Ever wanted to try your hand at farming?

Farmer for a day

Consumers have become more active in learning where their food comes from, farmers have become more active at opening the gates to their farms and showing you where food comes from. But what if you could step foot on a farm. Actually drive a tractor, enjoy the smells of the farm (OK, maybe some aren't so enjoyable) and touch a cow? All of this is being promised in the It Starts in Iowa "Be Our Guest - Be a Farmer" contest.

One of the Iowa Farm Families
excited to meet you. 

According to ItStartsInIowa.com this is your chance to play farmer for a day. The winner (accompanied by up to three guests) will be treated to a three-night, four-day "vacation" to Iowa in August 2011. The prize package includes:

• Air fare, ground transportation and hotel accommodations;
• Personal, guided tours of several farms;
• An opportunity to visit with several farmers, participate in farm “chores,” drive a tractor and join a farm family for a made-from-scratch dinner! and
• Free admission to the 2011 Iowa State Fair (to be held Aug. 11-21) where you can stroll through the 445-acre grounds, take in shows, enjoy almost every food imaginable and see the Big Bull and Big Boar!

Just follow this link to enter!

Sure it may not be a trip to Disneyland or an all inclusive vacation on a beach, but isn't important for your children to see the hands that are feeding them. That food doesn't come from a grocery store, but is grown in dirt or pastures? Let me know if you enter, and good-luck!

Calving time at JJB Cattle Company

Baby Hereford Calves

Last weekend I headed up to Iowa to see the Boy. It was awesome to see all the snow melted, and some tiny blades of grass starting to poke up. All the newborn calves around definitely made it seem like spring, despite the chilly weather.

JJB and his bottle calf.

The first project when we arrived was to move the Boy's bucket calf, Fantasy, from the barn to an outside pen. A bucket calf is the term referred to a calf that doesn't have it's mother and have to be fed bottles. Fantasy ended up being a few weeks early, and her mom never came into her milk. So the Boy has been her serrogate mom. However, it was time for Fantasy to join rest of the cow calf pairs. She'll still be given daily bottles, but she'll also eat hay and grain until the grass starts to grow.

Fantasy getting her first bottle in the new pen.

On the left hand side of the picture is a tan metal thing - that's a creep feeder. It has grain for the calves to eat as they want. The red bars, on the right hand side, are high enough to let the calves in, but low enough that the cows can get in. This helps the calves get a head start before all the green grass arrives.

One of the momma's with her baby.

My little joke.

If you look real close you will see that I have drawn the word Simmental (a breed of cattle) into the dust, my breed of choice. The Boy didn't think it was too funny since he is a Hereford fan. Breeds of cattle are kind of like sports team, you pick a side, and cheer real loud.

And if you missed yesterday's post about the "Farmer for a Day" contest, check it out. I am sure someone out there would love a little trip to an Iowa Farm. 

Brand new earrings

We shall name her...

This is an ear tag. The Button goes
through the ear and into the tag.
An ear tag only will come out if it cut
out or that is suppose to be how it works

Easter weekend was filled with lots of work around the Boys farm. Including getting all the baby calves tagged. On almost all farms cattle get an ear tag, which is like a earring for cows. However, each farm has a different system to I.D. their cattle. On my family's farm each cow gets a name that will appear on her registration paper (like a paper on a purebred dog), and they also get a number, and that number will appear in their ear tag.

On the Boy's farm the calves also get numbers, however the Boy prefers to refer to each of his calves by name, and a shorten version of that name goes in the ear tag. Since I don't see the calves all the time it can get a little confusing when there are little red and white calves running all over the pasture, so I convince him to tag the calves this weekend so I could start to remember whose who!

I was the tag maker. I quickly got this duty when I made a comment about the Boy's penmanship. hehe

Me spell checking one of the names. Last thing we needed was calves with misspelled names!

Jon tagging one of the younger calves. 

The tags for the calves. The number at the top is their mother's number.

We put all the other calves in the alley. Jon held their heads while I gave them their new earrings. 

Sally with her new earring. The letter in the corner of the tag stands for her sire (dad's) name. 

It is funny to watch the calves get used to their new tags. They tilt their head to the side as if the tag weighs 5 lbs. instead of its actually weigh of a couple ounces. 

It is important that the calves are I.D. so that we can keep records on them. Performance information like birth weight and weaning weight will be recorded. Also, if an animal is sick and is treated this will also be recorded.

Golf Course turned into Corn Field

True Statement

The 2010 corn field beside
the Boy's house

During the last year I have learned a lot about corn. The Boy is from Iowa, and although cattle are his passion his family also plants a lot of corn. And I find it fascinating. One of the biggest lessons about corn I have learned is that corn has the opportunity to make you a lot of money. 

In this case, so much money that Kelly Tilges is tearing up the Whitemore Golf Club, Algona, Iowa, to plant corn.

I have heard a lot of farmers talk this year about planting over roads, closer to ditches, taking our fence line to make more room – every acre counts. But tearing up a golf course, maybe that is going a little too far.

I can't wait for summer days like this.

According to the Des Moines Register a doubling in the price of corn since mid-2010 has caused Iowa farmland to rise 25% in price, now averaging $5,700 an acre. Iowa is also expected to plant about 500,000 more acres of corn this year compared to 2010.

That’s if they can ever get it in the ground. Iowa farmers are getting a touch impatient. Typically, seeders would be going a full blast right now, but cold weather, and too much rain have delayed planting.

I know that it is going to take a lot of acres to grow enough food to feed the world, but I know how much golf courses can mean to small community. In the town I grew up in of 300 people there are two 9-hole golf courses, and last summer I enjoyed playing with the Boy at their course. 

I understand that we might not have all the facts here. It seems like in any journalism stories these days that only one side of the issue is presented. The golf course maybe wasn't a money making business, and this gentlemen knows how to get a few more dollars out of it. Regardless, those bright emerald greens and fairways are now going to be field of gold. 

Boys and Cows

A year later

The Boy and I have officially been dating a year. I've been thinking about the fact that when you date a farm boy you also date the farm. This became quite clear when last night I made the comment that I have more pictures of the Boy's cows than of us together.

Catching a nap at a cattle
show in Canada

I applaud anyone who is not from an agriculture background that can make an agriculture relationship. Some of my friends questioned why I drove to Iowa all winter to see him, instead of him making the trip to see me. However, when cows are calving, there are cattle to prepare for sales, cows to be fed, it makes prefect sense that I travel to see him. The cattle have to come first because they depend on us, and I get that. I actually love it, because there is almost nothing I enjoy more than being on farms and around cattle.

You also have to be prepared to attend activities dateless, have plans change, and know that there is no sense of packing too many cute outfits because you'll be spending most the time in the barn.

My Valentine's Day Flowers in the Show Barn

Despite all the little bumps in the road cattle can cause, I am also grateful for the cattle because they are what brought the Boy and I together. We had always knew of each other through the cattle business, but then official met at a cattle show through a cattle friend.

I guess I can sum things up by saying there is nothing I would change about the last year, and I can't wait for many more years to come. I love him and his Hereford cows (that is saying a lot I raise another breed called Simmentals.)

Crystal Cattle is getting hitched

A life changing weekend.

This weekend the Boy once again proved that I am the luckiest girl in the world by proposing. After a year and week long relationship we have move from the dating zone to the engaged zone, and if it wasn't for all the wedding planning and sorting out life details I am pretty sure we would get married tomorrow.

Jon and I at his family's sale last weekend.

We've been fielding questions all weekend about the details of how all it all went down. So I present you with our story.

I have been patiently waiting for a ring for a little while now. Jon (by the way that is the Boy's real name) instructed me last fall to go and look at rings and decide on a style I liked. At the time he thought he might propose when we traveled back for Agribition a cattle show in Canada, it was also going to be the first time my parents and Jon met. However, as our departure date got closer Jon decided it wasn't quite the right time, and he would wait. (I did not know any of these facts until recently).

Christmas went by, a trip to Chicago for New Year's went by, the Denver Stock Show went by, Valentine's went by, my Birthday went by, Easter went by, and no ring. My parents wanted to make a trip to see Jon and I this summer so I had surrendered to the fact that he would wait and ask my dad in person. That summer trip is actually next weekend. In my brain I had constructed a timeline that Jon will wait and ask Dad next weekend, and then if he has a ring it might be then, otherwise it would be sometime in June or July. Little did I know he had other plans.

I arrived in Iowa late Friday night and we decided to go see Hangover 2 (definitely recommend it). Before the movie started I asked Jon what was up, he seemed uneasy and anxious. Jon quickly brushed it off as nerves about my parents coming next weekend. Although, I reassured him that everything was going to go great, I understood his nervousness. (After the proposal he told me that he wasn't at all nervous about my parents coming, but he needed an excuse to cover up his nerves about proposing.)

Fast forward to the next morning. Jon and I headed out to the farm to feed the show cattle. After bucket chores, we hoped on the four-wheeler to go look at the pairs in the pasture. I was excited to look through all the calves at it had been a few weeks since I had seen them, and at this age the calves change so much each week. As the last cow crosses the creek, I asked Jon which cow that was, as she was looking pretty good - in Jon's words this sealed the deal since it was one of his favorite.


Jon said "hey" and I turned around to find him on one knee the grass. And that's when I am pretty sure my heart stop. I was not expecting at all. And then in such a romantic way I say "Are you kidding me" and give him a little push. It was a good are you kidding me, like you completely surprised me, I had no idea that kind of kidding me. The next part is a little blurry, somewhere in there he said will be marry me, I said yes, I said you should probably put it on my finger, I definitely had tears in my eyes. Just like that we were engaged, out in the field with all those Hereford cows - and it was perfect!

We didn't leave the pasture before we started calling friends and family. My side is estastic to have Jon joining our family, and I can't wait to be apart of his. Not too many other details have been discussed, other than we can't wait to start our lives together, and are so happy that we have the support of our friends and family.

The Iowa Corn Report - Part 1

It's growing. 

It's back the Crystal Cattle unofficial corn report. So I don't know a ton about corn, but I am learning and I am fascinated by how fast it grows.

This is the field behind the Boy's house. There are little corn plants popping up across Iowa. 

Corn plant on May 28, 2011

They are just little guys right now, but they'll grow fast. I had to laugh when I was taking this picture. The Boy was on the phone with a friend of ours talking about our recent engagement. Jen asked the Boy if I was starring at my ring. His response, "No she's onto corn now."

And there is the Boy. Checking out the forecast for rest of the week. Rain, and hot humid weather is going to make the crops grow like crazy. 

A quick fact from Twitter:

Corn 86% planted, OH 19% #yikes, IL 80%, IN 42%, NE 77%, MI 67%. Soybeans 51% planted, OH 7%, IL 59%, IN 25%, NE 78%, MI 31%. #plant11

Iowa Corn Report II

It's growing.

This weekend I was back at the Boy's farm and not only are the calves getting bigger, and so is the corn. The Boy's mom was joking that on warm humid days you can watch the corn grow. p.s. You yourself can watch the corn grow on this Iowa Corn Cam. You can also follow along with my corn report and get an update on it every couple of weeks.

So here we go. Remember what the corn looked like on May 28, 2011.

Well it is taller now!

June 6, 2011

My leg will serve as the official measuring stick.

It's pretty exciting to watch corn grow so fast.

Other crop updates. The first cutting of hay is down in both Iowa and Missouri and I am sure other states. In the Midwest they will get three cuttings of hay on a good year. In Alberta, where I grew up, only two. For the Boy's family and my family hay is very important because that is what we will feed our cattle during the winter months.

This week I'll be a littlel tied up because it is our summer board meeting, but I promise to be back to my regular posting next week!

Hereford Cattle Show

Iowa Hereford Preview Show

I mentioned that last Sunday the Boy and I attended the Iowa Hereford Preview Show. The Boy and I both grew up showing cattle, him Herefords and me Simmentals. The shows weren't just about bringing home champion ribbons, but our junior breed associations also focused on leadership, stockmanship, and life skills.

I snapped a few pictures to walk you through walk show day looks like. Max Cherry is a good friend of the Boy's. There family's have worked together for many years so it was fun to watch and help Max.

Here Max is working on preparing his heifer for the showring. The metal thing she is standing in is called a blocking chute. This prevents the animal from moving back and forth, and keeps the people around her safe as well. Show cattle are given baths, their hair is blow dried and clipped (just like a hair cut) and we use products similar to hairspray to hold the hair in place. All of this grooming is called fitting.

These are just a few of the tools of the trade used for preparing cattle for the showring. 

Max giving his heifer at last minute drink of water before they head on up to the showring. It is unbelievable how fast a heifer can suck down a bucket of water!

Last minute preparations going on. On the left is Jon (aka the Boy) and the girl in the yellow is Max's sister Jenna. For most people showing cattle is a family project.

Jon gives her one last brush with the comb and it is time to enter the showring. I am not sure who was more nervous Max or Jon. 

Max showing his heifer in the showring. During this time the judge is evaluating each animal. Since this is a heifer and her purpose is for breeding the judge is looking for things like structural soundness (can she walk properly), femininity (does she look like a girl) and body type (we want long bodied cattle, that are deep sided, and have lots of muscle expression).

Max had an awesome day. He ended up winning the whole show. Max will next travel to Kansas City with his heifer to show her at the Junior National Hereford Expo the middle of July. 

Jon also had a great day with some of his JJB Cattle Co. genetics. A heifer that he sold a couple years ago was shown as a cow/calf pair and they won Champion Cow/Calf Pair and that cow's bull calf was Bull Calf Champion. Also, there was a daughter out of another heifer Jon had sold and she won her class. To see a few more of my pictures from the weekend check out my facebook page.

And don't forget to enter my giveaway. Just click here. 

2011 Iowa Corn Report III

It's growing

I apologize for the gap between Corn Reports. The last time I was in Iowa I forgot to take a photo, oops! I am sure Corn Farmers gurus could tell you a lot more about what is going on in those fields right now, you have to remember I'm just a cattle girl that has a fascination with Iowa corn. But as you can see it's growing.

June 6, 2011

And almost a month later it is getting to be close to as tall as me.

July 4, 2011

As you can see the corn has grown tremendously in the last month. In my opinion, this time last year, the corn was a little taller, however it is still on track to being a great crop. 

It is always exciting to think about how much food these fields will provide for our livestock and people. The crops look good right now, but the Boy's farm needs some rain. Especially, to keep the grass growing for his cattle. 

The Boy and I had a great Independence Day weekend. I think it is great that I get to celebrate Canada Day and Independence Day each year. Between going out to the farm we were able to get some golfing in (I had an awesome game), hanging out with his sister and future brother-in-law, who were up from Texas, rode in the parade, watched some fireworks and spent a little time at the pool with his cousin. I would say a pretty good weekend.

2011 Iowa Corn Report IV

It keeps growing

I finally made it back to Iowa this weekend. It is fun to watch how the landscape around the Boy's house can changed. His house is only a few feet away from the cornfield. In the winter and then into the spring you can see for miles. Now it feels like we are in a jungle when I look out his window.

This was the corn field on July 4, 2011. 

And this is the corn field now. 

It's huge! And it still has time to grow taller because the corn won't be harvested until this fall. There are also a couple of other significant changes to the corn since I saw it last.

See those pokey things at the top? Those are tassels. The are the part of the plant that holds the pollen. It is then falls from there and is caught my the silks. See below. 

And there are corn cobs on the stalks right now. The silks are that hairy part you rip off. This progress has to happen so the corn can pollenate.

 All over Iowa this weekend people were selling Sweet Corn. The Boy said that many people will use the Sweet Corn crop as an indicator of how the other corn will do. It was a bumper year for them, so he is very excited about their crops. 

This weekend you could also hear the constant buzz of planes over the house. The crop duster planes were out this weekend spraying the corn with fungicide to protect the plants from disease. I wasn't able to get any photos, but Jent at From My Front Porch did. 

Fried Butter On-A-Stick Iowa State Fair

Ugh.

Yes, you read that right. To commemorate the 100th year of the Butter Cow you will now be able to purchase some Fried Butter On-A-Stick at the Iowa State Fair. You can read all about the new foods that will be debuting at the Iowa State Fair here or you can watch the video.



I'm actually on my way to the State Fair right now. The Boy has got three Hereford Heifers on the stock trailer. So, if you are wandering around the grounds and make your way over to the Hereford Barns look for JJB Cattle Co and come say hello. Check back next week to hear the results and see pictures from the show. In the meantime you can read what I had to say about my first Iowa State Fair experience last year.

Dana (yes I named her after one of my friends) is one of the heifers that we'll be showing. Wish her luck!

And don't forget to enter my giveaway that is currently going on here.

America Needs Farmers

American Needs Farmers, there probably isn't a truer statement. I've been familiar with the the ANF phrase for awhile. Curiosity got me a few years ago when I had seen ANF on the Iowa Football team's helmets. ANF originated in 1985. Head Coach Hayden Frye and the Iowa Hawkeyes were on a seven game win streak, yet farmers and ranchers were in a tough situation. Crippling economic times were forcing farmers to sell land and livestock that had been apart of the family farm for generations. Nearly 20,000 farms went under in Iowa, 235,000 farms nationwide.

Hayden decided that he wanted to sent a message of support to those farmers, and the ANF logo was placed on the teams helmets. With the Hawkeyes having one of their best seasons ever ANF was given national spotlight.

the Hawkeyes helmet

Today the American Needs Farmers saying is just as relevant. The Boy and I are really lucky. Our families have had a relatively good year. Cattle prices are high and so are corn prices. However, on the other hand inputs (gas, fertilizer, hay, grain, seed) are also sky rocketing in price. It is taking more money to make money, and we are lucky ones. To the south ranchers are being forced to sell thousands of head of cattle because the drought has turned fields of grass into dirt. There is no feed for the cattle so they must be sold. To the north massive flooding as put some farmer's crops under 30 feet of water. They say much of the Missouri River flood waters won't recede until Christmas time.

Add on top of that the pressures by groups like HSUS (Humane Society of the United States) and PETA who's goals are to end animal agriculture. Each day they use their multi-million dollar budgets to try and change policy that will make it harder for farms to stay in business. (p.s. HSUS doesn't own a single animal shelter and only spends less than half of one percent of its budget on animal shelters.)

The Iowa Farm Bureau has teamed up with Iowa to bring back ANF. I was excited when I saw their display at the Iowa State Fair, and I will definitely be purchasing an American Needs Farmers T-shirt for my first Iowa vs. Iowa State game this fall. Don't worry my heart still bleeds purple for my Wildcats.

In the coming weeks I'll be sharing some more information with you on the American Needs Farmers campaign. I mean combining college football and farming doesn't really get much better. And stay tuned for more Iowa State Fair posts, the Boy and I are showing his Hereford heifers this morning. Finally, don't forget today is the last day to enter my bracelet giveaway. Hope you all had a great weekend.

The Iowa Farm Bureau America Needs Farmers banners.

There is an #armparty going on

And a winner is chosen

Last week, in my giveaway I threw out the term #armparty. I have been seeing all kinds of pictures of girls stacking their bracelets and calling them arm party. I decided I like to party.

This was my #armparty on Saturday of the Iowa State Fair. I woke up early (4:00 a.m. early) so I could get on the road to Des Moines. I met the Boy there and we began setting up our stall in the Hereford barn. More Iowa State Fair photos to come later in the week. This #armparty consists of the Iowa State Fair stamp, a turquoise multi-strand bracelet from American Eagle and a Indian pearl bracelet. 

The next day I decided to pull out my David Yurman bracelet (a Christmas present from the Boy), again the Indian pearl bracelet, and this turquoise and gold bracelet I brought in a boutique in Oklahoma City. My friend Catie brought the same one that day, so I think of her when I wear it. I think together these bracelets make a pretty good #armparty. It is important that both your cattle and you look good at the cattle show.

And let's not forget about the giveaway winner. 

Selected at random congrats to Angie! Angie shoot me an email at crystalcattleblog@gmail.com and we'll get you your prize. 

Thanks to everyone that entered, and Simplicity is the Ultimate Sophistication for providing the bracelet.