I think when to go back to work after having kids is something a lot of farm women struggle with. I remember being pulled in two different directions. On one hand, I needed to be outside getting work done. On the other, I also needed to allow my body to rest and care for my little ones. We now have five kids. As we grew our family it made things more complicated in regards to my reliability in helping with the farm work. Raising kids, taking care of a home, and farming is a lot of work.
I had to become very creative in order to farm with little ones in tow.
We had several summers that all of our hired help quit. The second time this happened, we had just had a baby. He was just a couple of months old. I had no choice if I was going to help or not, it was more like this has to happen. I just need to figure out how.
Here is a list of must haves to help you get back to work while keeping your little ones safe and content:
- Baby Carrier– Having a good reversible baby carrier is huge, especially when they are younger. You can switch them from front to back depending on the task you are trying to accomplish. I actually have a farm carrier and a town carrier just for the simple fact that I don’t want to walk around with my little one smelling like cow poop at the grocery store.
- Portable Baby Swing– We bought a small, portable baby swing (brown of course). It was amazing! Right before milking we would feed him, change him & turn on the swing. Depending on the baby, you can get a lot of cows milked. We kept him with us in the milking parlor of course. I know several families that have a “Johnny Jump Up” in their milking parlor as well.
- Barn Stroller and/or Wagon– We bought a cheap stroller, this became a life saver. As they grow, they want to be involved. The stroller makes them feel involved but also helped keep them contained. While feeding calves, I would park the stroller so he could watch the babies. He loved it. I loved it because he was happy & I was able to get some work done.
- Barn Car Seats– You obviously do not want to ruin you nice car seat. Having the option for your little one to ride along in the truck helps tremendously. All our trucks now have a permanent car seat. My husband almost always has one of the kids with him.
- Barn Clothes– This is HUGE. We have clothes that are specifically for the barn only. I am sure you already have this for yourself, but having extra sets of clothes for kids is very important. We have two sets of snow gear, two jackets, two pairs of boots and a barn dresser full of barn clothes in the laundry room.
- Snacks & Drinks– I swear it doesn’t matter if you just had dinner, then headed out to do chores. Kids are always hungry. Always have snacks & a drink available at the barn. Make sure to have a sippy cup or water bottle handy.
Be realistic. Ease back into it. Don’t expect to do everything you did before. Don’t over commit yourself. I did this, there were plenty of times I committed to doing chores and because of the kids I left my husband hanging. You never know what their mood will be (I am talking about the kids).
I can honestly say that it does get easier as the kids get older. Before you know it they will be feeding the calves by themselves before you rush them off to dance or wrestling practice. Until that time comes, just be patient. Don’t be afraid to put a television in the barn or a kiddie pool in the milk house. Whatever you need to do to get the job done.
Krista Stauffer
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I’ve known of several dairy women who have playpens in the barn also. Milking time, if room, it went in the milking pit with them. Calf feeding time, it went in the calf area. Little Red wagons with a “tie the kiddo in” strap also work well – for taking milk bottles back and forth plus the little one 🙂 ….. And then of course, in some lucky situations, there is a Grandma nearby 🙂 My job sometimes now 🙂 LOL !