The kids are all doing good. Kaylees’ cheer team qualified to go to nationals in Myrtle Beach S.C. again this year. They actually had the highest score of the whole competition even edging out the Coed team from here. Garett is really taking to shooting his bow. I hope he stays interested in things outdoors. I was afraid he was gonna be an inside person. Madison won her division in the Miss Snowflake pagaent she entered. I think these pagaents really boost her self confidence. Katie is kind of struggling with school this year. She’s a freshman and it’s a whole new world for her. I’m trying to take a laid back approach for now. Her math is what’s really getting her. She has the same teacher that BJ had in college. They both say she’s not much of a teacher. More like show you once, give you the assignment, and you’re on your own. I remember my grandmother telling me that when she taught she felt like if the kids didn’t learn it wasn’t their fault it was hers. Sure wish we had more teachers like “Granny Ball”.

Just as soon as I said the weather wasn’t much like winter we got a nice little blanket of snow. It got kind of nippy too. I had to scramble and get some of the fans covered with plastic at the chickenhouse. We cover about 6 of the fans in the coldest part of winter to regulate the temperature. I noticed during this little cold spell that one of the cows is getting really slow. I knew she was getting old, but hoped to get one more calf from her. If she calves before spring I’m moving her on. I should have about 5 calves to sell this spring. My plan is to sell the calves and buy back cows. Hopefully in a couple years I can have about 15 or 20. I would also like to get back into the rabbits. I’m looking for New Zealand Reds. Madison and Benji (our help) have been trying to get me to get some more pigs. This time around they want to raise piglets. My objection has always been you feed them more than you can sell feeder pigs for, but maybe with cull eggs and spilled chicken feed to supplement we can make a go of it. As fast as the colder weather came it’s gone. That meant high winds and rain. The wind blew the top off “the pig mansion”. The kids named it “the pig mansion” because they said it was too nice to be called a pig pen. Farm I is back together now. They disinfected this week and will be placing shavings soon. Chickens come December 23rd. Guess that’s my present. We made a few improvements to the older houses. We added doors to access the feed bins, reinforced the slats, replaced any slats that were damaged, and added a drain in the scalehouse of house 1.

While traveling to watch Kaylee’s cheer competition we ran across a Druther’s restaraunt. I haven’t seen one of these in years. Bj and I reminisced about the old Druther’s here in town and it’s Andy Dandytale Meal we used to get as kids. The one here started as a Burger Queen, then became a Druther’s, followed by a Dairy Queen, and finally a Long John Silvers and Kentucky Fried Chicken. Sometimes I wish time would have just stood still so I could go back to all the things that made my little world go round when I was a kid. Life was so simple then. No responsibilities, no bills to pay, no kids to hurry here or there, grandparents that adored me. Of all that I miss my grandparents the most. They were truly spectacular people who I try to model my life after today. Katie was the only one of my children who was old enough to remember Granny and Pap. Garett was just a little guy when they passed.

Well I’ve written longer than I had planned. Lot’s to do and not as many hours to work with these short days so I better close. Check out the pics I’ve added here. As always thanks for reading!

I guess the old adage “time flies when your having fun” is true. Hard to believe it has been so long since I last posted here. So much has happened I have no idea where to start. We are currently finishing up our second cleanout at Farm I. Farm II’s birds will be selling around the first of February. This time we haven’t seen the little inconveniences pop up like the first go around. The nests are the big improvement. So far the bigger S hooks have made the difference. I replaced all the old hooks with larger, stronger S hooks. We seem to have developed a much better strategy for the litter removal too. Instead of piling it and moving it again, this time we put it directly on a truck or in the spreader and sent it where it needed to be. I will say we need to be a little more careful loading though. We just need to be sure all the litter is getting in the truck or spreader not on the ground. We have enough trouble keeping weeds and grass under control as it is so no need to fertilize them.

Fall is definitely upon us here in Kentucky. Seems only at night though. Most days have been in the 50s and 60s. I’ve heard a lot of talk about a bad winter this year, but things are going to have to change drastically. I started replying to folks saying this toward the beginning of this month with a “we will see”, but lately I have been saying “you do realize this is the end of November”. Heck it’s December now and it’s forecasted to be 50+ degrees. Not that I am complaining. I’ll do my complaining this summer when there are tons of bugs if it doesn’t get cold enough to thin them out. At any rate we have a good stock pile of firewood and papaw John (my Dad) replaced all the fire brick in the old fisher stove. Papaw as we call him around here is always working on something. My mom tells me frequently I’m just like him, I always say “nothing wrong with that”!

We’ve had a lot of firsts this year. The farm has paid it’s way entirely; Garett has his first gun, and his first bow; Garett and I have taken our first hunting trip, we were featured in a national publication, and the list just keeps going. All the children are growing like weeds! Madison has become my little beauty queen all of a sudden. She was first runner up in the Winterfest pageant and won best dress. Kaylee is still cheering for the local high school team. She sure doesn’t have time for much else. Katie is with me full time now. She only goes to visit her moms side of the family.

Bj is recovering from yet another back surgery. We thought everything was good from the car accident in January, but she was troubled by the hardware they had put in. The doctors x rayed and said all was good, she could have the hardware removed. 4 weeks after the surgery to remove the hardware she was in terrible pain and knew something was wrong. X rays revealed her back was still broken. So the last surgery was to fix yet another break. The doctors went all out this time, burring her spine to get the bone they removed from her hips to fuse to the break. Please let this be the last surgery!

We finally got around to getting an equipment shed built . We also made some big improvements in the old broiler house we use as a barn. Hopefully this summer I can either build stalls in the barn or build a shed type series of independent stalls for the horses. Unfortunately with all that’s been going on Madison and I haven’t been riding off the farm a single time this year. We did pick up a new trailer. Although not what I really wanted for the animals I bought a new 16ft tandem axle utility trailer with stock racks. Atleast now I’m not depending on someone else to haul whatever I may want to buy. I still plan to pick up a 16 or 18 foot stock/horse combination gooseneck trailer as soon as I can afford it.

The tractors are all holding up fairly well. I say fairly well only because the 3316 HST developed a crack in the engine block. Mahindra was right there on the warranty though. They replaced the entire engine, not just the short block. While it was in the shop I had everything serviced on it. The 7010 cab has broken the loader cable and they don’t sell just the cable. Luckily for me KMW is sending me the whole unit and my dealer had a used cable to get me through til then. That will mean I’ll have an extra cable. Looking at the future of the farm I just don’t see how I will not be able to trade for a larger tractor soon. The 7010 is more of a compact tractor and it’s just more than it can safely handle when you put 8 or 10 tons of litter or lime behind it and try to spread in this hilly landscape. Word is the 8560 cab will be available real soon. I’ll make the 7010 work until they get the new model blues worked through. The 6000 is still the “proverbial bull in the china shop”. It’s always there to do anything that needs done, but is just too big to be much help in the poultry houses.  

Well as always there is tons to do here and I’m not getting it done sitting in front of the computer so I’ll close. Be sure to check out the pics I have added. Check back frequently, I’ll be adding more pics as time allows. Thanks for reading!

Bj is doing alot better, but I’m afraid she probably won’t ever be back to gathering eggs. She has lost a significant amount of the grip in her left hand. Other than that she seems to be pretty much back to normal. Unfortunately normal hasn’t been too good since her first accident at 14. She is trying to find a pain management doctor that will help her with her pain, but at the same time not pump her full of medicine she doesn’t need. I can only imagine what it must be like for people with chronic pain to walk the tightrope between help and addiction.

We all have worked non stop to get the second set of houses ready for chickens, but most importantly to start getting paid. Our hard work seems to be paying off. We now have around 30,000 clucking chickens here on the farm. Really since the birds came for the second set I have been able to relax just a bit. With the contract signed and the loan out of the way I can concentrate more on running the business and less on making sure everything that has to be done is done to suit me. The most difficult thing in all this is getting everyone to do what they are supposed to.

School will be out for the summer in just a week or so. The kids can’t wait! I think they plan to go to the McCreary County Museum’s Learning Center quite a bit this summer. Don’t know if that’s to get out of working in the chickenhouses and garden or not. Who am I kidding of course it is! So long as they learn something I geuss it’s okay. They have helped me quite a bit around the place since Bjs accident and really deserve a break. Kaylee made the high school cheer team for the second year in a row so it won’t be too long til her days will be filled with cheer and dance routines. Garett is becoming really interested in all different types of things from the paranormal to ATVs. This afternoon he is watching a program on The Discovery Channel about how long things would last after man was gone. Madison and I are seriously shopping horse trailers. I just can’t find what I want used so I’ll most likely buy a new 16 ft Ponderosa horse/stock combo. I’ve promised her we will do more horseback riding this summer. I didn’t realize it until Bj brought it to my attention just the other day, but Katie (my oldest) has been living with us for over a year now. BJ has been urging me to go to court and try to get custody of her again, but I just hate to spend the money on an attorney. On the other hand I don’t think it’s right to pay $385 a month child support for a child who lives with me either.

I’ve had a chance to put almost 100 hours on the 3316HST. I really like the little tractor. I’m really surprised at what it will lift. The backhoe isn’t too shabby either. It’s not going to dig like a commercial hoe but heck for $6000 it was well worth it. We joke all the time about how a shovel doesn’t fit my hands anymore. I seem to find a way to use the backhoe for everything I had to use a shovel for before. So far my only problem with it has been a weeping cylinder that was replaced under warranty. I’ve been having a bit of trouble with the 7010 and it’s wheels. So far I have cracked 4. All have been replaced under warranty, but it’s still an inconvenience. My dad and I had some collars built and put them on the wheels in hopes of stopping any that may crack in the future. Still no problems with the 6000. While working on the new rebranded TYM Mahindra we both commented to each other about how well the “pink” tractor has held up. Aside from the clutch job the 6000 has not seen the dealer for going on 6 years. It’s also obvious looking at the 2 tractors how much heavier built the 6000 is than the 7010. The wheels on the 6000 are 8 lug and over 10 mm thick on alot bigger axle while the 7010 wheels are only 6 lug, 8 mm thick, and on a much smaller axle. The two tractors weigh in roughly the same. I love the size of the 7010 and it’s done everything I have asked of it. For some reason I just long for a bit bigger tractor with more horsepower and would even like to see a few more creature comforts in the cab. Some cool t shirts to wear to show my Mahindra pride would be good too!

I geuss it’s official that we are a farm. The highway department came and put up a tractor sign on the side of the road leading to the farm. We’ve all made jokes about how we’ve hit the big time now with a farm sign. It may be the only farm sign in this whole county! Good to know I’m getting a little bit of my tax money back in a round about way.

Well by now you know I always have tons to do so I better get at it! Be sure to check back and feel free to comment on the pics I’ve added!

Seems when it rains it pours. As if Bj’s accident wasn’t enough to slow us down. We’ve had a bit of tractor trouble. One of the wheels supplied to Mahindra by Titan for the 7010 developed cracks all around the lug holes. I was going to be without the 7010 for about a week so I had a neighbor weld in the cracks so we could keep going until the replacement came. Good thing too, because I had finally put the 6000 in the shop to have the clutch replaced and the next day the loader curl cylinder started leaking on the 3316 HST. Without the 7010 in limp mode I would have had no tractors. I loaned the 6000 to a friend when it had about 200 hours on it and he ruined the clutch pushing trees down. Through adjustment and being careful I was able to make it last almost another 800 hours, but during the chickenhouse cleanout it got used a lot and it was getting bad. I’m still waiting on a replacement cylinder or a repair kit for the 3316 HST. Hopefully Mahindra will get me one soon.

The second set of chickenhouses seems to have sprung up from the ground like a spring flower. I know it’s been a couple of months, but it seems like just yesterday we started the actual building. Now the builders are finishing up and the equipment and electrical has started. Cobb is pushing for a disinfect date of April 20. I feel confident my part will be done, but the equipment install is going to be too close to call. The 7010 has found itself in the role of a forklift just about everyday as the equipment shows up. The more I use it the more I like the fact that it is so compact for a 70+ hp tractor. It fits my needs perfectly! Some of the equipment installers mentioned to me that they were considering a Mahindra for their farm and that using the 7010 has removed any doubt they might have had about the quality of these tractors.

Spring has sprung, leaving us baby goats and thunderstorms. The goats are cute as can be, but I can do without storms like the one we had a couple weeks back that blew off part of the barn roof and took out 3 or 4 large oaks. Somehow during all the madness here we found time to get to a special cow sale up in Somerset Ky.. I picked up 4 more bred cows. 3 of those have 200-300 pound calves by their side. All are black except one and she’s a big red cow. The heifer we had from the last red cow is just so beautiful I couldn’t resist buying another. The steer born to our hereford cross cow last year is set for a date with the butcher on May 20th. The pigs are growing by leaps and bounds and they too will soon meet the butcher or find a new home. They have done a wonderful job of making all our scraps, feed spills, and broken eggs disappear. Part of our spring seed order arrived today and the rest is scheduled to ship on the 20th. Everyone here thinks I’ve gone a bit overboard this time. I have strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, rasberries, grapes, and apple, pear, peach, and mulberry trees all on the way.

Well like always there is lots of work to do so I’ll get to it. Be sure to check back, I think this is going to be an exciting year here on the farm. Don’t forget to take a peak at the pics I’ve added and thanks for reading!

As if being rushed to get 6 weeks work done in 4 wasn’t enough Bj was very seriously injured in an automobile accident. She was returning home during a winter storm and slid off the road and over an embankment. Fortunately she was alone. She has multiple fractures in her back, a fracture at the base of her neck, cracked ribs, a collapsed lung, multiple breaks and serious lacerations in her left arm, and a cracked pelvis. Looking at her car I’d say she is very lucky to be alive. Her car overturned and she was partially ejected and the car pinned her left arm underneath. She was airlifted to The University of Kentucky Hospital where she has undergone 2 surgeries to date.

Even with all the hard work and a bit of bad luck things are clucking along here just at a bit slower pace. All the children are happy and healthy and we are very fortunate to have that. Katie is spending 99% of her time here on the farm with us and that is a real blessing. Makayla is doing very well in her cheerleading endeavors and will be attending the national competition in Myrtle Beach, S.C.. Garett is still being his bookworm self and doing extremely well in school. Madison trudges behind me most evey step looking for any opportunity to ride horses. We are all looking forward to warmer weather and the fun and work it brings. For now though we need lots of prayers for Bj’s speedy recovery.

Construction on our second set of houses is progressing slowly and I will be adding pics to the site as time allows and I will make time to keep everyone up to speed as much as possible on the goings on of the farm and Bj’s recovery. Thanks for reading and remember us in your prayers.

We’ve used the breaks in the rain to do some fence mending and add a transfer tank and toolbox to the new truck. I made the mistake of leaving hay too close to the fence and the horses rode the fence down eating the hay. Initially I put up corrall panels in the place of the now knee high fence, but the horses just rode those down too. I never realized how destructive horses were. They will stand on anything to reach across the fence and eat. Now mind you, they get hay inside the fence and even sweet feed every day, but that same hay on the other side of the fence is what they desire. One good thing came out of the fiasco. I figured out that I can dig post holes much deeper in this sandstone when I use the loader on the 7010 to put down pressure on the post hole digger. Having 2 tractors really comes in handy at times. It will be cleanout time before you know it and I’m kind of bummed about it because as things look now we will either be renting a skid steer or trading the 6000 in on a smaller HST tractor. I know I don’t really have a use for 3 tractors, but I just hate to see the 6000 go. It has been bulletproof and everything is so simple about it. I suppose I could rent a skid steer, but I’m the type who believes in buying tools and using them until you can recoup your investment, not renting.

Madison finally got her little pigs this week. We got a total of eight. I’ll probably have more in them than I could buy them for by the time they get butchering size, but atleast I’ll know what they are fed. I ended up getting them from the RECC lineman who took the logs. It took him a while, but he finally came back around and I just took the pigs instead of money for the logs.

This past week has been modern gun season for deer here. That’s meant no horseback riding for fear of being mistaken for a deer. Madison is about to crack. Every day I hear “can we go horseback riding yet?” Madison and I have a new favorite song too. Cowgirls don’t cry by Brooks and Dunn. It just plain fits us. The other kids have their own thing, Katie and Garett are bookworms, Kaylee is my cheerleader, but Mattie is my cowgirl! I know I have said it many times before, but I am so proud of my children! All of them! They have what it takes to make it in this world. When you are young you don’t realize the foundation that is being built in you. I still remember my oldest brother Paul’s wedding rehersal dinner. Paul married a girl from a pretty well to do family. All her family showed up in fancy cars and brought fine wine. I commented to my dad that it must be nice to have money. I will never forget his response. He simply said “son when times get rough we’ll make it, but will they”? That’s when I realized money and things don’t make you who you are.

Well I should close, there is tons to do here, literally. I have about 250 tons of rock to spread, trees to trim, fence to fix, christmas shopping to do, and a cleanout plan to configure so I best go for now. Be sure to take a peek at the pics I’ve added and check back soon to follow our progress on the farm! Thanks for reading!

Garett, Katie, Kaylee, BJ and I got away for the majority of the day last Saturday to attend a native american pow wow. It was called The Princess Cornblossom Festival. They had lots of cool stuff. There were demonstrations with bows and blowguns, dancing, drumming, and lots of artifacts and crafts. I think the kids had a good time and they learned something. This trip kind of killed three birds with one stone. The festival was held at the old 4H camp here in the county. It was one of the first camps built in this area. It’s been a lot of years since it was used for a 4H camp, but there is a ton of history there. Today it’s mostly used just for it’s shelter, but in previous years it had a huge barbecue pit and alot of families had their reunions there. Bj’s folks still have their reunions there. It was a trip down memory lane for BJ. In the 70s the Stearns Coal and Lumber Company donated the lumber from the old Stearns Hotel to the 4H camp and they built a big shelter and bunkhouse. Since then her family has had their reunions there. Before the new shelter there was an older smaller shelter which had a barbecue pit in the middle. Bj says she still remembers her papaw roasting a pig every year in that pit when she was a kid. It’s things like that which I hold dear. Noone can ever take away the stories you can share nor the memories you hold so close.

Construction should be starting any day on the second set of chicken houses. We will be using a group of mennonite builders this time. I hope to keep as much of the money from construction in this area as possible. I had 6 loads of rock delivered and spread on the roads around the building pad. Sometime today I hope to get the time to even them out a bit with the bucket on the 7010. I had to make a warranty claim on one of the wheels last week. I don’t know how I never noticed the wheel was bent. The center disc of the wheel had an obvious bend in it, but I hadn’t hit anything and there was no mark anywhere else on the tire or rim. The only thing the dealer and I could figure is the crate of wheels was dropped somewhere in shipment and no damage noticed. Everyone I talk to says they have never seen the center of one bent.

Well I have promised Madison a horseback ride this evening so I better end for now. I’ve added some new pics so feel free to browse around them. Thanks for reading and check back soon!

Coyotes have suddenly become a problem here. A few days ago a neighbor warned me that he had seen a dog or coyote chasing the goats. A day or so later I noticed a young goat missing. Then one morning at 5:00 I saw a coyote in the field by the chickenhouse. We never had this before. I wonder if the chicken noises have lured them into this area. I don’t think there is any way they could get in the chickenhouses, but I am going to have to figure out something to protect the goats and calves.

All is well with the kids. Kaylee cheered her last home football game this past week. I’m awfully proud of her. It’s a real accomplishment to be cheering on the high school team at 11 years old. She is very committed. They practice 4 days a week for 2 hours each day. That’s quite a load on top of her school work and helping aroud the farm. Garett has his own accomplishments too. He is on the academic team this year. It’s his first year in a new school and he seems to be doing well. His grades are all A’s and he loves the library at the new school. Madison is her usual cowgirl self. She loves to ride her horse “Johnny”. She’s doing good in school too. She says she doesn’t like school as much as in previous years, but she still has all A’s.

Well I’ll close for now and try to get some work done. Sorry for the long break. I’ll be posting more soon. Thanks for reading!

This has been a pretty exciting week. This week was rodeo week here. It was nice to spend a couple evenings with the kids taking in all the rodeo sights. Madison had waited a year to see “bubble gum Bob” the clown again, but for some reason they had a new clown this time around. Mattie was kind of upset at first, but it didn’t take “pork chop” the new clown long to win her over. Seeing the kids with that great big smile on their face means the world to me. I enjoy all the events, but most of all I enjoy seeing the kids have fun.

There’s not been any slowing down this week. Madison and I met up with some nice folks from Ohio and finally took a horseback ride in the Big South Fork. Madison handled the trail and her horse like an old pro. She was having a great time until we saw the bears. As we were riding we heard a bunch of noise over off the trail and 2 bear cubs appeared. I can’t believe I didn’t have my camera. Not knowing where their mother was we didn’t get too close. Madison was a little scared because Kim and I wanted to go on up the trail past the bears. Madison firmly objected so we turned back. I’m no bear expert since we’ve not had many encounters with bears here over the years, but it looks like if we are going to spend much time in the Big South Fork we better learn about black bears.

I can’t believe I have lived in the heart of such a magestic national park and not made time to get out and enjoy it. There is so much to do. There is literally something for everyone. Most of all it seems the park caters to horse people. They have 2 very nice campgrounds. One on the Tennessee side and one here in Ky. There are trails ranging in length from 30 minutes to all day or even overnight. Here in Ky there is a nice little resort just before entering the park. Bear Creek Resort has cabins that are for sale or rent with all the comforts you can imagine along with stalls for your horses. So if you’re in the market for a getaway for a week, a night, or for good you owe it to yourself to check them out. The one pictured below is awesome and it’s for sale. If you might be interested leave me a commet and I’ll put you in touch with the folks selling it.

Folks must be doing some late summer landscaping because the topsoil is finally moving. I’m glad to see it go. Especially since there will be another big pile to sell from the second building pad. I have to make time to get to the Mahindra dealer soon and try to make a deal on a smaller HST 4×4 tractor loader backhoe combination. Our current flock of chickens will be leaving Nov 24th. That’s when the fun begins. We will be scrambling to get everything cleaned up for the next flock. I think a small tractor will fit good for cleaning out the 9 1/2 ft sidewall houses. Plus I can think of a million uses for it when we aren’t using it to clean out.

Well as always tons to do and not enough time to do it all so I best get at it. Thanks for reading, check back soon, and feel free to browse all the pics I’ve added!

The pad should be done this week for the second set of houses. Boy do I have cold feet. I see a major hurdle in all of this and it’s labor. By my calculations we will need a total of 6 people to take care of both sets. Atleast we are half way there. Madison has been telling me she’d rather have a big nice horse barn over there. She’s already named it. M&D Horse Company. Maybe we can do both. Madison has a nack for horses and I’d love to see her living her dream. Who knows with the Big South Fork River and Recreation Area so close maybe we could stable a few horses.

I have taken time for the kids too since school will be starting very soon. Last week we took a drive and had a picnic. I took them to Natural Arch. Natural Arch is a rock arch that my grandparents used to take us to frequently. It’s got some good picnic tables with grills and a shelter. They’ve added an outdoor pavillion since I was there last. After sandwiches we hiked out to the arch. I like to try to teach the kids about history and I find myself boring them sometimes. This trips topic was CCC. The Civilian Conservation Corp. There were a couple camps here in the county and the built roads and trails all over. In particular they built parks like Natural Arch. Just another reason I feel as though that generation was our greatest generation.

After our picnic we drove down to Lake Cumberland to take in the sights. Makes me want a boat. Not much else to write about at the moment, but we have managed to borrow a trailer so hopefully we’ll get to take some time for horseback riding before school starts back. Be sure to check back soon and check out the pics I’ve added. Thanks for reading!