Seems I have been on a roll lately, posting good, funny and hopefully thought provoking stuff.
I am working on an idea right now, so for today, I thought I'd give an update on the farm.
Currently Ivan, also affectionately known as Bitters, is still with us. YEAH! Pesky booger that he is. He isn't very thrilled with me, because I am weaning him, from his ooh so good warm bottle 3 times a day. He now gets milk in the morning, but the rest of the day is trying to learn to eat "Sweet Flake" (a molasses, oat, corn mixture), and alfalfa hay.
Ivan boards with the adult birds. We have currently a hen and cock Bantam (very small but very beautiful), 2 Barred Rock Hens, a Cucomoran Hen, a mutt hen, and White Silkies 2 hens and a cock. Oh and the originals who started it all.. and a hen and cock White Brahma. I have been getting 3-6 eggs per day most days. Which Joe seems to be giving away as fast as he can. I have several folks at church interested in getting eggs from me too. I would still like to get a few more hens, just to up the egg production a bit.
Speaking of chickens, we currently have about 75 baby chicks. Well, they aren't really babies....more adolescents. They are hilarious. And LOUD. Cheep cheep cheep all day long. Our selection of chicks range from Black and White Silkies, Bantams, Black Jersey Giants, Game Hens and we also have about 6 Red Bourbon Turkeys. (Anyone who has heard my farm stories from last year understand how turkeys are NOT my favorites.)
We still have about 10 baby bunnies, that are so adorable, Golden, Silver, and Charcoal colored. Just the sweetest little things. One of the Gold bunnies had an infection and we kept trying to clear it up but it wouldn't go away. I asked Joe to "off her" and put her out of her misery. Next time I pulled up in the drive there she is running free. He didn't have the heart to shoot her. Good news is, her eye is all better..but blind. But she is super sweet and lovable.
One of our rabbits that we recently got as a stray had babies on the wire. We didn't even know she was expecting. Luckily Joe got out there right after she had them. After some frantic switching around of living quarters, we got her in a large pen WITH a nest box, and the babies are doing fine. Exceptionally actually. They are larger than any week old bunnies I have ever seen.
We still have the pigeons. As beautiful as they are, they will probably go to auction soon. We just don't have the room for them, and the large barn like cage they are in, we will need. We have 3 expecting Mama Rabbits, due in about 10 days!!
Hmmm Oh dear. How could I forget the kittens!! The cutest little things you ever did see. We gave away one of the females this weekend. She was a fat little grey puff ball. Kyle had named her Eleanor (Theodore Chipmunk's girlfriend). Then we have Socks (black and white with "socks" on), Chaps (black and white but it looks like he has black chaps on), Camo (tortoise-shell calico. She looks like she is wearing Camo and she is quite the stalking hunter) and Harley (short for Harlequin she is a beautiful tricolored calico and is the one in the picture at the top of the page.) We are keeping Camo and Harley, along with Mom (Kitty). Bandit-our little stray we found in the barn last winter is moving out to the Big Farm to catch mice. He is a Tom and having quite the time trying to kill the baby chicks and kittens.
And of course we have the dogs. Need I say more.
We are having a terrible time with Buffalo Gnats. I have NEVER seen anything more awful. They are worse than mosquitos. And when they bite me, I swell way up. It has been making working out in the yard near impossible. I got bit on the side of my jawbone last night, and I look like I have some inflamed growth. Disgusting. They hurt, and when I say they swarm, I mean they swarm. People are losing their livestock because of them. There isn't much you can do about them, but they seem to hate the smell of vanilla, so I have been dousing myself with my expensive Pure Mexican Vanilla just to cook a few brats. Totally sucks, but apparently they are here every year this time. I just hope they don't stay long.
Joe is painting the barns, and we planted a couple rose bushes yesterday. Along with that we have a blackberry bush, red raspberry, and 2 strawberry plants. It finally dried out enough in between monsoons to get the garden tilled. I am excited but nervous, because I don't have a clue what I am doing. So I am basically just sticking stuff in the ground and then hoping. So far we have Tomatoes, Red Peppers, Jalapenos, Broccoli, Green Beans, Zucchini, Squash, Cucumbers, 2 types of Sweet Corn, Muskmelon(for us northerners it's Cantaloupe), and 2 types of watermelon. So hopefully God and Mother Nature will do alot of the work, because I kill everything. :-)
Well Joe's over tending his dad's animals this week and we are expecting Scooby to have a baby tonight. OH! Delilah had a baby girl. Tiny little thing. I will probably name her Thumbelina. Completely precious.
Great Pete. That's alot of typing about...not so much. But hey, that's my life. Love you all. There is an open invite out for those who would like to come down for a weekend. We'd love to have you....but wait until the gnats are gone..trust me...
I am working on an idea right now, so for today, I thought I'd give an update on the farm.
Currently Ivan, also affectionately known as Bitters, is still with us. YEAH! Pesky booger that he is. He isn't very thrilled with me, because I am weaning him, from his ooh so good warm bottle 3 times a day. He now gets milk in the morning, but the rest of the day is trying to learn to eat "Sweet Flake" (a molasses, oat, corn mixture), and alfalfa hay.
Ivan boards with the adult birds. We have currently a hen and cock Bantam (very small but very beautiful), 2 Barred Rock Hens, a Cucomoran Hen, a mutt hen, and White Silkies 2 hens and a cock. Oh and the originals who started it all.. and a hen and cock White Brahma. I have been getting 3-6 eggs per day most days. Which Joe seems to be giving away as fast as he can. I have several folks at church interested in getting eggs from me too. I would still like to get a few more hens, just to up the egg production a bit.
Speaking of chickens, we currently have about 75 baby chicks. Well, they aren't really babies....more adolescents. They are hilarious. And LOUD. Cheep cheep cheep all day long. Our selection of chicks range from Black and White Silkies, Bantams, Black Jersey Giants, Game Hens and we also have about 6 Red Bourbon Turkeys. (Anyone who has heard my farm stories from last year understand how turkeys are NOT my favorites.)
We still have about 10 baby bunnies, that are so adorable, Golden, Silver, and Charcoal colored. Just the sweetest little things. One of the Gold bunnies had an infection and we kept trying to clear it up but it wouldn't go away. I asked Joe to "off her" and put her out of her misery. Next time I pulled up in the drive there she is running free. He didn't have the heart to shoot her. Good news is, her eye is all better..but blind. But she is super sweet and lovable.
One of our rabbits that we recently got as a stray had babies on the wire. We didn't even know she was expecting. Luckily Joe got out there right after she had them. After some frantic switching around of living quarters, we got her in a large pen WITH a nest box, and the babies are doing fine. Exceptionally actually. They are larger than any week old bunnies I have ever seen.
We still have the pigeons. As beautiful as they are, they will probably go to auction soon. We just don't have the room for them, and the large barn like cage they are in, we will need. We have 3 expecting Mama Rabbits, due in about 10 days!!
Hmmm Oh dear. How could I forget the kittens!! The cutest little things you ever did see. We gave away one of the females this weekend. She was a fat little grey puff ball. Kyle had named her Eleanor (Theodore Chipmunk's girlfriend). Then we have Socks (black and white with "socks" on), Chaps (black and white but it looks like he has black chaps on), Camo (tortoise-shell calico. She looks like she is wearing Camo and she is quite the stalking hunter) and Harley (short for Harlequin she is a beautiful tricolored calico and is the one in the picture at the top of the page.) We are keeping Camo and Harley, along with Mom (Kitty). Bandit-our little stray we found in the barn last winter is moving out to the Big Farm to catch mice. He is a Tom and having quite the time trying to kill the baby chicks and kittens.
And of course we have the dogs. Need I say more.
We are having a terrible time with Buffalo Gnats. I have NEVER seen anything more awful. They are worse than mosquitos. And when they bite me, I swell way up. It has been making working out in the yard near impossible. I got bit on the side of my jawbone last night, and I look like I have some inflamed growth. Disgusting. They hurt, and when I say they swarm, I mean they swarm. People are losing their livestock because of them. There isn't much you can do about them, but they seem to hate the smell of vanilla, so I have been dousing myself with my expensive Pure Mexican Vanilla just to cook a few brats. Totally sucks, but apparently they are here every year this time. I just hope they don't stay long.
Joe is painting the barns, and we planted a couple rose bushes yesterday. Along with that we have a blackberry bush, red raspberry, and 2 strawberry plants. It finally dried out enough in between monsoons to get the garden tilled. I am excited but nervous, because I don't have a clue what I am doing. So I am basically just sticking stuff in the ground and then hoping. So far we have Tomatoes, Red Peppers, Jalapenos, Broccoli, Green Beans, Zucchini, Squash, Cucumbers, 2 types of Sweet Corn, Muskmelon(for us northerners it's Cantaloupe), and 2 types of watermelon. So hopefully God and Mother Nature will do alot of the work, because I kill everything. :-)
Well Joe's over tending his dad's animals this week and we are expecting Scooby to have a baby tonight. OH! Delilah had a baby girl. Tiny little thing. I will probably name her Thumbelina. Completely precious.
Great Pete. That's alot of typing about...not so much. But hey, that's my life. Love you all. There is an open invite out for those who would like to come down for a weekend. We'd love to have you....but wait until the gnats are gone..trust me...
3 comments:
Joe just came back from his dad's. Scooby had a healthy buck and a still born. Sniff....
awww, that comment is sad. But holy moly, how in the heck do you keep up with the rest of that!! I would never be able to have all those animals and then know that they may...go. Well, hopefully the egg business goes well. A lady I work with sells her eggs all the time and you'd be suprised how much people will pay for some fresh eggs. Get yourself some extra cash..tell Joe to quit givin them away.
Well, good luck with all down there. Sounds that everything is going well and you sound happy. Hope to make it down there with the kids this summer, I know they would love it.
Hey Tina, your life sounds so fun, except for the buffalo gnat...what they heck, I have never heard of them...and sounds like it is a good thing, they don't sound enjoyable. I hate the mosquitos enough. All the baby animals sound like a blast, I would so love playing with them all....I think I need to live on a farm!! I love animals!!! I will definately have to come visit sometime :) Keep up with your posting, I LOVE your blog :)
Denise
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