Jill's Journal: How cute are these guys? I mean, seriously. Baby cows – any baby farm animals, really – are just so stinkin’ adorable.
My parents live far from Hemet these days, but they had some business to take care of in Hemet a few days ago and combined it with a visit to their grandkids. We had a super day, capped by a “field trip” to a dairy farm. Hemet has a rich dairy culture. I grew up around it – so much so that I never knew dairies smelled until this return trip after being away -- and I knew the girls needed an introduction. My Dad sells bull semen to dairies all over Central and Southern California (how’s that for a conversation piece at a cocktail party?) and was kind enough to bring us to Scott Brothers Dairy just outside of Hemet in neighboring San Jacinto. Scott Bros. has been in San Jacinto since the 1970s and milks over 1,000 head of Holsteins daily.
First Grandpa showed the girls a milk barn. Look at Erika’s face…she is fascinated and amazed and enthralled! She desperately wants to learn how to milk a cow.
Then it was off to the calving pen. We just missed a birth. This little one was still wet and the mama hadn’t passed the placenta yet.
Another newborn calf. So cute.
Erika especially adored the calves. Add calves to the long, long list of animals she’d like to have one day. It starts with horses, of course, and runs the gamut from pigs to quail and just about everything in between.
There were plenty to pick from!
No, they’re not bound for veal. This is how calves on dairies are raised.
Victoria latched on to a friendly little calf. Allegedly, I used to let the calves suck on my long braids when I was a child. Victoria offered up her fingers instead. Much wiser. With her blonde hair, she could easily pass for one of the plethora of Dutch dairy kids in the area.
Madelyn found a friend too. She usually prefers smaller animals, but this calf was right up her alley. She doesn’t share her sisters’ extreme love of horses and big dogs, but give her a cat or a little dog and she’s found bliss.
Feeding time!
How these girls loved their moments on a dairy. Thanks so much to my Dad and to the very kind Brad Scott for hosting us.
P.S. Drink milk!
2 comments:
I never knew that Hemet had a particular smell either until high school when visiting volleyball teams complained about being assaulted by it as their bus came down into the valley from Lambs Canyon. I just think it smells like home. I insist on taking the family to the fair every year just so I can stand in the animal barns & breathe it in. Scott used to think I was off my rocker, but now he just steps aside & lets me have my moment. I'm glad your girls are being properly exposed to the important things in life. ;)
SO FUNNY!! I used to defend to the death the idea that dairies don't stink!! Granted, I have a little more mercy now for city slickers, but to me, it just smells like home... Just the other day, we were with friends on a ranch, and they were complaining it stunk. I just breathed deeply with a big ol' smile on my face. :) Aaaah... home...
p.s. If you see Betty & Art while you're there, please give them a hug for me!! I miss them...
~Jennifer
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