This summer brought a lot of change to our family. A July baby, of course, being the greatest change, shedding a whole new light on just how much of a partnership marriage really is. The carpet in our upstairs is only three years old but I’m certain we are about to wear a path from pacing throughout the darkest hours.
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ut to wear a path from pacing throughout the darkest hours.
Then in August Cody accepted a new challenge/job, but not after much discussion as a family. This included confirming with CJ and I that we could, in fact, keep one another - and a herd of cattle – alive while he traveled the United States. We confirmed that sounded doable. We were also running on three hours of sleep and didn’t know where I ended and she began.
Right about the time CJ and I get a routine down I’ll be heading back to work, but so far so good. We haven’t faced a task on the farm that the two of us gals couldn’t take on; ask me again when the snow falls and I hope to still say the same.
But let me tell you something about choring with an infant: It ain’t easy.
I will admit: I have three secret products that keep me on track, CJ fairly happy and the herd thriving. I’ll share those three with you – and only you.
Our little secret.
1. Yoga mat shoes
High five to those moms who 1. Mom and 2. Go to yoga.
We’re only 20 minutes from the closest yoga studio (I think?), but I have no plans of attending a class that tells me to pray like a dog. Don’t get me wrong: I’m certain there are benefits to wearing elastic pants and stretching like a llama in heat, but when I have that kind of time, I just want to drool on my pillow.
Instead, I bought “yoga mat shoes” at the grocery store (spotted them in the sale bin while waiting in line) and now – every single day – I step on a yoga mat. On my yoga mat I open gates, sort stock, toss buckets, fill feed pans, throw hay and sling a car seat from one adventure to the next. What yoga pose encompasses all of those movements?: It's called The Strung Out New Mom.
Advanced levels allow you to hold a glass of wine while doing all of the above.
2. Car seat base paired with a Kubota
Can’t carry buckets and a baby? Strap her in the Kubota.
Fussy baby? Strap her in the Kubota.
Think you see a cow in heat but fearful you can’t correctly ID her in time and get the baby out the door? Strap her in the Kubota.
Baby hasn’t taken a nap in two days? Strap her in the Kubota.
The changing views, growling diesel engine, ability to see mom and taking in lots of fresh air keeps CJ occupied (actually, asleep) and me buzzing around the farm crossing things off the to-do list. This was the first modification Cody made after accepting this job: a safe way for me to haul the baby and get things done.
3. Concept-Aid 50 lb. Power Tub
Cody can ask me to
• Feed hay
• Get cows off a hay field
• Work with the vet to preg check stock
• Mail in blood samples
• Assist in the splinting of a broken leg
• Hold it all together with a smile on my face – for the most part.
But feeding mineral tubs alone?
Yeah – that’s where I used to draw the line.
There’s just no way a 500 lb. gal like me can move a 200 lb. mineral tub by herself.
And the baby doesn’t exactly pull her weight.
But there is a new kid on the block.
VitaFerm came up with the Concept-Aid 50 lb. Power Tub and it must have been built for ladies on the farm.
It is the same product our cows need as the nutritional value of grass changes, and delivers the same results. The only difference: packaged in a smaller size so the Gals of Management can pasture-deliver without any kind of awkward llama pose. This has been a game-changer at our place, allowing me to take care of something I never could before.
Now, if the folks at Biozyme could just come up with a way for CJ and I to effectively move a mature bull off the herd without fear, there would be nothing we couldn’t do together.
Maybe we’ll just stick to mineral and yoga shoes, for now.
Since CJ has pretty well mastered the mineral feeding, I think next week we will attempt something even more dangerous and agonizing: trying on clothes in a public dressing room so I can go back to work without looking like a hobo.
This is a sponsored post brought to you by BioZyme. The opinions are completely my own based on my experience.
