Homestead Happenings -- January 2017

It's still wintery at the farm, but everything seems to be holding up okay. I haven't had the opportunity to be home a whole lot this month, but am spending my time there well. A few new 2017 developments are in the works.

More snow. Both the shed and trailer roofs have no issues withstanding 6 inches of wet snow on them. Good to know!

Since the buck is 'home' I bred hims back to my milking doe Opal. She should be due around may 19th if she took the first breeding.

The buck and the white cull doe are part time farm residents, usually. They formally belong to a friend, but I borrow the buck for breeding and we don't mind housing him and the white doe here for however long is convenient for everybody involved.

This buck and Opal threw a nice single buckling last year, he was a very pretty little goat! The buckling was sold as a bottle baby, and I imagine he is a spoiled little mini goat these days.

This little washing machine is very cool!! It came to me via my mom, and is very handy for washing small stuff. Here it's cleaning a load of... you guessed it... baby clothes! Very handy for me, as I usually do laundry in town just once a week. Who knew babies dirty so much laundry?!

Here are my last pair of Ganoi gamefowl. They have been turned loose because of mud and maintenance issues in their pen, and also to encourage breeding. I didn't breed these birds last year, but maybe I should have.

This rooster is very mean and I had some real reservations turning him loose... he bites and is very aggressive during feeding. The first sign of bad attitude from him on the yard is going to be grounds for execution. I don't mistreat the animals here and I won't tolerate being mistreated by them, either.

I have finally come up with a suitable name for the shed/sleeping structure I built myself. It's called the Shedroom! It still needs siding, but I enclosed a small area of the porch for storage. I do plan on making this look better when I have the time and funds for finish work.

Missy is doing well and putting on weight again. I'm still heartbroken over the stillborn 2016 calf, but have high hopes for breeding her back later this year for a spring 2018 calf. I think she needs more weight on her before breeding her, that pasture she was on really didn't do her so well. I won't breed for a winter calf EVER again, that is for sure!!

So there it is, farm progress for January 2017 in a nutshell.

Mama Love

Who is Mama Love, you ask? She's awesome, simply put. But that doesn't answer the question, so I'll provide a little bit of background.

Mama Love, or Mrs. Love as I grew up knowing her as, was my elementary school librarian once upon a time. She has spent countless hours influencing countless children in her amazing way. The selflessness and patience her job required was far exceeded by Mama Love.

I must have at one point read at least half of the total literature in the school library as it was at the time, and Mama Love was one of the few staff who never said very much about it. My nose was always in a book back in those young days of mine, and as difficult as it may be for people to understand I was always in trouble for reading. I would read at lunch breaks, before school, at home after school, in class... my reading was a problem I guess. It was all I ever wanted to do!

These days I will still spend far too much of my life reading if somebody hands me a decent book. The reality of life has lessened the intensity of my reading quite a bit, but I still enjoy it just as much ad I did as a young kid.

Today I have a whole lot more than the wonderful job Mama Love filled as a teacher and librarian to thank her for, I owe her my thanks for her generosity as well. When she found out I was having a baby, she went and found special fabric (with tow trucks on it!) and made an amazing baby blanket for him. She also sent along a handmade paw print receiving blanket and some toys, all natural wipes, and.....BOOKS!!

Thank you Mama Love, from the bottom of our hearts! I wanted to let the world know that I truly appreciate your thoughtfulness and I appreciate the lasting positive influence you have had on my life. It's such a beautiful thing that you extend your love to our next generation and I think that everyone should know just how wonderful you are!

Thank you for all of your love, Mama Love!