My name is Kellie and I reign from the eastern part of Iowa! I grew up on a small cow/calf operation. We’re a start to finish farm so I get to see every aspect there is to raising cattle. We raise around 60 Shorthorns, Herefords, and I just purchased my first Miniature Herefords.
Agriculture has always been a part of my life. It means everything to me. If I’ve had a bad day, a day on the farm can take away all the worries, concerns, and bad feelings. Ever heard of ‘runner’s high’? Well I have ‘farmer’s high’. It’s been in my blood for generations. It’s something I thrive on and enjoy doing. Most women don’t get excited about feeding calves, having a bottle calf grinding feed, or raking hay, but this one does. In third grade we had to draw what we wanted to be. I drew “Farmer Kellie”. Someday I hope to be a full time farmer and make third grade Kellie’s dream a reality. Farming will be something that I do for the rest of my life.
My favorite thing about living on the farm is the environment. That sounds funny doesn’t it? The fresh air, the wind through my hair, the smell of my tractors exhaust, the cows bellowing, the smell of fresh cut alfalfa, and many other great things that others don’t ever get to experience. It’s such a relaxing and comforting place to be. It’s all mine and it’s my favorite place in the entire world. My family knows that if they can’t find me, I’m out in the pasture petting my cows.
I was recently married in 2016 (check out our amazing wedding decor) to an amazing cattle farmer. We can’t agree on a color of tractor or breed of cattle, but we seem to get the rest right. Together we have a dog, Lily, and a farm cat named Angus! Our life isn’t perfect, but it’s exactly what we pictured when we said, ‘I do’! The Farmer keeps me in line and I keep pushing his buttons.
I am a member of the American National Cattlewomen, Sigma Alpha, American Hereford Association, and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. I’m farm strong and am loving my life as a women in agriculture!
I can’t wait for you to all follow along with me on the farm and my beautiful animals!
Kellie
Kelli, it is awesome to find you blog and connect with another Iowa farm girl. Thanks for sharing our Hereford picture from the JJB Facebook page. That bull is our big baby. I grew up with Simmental cattle, but my husband had the Herefords. If you are ever in NE Iowa you will have to give us a shout.
http://www.crystalcattle.com
Hey girl! Thanks! I went and looked at your site (I’m a huge Hereford fan) and you’re only an hour away from me! We will have to meet up and/or visit each others farms!
Hey girl!
I just wanted to let you know that I nominated you for the Liebster Award! If you choose to accept it, you can get more information about it on my blog at this post: http://lipstickandtractors.com/2014/01/17/liebster-award/
*This will not be live until tomorrow at 7:45AM
Hi Kellie
I’m so glad I found your blog, I’m a upstate new york farm girl working on getting our operation up and running full time. Its so nice to find some one who loves ag as much as I do, down to the wonderful smell of fresh cut hay. Its not easy being a girl farmer a lot of people think you need a man to farm. But the day to day stuff is handled by me, my Mom and sister. My brother inlaw helps out when needed. I can’t imagine doing anything else with my life!
I’m glad you found it to Heather! I love talking and getting to know other women who have the same passion as me! It’s hard to find others who have the same passion. I look forward to getting to know you and having you follow along with my crazy journey on the farm! 🙂
Kelly, I came across your blog by accident and read what you have to say about cattle. That may apply to cattle on a farm in Iowa, but I spent thirty years in California, where beef cattle are raised on many thousands of acres of range-land. They eat whatever plants they choose from what is growing on the land–land that is for the most part not plowed and seeded on an annual basis. They are not “fed” by humans daily, they do not eat corn and alfalfa, their calves are not separated from them and are not generally raised by hand. It is up to them to find their way to water, whether that is in troughs, streams, or ponds, depending on the ranch. They are out in all weather. In many areas, highways cross their range, and ranchers depend on “cattle-guards”–often merely painted stripes– in the road to keep them off the road in particularly dangerous places. Sometimes they do get on the road. Cattle stay out on the range much of the year and certainly don’t interact with people on a daily or even a weekly basis. The only time they are gathered together in small places and fed grain are when they are being fattened for market in the last month of their life. I am not saying that these cattle are “free” or that there are never any fences, but they sure don’t depend on the kind of intensive care that you write of in order to survive.
That is a good point, but what do these animals do in the winter time? I’m just curious. Our cows wouldn’t starve either if they ran wild, but they would eat other peoples profits. There would definitely be consequences if they ran wild, but I do see your side too!