As many here in Missouri can attest to, we have been in dire need of rain lately. Our pastures were beginning to show stress from the heat and lack of moisture. Our garden suffered as well, though we watered it diligently. Even our livestock was being affected. The Highlands hid all day in the woods to stay cool in the shade and our hogs lay lazily in their pens. So a couple of days ago we prayed for rain during our family devotions. I’m sure that more believers were also praying. Yesterday morning when I woke up I got right on the internet to visit Accuweather. The prediction was a small thunderstorm with another possibility of a thunderstorm on Sunday and on Monday. Thank the Lord for the rain. It is a blessing and a testimony of the Lord’s mercy when He answers prayer.

    On Friday night we were discussing our dun colored Highland cow, whom we call Irene Dunn. We were wondering if she was really pregnant, as we were told by the man who sold us the Highlands. She did not look pregnant, but we went through the process of counting the months since we got her and decided that sometime in September is the latest that she would give birth. If no calf appears, then we have acquired ourselves  a cow that was good for food but not for breeding. Well, as is my daily morning task, this morning I headed to the Highlands to make sure that they had enough water. There was thunder emanating from just over the mountain and a light drizzle began to fall. As I approached the paddock with the Highlands, this is what I saw. (not this particular scene but this little critter)

This little fellow surprised us all.

Not a good picture but you can see how small he is.

This little fellow now makes 8 head of cattle total.

Here is the papa.

This is the spring bull calf and his mama.

And this is the spring bull calf's older sister.

I went back to the house to tell the others about the newest arrival, so we all got in the truck and drove to see it together. You should have heard all the oohs and aahhs and, “isn’t he cute?” – enough to embarrass any real cowpoke. Fortunately I’m not a ‘real cowpoke” – just some guy who has a few funny looking cows, so my father’s heart just enjoyed my wife and children enjoying this new little blessing. Just a side note. There was some concern over how the last new bull was treated by the others, so we watched closely to see if this one would be picked on as well. To our surprise, nothing like the last one. This time Irene walked away from the calf and watched as each of the others came one at a time, sniffed the little one, and went back to whatever it was that occupied them.

Like Gracie said, it’s as if Irene was indicating “Visiting hours are now open”.

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Look what Sarah found lurking in a corner of our dining room.

This little guy is big enough to give you the willies!! Here he is just going for a stroll in the living room.

Believe it or not, here Sarah is trying her best to " ANTAGONIZE" our little friend with a short screwdriver.

Ahhh. Mission accomplished! Here he is starting to take his aggressive/defensive stance.

There he his. In full defensive posture. We both thought that he was getting ready to jump at Sarah. No, he didn't. He just posed for the camera. He was being very co-operative.

Oh Oh. I think he sees me. Time to change locations.

Just to give you an idea of the size of this little fellow. That is the lid of a quart mason jar on the floor beside him.

Life on the farm in Missouri can be quite interesting and eventful. Besides the usual farm stuff, we also get to experience some of the wonders that our Lord has put right in our back yard, or in this case, our living room. The tarantula. Some of the other things that have captured my attention to God’s immeasurable power are the beauty of the stars in the vast night sky, the flickering of these fascinating little creatures – lightning bugs – which dot the night time landscape with their little beacons. Coyotes howling in the night, snow in the winter, our dry creek bed turning into a rushing river as it fills in a matter of days from the spring down pours. Even the solitary road runner that brings a smile to my face at the clownish look of his appearance. We serve an awesome creator and it is a thrill to see his creation declare his glory no matter where one lives. (yes, even in Florida) 😀

We had severe weather come through last night but that did not stop our highland cow from doing what comes naturally. This morning when we went to move the cattle paddock to a new location, Peter was the first to notice a new little “dude” strolling between the paddock and the woods.

Here he is.

There he is – the long awaited calf of our Highland cow “Brea”. I say long awaited because when we bought the cow in November we were told she was due to deliver in late November early December.

Stout little fellow

Mama and the little "Dude"

It's been a trying morning, time for a rest.

Eagerly waiting to get a glance at the new baby.

But wait, what is this? All is not as it seems.

Peter is installing electric fencing to divide the paddock down the middle.

We noticed some odd behavior by the other three bovines toward the little one. The dun one (we call her Irene as in Irene Dunn) poked at the little one. The small calf pushed at the little one and the bull (the father no less) wanted to play rugby with the little one. Trouble was that he was using the new calf as the ball and tossed him around with his horns. It was sad to watch the defenseless little calf  get abused so easily. It might have been that the other 3 were claiming their place in the herd pecking order and wanted to make sure he knew his place was at the utmost bottom. Nevertheless, we decided to separate mother and calf from the rest, so Peter installed a dividing fence down the middle.

I’m sure the others will want to post about the calf too so I’ll quit here. Hope you enjoyed the pictures and hope you have a great day.