Under Construction

I have 14 sixty pound bags of Quickrete in the bed of my truck. Why, you ask? I'm having a cow shade and a milking area shade built. That's right, I'm not building it, someone else is. Thank goodness!

It's still averaging 103 degrees during the day here and with humidity it's really wearing away my energy. But not to worry. I pretend I'm on a special diet plan called The Ranch Diet. Coupled with low calorie intake and heavy manual labor as well as sauna like temperatures, The Ranch Diet is sure to literally melt off any unwanted pounds you may be carrying around. I've melted off at least 25 already. Even though it wouldn't hurt me to melt off some more, I want the pros on my side this time.

The kits should be delivered this weekend and construction starts on Monday morning bright and early.

Whatever will it be like to milk in the rain beneath a roof (that's not a camper roof)? I can only imagine the luxury. Don't get me wrong; milking in the camper is entertaining, especially with no stanchion and children holding the grain bowl for the goats. But it's really not the most convenient location. Plus, the goats kind of like it in there and want to go exploring. The old Milk Jail worked all right, but my corrugated roof leaked and now that's a buck pen.

I've been busy cleaning out the designated area for the milking shade. Most days I'm dirt tired and properly melted, but I know in the end this is going to be SO worth all the effort. I figure it can be an extremely multipurpose structure. I can milk there, entertain ranch guests, have milking lessons, store hay on one side which will both block the sun and make hay delivery to the cow much easier, have a table and chairs for outdoor picnics, etc etc. Okay it's only a 12x12 but I can dream...

I promise to post more pictures as the construction gets going.