Snowy Monday

Woke up to flurries followed by ice then fat flakes slapping the windows.

We have over 4 inches on the steps on our deck.

And the wild birds are eating all the homemade coconut suit cakes. I found out Lou Ann coconut oil is not the healthy choice as the coconut is heated. So it is now bird feed. I have very happy birds and chickens.

And as I went to hike up to our mail box a red fox walked right in front of me and Osa. Chase ensued and the fox backtracked and escaped as foxes do. I could see his tracks clearly in the snow and read the whole chase. The fox was after a rabbit and did not see us as he was following bunny scent.

Just nice to have winter show up and stay a while.

Snowy Friday

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We got snow this morning in the Ozarks. Though it warmed up enough for fog and some melting, I got photos of the first snowfall for February. Osa ran about in her dog coat looking for frozen moles and mice to snack on. By noon most of the snow had melted away leaving mud all around the farm.

Winter Gardening

Yesterday before the snowfall, I weeded the beds and put down goat manure. The collard greens are thriving in the cold weather. They make tasty green smoothies all winter long. And our rabbits enjoy snacking on them in the outdoor run (aka: our garden). Poppy comes along to inspect the garden with me even in the snow.

Ghost Traps

Not ghost traps but actually these are our blueberry bird netting covered in ice and snow. Just thought they looked spooky in the early morning before the snow melted away.

Poultry Pics

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Here are Whitey and the guineas giving me a look as I feed the flock. Whitey takes her chick out to the yard for water and feed. But it got too cold for the chick and both were put inside the coop until the chick feathers out. Yesterday a hawk got one of our guineas in the open yard. The birds are getting wise to the skies and are keeping out of sight.

Robo Baby

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Today, we got in a new toy for my husband a Neato, robot vacuum device. It came highly recommended from other nerds who hate to clean. And the thing works. It picks up pet hair and crumbs all around the room. Having cats and rabbits we do have a lot of hair and the Neato does pick it all up. It does not do rugs very well, but floors, yes. And it is programmable and it recharges itself. It has a message display that tells you stuff like empty the vacuum canister. It is very maneuverable and is able to get unstuck if needed. Even gets around the toilet. It does not need supervision, but nerds like to watch. Now if only they made one for the chicken coop and the horse pasture, I would very happy.

Rainy Weekend

Both Friday and Saturday looked the same all day. Rain and no sun around the farm. I hiked up to the shop to get the mail and check for skunks near the round bales. Staying indoors and being thankful for the rain to come. We needed it as we are below normal out here in the Ozarks.

Cat Pile On

Last Friday was raining and miserable out here in the Ozarks. The one time you don't get up to start the woodstove, the cats take over. They let you know it is cold in the house. They all piled on top of me and the velour blanket. It was very hard to emerge from the purring cat heat.

However, having Coco on my head got me up an moving. The farm waits for no one. The cats however, just kept on sleeping.

Junior Takes Over

Here is the son of our old rooster that passed away last week. Junior has stepped up to fill in the rooster role on our farm. We also have two Rhode Island Red roosters that slipped in my pullet chick order last fall. So we now have three young roosters on our farm from the 9 roosters we had last week. Four were slaughtered and two died in battle on the farm. From now on any new roosters will be for the dinner table now that I know how to do it. I have learned how to tell a good rooster for the flock versus one for the table.

One thing I was told by other chicken/egg farmers was that the farm chicken meat smells and taste bad. That was all hooey, farm raised chickens taste great! They eat the best bugs and veggies the farm can provide. In truth, it's no fun to have to slaughter my own, it is messy and kinda sad (that is why I don't name my chickens). But the benefits are a healthier flock and free dinner on the table. And I can see the insides of my chicken to see the health of it. I opened the stomach to see what my rooster had been eating on the farm. It was a little of everything. Healthy chickens, tasty meat and eggs makes a happy farm.

First Chick of 2012

My white English Game hen hatched out a single tiny chick today after setting for almost 3 months. She finally had a fertile egg to hatch from the old rooster. This hen always broods up to three times a year starting in February. Her sets from the end of last year were not strong and the chicks did not hatch. Now she is back in the game providing my farm with new life. She will not leave the nest until all viable eggs hatch. Then her mothering skills turn on and she is the best mother hen I have.

More Logging

We still have not got our electric fence going yet. We have trees along the fence line that need to be taken out. It takes all day to get these heavy logs out of the woods by cart into the trailer stacked. Then driven to the shop for unloading a full trailer and restacking the logs to dry. Still need to unstack the whole logs and split them and again restack to dry. Sometimes I wish we did have more hands on the farm to get it all done. Maybe by the spring we will have more time to get the fence up and working.

After the Party

At least that is what this looks like. There was no party, just heavy cookbook reading on a sunny day. Sunlight causes the strong need to hold down furniture by the cats around the house.

Manic Day

Some days you don't get enough sleep and you got a lot to do on the farm. Just have to take it one step at a time. Even farm zombies have to get chores done.