Snow! Dang.

Christmas Day about noon the snow started. When we woke up the next morning we had a bout 8 inches of the stuff. It's slowly leaving even though we've had several warmer days. They're calling for 50- 60 degrees the next 3 day, so hopefully it will all be gone. The animals and I would definitely like it to be gone. Then we just have to battle the mud. Yuck.

Here we have farm animals in the snow...

Scarlet was not coming out

Rosemary and Petunia ventured out late in the day on Monday

Pearl ran through it when she had to.

Dinkey and Roscoe stayed out most of the time. There were only a few times I saw them in their shelter.

One chicken went away from the coop- she's determined to lay eggs in the goat pen.

Henrietta came out for a couple of minutes and has been in the coop ever since.

Rascal knows her pond is under there somewhere and is trying to swim. The ducks are not bothered by the snow in the least.

Other than the snow, we're getting back to normal on the farm. Christmas was wonderful, spent with family. The duck gumbo was AWESOME! I'm looking forward to making it again and it's really not that hard- especially when Chuck butchers the duck for me. The tree is down, and all the decorations put away. woo-hoo!

Last night I spent some time planning what we're putting in the raised beds. First step is lots of rabbit poop. We definitely need to up the nitrogen content before we plant.

Soon it'll be time to put seeds in, mate bunnies, and wait for baby goats. Only 9 days into winter and I'm ready for spring! Luckily, we have trip to a Florida in the meantime to thaw me out a bit.

Holidays and Happy

...and so, winter begins. Whatever your holiday choice, may it be a happy one. I for one greet winter with a hearty "BRING IT ON!", because just as the days have gotten shorter and shorter, they will now get longer and longer.

On the farm, more cold weather supplies have been laid in. Water heaters have been added to waterers- so no more breaking up ice. Yippee! Miss Petunia has been officially weaned, she's not crazy about this idea, but is getting plenty of grain and hay in her belly. I'm currently battling with the chickens to keep them closer to home- we lost one this week to a neighbors dog. I've found that if I sprinkle a bunch of scratch around in our woods, they hang out there more. Hopefully, this will continue to work.

Rupert's training continues to go well. He has one more session left that will be after the holiday madness is over. I am able to walk him off leash around the livestock now. He doesn't get more than about 5 feet from me and comes quickly when called. He will still not be trusted on his own with them but at least now if he gets loose he will come back to me.

We humans are getting ready for the traditional madness of Christmas- I drag the dogs into it, too. They get presents to make up for it.

Luke and Rupert were good sports,

Conan tried his best,

Then it all went down hill.

They all got biscuits for playing along as long as they did.

Christmas Eve begins our shenanigans with a gathering at the in-laws. Tomorrow, Chuck and I will be preparing sweet potato casserole and duck gumbo as our offerings. Fingers crossed on that gumbo. Tonight the girls and I worked on a cupcake tree for the traditional snack for the guy in a red suit.

Yes, there are Jack Skellington cupcakes, thank you, Willow.

And I tried for the logo.

Saturday breakfast is here, amidst the shreds of once pretty paper- pumpkin and blueberry pancakes provided Lazy Danes, the rest is covered dish. Saturday evening, barring bad weather, we trek to my grandmothers house. Then Sunday, it's quality time, more food and gifts with my brother and his family. Monday the tree goes out the door.

Soon enough, it will be 2011. We'll be expecting baby goats, bunnies, fowl...I'm ready to get farming again!

'Tis The Season

December 3rd already? Yup. It is becoming very clear here at Lazy Danes that we are barreling towards the winter solstice and the hoopla - good and bad- that comes with it. That's OK, we're prepared! Mostly.

With the shortening of the days and the chill in the air, the animals know without the aid of a calendar that winter is approaching. The chickens are laying fewer and fewer eggs and ranging father into the woods to forage for their bugs and grubs. Chickens, ducks, goats and Dinkey are eating more bought food than finding their own. As the weather turns colder I'll spend more and more time breaking up ice in buckets and thawing waterers.

Here's Rosemary showing off her warming layer of fat. I've dug out the Under Armor and Carhartt gear in hopes of a bit of warmth for myself.

Inside preparations for warmth have been made as well. The kerosene has been stocked and the heaters readied. Heavy blankets have been washed and piled on beds. Of course, when blankets and kerosene heaters aren't enough there's always a Dane around. Or little girls.

Willow, Madison and Luke

Bo had no snugglers during the last round with the camera so he tucks his nose in to stay warm. Don't worry, I'll cuddle up with him shortly.

Along with the all the changes in weather, the solstice brings the holidays. Our Chosen Conifer has been cut down and erected in the living room complete with lights, baubles, and gifts for loved ones piled underneath. All this taunts the dogs that would love "claim" the tree and presents as their own. Why do we have all boy dogs again?

The kids are doing their part to bring traditional offerings to this time of year. So far they've brought home a nice, if rather small, cold and they are currently recuperating from a thankfully short lived stomach virus. While missing school for a day each and between the Disney movie marathon they've helped wrap presents and made snowflakes to decorate the window.

Who doesn't love to cut snowflakes?

I've been knitting, making hair bows, trying new recipes for hearty soups and doing seemingly endless amounts of internet shopping. I'm really excited about this years Lazy Danes swag, too-no hints yet but stay tuned!

Weather aside, it's a great time of year. I'm enjoying the break from milking still and I'm looking forward to the holiday gatherings, time with family and friends, and the magic of the season reflected in the children. They are waiting impatiently for snow (please, no), time off from school and the visit from the fantasy elf.

This month always seems to fly by...

Duck Day

Well we have 8 less ducks roaming the farm after yesterdays processing. All the young Pekins have been processed leaving us with 4 adult Pekin, 4 adolescent Ancona and 2 adolescent Indian Runners. The processing itself went pretty well. A HUGE thanks to Sue and Crendell for coming to help again! We started the event with the plan of plucking half to leave the skins on for roasting and skinning half since we don't actually eat the skins anyway. In my freezer there is one bird with skin on and 7 without. The whole scalding in wax water all sounds great on the internet but we just can't get it to work well. Hopefully, they'll still be delicious cooked without the skin. I'll find out Thursday, since that's going to be one of my contributions to Thanksgiving at Mom's.

I actually took a more hands on role yesterday- instead of just being the bird catcher, hose holder and general gopher, I skinned some! It wasn't too bad- the snapping off the feet and cutting through the joint was the worst part. There's something about that sound. I'm still not ready to do the dispatching, but Chuck handles that very well.

No new plans for the fowl. We'll be in a holding pattern through winter. The only possible change is in chickens- somebody was hiding eggs in the goat pen again so I gave them to the broody Jersey to set. There's only five so we'll see what happens.

Pekin Adults

Our mascots had a birthday! Bo and Luke turned five last Thursday- It's hard to believe they're middle aged now. I still refer to them as "the puppies". They celebrated their day doing their favorite things- napping and eating. Happy Birthday, boys!

Luke

Bo

Also in dog news, I'm going to seek the help of a professional for Rupert. I currently have some calls out to a few trainers to see what they have to offer as far as behavioral modification and keeping him from chasing the livestock. Not sure if Chuck's going to be comfortable with him staying even after being trained but at least it would give him a better chance making it elsewhere. Fingers crossed for Rupert.

Petunia and Rosemary continue to do well. Petunia has started sticking her nose up at some of her bottles, so she's getting full elsewhere. Woo-hoo! Let the weaning begin!

Wishing everyone a Happy Thanksgiving full of happy, healthy, local food!

Happy Herd

The goat herd is complete and happy. Well, except maybe Roscoe who would prefer to be sharing quarters with his girls. He'll just have to be happy knowing he has 3 girls waiting for him.

This bank gets the most sun, the girls lounged here enjoying the warmth.

Petunia is fitting in very well. The older girls tolerate her and her kid antics. She's growing fast and will be 3 weeks old tomorrow- only 5 more weeks to bottle feed. Whew! Rosemary is awesome; still so laid back! It's like she's been here forever, nothing phases her. Chuck worked on the fence some and (fingers crossed) the goats are staying in!

"Where my wimmens?"

Duck processing will be next Sunday. We're planning to skin some (easier) and pluck some (tastier). We'll be processing all the 10 week old Pekins. Probably one or both the older Pekin females, and one male Ancona. Madison is lobbying hard to keep both Ancona males but there's starting to be dominance drama there.

Anconas and Cheese( Indian Runner)

We're still waiting on the arrival of baby bunnies. Here is Cleopatra in her super duper nest box. We moved her back to her own quarters after being with Isaac for almost a month, so it could be anytime now. Willow is looking forward to more bunny nuggets, and I also have had an inquiry from a guy interested in live rabbits. Woo-hoo!

Things are continuing to slow down for winter. After processing next weekend and Petunia coming off the bottle, chores will be a breeze! I'm really hoping we have a milder winter than last year- all that snow that took forever to go away, and below normal temperatures really makes for grumpy livestock and farmer.

Goat Update- Day 2

The goat transitioning is going very well. Scarlet and Rosemary hung out in the paddock yesterday with no trouble. Rosemary is ridiculously adorable and is so calm! She did get excited this morning to be let out and tried to jump the water pail- she's agile for an end table. Scarlet is adjusting, she hangs out near Rosemary, but is missing the affection from her sister. Hopefully, they'll continue to bond. Scarlet has to be confused about last weekends events.

Mellow Goat is Mellow

Rosemary hanging out in the woods

Petunia has been a darling little addition to Lazy Danes. She's eating well, has figured out I'm mom and follows me all around. Yesterday was a beautiful day so after a nap on my lap in front of the computer we took a romp around outside. She stays right with me and hollers if she can't see me. She met the chickens and ducks and nibbled some grass in the field.

Pretty Petunia

What are those?

On to more bad news. Rupert needs a new home. He needs a home without small children, with out livestock or small animals, and where he can be the dominant or only dog. Since the drama of last weekend he is relentless in his desire to get at the livestock, and he has been in an altercation (no damage to either, thank goodness) with Bo. Rupert is an incredibly sweet, submissive and gentle dog to me and Chuck and I would love to find him a good home where he can't get himself into the kind of trouble he is determined to find on the farm. I have been in touch with a rescue group, but if anyone is interested or can help find a home for him, please let me know. He will be a year old at the end of the year, neutered, microchipped, up-to-date on shots, house-trained, and would be a great running buddy. I love Rupert, I just can't give him what he needs.

Look at that sweet face!

Sad News From the Farm

Friday was a very sad day at Lazy Danes Farm. Due to a very stupid mistake with herd management the goats and the dogs ended up in the back yard together. Sparing the readers the details, we lost MerryWeather. I can not begin to express how sad and horrible I feel. MerryWeather and her sister, Scarlet, were the first farm animals for Lazy Danes. We brought them home at 2 weeks old to bottle feed and dote on so they would be friendly. They played in our living room and followed us around the farm. We didn't just lose a farm animal , we lost a family member.

Moving on with heavy hearts, Chuck and I looked for goats available to fill the milk production gap. This time of year it is much harder to find what you're after. I was excited to find some Nigerian Dwarf goats about 45 minutes from here that had already been exposed to a buck for kidding in the early part of 2011. There were several available and we promised Willow she could choose since Merry had been her goat. We piled into the van today complete with the Great Dane sized crate and headed to Buffalo Creek Farm in Germanton.

Well, we had lots of questions for them and so many possible solutions. In great Herrin style, instead of just coming home with 1 goat, we bought 2. Plus, one is most likely pregnant and usually throws twins or triplets. Eek! So here are some coming home pictures of our new additions...

First, we have Rosemary. She is a 5 year old Nigerian Dwarf.

And really, how could we leave behind the 2 week old Nubian, now named Petunia?

After a quick stop at Tractor Supply for milk replacer - I had no plans to buy a goat I needed to bottle feed- we made it back to the farm with just enough daylight to get everyone settled in.

Scarlet greeted the new girls cordially. Her and Rosemary will be sharing one side of the shed with Petunia being tucked all cozy under a heat lamp on the other side. So far no goat drama; they're usually pretty easy going animals.

Scarlet watching Rosemary "who are you exactly?"

Rosemary "what the hell is going on?"

Yes, Rosemary is shaped like an end table. Nigerians have very short legs and her roundness really accentuates this trait. They keep more weight on than other breeds and she's starting to store it up more for winter. I can't imagine how round she'll be when she's ready to deliver! Nigerians also have a higher fat content in their milk than other dairy breeds so her milk will be good for separating into cream and making butter. I'm excited to have a different breed on the farm.

Petunia

Petunia is an brown, almost cinnamon, colored doe with little splashes of white. I ADORE the long Nubian ears. So cute! She has already been on the bottle because her mom was sold a few days ago. The girls both fell in love with her and that's who Willow wanted. She even used puppy dog eyes on us. After much discussion on logistics we agreed to get Petunia as well. What's one more goat? She is well on her way to being spoiled, too. When I went out to snap theses pictures she was curled up in the far corner, shivering- she hasn't figured out to get near the heat lamp yet. So, now, she's sleeping on my lap as I type. After her bedtime bottle, I'll settle her into the warm corner for the night.

Welcome home new does!

In closing, lesson learned. The goats do not go in the backyard ever again. It is dogs only. Even if I have to replace every piece of fence on this property with chain link to contain Scarlet, there will be no more "just for today". Ever.

I'm sorry MerryWeather.

Pictures From the Flood

The creek- that sand bar is usually above water.

New pond at the edge of the upper field

Wet donkey

Happy duck- her bill was caked solid with mud just before the picture.

Flooded duck coop

Dad in the lower field- from the height of the debris in the tree, the water was almost waist high. Our road was flooded at the creek, too.

Good thing we have the fence now. The sprayer tank was at the top of the field before last night.

Our newest offering- Farmer's Mud Soak- featuring our specially formulated, nutrient rich muck.

And as of 1:00pm it's raining some more! another thunder storm headed this way this evening, too. Plenty of mud to share- come get some!

Crazy Storm Last Night

We continue to have atypical weather as fall continues. It's been unseasonably warm with only a few cold nights that actually feel like fall. Last night, a huge storm pushed across the U.S. and hit us starting about 9:00pm. There was wind, rain and a spectacular lightening display all followed by a tornado warning with the rotation about 8 miles from here in downtown Mocksville, at about 11:15pm. Crazy!

This morning, I walked the farm- the whole coop was flooded. The ducks had the worst of it and now have their very own 2-4" deep mucky muddy pond in their coop. The chicken coop faired better with only a bit of standing water at the low part near the door, but the whole rest of the floor is damp. I pulled tree limbs out of the fences all along both paddocks. In the goat/donkey paddock there used to be a dry creek that is now gushing. It bunched up a huge mound of brush where it passes a fence post- like we had beavers move in. All the animals are fine. Dinkey Donkey is soaking wet, not sure if he chose to stand in the rain or if Roscoe wouldn't let him in the shelter. The ducks and chickens will be enjoying the smorgasbord of worms and grubs that washed to the surface. Yummy!

In general farm news, the goats are only being milked every other day as they continue to produce less. Scarlet has now been bred so we'll be expecting babies in late February from Merry and late March from Scarlet. Once we dry them off completely we'll put all the goats and Dinkey together.

The rabbits are now all together in the moveable pen (also flooded and full of debris). If nature plays along we are expecting baby bunnies this weekend. We'll see. I'm just glad they're all getting along and can get out of the hanging cages in the coop. Chuck and Willow are eagerly awaiting "bunny nuggets".

More deliciousness on the way in the form of ducks. The Pekings will be processing age in 3 1/2 weeks. They grow so fast. They have their underbelly and wing feathers and are starting to get the last of their back feathers in. They have moved out of the baby brooder; spending their days in a small paddock and their nights in a separate coop area. The older ducks now get to free range during the day since I'm not as worried about creepy crawlies if I have to climb down in the creek to get them. So far they've been happy with their pools and coming up to root around in the fish pond. Hopefully they won't find the creek today since it's very high and moving way fast; I'm not sure how far down stream they'd go.

I'd really like for the weather to normal out a bit, and am wishing for a drier and milder winter than we had last year. Cold and wet is not a fun time to be a farmer.

Baby Pekings on their first day out of the baby brooder.

Chicken trying to see if she can get away with eating my new mum.

It's Fall!

What a hot summer we had! It seems that the front that brought us 8ish inches of rain last week also brought us more typical fall weather. We are definitely trying to take every advantage of it, too.

Today we spent the morning processing the last batch of meat chickens. We only had 8 roosters so it didn't take very long at all with 6 of us out here. Thanks to Sue, Crendell, Keith and Alli for helping out! Hopefully we'll be having a lot less rooster drama now and the hens will not be pestered all the time. Most of the chickens watched from a safe distance today- except Brenda. She was the first to come investigate all the various by products of processing. She stuck her head in the innards buckets, watched blood drip from the cone and picked at anything that happened to hit the ground. Eventually the others followed her and as I type they are eating the blood from the ground around the killing cone. Dinosaurs- the lot of them.

The lucky rooster that gets to go live at our neighbors house.

Keith and Alli also brought us some more adult Peking Ducks. There are 2 females and a male. We're hoping to raise our own Pekings along with the Ancona and Indian Runners next year.

New Pekings- the male is the one with the bright orange beak. His name is Spanky.

Also in duck news we have our 9 Peking ducklings growing in the brooder. These are all for meat to replace the turkeys we lost. From adorable to delicious in 10 weeks! I increased the size of the duck pens for the new guys. They are separate right now , but I'm hoping they'll all get along and hang out together soon.

Peking Ducklings- 3 weeks old

The goats are feeling the effects of fall as well and are producing MUCH less milk. I've gone to milking them once a day and getting about a quart. They'll probably make it through October and then we'll let them dry off. Mary has been in the paddock with Roscoe and that seemed to go very well. It's on the calendar and in 145 days we should have baby goats again. It will be nice to have a little break from milking, even if it means buying milk again.

Muscadine grapes are still coming in still. They're so yummy! We've dug sweet potatoes and those did really well this year, and we're starting to get pumpkins and other types of winter squash in.

This fall we'll spend adding compost and nutrients to the raised beds so hopefully those rops will do much better next year, and continuing to beef up the goat fence strength to keep Scarlet in. She should've been named Houdini.

For now though, we're enjoying the mild weather and a quiet afternoon on the farm.

Chuck in the hammock with Hayek