Author: thefarmingdaughter

Hello! My name is Michaela. I’m a 7th generation dairy farmer living in Western New York. Along with our 400 cows, I raise a flock of laying hens, several hogs, a Polish rabbit named Oreo, and an impish miniature horse named Lucky. I’m a recent home-school graduate and the big sister to seven wonderful siblings. I enjoy working in the barn, public speaking, Civil War reenacting, and reading. If I have any free time you’ll usually find me working on a knitting or sewing project. One day I aspire to thru hike the Appalachian Trail and live for (at least) a year without electricity.

Angelica Civil War Reenactment

September 29, 2015October 2, 2015 thefarmingdaughter7 Comments

The biggest Civil War reenactment doesn’t necessarily make the best. While I’ve enjoyed attending the large and exciting sesquicentennial events the past couple of years, this weekend reminded me just how nice the smaller, local events can be too.

Mason, Addison, and I went to the Angelica Civil War reenactment hosted by the 136th NY. The first reenactment I ever participated in was actually this same event four years ago. It was special to be able to come to this event for the fourth time and camp in the exact same spot where my reenacting adventures began! Tenting next to us were also my good friend Emily, her sister Haley, and their friend Aidan.

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 2 — We were all very serious…

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 3 — …but not for long!

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post ( https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 26 — This was Aidan’s first reenactment! (photo by Emily)

One of the reasons I enjoyed the smaller event size was it afforded better opportunities for interacting with the spectators. On Friday we helped run one of the education stations that local school groups toured. Our station was “Children’s Games and Toys of the 19th Century”. I gave a short talk explaining some the things children during the Civil War entertained themselves with and then we had various toys, including graces, hoop and stick, Jacob’s ladder, drafts, ball and cup, etc., for the kids to play with.

We also ran the same station the next day for the Boy Scout troops that came. I was talking to one of the scouts later and was shocked to learn that they drive each year all the way from Massachusetts for this event!!

I brought the orphan kitten that I’m raising, Koda, to the event. She also had fun playing with the toys!

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 4 — (photo by Emily)

The combination of kitten and toys at our camp attracted several children, and Haley, Mason, and Aidan had a nice time playing with them all.

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post ( https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 20 — Bobby was adorable in his accurate 19th century attire

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post ( https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 21 — (photo by Emily)

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post ( https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 22 — (photo by Emily)

Mason hauling wood like a true 19th century gentleman (photo by Emily)

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post ( https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 24 — I had a nice time discussing the Battle of Cold Harbor with one of our guys, Mr. John

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post ( https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 25 — Civil War selfie 🙂

Another opportunity I had for sharing some of my knowledge of the period was Saturday afternoon. I was working on preparing a supper of chicken pot pie and a group of spectators stopped by to watch. I was able to have a very nice conversation with them about what I was doing, how my pie differed from an actual 19th century pie (not killing the chicken myself, for one thing), and food preservation during the 19th century. I love how smaller reenactments help you to get “up close and personal” with the public.

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 8 — Addie assisting with supper

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 10 — Part of supper cooking

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 5 — Made from scratch chicken pot pie ready to be baked in the dutch oven

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 6 — Baked to perfection

Saturday evening we attended one of our favorite events, the dance! I had asked Addison to do a simpler style for my hair the previous days, but she insisted on making it fancy for the dance. She did a lovely job!

I then did Addie’s hair. She has such a large amount of hair, that any style ends up looking epic!

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 15 — Sisters ready to dance their shoes off! (photo by Emily)

Every year the dance is held in the Grange building. The low levels of light, crowd of dancers, and wood floors make for the perfect 19th century atmosphere.

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 16 — The dance (photo by Emily)

The Farming Daughter: Angelica Civil War Reenactment New Blog Post (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/28/angelica-civil-war-reenactment/) 18 — Cooking breakfast Sunday morning (photo by Emily)

Sunday after church I had a lovely time visiting my friends Allison and Stephen at their new sutlery (what the shops in tents at reenactments are called). Allison sold me a lovely belt buckle that perfectly suits my tastes, pretty and nice without being too flashy, and Stephen helped fulfill a dream of mine by selling me my own bound copy of Godey’s!! The book is from 1857 and contains all of the issues of Godey’s Ladies’ Book from that year. I can’t wait until I have some time to sit down and explore it thoroughly!

It was a lovely weekend, and a good reminder that smaller events can be fun too!

Many of the pictures in this post were taken by my friend Emily. Be sure to check out her blog post here about the weekend to see more of her beautiful pictures!

-Michaela “The Farming Daughter”

Last Days of Summer Dinner

September 16, 2015September 16, 2015 thefarmingdaughter2 Comments

When summer’s end is nighing
And skies at evening cloud,
I muse on change and fortune
And all the feats I vowed
When I was young and proud.

From hill and cloud and heaven
The hues of evening died;
Night welled through lane and hollow
And hushed the countryside,
But I had youth and pride.

The year might age, and cloudy
The lessening day might close,
But air of other summers
Breathed from beyond the snows,
And I had hope of those.

So here’s an end of roaming
On eves when autumn nighs:
The ear too fondly listens
For summer’s parting sighs,
And then the heart replies.

-Selection from A.E. Housman’s “When Summer’s End is Nighing”

Only one week until the Autumnal Equinox! Last night I decided to make a meal in honor of the end of summer with grilled kabobs, roasted sweet corn, and a skillet chocolate chip cookie. Everything turned out so delicious I thought I would share the recipes here.

Kabobs

About eight hours before you want to cook you should start marinating the kabob meat. The marinade I used is a my own variation of the allrecipes.com marinade that you can find here. I used chicken, but any meat you prefer would probably work fine. This was enough marinade for about 4 chicken breasts.

Cube your meat into chunks about 1.5 x 1.5″ square. For the marinade you need:

1 cup oil (I used 1/2 cup canola oil and 1/2 cup cilantro and roasted onion infused EVOO)

3/4 cup soy sauce (I used Bragg Liquid Aminos)

1/3 cup lemon juice

1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup southwest spicy mustard

1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper

1 teaspoon seasoning salt

4 cloves minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

Mix all of the marinade ingredients together. Put the cubed meat into a gallon sized Ziploc bag and pour the marinade over top (make sure that all the meat is covered). Seal the Ziploc bag and place in a glass container (in case the bag accidentally leaks). Marinate in the refrigerator for 8 hours.

When you are ready to cook the kabobs cut up some of your favorite grilling veggies (I used onions and sweet peppers). Alternate threading a veggie and a piece of meat onto your skewers. Cook on the grill using medium heat. Halfway through cooking flip the kabobs over so both sides get a nice sear.

Roasted Sweet Corn

About eight hours before you want to start cooking you need to start soaking your ears of corn. Leave all of the husks on and put the corn in a waterproof container (I used a large, plastic Rubbermaid tote). Fill the container with enough water to cover the corn. The corn will float, so you’ll need to put a heavy weight on top to keep it under the water. A cinder block did the trick for me.

If you’re having trouble finding fresh sweet corn at the grocery store this late in the season try looking for a roadside stand that sells it. Most commercial sweet corn growers plant their sweet corn under rows of plastic and use irrigation to have it ready as early in the year as possible. This also means that the sweet corn is done sooner. If you can find someone local who just grows a little bit of sweet corn in their backyard you might be able to find it this late in the year.

At least two hours before you’re ready to cook the sweet corn start building your fire. Your object is to get a bed of nice hot coals to cook the corn over. Roast the corn on a grate over your bed of coals, turning it once with a pair of tongs to make sure both sides of the corn are evenly cooked. When ready to eat, husk the corn and serve with butter.

Skillet Chocolate Chip Cookie

The recipe for the cookie is just the original Nestle Toll House chocolate chip cookie recipe, but I’ll put it in so all of the recipes are together.

1 cup of butter (2 sticks)

3/4 cup brown sugar

3/4 cup white sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 1/4 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 package (2 cups) semisweet chocolate chips

Cream the butter and sugars together. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt and mix. Stir in the chocolate chips. Spread the dough in a greased 10″ cast iron skillet. Bake in a 350°F oven for 25-30 minutes. Use a toothpick to test for doneness. You wan the edges of the cookie to be golden brown. It’s OK if the center is still slightly gooey because the cast iron retains heat for a while and will continue to “cook” the cookie even after you take it out of the oven. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

-Michaela “The Farming Daughter”

Full Circle

September 13, 2015 thefarmingdaughter9 Comments

I went backpacking for the first time about eight years ago. Some friends of our family, the Maybrays, kindly offered to take me along with them on a trip and I enthusiastically accepted.

Looking at photos from that trip I see a lanky, twelve year old version of me smiling a mouthful of braces. I didn’t have hiking boots (still don’t, actually) so I wore a pair of sneakers. My outfit consisted of a pink synthetic shirt and a pair of jogging pants found at Target. My pack was an old external frame thrift store find and didn’t even have a hip belt, so we jerry-rigged a fanny pack and piece of nylon webbing to go around my waist. We didn’t see any animals more exciting than a chipmunk and probably hiked less than five miles, but you know what? I had a blast. And ever since that trip, I’ve been hooked on backpacking.

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle 2 https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ — Me on my first backpacking trip

I’ve gone on several more trips with the Maybrays, and last year my brother Marcus was able to come along too.

Last week I had the opportunity to bring three of my siblings on a short overnight backpacking trip. This was Mason’s first overnight hike, and just like I was, he is only twelve years old.

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle 1 https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ — Marcus (14 yrs.), Mason (12 yrs.), and Addison (16 yrs.)

As I was reflecting on the trip I realized that my backpacking adventures have come “full circle”. I started out as the inexperienced novice, hungrily soaking up information. Then, I was knowledgeable enough to give some gear and packing advice to my brother for his first trip. And now, I was able to do what the Maybrays did for me, take an excited twelve year old on their first backpacking trek! It felt wonderful, and a great tribute to what the Maybrays did for me, to take what they had taught me and “pay it forward”. Maybe someday Mason will be able to use what he’s learned from me and introduce another person to backpacking!

We hiked a section of the North Country Trail/Finger Lakes Trail that winds through the Stevenson Forest Preserve, Rieman Woods, and Robert H. Treman State Park. The terrain was fairly easy, with some steep ascents that were moderately challenging. Our biggest obstacle to overcome was the heat that soared into the nineties!

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle 3 https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ — I told Mom we should take a group picture before we headed out and she thought it was a good idea. “Plus,” I said, “then you can use the photo for identification purposes in case we get lost and don’t come back!” (Note: not the best thing to tell your mother.)

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 25 — Mason

We ate a lunch of cheese sticks, beef jerky, crackers, trail mix, and peanut butter cookies in the Rieman Woods camping area. Backpackers can bivouac in this spot, but there is no water nearby.

About 2.6 miles into our hike we came upon this sign:

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 8 — Just take note that if you’re hiking this trail the detour adds almost a mile onto the hike.

The detour also forced us to walk off the trail and along the roadside more, but since we were out of the woods we also saw some better views:

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 6 — While hiking past Hines Road we crossed a field with a beautiful historic barn that has been renovated into an event center known as the Treman Center. (For more info click here.)

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 10 — Anybody know what kind of flower this is?

We had to cross Fish Kill Creek, so we stopped for a short break to allow me to soak my still-recovering sprained ankle in the cold water. Marcus entertained himself in the meantime with taking funny pictures on my phone 🙂

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 12 — Mason and Marcus

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 16 — “Bridge Unsafe”

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 17 — Ya’ think?! 😀

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 19 — Photo by Addie

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 21 — This was my first time using my new Osprey Ariel 65 pack. After I use it some more to thoroughly test it out I’ll do a review post, but so far I’m really loving it 🙂

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 22 — Cooking dinner, on a cat food can stove no less.

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 23 — Pack explosion while making dinner.

The Farming Daughter: Full Circle https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/09/12/full-circle/ 24 — Me and the boys

Trail hiked: North Country Trail/Finger Lakes Trail from Stevenson Forest Preserve to Robert H. Treman State Park

Miles hiked: 10

Temperature: 90° F

Maps used: Finger Lakes Trail Conference Map 16 (liked the actual map in this), CNY Hiking trail description (liked the land mark descriptions in this)

Information:

CNY Hiking FLT – Free topo maps of the trail and land mark descriptions

Finger Lakes Trail Conference – They have standard maps for purchase, as well as instant downloads. The one you want is Map 16.

-Michaela “The Farming Daughter”

Jurassic World

August 8, 2015 thefarmingdaughter1 Comment

As administrator of Jurassic World, Claire Dearing has a lot on her plate. Maintaining a 90% approval rating for a park of twenty thousand people isn’t easy, especially when T. Rexs just aren’t wowing the crowds like they used to. And, of course, we don’t want an incident like “the last time”. Not to worry though, the park’s newest attraction, a lab created dino hybrid, is sure to scare the kids…and their parents.

When Zach and Gray come to visit, Claire is a little too preoccupied to have quality auntie/nephew bonding time. Besides, it’s not like she hasn’t seen them in seven years. Oh wait, she hasn’t. Ah well, with VIP passes and Claire’s English assistant to act as nanny, the boys should be fine, even if Zach tends to be rather overbearing to his enthusiastic little brother.

Everything does seem to be going well, until Indominus Rex decides she isn’t content to simply sit back and attract the tourists. The dino begins displaying attributes and intelligence far beyond what her creators ever imagined, and is soon running rampant through the park, with the expected ensuing destruction and chaos. It’s then up to Claire, Zach, Gray, and raptor-handler and former Navy man Owen, to stop I. Rex before it’s too late.

My granny took Addie, Mason, and I to see Jurassic World and we really did enjoy the classic Jurassic experience of chills and thrills. The movie also makes some good points about family and priorities. Self assured Claire is completely consumed with her job, leaving little time or respect for others (on Claire and Owen’s first, and only, date, Claire wrote an itinerary for them to follow). As dinosaurs begin to rampage, however, she learns the importance of depending on and accepting help from others. Likewise, Zach is churlish and impatient with his exuberant younger sibling. It’s only until his and Gray’s lives are at stake that he realizes how much he loves his little brother and begins to defend and comfort Gray.

I also appreciated the parts that pondered the ethics of creating such a fearsome creature as Indominus Rex. When Claire is hesitant to use real bullets on the berserk dinosaur, saying she doesn’t want to turn the park into a war zone, Owen points out, “You already have.”

Of course the movie has its share of issues, not least of which is the amount of violence subjected to the audience. A film whose basic plot is a dinosaur running amok in an amusement park is bound to contain destruction and mayhem, but Jurassic World seems to delight in showing us every possible way a human can be killed by a dino. People are crushed, tossed, smashed, clawed, and eaten at a frightening rate, many of them unprotected park goers. And while I’m sure the young man sitting next to us appreciated the excuse to wrap his girlfriend with a reassuring arm, it left me thinking.

Does the movie really need that much brutality and bloodshed? I know it’s an action/adventure dinosaur film, but the makers seemed to delight in showing us gratuitous violence. “It’s just a movie,” some people might say, and they’re right. But the things we feed our minds will shape who we are. Maybe watching an overly violent film isn’t going to hurt us, but what happens when violence in films becomes accepted and even expected? Aren’t we in danger of being left desensitized and calloused?

Claire explained how people were no longer satisfied with normal dinosaurs. Consumers want them “bigger, louder, with more teeth”, she says. Maybe we’ve become the same with our movies. But when will we say enough is enough? And will it be before we get consumed?

-The Farming Daughter

Fire on the Fourth!

July 4, 2015July 5, 2015 thefarmingdaughter5 Comments

35 years ago today marks a Fourth of July my family will never forget. While other families were enjoying the usual Independence Day festivities, my family was experiencing fireworks of a different sort.

The day before, July 3rd, had been good weather, and my dad, Grandpa, Grandma, and Uncle Chuck were busy making hay. By day’s end, they had finished filling the barn hay mow completely full. This is what the farm looked like then:

The Farming Daughter: Fire on the Fourth 1 (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/07/04/fire-on-the-fourth/) — An aerial photograph of our farm before the fire

The next day started like normal, with everyone helping to do morning chores and milking together. Back then we milked our cows in stanchions, which meant that each cow stood in her own stall and the milking machine was brought to her. At 7:30 am the first group of cows had finished being milked and had been let out to pasture. Just before the second group of cows was let into the milking stalls, someone, either Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Chuck, or Dad, noticed a red glow radiating from the hay mow chute. With a sinking feeling, they all realized what it was. It was one of the worst things a farm can every experience…fire!

Our farm would look idyllic, if it wasn't for the cloud of smoke pouring from our barn — Our farm would look idyllic, if it wasn’t for the cloud of smoke pouring from the barn.

The first thing a farmer thinks of in a situation like that is his cows. The men immediately shooed all of the milking cows out of the barn, and as many of the heifers as they could. Grandma, in the urgency of the situation, forgot there was a telephone in the barn, and dashed to the house to call 911.

I asked my grandparents how long it took for the fire trucks to arrive and they told me it felt like an eternity. The actual time was probably 15-20 minutes, and soon eight fire companies were working hard to put out the blaze.

The fire trucks pumped water from our pond to put out the flames:

My dad was 15 years old at the time of the fire and I asked him if he was scared. He said there was too much to do to have time to be afraid.

Thankfully, all of the milking cows made it out of the barn and all but 4 of the heifers. While it’s heartbreaking that we lost those 4 girls, in truth we were very blessed to have lost so few.

The cows stand in the pasture, completely unaffected by the drama happening behind them. — The cows stand in the pasture, unaffected by the drama happening behind them.

Whenever I hear the story of the fire what stands out the most to me is the number of people that showed up. Dad tells me how literally hundreds of people came to help. In this photo you can see the barn burning and the dozens of cars lining our road and stretching around the corner:

At 1:30 pm, while the barn was still burning, bulldozers and pay loaders began tearing down the wreckage and loading it into dump trucks. The rubble was hauled down the road and dumped behind a generous neighbor’s barn in a pile. A fire truck had to be stationed by the pile to hose the smoking debris so it wouldn’t start on fire again.

Not only is it sad for me to see the destroyed barn, but also the piles of burned hay that had just been stacked in the mow the day before.

Of course just because the barn was on fire didn’t mean the cows didn’t need milked anymore. Don Beck, Inc. came and started putting in a new milking pipeline in an undamaged part of the barn, while the rest of the barn was still burning and and being hauled away. By 7 pm half of the cows were taken to a neighbor’s farm and the other half were being milked in our barn. In the midst of a fire we were milking cows again, without having missed a single milking.

Bec's equipment vans showed up to put in a new milk pipeline — Beck’s equipment vans showed up to put in a new milk pipeline

We never found out for sure what caused the fire. Some speculate a “hot spot” in the new hay or a spark from the hay conveyor could have been the cause. In one day we lost an entire barn, a mow full of hay, 61 stalls, a milk pipeline, and 4 animals. 3 months later the barn was completely built back.

The Farming Daughter: Fire on the Fourth 11 (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/07/04/fire-on-the-fourth/) — The old barn and the new

To me the story of our barn fire illustrates some of the core values of the farming community: the courage of the firefighters that risked their lives to save the rest of our barns and our house, the neighbors that came from miles to lend a helping hand, the generosity of fellow farmers offering their barns and equipment, and the indomitable spirit of my uncle, grandparents, and father when they chose not to accept defeat, but to pick up the pieces and rebuild.

The Fourth of July barn fire is just a small part of my family’s story, but the lessons it taught are not. What have you learned from your family history?

-The Farming Daughter

Valentine Flats

June 14, 2015 thefarmingdaughter12 Comments

Far have I traveled and much have I seen,

Dark distant mountains with valleys of green.

“Mull of Kintyre” by Paul McCartney

Dear me! I’m rather far behind posting about some of the adventures I’ve been having. I think I’ve just been too busy having the adventures (and working on the farm, and being a big sister, etc.) to post about them. I’ll attempt to post about what I’ve been up to, starting today with a day hike I did in April.

I went hiking, together with two of my brothers (Marcus and Mason), my cousin Christopher, and our family friend Professor Allan, to Valentine Flats, a part of the 3,014 acre Zoar Valley Multiple Use Area. I had never been there before, but after seeing the steep cliffs, waterfalls, and the creek I absolutely plan on going back.

After meeting up with the rest of our group, we hiked down the steep trail leading into the gorge. Sixty years ago there used to be a farm on the flat land in the valley, and this trail was the former access road to the farm. It was amazing to see how thick and tangled the trees were in an area that had not long ago been cleared farm land. All that remained was the stone foundation of the farm house and a bit of the barn foundation. It reminds me of a verse from Ecclesiastes that says, “A generation goes and a generation comes, but the earth remains forever.”

After the farmhouse ruins, we hiked through the woods and flat flood plain to the Cattaraugus Creek. Near the upper end of the flats we saw a plain tombstone marked “Thomas Dutton”. In the fall of 1826, Thomas Dutton was traveling near the creek on his way to Ashford and was, presumably, drowned. His body was found washed ashore the next spring about 1600 feet downstream. It was impossible for the coroner, Ahaz Allen, to determine, but it was reputed that since the $400 and silver watch Thomas had been carrying were never found he had been killed by a thief.

Thomas Dutton's tombstone — Thomas Dutton’s tombstone

The area of the creek that we saw was at the confluence of the south and main branches of Cattaraugus Creek.

This was the second hike that I used my new Columbia Vixen day pack. I am in love with it and hope to do a review post soon.

The cliffs — Some of the cliffs in Zoar Valley are over 400 feet tall.

Marcus is going on a week long backpacking trip in July so he wore his new Jansport Klamath pack to test it out. Mr. Allan decided to try it on for size too.

While we were down at the creek we saw a group of white water rafters float past. It looked exciting and fun; I hope to do it some day!

While we were hiking Mr. Allan, ever the instructive professor, amused and engrossed me by expounding on the difficulties the first settlers faced when journeying through these dense woods. He had me imagine what it would be like to be a pioneer wife traveling with my husband and several young children, with all of our scanty possessions in one wagon. It was much easier to envision myself struggling through this arduous terrain when I was actually walking in it myself.

How would one get a wagon and ox team down this hill? — How would you get a wagon and ox team down this hill?!

I also noticed these Red Trillium and Coltsfoot blooming. It was so nice to see flowers again finally!

I had a great time at Valentine Flats and would definitely recommend the trail to others!

-The Farming Daughter

150th Appomattox

May 29, 2015May 29, 2015 thefarmingdaughter6 Comments

Before us in proud humiliation stood the embodiment of manhood: men whom neither toils and sufferings, not the fact of death, nor disaster, nor hopelessness could bend from their resolve; standing before us now, thin, worn, and famished, but erect, and with eyes looking level into ours, waking memories that bound us together as no other bond; — was not such manhood to be welcomed back into a Union so tested and assured?

“The Passing of the Armies” by Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain

Last month, Addie and I attended the 150th anniversary reenactment of the Battle of Appomattox Court House and the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia. It was slightly bittersweet, not only for the events we were portraying, but also because this is one of the last sesquicentennial reenactments. However, we were able to meet up with some reenacting friends, participate in some special scenarios, and in general had a lovely time.

The obligatory photo of Addie’s tresses…her hair is getting so long!

When planning our meals I decided I wanted to try something new. Allison had told me about cooking “standing meat pies” at Genesee Country Village and they sounded interesting. Then I found this recipe and video from James Townsend & Sons and decided to give it a try. The crust has the same ingredients as a regular pie crust, but you boil the butter and water and knead the dough vigorously. This makes the crust strong and tough. You can eat it if you choose, but the main purpose is to have a sturdy, portable, individual sized bowl and lid.

James Townsend recommends pork shoulder for the filling, but I used a cubed ham steak instead. I also opted to use unflavored gelatin, a bullion cube, and water for the lear (gravy) instead of a boiled pig’s foot.

I made the pork pies at home, and then we rewarmed them for dinner in the dutch oven. A rather gusty rainstorm came as we were just about to eat, so we hastened to the tent to consume our supper.

This is what happens when your creative little sister is bored being stuck in the tent waiting for the rain to stop…she makes flowers out of her apron.

Saturday evening we were privileged to participate in a scenario serving rations to the Confederate troops. When the Army of Northern Virginia surrendered the troops had not eaten for several days. General Grant agreed to supply food, and sent 25,000 rations to the starving soldiers. As far as I know, the rations were not fresh ham, soft bread, and hot coffee served by ladies at tables covered in tablecloths, but it was nice to be able to be a part of the event and celebrate the re-union of a divided nation.

150th Appomattox: Feeding the Confederates 2 (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/05/18/150th-appomattox/) — *Photo by Julianne Herman*

Here is a sketch by British illustrator Alfred Waud, who was actually at the surrender, of Union and Confederate soldiers sharing rations:

150th Appomattox: Sharing rations (https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/05/29/150th-appomattox/) — “The soldiers sharing rations” by Alfred Waud from Library of Congress

After serving rations Addie and I went to the dance. The issue with this reenactment was (like most of the big 150th events) everything was very far away. We counted our steps and it was over 1/4 mile just to walk to the bathrooms and back! There were no shuttles to get to the dance so we had to walk over a mile there and a mile back.

The next morning we had agreed to help repeat the ration scenario at the Appomattox Court House National Historical Park. After the dance we tumbled into bed around midnight and slept until my abominable alarm jerked us out of our slumber at 4 am. We seriously considered if this was worth waking up for, but we decided it was a once in a lifetime event and hurriedly dressed. It took us exactly 1 hour, which for 2 girls to get fully dressed in 19th century garb, in a tent, in the pitch black, and do our hair was quite a speed record in my opinion!

I thought the park would just be the court house and Wilmer McLean’s house (where the surrender took place) but it’s actually a entire restored village of the town of Appomattox Court House. I highly recommend visiting if you’re ever in the area.

Addie serving coffee:

When we returned to camp we ate breakfast and then Addie decided to take a nap. The guys wanted her to come watch the surrender ceremony but she decided she could “only go to some many once-in-a-lifetime events in one day”. I decided I would go though, and hiked another mile to the shuttle that would take us back to Appomattox Court House.

The guys formed up:

I don’t think I can sufficiently describe what the surrender ceremony was like. Part of that is probably because I was wandering around in a sleep-deprived fog, but also because moments like that have to be experienced to be understood. I want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to all of the soldiers who participated. This scenario could have come off as contrived, affected, or hollow, but instead the level of professionalism and focus to authentically recreating the actual event made for an emotionally moving display. Especial thanks is due to the Confederate reenactors. You guys have an incredible knowledge and understanding of what the real Southern soldiers went through, and I’m sure this was difficult for some of you to perform. I saw tears in the eyes of many of both the “boys in gray” and the “boys in blue”.

The Confederates marching up through the Union lines:

Forming up into ranks:

Stack arms for the last time:

Marching away:

A few of my guys:

Sgt. Clarence:

And this is what happens when you dance all night, get only 4 hours of sleep, feed 500 Confederates, and walk 10 miles:

-The Farming Daughter

(Header photo is the Wilmer McLean house from Library of Congress.)

Hello, My Name Is…

April 24, 2015April 24, 2015 thefarmingdaughterLeave a comment

Did you know that every cow on our farm has a name?

This is my calf, True-North Shan Poppy-RED PO, or “Poppy” for short.

Each of our cows is “registered” with a breed association. Their identification, genealogy, owners, and genetic information is recorded and a certificate of registration is given to us. Just like all of our cows, Poppy was given a unique name when she was registered. Here is a picture of Poppy’s registration paper:

So how do we decide on our cows’ names, and why are they so long?

Every cows’ name starts with something called a “prefix”. Most farms have their own registered prefix that they use when registering all of their cattle. My family farm’s prefix is Richmond-FD (it stands for Richmond Farms Dairy) and almost all of our cows have names beginning with that. A few years ago I applied for my own personal prefix to use for my cows. My prefix is True-North, and only cows where I am listed as the original owner (called the breeder) can have a name that starts with it. Prefixes are quite neat because it helps you instantly recognize who the breeder of the cow was. Some prefixes, like Regancrest, Budjon, Hanover Hill, and Round Oak have become legendary.

So now we know why Poppy’s name starts with True-North, what about the next part? Well, we usually try to incorporate parts of both the sire’s (father’s) and dam’s (mother’s) name into the offspring’s name. Since Poppy’s sire’s name is Alampco Shanosber I put Shan in Poppy’s name as a nod to her sire.

Poppy's sire: Hello My Name Is...How we name cows on our farm https://thefarmingdaughter.com/2015/04/23/hello-my-name-is/) — Poppy’s sire (dad): Alampco Shanosber *(from the Alampco website)*

The “Poppy” part of Poppy’s name took some consideration. We often choose a theme to name each cow family tree after. Poppy’s family theme is flowers. Her dam (mother) is named Jonquil, her grand-dam (grandmother) was named Sunflower, and her great-grand-dam (great-grandmother) was named Daisy. I decided on “Poppy” because, not only is it one of my favorite flowers, but since Poppy has red spots, I thought a red flower name would be perfect for that.

The last part of Poppy’s name, the RED and PO, are suffixes added by the breed association. RED indicates that Poppy is a special kind of Holstein known as “Red & White” and has red spots instead of black. The PO is an abbreviation for “polled”. Polled means that an animal is naturally without horns, and will never grow them.

True-North Shan Poppy-RED PO.

Now you know how we name the cows on our farm. Their care is important to us, even down to the little detail of naming!

-The Farming Daughter

P.S. I apologize to all of you who received the email notification several days ago before the post was finished. I accidentally hit “publish” prematurely. 😛

“Ain’t We Got Fun” Cover Reveal

April 17, 2015 thefarmingdaughter3 Comments

My friend Emily Ann (author of It Took a War) is publishing another book with her friend Emily Chapman! The story was originally featured on their blogs as a series of letters between two sisters during the Great Depression. Now, the letters are being released in book format on May 25th!

1935: It was never much of an issue for Bess: living contentedly on her family’s farm, despite the Depression which loomed around them. But when her older sister Georgiana takes off to New York City to make a fortune and help Papa out, feelings of adventure and wanderlust strike Bess at home. Through their lively letter correspondence, the sisters recount to one another their adventures, surprises, and heartaches, leaving little room for depression. For in a world of such wonder, ain’t we got fun?

Emily Ann Putzke and Gi Rowland have two big things in common – their love for God and coffee. Besides writing historical fiction, Emily enjoys being an aunty, photography, Irish dancing, spending time with family, attempting to play the guitar, reenacting, and reading. She loves polka dots, war movies, and all things vintage. Her first novella, It Took a War, was published in December of 2014.

EMILY CHAPMAN, also known as Bess Rowland, is a young hobbit living in the dear old South, and she is entirely bonkers. She’s a dreamer, an optimistic pessimist, and an introverted people person. Blue skies, dancing, Disney, and whipped cream make her happy, and she swears she’s been to Narnia. She’s been a reader all her life, became a writer because of that, and published her first novel, Cry of Hope, in March of 2014. But without her Savior, all of this would mean nothing. It is in Him that she puts her hope. “And hope does not disappoint us, for God has poured out His love into hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us.” – Romans 5: 5