Milk 3 cows - while I'm milking I like to plan out my day, this is a calm (usually) time that I work out what I'm going to feed everyone that day and what office work I need to get done and of course it's all very organised in my mind, that I even think about what garden work I might get done. Ha Ha
Something usually happens to interrupt all my plans!
Two of my milkers
Today I'd just finished milking when Laura came over to say that a pig had farrowed, so I thought I'd better check on her, as she is a sow that we bought out of a shed and I was worried that she may not have known what to do etc! She hadn't made a nest, just had them on the ground under a tree. I removed the afterbirth, and counted 10 healthy happy piglets.
Contented mum - so happy to be out of a shed!
Back to the coldroom to collect the bucket of milk - got Maree to put it away for me so that I could get some bread on. Two loaves of sourdough and one batch of normal bread dough for breadrolls for lunch today.
Out to the garden, to quickly put some compost on my potatoes that I'm growing in spud bags and thought I'd plant some carrot seeds while I was there! The garden is looking lovely, but in need of a drink so sprinkler on - and now I can have smoko!
Office work until lunch time, with a short break to form my dough into rolls and to rise them.
Nap time after lunch - this is a regular break we have. Our helpers are only expected to do a max of 6 hours per day, so we usually have a siesta - although we would have a nap even if we didn't have backpacker helpers! After my nap, I thought that I would get another hour of office work in, but Kim decided that we had to wean some more piglets.......so back outside to do that and numerous other jobs.
Back inside on dark - get dinner ready with the lovely Maree's help. Steak and vegies tonight - it's been a long day. Put the sourdough bread on to cook.
Top is the finished bread, left bottom is my starter and the right bottom is the first rising - nice and bubbly!
Then after dinner I bottled some kombucha. I keep a continuous brew with kombucha, which is so much easier. I always do a second ferment and really love passionfruit, however my passionfruit isn't ready yet, and the passionfruit man wasn't at the markets, so I did ginger tonight (my ginger growers were at the markets this week!). Ginger is probably my second favourite flavour. I also had some kefir to bottle and I always do this with ginger and lime, which is just like a mild ginger beer crossed with lemon squash.
It sounds like a wonderful schedule! I know you're up early and working hard, so the afternoon nap is an excellent idea. What breed are your milking cows?
ReplyDeleteI think that a siesta is critical to my sanity! Most of my milkers are jersey and jersey cross, but the two black ones originally descended from Friesian cows, and I really can't remember what they are crossed with, but the are great milkers. Not huge volume, but consistently good - around 6 litres, and creamy enough.
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