Peppy the goat comes home

We got the text from Sonflower Farm that Peppy had been bred and was ready to come home.  So we drove over to get her before heading to work. She had gone out of heat and had to stay there so the male could bring her back into heat for a week or so.  So off we went into the cold morning to pick her up. 

Hopped into the truck while Dude hooked up the trailer.

Crap... some how I only brought one glove or dropped the other along the way. 

Once we got there we were greeted by many goat friends. 

Peppy saw Dude right off and gave a big scream. She was so happy to see him. 

She waved goodbye to all her new friends, especially Gilles.

The peacocks said goodbye too. 

We did get her home and forgot what a screamer she is . 

Off she goes to the barn and off I go to work. 

She saw me pull up in the yard tonight and screamed hello.  Yep, Peppy is back and hopefully there will be babies in May or June. 

peace

Homesteading is great for children

I really thing homesteading for kids. It brings out the wonder in them. There is a lot for them to do and explore. 

Learning goats only want love too. 

 

Gathering eggs.

Learning to milk goats

Finding new baby chicks.

Finding bird nests.

How chicks hatch.

Learning to drive the tractor.

And crafts! Well, for our homestead. Making sun catchers.

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How we go about a busy morning.

Both my husband and I have jobs off the farm;  so much needs to be done before we head off for the day.

Here is an example with today.

We get up around 6-630am.  We start coffee and tea.  Dude jumps in the shower while I do 10 minutes of yoga.  We stop for tea and coffee and then head out to do chores.  On the way out I drop and start a load of laundry. I head out  to take care of the chickens and turkeys while Dude makes his way to the goat barn.  After feeding and watering the birds I needed to move the teenage Blue Ameraucana hens to the big coop and yard. I caught one and the other escaped. ugh. I eventually did get them to the big yard but after watching over them for a few minutes I noticed they are being pursued and bullied by the older hens. We catch them again and put them in the hen-house for cover and a more gentle day.

Dude milked and  fed the goats. He always has an audience.  We got about a gallon today. I brought the milk into the house to strained and jar up to put in the frig while he finishes up outside. I make breakfast burritos for Dude eat on the road. 

 Pepper politely waiting her turn.

Gracie looking in . 

I came into a bunch of green peppers. So, I cut some of them up to put in the dehydrator. 

I was able to get 4 full trays.

When going through the freeze the other I notice we had a large roll of hamburger. Hmmm only two of us and a large roll. So I thawed it yesterday and today made freezer make-ahead meatballs.  I got a book on CD to listen to and set to making and rolling meatballs. I decide on a plain recipe. This way we can have them in a varity of ways - such as stroganoff, spaghetti, or  subs. 

Meatball recipe. 

Preheat oven to 400*

3 lbs ground beef

1 chopped large onion

1/2 cup  oats

1/2 cup breadcrumbs

3 eggs

2 tbsp Worcestershire

salt and pepper

Mix all together and shape into  2 inch balls.  Bake 20 minutes. 

It made 34 meatballs.

Mark the bags  - Bake 350* until warm. 

I got on the treadmill for 15 minutes to let the meatballs cool before I bagged and labeled them for the freezer. 

 Then it was time to clean up. I ran out to dump my bucket for the compost and give it a spin. Ohcrap. I didn't close it tightly before spinning. Time to clean up...again.

It was around 1030am by now and that gave me 30 minutes to read and relax before getting ready for work.  I have to turn on the timer to make sure I am not late.  Dinner is packed for work - large chopped salad, hard boiled eggs and an apple. 

I stop to put the clothes in the dryer. 

That's it, I am on the road by 1130am.   Tomorrow I plan to sew...oh, I hope so and get in the greenhouse. 

Hope your day was grand! 

peace, health and happiness. 

New milking machine

Dude has been milking our goats by hand and took over when I had surgery. We only have two goats but milking every day can take it's toll especially if you are doing other manual  work all day.  Dude has begun to have arthritis that can be very painful.

So, we made the decision to get a milking machine. It only does one goat at a time but even at that it cut our time down in half this morning. 

The goats got a tiny bit startled by the sound of the machine, including the other goats waiting in the wings. It is not loud but rather a hum. (no longer do they listen to Dude cussing at a goat kicking but rather a low hum :-)  )

We washed the girls with warm water/wash cloth and then aloe sanitizer.  The hook-up went well. You only turn it on for a minute or so and turn it off. Then the machine works on it's own. The goats didn't kick or push like they can when we milk them.  All in all we think it was a good investment at a total of $166 (for price plus S&H).  You can see on the jar the name of the company we bought it from is Dansha Farms. They give you a link to a good video on how to operate. We have no affiliation to them. It is just something we find is working well for us.

 See how calm she is !

We recommend this to anyone with just a few goats that are patient to wait their turn.  Habits are good for goats. As you can see, we taught Peppy, the baby, to be leashed up with the mamas to eat and wait to be let out each morning.  She doesn't mind and figures it is all just part of the day.  When it comes her turn next year to be milked it will all just be part of her average day and no training necessary.

Then we had to finish our chores and get everyone out for the day.

After that was done it was time to fold and put away two loads of laundry and make breakfast.

There is a wee bit of time before work for a prayer walk and meditation. Maybe even time to make some salsa crackers. (see our Facebook for the recipe)

Hope you all have a wonderful day.

Peace, health and happiness.