The Magnificent Seven

Annabelle and Isabelle have joined the other pairs in the back pasture. The two youngest calves, Shadow and Big Red, are doing well but we’re keeping them close to the barn because a winter storm is in the forecast. The back pasture is small, but its hills, trees, and brush—along with two few beds of straw that we spread out--provide a lot of protection from the elements. Best of all, we can watch them out of the back windows when we’re in the house.

The Magnificent Seven, as Hubby calls them, put on their best wild west show around dusk, which I’m hoping to capture on film. Cuteness combined with exuberance makes for great entertainment!

The Magnificent Seven taking an afternoon siesta with their mamas (one is hidden behind).

“He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity.”             –GALATIONS 5:22 (MSG)

The Big Little Brother

Because Shadow had such a rough start in life, nothing can make me prouder than watching him nurse by himself and cavort with his new brother out in the corral!

Daisy Mae brought our newest little guy, Big Red, into the world yesterday afternoon. Yes, he’s black, but if the light shines on him right, we can see the reddish stripes he inherited from his great grandma, Little Red. Red almost hit the ground running—right for his first meal! His avarice and aptitude for nursing, as well as his strength and vitality, are a blessing and relief, especially after all of Shadow’s recent struggles.

Nevertheless, I’ve noticed that those calves that badly needed our help aren’t wary of us like the others. They know that we love them. We love the others too, but they don’t know it yet!

Red, left, and Shadow

Shadow, right, showing off

“God takes the side of the helpless…” –PSALM 116:6 (MSG)

Isabelle's Ears

Leggy, high-stepping Isabelle prances around like a Saddlebred colt, but her most distinguishing feature is her ears—she has lots thereof! Isabelle’s mama, Annabelle, has normal-sized ears, as do all six of her half-sisters and brothers born thus far. She must be a throwback to some audibly-gifted distant ancestor. One can only hope that her ears remain disproportionately large because if she grows into them, she’s going to be one awfully big cow!

“God keeps an eye on His friends, His ears pick up every moan and groan.” –PSALM 34:15 (MSG)

The Best Place to Be

Although I knew that Princess was going to calve yesterday, the weather was so wonderfully warm that I left her down in the tree-filled lower pasture. As was her habit, she privately and handily delivered yet another bull-calf!

At first, all seemed well, but then we saw that his front tendons were contracted, so he could barely stand and was too unsteady to nurse. We put him in the back of the Ranger—thank heaven for that handy little vehicle which goes anywhere and doesn’t get stuck—and Princess anxiously followed our precious cargo to the barn.

Like many cows, especially Angus, Princess is of the opinion that mothering calves is strictly the job of their mothers. She tolerates our interference—she knows he can’t nurse without our aching bodies surrounding her calf, holding him up underneath her—but she’s quite stressed by the entire business, as are we.

On two different occasions, once in the pasture and once in the barn, I had this thought: Name him Shadow. I resisted because “shadow” doesn’t sound very fun and cheery, and besides, it reminded me of a dog a friend had when I was a kid. But then I was led to these two beautiful scriptures (italics mine):

“…In the shadow of Your wings will I take refuge and be confident until calamities and destructive storms are passed.” –PSALM 57:1

“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High shall remain stable and fixed under the shadow of the Almighty….” –PSALM 91:1

Later, after a late night feeding, I opened a book and found myself reading about staying so close to Jesus that our shadow is one with His. So, Shadow it is!

March Hare

Isabelle arrived on the scene this morning, not to the fanfare of a big band but to sparrow songs, not on a red carpet but a bed of straw. Her mama, Annabelle, handled the entire proceedings as if she was a seasoned veteran, not a two-year old novice. She gave birth and licked her baby clean in record time. For her part, Isabelle was on her feet and nursing heartily within 45 minutes of her grand entrance.

Isabelle has Annabelle’s regal nose but, at this point, lacks her mama’s calm and stately composure. In fact, she’s something of a March hare, startling and hopping at the slightest quick movement. It’s no shock to me that Isabelle is such a firecracker because when I was checking Annabelle a few days ago, I saw her belly, flank, and udder quaking from the impact of a number of rapid-fire kicks! Lucky for Isabelle, I’d already named her months ago. Otherwise, I’d be compelled to call her Thumper.

Isabelle, age 3 minutes

“He’ll calm you with His love and delight you with His songs.” –ZEPHANIAH 3:17 (MSG)

More Than Enough

Trooper and Bud, shown cavorting in the photo below, joined their sisters in the pasture yesterday. The young mamas joyfully romped and played along with their calves. A few tears of gratitude filled my eyes when I remembered the song I sang to Trooper when he was struggling to breathe and stand just over two weeks ago:

I see fields of green, skies of blue

Baby calves playing, and Trooper too

And I think to myself, what a wonderful God!

That’s Trooper in the lead. And although they’re tiny, there are some green blades of grass popping up, so the song has come true already.

The chunky all-black calf in the foreground is lucky that we’d already dubbed him Bud. When the calves get up from their naps, they always nurse.  Afterwards, they all gambol about—all, that is, except Bud. Even though his mama has plenty of milk, greedy little Bud still makes the rounds of the other gentle heifers, stealing as much as he can until he’s so full that he plops down to nap again. If the little butterball didn’t already have a name, we’d call him Piggy!

“…God has been good to me and I have more than enough.” –GENESIS 33:11

The Tourists

The two heffies in this photo struck a cherubic pose this afternoon, but they’re not as innocent as they appear. Since Dazzle and Liza are the oldest calves, they and their mamas were the first to be turned out in the pasture yesterday. Well, the mamas went out in the pasture, but these two little free-spirits went here, there, and everywhere, leaving us and their mamas in the dust. Fences didn’t faze them. They’d discovered a big, wide world and fully intended to investigate every inch of it.

I shouldn’t have been surprised. Since day one, Liza has been her own heffie—bold, curious, friendly, and ever busy. She only hangs out with Flame, her mama, when she’s hungry. Last night, Liza was out of the pasture again, checking out the goat shed. She looked in the window and found herself face-to-face with Lolli, the buck. I don’t know if it was his looks, his weird voice, or his smell that scared her, but she high-tailed it back to Flame—for a little while.

The little explorers have stayed contained today, probably because they're just really tired!

Liza (foreground) and Dazzle

“Great is the Lord and highly to be praised; and His greatness is [so vast and deep as to be] unsearchable.” –PSALM 145:3 (AMP)