Why I am grateful today

I am grateful today because:
-there were no meat chicks killed by racoons (for those of you out there who love these masked vermin, you should know that when they kill a chicken, they don't clean up after themselves.  They take what they want & leave the rest for me to clean up.  I am not their mother.  I do not like cleaning up after them.  In fact, I HATE racoons.  If they didn't have that mask, you would think they are just like possums.  They are.)
-when I went to check the meat chicks, I happened to look up at just the right time, to see our pigs running down our road.  Thank goodness I was there then.
-when we all started to round up said running pigs, they actually FOLLOWED us.  It was as if they thought "oh, thank God those people came back.  Now we know where we're supposed to go!"  It was really quite easy to return them to their proper place.
-I get to go teach a class tonight and talk to very excited pregnant people about birth.  I will not be home to do the evening chores or to deal with any more runaways.
-oh, I'm most grateful that I didn't yell at my children when trying to round the pigs.  That's my usual M.O.  Today, for some reason, was different.  Maybe after almost 10 years on the farm I've finally realized that it only makes things worse.  See, you can teach an old older dog new tricks!

Humanely-Raised, Grass fed meats for sale

Sunflower Hill Farm Variety Boxes 
Available Now!!




Looking for a way to try a bit of all of our meats?  This is especially good for folks who do not have large chest freezers.  A Variety Box!  You can decide if you want beef, pork or chicken.  You can choose one or sample all!  

20# variety box                       $120 -            an example of a 20# box is:  5 pounds of ground beef, a 4 pound beef roast, 4 steaks (tbone, porterhouse or ribeye)a 4 pound pork roast, 1 pkg of bacon, 2 ham steaks.

30# variety box                        $150-            similar to above only 10 more pounds perhaps including a whole chicken

40# variety box                         $200-           similar to above only 20 more pounds including a chicken, more ground beef, 4 more steaks, 3 pounds of ground pork/sausage

**All variety boxes are made up of our current inventory.  We try to meet your needs as best as we can.  Please just ask & we'll let you know if we have that cut in inventory.


***Just in case you are wondering, a regular "above the fridge type freezer" can hold about 40 pounds.

Whass up??

Here's what I've been doing:

• getting more day old chicks & setting up housing for them (food, water, heat lamps)
• talking to lots of pregnant people about birth
• thinning beets in the garden (you must understand, I hate this job, feels like such a waste...)
• not exercising
• pulling a tick out of Peter's shoulder....ugh....
• going away with my darling, Brian for a few days - bliss!
• loads & loads of laundry
• cleaning the van & car with the help of 4 helpful boys
• getting ready to be on call for 3 months....
• pulling off wallpaper, refinishing & painting walls
• freaking out about a number of things....ugh
• looking at the skin on my hands and thinking "I'm getting old...."
• watching Survivor, Dancing with the Stars & Modern Family & feeling totally in love with TV
• trying to find uses for lots of eggs & lots of asparagus
• moving sheep around in electric netting - let me tell ya, you haven't lived till you've experienced this...
• missing my mama
•  marveling at the tenacity of Jeruselem Artichokes
• thinking about the fact that we are coming up on our 20 year wedding anniversary - amazing
• starting the summer of the Farmer's Market

That's how we're rolling around here. 

The Shack

Tomorrow can't come soon enough!  Tomorrow we are going on a tour of Aldo Leopold's Shack.  You know, the shack where he wrote A Sand County Almanac!  The shack they worked on for many years, planting tons of trees.  The shack where he imagined the Land Ethic.  THE SHACK!!  I have always loved Leopold's writing.  Watching "Green Fire" the other week just made me love him even more so I set up a homeschooling tour and tomorrow's the day! 
The weather is supposed to be possibly stormy.  I'm really hoping that it's bad enough that we all have to gather INSIDE the shack & then we'll have an opportunity to pretend to be the Leopolds.  I get to be Aldo.  How cool is it that this man lived right here in the good ole state of Wisconsin.  I hope I can sleep tonight.

Will is 14!!!!

(Will is on the right with Joe.  They are great pals, most of the time.)

Well, another birthday in the Bubenzer family!  Today belongs to William Valen Bubenzer!  On this day 14 years ago, I was not stressed.  I was not anxious.  I knew this baby would come eventually.  I actually worked in our garden in Eagle Heights!
They say the 2nd labor is 1/2 as long as a first.  That wasn't our experience.  It was still long but powerful.  When I look at that birth experience, I had so much more information & confidence (I started teaching birth classes a few months after Joe's birth so I had 2 years of that kind of experience under my belt).  We knew what we wanted & even though we had to fight the resident a bit, we got it.  It was after Will's I decided to become even more involved in birth & become a doula.  Will was 3 months old when, being worn in a baby sling, he went with me to my doula training in Atlanta.  Mostly what I remember from right after Will was born was the 1st meeting of he & Joe.  After 10 months of telling Joe (who was 26 mos at the time of Will's birth) that we were having a baby (Joe said we were going to name the baby "Sister") & talking about babies & being a big brother & on & on, Joe walked into the room and said "where did you get that little baby?"  Their 1st meeting was so very sweet.
Will, Will, Will.  Will is funny, funny, funny.  Will is kind hearted but loves to tease his brothers mercilessly at times, especially Peter.  Will is musician & can pretty much pick up any instrument & play it.  We are so proud of you, Will.  You are a wonderful kid!  Happy, Happy Birthday!!

Baby is 8!

Well, today, our little baby turns 8.  He's definitely not a baby anymore!  The best thing - he gets out of his booster seat!!  He is thrilled about that & wants to have a ceremonial burning of the seat celebration.

Oh, do I remember this one.  Short, powerful, as close to "painless" as I could imagine.  I was very far along in the labor when we left home (45 min drive).  My mom rode with us & Bri's mom was meeting us there.  My mom was a bit panicked thinking I was going to have the baby in the car.  She kept asking Bri if we should "call 9-1-1 for an escort".  I knew I wasn't going to have him in the car.  I was looking at the golden hue of the beautiful landscape as the sun was setting all the while,  working through contractions.  Got there, told the triage nurse "I don't need to push yet but you need to get me in a room".  30 minutes later we were holding our new 4th little boy!  Our fave midwife was there.  Everything was perfect.  Bri & I make a great birthing team & this proved it even more.  What a day, a wonderful, wonderful day!

Peter is an amazing young man.  Smart, funny, powerful, wonderful imagination.  He lives with great passion & is the most dramatic of all of the boys.  He delights in entertaining especially showing off his mad dance skills.

(Peter is giving a thumbs up.  Tom is dressed in full beekeeping gear.)

We love you so very much, Peter.  Happy 8th Birthday!!!

I'm in love!

Watched "Green Fire" tonight.  I'm more in love with Aldo than ever before.  What a genius!  Here's one I particularly love:

“There are two spiritual dangers in not owning a farm. One is the danger of supposing that breakfast comes from the grocery, and the other that heat comes from the furnace.”
― Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac