People often ask me why I enjoy milking cows so much. How do you get up so early in the morning every day? Where do you get the motivation from? How do you have the energy to do your other full time job: parenting? Milking is one of my favorite parts of the day. Watching the beautiful sunrises is enough to motivate me to get out of bed. Every morning the skies are different – bright and vibrant or hazy blue and grey, too spectacular to describe. The magic and beauty of the sky makes me take the time to soak in the atmosphere around me and often sets my mood for the day. Every day I see a new sunrise, I am reminded that it is a blessing to be able to see the new dawn. It is a chance to refresh, to start over. It doesn’t matter what happened yesterday, good or bad, each day is a new day. We get to make the most of it with new adventures and new memories!
Starting my day off with milking is also a great way to get my energy flowing. Many people choose to do a workout to wake themselves up. That’s basically what I do, just in a different form. Do I often need to take a quick 20-minute nap after lunch in order to get through the rest of the day? Of course! But there’s nothing wrong with that, either. Thankfully, the little munchkin still needs that nap just as much as I do so we can take them at the same time. Having a little boy to tire out helps to keep me motivated and prevents me from becoming a couch potato. We do our best to stick to the routine of getting outside for at least an hour after breakfast and he comes to feed calves with me in the afternoon for more fresh air. Getting outside keeps us both sane, healthy and happy.
Moving on from my home dairy farm was one of the hardest decisions I ever had to make. I am extremely grateful to have found a second dairy family right down the road. I can still teach my little man the importance of farming, responsibility and hard work, as well as encourage his love of animals and machinery. Milking cows is often the only “me time” I get during the day. When the girls behave, it’s a chance for me to get lost in my thoughts, daydream, and just enjoy the repetitive motions of working with wonderful people and animals. After a long day in the house, I look forward to my time in the barn.
Every sunset reminds me that it is a blessing to have made it through another day alive and healthy. It is a reminder to reflect on the day and to look forward to the new beginning of the next one. Time to recharge. We all have routines, hobbies and symbols which encourage us to take a moment to reflect on our lives. Being up before the sun and going to bed after it gives me many of these opportunities and I am grateful for them!
