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Don & Roma

I am in the process of trying to clear up some misinformation that I heard on the Don (Wade) & Roma show on WLS AM yesterday morning.  Roma is a big proponent of this Natren probiotic.  We agree on probiotics, for sure.  They are really quite beneficial.  What we disagree on is the fact that you need probiotics to combat the "super bugs" that you get from consuming so many antibiotics in  your meat.  It is an unfortunate fallacy.  The meat that you consume may have been fed an antibiotic, but that animal has to be clear of that antibiotic before it enters the food supply.

Take a probiotic to help maintain the healthy flora in your body.  Do not take a probiotic to combat super bugs from eating meat.  It's simply untrue.

More articles

We were honored (once again) to be featured in two more farm publications.  One was in the IL Field and Bean magazine and the other in Farm Credit's monthly publication.  Both were well written and included many of the points that we wanted to get across.

Also, we recently met with an Associated Press reporter, Tammy Webber, from Chicago.  She is writing an article about CAFOs (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations) and the permitting process.  This is the first (non farm) reporter we have really spoken to about some of the key issues.  We hope that we got our point across that the dynamics of a family farm are certainly changing, but we are and will remain a family farm despite our size.  We are going to have our eyes and ears open for when that article might surface.  Let me know if you see it before I do.

Accounting

There is nothing I enjoy more than trying to figure out accounting software.  That's it.  We are going to buy Quicken again.  It's the easiest I have ever used.  This dumb business software isn't worth it if I cannot figure out how to work it.  Grrrr.....insert frustrated face.

Branching out

So, I realized how boring it is to read my posts because I have no pictures.  I am going to use this post as my attempt to post a photo on my blog.  If you get some sort of funny line of characters, don't laugh.  I am going to branch into the next century here....maybe.

One drawback

So, I've been diligently counting points on Weight Watchers for the last month or so.  I have lost 8.8 pounds and I'm feeling good about where I'm headed.  Yep, until the cake making train stopped this weekend.  We had a party for Bella this weekend and I made her cake.  No problems for me with the cake itself.  It's the Wilton buttercream recipe that is going to send me to my grave.  If you have never had my frosting, it's pretty much to die for.  It's so creamy and complex.  We use meringue powder and fine grain salt to take it to the next level.  I thought I was doing pretty well, actually, until I realized that I did not finish all the frosting from the mixing bowl.  Darn it anyway.  So, I had a (heaping) tbsp of the delish stuff.  MMMMMMMmmmmmmmm.  I have no idea where to begin on how many points are in that.  I do know that I am going to cut my losses this week, even if I gain.  It's too great to pass up.  I am on track for everything else, so I'll catch back up.  This is why I am grateful that birthdays only come every so often in our family.

Empty rooms

We are in the process of finishing emptying Room #1 in the barn.  Once that room is empty, we will go through and pressure wash every square inch to ensure that everything is clean before restocking the room.  We will begin refilling that room in a matter of just a few days.  In the meantime, selection of gilts continues in the other rooms, and we will begin the process over in those rooms shortly.

It's been great for us to work with Illini Farms on this adventure.  They have made the transition to contract feeding a flawless one for us.