First Calf 2012

It's a tradition...we take a picture of the first calf, every year.  It's funny, because as I look back through the files, here are 10 first calf pictures, all little knobby kneed, fuzzy, clumsy little black Angus calves in very bleak March-in-Montana landscapes, with worried young mamas.  And every year, it's exciting! Babies!

*Maggie was being a grump this morning, not happy that we went went roaring out to the pasture to see the new baby. "It's just another calf! I've seen thousands of calves in the pasture!" and then she wanted to know if it was a bull calf or heifer.  I told her it was a bull calf and she gloomily said, "Well, that's just great.  The first calf of the year and he's going to be hamburger when he grows up..."  *big, dramatic sigh*

So, for those of you wanting baby pictures, here's 066 with her baby....you know, the future Angus burger at your friendly, local steakhouse.

We didn't get too close, so these pictures were taken with my big lens.  She was a nervous little mama and I didn't want her to take off with him; she had him down in a nice little coullee where he was sort of protected from the wind.  It's so hard to take a picture of a black calf standing next to a black cow on a cloudy day....

Isn't he beautiful? And she's SO pleased with him.

This picture really shows how young this mama cow is.  See how her face still looks almost baby-ish, still?

There you go.  Brand new baby on the prairie, the beginning of calving for the year!
It's gorgeous weather for it, supposed to be up in the 50s this week during the day, and very little snow.
Let the games begin!