Two Sparrows Farm

Rainy day baby 🌧️
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Jolene dropped this gorgeous bull calf *just* in between a the rounds of rain yesterday 🤗
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We had the perfect amount of time to scoop him and get him into a calf hutch with fresh straw, get mama milked and a calcium pill before going right into evening chores. 👍
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The skies finally opened on our farm today and we are so grateful! 🥰
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We were able to get all of our freshly-made bales into the barn last night and the rain is much-needed for our grazed and mowed pastures. 🌱
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The blue skies will return, but like any good Michigander, I was happy to see some gray skies and rain fall. 🌧️
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1st cutting of hay is pretty much in the books…kind of 😅
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Due to a number of equipment issues and the variable drying time that happened this week, most of our 1st cutting was made into dry round bales (not the high-moisture wet wrapped bales we normally make!) so we have quite a bit of work still to do moving the bales up to the barn and getting them put away. 😬
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But, all of the first cutting is done on the home farm 🙌 And, we now have new rear tires on the tractor 😜 We also may need to replace the thermostat/temperature regulator on the tractor😢
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We still have to cut our rented fields in June, but we have a brief pause for now. 😊 Mainly, to fix the tractor and get our dry bales under a roof before it rains. 🤷‍♀️
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The good news is that Dan saved a turkey nest while mowing 🥰 We have an amazing stretch of dry weather to work with, and, it’s peony season 😍
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Baby born Saturday morning!! 😍
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Healthy Hereford cross bull calf - he was up nursing in the pasture when I found him. 💪
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🌱 The grass was a little stunted in the cold weather but we’re hoping with some heat & rain, we can salvage more quantity for our 1st hay cutting!
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Every day is busy in this season! 😃 After an early milking, fresh cow/calf & rotating pastures on Saturday we were at a soccer game 40 minutes away then dropping kids at a birthday party…and we celebrated our 17th wedding anniversary by getting caught up cleaning the house & yard 🥳🤦‍♀️
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We *did* share an iced coffee at the soccer game so that kinda counts as a date, right?! 😂
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Still waiting on those pastures to dry out so we can graze…🌱 thanks to more rain 💦
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In the meantime, this heifer was born this week & she’s a pretty cute consolation prize 😍
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Happy Earth Day!! 🌎
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Our pastures are READY to graze but the cows are still, unfortunately, confined the cement still. 😕
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The ground is SO saturated with water that allowing any amount of weight on them will cause issues - hooves punch holes in the ground causing bumps and compaction. 😳
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Since we don’t till (ever) we don’t have a lot of options to fix soil compaction beyond planting an annual like daikon radishes and letting them rot in the ground - as they break down they create space to battle compacted soil.
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That’s not something we’re really set up for so we are waiting until the ground is ready for 20 - 25,000 lbs of pressure in small areas (just for our lactating herd!) 🌱
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It’s likely that we will start grazing and begin our first cutting of hay around the same time - the grass will be tall enough to mow around the same time the ground dries out to run cows and equipment on. 🐄
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In the meantime we are all loving the sunshine and warmth!! We’ve waited so long for spring!! 🌷
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Perfecting ice cream flavors this weekend 😋 No eggs needed - this recipe is quick!
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Raw Milk Coffee w/Organic Cookies & Cream 🍦
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✔️4 cups fresh raw cream
✔️ 1 Tablespoon Vanilla
✔️ 3/4 cup organic cane sugar
✔️ 2 Tablespoons instant {decaf} coffee
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Combine ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate for 15 minutes to let the coffee “brew” a bit ☕️
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Pour into ice cream maker for 20 min or until desired consistency. Crush organic Oreo’s while the ice cream is still churning and eat all of it immediately 🤣
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Wrapping up the week with lots of eggs, moving milk and making butter 🧈
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Plus, taking care of babies & their mamas 💕
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We have a few good leads on a new weekday milker thanks to our last post - and thank you to everyone who shared it! 😊
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Yes, we’re hiring 💙 Please read the FULL description ‼️
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I’m looking for a part-time milker on Monday mornings - Tuesday is also available but optional. We need someone who is here on a weekly basis, familiar with the farm, cows, how everything runs and can pick up more hours as part of a team when we want to take time off
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This is a year-round position (not seasonal) and we work in all weather conditions - hot, dry, wet, cold, snow, mud, flies. You name it.
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You will be pooped and/or peed on at some point- hopefully by a cow. 😜
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We need someone who can follow protocols with attention to detail, especially for sanitation and hygiene, can work independently, and can follow directions closely.
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Ability to lift 50 lbs required, be able to communicate clearly and directly. Reliable transportation aka required.
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Optional (for additional pay) would be learning calf chores, moving milk, rotating pastures, etc.
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We pay $100 per milking (approx 2.5-3 hours) and start time is generally between 8 and 9 am.
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I am flexible with start dates but must be available to train thru the summer with a hard start of September
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Please DM if you have questions or would like to connect. We generally have people milk with us as a trial before a concrete offer - don’t be offended. This just isn’t everyone’s cup of tea and it’s better to find out sooner rather than later. 😝
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It’s been a productive spring break!! ☀️
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New babies + spring cleanup + daily farm tasks 💚
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It’s GREENing up a ton around here but we aren’t anywhere near grazing yet. But we have *hope* of grazing in another month or so 🤞
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