Today I want to let you in on a little secret: I love farming. Ok, so maybe that’s not a secret, but it does surprise people when I tell them that I actually enjoy what I do every day. Not just the cute little animals, or the delicious food, or the time with my family. Even the days when I have to chop through an inch of freezing rain to open the chicken coop. Or when I wake up every 2 hours every night to nurse a sickly chick. Or when my kids are fighting instead of working and take an hour instead of 20 minutes to get a job done.

Not that I’m some crazy person who thinks the sound of bickering kids or the feeling of frozen fingers is nice. But because I know that every challenge is a chance to get stronger, if we persevere.

Having that time every morning and evening where I have to be outside, need to slow down and do things right, gives me time to pause, think, and count my blessings. You can’t rush hand milking. You need to be calm and patient, no matter how your day has been, or what the weather’s like.

To celebrate our farmers who are out in every kind of weather providing our communities with food every day of the year, Wensleydale Cottage Farm is taking on a photo project. Farming 365 is a photo every day of the year from the same point on the farm: the view out the barn door as we milk every day. Every month we’ll post the highlights here. We hope it will give you a taste of what it’s like to be a farmer: the beautiful moments, the tough moments, and everything in between.