Calving Season

First I must apologize for the lack of blogging! Finishing up my last semester of school at UNL and planning a wedding really keeps me on my toes! The following is an update on Calving season for the Narjes Cattle Company!

This year the boys have taken on about 150 more head of cows! That is a lot of extra mouths to feed and mommas to calve out this year, but is still quite manageable for two people.. plus the boys have some great spouses that love to help them out at well.



Replacement Heifers: A crowd of good looking girls!



This calf was born in the middle of the night with a windchill of -40.. brrrr! With two calves already in the heat boxes this little guy had to come into the house to warm up! The boys usually check cows every 2 hours to make sure none of the cows are having any problems, and when it is as cold as it has been lately at night it is imperitive to bring these little guys into the warm barn. A calf can freeze in as easily as 45 minutes in these extreme weather conditions.

I am partial to black baldy calves so here is one of my favorites. It also happens to be one of Tyson's Uncles favorites as well. The calves love playing on the piles in the yards.

Here is another one of my favorites with her momma. Hope we can keep this heifer as a replacement for next year!

Calving Season just happens to be one of my favorites on the farm. I love see all the young spunky calves around and the protective mommas trying to keep up with their babies. It is a great way to experience the blessings of new life! I am already looking forward to next year's calving season when I will be living at the farm full time and not just on the occasional weekend I venture out to see Tyson.

Be on the look out for future updates on calving. Hope everyone elses winter season is going just as well as ours.

Wordless Wednesday

Tyson was harvesting in the snow last night. Down to only about 20 acres before the snow shut them down. 

We're Engaged!

This past weekend I went back to Sidney for their Annual Octoberfest celebration. I rode back with two girls from Sidney who go to school in Omaha, so it made the long 5 hour drive go much faster than normal. Octoberfest is much like the Clarkson Czech Festival, focusing on German roots and traditions and of course a big tent with lots of people and beer! Little did I know that Tyson was planning something a little more exciting than partying in the Octoberfest Tent.

Saturday morning there is a parade in town at 10 AM. Tyson told me that after the parade we would go take mineral out to the cows, which is something that we do almost every time I come out to Sidney. Little did I know what was actually waiting for me to see in the pasture. The parade got over about noon, then we headed to the Octoberfest tent to have a brat and a glass of beer , before we headed out to the pasture. After we put out mineral, Tyson and I walked through the calves and cows that were by the windmill like we always do and we talked about our favorites and which ones Ty wanted to keep back as heifers. Then we hopped in his pick up and headed up to the top of the pasture to look for the rest of the cows that weren't down by the windmill. Once we got to the top, we walked up to the edge of the ridge and found this: 

Who would have thought that Tyson could be so creative?!?! : )

A view from the top of the pasture.

The preparations, 2 1/2 pick-up loads.

A few pictures minutes after I said, Yes!!!

Celebration Hugs and Joys!

Many thanks to Susan for the coming to take a few pictures to share with family and friends. My family enjoyed viewing the picture, since they couldn't be with us on this joyous day! Now let the planning begin! Stay tuned for future wedding details! : )

What happens if the Wind doesn't blow???

In the Nebraska there rarely is a day that the wind doesn't blow, so many ranchers depend on the wind to power a windmill to pump water for their cattle. Cattle without water for even a short amount of time can be extremely devastating to the herd. Well this weekend in Sidney the wind hadn't blown for a few days and the boys found their cattle thirsty and the cattle tanks destroyed by the cattle searching for water. They instantly had to fix the tanks and bring up water for the cattle.  When ranchers choose to raise cattle, they choose to dedicate their lives to providing proper food, water and home for them. Whether it's during the middle of a hot summer afternoon or a late winter night, ranchers must always do what is needed to raise their cattle.

Tyson and his favorite heifer. She loves to get back rubs and to be spoiled!

Thirsty cows and calves.

Pumping water for the cows while the windmill hadn't been running for a few days.

A mouth full of mineral and salt makes a happy cow!

Weekend on the Farm

While I was home this past weekend, my parents had to pick up a semi in Denver and a live-bottom trailer, so I came home from college to take care of chores while they were gone. Mom has calves that have been weaned and are being fed to be sold at the sale barn.

Calves eating grain.

Alfalfa hay fed to calves as well.

 Feeding the chores was a simply task, but the next day once Mom and Dad had gotten back from Denver, Mom and I decided to square bale my brother-in-laws hay for him while he was as work. When baling hay, you must be very careful not to bale the hay too wet, or too dry. Hay that is bales too wet can become molding, making it unsafe for cattle to eat, and if the hay is too dry the leaves can fall off and making the hay mere sticks and no nutritional value. Here are a few pictures from square-baling hay:

Mom started dropping the square bales out the back of the baler so my sister and I could go pick up the bales and stack them in the shed. Since it was a small patch of alfalfa we were able to use the four-wheeler with a small trailer to haul bales up to the barn.

Trying to juggle a 3 year old and 7 month old while trying to haul bales proved to be quite challenging. But since we used the four-wheeler to pick-up bales, one of us would drive and hold on to the kids, while the other would throw bales and stack them on the trailer. Trust me it was interesting! But we accomplished the task and surprised my brother-in-law when he arrived home from work.

Corn Silage

While I was home this previous weekend, I was able to head over to my sister Rachel's to check out how corn silage harvest was coming along for her in-laws family feedlot. Take a look at a few of the pictures.

Chopping.

Silage Inoculant is put on the silage to help it ferment effectively and to get better feed usage.

Silage chopping has just begun, so the pile is small but will soon be taller than the tractor and fill up the entire feed bunker.

Rachel is checking out a few ears.

The trail cut by the chopper.

My niece McKenzie and I hanging out in the ranger before heading back up to the feedlot.

Arthur Barbeque

Every year the Pinnacle Bank in Ogallala has sponsored a free barbeque at the Arthur County Fair in Arthur Nebraska. A few Pinnacle staff members load up grills, hambergers, buns, pickles, chips, cookies, lemonade and ice tea to feed around 350-400 people before the 4-H sale. Since I have been interning with the bank all summer long I got to go along and help with the barbeque. (post of my internship experience coming soon)
A big part of my summer internship wasn't just about banking, but about relationships with the community and customers as well. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know everyone in the community. 

This year Pinnacle Bank fed around 360 hambergers and had many compliments as people moved through the line. Here is a few pics of the event.

The young 4-H kids helped hand out the food.

All the 4-H kids are excited for the sale to get started!

Long line of hungry people.