SWEAT-STAINED and PANTING

No, "Sweat-Stained and Panting" is not the title of a love ballad topping the country charts! Although, now that you mention it .... :-) Actually, it's just the way the month of July has felt here on the farm. It's been a HOT ONE!! In spite of that, the month has flown by and I haven't posted anything to my blog since early June. Until now, that is! Sit back (not too far back), scroll down (not too fast), and enjoy a peek into the past 2 months on Keiger Farm and environs.

June 7: Black raspberries, red raspberries, pies, and a tart.

and a sandwich :-)

June 12: Maria & Steven's wedding.

We clean up pretty well.

June 17: Cats & kittens and more berries!

black rasp, red rasp, wine raspberries

June 18: Father's Day.

Corn is growing w/o rain!

July 2: Wine, baby birds, and Edith's garden.
wineberry wine, hopefully.


July 8: Apples, pickles, more berries and a quilt?!

As if I didn't have enough to do with all the produce coming in, I dragged out a quilt I started about 10 years ago. I had given up on it because it wasn't coming together to my satisfaction. I need to rip it apart and try again. After taking apart 3 or 4 squares, it is once again folded up and back in the craft room. Maybe this winter ....


July 9: A new old tractor for Weldon.
He's happy :-)

July 11: A visit with John Wesley.


July 12: A surprise from Katie.

The box says, "For immediate relief of: Chocolate Cravings, Lovesickness, Exam Pressure, Mild Anxiety and Extreme Hunger. Directions for use: Tear open wrapper, break off desired dosage, and consume. Alternatively massage into the affected area. Repeat dosage as required until finished. If symptoms persist consult your local confectioner."

July 13: A surprise from the sky.


July 14: Cats and kittens.




July 24: Celebrating Katie's birthday at Anna's!


The birthday girl missed her own party, but she knows she's loved.

Well, that took longer than I expected (of course!). Just imagine if I had named or explained all the pictures. If you have any questions, ask away! Hope to see you here on Farm Muse again real soon. And keep your ears open for that exciting new country hit: Sweat-Stained and Panting!

"Girlie Stuff"

Weldon's niece Maria is getting married next Saturday. She had asked if I would do a scripture reading during the wedding ceremony and I gladly agreed. Thus, I was invited to the Bridesmaid Luncheon that took place on Saturday, June 5. What a wonderfully relaxing and girlie kind of day it was! I put on a dress and heeled sandals and makeup (!) and headed for Rockford, NC, with Pat and Edith.

I think I have always pictured myself as being somewhere between a priss and a tomboy; you know ... just that perfect, ideal balance between the two :-) So, I wouldn't normally ooh and aah over a "girls" day out, but I did a lot of oohing and aahing yesterday. The contrasts between this event and what is now my daily farm life were quite apparent and, perhaps, rather restorative.

The luncheon was held at The Rockford Inn/Bed & Breakfast in Rockford, NC. First, the house and its history were amazing. I simply love historic old houses, even more so if they're made of logs! So, here are a few pictures of the house itself.
Maria on the front porch a stairway
a closeup of one of the logs :-)
and one of the bedrooms. The decor throughout was not all frou-frou, but "country casual" in an appealing way. Even a manly man would not feel out of place here.

The decorations (by Kay Spilker) , the lunch (by Beth Carroll, mother of the bride) ,
and the desserts (by Pat Keiger, aunt of the bride) were all perfect and oh-so-delicious.
The food would have been just as tasty if it had been plopped helter-skelter on the plates, and we could have sat on the floor and wiped our hands on our pants (or dresses). But it was delightful to see the care that was taken with each aspect of the day. The feminine touch was doing its magic!!

It was enjoyable listening to, interacting with, and observing 14 women (ranging in age from 8 to 83), each delighted to be sharing Maria's life and her joy. Here is the bride-to-be with her mother
and here with her bridesmaids and flower girl.

It doesn't have to be flowers and ruffles, but the feminine touch adds something sweet to daily life. Girlie stuff is good and maybe I should hone my skills. Curtains in the milk barn??

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

For many years, I kept a daily journal. Now it has been even more years that I have NOT kept a journal. However, this past Monday (April 26, 2010), I had to take pen in hand and write. I was writing out of frustration but, by the time I finished writing, it seemed my frustration was gone. The time I spent writing was as awesome as the "God Day" I wrote about on Facebook. So, without further ado, I'm going to share my heart with you. (This is the "musing" part of Farm Muse.)

~ ~ ~

The good, the bad, and the ugly: who knew they each reside in me? How is it possible that I have such a bad attitude? I want to think that a big part of it is not getting enough sleep, but knowing/believing that, it seems I should be able to make the choice to not be so ugly.

Yesterday in Sunday School (from 30 Life Principles by Charles Stanley) we read, "God often leads us through difficult times to teach us.... Your challenges may be so immense and your choices so limited that you feel weak, completely unable to crawl out of the valley.... However, right now, there is something that God wants you to learn. Consider how He is working in your life. What is God teaching you through this valley?"

I thought I was going to start seriously praying to find out if God wants me to continue milking cows or if I should look for another job. Weldon says I'm not "enslaved" - I made the choice and I don't have to continue. However, in my mind, I don't see how I could possibly quit because that would leave Edith feeling obligated to step in - and she admits (finally!) that she is physically unable to keep up with all she has been doing.

So perhaps my prayer shouldn't be "Shall I get a different job?" but, rather, "What are You teaching me through this entire farm experience?"

I know I am blessed and have no reason to complain - but complain I do! About almost everything! I don't like "this me." SO ... I want to pray (novel thought!), I want to listen, I want to be changed.

"Just as I am, tho tossed about with many a conflict, many a doubt; fightings and fears within, without, O Lamb of God, I come! I come!" This hymn spoke to me strongly in the milk barn this morning. And, now, looking at it in Amazing Grace 366 Inspiring Hymn Stories for Daily Devotions by Kenneth W. Osbeck, I read: "[Charlotte Elliott (the author) said] 'His grace surrounds me and His voice continually bids me to be happy and holy in His service - just where I am.' "

~ ~ ~

The End. In the time it took me to write these few lines, my entire attitude and outlook changed! Is it the end of the good, the bad, and the ugly in me? Of course not! But I am so in awe of a God who loves me enough to care about what I'm going through. I like to think I'm strong and I often find myself gritting my teeth and saying, "I CAN DO THIS." The truth of the matter is, there is a lot that I CAN'T do. In those situations, I'm glad the the Lord steps in and reveals His strength. I truly want to be "happy and holy in His service - just where I am."

~ DAUGHTERS ~

Daughters are a wonderful thing, and I have 2 of them! Yay for me!!
Little girls are adorable, whether they're putting together their first wagon (Anna)
or creating works of art (Katie).
And grownup girls can become your best friends. Yay for me!!

In February, Anna came to the farm to spend a few days with me. We didn't do anything exciting, but we had quality relaxing time together. She brought along a jigsaw puzzle and (except for throwing a smoking dvd player out the door) it was our chief entertainment.


In March, I went to New York to spend a few days with Katie. It rained the whole time, but we had quality relaxing time together. We enjoyed Monet's Water Lilies at MoMA and visited the NYC Library. Our chief entertainment was sweets at unique coffee shops.


Anna & Katie are definitely not 2 peas in a pod. They're as different as night & day, and yet I see many similarities in them. I am their common denominator. Yay for me!!

New Cow Stalls - Phase 1 Completed
Mr. Perfectionist is still at it. Everything has to be just so.
Working on the curbing:
Filling the forms with sand
and then concrete.
Next, the metal dividers are put in place: . The calves were able to watch all the proceedings from their section of the barn , and Wesley was able to come back now and then to help with the work. Thanks, Wesley!!
When the dividers were in place, it was time to put sawdust down as bedding for the girls.
Hmmm. I guess it meets with her approval.
Then the same steps were taken on the other side of the center posts and voila! neat, clean, modern bedding for 18 cows and a few wayward calves :-)
I don't remember how many stalls Weldon plans to make, but I think this represents a little less than half of the total. We are all so proud of Weldon for his skills and knowledge ... and brawn!

New Cow Stalls ... Continued

I can't believe it's 2 months ago that I wrote about the beginning of this project. Weldon is totally amazing! Without any help (until this week), he has continued working all by his lonesome on this difficult, heavy job. He sometimes forgets that he's not quite as young as he used to be, but, other than some moans and groans, he doesn't complain at all. So! Enough praise and adulation. On to the progress report.

First, here's the work that really amazed me. To give additional support to the existing roof, he got these heavy beams, 17 and 20 feet long made of two 2x12s each, hoisted up and bolted together by himself! He explained to me how it really wasn't that difficult or heavy - just slow, lifting one end at a time, balancing it on the Bobcat or scaffolding as he needed. Anyway, I was beyond impressed!

The following pictures will show how he is making the curb that will form the back end of the stalls. It will hold the sawdust bedding in place so the cows can have a relatively clean place to lie down. First he had to dig a trench and make a form to hold the concrete. You can perhaps see from the photos that "Meticulous" is his middle name.

He's made his forms, got them perfectly in place, mixed the concrete, and shoveled it into the forms.

Here is the first completed section of curbing.
Now he is removing the forms from the next section that has been poured and dried.
And then he starts all over again. Woohoo! Approximately 25% of the curbs are done.
When they are completed, the new bedding "floor" can be poured. After that, the metal dividers can be installed. I'll post pictures as that work progresses.

We hope that Weldon's nephew Wesley will be able to continue helping him for a while. That would make the work go much quicker. Of course, if the ground ever dries up a little, Weldon will have to stop and plant wheat and spread manure. Sure wish he had had a son :-)

Remember, you can find me on Facebook (Cindy Keiger) just about any day of the week. That's why you don't see me on here very often :-)