Farm Camp, Day One

Yesterday was Bear and Bug's first day of Farm Camp. They were too excited to eat much breakfast and, well, less than patient when we took a wrong turn on the way out there. When they realized we weren't where we should be, their reaction went something like this.

AAACK! MOM! FARM CAMP STARTS AT 8:30! IT'S 8:24! WHERE ARE WE? WHEN WILL WE GET THERE? WHY DON'T YOU KNOW WHERE TO TURN? AAAAAACK!

So very helpful to have four children bellowing like injured moose from the backseat while I tried to negotiate fog-enshrouded twisty country lanes. We made it there approximate three minutes late. They survived, albeit somewhat indignantly.

They each "adopt" a farm animal for the week and are responsible for that animal's care and feeding. Here are this year's adoptees....(drum roll)...

Meet Noah. Noah is a one month old inexplicably named female Holstein calf. She has been adopted by Bug. According to Bug, Noah enjoys eating hay, laying down, drinking milk from a bucket and resting her chin on Bug's hand.


Bug spent a long time grooming her yesterday, and Noah was spotless and gleaming when I met her yesterday.

Meet Astro. Astro is a two month old female Holstein calf. She has been adopted by Bear. According to bear, Astro's favorite things are eating hay, slipping her halter so she can suck on it, drinking milk from a bucket, and chewing on Bear's boots. Bear informs me that she's probably teething. She lets the calf suck on her hand and reports that she can feel "lumps" in the calf's gums, which must be teeth on the way.
Check out Astro's face in this picture. Don't tell Bear I told you, but this calf is a bit of a nut. She's definitely feistier than the calf she adopted last year. I think she'll have her hands full with this one.
She's really pretty obsessed with the strap on Bear's boot. The whole time I was there taking pictures, Astro just kept angling for a way to reach that strap. When she got it, she'd suck away happily (and noisily) on it. And, no, you don't want to know what that is on the heel of Bear's boot. And, yes, it's what you think it is.

I'll try to update each day this week with pictures and tales from the farm...stay tuned...