In our family Dad has always been the fixer This year as we are preparing for Father’s Day I have been catching myself reminiscing about when our kids were younger. Back then we lived in the city, my husband was gone all day to work and to a great extent life was simpler. To celebrate […] Read more
The gift of time is better than any gift that could be bought
Calving Season Woes Start At Breeding
This last calving season has left us pondering how to tighten up our calving season without culling most of our late calvers. Culling might work for bigger herds, but this season went so long we would have to cull 75 per cent of our small herd to get a six-week calving season back. A tight […] Read more
Here’s what ours did to finance a trip to Wales
During October 2009 our youngest two children travelled to Wales for three weeks. They went alone and stayed with relatives while they were there and it was a fabulous experience for them in many ways. What made this trip extra special is that they earned the money for the trip completely on their own. My […] Read more
Breeding Timing Critical To Success
Spring is our time to reflect on the previous years successes and failures. This year I tried very hard to take to heart the advice I received from a Grainews reader. They told me that I was starting to sound pretty negative and I should remember to see my blessings. I really appreciated that little […] Read more
Try using onion skins, cabbage or spinach
There is the commercial side of Easter we all know about — the chocolate eggs and Easter Bunny. But for our family the celebration of Easter is centred on the Christian meaning of the holiday. It is a time to reflect on the sacrifice Christ made and we try and keep that theme in the […] Read more
Deer And Wet Bring Liver Flukes
Transportation $289.95 FLUKE DRUGS EXPENSIVE Autopsy EDR certificate $25 to $100 $100 Total cost $673.95 to $748.95 Extreme wet conditions we’ve had in Manitoba’s Interlake have hit us from another angle. As if the inability to make enough feed wasn’t enough, we are now faced with an increase in liver flukes. Wet conditions and the […] Read more
Yes You Can Make Your Own Cookie Cutters
When people think of cookie cutters their minds usually turn towards gingerbread men and Christmas. In our house they are for any occasion and I find that they lend themselves to crafts quite nicely. Recently my daughter and I were faced with a dilemma. We needed to make some heart-shaped cookies as shower favours, that […] Read more
Disease Prevention Is Priority No. 1
When we decided in 1998 to experiment with raising sheep we sat down and brainstormed. We had many important factors to consider: What kind of capital we had to invest. How we wanted to raise them (intensive or pasture based.) And whether we wanted hair sheep or wool sheep. But what we decided was the […] Read more
Homemade Snack Crackers — A Healthy Choice
One of the popular snacks in our house is homemade cheese and crackers. Since I already make cheese out of our own milk, I had been researching some cracker recipes to go with it. Now that I have found a Manitoba source of certified organic flour my daughter and I got to work. We are […] Read more
How To Build A Low-Waste Feeder
We had to buy hay again this year, and due to its low quality, it is more important than usual that our livestock have access to high quality palatable mineral — we buy Cargill brand — and free-choice cobalt loose Windsor or Sifto brand salt to maintain their health. The first step was to figure […] Read more
Cyber-Savvy Farmer
