What to do

[Marshall]

I am working a full time job(fortunatly), farming a few acres, oldest daughter is taking riding lessons, and I am getting kind of tired of not having any spare time. I like the farming and all but am wondering if I should just raise enough corn and oats for my animals and rent the rest out. I have been buying hay anyways so the rent money could be used for that. I would like to have more time to spend with the kids and do things like dutch oven cooking and using the forge to try (note I said try) and make a few things. On the other hand I am having a hard time with the not farming thing as I like to do that also. What are your thoughts?

[mitchmaine]

hey marshall, tough one. what would you do with your kids when you got a chance to spend extra time with them? if the raised a beef, or got into hens or something, you could still be farming as well. help you on the forge or something. don’t know. just throwing out ideas. they didn’t work for me, just sayin’

[dominiquer60]

Prioritizing life is always a challenge. There is no simple fix for something like what you are dealing with Marshall. Sometimes it is best to listen to your gut feelings on something. I have had to make some big decisions in the last year and I followed my gut and that has led me to some good places, still a rough road, but a more enjoyable one with one heck of a future ahead.

If you can get the kids involved with the farm stuff they will be better people for it, even if it they don’t stick with it forever.

[bdcasto]

Farming can be flexible or oppressive especially with off farm full time work. I will admit Marshall, I have considered just mowing the whole place more than once but glad I didn’t give in. Basically we keep a small farm for lots of reasons but one priority is to teach the kids to work. Don’t know how old your kids are but children can easily take care of poultry once housing is built. Same thing for larger animals if you have good fence. I prefer to keep animals because when things get oppressive, we just butcher our stock and then take a break while the freezer is full. Children can be trained pretty early to be safe with knives and butcher the poultry and even do tractor work. I have found that giving the kids Sundays off gives me a chance to do the chores so I can “check up” on their work on a regular basis. I have no idea if any of my kids will farm once they leave our roof but at least they will have an idea of how to work and be able to do a few things for themselves.
BD Casto
New Carlisle, OH

[Marshall]

The girls are 7 and 10. The oldest is doing a real good job with her garden this year. They both want chickens. The chickens will have to wait until Ican get their mother to agree. What I was thinking is plant enough oats and corn for my animal feed. That would be about five or six acres of each. I would also (hopefully) have more time to plant and cultivate with the horses instead of the tractors. My oldest is a daddys girl and I know she would love to use the horses more and help dad. She would also like a bigger garden. My youngest is more moms girl but I am sure I could find things to do with her also. It will just be a matter of finding what she likes. I like all of your thoughts so far and hope to here some more.

[Billy Foster]

Marshall
To start with it sounds like you have your priorities in the right spot. Family and enjoying life with them is a really important piece of being a good person/father/spouse/friend. I did not always put that as a priority in the past. From the posts you have put on this site it is obvious that you could not give up farming of some sort or working with your horses. Putting up your grain for the year with your horses would certainly keep you busy and I bet you would not mind not making the tractor repairs or paying for fuel.
Not to get off track but are you still using Hafflingers? I do not think I ever saw a picture of your teem.
Billy

[Marshall]

Billy, yes I still have them and I will until the day they die. (Yes I’m that attached) I have not used them much in the last year. I have two torn rotator cuffs. The left not too bad but the right is terrible. When I get them straightened out the horses will be back in action.

[Billy Foster]

I had one shoulder done and I am glad to say I feel 90% better, glad I took the time to have it done. It took a while to heal, hurt just to wiggle my toes for a while. At least you don’t have to hike those hames quite as high as some :-).

[sean518]

Marshall,

I hear you loud and clear on your initial post. I work an office job 36 hours a week an hour away. Getting up in the morning to do chores, driving an hour to work and back, then doing evening chores doesn’t leave you with much free time. Saturdays and Sundays are always packed with what I can get done but if there’s something else going on like a wedding or party or whatever, I feel like I should’ve stayed home and gotten more done. I’ve got two two year old horses that I need to spend more time training, but there never seems to be enough time! Someday it’ll get better, I hope, for both of us!

– Sean

[Marshall]

Well I think I have decided to rent out all but about 10 acres. That will give me enough to grow my own corn and oats and not spend a terrible amount of time doing it. With the rent money I will be able to buy hay. Riding lessons are going well for the oldest and I want to see her keep at it so this should allow more practice time. I have worked out a five year deal with the fellow working my farm that includes getting some tile put in. If I waited until I had the money to do it myself it probably wouldn’t happen. I am also hoping to have more time to work with the horses myself.

[dominiquer60]

Marshall,

David Klein was the Keynote speaker at the 2009 Northeast Animal Power Field Days and he gave 3 pieces of advice that he tells young couples who are getting married in his community. I wrote it down but of course I don’t know where, so here is what I recall.

In order to keep a farm successful and to keep the family farming:

1. Have a viable farm business- In your case since your career is elsewhere I imagine this could translate to a farmstead that supports your family and animal interests.

2. Be on time for meals (this he emphasized with a shake of his finger), and if you can’t, be sure to let her know when to expect you- Though not all English households have such traditional gender roles, I see this as the plain clothes showing respect for the womens role and the importance of a good routine and communication.

3. Make time for the family- Davids family of course takes Sundays off from work beyond chores, but in addition their routine is to finish chores early Saturday and spend time doing some fun activities together with the children/grandchildren.

Though the business of farming is very important and often time sensitive with harvest, plantings and weather being a huge factor, I think that many seemingly successful farms fail to be mindful of #2 and #3. In the short term #1 is important but I have experienced farm family’s that ignore meal time and family time and I think suffer for it. If we can’t enjoy the farm, family and the benefits of such a living than why would our children want to continue such a dysfunctional rat race so closely related to the economic slavery of “get big or get out” or “growth for the sake of growth.”

Just a few thoughts that I mull over from time to time. I can see 2 and 3 being a challenge in my future and am trying to think of ways to start off the next chapter of my life on the right foot, it is tuff with tight deadlines, but I won’t succeed if I don’t try 🙂

[Author]

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