Kelly Milks a Cow, Checks It off Her Bucket List

I finally got to cross a unique item off of my bucket list. I got to milk a cow! This is something I have been wanting to do for at least six years.

Why? I have no idea.

Perhaps it's because I lived in Los Angeles the past seven years. It made me really appreciate my roots and being from Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

And to channel my inner Dakotan, I wanted to do something that really represents our culture. What better way than by channeling my inner farmer and milking a cow by hand?

After I had the idea, I never got it out of my head. I had to do it!

Since I just moved back to Sioux Falls, I finally made it happen with a little help from our friends.

We have some awesome kids that call in to our show on a regular basis: Kylie, 13, and her sister Taylor, 8. These two are very active in the 4-H community, and happen to show cattle at various events.

Along with their mother Kris and another one of our KIKN friends, Rhonda, we were able to contact a dairy farmer that would have her cattle at the Turner County Fair. Judy Hoffman let me "borrow" her heifer 'Rosie' to try out my milking skills.

After having many people call in and give advice on how to milk a cow, frankly I was just confused on how I should go about this. I had so much information that I didn't even know where to begin!

However, it was much easier than I thought it would be. Not too gross or messy, either. Along with my instructor Amanda's help, I caught on pretty quickly. And it was fun!

For a few minutes.

It obviously would take forever to do it all by hand, so luckily we attached the pumps to finish the job.

While I was at the fair I was lucky enough to witness some of the other events going on. I saw both Kylie and Taylor, along with many other kids in 4-H do their cattle shows. It was a great learning experience, and something I've never witnessed before.

Congratulations to both girls, they did great. Taylor even got a 1st place purple ribbon, her first one.

I also got to meet the Kickin' Cow - our mascot. I think she liked Trav better than me, but I won't hold it against her.

I really enjoyed this whole experience. Not only was it fun, but it was great to try something completely out of my comfort zone.

I commend all of the men, women and kids who work so hard at these shows and on a daily basis on their farms. Thanks for all you do!