State Fair Dairy Products Competition of 2023

           Very few probably know this, but our state competition for dairy products at the fair is pretty well attended. I think the secret to that lies with the fact that all cheese plants fall under the same inspector and he highly encourages all the Kentucky plants to enter. It's an enormously fun mishmash of small, medium, and large producers, all in one room. Products processed range from fluid milk, to butter and cheese, to yogurt and ice cream. 

Maid-N-Meadows: Fall 2022 Update

         

     "We have come a long way, baby!", but somehow this year felt particularly challenging. Lol, I guess adding an expensive pasteurizer, a flock of sheep, more chores, more cheese, new recipe development and a first employee, probably has something to do with it. There was more fighting this year, fewer family suppers, and just over all exhaustion. I think when energies run low and there feels like no reprieve, tempers running short shouldn't be a surprise. The oldest children really held things together this year. They were the rock and foundation.

        That sounds crazy, to me because I never wanted or expected my children to be the foundation of our business operations. I wanted them to help, sure! But I wanted them to have a life of their own and seek out their own opportunities. Both Karson (17) and Jaden (15) pulled weight no one expected and well beyond expectations, while also holding a strict boundary of Sundays off. 

     They did the work they knew how to do and did it well, in a predictable fashion. And this is what held everything together this year! While Daniel and I burned out regularly, became unpredictable, and erratic in our function as we burned the candle at both ends, they were the turtles that just kept on marching toward the goal. They worked when they needed to and rested when they should have....and just basically showed up the adults in common sense when it comes to work life balance.

       Jaden brought home another blue ribbon for her cheddar to top it all off!

      Remember that pasteurizer?! Well, its 100 gallons bigger than we first intended! It arrived in July but the probes for the temperature recorder didn't arrive until October! So, we have yet to use it in a full run yet. But that has to happen fast now as we only had a year to complete the project, per the USDA grant. Its a bit overwhelming! But think of the fun stuff we can do with it! I can't wait for fresh mozzarella and cheese spreads galore!We can finally up our output too! 500 gallons of milk can be processed in a day!

       A few sheep are lambing and there is fencing to do. There are so many repairs on barns and fence posts....the garden fence needs repair. Our spring house roof is literally falling off! 😂 Laugh with us so we don't cry! This winter isn't going to prove much of a rest. But we have put our foot down, and the family is eating together again. Family movies are happening again. And life is just more cooperative and together in general. I guess we just needed a season of strife to remind us how much value we have in the slower pace. Karson will finally be moving in his own direction this summer. The younger boys are going to move up in responsibility, and somehow, we adults need to rebalance how we handle it all. Throw us some pointers if ya got any! Winter is a good time to chew on things like that.

The girls....chewing in the barn!

Maid-N-Meadows: Spring 2022 Update

               Wow! Its been a minute, hasn't it!?  The last time I posted was in March of 2021, just before we slid into the rollercoaster summer ride with a 2 year old and a 1 year old. I have the drawings on the walls, a vast array of cups with missing lids and the 3 shoes whose mates are probably halfway to the ocean by now, having been lost in the creek, to show for it. We made cheese three times a week last year and needless to say, Daniel and I both had a melt down in July. It just wasn't sustainable, but I think the heat was the last straw. We dropped to milking once a day and finished the year strong.....and being the gluttons for punishment that we are, we applied for some brand new equipment with the USDA!

         You may have heard, but one of the highlights for us last year was being awarded first place in two categories at the State Fair. We won in the cheddar category and flavored cheeses category. Can I just say I cried my eyes out when Daniel picked up our ribbons and plaques? We have made our share of really bad cheese, fed a lot to pigs, and re-evaluated all along the way....to finally see that work recognized! It just made all the times we made cheese at 3 A.M., all the hours of driving to our rented facility, sleeping on the ground or in cars, weeks of sandwiches and coffee pot macaroni and cheese.....just all felt like it took us somewhere and was worth it somehow. So many tears of relief and joy and more relief! So many times I wondered if we were crazy to pursue a craft we knew so little about, while also putting our lives in such a crazy, helter skelter position. Everything was on the line.  This was the moment we felt our faith had rewarded us.

    Also this year, I learned to take time for an endeavor uniquely my own. With a flock of sheep on the farm and no outlet for the milk, I came up with the idea of utilizing the milk and wool in soap production. I enjoy dyeing wool and mixing up essential oil fragrances. It has been a creative outlet for me after many years of supporting, and nourishing the goals of my children and husband. Plus the sheep are so cute and look so majestic grazing in the field at sunset.

      We milk these East Friesians and hand wash/pick their wool, for a unique and homegrown product. Each one is its own work of art.

     A lot of things are the same on the farm and of course a lot of things continue to change. Jacob finished school last spring and started out pursuing his own adventures. The next oldest, Karson, is likely finishing out his last summer on the farm, this year. The years of raising a large family are coming to a close as every other year, the farm crew diminishes by one. It is a bittersweet experience, to be sure. But I am so proud of them and know they have everything they need to be successful.

      Daniel and I took some much needed time to step back from the farm and consider the big picture, last fall. What direction do we need to take this family and business? In the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains we tried to reconnect to one another and to our personal visions for the future. How to fit the puzzle back together after such a tumultuous summer?

      It was then we decided to apply for a grant for value-added farms, like ourselves, and create a new line of cheeses that enabled us to utilize the help of other farms' milk. And guess what!? It was awarded! A new PASTEURIZER and several more new surprises is coming up! 

      As we pondered our future, camped through a rainstorm, and hiked into the sunshine, a rainbow appeared. It was in that moment that we were reminded that after the storm comes new hope, a new day, a new chapter. While we are still in the thick of "weedy terrain" with small children and hours of chores, we still see a vision of the future taking shape where the farm can be of service to the community and a home to our family. So here's  to a hopeful future and the faith it takes to plod on! And wishing you all a beautiful and rejuvenating summer!!! Thanks for being with us, every step of the way. 

Dairy Sheep Diary Part 3

       

          We have had our dairy sheep for four years now. If you are just catching up, check out "Dairy Sheep Diary" and "Dairy Sheep Diary Part 2". A lot has happened with the sheep in the last 6 months. We are still really enjoying our girls and milking them more and more. This year we are using some of their products to sell at our farmer's market booth, along with selling the rams for meat.

Dairy Sheep Diary Part 2

              We have had dairy sheep on our farm for three years now. We have enjoyed our fluffy white sheep! Today, I would like to share a few things we have learned along the way and a few resources that we have been enjoying. I will also give an update on how our flock is doing and how well they are paying for themselves. Part 1 of our Dairy Sheep Diary is here and it explains why we initially got into dairy sheep. Lets jump in!

It is fun to look out on a field dotted with white fluffy clouds with legs! Our dairy sheep are high percentage East Friesians with a bit of Lacaune in the mix. East Friesians are often called the Holstein of the sheep breeds, due to their milking ability. But we also use their wool for various projects. Last year, we began using their milk in soap. That has been a fun project....a project that we are continuing to develop! We have also been selling the ram lambs at the local stock pen as meat and they have graded as Prime and Choice, which are the two best grades for meat. All in all, they have paid for themselves and a little more. As we have been retaining all our ewe lambs, it has helped to have some income to support their feed and fencing costs. 

Our first black lamb in a flock of white sheep!

     Our cheese facility is up and running now, but our sheep only produce about a gallon of milk per day in their prime. With only 7 lactating ewes, we do not have a holding tank that will keep such a small amount of milk cold. Growing our flock has been very slow due to a couple of different factors. We will continue to grow our flock until we reach a size that will make buying a tank practical. At that point we will begin making cheese in this dandy commercial soup kettle! 

LESSONS LEARNED

    The biggest lesson overall is that East Friesian lambs, ours at least, are not very hardy creatures. Our goats and calves do fine in cold weather, so long as they are dry and have access to their mother's warm milk. Our lambs tend to need intervention if more than one is born on a cold, wet day. If a mother has more than one and it gets very cold, I bring those lambs in the house! With a price tag of $300 per ewe sheep, they are worth too much to chance! (Actually, I am a sucker for babies and I bring them all in when it gets cold or I am worried about them.....my pillow is much softer because I am not up all night worrying about them.) So in conclusion, my lambs don't hold heat well enough to stay outside, and jackets might work well, but I have been too nervous to try them yet.

    Once these sheep are a month old, they are easy keepers. They are parasite hardy, have few foot problems, and require very little in the way of maintenance. Compared to boer goats, sheep are easy as pie. A shearing in the spring with a little foot clipping, is about all the attention they need.

     The other major lesson we have learned so far is that bottle fed rams can be a pretty bad idea. Our ram has absolutely no fear of people what so ever and is actually quite crazy. He once got angry at the tractor and really bashed his own head up because he would not stop ramming into it. Actually, he might just be crazy. I will not be sad the day we eat him. And I do say we will eat him because he is not safe to send off the farm to a market or as breeding stock.....he is just that crazy. Our other ram was dam raised and is quite docile and enjoyable to be around. But he doesn't have quite as good breeding traits....so we keep them both.  

Dairy Sheep Resources

      Some resources I have enjoyed since my first Dairy Sheep Diary are a few Facebook groups. Dairy Sheep Available In The US, is a group that helps folks find dairy sheep, which is helpful as they can be hard to find. Homestead Dairy Sheep is a Facebook group for general questions on sheep as well as a chance to "show and tell".

      For medication dosing and general vet questions I use the website "Ask-A-Vet Sheep". This vet gives good advice in emergency situations when my vet is not available. I love the variety of posts on here and find them very informative. 

        So that is the latest on the sheep! I hand raised 3 ewes this spring and I think there are three more with the flock. With the Lord's blessing, we might just about double the ewe number this year! Here is to hoping! :-)