We had such an eventful weekend! I didn't even have time to blog until now. Where to begin?
Let's start with Friday. WE GOT OUR FINAL KIDS!
Tiddie was a bottle baby we kept from 2018. She was pretty special to me because she was our first bottle baby and we even kept her in the house with the dog! They were best friends and even helped my dog overcome some anxiety of her own by having a buddy...go figure?!
We normally wouldn't keep a bottle baby, but she proved to throw decent kids and was a great mother. That is one of the biggest things we are looking for in replacement nannies...good moms. It's very frustrating to come to the barn and see kids that didn't make it just because the mothers rejected them or didn't care for them properly.
Jenny is a nanny we bought a couple of years ago. She is a good mom, but she only has one working teat. We were hoping it was just a fluke thing with her last babies, but she had the same problem this time around. She had 2 b-e-a-utiful bucks this time around. They are big and muscular in all the right places. Even though she is keeping up with her milk supply for now, we will probably have to pull one to be a bottle baby to keep up. So, Jenny will not be staying on the farm after this round.
It's hard to get rid of goats you become attached to...partly my fault because I name them all. Unfortunately, it doesn't make sense in the numbers to keep a goat around that doesn't produce in all the areas necessary to keep healthy babies and a healthy herd.
Jenny. Love this boy! Tiddie
SATURDAY! This was a busy day. We loaded up the kiddos in the dump truck (yes, car seats and all) and headed above Indiana, PA to look a "new" corn sheller. I say new very lightly. Right now we are shelling corn with a hand crank model...not a fan. So, we updated to a PTO powered sheller. Not necessarily new, but we are headed in the right direction and no more hand cranking it! Willie and I always say we are antique farmers because that's all we can afford for now...haha.
The man we bought it off of was a dairy farmer. He was kind enough to let Corbin go see his cows. He's milking about 40 or 50 (I think) head. I have a lot of respect for dairy farmers. They make pennies on the dollar and work very hard for the living that they love. Hats off to the dairy farmers!
"New" Sheller
Corbin isn't too sure... haha
Next stop! SHEEP! A good friend of mine always invites us to her farm to see her and her husband's sheep farm. Needless to say, it makes me want sheep. Our husbands had a great time in the barn "talking farming" while we enjoyed a nice visit in the warm, comfy house with the baby. They also raise and sell grass fed beef. Willie loves picking his brain about his pasture rotation because that is a goal we have for our farm someday. How awesome is it that they raise beef entirely on grass!? It doesn't get much more organic than that!
I'm in love!
SUNDAY. It was a little quieter of a day, but still productive. We prepared feed for the pigs, rearranged the barn to fit the sheller and everything else we have crammed in there, and checked over the herd. I don't like to do a lot on Sundays. There is enough going on during the week that we need that day of rest. Thank goodness the good Lord knew that from the beginning.
Since COVID, I have not been to in person church in over a year. It's been very trying and difficult. We watch Andy Stanley and the church we attend regularly on YouTube. I love that we have that option, otherwise I would be lost. I am by no means the "perfect Christian".
I have fallen short of the grace of God many, many times. I have sinned, fallen, and questioned my faith more times than I would like to admit. BUT I lean on the understanding that my God is a forgiving God that wants my love and nothing more. He has blessed me with a wonderful family, a support system, friends that share my views and friends that don't, and so many other things that I could go on and on about. So even though these times are trying, I hang onto His love.
Be still and know that I am GOD! Psalm 46:10
If you have any questions about the new babies, the corn sheller, or anything else discussed in this blog please leave a comment or message me. Also, if you have questions or ideas about things you would like to know about us, ask! I will always take suggestions for new blogs in the future!
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