It's Time to Check Back In!

So the last few months I have been relatively silent on my blog.  School is back underway, harvest is in full-swing, soccer season has started again where I am coaching multiple teams, and I am training for a marathon so to say I have free-time is almost a joke, but everyone is busy.  But between all the activities and running I find myself with some down time.  See, it is too far to drive all the way back home from town in the hour space between school and soccer, so we have been doing "filler" activities: going to the park, reading at the book store, kicking a soccer ball around before practice, going for a walk, and I have a severe observation to make: we as a society are very checked-out from one another, especially parents with their children.  Now I have read plenty of posts about parents pushing their kids on a swing while on their phone, or couples going out-to-eat and neither of them talk to each other because they are on their phones, but to actually see it in real life everywhere I go is extremely depressing.  Just yesterday the kids and I had about 2 hours from the time we got done with our kids' Wednesday School Store to their confirmation so we decided to go to the new park in town.  A few parents were following their toddlers around, but the majority of the parents were sitting on a bench, phone in hand, and periodically saying "wow, that's cool" (but not looking up) to their kids when their child was pleading with them to "watch me, Mom!".  I have been just as guilty of this as the next parent, but I am aware of it and making a change by leaving my phone in the car when I am with my kids.   So if I don't answer then you know I am doing more important things, so leave a message.

Every day I try to skim through the news and most of the articles are usually filled with the latest antics of the presidential candidates, or if Planned Parenthood is actually going to lose their funding, or all the refugees flooding Europe trying to escape war or whatever the media has "decided" is the most important topic for that day.  But with all those issues that are going on in the world around us, what is going on in our own households?  I personally believe that a lot of the problems going on in the world are because we as parents, grandparents, leaders, coaches, anyone of influence, are failing our children.  We are failing to teach accountability, responsibility, morals, pride, strength, compassion, and maybe most importantly love all because that dang device in our hand is so much more important!  There is so much negativity in this world that I believe that the adults of this world need to flood our kids with so much positive that it drowns out that negativity, and you can't do that staring at your phone.

My son last night at confirmation was doing a lesson on trust so they did a team-building exercise where you stand on a table and fall back and the group is suppose to catch you.  He thought it was the greatest thing and I really appreciate the activities that their group does to build kids up and mold them into strong, confident, young adults.  But probably the most stunning thing for me was after that activity they all got into small groups and everyone had to write on a piece of paper one thing they were most scared of, and they were going to put it into a fire and basically give their "fear over to God".  A lot of the kids wrote down death, spiders, snakes, the typical ones that everyone expects to hear.  But the most startling thing was some of the kids wrote sports, school, their weight, not fitting in, being ugly, and to hear my son tell that about 6th-12th graders, really broke my heart.  Can you guess what my son wrote down?  He wrote that he is "bigger than most of the kids in his class".  I was very quiet right away because I didn't know if he was talking about his weight (was he thinking himself as fat), or that he is taller (by almost a full-head than some of his best friends), or that his shoe-size is the same as his dads and he is only 11.  So I very calmly asked, "Well what did you mean by that?"  and his response made me cry. "Mom, I am not scared of snakes because I know that our dogs won't ever let them get near the house, I am not scared to die because I know God is watching over me and I will go to heaven, I am not scared of bad people because Dad and you will protect us, so I just wrote something down because I couldn't think of anything else that I was really scared of."  Now last year he was teased because he is the biggest and tallest in his class so that must have stuck with him, but seriously he couldn't think of anything else?  In a world filled with so much negativity, fear, turmoil, and evil, and that is the thing that he is scared of?  There are times when I turn the t.v. on and get really disheartened and wonder if God really is there for his people because so many innocents are suffering.  So, we talked again on how someday his classmates will grow and catch-up to him, and it isn't bad being the tallest or the biggest one.  But, he threw his paper into the fire like everyone else did and felt satisfied that his fear went to God.

As a mom I feel I try very hard with my kids, every day, trying to teach them to be the best kids they can be and many times I feeling like I am failing.  I feel that I am too busy, that I didn't give my kids enough hugs today, or that I didn't spend enough quality time with each one of them, or I wasn't positive enough.  But every once-in-a-while you get that rare opportunity where you get to witness your child doing something great and that you have taught them well.  Maybe they stand up for a kid that is getting bullied, maybe they hold the door open for an elderly person, maybe they help their little siblings with their homework, maybe they do something special for someone less fortunate, or maybe they are in confirmation and you have filled with them so much love and confidence that they really aren't scared of anything.  But in those moments you know as a parent that all those little things you did to them and for them, they mattered.  So let's put those phones away, check back in, and go do those little things in life, because one day you will realize that the little things were really the big things.

What Makes A Good Coach?

Coaching the girls at their soccer tournament

The last two years I have been coaching my kids' recreational soccer teams mainly for the reason that I was a soccer player, so I had soccer experience.  I enjoy teaching a game that I spent an incredible amount of time in my youth playing!  The sport of soccer is really misunderstood up here in the far north, and is not one of the favorite sports (hockey is king here).  There are parents that absolutely cannot stand to watch their kids from the sidelines, they dread going to tournaments, and they really hate the sport in general.  My heart actually hurts for those parents...but I do understand (a little).  My husband was once one of those people.  He played what people in the U.S. call "the REAL football"  AKA "American Football" as I was told numerous times when I would disclose to people that I play soccer.  But I have to give my husband credit, he started to learn the game so he could support me while I played in college, watch games on T.V. with me, or even drag him along to games.  But he has finally started to catch on to my LOVE for soccer!  Soccer is so much more than just kicking a ball into a net.  Soccer requires so much mental strategy, physical exertion, and vision that unless you have played on a really good soccer team, then you just don't get it.  I have played on soccer teams where we just "clicked".  I knew my teammates and they knew me.  I knew their strengths and weaknesses, I knew who could really kick a ball, I knew who was a solid defender, I knew their dribbling skills, I knew who was really fast and would outrun their opponents, I knew because I studied all of them in the many hours and hours of practice that we spent together.  There is just something so completely magical of a team that "clicks" together that they almost can read each others mind.  Here is a perfect scenario that my old team was pretty good at:
    ***Our last defender tackles the ball away from our opponents trying to score, she passes it out to our outside mid, they dribble the ball down the line at full-speed into the other teams end to the corner flag, and we as her teammate all knows whats coming!  We know how she crosses, we know what foot she is going to use, and we know where to be to get ready for that ball.  She beats the defender, cuts into the corner, and crosses a perfect ball to the far-post where 3 of her teammates are sprinting to all full-speed, crashing the net, just to get a touch on the ball!  The ball sails over the goalie's outstretched hands to our waiting outside midfielder who jumps to head the ball in the net!    GGGGGGGGGOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!
(Still gives me chills!)

One thing that I never understood was how hard it is to actually be the coach, and not the player anymore.  In recreational soccer the coaches stand there with their cups of coffee in their hands and we basically are just having more fun then competition.  Well in competitive soccer we are at a whole different level, we are out to win!  The amount of hours a coach puts into their teams is almost staggering.  The planning of practice, the practice time itself, the games/tournaments, the travel time, the communication with managers, etc.  But to me the most surprising part is the mental, physical, and emotional investment that the coaches make.  I as a former soccer player, try to pour myself into those girls.  Every game I feel like I am out there on the field with them!  Why?  Because I have missed that penalty kick before, I have put everything on the line in a championship game and walked off the field on legs that feel like Jello, I have gone into a sudden death shootout, I have cried with my teammates after a devastating loss, I have celebrated a State Title Win!  So I get it, I get their pain, their frustrations, their commitment, their effort, and most importantly their celebrations.

  I recently got the privilege of coaching my daughter's competitive summer team at a tournament that had some really tough teams there.  On the Saturday games, we had a really hard first game.  Both teams were very evenly split, but we just couldn't get the ball in the back of the net.  We ended up losing that game and after we shook hands with the other team, we huddled up and I found myself in a situation that I have never been in before...looking at me were 10 little pairs of eyes, most were crying (a few really crying), all waiting for words of wisdom from their coach.  At that moment, I got it...I got what it meant to be a "Coach"... it sunk in, and I sat there in silence for a few brief moments looking back at all of them.  With a few tears in my eyes (I'm glad I was wearing sunglasses), I struggled to tell them how proud I was of each and every one of them.  We talked about the frustrations, we talked about the lows of the game, we talked about the goals we could have had, we talked about how upset we were.  But then I knew we needed to switch gears because in a few hours we had another hard game that we needed to be ready for.  See sports is only 20% physical, and 80% mental so I made each one of them tell everyone one thing we did really good in the game.  We went around the circle, one-by-one and listened intently to each girl's positive opinion of the game.  By the last girl the tears were starting to dry and confidence was starting to return, I even saw a few smiles.  We huddled up, did our cheer, and off they walked to their parents. I hoped as a coach and mom as I was watching them leave, that they understood how well they played and to hold their heads up with pride.

The next game we spent a lot of time in the warm-up getting psyched and ready, but they still looked flat so  I introduced a new pre-game cheer.  See the Women's World Cup is going on in Canada and I knew that a few of them and even my family made the trek up to Canada (twice) to watch the USA Women play (GO USA!).  So I stole the USA cheer and wow did those girls get excited: "I BELIEVE THAT WE WILL WIN!"

It was a hard-fought game, with a 0-0 score at halftime.  With 3 minutes left in the game, we got a penalty kick!  Our captain in the earlier game had a penalty kick and the opponents goalie saved it, so this was her redemption time.  I told her to "Breathe...breathe...you got this"  She stepped up and beautifully passed it to the corner, beating the goalie!  GOAL!!!  We stacked the defense and held them and won 1-0!  What a rollercoaster day; from the extreme low of losing the previous hard-fought game, to winning what felt-like a championship game.  The girls walked away that day with so much more knowledge, maturity, and skill in the game of soccer, and I was the lucky one to be there and share it with them.

My daughter who reminds me so much of me, it's scary.  But isn't that we do as Coaches, teach them to DREAM?

So parents if you don't understand the sport of soccer you don't need to, they just need your support and encouragement.  Coaches, I thank you for all your dedication to the sport, the players, and especially the game.  And lastly to the players, thank you for giving us former players the opportunity to still be part of a game that we absolutely love.  There is a saying that "Those that can't do, teach".  Well I am here to tell you that I think that saying is completely wrong.  For a coach, or a teacher, or a person in any leadership position to be good, and I mean really good, you have to had walked that path yourself in some form and level.  There has to be a level of understanding and experience that no book, training module, or coaching course can ever teach.  There are many people that have been great players that make lowsy coaches, and there are those who weren't the best players are great coaches.  There is an art and skill involved in switching gears from the player to the coach, and I am just starting to learn that, and hopefully someday I will be a good coach.  To be able to reach those kids at a level that they understand, they listen to, and even respect is also a magical thing.  Its not about just playing anymore.  So coaches go out there, and sow into those kids...for they are depending on you, and they NEED you to be great...so go be great, because they are always watching.

My youngest son copying me and "coaching" the team

Putting Things Back Into Perspective

The past couple of weeks has really been a test of wills.  There has been several things that has happened that has really taken us a few steps back.  Usually every Spring is a time to rejoice: the weather if warming up, you get the equipment out readying it for the fieldwork ahead, and the daily chores get so much easier due to not having to deal with snow or ice!  But this Spring, it has come in more like a lion then anything even close to a lamb.

I won't really get into the details of what is going on, nor do I want to make it sound like I am whining or complaining because I understand that there are so many more people out there that are walking a path that is so much more harder than mine.  So what is the reason that I am even writing this blog?  Because God is always watching you, in your hard times, in your struggles, and your frustrations.  Do you get mad, yell, stress-out, or become something that you are not proud of?  I am guilty of every single one of those, on a daily basis.  But I believe he watches you during these times for a very specific reason...he is watching to see how YOU respond and react during those hard times.  Are you going to glorify him during those times?  Are you going to walk these struggles with a grateful heart and a loving attitude?  How are going to deal with the pressure of this life?  I believe if you celebrate God in not only the easy, good times but also in the bad, he is just waiting to dump piles of blessings in your life.  I also believe that God will do something to re-put back everything into perspective!  One reminder of that exact thing came this morning in the form of an e-mail.  We have no comprehension of how what we do in our life effects others, and even how far those ripples go.  I'm sharing this e-mail not to show anything about me, my family, or my farm.  I am sharing this to show that you do matter, you do make a difference, someone is affected by you, you may just not know it.  So here is my reminder to let go of the struggles...maneuver through them with a humble heart...and YOU are so much greater than what you think (has been edited for privacy):

........."Hello Jennifer,

I Am Sam from Uganda, 36 years old, married to Lydia with Two Kids, Samson my eldest son and my daughter Arisa.

Am a cost accountant with Nokia while my wife is a banker with Finca. Having working for seven years, we realized our dream is farming and particularly Dairying.

I have just read your article and you do know how happy and motivated I became.

http://www.americasfarmers.com/2014/06/24/10-reasons-dairy-farming-is-the-best-job-in-the-world/

I really can’t stop reading it.

We started by buying land and now we have 25 acres and we know we shall keep adding, have acquired a walking tractor, and bought two cow milking machines. We are planting corn this April and will plan to turn into silage.

we are now constructing a shallow well to have clean water before we build the cow houses.

Our target  is to kick start bringing in cows by August this year.

Let me know if there is something I should know before is kick start.

I appreciate your article.

Thanks and regards

Sam"............

Quite a humbling email to open up this morning.  I didn't even remember what specific article he was talking about, so I clicked on the link and re-read 'Why I Love Being a Dairy Farmer'.  Talk about gaining some perspective!!!  So instead of the negative I will focus on the positive, for I have much to be grateful for, and I am sure that you do too. 

 

Our Stance on Bills Impacting the Dairy Industry in ND Legislation

There is quite a few very hot topics in the current ND Legislature right now, and a few of them have huge impacts to the Dairy Industry, specifically Bill 2351 and Bill 1027.  Many people have asked, emailed, and called me asking what our dairy farm's stance is on the bills and most specifically the "Corporate Farms" Bill 2351 that will go before the House this Thursday (it already passed in the Senate recently).  Ironically both Bills will go before the House and Senate this Thursday and my husband, father-in-law, and myself will testify in Support of both Bills at both hearings (Bill 1027 addresses rewriting ND Milk Marketing Board Law).  But the big question seems to revolve around Bill 2351.  With my and my family's involvement in the ND Dairy Coalition, ND Milk Producers, ND Ag Coalition and many others, these groups have decided to Support the Bill 2351 being allowed in ND.  There are many, many reasons as to why but it basically boils down to the fact that the Dairy and Hog Industries in ND are on a very, very scary rapid decline and so these groups a few years ago started doing research and looking at what surrounding states did to combat their declining numbers.  One thing that the research has pointed at specifically is that in SD, they changed their law to allow "Corporate" Farming in their state.  Is this a coincidence or did it really help fix the problem?

So here is our statement and how we stand on the ND Bill 2351:

"Currently, we have many types of business structures to use in the Dairy Industry and we personally look at the Corporate Legislation as an "option" or another "tool" to use for financial structure of a livestock facility.

Currently the United States has 47,000 dairy farms, 97% of them are family-owned and obviously many types of business models are used (LLP, General Partnerships, and many are even Incorporated). There is extensive amount of opportunity for growth of the dairy and hog industry in North Dakota, and we feel that the State of ND should do those things which allow that to happen for those within our state and for others that have been interested in relocating to North Dakota. Our State's Department of Agriculture has had many interested family-farms in the past interested in relocating or establishing a new livestock operation in North Dakota, but unfortunately, one of the factors that has blocked some from coming is that they have their current farms as a "corporate structure" or wanting to become "incorporated".  A change in the law of ND would allow those interested dairy farms to relocate to our state, but would hinder from acquiring huge tracts of land (640 acres or less) and taking opportunities away from our existing farmers. A new livestock facility in our state would create many new economic advantages to the area where they would locate! The need for feed from the farm's neighbors can be a new marketing option for the farmers, and also the manure from the livestock facility is an excellent soil nutrient. There is also huge economic impact for the farm's needs for local supplies, businesses, and services that would be brought to the surrounding areas as well.  The growth of the livestock numbers would greatly strengthen our agriculture industry as a whole, and would  be a real advantage to our existing producers.  

For our family personally, as I said before, we view this as another option for us especially on when it comes to the business terminology and also taxes. Currently we are in the process of transitioning the dairy farm from my husbands parents to us, and this could be an new option for us. It also could be used for future expansion of our farm and allowing for our neighbors to buy shares in the farm and to supply feed to us if we would become "incorporated"."

So, do I agree with huge corporations coming into ND, buying up huge portions of land, and hurting local farmers, obviously NO!  But that seems to be the stigma that is surrounding this bill is that we are in support of that.  So lets get this straight, what we are in support of is allowing FAMILY OWNED farms being able to change their business structures to "Incorporated" to allow non-family members (such as neighbors, cousins, business associates) to come together and form a business, which right now the law prohibits.   I know a lot of farms that would like to be able to be 'Incorporated' instead of 'Partnerships' because there is a huge difference in the business structures, the amount of liabilities, the taxes, and many other business factors that would positively effect current ND producers.

The Messier, The Better!!!

I received a phone call from Char Heer from Midwest Dairy Association asking if our farm could do a dairy presentation at the ND Farm Bureau Kids Rodeo Round-up.  I quickly agreed and we got a plan together of what we were going to talk about, what activities to bring, and that we should do a fun "surprise" at the end because we all know, kids have a really hard time sitting still for 1-2 hours, but I mean who doesn't?!?  So I got started printing off coloring sheets, putting handouts together, and then I went grocery shopping for our big surprise!

On Saturday we got there, unloaded our supplies, and jumped right into our presentation on all aspects of dairy: where your milk comes from, what we feed our cows, how milk is processed, and everything that goes into being a dairy farmer.  One amazing thing about technology is that we have our camera security system synced on our phones so the kids were actually able to see our dairy farm and our milking in real time!  It was quite cool to be able to bring the farm with us because sometimes it is really hard for people to wrap their mind around what we are trying to say and describe.  Example: Our cows get milked on a merry-go-round, how does that work?  Well, let me just show you jump on your phone, press a few buttons and boom, there is our actual facility and milking going on right now!  The kids loved it!

Now to the big finale "surprise"!  I went on YouTube a few days before and stumbled on a way to make 'Homemade Ice Cream in a Bag'!  I have never tried it before so it seemed like the perfect opportunity to give a whirl.  So the adults and helpers got busy measuring the ingredients together in the bags and then handed them off to the kids to shake for 5 minutes!  Boy, did those bags get cold!  After 5 minutes, there is a Zip-lock bag full of delicious goodness ready to eat!  We also brought a huge smorgasbord of toppings from chocolate syrup to whipped cream,  and, of course, to finish any perfect sundae- cherries to put on top!  Most of the kids ate their ice cream up in a few gobbles, some had ice cream and chocolate smeared all over their faces, and some even had it in their hair (oh, wait, those were MY KIDS!).  But all together, I think the kids had a great time, we had a great time, and I know the coordinators appreciated that we were able to be there.  But I do have to say, I really don't think the person who has to clean-up the room really appreciated us being there.  Oh well, most of the time when you are having lots of fun, a mess just happens...and usually the messier, the better!!!

So How Did YOU Close-Out Your 2014?

For two years now we have promised our kids that we would be going somewhere WARM for Christmas, so my brother (who has never really been on a tropical vacation) said "Lets Do It!"  So we booked a 5-Day Carnival Cruise out of Jacksonville, FL leaving on Christmas Eve Day!  We were totally expecting a lot of fun on the cruise, but what we weren't expecting was the amazing things we did on the way down and back.  See we decided to drive.  Yes I repeat, we drove 29 hours one-way, with 4 children in the car all the way there and ALL the way back.  Now before you call me absolutely crazy, let me count off a few reasons why we decided driving was the better option:

1.  I was at the Executive Women in Agriculture Conference about a month before we went on our cruise and my great friend, Tracey, from Monsanto said "If you are ever in St. Louis, we should go to a Rams Game!"  Well let me tell you that got the ball rolling that we would just have to conveniently "swing-in" on the way down to the cruise.  So Tracey totally hooked us up, and by hooked up I mean ALL the way up!  She got permission for us to sit in the 50 yard-line Monsanto BOXSEAT SUITE!  I am not joking: 

Before the game, we got Field Passes so we got to go down on the field during the warm-up and meeting players!

Walking out of the Rams Tunnel onto the field before the kick-off

The Monsanto 50-Yard Line Box Suite!

Me, Tracey (Monsanto), and fellow Farm Mom, Sherri, posing on the Rams Field pregame

Getting settled in our seats at the Suite, great view isn't it!  The food, drinks, and atmosphere was amazing!

The Cheerleaders were down on the field Pre-Game so of course we took a picture and bought their calendar so my oldest son could run around and get all their signatures!

 Meeting the COO of the the Rams!

 The Rams played the Giants and we were just feet away from Eli Manning Warming Up

We had an once-in-a-life (hopefully not) experience that I really want to thank Tracey and Monsanto for such an amazing experience.  My kids haven't stopped talking about it at all!  This was my kids' first-ever Professional Football game so it really was incredible for them to experience something that has so much stigma and awe surrounding it!  There were so many phenomenal things packed into that one day that I could write a whole blog just on the Rams Game.

2.  After St. Louis, we continued south to Fort Benning to pick-up my brother before we got on the Cruise.  So we got to see his apartment, hang out with him, and I got to do laundry (yeah!!!  with 6 people in a family, you go through a lot of laundry)

3.  From Fort Benning, the day before the Cruise, and drove down to spend one night by Jacksonville with my oldest brother's wife's family.  We got to celebrate Christmas with them and it allowed the cousins to play with each other (which is really a rare treat since we live so far away from each other).  Thank you so much to their family for putting up with 7 extra people!

My daughter and her baby cousin!

The Bash Brothers have Cousin Bash Brothers to play with, and boy does it get loud sometimes!  But, they always have such a great time.

And Daddy says he doesn't miss having a baby in the house...ya, right!

All the cousins having Christmas together!

4.  The next morning we packed the car, again, to drive the short 30 minutes down to the port at Jacksonville to board the Cruise Ship!  The process to get on the boat was so much smoother than the last time because this time all the kids had passports (high recommend this one important point).  So we got on-board and did INSTANTLY what you are suppose to do when you get on a Cruise Ship:

Of course, buy the Expensive, Fruity Cocktail that all the Waiters are carrying around on deck!

 ...and then take a nap!!!  HAHAHAHA!

I'm just kidding, we didn't take a nap until after we decided to be the only CRAZY PEOPLE on the whole Cruise Ship to get our swimsuits on and swim in the pool while it was 60 degrees....and cloudy.....and RAINING!  But seriously, we left North Dakota's wintery -5 degree weather just days earlier so this was an absolute heat-wave for us!  It was kinda fun having the pool all to ourselves:

 Two bigger kids swimming in the pool in the rain!

 Having some pool fun on the boat (notice the two other kids outside the pool that haven't decided whether they actually were going to get in or not!)

 My youngest decided the pool was too cold so he kept to the Hot Tub!

 My middle son was in and out of the hot tub to the pool every 2 minutes, back and forth!  He's Crazy!

So while the kids were swimming, laughing, and playing, we were perched in a lounge chair drinking those horribly dangerous, fruity drinks and finally relaxing while we were goofing around and having just as much fun as the kids: 

 



The 3 "adults" on the Cruise Ship, not really sure how responsible we were, but we sure had fun!



 It is an indescribable feeling to hear the kids giggling and splashing in the pool while we soaked up the sun (or the clouds that day) and just enjoying the blessing of life....that are far too many to count.  My heart is so full and I feel that this was the absolute perfect way to close the year of 2014.

 

5.  Driving allowed us the flexibility to make our own schedule, stop where we wanted to, stay as long as we wanted, and just wander down to Florida and back.  The kids traveled fantastically!  They played their tablets, watched movies, colored, played games together, and napped.  I really couldn't have asked for better kids, and my husband and myself would sit there and just be baffled at how well they traveled.  So to all you parents out there, don't let distance be a factor in a trip or not!

 

6.  After 5 days when we got off the Cruise Ship and were headed back to North Dakota, we called home to see how the dairy and everything was going and my father-in-law said "Don't rush home".  Well,alrighty then, if you insist!  So we wandered up to my parents house (again)to pick-up our 2 little dogs and spent New Years Eve with them.  One of our great friends came over too, and we had a memorable time visiting and reminiscing about 2014 together while sipping on champagne.  It was kind of fitting that we started the whole trip driving to my parents house to see my youngest brother graduate from UND with his Masters in Mechanical Engineering, and it was also our last stop on the way home.

  Great job, Mr. Smarty, getting that Masters Degree!

 

2014 DEFINITELY had its highs and by highs I mean really extreme, of-the-charts, mind-blowing HIGHS!!!  But to combat the highs there were some definite lows that we had to battle and struggle through.  Part of me believes that this is the way life is suppose to be.  Without the lows, you wouldn't be so grateful for the highs...and without the highs, you don't count your blessings during the lows.  God gives you a balanced life because He wants to see what you are 'made of' during the lows so that He can absolutely blow your socks off with the highs!  I know my mind was blown many times this year...I hope yours was too!!!

Recap of Executive Women in Agriculture Conference in Chicago, IL

Kate Danner (left) Illinois Crop Farmer, Kerry Dull Indiana Farmer, and me at EWA 2014

 First Off, I would like to thank Farm Journal, Top Producer, Monsanto's Americas Farmers,  Paradowski (and I am sure that I am forgetting someone) for an amazing opportunity to participate as a Panelist at the Executive Women in Agriculture Conference this last weekend in Chicago, IL.  It was an amazing experience and I feel very fortunate and so blessed to be in a room of such intelligent, hard-working, phenomenal women.

I flew in on Wednesday night and got settled at the Palmer Hilton Hotel in downtown Chicago (where the Dallas Cowboys were also staying for their game against the Bears).  I met up with Jeanne Bernick, Editor of Top Producer Farm Journal Media, and the other two incredible panelists, Kate Danner and Kerry Dull.  Jeanne escorted us out to dinner so we were able to talk and really know each other's story before we stepped on stage the next morning.  Thank you so much Jeanne for being such an awesome hostess and graciously accommodating us while we were there!

So the next morning, Jeanne was the host of the event and did an introduction to all the women attending, and then brought up one of the Keynote Speakers: Julie Borlaug of the Norman E. Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture.  What a phenomenal, extremely classy, forward-thinking business woman!  The level of experience and education that she brings to Agriculture and women in general is unprecedented.  She did a life-changing speech about Global Agriculture, GMO's, issues in the world, how to be a women in a male-dominated field, that I was frantically taking notes so that I could just soak up all of her knowledge in the short one hour that she spoke.

Julie Borlaug and I at the EWA after the morning session





So after Julie Borlaug blew the room away, Jeanne introduced the three panelists under the title of 'Successful Women in Agriculture'.  Now let me say, I had no idea what topic I was going to be speaking on before I went (I was just told to tell my story) and I sure didn't know that I would be under the 'Success' category until I got the official itinerary about a week before the event, so it was a completely humbling experience to be sitting up there.  There were so many amazing women in the room that I didn't really understand why I was the one sitting up at the table.  But, Jeanne let us tell a quick introduction of ourselves, our family, and our farming operation.  She did a fantastic job of mediating with various questions to us that pertained to our field.  At our dairy, we do a lot of tours, employee training, working with family members, succession planning, balancing kids with farm life, so that is the subjects that I touched on and spoke about.  Kate has a great story about going out and getting her triple-major degree then bringing her skills back to her 4th Generation Farm to work with her father.  She is very active in politics and serving on various boards that in the last year she has been to the White House 7 times!  Kerry's story his so many facets to it that she one extremely busy lady!  She was a school teacher but they 'branched' off (pun intended) in the Christmas Tree business to supplement the farm's income.  From there, they have gotten into a 'Bed and Breakfast', Weddings on their farm, and various other niche markets that really takes a huge level of management and intelligence on their farm to run all the separate enterprises!  What incredibly gifted women they are! 

After Jeanne asked us a variety of questions, she then opened it up to questions from the audience.  This was such a fun time because you really got to hear from the audience on what specifically did they want to know more about.  I touched on working with family and that our farm went through a transition in our family a few years ago.  A lot of women wanted to talk about this in particular and they asked a lot of questions!  I can definitely see that the Farm Family is definitely going through a shift right now.  There are a lot of sons/daughters (with their spouses) that are wanting to come back to the farm, and the older generation is trying to accommodate to them coming back, but they have a lot.of questions on how to maneuver that transition.  I basically referred them to a woman that impacted my life when it came to the farm family.  Jolene Brown is a Family Consultant that wrote the book "Sometimes You Just Need a 2 X 4".  About 3 years ago we threw the family in the car and drove down to Bowman, ND to hear her speak on the subject of 'How to Run You Family Farm Business Like A Business'.  She really was the springboard that had us implement a lot of our business strategies in our farm such as: Codes of Conduct, Employee Handbooks, getting a Mission Statement, Performance Reviews, etc.  So I told all the women, "Get a team together of people that you trust to help you run your business.  Get Financial Consultants, Estate Planners, Accountants, Lawyers, Nutritionists, Veterinarians, etc and leverage their knowledge and implement it into your business".  I didn't really realize how many farm-family businesses were struggling with this, but for the next two days I had a huge amount of women come up to me and talk to me about their stories and issues, so this is something we definitely needed to address.

Here is me speaking on the panel

So after the panel, for the rest of the day and the next, we got to hear a variety of subjects from a variety of experts in their field.  The break-out sessions where very informative, the key-note speakers were spectacular, and we even got to do a live taping of U.S. Farm Report with Tyne Morgan:



One of my favorites was Colette Carlson, of 'Speak Your Truth' who did an amazing break-out session in the morning that was standing-room only.  Then during the lunch she really talked to women on how to speak directly, balancing your life, and still take care of yourself.  I was taking so many notes from her because she really hit on some key issues!  She made us ponder, evaluate, and even cry from laughing so hard with her demonstration on how women have to be extreme multi-taskers:

Collete Carlson showing a visual demonstration how much a woman has to multi-task in one day.  It was Awesome!







But with all the whirlwind of meeting people and filling our brains with new information that we went through, we still found time to go out, meet new people, network, and build those connections with fellow women in agriculture that is so utterly important.  Go out there and build your support system, go meet like-minded women that you can ask questions and get mentorship from, go get your knowledge from conferences!  So women, if you didn't go to the EWA2014, I would highly recommend it for next year, because hopefully, I will see you there!!!

Hanging out with other Farm Moms after the session



But perhaps, maybe the best thing about going to the conference, is coming home to your beautiful family waiting for you at the airport, roses in hand, to smother you with kisses because they missed you so much. 

Daddy picked out the Poinsettia, my oldest- white rose, my daughter- pink rose with white glitter, my middle son-red rose with blue glitter, and my baby- yellow and pink rose