the room and bang on his desk. His head pops up and he whisks the headphones off. Finally! "CanyoupleasetakeElsietohercrate?I'llbebackinalittlewhile!" And I'm out the door with just his shocked expression to tell me he'd heard ;)
Back outside the rain hasn't let up. Poor Josh! I get back up there and run back to him with the container. He's only gotten 2 cups since I left. But he kept at it! :D "Ok ok I'm back! Move to my side and let me milk your side. It's more full." He obeys and runs around Latte to my side that's pretty much empty. Whoosh! Whoosh! After I wiped off my hands and got ahold of her teat I had four cups (which is a full container which means I need to empty into the gallon container) quicker than you can blink. Then Latte decided to get stubborn. She steps forward and her left back leg covers the entire left side of her udder. Josh can't milk. If he gets her to move it could risk her kicking my cup or my arm. "Just leave her, Josh. Wait until she moves on her own." So Josh is doing nothing but sitting in the rain! hahaha! I empty twice and STILL she has more milk. Why did today have to be "overflowing day"??? The rains pours and now a wind has picked up. I empty again. A roll of thunder sounds. Uh oh. Time to go! "Okay Josh, we've got enough for now. Let's go!" We quickly pack up everything and let Latte out of the stall. My hair, shirt and jeans are soaked. Josh's pants and jacket are soaked. Everything is wet. We close up the gates and hurry as quick as we can to get out of there. Once in the van we sit back and breathe. Whew!
And all I had wanted was to sleep......

A Little About Me

Well, I have a blog now! To tell you the truth I didn't think I'd ever need/want one. But I love to write, in fact my favorite school subject is Language Arts, though I still can't seem to perfect it :P So please excuse any grammar issues! I'm glad you can't hear me because I also have a knack for mispronouncing words! I guess being raised in the south you're just simple. If it looks like "Metallic" then it's pronounced "Met-el-ic" instead of "Met-AL-ic." (By the way, I never said it like that, my brother did lol) And who ever thought to put a B at the end of lamb and climb??? Probably a foreigner. HA!
Anyway, so I have a blog to share my thoughts and ideas and to once in awhile "publish" a little story. I've been writing stories since I was like...gee...11 or 12. I'm very protective of them though so I never let anyone see them. Not even my best friends or mother! I don't know, I guess I'm just afraid to. But I've decided I can't be my own critic forever so posting a story here and there is kinda a big step for me. I want people to be HONEST about what they think about it though. Don't ooo and goo just to make me feel good if really you're thinking, "My word, she actually POSTED that???" I really, really, REALLY admire honesty.
Which comes to the point of this post - me. Ha. Ha. It's mostly to let you all know who I am, what I think about certain things, and kinda get the "feel" of my personality. Then I'll post the interesting stuff ;)

So, already in my bio you know that I've been home-schooled all my life down here in AL, as well as all of my siblings, and that I hope to be a stay-at-home, homeschooler mom if I am blessed enough to get married and have children. I like homeschooling because the schedule is very flexible and you don't have to get up at the crack of dawn - I'm a sleepyhead. The cons of homeschooling is sometimes having the schedule TOO flexible makes you lazy. And you don't get to see your friends at school everyday. In fact you really have to plan a get-together if you ever DO want to see them haha! Or accidentally meet them in Wal-Mart ;)

Adventure-seeking. That's got me written ALL over it. Though I've surprised myself lately on how hesitant I'm getting. Maybe I'm getting too smart for my own fun? lol. Here's a story to get the idea of how I am in this area:
When I was 1 and my brother was 3, my Mom took us to the McDonald's play area. Everyone knows those slides can be pretty creepy when you're this itty bitty baby...and when the slides shock you and your hair frizzes out for "no reason." So my brother, well let's just say he's a bit more of a thinker than I am ;) He's always been that way. So he decided the slides were too scary. But little me, well I go climb right on up there! And then......I think about how scary it is! Of course Mommy is too big to come get me so finally Adam decides he must save me and he climbs up there to help me down. Isn't that sweet? But there's an idea of how I am: act first, think later lol ;) Sometimes good, sometimes REALLY bad.
So anyway after MUCH contemplation, I have finally decided that being an aircraft pilot can be exciting and adventurous forEVER! Not just the first year or 1-5 yrs. Flying a plane can't EVER get boring, right? I thought about Nascar but my mom really didn't favor that idea and who wants to go around in big circles all day long? The speeding is what I wanted! But airplanes can go that fast or faster and they actually GO somewhere. Plus there's not really anything to crash into hahaha :D So I'm safe ;)

Let's see...what else? Oh! Probably the #1 thing I believe in passionately (besides God of course...I guess that would make this #2 then...) Ok. The #2 thing I believe in so passionately is purity. I'll write my little "testimony" in another post but basically when I was about 12 0r 13 this couple named Ludy inspired me in the best possible way. I realized that keeping myself mentally and physically pure for my future husband was the absolute most wonderful thing I could do for him.  It is kind of depressing...no, it's REALLY depressing to think about the option that maybe I was meant to be single all my life. But if that is true then I still would stay pure before God because it's what's right. I believe you should do what's right even if there is no reward.

And now my hobbies. I love, love, LOVE to read! When I'd get in trouble, my mom would (*cough* WILL) take my books away. I mostly like romance novels, especially in the 1800's setting. I love Amish books too! And movies. Of course growing up with three boys most of my life I can really get into their movies too like The Patriot, Last Samurai, Ip Man, etc. Haha. But I adore Jane Austen too (can I get a cheer for "Emma"???) and Little House on the Prairie and those types. Mysteries are really awesome too!
Sewing and crocheting! I love both. I like to CREATE things, not mend them though ;) But I have to follow a pattern because I'm not really a creative person which I hate. It's like after age 5 imagination goes off :P For me anyway. I have some REALLY creative friends who are just like, "Oh I turned my old jeans into a purse!" and "Look! I drew Leviathan!" and "my old necklace broke so I turned it into earrings!" And I'm just like, "I donated my jeans to the thrift store, I drew a cabin on a hill, and when my necklace broke I kept it in the 'fix' bag where nothing ever gets 'fixed'." Haha. I have a fourteen year old friend who creates dresses out of the blue. Designs and SEWS them together with NO pattern! DRESSES!!! You know, the long, complicated clothing we wear? And I'm soooo jealous ;D Why can't I think to do cool stuff???
Dogs - Golden Retrievers in particular - are my favorite animal. In fact about a month and a half ago I bought a pedigree Golden Retriever puppy who is the absolute love of my life right now. Her name is Elsie. I just love, love, love her to pieces! I hope to breed her someday :)
I really love family time and doing things as a family, though I also love outings with my friends. But family bonds are just SO important to me. I've wished soooo often that I had been born a hundred years ago or so, even 50 years ago, just because back then everything seemed to revolve around family and respect. More than today that's for sure. I had a friend point out to me though that I need to quit wishing for something I can have or a place I can't go and figure out why God has me where I am. She's very wise ;) I love to reenact though! I've only been a part of one civil war reenactment but I had a "ball" haha ;) There twice where I looked up and all I could see were folks walking around in their period clothing and acting their part and I let myself believe that it was actually real. It was soooo wonderful.....

But anyway, as for my life recently we had a calf born, making our "cattle herd" a total of...400! Without the two zeros ;) So we have Nutmeg, Latte, Moo and an unnamed calf. Moo is Latte's calf. Get it? Moo-Latte? Ha. Ha. No, not funny? Ok :P Anyway, we milk Latte and should start milking Nutmeg pretty soon (anyone want lessons?). I really do like to milk, I just hate getting up so early to do it. Though Mom has gotten pretty lenient and we don't have to get up until 8am. And we're only milking once a day right now. I've  learned to REALLY appreciate calves when milking their mama though. If you don't have calf, but you have a milk cow, PREPARE to devote your LIFE to that cow! Can't GO anywhere, can't DO anything fun, always watching the CLOCK just to milk, milk, milk :P I wanna horse...at least you can ride those... But I guess I'm a REAL cowgirl because I milk a cow. Why do people call girls and boys who ride horses cowgirls and cowboys? Don't...don't answer that. It's rhetorical. They call them that because cowboys used to rides horses while the herded the cattle (a.k.a - cows). You knew that already? Well fine then. You know it again ;)

Well! I guess that's about it for tonight. Hopefully you get a general idea of who I am ;) More fun starts tomorrow! Orrr the day after......(;