Knolltop Farm Wife

It's a warm, sunny day here on the Knolltop. The troops are busy at work doing their own jobs. The big boys are hauling manure, Jake is doing odd jobs around the house and Sarah is cleaning out my cupboards while I finish up a story for Holstein International and then do my weekly column and maybe even another story all before I head into town get the tags for our vehicles and get a new battery for the lawnmower so Jake can now mow again for the second time this week. Now for the Name the Fitter contest. Of all the guesses I had emailed to me yesterday I had only one winner! And that winner was Russell Gammon our Jersey fanatic from Jersey Canada! He guessed the correct nick name and it was "Cowboy." An interesting story about the fitter we featured on Monday, "Bear." Mandy Nunes from Scientific Holsteins in Wisconsin emailed me and told me who "Bear" really was. His real name is Shane Hulle, the son of a friend of theirs up in Wisconsin, Annie Hulle o...

Good Morning from a breezy, hay scented Knolltop. Because everyone on the county is baling hay when you step outside the smell of newly baled hay rushes over you. It's a glorious smell that never leaves you. It's a smell that if you've grown up on a farm is as familiar as the smell of manure, corn silage or sweetcorn growing in the garden on a hot July afternoon. As soon as you breath in the morning air it takes you back to your childhood of lazy summer days spent playing in the yard while a whirlwind of farming activity plays out around you. Isn't that a great memory? Okay, now for the Name the Fitter contest. Kudos to all who ventured a guess yesterday, the correct name for the fitter in the picture was "Bear!" And no, I don't know his real name. And the lady he's hugging is a familiar face to anyone at any Holstein event in Michigan, I like to refer to her as "Mama Koebel" and her real name is Jennie Koebel from Tri-Koebel Holsteins in Thr...

Good Morning from a sunny Knolltop! We are finally getting back into the swing of things around here...getting the lawn mowed, the bushes trimmed and the guys are hauling manure like mad! I was so bummed last night as I walked into TSC and found the double rocker I wanted was gone. It had been marked down half off and I wanted to wait until it was 75% off before I bought it. Well, I waited too long! Now I'll have to keep looking. Now that I think about it, God must have a free one for me somewhere...I just have to pray for it! I'm also praying for a laptop. And the only reason I'm telling you this is so that when God does provide it you'll all know it was from Him and not my doing! Okay, now for the contest that you've all been waiting for! Get ready to play Name that Fitter! I will post a picture and give you several names to choose from then you post your answer. Now we all know that fitters usually have a nick name, very rarely, unless they are very sophisticated...

It's been so long since I posted anything here I almost forgot my password to get into my blog! It was a great week at the All-Michigan Holstein show and 4-H Dairy Days. I've got so much information floating around in my head and some great pictures to share and I even have a contest I will launch this week! Basically last week was a test for mom and her four kids. While I came home each night to help with chores around here, my kids stayed at the show and went to Grandmas each night. If you don't think laying in bed wondering if they had enough sense to leave the cow show at a decent hour so they could get a good night's sleep to get back up at 4 am to take care of the Knolltop show string wasn't frustrating for this controlling mom....I'll set you straight....it was about as tough for me as the first time I let someone else teach them their ABC's. I know how difficult it is to leave the barn at night. Every step you take toward the door there is this imagi...

Good Morning from a very busy Knolltop. We are headed to the show for the week, I'll be back and forth so hopefully I'll be able to post some news and pictures through the week. Did anyone know Kansas was so full of famous Holsteins? From the comment left by that famed Dallas Burton I learned a lot about Holstein heritage. I mean really, I know seven people from Kansas and I think that's half the population. Of course I know all the really important people; three used cow salesmen, a couple of instructors at Kansas State, a rancher and a radio station manager. But I never knew Kansas would be such a draw for two editors of Holstein International to come all the way from Holland to roam the plains of Kansas appreciating rich Holstein history....with that hostess with the mostest, Dallas Burton. Wow...I guess Kansas is more than wheat, Flint Hills and NCAA basketball champions! More about our Dairy Days adventures later!

That's right...they won! Jake's team beat Pittsford this morning to win the league championships! They were very excited to say the least. There were more parents taking pictures of them after the game than photographers at Princess Diana's wedding! Well, that's a slight exaggeration. They received medals, trophies and plaques. After the awards presentation we all went over to the coaches house for a team party. The cookout was great fun and the boys had a good time swimming in the pond. This evening Luke clipped Jake's heifer while Jake and Sarah went to quiz bowl practice. Then Luke, Bobby and Jake unloaded straw while I visited with the neighbor. Now it's time to crash, it's been a very long day!

It's another warm day here on the Knolltop . We've had a hot couple of days here, but I'm not complaining. Last evening the boys ventured out to their ball game only to find the team they were supposed to play got their schedules messed up and thought they were playing another team. The end result was no game. But the unfortunate aspect was that my parents, who haven't been able to come to any games at all because of my dad's back, finally were able to get away and come to a game....and they didn't get to see one! They called from the field and I broke the news to them. I felt awful, so that awful feeling had to be cured! I told them to come to the house and to pick up some ice cream on their way! So we sat around the table and had ice cream sundaes and listened to dad tell stories and watch the boys nearly laugh themselves out of their seats! Straw baling is on the agenda today. Jake spent the whole day in the combine yesterday having a great time. I t...