The Summer of Cows

Dave loves to work.  I actually love to work too, we think it’s just another form of play. 

So naturally, we decided early on in our marriage that we were going to raise hard working kids. 

After all, hard work is good! 

We didn’t have an exact plan laid out, it was just one of those “young parents know it all, this is how it’s gonna be” type of feelings. 

So shortly after we had our 5th baby, and in the VERY MIDDLE of our way-too-big-“what have we gotten ourselves into” lake house build project — Dave decided it would be a great idea to get cows.  Yep, cows. Cattle. Pregnant ones and lots of them.  

“The kids need to learn to work,“ he said.  And I agreed, in theory. However, maybe just not quite yet.  Our oldest was 8 and youngest not even 1. We were BUSY to say the least, and our land was an hour away.  

Dave was busy being a doctor and we were very involved in fulfilling our lake house dream, not to mention raising the kids. 

So, who really got to work hard?  You guessed it… DAVE! And for a time, that was okay, he enjoyed it.  But, the cows had a tendency to get out, and we got to play hide and seek with them.  Occasionally that was fun, but usually not! 

Then there’s the time when a mother cow went into labor and guess who, our very own Dr. Dave, got to deliver the calf with the help of our oldest son, Chase.  Unfortunately it turned into an emergency c-section to save the calf and the mother didn’t make it.  

Chase got to spend that summer bottle feeding that baby calf until he could survive on his own.  It took a lot of hard work, and Dave got his wish. Shortly after he realized, at least for now, mission accomplished and it was time to hang up his farmers hat.  

We laugh now at that crazy summer and our ambitious parenting dreams.

However, we still love to work hard and that same boy, who's now turning 21 this week, is one of the hardest working kids I know.  

He’s living in the Philippines on a service mission for 2 years, working his heart out, and loving the people he gets to serve.  We miss him dearly, but wouldn’t want him any other place, because we know the value of hard work, and especially when in the service of others. 

So today, in honor of my baby boy and his birthday, here’s a shout out to him and his work ethic. To his big heart and his ability to love others. We’re so proud of him and know he’s going to continue to bless others through his big heart and hard working hands.  

Way to go Chase!

And way to go Dad for teaching him from a young age, your love of work.  

It’s through a willingness to dive in and work hard that dreams are built.  

I’m so glad the realization of our dreams are truly up to us, and the amount of work we’re willing to put into making them come true.

What can you get to work on now, to make sure your dreams are coming true? A little hard work never killed anyone!