How Times Change...

Well, it has been awhile since I've added a post to my blog, and goodness, life has changed.

I reread my "Welcome" post. I still feel that way, that I have a unique perspective on life and farming and kids and work and the intersection of it all. But, I had to change the name of my blog. It couldn't be "Dairy in the Suburbs" anymore, because we aren't. We are no longer a dairy.

Our empty barn.

We aren't a dairy in the suburbs, but we are a farmer and a teacher. Last summer, we started the difficult process of selling our milking herd. The first step in that process was for me to find full-time work. God took care of that step for us. By the end of July, I had accepted a position as a full-time K-8th Latin teacher at a Catholic school 20 minutes from home, and the kids were enrolled there to start in September. It would take another blog post to explain just how perfect this job position is for our family. Suffice it to say, God is good.

The cows left in October. It was both heart-wrenching and a relief. It still is. There were many graces in the process, and God walked each step with us in many ways. Again, another blog post. Suffice it to say, it was hard, there's still guilt, a little regret, a lot of wondering if we made the right decision. 

Until the pandemic hit. Until the bottom dropped out of the dairy industry and prices dropped to lows Kurt and I had never seen in our years together. Until we had other farmers tell us that we "sure sold our cows at the right time." Until, in the mist of heartache and guilt and uncertainty, a light shown through. A revelation that God protected us in this. He started this process and led us on a difficult, but safer, path because He knew what was coming. 

And so, there is Trust. Even when uncertainty creeps in, there's trust. And a life rewritten. Because even though we aren't a dairy in the suburbs anymore, we are happy to be a farmer and a teacher. We still farm; crops are planted, hay is growing; chickens are laying eggs. And, we have these...

Our remaining ladies...

When we sold our cows, we planned to sell all of our youngstock, too, but prices were so low, we just couldn't do it. So, we still have a herd of 19 heifers. Some of them are bred, and we continue to breed them as they come into heat. Our plan for them continues to shift, and at present they are going to maintain our pastures. The future of these gals remains to be seen... and I can't deny that I miss fresh milk!