Keeping up Appearances...

Sometimes appearances are just that... appearances.  Here we are nearly mid April and still no sign of a baby goat for Chiba.  And since I sold the buck right before Thanksgiving, I don't really see how she could be pregnant.  



"I'm not pregnant"

A Boer Goats gestation is 148-152 days, with the gestation calculator using 150 as the average number of days.  I'm going to use November 10, 2014 as the date I'm pretty sure I sold him, because that was a Monday, and the small livestock sales only take place on Mondays, and because that was right before Thanksgiving.  Make sense? 

To clarify, if I calculate the number of days from November 10th, this would put her at 150 days as of today (April 8th).  I hope she proves me wrong and drops a kid this week, but it doesn't seem likely.  And if she isn't pregnant, well, then she is embarrassingly overweight and the shame is on me for letting her become that way.  Enough said. ~A

Is your Garden in?

The first small livestock sale was made at Mon Abri Farm this week.  On Tuesday a father and his two children came out to buy a New Zealand rabbit.  I sold him one of our ready-to-breed females, and he and his kids really enjoyed watching the goat being milked while they were there as well.  Later that night, one of our horse-trainer friends stopped by to pick up a horse we had been training to correct bad behavior, and in its place a young, barely broke 2 year old filly was left behind for us to finish up her training, before she is sent off to the racetrack for her new career as a racehorse.

June has arrived and the garden is starting to produce.  Radishes are coming in this week.  Really good, spicy-hot radishes.  I absolutely have to eat some every morning before I head out for the day's activities.  I'll be giving this recipe I found at Food52 a go around this evening.  Looking very forward to it, though I don't have any turnips on hand, so I will omit those and deal with it!

The potato and tomato plants are looking vibrant and healthy as well.

 Pastures are lush again, animals are happy.  At least until "fly season" starts up again...

I hope you all have a lovely Wednesday.  ~A

Goat Milk, Goats, Gardens and More...

Sadly, Chiba the goat gave birth to a still-born doe on May 13th.  On a good note, she seems to be recovering well, and is producing around two pints of milk every evening.  I've been freezing all of it with the hope of making cheese in June when my Mother and Grandmother visit.


Chiba's milk is on the right.

Around the farm, things are "greening" up nicely and the temperatures are definitely much more pleasant.  The garden is in and things are growing well.  Last weekend I bought a peach, pear, and two apple trees, bringing the total fruit trees on the farm to seven.  Can I declare I have an orchard now? 

The Buck goat was moved outside into a large pen, and the little spotted mare is his pasture mate for the time being.  They seem to get along fine. I'm hoping that being outside will settle him down a bit and he'll become less aggressive to humans.  Time will tell. 

I walked the back of the property yesterday evening, and so far the ticks do not seem to be a problem.  Maybe the harsh winter took care of few of them?



Louie, having a swim...

June is just around the corner and soon farmers will be cutting the first hay of the season.  It's one of my favorite times of the year.  June also means that if I want to have a heritage turkey for Thanksgiving dinner, I need to hatch some soon or buy some chicks.  The six eggs I have in the incubator are due to hatch yesterday or today.  So far there is no sign of anything trying to make its way out of an egg shell. I'm going to be really bummed if I can't hatch my own turkeys each year. I hope all of you are enjoying your spring and weather is good. ~A

A Warming Dinner for Chilly Spring Weather

It's been chilly this past week.  So chilly, the birdbath was actually frozen nearly solid this morning. Too chilly for a spring salad type dinner.  An on-sale pork tenderloin in the market lured me in, along with a carb-craving for pasta, and some roasted Brussels sprouts (for good-measure).  You can find the tenderloin recipe here, at Food52:  http://food52.com/recipes/20939-honey-mustard-pork-tenderloin  I'd like to try this marinade on shrimp or some other seafood in the near future.  Enjoy! ~A

For best flavor marinate the tenderloin overnight.

 



Add marinade and let it sleep overnight in the fridge

 



Once seared, wrap in foil and let it hang out a bit to absorb the juices.

Sun

This morning the farm was greeted with snow.  I refuse to give the snow any more acknowledgement and so you won't find a picture of it here.  Instead I will post photos from this past, perfect weekend of seventy degree temperatures and sun. 

On a good note, the taxes are done, and it appears there will be a little left over to throw back into the farm account to keep things going.  I hope you all have a lovely week ~ A



Chiba - Presumably still expecting (and very large)

Hint of Green

I have to rub my eyes with disbelief, but I think I see just the slightest hint of green out there today...

Chicks and Buns

The spring babies are all vibrant and healthy, and growing like weeds.  A couple of the bunnies are now venturing away from the nest and out into the world, and sharing carrots with the mothers.  The baby chicks are showing some odd color variations the previous hatches never had.  Anyone know why this would be?  Same roosters and hens, so what gives?

Chicks!

The first batch of chicks have started hatching out yesterday and today.  With a few winter power outages and some issues controlling the temperature in the incubator, I half doubted any would hatch.  This morning it looked like about 50% were out of their shells so far.  After tonight I think I can assume what's hatched is final.  Little dog BiBi cannot be torn away from them, as it is always with a new hatch.  She's so motherly.

A little blonde Turken

Happy Spring?

Today is the first day of Spring. A lake effect snow advisory is in place, and it’s 28 degrees and snowing. Clearly, this proves “Punxsutawney Phil” was intoxicated the morning of February 2, 2013.

This is what Spring should look like...

And this is what it really looks like. At least it does here, in Northeast Ohio, where I live.

Spring begins with the vernal equinox at 7:02 A.M. (EDT) on March 20, 2013 in the Northern Hemisphere. The word equinox is derived from the Latin words meaning “equal night.” Days and nights are approximately equal everywhere and the Sun rises and sets due east and west. At the equinoxes, the tilt of Earth relative to the Sun is zero, which means that Earth’s axis neither points toward nor away from the Sun. 

Wow, I just sounded really smart there, didn't I?

According to folklore, you can stand a raw egg up on its end during the equinox. And a broom, too. If you’re a witch. Speaking of eggs, here’s a great recipe that uses four eggs. So, you could take your mind off this nasty weather for a moment; and practice your best egg-standing technique while making this recipe, and picturing Phil, the groundhog, passed out with a bottle of rum...
Coco-nutty, Egg-y Dessert

Ingredients:
4 Eggs
½ Stick melted butter
1 Cup of Milk
1 Cup of Cream
1 Cup of Sweet, Flaked Coconut
½ tsp Baking powder
¾ Cup of Sugar
½ Cup of Flour
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla

Combine all ingredients with a mixer. Blend until smooth. Pour into a buttered pie dish. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes to an hour. As soon as it is lightly browned and appears to be “set” in the middle its done. Let cool before cutting. Its extra good served with whipped cream, of course.

At the moment, I’m in love with this coco-nutty, egg-y dessert. Happy Spring?