The day was July 20, 1987. I had got up that morning not feeling well so I thought I would just take it easy since I had nothing pressing to do. After breakfast I went for groceries while Rob took the three children, (Leah 7, Jesse 5, and Debbie 2,) with him, he was taking a load of corn to Agway. He asked me to check on two cows that were out in the pasture when I got back. One was supposed to have a calf, and the other one was supposed to be in heat. He was also expecting the combine to come as soon as he got back, then he would be busy hauling oats to Agway the rest of the day.
At 11 o'clock he came in and asked about the cows. I had forgotten all about them!! I told Leah and Jesse to watch Debbie real closely and went right out to check them. I walked all over the pasture, through thistles as high as my head, looking for the fresh cow. I did find the other cow in heat so I went back to the barn and called her in to the AI service. I had missed the deadline for morning service so I would have to make sure the cow was in the barn by 1 o'clock for the afternoon service. I went back out to the pasture and continued looking for the fresh cow. After about an hour, I did stumble onto her, amidst the thistles. She wasn't fresh yet. I walked back to the barn to get the truck so I could drive out to the field and tell Rob about the cows. Then I remembered the children!!
Leah and Jesse were in Jesse's bedroom playing with the door shut, their version of watching Debbie closely! Debbie was in the bathroom brushing her teeth with my toothbrush. She was using baby lotion for toothpaste. She had baby lotion everywhere, and had also taken the wrappers off of four bars of soap. I grabbed Debbie, told the other two where I was going and drove back to the back fields. Rob had just left with a load of oats so we settled down to wait. We had eaten all the red huskberries off a berry bush and Debbie was halfway through the green ones when Rob came back. He thought the pregnant cow should have food and water, I told him I would go back to the pasture and bring her out to the water trough.
As I was driving back to the farm, I saw calves running in every direction. It was 3 calves and 2 children. Jesse and Leah were trying to get them in but they were actually chasing them. Two of the calves went lickerty split out through the sudax field, I went lickerty split after them. I finally managed to get them turned around. With Jesse and Leah standing at designated spots we got them back in their little pasture lot. All the gate fences were open, apparently Rob forgot to close the gates when he took the tractor out of the barnyard that morning.
Then I remembered the cow! At that moment I was wishing for a three wheeler! I left the children in the yard and trudged back out to the pasture, found the cow and started playing "merry-go round the thistle bush," She was in a rotten mood and wouldn't let me get behind her to drive her out to the water trough. I finally decided to get the truck and bring the feed and water to her. The children filled three five gallon buckets with water, while I got the ryelage and hay. I put everything on the truck then got a sheet of warped plywood and laid it over the buckets. I sat the children on top the plywood, hoping the water wouldn't slosh out too much. We bounced our way out to the pasture, the children and the plywood bounced off the buckets so some of the water did spill. We managed to have enough to give to the cow.
When we got back to the house it was 1:30. I packed a lunch box full of sandwiches and cookies and sent Jesse and Leah back to the field for Rob and the combine man. Debbie and I were just finishing our sandwiches when the screen door opened and George the AI technician walked in. The cow wasn't in the barn! I asked him if he minded waiting till I went out to the pasture and got her. He said we were his last stop for the day, he wasn't in a hurry. Good thing!! I ran back out to the thistle field once more! There shouldn't be any jaggers left on the thistles, I think they are all embedded in my legs. The cow was about as far from the barn as she could get. I got her into the barnyard without any trouble. I shut the fence and tried to get her in the barn. She panicked, jumped the fence and broke the gate handle, we were back where we started. George came out to help me. We had her in the barn and tied before she knew what hit her.
Rob never told me what bull he wanted her bred to so I called Agway hoping he would be there unloading oats. He wasn't! George said he would run back to the field and talk to Rob there. Right after he left, Rob called from Agway. I got all the information, and went to find George. When I got back to the field, Leah said George went to Agway, so I turned around and headed back to the farm. By the time I got back to the farm, George was pulling in from the other direction. As I came around the corner of the barn, George said, "I heard you were looking for me." I said, "Yes I was, I sure hope that cow gets bred, I don't want to go though all this again!"
I went on into the house. It was 3 o'clock, one hour to "take it easy" till milking time. I had just laid down with Debbie when Rob walked in. He said when the children brought lunch back to the field he wasn't hungry...now he was!! and THAT is the reason farm wives age fast!!!
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