Spotty and Lilly and Today
Last night Stewart finished up the meat bird coop so the last chore I remember before sunset is hauling buckets of chirping chicks to their new home. Annabelle scoffed at the idea when I presented it to her but when Daddy walked up moments later with a bucket, it became at once brilliant and hilarious. A Daddy’s girl through and through, that one is.
So naturally the first thing I did when it was light enough this morning was to head out to the chicks with feed and water and do a head count. Still, there are forty and still I am in shock. By this time Stewart is done milking Mabel so I strain the milk and slice 100% Rye Sourdough Bread, fry up yesterday’s eggs and put sour cream mixed with honey, flax, and chia seeds on the table along with big glasses from Mabel.
After breakfast the boys are clearing fence line for finishing up the chick run. Stewart is off to work elsewhere and with the help of Joshie and the girls we weed, water, and do some planting in the garden. It’s slated to be near ninety degrees today but overnight we are expecting 34 so I have Abram cut club soda bottles in half to act as cloches over the tomatoes, peppers, and tomatillos.
Then it’s time to actually do the dishes… well, at least most of them.
Stewart is back and is working on the fence for the chicken run with the boys so Ruthie stays with Daddy, Annie comes in to work on her math with Mama, and I start lunch with a wandering Joshua. But not before I take him out to the barn to see the newest babies to come to the homestead. These are Spotty and Lilly, babies to Elijah’s meat goat Belle, who came to the homestead about 1.5 years ago now. They are both girls so there is a good probability they will stay, if the Lord wills, since their Mama is of hardy stock.
After lunch it is more school books and fence work and dishes. I’ll check on those chicks a couple more times and after supper the pig will need feeding, the eggs will need collecting, and ducks and chickens of all sizes will need to be put up. If it’s like any other night, Daddy will milk the cow, the boys will bring the goats in from the pasture, and by sunset we’ll all be ready for bed. But first, we’ll cover up those plants and batten down the hatches for the impending cold front. And, most likely, we’ll bring this new mama and her two little ones into the barn for the night; to keep them warm, yes, but also to sneak another peek at the fuzzy newest members of the homestead.
This is a pretty post, namely because of those new fuzzy members! Your animals are so healthy. Many blessings!
My husband and I rescue animals. It’s not like we start out taking other people’s animals. Our most recent additions to our little weekend fixer upper are four ducks, two rabbits and six hens. People don’t come to my door and say please take our unwanted animals; instead, they call my daughter or son or grandkids and ask if they think I would take their animals or they are going to have to kill them and of course I take them. The hens are young and haven’t started laying yet but the owners decided they were too much work; the rabbits were from a couple who decided to divorce and neither wanted the rabbits. We will raise them as meat for our kids; we are vegetarian; however, I love tanning rabbit hides and recently have started making moccasins for us and the rabbit skin makes a nice warm layer inside the boot moccasins. The ducks came from the same couple and they had been keeping them in a dog kennel so their little feet were in bad shape. Here they have their own pond and they are so happy, splashing around in the water. People drop off their dogs and cats often and we feed them and provide them with medical care if we can catch them but most are tame. I wrote a grant for our town for money to spay and neuter feral cats so I’ve hired two veterinarians to provide the service. We trap, take to the vet, they sterilize them and ear mark them, and we take them back where we found them. We got our goat when it wondered into our yard and was eating my lilac bush. She must have had a baby somewhere because she had lots of milk. I milked her and made cheese for months before she dried up. No one yet has claimed her and now she spends her days eating the brush in our field. I suppose we need to add another goat to give her a friend but she seems very happy. This morning, we were offered three little piggies but my daughter took them since she already has a pig pen and they do eat meat. I am often amazed at what people throw away. Well, I am heading out to plant loofa gourds, more tomatoes, peppers, and cabbage. By the way, loofa gourds are so easy to grow and they are edible but more importantly, they sell like hot cakes. All of the proceeds from my sewing and vegetables will be going toward getting me a new sewing machine that embroideries and quilts. My machine quilts but she is old and I need an update. Do you sew?