My Wish List For 2015

It is that time again where everyone makes their New Year's Resolutions.  Well, last year I decided I wasn't going to do that anymore because no one ever keeps them - so why bother.  Instead, each year I am going to have what I wish for in the coming new year. 

My 2015 Wish List:

1,  I wish that my son returns safely from his deployment in Navy and comes back home to civilian life.

2.  I wish my husband's and my health continues to be good.

3.  I wish my farmer's markets continue to be as successful and fun as they were last year.

4.  I wish that my goats and chickens keep producing and that the foxes and hawks leave my chickens alone - thank you very much!!!

5.  I wish my gardens will grow wonderful vegetables and fruits for us to eat and for me to can.

6.  I wish that our country would start acting like a country again.  I have no idea why this racial issue has surfaced again.  I thought we were over that back in the 60's.

7.  I know better than to wish for world peace - we seem to be moving farther and farther away from that.  So I will wish for wise leaders who are willing to work together or, at the very least, toward some sort of compromise.

8.  And, lastly, I wish and hope that God continues to work in my life leading me in the direction that He wants me to go and that I listen to His voice.

And I wish you all a very Happy, Prosperous and Safe 2015!!

2014

What is the saying . . . as you get older, the years go by faster.  It certainly seems that way.  Can't believe that 2015 is only days away and I just got used to writing 2014!!  Where did the time go - I must have been having a good time because it went by way too fast!!

 

I would have to say the best moments of the year were when this young man was able to come home.  Being a military family, you cherish those moments together because they are few and far between.  Fortunately, he was able to come home several times this year.  Hellos are the BEST and goodbyes are still hard (even after 3 years you would think I would get used to this, but you don't).

It was a year of babies - animal babies that is!  The goats gave us 5 baby goats.

 

And much to my surprise, the chickens hatched out 27 baby chicks . . .

The interesting thing about this is that in June, we had several predator attacks in which I lost 10 laying chickens.  And God provided me with 27 replacements - most of them were hens!!  How amazing is that!!

The year saw me at two markets - Hyde Park and Findlay Market.  Findlay Market started out really slow but turned out to be a great market!  And I have been at Hyde Park now for 9 years - has it really been THAT long!!

It was a year of snow and more snow and more snow.  The winter that seemed like it would never end!  Plus temps that hit negative numbers for several days in a row.

 

Fortunately, my goats waited to have their babies the one week when it was warm!!

 

It was a year when friends came to my rescue.  Two friends gave me several laying chickens in exchange for soap.  This happened at a time when I needed eggs to meet the demand from customers.  Who says God doesn't provide!!

 

As with all years, there were some goodbyes.  This year I lost my Fluff, my lovely white, fluffy cat.

 

 

Fluff loved to hunt and would often bring me back "gifts" from her latest hunting expeditions!  Unfortunately, we have coyotes who roam the woods behind our house.  You don't hear them often but every once in a while they are there.  One night in early November, my husband heard them and Fluff never came back.  I am so hoping that someone found a pretty white kitty and took her home.  But deep in my heart, I know what happened.  Dear Fluff, I miss you terribly.  RIP little one.

 

We also lost Elissa, our best milker

 

 

Elissa's death will always be a mystery to me.  Usually you have a pretty good idea when you are going to lose a goat. Never saw this one coming. Thank you, Elissa, for all the great milk you provided!!  You will be missed.

 

I had to reluctantly find a new home for Niki, our Rottweiler German Shepherd.

 

After she completely shredded an antique sofa of my husband's, I couldn't defend her.  We found a nice couple who lived on an 88 acre farm in Indiana with 2 other big dogs to adopt Niki.  Last we heard, she was doing great. 

Just when I thought we would always be a 2 dog family, much to my surprise . . .

 

This little girl, a solid black german shepherd, will be joining our family in February 2015.  I have named her Lacey. 

All in all, I would have to say 2014 was a pretty great year.  The Good Lord looked after us and provided us with food, shelter and good health.  He kept us safe and watched over us.  I am so thankful for the family He has given me, the customers that continue to buy my products, and for my goats and chickens who continue to produce for me.  May God watch over you and bless you and your family in 2015!!

 

 

 

 



Now my house is quiet again . . .

Today my house is quiet and life returns to the "normal" I have become used to - not exactly the life that I would have chosen.  My son returned to the Navy yesterday morning.  You would think after 3 years I would get use to this but you never do.  Each goodbye is hard and each hello is WONDERFUL!!

Please do not get me wrong.  I am so very proud of my son and how he has grown in the Navy.  This was the best choice for him!  And that is what is important!  He did what was right for him!  But Mothers will always be Mothers and want to keep their "babies" close no matter what their age. 

I know God will look after him.  He told me He would and I believe Him.

Christmas Ornaments

Last night we put up our Christmas tree.  Trust me - I am not the best tree decorator around.  I just don't have the "talent" to make an "elegant" looking tree.   But somehow "Santa" doesn't seem to mind because he always leaves presents under the tree.

I really do enjoy decorating the tree.  Opening up the box of ornaments is like opening up an old photo album - so many good memories are stored in this box.  Many of the ornaments were bought on various vacation trips.  And there are some really "special" ornaments that my Mom gave to me.  Those I really cherish.  There are several handmade ornaments from my sister or close friends.  Don't you just love when people take the time to make you something - really shows they care - at least, I think so!  And the really special ones are the ones that my husband buys for me every year. 

So I hope when you put up your tree, you too will have warm memories.

Wishing for warm summer days . . .

Being at a farmer's market on a bitterly, cold rainy Ohio morning . . . well, it ain't fun!!  Standing there I fondly remembered those warm August days - why did I complain???  This morning I couldn't feel my toes - LOL!  Of course, wearing a pair of sneakers was probably not the wisest choice I made - but Thank God for hand warmers!!!

The customers were few - those brave souls that did show up briskly walked to the main market house (very smart!!!).  I eventually gave in to my freezing toes and called it quits for the day after 3 hours standing in the cold.  One can be "dedicated" for only so long!

So here I sit at my computer with a space heater warming up my poor frozen tootsies!!  Wishing you all warm thoughts!

Early Preview of Winter

Winter has arrived and it isn't even officially Winter yet!!  And I have some very unhappy goats.  Trust me, I am not too thrilled about this either!! 

Yep, it is frozen water bucket time again, too.  Fortunately, we did have a few water bucket heaters to keep a couple of the buckets thawed out, but not all of them. 

And with the temperatures in the low teens, the chickens had to stay cooped up in their houses.  It is just too cold to let them out.  Needless to say, they aren't too thrilled with this early preview of Winter. 

And our poor shih tzus . . . had to endure wearing the dreaded sweaters PLUS I bought them boots!

Choo is definitely not happy with her winter attire!  But, when she is outside in 5 inches of snow, it doesn't seem to bother her now that she has the boots.

So for the next several months, we shall endure whether we like it or not!  Thank God for hot chocolate!!

Life out in the Country

Normally I love living out in the country.  You couldn't pay me enough money to move back in the city!  I love sitting on my back deck and listening to the birds sing.  And ever once in a while, I will see a deer in my back yard which is so cool (except when they are raiding my gardens!!).

But, last week country living lost some of its appeal.  I lost my favorite cat, Fluff.  Fluff loved to hunt and she would often bring me "presents" from her hunt (oh yeah!) - dead chipmunks, sparrows, field mice, etc.  I think I was supposed to be honored by this.  Well, last week she didn't come home.  And my husband heard coyotes on the hill behind us.  I am so hoping they didn't get her.  I am so hoping and praying that someone found a cute little kitty, took her home with them and that Fluff is OK.   I still look out the back door every so often hoping to see her on the back deck, though in my heart I know she is gone.  RIP my dear Fluff, I miss you so much.

And another season comes to an end . . .

This Sunday marks the end of my ninth year at the Hyde Park Farmer's Market on the Square.  Wow!!  Has it really been NINE YEARS!!  I know that doesn't seem like a long time to some people but I really enjoy my "job" and it amazes me that I have been at this market for nine years.  Of course, I have been raising goats for about 12 years! Equally amazing - LOL!!!

The ending of the market season comes with mixed feelings.  Yes, I am going to enjoy "sleeping in" on Sundays and not having to rush around making sure I have everything loaded into the truck.  But, I am going to miss my fellow farmers and vendors.  They are a great bunch of people who do amazing things.  I do enjoy the products of their labor, too!!  I will miss my customers.  Many of them have become good friends.  Many I don't know personally, but they do come back every Sunday to buy eggs or jams or soaps.  I will miss their smiling faces! But as the saying goes . . . All good things must come to an end . . .  Hopefully, the Good Lord willing . . . I will be back next year!

So, to all my customers . . . Thank you for your continued support, thank you for all your kind words about my products and thank you for your smiles!!  You don't know how often those smiles really made my day.  God Bless you all!

Unexpected Events

 

I lost Elissa last week - totally unexpected.  Not really sure what happened or why.  The day before, it looked like she had had a miscarriage and she wasn't eating (which was EXTREMELY unusual for Elissa).  Elissa would knock everyone down to get to the feeding trough.  Sometimes a goat won't eat grain if they have an upset stomach, but they will always eat hay.  She would only nibble at the hay.  So I decided to worm her.  Not much difference.  So late that evening, I gave her a Vitamin B complex shot to boost her appetite.  That usually always works . . .

The next morning, I found her dead.  My husband thinks she had a heart attack from the way she was laying.  I really hate losing a goat and I really hated losing her.  Not only was she a good milker, but she was a pretty neat goat.  She is going to be hard to replace. 

I am sure a lot of people don't understand and just say they are livestock.  But, I try to take really good care of my animals and I do get attached to them.  A lot of them have been born right here on the farm and I have bottle feed them as babies.  So there is an attachment there. 

Elissa . . . you will be missed.  Thank you for all the wonderful milk you have given us over the last 4 years.  Rest in peace, girl - you deserve it!

A Day Off

I took a day off from the markets this weekend.  Something I don't do that often.  I really needed a break.  I really didn't "take the day off" because I did spend the day working making soap, feeding chickens and goats, etc.  But I did get to sleep in a bit - just an hour.  Boy did that extra hour feel good!

I guess it was sort of a "mental health day" - at least, that is what we used to call it when I worked in an office.  We needed a day off to "clear our minds."

Did it help??  I think so.

The Simple Life

I am so very blessed to be living on my farm!  No, we will never be rich.  There are times when I am not sure if we have enough money to pay all the bills, but somehow they do get paid.  And there is always food on the table - a lot thanks to my good friends at the farmer's market who like to swap!!

I was just thinking this morning how extremely lucky I am as I was feeding and watering the various goats and chickens.  It is so peaceful out here.  God has surely richly blessed us.

My buck is STINKY!!!

It is THAT time of the year when all young (or older) bucks REEK!!  Mating season.  Oh how any goat farmer loves this time of year - NOT!!  Well, we do in a sense because that means babies on are the way and that means a fresh supply of good goat's milk.  BUT that also means stinky, smelly bucks!  UGH!!!  And if you have never smell a buck during mating season - trust me - you don't!!!

He pees on his beard about 100 times a day (I am bending the truth a bit but it does seem that way!!).  And he does this 7 days a week!!!  After a couple of weeks, he STINKS!!!  You can smell him a mile a way!!  Supposedly, this "attracts" the girl goats (???).  I guess it works because 5 months later, I find baby goats in the barn.

So for the next couple of months, I have to endure the smell but I keep "focused" on the "end product" - LOL!!

I love herbs!

This is a picture of my lavender garden from last year.  Wish it looked this good this year!! 
I love walking past my herb gardens and I can't help but rub my fingers on the leaves of the various herbs.  Oh they smell so lovely - basil, oregano, lemon balm and rosemary!  I miss that so much during the winter.  This year I am going to try to bring some of the plants inside and see if I can keep them going.

If I ever retire from the goat business, I would love to have an herb farm.  BUT almost everyone at the market sells herbs so I probably won't make any money at it.  Oh well, but I certainly would have fun!!

You never know what is behind the mask

The news of the death of Robin Williams has really sadden me.  Particularly if his death was suicide.  How sad!  You never know what is going on behind the mask that the public sees.  He always gave the impression that he enjoyed his life and what a funny man he was.  But, apparently, the demons he was wrestling with got too much for him and he felt that he had only one choice to deal with them.  RIP Mr. Williams, you will be missed.

Somedays you should just stay in bed . . .

Yesterday was one of those days . . . we all have had them.  Where everything and I mean EVERYTHING seems to go wrong or work against us!

I lost one of the baby chicks.  I am pretty much responsible for that one!  I decided to move the two newer baby chicks in with the "older" baby chicks. BIG MISTAKE!!  The "older" baby chicks were NOT thrilled with the "new" visitors and began to attack the little ones.  I thought maybe if I turned off all the lights that would make it better (chickens can't see very well in the dark).  It did for awhile until I turned the lights on again and the attacking began again.  It seemed to slow down.  So I left them alone (mistake #2).  Somehow the two baby chicks got out.  Baby #16 met one of our Shih Tzus who thought it was a delightful "squeek" toy.  Hmmm - that's funny - after one bite, it doesn't squeek anymore!  So baby #15 got moved back to the little box.  Live and learn - a hard lesson!

Meanwhile back at the chicken pen . . . we had another visitor . . . we are guessing Mr/Ms Fox was back for chicken dinner.  We heard the noise - chickens have a tendency to get quite upset when Mr/Ms Fox makes an appearance.  By the time we got there, there was only a massive pile of feathers scattered throughout the pen and all the chickens very upset.  It had to be a fox because there was no body - raccoons and possum usually leave a body (and it ain't pretty!).

Since it was a nice evening and I was pretty upset by the day's occurences, I thought it would be great day for a bike ride.  BUT I noticed both of the tires on my bike where slightly flat.  Thankfully,we have one of those portable air compressors that plug into the cigarette lighter in your car.  GREAT!!  Everything was going good until I tried taking the stupid end off of my stem of my bike tire.  It won't come off.  It just won't budge.  So I got one of my husband's wretch and tried twisting it off.  Well . . . it sort of came off but it broke the stem off of my tire!  NOW it is REALLY flat!!  So much for the bike ride (with the way my luck is going, I would have probably fallen anyway!!)

So I thought I better call it a day!!

Did I FINALLY find the answer???

How many years I have spent planting garden after garden only to have them be eaten by deers.  Oh, so many times I have look with disappointment at the the bare stems that used to be bean plants or the tomato plants that yesterday were loaded with beautiful tomatoes and today there are none. 

And the hours I spent on the internet researching how to keep deers out of your garden . . . trying ever solution that I found with minimal success - hanging soap bars (which they ate, too!! - YUCK!!), buying chemical smelly stuff, and even human urine.  None that worked on a long term basis.  So discouraging.

BUT then I got an idea . . . if they don't like strong odors . . . why not plant mint around my gardens.  My husband said it won't work - they would eat the mint like they do everything else.  So late last Fall, I rooted a bunch of my mint cuttings and transplanted them around my gardens.

And the mint grew and grew and grew (oops - that's the only problem with mint - it does spread).  BUT, it worked!!  OMG . . . it worked!!  It actually worked!!  The Angels are singing!!  We saw two deers in our yard a couple of weeks ago.  They walked right past our gardens - didn't even stop.  Not one leaf of our lettuce or beans have been touched - all my tomatoes are still intact!!  Did I finally solve the problem of keeping the deers out of my garden?  So far, so good!!!  Now if I can figure what to do with the insects!!!

Summer

Why is it that once the 4th of July is over, that the summer just flies by?  But, when you look at the calendar, summer is really just a couple of weeks old!  Maybe it is because all the retailers start putting their "summer" items on sale or clearance and you start to see "Back to School" items appearing on the shelves.

I was in Walmart last week and they ALREADY had their school supplies out and it was the last week in June!  Isn't that kind of early to be buying school supplies??  Of course, I have been out of "buying school supplies" business for about 3 years now, so what do I know!

Anyway, I plan to enjoy what's left of my summer!  I hope you do too!

Today I miss my Mom

Tomorrow I turn 61.  No, I am not going through some mid life crisis.  61 is a good age.  I certainly don't act my age!!  But, today I miss my Mom.  She has been gone for 26 years and I still miss her terribly.  As my birthday approaches (and I am sure we all do this) - we remember birthdays of the past and how our Moms made them special.  My Mom would always get me a doll cake - you have probably seen the Barbie doll cakes they have in Krogers - these cakes were never that elaborate, but I was always so thrilled to get one.  My husband surprised me with a Barbie doll cake a couple of years ago - God Bless him!!  Made my day!!

But today I miss my Mom and wish she could be here to help me celebrate my 61st birthday.  I think she would be pleased how my life turned out.  You taught me well, Mom!  Job well done!

Time sure flies!!!

Has anyone looked at the calendar lately??  It is almost the end of June and that means the year is almost halfway over - WOW!!!  And next week is the 4th of July and you know what that means . . . on July 5 the Christmas decorations come up in the stores!! (LOL!!)  Probably not, but pretty soon I would think.  But, it does seem like the summer does go by pretty fast after the 4th.

And maybe it is me . . . but I have noticed the stores already have their "Back to School" stuff out already.  Isn't that a tad bit early??  Of course, I have been out of the "school thing" for 3 or 4 years, so this might be normal.

Hope you all are enjoying your summer (particularly after this last wnter!)

Baby Chicks

God is so amazing!  As I have written previously that we lost 10 chickens to raccoon or fox attacks which has really hurt my egg production.   I just don't have the money to buy more replacement chickens at this time.

I have had two hens that have been setting on a small nest of eggs for the last month or two.  Really didn't think much would come of it.  We do have a rooster so I thought there might be a slim chance that one or two of the eggs MIGHT actually hatch, but never had any success with that.  So I just left the two hens alone, figuring if it made them happy setting on the nest, so be it.

Well, lo and behold, two weeks ago what I did find??  A baby chick!!

A couple days later another baby chick followed and another and another and another . . . So in the last two weeks, we have had 11 baby chicks hatch - completely replacing the 10 that I lost.  Of course, I don't know if all these baby chicks are hens.  But, God is so absolutely amazing . . . He gave me my replacements free of charge - LOL!!

Protecting my animals

Sometimes you have to make hard choices on the farm.  But when it comes to protecting my goats and chickens, there is only one decision that needs to be made - protecting them at what ever it takes.

Over the last several weeks, we have lost 10 chickens to brutal attacks and it has not been pretty!   That loss represents 10 eggs that I won't be getting a day or 70 eggs a week or over 5  (almost 6) dozen eggs a week I have lost.  A lost that I could not afford.

So desperate times require desperate measures.  A trap was bought.  Let me state it here . . . I do love animals (well, I do HATE snakes - despise them!!!), but all other animals I love.  I do not try to intentionally harm them if I can.  I am devastated if I accidentally run over a squirrel on the road.  Yes, raccoons look OH  so cute.  BUT they will tear apart a live chicken in matter of minutes.  And, as I said above, it ain't purty!

Since we have put the trap out and "taken" care of 5 raccoons and 1 possum, I have not lost one chicken.  I have too much invested in these animals for them to be "food" for the local wild life.

Predators

Once again, we are a war with the "creatures of the woods" - foxes and raccoons.  So far, the score is fox or raccoon 8 chickens - farmer - 1 raccoon.  I can not afford to lose any more chickens.

Losing the 8 is costing me already when you figure those 8 laid 8 eggs a day - so 8 eggs a day times 7 days a week equals 56 eggs that I am now missing a week - over 4 1/2 dozen eggs that I have now lost.  At $4 a dozen, that is about $18 which is one bag of feed now gone because some stupid fox or raccoon got hungry.

If I were to buy baby chicks to replace those loss, it still won't help out my present day situation because it takes 5 to 6 months to get the baby chicks up to production.

So now we have traps set out.

Gardens

Gardens never cease to amaze me.  Just think about it for a minute . . . You plant a small seed into the soil and water it.  God sends the warm sun and sometimes the rain.  And within a week or two a little seedling appears.  Soon the seedling grows up to produce maybe a beautiful, maybe some type of vegetable or maybe some type of herb.  All from a little tiny seed - simply amazing, don't you think!

I love this time of year because I have been getting my hands dirty in my gardens - oh what fun!!  I have planted all sorts of vegetables, flowers and herbs.  And I know we are going to enjoy these through out the summer.

Update on Licensing Situation

Somehow through the Grace of God we were licensed to sell eggs in the State of Ohio.  We are still not allowed to use coolers (except for transporting the eggs to the market) BUT we must sell them out of a refrigerator once we get them to the market.  AND the refrigerator does not have to be commercial grade.  One small victory for the farmer!!  Once I get to the market, I am not allowed to physically touch the eggs (whatever!!).

At Findlay Market, they have electric outlets for the farmers to use.  At Hyde Park, this will be interesting as they do not want you to use generators.  But the coffee guy uses a generator (and the same generator as the one I have).  So I might have open Pandora's box on this one.

Why isn't life easy???

Clermont County Board of Health

My life used to be so simple.  I would go to the Farmer's Market every Saturday and Sunday with all my soaps, lotions, jams, fudge and eggs.  No problem - life was good.  People loved my products.

Then life changed two weeks ago when the City of Cincinnati Health Inspector showed up.  "I think you need to be licensed to sell those eggs!"  Huh?  That's news to me!  After searching the Internet, lo and behold . . . he was right.  I have to have a "Mobile Food Establishment" license now to sell eggs - who would have thought!

Now if you live in City of Cincinnati or in Hamilton County - no problem.  You can sell out of coolers.  BUT if you live in Clermont County like I do . . . the inspector is one of those that wants every "I" dotted and every "T" crossed whether or not it applies to you or not.

First, he wanted us to completely remodel my truck into a mobile food truck - nope - don't think so - can't fit a 3 bay sink, a hand washing sink, a refrigerator, etc. into the back of a Toyota Tacoma. We got him to back down on that (with the help of the Market Manager at Findlay Market) - whew!  Next, he wants a full size commercial refrigerator - like I can load that onto my truck every weekend.  We are still kind of working on that issue.  He has kind of relented and saying that the refrigerator can be any size as long as it can hold my eggs BUT it still has to be commercial grade.  Commercial grade refrigerators start at $1000 and up - like I can afford that.  And people wonder WHY food prices keep rising???

He wanted pictures of EVERYTHING - our tent, our set up, the refrigerator where we store the eggs, our set up at Hyde Park, our set up at Findlay Market, etc PLUS measurements of EVERYTHING.  So we emailed all that to him last night.  Now the waiting begins - will he approve or won't he?

The way I look at this is whatever happens is meant to be.  God is in control.  So if He is closing this door, another door will open.  Yes, I am pretty upset by this turn of events because my egg sales were a huge portion of my sales.  But, this is where the Faith part comes in.  So I pray for patience and guidance.

Where did Spring Go?

I look at the calendar and it says April 16.  I look at the thermometer on my deck and it says 27 degrees.  What is wrong with this picture???  Yesterday morning I woke up to SNOW - are you SERIOUS!!!  Did I move to Wisconsin and no one told me???  Where, oh where, did my Spring go?  I think I lost it!  If you find it, could you pretty please bring it back!!

DOGS!!!

What is it with dogs that they must roll in the nastiest, disgusting possible thing they can find and then want to come to you for "loving'??  I don't think so!!!  I have no clue what Niki (our German Shepherd/Rottweiler puppy) found yesterday but she absolutely REEKS!!  And, of course, she wants to be petted and rubs up against you.  UGH!!! She smells terrible!!

Normally she sleeps in our room.  Sorry, not tonight girl.  And guess who is getting a bath first thing this morning????  Now I know why I make a dog shampoo - LOL!!!

Spring is in the Air!!!

One more day until Spring - at least, that is what the calendar says!  Whether Mother Nature agrees or not, I guess we will have to wait and see.  BUT, I did see my daffodils starting to peak their little leafy heads up yesterday in my garden!!  I am so ready for Spring!!  As I am sure the rest of the country is.

(my flower garden from last year!)

The Winter That Will NEVER End!!!

What an interesting year 2014 has turned out to be!! A winter that refuses to give up!!  Record snowfalls and sub-zero temperatures.  Today and tomorrow the temperatures will hover between the mid 50's and low 60's - sounds great doesn't it!!!  BUT . . . Mother Nature has another card up her sleeve . . . another snowstorm is headed our way on Wednesday!!  Yes, I do love snow BUT I am getting just a tad bit tired of it by now.  It was really great in January and February but it is now March and I am ready to move on, Mother Nature!!  Someday . . . I really do hope to work in my garden!  Until then, I guess I better not put the snow shovel away!!

And Kidding Season comes to an end!!

Whew!! We did it!  And all when the weather was half way decent!!  Thank you Lord!!  We now have 5 new babies residing in my garage (my poor, but understanding, husband!!).

Elissa and Holly had their babies last week (Wednesday, February 19 and Thursday, February 20) when the weather was GREAT!!!   Temperatures were in the 50s.   I was hoping Sadie would follow suit.  Kept waiting and waiting.  Then winter decided to come back and bring back frigid temperatures.  So yesterday when the high was only 20 degrees, Sadie decided to have her babies.  Oh well, at least it was during the day when it wasn't too horribly cold like single digits.

Anyway, all the babies are in a nice heated garage under a heat lamp.  Final tally - 3 boys and 2 girls.  Names - boys are Tony, Olympus, and Brutus - girls are Sochi and Penelope.

All are doing FANTASTIC!!  The three goats had no problems with giving birth, though Elissa went into ketosis where she was producing too much milk too quickly for her body to handle.  She does this every year so I knew exactly what to do - some corn syrup mixed with molasses and a couple shots of B-complex usually do the trick.  She did worry me for a day because she didn't respond as quickly as she normally does.  In that case, prayer does WONDERS!

So now my life has become extremely busy, but I'm not complaining.  In about a month and a half, I will be making goat cheese and goat's milk yogurt - YUM!!! Life is good!

Snow Puppy!!

I  found this "puppy scarf" at a craft show several years ago.  What is the saying . . . "a picture says a thousand words."  Well, I think this picture is telling me "take this STUPID thing off of me NOW!!"  She doesn't look like a happy camper, but I thought she looked cute.  Needless to say, the scarf didn't stay on long!!

The Ground Hog

Well, "Phil" saw his shadow on Sunday, which also happened to be Super Bowl Sunday!, which means that we are going to have 6 more weeks of winter.  I wonder if Phil's appearance had anything to do with the poor "appearance" of the Denver Broncos at the Super Bowl - hmmm???  There might be something there - what do you think??  Maybe Phil was really a Seahawks fan??

So, Mother Nature not wanting to make Phil look bad (and who wants to give a Ground Hog a bad reputation???) - is complying today by sending us another winter storm.  Isn't that nice of her!!  And just to make sure he doesn't doubt her, she is sending us another one this weekend!!  OK - we get the message!!  Phil was right!!  Mom Nature - enough already!!!

Rough Winter!

I don't remember a winter like this before.  Sure we have had the cold and the snow but not weeks on end of sub-zero temperatures like this.  Makes life on the farm very challenging.  Heat lamps and insulation can only do so much.

Unfortunately, this winter has taken its toll on my farm.  Friday I lost my sweet little Maggie

who was born last March.  She just couldn't handle the week long negative temperatures.  I am going to miss   you Girl!!!  Along with Maggie, I lost two chickens.

I have 4 pregnant goats that are due to give birth in the next week or two.  I just hope they don't have them during the middle of the night!  We have already made plans to bring all the babies into our heated garage.

Life on a goat farm!!

Winter Markets

Winter Markets are tough!  You sit there for 3 to 6 hours and make only $50.  Sometimes you are outside and it is cold - not just cold, but bitterly cold.  And you really wonder WHY you are doing this?

It is times like this that I really question my career choice.  So hard not to get discouraged.  And it doesn't help that your chickens aren't cooperating, either!  In the back of your mind, you keep thinking I need feed for my animals and soap supplies. etc.. etc. etc. and $50 just ain't going to cut it.  So you pray and somehow you get through it.  The soap supplies don't get bought until later and just hope that someone doesn't order that particular scent.

Life of a farmer. .

Families love to share!

One of the "joys" of being in a family is they love to share things, in particular, colds.  My husband "gave" me his cold from last week.  Oh well, it was predictable.  We do share the same bed

So now, I am coughing, wheezing and blowing my nose about a million times (or so it seems!).  BUT, still the animals need to be feed.  They don't care if you are sick or healthy - they're hungry - so feed me!!  I took care of them before I came back here and put back on my jammies, drugged myself up with the latest whatever from Vicks and climbed back into bed.

It is days like this that I miss my Mom the most.  She knew exactly what to do to make you feel better.  And she always had the coolest hands that she would put on your forehead and it would feel oh-so nice.  She would bring a bowl of hot chicken noodle soup and ALWAYS cinnamon toast!  There was alway cinnamon toast! (unless you were throwing up!).  So today I heated up a can of chicken noodle soup and made cinnamon toast.  Made me think of Mom.  Even though she has been gone some 25 years now, I still miss her terribly.  Anyway, it brought back some good memories (not getting sick is a good memory!! but good memories of a wonderful lady who was my Mom).

What are your plans for 2014?

Now that we are in Day #9 of the new year, have you given any thought of what you are going to do "different" in this new year?

What I would like to do in the new year is to become more self-sufficient.  Sounds good, doesn't it!  I am going to try to make more and more of the foods that we eat.

Yesterday I was at the feed store and picked up a bunch of seed packets. Hope to expand the gardens this year (and pray that the deers LEAVE MY GARDEN ALONE!!!!).  I given up on growing tomatoes.  Apparently, I just don't have a "red thumb" but I do have "friends" with plenty of  "red thumbs" and goat products "buy" can buy a lot of tomatoes!!

You think you can't grow a garden??? Container gardening - folks!!!  There are a lot of vegetables that can grow in containers - there is even a book on Container Gardening - check it out at your local library!!

Personally, I think we have a bunch of idiots in Washington who have their own agenda and don't really care anything about what the America public wants.  It's scary.  So I think we have to take care of Numero Ono!!  So why not start now!

Baby, It's Cold Outside!!!

Yesterday the "high" was in the negative numbers which is great if you are a polar bear in Alaska BUT if you are a chicken or a goat living in New Richmond, OH . . . it's not so great!!  And today is not going to be much different.

My husband and I spent most of Sunday afternoon preparing the barns for the "deep freeze" of 2014 by putting up insulation in every possible opening or crack we could find in both the chicken and goat barns.  Several heat lamps were hung from the rafters.   Like Noah's Ark, everyone was herded into their respective barns and boarded up for the next two days.  Don't worry, I went out several times yesterday (and will do the same today) to make sure they had enough food and would let them out to get water if they wanted.

The chickens did want to go out, the goats looked out the open barn door and quickly retreated back into the barn (no way are we going out there!!!).  I did force a couple out last night and took them to the water trough.  Some did drink.

Days like this make working with livestock "challenging."  Fortunately, we have a big enough barn to house all our goats and chickens.  I don't know what the other farmers do with hundreds of cattle, goats, horses or pigs.  Just hope for the best I guess.  But, so far all our efforts to keep our animals safe and warm seem to be working - Thank you, God!!

NOW we get snow!!!

I spent most of yesterday taking down all the Christmas decorations.  So what happens today - we get SNOW!!!  Didn't get any on Christmas Day.  Mother Nature you are a week too late, my dear!!!  This would have looked so beautiful Christmas morning!

OK, I am one of those "wierd" people who love snow.  I don't like driving it - absolutely hate it!!  But love how my yard looks covered in snow.  Behind our house is a hillside covered with trees and the trees just look so pretty lined with snow.  And what is better than sitting beside a fire in the fireplace drinking hot chocolate or something stronger!!!

Of course, when I have to drudge through the snow to unfreeze frozen water buckets and feed various chickens and goats, the snow somehow loses its "charm"!  But, for right now, I shall enjoy the beautiful snow covered landscape that God has given me this morning.  Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!