Catch up with the rest of the Feeding the Family series here.

It’s field trip day! Hope you packed a lunch. Everyone please go use the restroom before we leave as we will not be able to stop along the way…and I’m serious so go now…I mean it. (Ehem, oh yeah, you guys are grown-ups…sorry.)

Okay, ready to go to Anne’s Farm to meet her cow…the cow that provides our family with yummy milk? Everybody get into my van and buckle up. Wow, who knew my van could hold so many people at once? Oh sorry, you in the back. Just throw that hot wheel car you sat on under the seat with the pretend cell phone. 

Here we go! Here’s the entrance to Anne’s farm. It’s just a couple miles out of town. Oh yes, and you might notice that some parts of this field trip occur when the grass is green and there’s corn ready to be cut across the street…and some of this field trip occurs when everything is brown and icy. Um, well…time flies. :)

As we drive up the lane toward Anne’s house, we see her huge garden area surrounded by a white fence. Have I ever told you that my friend Anne is one of the most hard working women I know? She has a huge garden, cans and freezes food, has ducks and chickens, milks a cow twice a day, has a husband, and has two daughters that she homeschools. And she still has time to be my friend. I am so blessed.

And now what you’ve all been waiting for. May I introduce you to Turbo? This is the beautiful cow that I’ve told you so much about. She is mostly and almost always sweet, although she loves Anne the best, just ask the other few people who have tried to milk her. She stands in her spot most of the day…grazing in the spring and summer…chewing on hay in the winter. She’s quite healthy and happy…even though she appears to be looking at all of us with disgust right now. How dare we disturb her lunch?

I believe Turbo is trying to tell us something. Maybe she thinks if she can’t see us, we can’t see her. 

As we head back into the garage to get my milk jars, let’s just take a peek at the chickens and the ducks. They are free to roam around all day. Anne just raised this new batch of chickens from chicks this spring. They are just now starting to lay eggs. I was given six little pullet eggs for Christmas (one little precious egg for each of us). Oh were they yummy!

Would one of you please find the milk jars in the fridge with my name on them and put them into my box? Be sure to put the towels around my jars so that they won’t break on the way home. Yes, one got broken one time. And it was summer. And do you know what milk smells like on the carpet of a van in the summer? Mmhm.

Thanks for going to Annes’ Farm with me! We’ll be going on more field trips soon!
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When we began our journey to eat healthier a few years ago, finding a source for raw, organic, grass fed milk was one of the first things we looked for. Anne didn’t have Turbo at that time…but she got her within a few months since our family and her family and another one of our friends were all wanting raw milk. Isn’t she nice? During the summers as Turbo prepares to calf…Anne dries her up (and has a blessed break from being tied to a cow for nine months out of the year)  (And I know you are now picturing my friend literally tied to a cow, but really, it’s not like that, I promise). During those three months we go a little farther down the road to another farm to get our raw milk. 

Here are a few things we have learned about milk that have convinced us that we want to stick with raw organic milk:

1. It’s the yummiest milk on the planet. (Yes, that’s just my opinion…but the fact that this creamy milk tastes so good sure does help me appreciate it’s benefits.) 
2. Raw milk is…raw. Milk that has been pasteurized loses all of it’s healthy bacteria, beneficial enzymes and many of it’s nutrients. Raw milk maintains all of the good stuff it started out with.
3. Raw organic milk comes from cows who have not been given hormones to increase their milk production…nor have they been given antibiotics to counter the effects from it’s living conditions. Generally cows on a monster dairy farm live in such unnatural conditions that they must be given antibiotics constantly. If you can’t find or don’t want raw milk…I at least urge you to work toward at least finding organic milk for this reason.
4. Read this article!!!! It is a wonderful explanation of why raw, organic milk from grass fed cows is so good.

I’m thankful that I have such an easy source (easy for me, not as easy for Anne, although she never complains) for good raw milk. Look at this site if you want to see how to find raw milk in your area.

I’m including this post as a Frugal Friday post, even though really…it is cheaper to buy milk at the store. But well…I believe being frugal includes more than just saving money and buying what is cheaper. It’s about being a smart spender. We feel it’s worth it to spend more on raw, organic milk.

What kind of milk do you like to drink? Do you find that finding a source for organic milk is difficult? Anybody want to come over for some milk and cookies?  :)