Day in the Life - July 2021 - Ranching with Kids

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Ever wondered what a “typical” day looks like for us in July? Each and every day looks different on the ranch, and it especially varies on the season. Right now we are haying, checking pastures, working in the garden along with many other daily chores. Here is a glimpse into a day in my life in July.

Day in the Life on a Ranch in July — Pin Me

Morning Chores

Today we started the morning with breakfast and my two oldest boys each worked on a Reading Kingdom lesson. We then headed outside to unlock the ewes from their nighttime pen, feed grain to the steers, feed the boys show lambs and walk them to the pen with the other lambs and then water the lambs.

We then went back to the house so that my oldest and I could water and weed the garden while the two younger boys played and rode their bikes.

Lunchtime

Next, we came in the house to work on a bit more homeschool and have lunch. I kept lunch simple and made each of us a roast beef sandwich. Since it has been so dry, I checked Facebook and the BC Wildfire Service app to see if there are any new fires close by. I also took a few minutes catch up on some beef emails and beef message replies.

Afternoon Activities

After lunch, we hopped into my vehicle and drove to check cow/calf pairs on some of our summer pastures. We found a calf with a sore eye so we moved the calf to the corral with its mother and come home to pick up the trailer. Once we got them home, we gave the calf some antibiotics and fed his mom and him some hay. We decided to keep him in the barnyard for a few days so we that we could monitor him.

Next, I took the boys out to the hayfield so that they could join my dad while he baled hay. My dad had been out in the hayfield since the morning.

He was cutting hay in the morning and then baling in the afternoon once the crop had dried enough. Be sure to check out our 5 tips for a successful haying season. The boys love helping to check the moisture content in the bales and learning about how to test the hay with their hands.

Evening Chores

We then came back to the house and I made spaghetti for supper while tidying the house and doing some laundry. It feels like the laundry with three boys on the ranch never ends. Can anyone relate? We ate supper and then went back to the barnyard to do the evening chores.

Right now the evening chores include feeding grain to the steers, working with the boys show steer (leading, rinsing with water and brushing), catching and walking to boys show lambs to the barn where we feed them grain and then we drive down to put the ewes into their nighttime pen.

Some days we also have to move the electric fence for the sheep, but today they had enough pasture so we didn’t need to that.

The boys and I came back to the house to read some books and have a movie night in the living room!