New Life on the Homestead

So much has been happening out here on the homestead.  Our days are long and busy.  Recently, my sister-friend, Mrs.A, came up for a very over-due visit.  Although we talk on the telephone several times each week, it has been THREE long years since our last face to face visit.  I hope the highlights of her visit were enough to outweigh her cancelled return flight which left her stranded for 12 hours in a strange city ... and that was after a four hour drive to the airport!  By the time she returned home to east Texas, the poor girl was completely exhausted.

 

When one lives on a homestead there is always much to do.  Our to-do lists outweigh the number of hours in each day.  Despite conveying to my health-care professionals that I live on a farm and thus get lots of exercise, they don't seem to believe me.  They continually tell me that I need to make an exercise routine a priority and then proceed to provide me with pamphlets, web-site addresses, and such that should help me implement a routine.  My only thought to this advise is, "I work a solid 15-17 hours everyday of the week, much of that work physical labor - am I suppose to "exercise" in my sleep?"  My dear Mrs.A has an activity meter app on her smart phone.  As she worked along side me during her visit, she used that activity meter every day.  I am so glad she did, because that little gadget confirmed what I've been trying to communicate to my health-care professionals.  I am an active person.  I get lots and lots of exercise everyday.  Mrs.A works very hard at her home in Texas.  She is responsible for all the household chores, all the yard work, the pool maintenance, errands and all other home management.  She also maintains a consistent exercise routine.  She is so dedicated to her exercise routine, that she packed one of her work-out videos for use during her visit with us.  Needless to say, each and everyday was filled with so many chores and responsibilities she never had an opportunity to work-out with her videos.  However, according to her activity meter, her muscles, and sleep pattern, there wasn't a need for her work-out routine.  Her activity meter consistently recorded almost twice the activity level she achieves on a daily basis when at home.  Miles of walking to and from barns and pastures, manually lifting and hauling hay, hoeing, raking, squatting, bending, stooping, lifting, pulling, pushing, everyday for several hours each day was as much or more exercise then her trainer and workout videos instruct for a healthy lifestyle.  I must admit that she didn't get the "cardio" workout she normally would have, but that is because the goats are currently in the kidding barn.  Had we been turning them out, she'd had an opportunity to run along side them every morning and evening while they were herded to and from pasture - running, that's considered cardio, isn't it?  Thank you Mrs.A for bringing that smart phone exercise app and using it ... next month when my doctor asks me about my exercise routine - I'm going to tell him all about it.  Hey, I've a great idea ... why don't you could come up and tell him for me - we'd get another visit!  I loved having my dearest sister-friend up for a visit, I've cried everyday since she left because I miss her so much.

 

May is the month of newborn farm animals on our homestead.  Only days before Mrs.A's arrival, we found our first set of twin kids in the pasture.  Since then all the goats have been sequestered in the kidding barn and in the past two weeks we've added 13 more kids to our herd, 8 bucklings, 7 dolings.

 

Mama and twins (bucking and doling) less than an hour old.

Using a sled to transport the kids and coax mama to the barn.

Here's a close up of the still wet twins.

This is TC.  Although she was a twin, she was the runt.
She was so small and weak that Mrs.A and I had to hold her
up so she could reach mama's teat.  Within days she was strong
enough to feed herself.  We are happy to see her growing
so fast.

This little colt was born 5 days ago.  We've yet to decide on a barn name. 
Farmer Boy likes the name Gator ... Do you have any suggestions?

Farmer Boy hatched a few eggs again this spring.  11 of the 13 have survived
and are now big enough to be integrated into our mature flock.



Bob, Richard and Mini Mouse are growing.  We built a free field shelter
 for them out of extra tee-posts, pallets, and scrap plywood.  Beautiful
outbuildings and pretty landscaping are important to humans - not livestock.
Besides plenty of feed and clean water, the animals just want a clean and
dry place that keeps them safe from predators.

 





I know many of my readers are animal lovers.
If you think of it, please pray for our beautiful palomino mare, Blondie.  After
exercising her yesterday, Farmer Boy turned her back out to pasture.  At feeding
time we noticed her limping on her front left leg/hoof.  After examination, we
did not see any swelling or cuts and abrasions, nor feel any fever.  She does not
indicate pain when pressing on or moving her leg, shoulder or hoof.  However, she is
 in obvious pain when she tries to stand on it.  Yesterday evening was rainy and we
suspect she may have slipped on wet grass or in mud and possibly pulled a
 muscle or tendon.  Farmer Boy is very upset about her injury.
 Please pray she heals up quickly.