Dear Dairy Diary

By Grant Cracraft, 13 years old
Parents: Matt and Renee Cracraft
Brillion, Wis. • Manitowoc County • 75 cows

Editor’s note: Dairy Star is having dairy kids journal a day in their life on the farm.

Monday, June 2

I got up at 5:30 a.m. and helped feed the cows and calves. I always help mix feed for my dad and make sure everyone has feed. Next, I finished cleaning up the barn before heading to the house at 7 to eat breakfast. 

I went back out to the barn at 8:45 to push up feed. Next, I checked over the discbine and greased and fueled it up. My favorite job is cutting hay with our 4995. I cut hay for a few hours and then came in to eat lunch at 2. I usually make a pizza, or sometimes my dad and I grab something for lunch if we are out and about.

I enjoy living on our farm because there is a lot to do every day. I like working with my dad and Grandpa Steven and Uncle Joe, who also farm on their own dairy farm a few miles away from us. They help us with our planting and other things if they are not busy when we need them. I really enjoy that we all get to work together. We also have a few other neighbors who we work with and help out and trade equipment for manpower. It makes it fun to work together with each other.

If we are doing field work, I like to help get things ready, like putting new knives on the discbine or greasing equipment and checking tires and air pressure on wagons. I also like helping Dad change oil and filters on the tractors.

After lunch, I helped Dad get the chopper wagons ready for chopping first-crop hay the next day. Then I pushed up feed and cut the grass before going back out and cutting some more hay. Most days, I like to help outside, whether it’s cutting the lawn or riding with my dad to get parts or feed.

Another thing I like to do is look at our CowManager system with Dad and figure out which animals we need to breed, or which animals might be sick and need to be treated, or which heifers need tags yet. Our system works really well. I also like to help move up heifers that are springing so we can keep a better eye on them when they are ready to calve.

In the evening, I ran more feed out and helped scrape the yard and free stalls. I worked with my fair animals for a bit before heading into the house for the night around 5:30. I help Mom and Dad with whatever they need, and then I usually get my spare time for the day after 5:30. This is when I watch some TV or play video games. I went to bed that day at 9:30, like I do most nights.

I really like helping on the farm. It’s pretty fun most days. I like that I get to go along with Dad to farm shows and seed meetings or farm tours and breakfast on the farms to see how other people farm.

I hope to be able to run the farm someday with my dad and continue to make it better for the future and take good care of our cows.