I admit it!

I admit it .........today I am exhausted!

My poor back is in need of rest. Of course the rainy weather doesn't help but days like today remind me that someday I will need one of the motorized scooters to get around and my farming days are numbered.

I am sure that if I would stop falling down it would help immensely. Nothing lately irks me more than landing on my assorted body parts while challenging gravity to stay upright. I used to be pretty well balanced but with the mud and muck around, loose footing and rocks, well, I have been bouncing (more likely that is my imagination) off the ground more than usual. While at the angel girls concert last night (which was very nice) I couldn't even sit down. I will push on today as usual, maybe not as bright and cheery (yes this is bright and cheery for me) but forever onward and forward.

Two new calves yesterday brought in from other farms. Calf scours, so I immediately switched them to goats milk along with some bismuth and Albon and they, although still squirty, look much brighter and content. Poor things. I know they are destined to be veal but the conditions that they came from were less than nice. I appreciate how much care that I give my critters. Kindness always pays off no matter whom is on the receiving end.

The bees were buzzing yesterday so I postponed my visit to the hive. My fellow bee keeper had peaked into her hives and found her queens released to I will imagine that mine are too. I will wait until Sunday to move the bodies and frames around to make feeding them easier. I will also add pollen substitute to give them much needed energy.

The new layer chicks are excellent as well as the Cornish Cross meat birds. The coop is overly hot so I air it out every few hours. I won't remove the vent covers since the weather is so drastically changing from day to day. I am sure it is worth the extra effort. I would imagine the hatchery that the chicks came from will no longer offer chicks in February. They must have suffered huge losses. It amazes me that people don't care much for animals in transit and don't shelter the chicks as they should.

The pigs are also excellent. Drinking milk like pros and growing quickly. The over wintered turkeys actually bred and have fertile eggs. I am contemplating incubation. Maybe.

Well on to school work and organizing for taxes for next year. Busy weekend ahead.

Quiet Sundays

I'm sure there is someone somewhere that has an uneventful life and I can say that I'm glad it belongs to someone else. Things here on our little farm are always in some state of chaos or less than what one would consider orderly.

A better part of the day involved disbudding, tattooing and debuckafying (I love to make up words but basically castrating the male goats by, well, more on that at another time) and only getting about half the kidds done, I headed up to make breakfast for he children and husband. OK it was about 2:00 but at least we were having an early dinner. Not to worry, I had just started to fry the burgers when the doorbell rang.

A work related person to the husband (who was all disheveled from cleaning after many different animals, OK, he was stinky and smelly.....) was looking to be rehired by the company. No time soon as things this time of year are slow (let alone the economy the way it is, yup more on that at another time).

Less than two minutes after he arrives and I get him seated at the kitchen table that I had freshly chisel the childrens attempt at feeding themselves, the phone rings and it is the post office telling me the new layer chicks have arrived. When you get this call you must run. It takes many years to teach the Postal Workers that the chicks really would be better off with who knows how to take care of them. Off goes the pan and dashing to the truck I am confronted by an upset teenager from next door who has heard that I am shipping her favorite doe (due to breeding problems) and she is going to rescue her. Fine I motor down to get the doe and check on the children who are sledding , no they are playing in the brook. Yes in freezing weather. Retrieve said doe from the buck pen, trim her feet and off she goes. Now my daughter would like to ride along so I wait for her.

The chicks are in fine health though complaining, the barn is cold but time will tell. They have been given their first drink and food and a nice deep nest of shavings. My son had done a fabulous job setting up for the new additions. Back to the stove to finish making dinner. Oh look, time to do animal care again. I do love this lifestyle so......