All This Work Before Breakfast?

We have a routine where M heads out about 6 am for his first cow check of the day and then comes home and we have breakfast and then go feed.  Imagine his surprise when he went over the hill and there was not one cow left in the calving pasture.  Uh-oh!  He came home and got me out of bed to help him get them all back in before they ventured too far.  He had the Jeep and I had a pickup.  I was a bit more worried about getting stuck in a wet spot than I was about getting the cows back in.  It didn't take too much effort to get them headed back home, except for the three with new calves.  They required the use of a 4-wheeler.  M went with the Jeep to try to keep them from going too far in the opposite direction while I went to get the 4-wheeler.  It wasn't too much trouble to get them in after that although one tried to be difficult right to the last step through the gate.

We fed, filled mineral tubs and moved some pairs.  Then we finally got to have our Sunday pancakes!        

We have had a bit of a lull in the heifer pen as the first-cycle girls had almost all delivered and the second-cycle ones hadn't started yet.  The action there is rapidly picking up again.  While we were eating and drinking at the end-of-season dart league banquet last night, R was busy pulling calves by himself.  One was backwards so I'm sure that was an adventure for him.  I've only seen that once myself, and he probably never has.  Like I mentioned before, he's learning a lot this calving season!  Today we've had three heifers calve in the last hour or so.

The weather has warmed up considerably and hopefully we've seen the last of temps in the teens.  Of course, the warmth leads to more slop and M and R have spent some time cleaning corrals now that they are thawing.

J and C are continuing to gear up for spring planting, but we need a few more warm days before they can get into the field.  J and K have moved into their "summer house", and I'm sure J is enjoying not having the drive every day and being able to have lunch with his family.  K has really done a lot of work and transformed the house.  I told J he's really lucky his wife is so handy, and he completely agreed.

So, we're plugging along.  Gotta love spring.....even on an empty stomach!