Weekend in Review

I'll post our weekend activities backward as the latest was the most... um... unique.

Coming home on Sunday, late in the afternoon, we found a bunny in our garden. We have several bunnies that live in the woods to the south of our house and come out to graze on a regular basis. We have one garden with a little bunny-sized hole in the fence, but it being on the north side of the house, we generally don't have to worry about it much.

Until one finds it.

So I kept an eye on this little intruder while Randy grabbed the hand pump air rifle. He hit it and severely wounded it on the first try. He was rather proud of this feat and has been anxious to at least match my killing 2 pesky squirrels with this little bebee gun, one in a single shot. A couple more shots and the little bunny was dead. We were careful to explain to Gloria (who LOVES the bunnies) that when they eat our food, we have a right and a responsibility to defend our garden. She didn't seem bothered by it though. Actually it was hard keeping her away from Randy during the slaughter process.

Yes, slaughtering. Well, you see, I've always wanted to give my boys bunny slippers (though I still haven't attempted sewing anything with Sundae's hide). So Randy immediately went to work skinning it. We planned also to eat it... that is until Randy squeezed out a really disgusting worm thing that had burrowed into its neck. Yeah, THAT grossed Randy out for quite a while afterward. We decided to nix the rabbit stew idea after that. But the hide is doing its prescribed soaking in a battery acid solution right now and will probably be ready in about 2-3 weeks. Not what we planned on doing on a Sunday evening, but kinda fun none the less.

As for Saturday's activities... there were many.

1) We separated our chicks into 2 pens: meat birds in one and layers in another. We lost a layer due to crushing during a rain storm. They all piled into a rubber made tote that I give them for added shelter and the size difference was just too much for one little one. They seem to be happy with the added space.

2) We put up the electric fencing in the front and moved the goat kids in for weening.

3) We moved the kid pen (where the goat kids would be housed at night) into the unused portion of the pasture as a shelter for the ducks. Crows have been swarming the pasture for weeks... I think they are able to find duck eggs before I do. I've found 2 in the last week and have created a little nest box for them and put that in the kid pen. The ducks are happy to have that pen again (we used it to initially establish the Pinedale Palace as home for them).

4) We transplanted Mississippi Silver cowpeas in the unused (or rather, now inhabited by the ducks) portion of the pasture hoping they will produce a good abundant forage for the goats.

5) We staked out the corners of the new dimensions of an existing garden and planned the beds and rows for optimum bed space... a great job for that hard rain stretch in the middle of the day.

6) Finished putting barb wire up above the woven wire around the pasture as an added measure against Chuck one day deciding to jump the 4 foot woven fencing. We're hoping this will also be Nubian proof and maybe next year, when the pasture is better established, we can get some young nubians who will give us more milk.

7) Randy also "cut hay"... our term for mowing the lawn. It gets so tall so fast with all this rain, we can hardly keep up!

As for today... I guess I'll be attempting to patch a bunny-sized whole in the fence.

A De-bucked Chuck and more

While I've done very little today, I'm feeling the need for "butt jobs" and so here I am, giving a... maybe-not-so-quick update.

1) Yes, Chuck has been de-bucked. We had a friend come over to help us do the deed. I was thinking I'd like someone else just to hold him as I wasn't going to get myself and our baby around his trashing horns and feet, but I also didn't want to go cutting on him without him being held totally still. Randy and I are both very glad we had, not only an extra set of hands, but this particular extra set of hands. A good southern cowboy who's done it all, Joe. He had better ideas for tieing him, did the slicing himself without and ounce of the timidity I would have had and even took the "jewels" home to fry up for dinner. It was over quickly and Chuck's healing well, but is still moving slowly and warily.

2) Still no kids, but I keep looking at Noel thinking its going to be anytime. She looks a little dilated, but then again, humans can be dilated to 3cm weeks before birth.

3) A month or so ago Randy and I found a pile of chain link fencing and poles on the side of the road. We actually were driving home from buying Chuck and already had the trailer hooked up so we gathered it up and brought it home figuring we'd find a better use for it than land fill. Randy's outside now putting it up inside the pasture. There was enough there to almost make a complete pass across and we had enough leftover from the outer pasture fence to make up the difference. This will give us a temporary partition so we can allow one side to grow up before its getting eaten and trampled then vice versa. It won't be a permanent fence as we still have the ENORMOUS piles of scrub to get rid of before we can put in fencing exactly where we want it, but that day is coming and this will work for now.

4) We ventured to Rockledge Gardens yesterday, quite the haul for us, for a particular variety of black raspberry- Mysore. I've looked for months for this plant. They called a couple days ago saying they got some in so we went and grabbed it. We only got one on account of it being bigger and pricier than we would have liked, but if the rumors are true, this is going to be a great producer for us.

5) We ordered a set of meat birds and some replacement layers from a different hatchery- S and G Poultry. We're really excited about these birds as they aren't the commercial get-em-big-fast-and-off-em-before-they-keel-over-dead breeds, but ones that are bred for taste, good health and good foraging ability.

6) We also ordered a pair of pecan trees and a pair of hazelnut trees from Burgess. I'm really surprised by their prices- worth it for even an experiment.

7) Most of my seeds are up now: corn, okra, lots of various squash, pumpkins, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, cowpeas, and beans. I also have several different fruit seeds planted, but those take months to germinate so I'm not expecting anything yet. I was hoping to at least get a couple beds ripped out and overhauled with a fresh load of compost today, but that will wait until Monday when I'm hoping my back end will feel a bit lighter.

8) We're still battling an early rising rooster. We noticed he was crowing at the moon as it came up over the house the other morning at 5am. We've tried wrapping the pen in black weed cloth with moderate success. I'm concerned about doing that in the heat of summer (when sunrise really is 5am) because I think it will make the pen too hot with too little air flow. Its not so much for us that we want to hush him up, but more for a dear, sweet neighbor who would never complain about anything, but has happened to mention that he wakes her up. We need a system that works because continually buying chicks, particularly if NAIS really goes through, just isn't feasible for long term. If anyone has any tips on hushing up a rooster, please share them!

9) We're also considering getting into mixing our own grain rations. A hardware store in town (who's owners happen to be good friend's of our's) is going to be ordering from a company that also carries feed supplies. We'd have access to corn, minerals, soybean meal, oats and a host of other raw materials. We haven't calculated any cost savings nor are we sure we could store the unmixed portions of various ingredients critter free, but its kinda attractive to be able to mix whatever level of protien we need with whatever minerals we want in whatever quantities we want. If anyone knows of a good resource for grain recipes, please pass them on.

10) We lost our honeybell tangelo this winter. The last frost that wasn't supposed to be a frost at all. The root stock has new growth, but nothing from the graft up. So we're thinking about grafting our own... probably something a bit hardier than a honeybell. We tried to find an affordable grapefruit tree to no avail, but we then read that they will grow well from seed. So, that's exactly what we're going to do! God's design is great, isn't it!

11) As for family stuff, we went camping last weekend and had a great time with gorgeous weather. Randy took this week off for a "staycation" and its been so nice having him around. Baby Superfly (our placeholder name for #3) is now 15 weeks old and I'm officially in all maternity clothes. Gloria still insists that Superfly is in her tummy instead, but I think she'll get the concept soon. Aaron is completely bipedal now. Its nice to let him outside and know he can stay upright... though he still won't keep his shoes on.

Blessings to all. Butt job is now complete.

A Long Overdue Update

Call me a slacker, but we've been celebrating. And what a reason to celebrate... the lion will lie down with the lamb- or in today's vernacular, the racoon will lie down with the chicken!

I come bearing tidings of great joy which will be to all people of N. Pinedale Rd.- the goats are out of the front yard!!! Randy and our friend, Steven, put up woven wire fencing around the pasture this past weekend and it has proven goat proof! And the ducks are even tucked away meaning they're no longer eating my chives and pooping all over the driveway! Now lest you think our necks have totally ceased to be red, we still have a pallet wood fence, the most decorative area of landscaping is a smattering of herbs and our jasmine climbing our "Narnia light" has yet to recover from frequently being snacked on.

We moved the ducks night time enclosure into the pasture to encourage them to... ahem... fertilize the pasture sand. They evidently no longer recognized it as home and refused to go in. Previously we merely had to go outside after dark and shut the door. No amount of chasing and herding would get them in now though. So today I tricked them. I put their water in the pen only and lured them with some chicken grain. Once inside I trapped them in. I'll let them out again in a few days after re-establishing it as home. I've had some rather nervous nights with them running loose where any coon or bobcat could get them, especially since they are further from the house and I may not hear an attack in time to save them. Thankfully, they were unseen by all mischievious nighttime wildlife and lived to see another day.

As for gardening, the greens are still going strong. Peas are getting nice and plump. I've gotten several handfuls a week of beautiful pearly pink cherry tomatoes. My cilantro is waist high. I planted more garlic and some more seeds this weekend. We're giving spinach one more shot. Not a single plant has survived transplanting... such a shame- I love spinach! The beets too remain very small. I've got a few more seeds in cups hoping they're take off where the others have stunted. I think I'll have some carrots for harvesting in a couple more weeks and planted some more seeds to take their place. Also trying to get more sage going. Seasoning our 37 Thanksgiving bird still has me wiped out.

The goats MUST all be pregnant. They are all looking rather wide though the earliest kidding date would be March. They are enjoying their wide open spaces... though haven't ventured to the rear of the pasture much yet.

As for our other kids, Gloria had a fabulous Christmas. She was so cute to watch. Her favorite part was making "Baby Jesus Cookies" though few made it onto the gift plates unsampled. She also loved all the "horsie" ornaments on the tree. I never realized how many "horsie" ornaments I had until she pointed them all out. My mom gave her a little tape recorder with a microphone- she's been singing jingle bells ever since. She's quite the little diva. Aaron has enjoyed the season as well though not because of cookies or presents, but rather just having lots of people around to hold him. He's such a cuddlebug. I've gone through a little bit of withdrawal. I had so many projects I was working on for Christmas: handknit stockings for Aaron and my mom's fiance, a quilt for my nephew, scrapbooked calendars for all the grandparents, etc. Now its just cooking and cleaning and organizing and making up for all I let slide while I was making gifts. I don't mind the daily grind, I just really like being creative. Now all I have to create is some diapers for "little" Aaron's ever-growing behind.

Many blessings in the new year for all of you. The pictures are of our family celebrations: Gloria modeling her new "click clack shoes"... The kids must have been mighty good this year (yes, small children CAN fit in those stockings!)... Aaron and "GG" (Great Grandpa)... Gloria singing with Grandpa Mac... And its not Christmas if Randy isn't stealing some playtime with the kids' new toys!

Bits and Pieces

Wow- I don't think it broke 85 degrees all day today. Brrrr. (For you Northerners, I'm only slightly kidding). Fall is in the air and I'm glad. We have a lot going on right now:

1)Our pasture fence is still incomplete. We've decided to do the whole thing in barbed wire instead of trying to electrify parts. We're going to grow thorny vines along the fence as well to reinforce it- and of course, that vine has to feed us as well. Thanks to the Central Florida Gardener, we found a great match for our needs- the mysore black raspberry. Now to find a source. Any suggestions?

2) In the process of looking for the mysore black raspberries, I found another site that made my mouth water- www.tradewindsfruit.com. They have TONS of fruit and nut trees for all types of climates though mostly southern. We ordered some guava, passion fruit, dragon fruit, prickly pear, macadamia nut, and kiwi. I had planted some passion fruit and kiwi seeds previously, but gave them up for lost after a month. I have since learned that it can take up to 4 months for such seeds to germinate. So we try again. At least seeds are cheep!

3) We have temporarily acquired another goat. A "boy" goat. And a little boy he is, but he's supposedly up to the challenge of siring many other goats, even with our rather matriarchal Annabelle. He's only 12 weeks old but had already been mounting his sisters- and his daddy was completing the job at his age too. We've kinda named him Sugar Daddy. Right now he's not getting much action. He joined our herd Friday evening. So our evening entertainment was sitting in front of Gloria's window hoping to watch something exciting. Maybe we should get the turkeys to set the mood. At any rate, right now he's just trying to make a place for himself. Our sweetie, Noel, seemed to welcome him to the herd... until Mama Fudge caught wind of it and gave him a rough butt. No one else has been nice to him at all. Only today has he been able to get a few nibbles from the hay basket before someone chases him off though I don't think it will be too much longer before he's accepted.

4) In speaking of being accepted, the new chickens are all properly sorted into their pecking order. All is well and we've even gotten a few pullet eggs from them already.

5) After 2 and a half weeks, the fire finally stopped smoking. Any ideas what to do with the rest of the piles?

6) We are still fighting grass in the garden. The second garden is a double layer of plastic and that is working well so far. All I have in the ground are long beans and tomatoes. The beans have been covered in aphids. Neem oil has worked the best though not miraculously. We have little frogs everywhere- why aren't they eating them? I'm going to try companion planting some mint with them as beans don't do well with anything from the onion family. Sunflowers, cucumbers, and brocolli are up. I'm having a really hard time getting my pole beans to sprout though. I'll wait another week or two before putting everything in the ground.

7) We built a potato bin, again out of wood pallets. We sprouted some yukon golds from the store, filled the bin a few inches deep with compost and burried the sprouts. As they grow, we'll add more compost. By the time comes to harvest, we should have a barrel full of potatoes- or so the articles say. We laid a double layer of plastic and weed cloth under the compost to prevent nematodes.

8) We also planted some ginger that we sprouted from the store. And the bulb ends of some green onions (once again, thanks, central florida gardener). To think I was throwing them away all this time!

9) 20 barred plymoth rocks and 10 cornish rocks were hatched and shipped today. We expect to receive them Friday morning. Hopefully they will be a stronger batch than the last ones (you may remember we lost 50% of the cornish rocks).

10) And the best news of all- Gloria, at 2.25 years old is officially potty-trained! On a whim I left her in her big girl panties one night figuring she'd either handle it or I'd do a load of laundry. She did great! And she's done great every night since... as long as I don't give her a gallon to drink when she's too exhausted to even know she has to go. I'm really proud of her. She's my big, big girl. Just makes me wonder how long she's been capable of this... Hmmmm, I wonder what Aaron can do???

11) And speaking of Aaron, he's on the move. He can scoot to any room of the house- fast! He loves his walker and can manipulate it to get anywhere as well. I bought shelf anchors this week as we now have 2 large book shelves and he will be pulling himself up very soon!

And a note for Randy who's away on business: I miss you already. The Palace isn't the same without its King.