R Is For Reading

I love to read and I also have many, many great memories of spending time at our local library with Sara and Michael when they were younger, so when the library invites me to do a cow story time each June for Dairy Month, my reply is always, "What day and time? I'll be there!"

Whenever I give a presentation, the kids always ask what kind of animals we have on our farm. So I began by reading, The Flea's Sneeze.

The farm in this book has many kinds of animals. I shared that our farm has only cows and cats. And since the Flea in this book shares his cold with the other animals, I then talked about what we do to keep our animals healthy, including visits from the veterinarian, and using medicine when, and only when, necessary.

Have you read the book Click, Clack, Moo, Cows That Type? My next book, Giggle, Giggle, Quack is written by the same author.

Farmer Brown goes on vacation, and the animals have a little fun with their caretaker. The cows even order pizza for dinner! This segues into sharing what our cows eat...and it's not pizza. I also explain how we grow all the food our cows eat. 

Lastly, I read, Cow's Can't Fly. Our cow's can't fly, but they can do something else pretty amazing...

Our cows give lots of delicious milk! I then talked about the milking process that my family does two times a day, every day, including holidays. The kiddos then got to share all the foods they could think of that begin with milk! 

Before handing out the dairy goodie bags, and cow backpacks (thanks to the Dakota County Library for the backpacks), I asked the kids and their parents and grandparents that brought them, to pledge to have three servings of dairy each day. Have you pledged yet? If yes- we dairy farmers say thanks! If not, here's your chance. Go to Midwest Dairy #Dairy3forMe.

Cows + Books = MOO!

I love to read and I also have many, many great memories of spending time at the local library with Sara and Michael when they were little kidlets, so when the library asks me to help out with an event (especially one that involves cows)

 I say, "What time do you want me there"?

 I recently participated in the "Once Upon a Reader" program which is designed to encourage the love of books.

 

The featured book was Moo! by David LaRochelle.

There were guest readers, like Tom from our local TV station,

 and crafts to make like these great cow hats...

and I got to talk about living and working on our dairy farm to lots of kidlets.

Cows and books, AND cookies and milk at the library...

my life is good!

You can click here to see a movie of the book Moo! 

and you can click here to learn more about cows and milk!

Happy Spring and Happy Reading!

Moo!

S Is For Stories

It's June dairy Month! The barn doors are open, 

so join me on my daily A to Z journey 

to learn more about dairy. 

  Today S Is For Stories

 

 

In celebration of June Dairy Month, our local public library invited me to read my favorite cow books during Preschool Story Time. Wednesday morning 51 preschoolers, some big brothers and sisters, oodles of mommies, and even a few grandpas came to hear my cow tails tales.

Now, what to read? I am a collector of cow and farm themed books. It took much effort to narrow down the ones that I talked about. After a brief overview of my favorites, I began by reading Out and About at the Dairy Farm.

I like this book as it takes us along with a group of school kids who go on a field trip to a dairy farm.

 

 

After learning how milk goes from the farm to the grocery store, we learned that we need three servings of dairy every day to stay healthy. This seemed like a moo-velous time to talk about what can be made from all that milk. We played a game trying to name all the dairy foods we could think of. And nope, potatoes are not a dairy food. Neither is noodles, in case you weren't sure. 

 

 

After sharing what our cows do, eat, and how they are milked, it was time to read Dooby Dooby Moo! I LOVE this book! Have you read it? It's an udderly goofy book about the animals on Farmer Brown's farm who think they should enter the talent contest at the County Fair to win the grand prize. Can you guess what the prize is? BOING! BOING!

  

 

 

 

Look who I invited to join us. It's Gabriella, Dakota County Dairy Princess,

with mommies Melissa and Michelle and their sons! Gabriella helped me hand out goodie bags to the kids, and treat bags to the mom's and the grandpa's too! Everyone left the library with a cheese stick to munch on the way home. Three servings of dairy every day...1 down, 2 to go!

 

 

 Check out some of my other visits with wee ones-

 

Back To School 

 

Farm 2 School 

 

 

 

 

 

This And That Thursday -14

A little bit of this and a little bit of that- here's what we've been up to. 

Sara's butterhead, (on right)

Perhaps it's the bitterly cold weather today (-36 degree wind chill right now) or the fact that daughter Sara's friend just sent her this link, 20 Facts About the Minnesota State Fair That Might Shock You but I'm thinking about the Minnesota State Fair today. Check out shocking fact number 8, and while you're there how about numbers 4 and 7? Way to go Minnesota Dairy Farmers!

Some of my cow library.

Another warm weather story...I have been contacted by our local library to be a guest reader and presenter in June! Yes, June! Those librarians are pretty organized and are already preparing the summer schedule. Since June is Dairy Month, I'll be featured. Does anyone have a favorite farm/cow/dairy book to recommend?

DairyMom's 2012

Great  news- I have again been invited to serve as a mentor at the Midwest Dairy Dairy Moms Social Media workshop next month. This workshop is where I got my start in blogging back in 2012. Kansas City here I come!

More great news- My mom returned to her home this week! After 3 months in the hospital and transitional care she, and all of our family, are VERY HAPPY!

R Is For Reading

I'm taking you on a journey from A to Z through the land of dairy! 

There's no need to pack your bags, just come along!

  R Is For Reading

I love to read. Perhaps that is one of the reasons why I enjoy my off-the-farm job as an Instructional Assistant in reading and math at one of our local elementary schools. My love of reading might also be the reason for me sharing some of my favorite "cow" books whenever I can. This spring I contacted my local public library asking if I could read my cow books at the story times during June Dairy Month. I goofed! Who knew that the schedule was made out 6 months, to a year, ahead? Well I do now, and you can bet I am already on the schedule for June, 2014!

Here are some of my favorites-

Millie waits for the Mail by Alexander Steffensmeier  

Millie is unlike most other cows. She chews her cud and grazes in the fields with the others, but she doesn't enjoy that nearly as much as she loves scaring the mail carrier. It's too bad the mail carrier doesn't have as much fun each time Millie comes up with a new way to surprise him. 

 

 

Cows Can't Fly by David Milgrim 

Ms. Crumb said cows were far too fat; that facts were facts and that was that. But this little boy doesn't care about facts. All he knows is that he drew a picture of some cows, and when a breeze blows it into the air, he sees cows flying everywhere. And if cows can fly, isn't anything possible?

Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin

Farmer Brown is used to all the sounds he hears on his farm. The clucks of the chickens, the quacks of the ducks, and the loud moos of the cows. Then one morning, a sound rings through the fields: Click, clack moo. It seems that his cows have begun to type on the old typewriter. Not only that, they have also typed a request. 




Do you have a favorite cow or farm book? I'm always looking for new stories to add to my collection. After all, I have until June 2014 to add to my library!

Learn more about dairy at Dairy Makes Sense

 
I am making a commitment to share as much as I can with you each day this month, about the life of our dairy farm family including what we do, how we share our passion for dairy, and dairy foods we enjoy.

 See you here tomorrow...S Is For Smoothies