Horses and Fences

It happened a few months ago but I only recently posted about the stray horses (mules actually) that wandered into our yard.  We fed them hay and carrots and it was all sweet and innocent and silliness....until they came back today.  Actually, they were completely gentle but the goats thought they were giant goat-eating monsters.  I had to call the police for help contacting the owners for pickup before frantic goats trampled pregnant does.  Poor Doritos jumped three quarters of the way up his fence then climbed the rest to get into the chicken yard and away from the mules who were reaching over the fence to eat his hay.

Thankfully no goats were harmed in the making of this story.

We have many projects lined up for this spring season.  One has been a long time in the making.  Our buck pen expansion.  With the help of a friend we were able to buy lots of materials for this job without spending lots of bucks. ;-)  (I really am a dork.)  Today we finally accomplished the task!  They have spent the last year sleeping in a large doghouse but now they have a proper shelter.

As well as some more wiggle room

This will really help them when summer comes because it also casts more shade into their pen.  I worried for them all last summer and even made makeshift attempts at providing more shade but they never seemed to work out well.  There is a tree next to the pen but....well, if you'll just look at the left side of the pic you can see that little line near the fence...yep, that's it.  Oh, and they ate all the leaves off of it.

Babies and Bellies

Spring is around the corner! I'm so excited too!  This was a cold winter, even if there wasn't much snow.  Spring on the farm means many things...gardening, projects that have been waiting for warmer weather, and...babies.  It also mans Girl Scout cookies but that's not blogworthy.

I've been chomping at the bit waiting for the chicks to arrive at the feed stores.  I plan to send many birds to freezer camp this spring.  I also plan to order a few more ducks to replace some we lost last summer, mostly due to my own lack of knowledge and experience.  Since we have to start somewhere....

Here is our first batch of herb-roasted chickens.  They may be nuggets now but they will be cornish hens (or rooasters) later.

I'm anxious for my next adventure, kids.  Not my five kitchen raiders but goat kids.  We have some very big bellies around here.  

When I say anxious I really mean I am worried.  Ginger had her date this past fall and settled (goat raisers terminology for becoming pregnant) but had stillborn twin does.  It was our first freshening (goat raisers terminology for goats giving birth---actually refers to freshening the milk supply) and hers so not only were we heartbroken but it left us worried about future deliveries as well.  Next up....

Heidi!  Goat bellies don't get much bigger than that!  (Ignore the laundry basket.  No, I was not doing laundry in the goat pen.  It has been repurposed for holding hay.)  She's due about March 12 and I'm hoping for twins.  I'm afraid of what a single kid that large would do to her.  Every time I look at her I am reminded of when I was nine months pregnant....ugh.  Poor girl.  

Now, Moonpie was never supposed to be bred.  We woke up with the buck in the pen one morning and ever since we have wondered whether or not she settled.  There has been no blood test to confirm but.....what do y'all think?  That's an awfully big belly for someone who hasn't settled but then, sometimes goats really do look like that.  Especially does who have freshened a few times and Moonpie has freshened three times prior to this.

As soon as we have kids on the ground I will post some pictures.  It's also safe to bet that I'll be posting more pictures of adorable baby chickens, ducks, and with any luck....geese! (we have eggs in the incubator but that's something else I'm new at and it seems somewhat complicated.)

And the Goaties...

Alright, it's time for updates on the goaties.  Remember those tiny kids we bought home a year ago?  Not so tiny anymore!  Here's a handsome shot of our first goat, Burger.

He's gotten a lot bigger this past year.
Do you remember Heidi?

Be on the lookout for pictures of her kids in March.  Isn't she a pretty girl?  I can't wait to see her babies.

Then there's Ginger.  Sadly we will not be getting any babies from her this year but we're already looking forward to next year's breeding.  

Sam came to us when my mother had to move and couldn't take her little wether with her.  He's been here for months now and is quite the little character.  He's one of the most playful goats I've seen.  I don't like keeping lots of wethers though, so I'd like to see him rehomed.  In the process of looking for a new place for him we have discovered that there's a lot of people who say they want goats but don't really want them.  That's fine, I refuse to send him off to people who won't love him so, for now, he can stay.

Enjoy this pic of him with a chicken!

The Holidays

I love the holidays! Usually Christmas is my favorite but this year I volunteered to host Thanksgiving for my family.  I LOVED doing it!  We had such a good time and good food too.  I think I may host it again this year.  I hope they won't mind me putting this family picture up since it has already been all over Facebook.

For Christmas we did something really outrageous.  We went to my sister's.  I know, that doesn't really sound very outrageous but every year we either go to my in-law's house or we host something so when my sister suggested it we were a little apprehensive.  After discussing it a while I realized that I, except for a Christmas Eve dinner I hosted several years ago I haven't spent a Christmas with this sister since we were kids.  So I called her back and agreed to the plan.  I'm so glad I did too!  We spent the day cooking together and talking around the kitchen and I realized I missed that a lot more than I knew.

Two days after Christmas we crossed something off of my bucket list.  For years I have been wanting to see Six Flags Holiday in the Park.  Since we bought ourselves season passes with our tax return we decided this was our best and probably last opportunity.  Here's the kids being photobombed by the man in the background.  The trip was every bit as beautiful as I had hoped!

  

We had some fun with the goaties at Christmas too.  Here's a couple pics of Ginger since she was the most cooperative.

Invaders of the Fuzzy and Furry Kind

I guess I should apologize for taking such a long time to post anything.  I can't use the excuse that the holiday season has kept me so busy since it's been over for a month now.  There's a lot to catch everyone up on.  To save confusion I will use separate posts.

The Fuzzy Invaders

About the same time I last posted I bought half a dozen pullets to aid in egg production this spring, along with them I purchased some pekin ducklings.  So far the pekins have been my favorite of the ducks but I plan to get some rouens this spring.  This is them at a few weeks old.

This is them today.  Well, some of them at least.  The little duck in the middle isn't new.  All the little leghorn chicks will be in a stew later.  Sorry, that's what happens when you order birds online and they add "chicks for warmth".  I don't need that many males.

Go ahead and save this pic for future Easter pics. Yes, I took it. Yes, the baby was on me snoozing away.  I'm starting to wonder if the ducks are here for eggs and entertainment.

We had some furry invaders too.  We went out to feed animals one morning and these four were in our back yard just hanging out so we did what anyone in our situation would do.

We brought them carrots.  I love living out here!

We Be Jammin!

Remember the beautyberries?  We found more!  Then I got the bug...the jam bug.  Since then I have made banana jam, strawberry jalapeno jam and hot pepper (jalapeno) jam.  Yum!  Here are some pics of it all.

I didn't get any pictures of the banana jam but it was wonderful!

The first batch of beautyberry jam.  The second went into half pint jars and into the cupboard.

The jalapeno jam.  Love this stuff!

And my favorite, the strawberry jalapeno!  Yum!

Christmas is coming soon and I have a feeling some family members will be getting jam this year!

Berries and Moonpies and Cookies Oh My!

Beautyberries

(Beautyberries)

The other day Nathan brought this into the house and asked what it was.  Since I encourage this kind of curiosity I immediately snapped a photo and put it on facebook.  Soon after I learned it is called beautyberries.  It's good for a host of things like mosquito repellent and other things but we are going to make jelly.  Probably tomorrow.  

(Ginger)

After Ginger's less than stellar first date with Ditto we decided to leave her there for a while so they could get a little closer.  She has been there since then...until today!  This morning I went and picked up our expectant mother and brought her back home.  She seemed very happy to see us though, like most goats, somewhat unhappy with the change.  She'll settle back in soon enough though.  I can't wait to see her kid(s)!

She brought a friend home with her.  A pretty doe with a bad cookie habit!  Her name is Moonpie and she is quickly earning the nickname Cookie Monster but I will gladly fill her belly with cookies if she fills my fridge with milk!  

(Cookie Monster...I mean Moonpie)

I have one other doeling that is almost old enough to breed.  She has reached the favored 80lbs mark but I was advised to wait until she is 8 months old and that sounds good to me.  Better safe than sorry!  Miss Heidi will just have to wait a little longer but poor Doritos may not be able to take much more of her flirting.

Here's a lovely picture of some of my girls...

Okay, more than one.