Things I Love...

About the Farm. About Life on the Farm. Perhaps just things I love about Life. Who knows where this will go. BTW that's Mr Thing (doesn't have a proper name yet) with his momma, Myrtle. They're so cute. The chocolate in the corner is his big sister, Ms Thing. The three of them stick together like glue.

(not in any particular order)

I love hearing:
*the sound horses hooves make on the ground
*Dad on the tractor hauling feed
*A rooster crowing (NOT ten roosters.. ONE rooster LOL)
*hens clucking and scratching in the dirt--free!
*my radio playing BXR (station that plays ppl like Mat Kearney, John Hiatt, Snow Patrol, Keene, the Decemberists) while I'm in the garden
*wild birds singing in the trees early in the morning *or anytime really*
*our goat Tinkerbelle mumbling at us
*Nessa Rose' tags jingling on her collar
*our sheep bah-ing :)
*baby geese and ducks chirping and singing
*Piggies oinking and grunting (they make alot of different sounds actually)
*the voices of my family
*wind in the trees

I love seeing/watching:
*baby piglets playing and rooting in the dirt
*Pippin and McSquizzy playing Frisbee
*the sun rise, especially if the horses are out grazing
*clouds go by, and taking pictures of them
*Ness learn how to herd the goats and sheep
*LinG and Squizz half burying each other, digging for a little critter in the garden
*the dogs dancing to Bob Marley's music
*Mr Weasley (our ferret) bouncing across the floor
*the chickens scratching and grazing
*the geese and ducks swimming and eating
*the white sheep munching grass in a bright green field
*wild, untouched places
*moving water (love to hear it too)
*Jon with sick or hurt animals, he's so soft and gentle
*flames (I plan to cook outside a lot more this year.. even in cool or icky weather!)
*anything mothering a baby

I love smelling:
*wood smoke
*horse hair
*the air before, during and after rain
*my hubby
*homemade pie or cookies in the oven
*homegrown stew in cast iron
*grass
*damp hay
*a dirty horse stall (kinda gross I guess)
*sheep wool (with Lanolin still in it..ohhh heaven!)
*moss by the creek
*newborn anything, talk about the 'new' smell lol
* and bunnies, they smell nice. Just like cats.

I love how the dogs wake me up in the mornings, and then how whoever it was that did the waking will go around and lick the other dogs on the paw or forehead to get them up. Or how some mornings the boys won't get outta bed til their master/dad does.. while the girls get up with me. They're a fun bunch of dogs.

I love listening to Mom talk about her animals and the jewelry she's making. And arguing with Dad over wool prices and can dos, can't dos, shoulda done's and 'whata-ya-gonna-do's'. I love listening to Uncle Russell talk about, well, anything. And Aunt Mary about her goats. They're like her kids, and she knows each one and every bump, and every scrape on them. And I really enjoy listening to Uncle Den talk about his hobbies and the things that are important to him. I really need to see him more. And of course I love to nose into my sis' life and get pics of my niecy, MY baby girl, Ryli. And always, I love hearing my sweetie talk about his honey bees and underground houses and solar power and bio-fuels. I love him.

It's good to populate your life with people, other beings, and things that you care about.. and I suppose that I'm pretty rich in that respect. I just forget sometimes. I plan to meditate on that this year and not let last year get me down. Just because I lost the babies doesn't mean that I have to lose everything.

Well, it's getting late and this cold has me really tired and this is getting really long. So I guess I'll close. Before I do, I appreciate all my family who reads this.. I love you guys. Don't let life get you down. Make a list like this, to remember when it's a crummy day and you're sick and tired and worn down. It might make you feel better to read about the things that you love!! =) I'd love to read about those things, so send on the lists if you like! Share! :)
Toodles!

Happy Late St Patrick's Day!

Happy happy news

We've been finding Goose eggs around the place with a couple of hens nesting. We have 34 in the incubator with at least one hen acting like she's going to sit.
It's especially exciting because we have a "sorta new" Gander that is just stunning. He's a blue splash African. Oh my.. and I think he'll be the daddy of many or all of these eggs that are going to hatch in about a month. He's mated all of the hens. His picture is up above with the white hen we got with him. She doesn't look too pure, but was supposed to be. I don't know.. I don't really care. She's a pretty girl! :) They'll go nicely with our Buff African/China hen =)

More sad stuff

A few days ago (before he sold his goats, so we didn't know who they belonged to) Dad told me that a doe had 'slipped kids' in the field above our house. When Jon and I walked up there our little former 'Bottle baby' goat " Tinkerbelle" came running crying at us, she had miscarried twins. A little buck and a doe. They were both Lamancha and were really pretty. They were extremely tiny and premature. Poor little girl, she followed me around (and still does) calling and grunting, I told her that I know exactly how she feels.
I buried her little ones near the pond where the goats like to spend time munching grass and nibbling on the Mulberry tree. I'm sure Tink will spend alot of time near them, whether she knows it or not. But the odd thing is, she followed me when I took them to bury them and she nuzzled them and tried to clean them. It was so sad. She acted just like a doe that had just given birth to live full term kids. She'll make a wonderful mother some day.. just not yet.

Rest in peace little ones.

Sad tidings--one

Today we shipped out my Dad's herd of goats, and two of my own. We took them to a local stockyard. It was pretty tough to part with mine, even though I had good reason. I detest stockyards. We walked behind the scenes and found pen after pen of helplessly sick, deformed, malnourished animals. It really upset me. I guess I don't mind eating meat, it's not one of my favorite things by any means. But, seeing how these living beings are cared for-the lack thereof- makes me ever rethink my traveling diet. When we grow our own meat, it's always kept humanely and treated with respect, not starved or allowed to linger in sickness and surely not let to stand deformed. Then one day, it's life is just over and it doesn't have time to startle or think about it. But those poor animals, most of which were so disgusting and poor looking, have to live in a world of purgatory til they die at the hands of someone who neither respects them nor cares for their wellbeing or ease of passage. That really bothers me.

I saw a flock of Katadin sheep-all young lambs- that seemed to have foot rot. A horribly painful infection of their hoof walls. It made me want to be sick. What honor can you get out of a life that profits from the pain of other beings? What would make a person sell a small flock of animals with such a horrid disease. Not only are they in pain, and could have and should have been treated, but they'll spread the nasty infection to other animals because it's highly contagious.

Where has the honor, kindness and reputation gone from people? How can you hope to have any shred of decency left when you take an animal who is almost too sick or weak to walk, and send it to a stressful and inhumane end, when it could have been treated and sold as a healthy animal and fared much better. Does it really pay off to sell a goat kid for $5 because it's so sick that no one but a fool or a saint wants its contamination, when you could prevent it's illness or treat it and get $25 or more for it. What sense does this make? Why is it so common? What allows them to feel any pride in their livelihood, or their own person when they're obviously such deplorable wretches. They sicken me. And they should sicken everyone else too!

Check this out..

Here's an interesting website that I really like to go to and look at their pictures and blogs. Very pretty farm...


Bedlam Farm