A snapshot of life

With the warmer weather (or maybe more accurately: lack of snow?) the three older girls are spending more and more time outside - which is awesome. Mostly it's Del and Child F. exploring while making big make believe plans, that often dissolve before coming to fruition.
Baby E. REALLY wants to go out with her sisters.
It's been muddy and wet and cold - so less than ideal conditions for a baby who is pretty confident on her feet but not that great at uneven terrain. So she stays inside and looks out the window.

Yesterday I asked if Del wanted to play with Baby E. outside.
"Yes!" she replied enthusiastically.
"You have to stay with her," I said.
She earnestly promised.

So I brought Baby E. out and put her on the front walk next to Del.
Del picked up the baby who smiled, waved, and said "byebyebye" to me - a first for being happy to see mom go.
Off I went, back into the house unencumbered to tackle the winter-outerwear-laundry-marathon.

Time passed. Minutes or an hour.
I peaked outside.
No kids in the front.
I checked through the laundry room window - I saw Child D. holding herself - she needed to pee, and NOW.
I saw Del.
I saw Child F.
I saw no Baby E.

Quickly I opened the window and called out: "Child D., you have to pee! Inside NOW!"
Half-way between the front door and the back, she stood looking back and forth, unsure what to do with herself.
"Del!" I called out, "Where is Baby E.?"
She looked left.
She looked right.
She looked worried.
"I don't know! I lost her!" Del said horrified.
"ugh!" was my frustration and I ran to the mudroom, rushing into farm boots and out of the back door.

"Mom!" Del called as I bolted out the back door, "She's with dad with the chickens!"
Sure enough, I could see the baby's dark magenta fleece sweatshirt against the brown-turning-green pasture as she stood inside the chicken netting.
Phew.
"Where's Child D.?" I called out.
"Behind the trailer!" Del replied.
I made my way around speedily, hoping to avoid an accident.
There was Child D. slowly waling towards the back door.
I scooped her up from behind, as I pulled her pants down and held her up in a squat so she could pee - we weren't going to make it to the house!

"And poop," Child D. informed me.
"What?" I said. "No poop! We have to go inside, we can't poop out here!"
All pee gone, I pulled up Child D.'s pants and we made for the house.

"What the heck!??!" Ren Man called from the chicken camper-coop.
"What?!" I asked. Now? Really!? I have a peeing-pooping emergency and have only just recovered from the-baby-is-missing emergency!

"Why is the duck coop opened?!" he called back.
"Child D.?" I asked. "Did you open the duck coop?"
"No," she replied all passionate innocence.
"I did!" Del piped up.
"Del!" I said. "Daddy closed the ducks inside, please don't just let animals out without checking with a grownup."
"Okay," she said.

In the end, the ducks returned to the coop and the poop made it into the toilet and the winter-outerwear-laundry-marathon is successfully completed. Oh, and the baby hasn't gone outside again yet.

Well, that was awesome

Ren Man and I went out for a friend's surprise birthday party. It was 2 hours away, but I thought it was worth it. We haven't seen our friend in almost 2 years and we Ren Man and I haven't been out in months. This isn't abnormal, but I was ready to jump at a chance at 4-straight-hours with Ren Man with some much needed friend time half way through. But I would not be so inclined to make a night out happen if it wasn't for someone else. I just wouldn't be as motivated. Ren Man joked that I set the whole thing up with our friend's husband so I could justify a night out.

But seriously. There actually was a surprise birthday party. At the Ciderhouse Barbecue and Pub in Vermont.

Our friend's husband kindly said we could bring the kids. But there are five of them. And we dinner was at 6pm. 2 hours away. One way.
There was a time when I would be offended if someone did not assume we were bringing kids. But this time, I was excited about NOT bringing them.
So childcare.
For five kids.
I asked my parents first.
They said "yes, no problem!" without reservation.

I was still nervous.
There was a note on my desk the morning of, asking for a write up of the night time routine.
Yes.
Good idea.

So this is what I wrote:

Night time routine

After dinner (even if it's before 7pm – they are all tired!) make Child E. a bottle – 8oz should be a safe bet, but she probably won't drink it all. Tell Child F. and Child D. it's time to brush their teeth and bring them upstairs – you can bring Child E. at this point or wait, it's up to you.

Put a tiny bit of toothpaste on their brushes (both tooth brushes are in the container on that shelf above the toilet. Child F.'s is blue and green and Child D.'s is yellow and orange – but Child D. doesn't know that because it's the first night for that toothbrush. If you'd prefer or she freaks out, her old toothbrush is still attached to the mirror – it's the pink one.). Josh gives them the trainer toothpaste – I don't. They both tend to swallow the toothpaste if they aren't reminded to spit and I think the trainer toothpaste is probably yummier so would encourage more swallowing.
After they have brushed their teeth and spit they each have a drink of water from the cup. While one is drinking the other is peeing and then they switch. Both girls need to be wiped after peeing.

In to their rooms, all pj's are on their beds. The older two don't need diapers. Child E.'s diapers are on the end of her crib.
When everyone is in pj's the older two pick a book. When reading Child F.'s book, she sits on your lap and vice-versa. I've been doing reading at the end of Child F.'s bed. Child E. started bringing a book to me too, two nights ago. So you can let her have a turn or not. Feel free to skip pages/sentences/words etc.
When done reading I say: “who wants a hug and a kiss?” and then the two older girls climb in to their beds, under covers (Del has recently been joining us for reading and then tucking the older two in to their beds – it's up to you if you want to do this or not).

Then Child E. is put in to her swaddle blankets. Lights go off. Bring the bottle and pacifier to the foot of Child D.'s bed. Sit sideways on it and give her the bottle. If she's still awake, but refusing the bottle she may take the pacifier. After she's transferred to the crib, it's up to you how long you stay in their room or to what extent (on Child D.'s bed? On the floor? Near the door? In the hall?)

Child F. will fall asleep first.

Ren Man did not write up a night time routine. If he had, it would have said this:

After dinner, brush the girls teeth, pj them, read them a book, put them to bed, feed the baby her bottle, put her in the crib. Call if you have questions.

The time with Ren Man was a bunch of belly laughing, processing our last foster placement, reveling in the joys and challenges of our current family, talking about Ren Man's new role as an adjunct at a local college, etc. Dinner was so fun - our friend was definitely surprised and we loved that we had some time to catch up with her and see how much her kids have grown - we didn't even recognize her 13 year old! Our friend's husband had this amazing violin cake made - it was stunning. And the food at the ciderhouse was awesome - I had two plates. I don't often get a whole meal around here - and definitely not an uninterrupted meal!
And the ride home, the ferry was the highlight, the large boat pushing up against huge ice chunks with a ferocious noise and the occasional impressive splash and/or ice chunk rising up above the front of the boat before crashing back down.

So it was awesome. All of it.

Kindergarten Screening

 

I received a call from the school department a few months back informing me that I needed to register Child B and Child C with the local district because they will be starting school in the fall.
As a homeschooling parent I was unnerved, to say the least.
I like my independence and I don't like being told what to do by an authority figure that hasn't proved to be trustworthy (yet). I also know these kids better than a random school district and I'm struggling with the fact that they are soooo young, their birthdays falling so close to the cut off. If I had the choice, they would not attend school in the fall. I think parents commonly wait another year for fall babies, and I think this is wise. But I don't get to act on that opinion, and that's that.
The caller insisted that the children be registered immediately as the children needed to participate in an upcoming kindergarten screening and they wouldn't have the opportunity later if they missed this one.

So I dutifully went to register them asap (this was an overwhelming venture as I was unsure what was involved and needed to bring gobs of paperwork and then fill out MORE paperwork). When I handed in the reams of paper, explained that I signed forms but wasn't sure if I "counted" as the "parent", and handed over my license for a copy we were good to go. I asked when the screening would take place and how to get Child C and Child B in for that screening. After making a phone call the kind and helpful person said that there wouldn't be another screening - the screenings happened a month before and we'd missed them.

I'm just guessing that the screenings make a difference. Presumably they inform teachers and others in the school of any red flag they may need attention once the school year starts.
Also, I was being told that children that had JUST arrived to the district MISSED the screening because they weren't here in January? What if they'd arrived in August?!!?

Frustrated, I returned home, vented, and that was that.

A month later we had an iep meeting for these children. At this time we established what summer services the children would receive as well as what services will be in place for them during the next school year.
After this meeting I had two primary concerns I wanted to discuss with the school: 1)After doing a little research I had determined that ideally the kids would be in the same class. I'd also learned that this might be something the school would resist. 2)I wanted to give the school counseling dept a heads up about these two, just so the powers-that-be were making extra sure that the needs of these children would be met immediately, with no surprises.

About two weeks ago I received a call informing me that there would be a kindergarten screening on June 10th and Child B and Child C needed to attend. I was also to receive a packet of paperwork to fill out (more?!!?).

The screening day arrived, much to the excitement of Child C and Child B to see their new school! We went to the library and Child C and Child B reluctantly let go of my hands to follow different grownups. With some encouragement they were off to hop on one foot, cut out a shape, write their name, etc. I was told the nurse would speak with me. While I waited I realized I recognized the school employee organizing the day and the other parent waiting for her child to complete their screening.

"Do you have the farm up on the hill?" asked the school employee.
"Yes," I replied. "I know you from somewhere" turning to the other woman I said "and you,".
I've been to your farm a few times to buy things," explained the school employee. My heart may have melted a little. There might be like-minded families (or at least employees of the school) in the school community!
"We're doing our own meet chickens this year," she went on. Big grin from me!
"That's so cool," I replied, "do you have a plucker?"
After some back and forth on the chicken process I turned to the other woman.
"Do I know you?"
She shrugged.
"From the library? The Y (where Del was at preschool)? The farmer's market?"
She shook her head for all of the options.
"We don't go to the farmer's market," she offered by way of explanation.
"Well, why not?!" I asked in mock horror.
We laughed at that and the nurse was ready to see me.

The nurse explained that the absentee policy (very hard for a homeschooling parent to hear - what do you mean I need a note from the doctor to validate if my kid is sick?! I can't tell if my own kid is sick? And what if I want them to stay home so we can go to a museum together?) and I freaked her out a bit about vaccines.

The children were done with their screening and the speech therapist sought me out to tell me they would need services in the fall and stated more than asked that the children had had no previous services. I informed her that I knew they would need services in the fall, they are currently on an iep, and told her exactly what services they will be receiving. She was thrilled that we're on the same page and that everything is already set up. I mentioned that I wanted to talk to someone about having the children in the same class. She told me that I would go over the results with the psychologist and that would be the person to talk to. She pointed to the school-employee-who-is-raising-her-own-meat-chickens-this-year, and told me that she was the psychologist. Yay. Throughout this conversation Child C had gone from holding my hand, to being held, to climbing on to my shoulders - excitedly and loudly pointing out every shiny thing that caught his eye.

I asked the school psychologist if I might come back after dropping the kids off as they were a little DONE with still and quiet.

As I walked out of the school library the other mom stopped me.
"You might recognize me because I'm also a foster parent."
So that was it! I was excited to meet another mom who could relate to all of our ups and downs over the last 3 months. After a brief introduction and explanation of our current family makeup - and hers - we were on our way.

When I returned to the school the psychologist reviewed the children's results. They did as I expected - and better. I was surprised to learn they have mastery of some skills that I thought they were lacking. Are the kindergarten-ready? Maybe. Maybe not. But it is what it is. I asked about having them in the same class. The psychologist said they asked parents for their requests and then did their best to honor those requests. Yay. I told her I wanted her to be aware of these two and their needs. They are likely to do really well in school, the structure is awesome for them. But they might not. She told me that she goes into the K class once a week to do general social skills stuff as well as obviously meeting with kids who need it. Yay. I explained that I was concerned because they are so young - never mind their other deficits due to their previous living situation. She explained that there is a pre-1st option for kids not quite ready for 1st. It's not being held back, it's a different program. Pure, relief. So if they DO need that extra year, it's there.

Whew. So when it's all said in done, I'm feeling more confident about their future academic prospects. I'm relieved that Del will not be part of the K experience (that's right, three Kindergartners) because I was told the K teachers are very very structured. Awesome for Child C and Child B and probably also Del, but not what I want for her next year. It IS however what I want for Child B and Child C as they need it more, and it's just not something I can do for them. As with any school decision, we'll take one year at a time and if/when we have a choice about school options for Child B and Child C, we'll consider ALL the options. Given the lack of options right now, I'm pleased with what the next year is looking like for them both.

Such a spontaneous kind of day!

This morning I met with an aquaintance-quickly-becoming-friend, Laura. She is the editor of Adirondack Weddings, a local magazine. That's what initially connected us - turns out, she's really cool too. She mentioned that she couldn't hang out long because she was going to do an e-shoot for a friend at a fort. Laura has done shoots in the past that look like such awesome opportunities - and shooting at a fort?!? How cool is that? She wanted a card to pass on to the couple who were only recently engaged (as in two weeks ago?) and are planning a wedding for October. I said I'd be happy to come do the e-shoot if that was helpful. I think that surprised Laura - in a good way. She called her people to double check, I called Ren Man to double check and ask him to bring my gear into Plattsburgh ... and then pick up our daughter at preschool.
All our ducks were lined up in a row and we met at the fort.

 

The fort was magical. So incredible. And such a once-in-a-lifetime experience. The groom has always wanted to see the fort and so it was fun to get pictures but also to explore the fort. Awe-inspiring.
The couple was also incredible and I'm really excited about possibly shooting their wedding in the fall.

 

While hanging out with this very cool couple and feeling overwhelmed by the beauty and image possibilities, Ren Man called the cell phone. Reception is spotty there, at best. I couldn't hear him. I explained that I couldn't hear him and I'd call back later. I was really surprised he'd call. He feels very very strongly about work being work. He wouldn't just call to chat - or see when I was coming home - or anything like that.

The phone kept ringing, but I silenced it, not wanting to interrupt the flow with the couple and knowing I couldn't really hear him.
I finally answered.
DSS needs respite for two kids for a week.
They needed me to confirm.
Yes, yes!

Then I realized that Ren Man has signed up for extra days at work next week.

....

That's okay.
Yes, yes.

Then I realized that at the end of next week we are doing a respite for two other children.
Six kids for two days.

....

That's okay.
Yes, yes.

So I'm thinking everything else will be put on the back burner while intensely parenting ... starting today.

Whew.
It's been adrenaline rush after adrenaline rush around here!

money, money, money, always funny ...

Ren Man got a part-time-two-day-a-week-job-that-he-loves in Saranac Lake. He's been there for about a month.
We always scoffed at people who had off-farm jobs as a starting point before they could rely on their farm income full time.
We thought we'd saved enough.
We thought we could work harder.
We thought our products would be more sought after.
We thought we'd be living in Vermont with a farm that had most of the needed infrastructure in place.

Instead we find ourselves holding our breaths when the credit card bills come in (one personal, one for each business).
And every month we miraculously feel like we made it through by the skin of our teeth.
This is particularly unnerving for us because we've always always paid everything with credit cards out of convenience (carrying minimal cash, not using our debit cards) to have one bill to pay off at the end of the month.
We never carry credit card debt from one month to the next.
Never.
If we don't have it, we don't spend it.
Except that at a minimum we have a $900 feed bill once a month.
Thankfully, there are very few expenses otherwise.
But each month the bills get paid and we breath a little easier until the next bill is due.

So Ren Man found a job to help with the "negative cash flow" - he calls it.
Is that selling out?
He's now gone 11+ hours twice a week and many weeks he's picked up an extra day.
And it's nice to get a regular paycheck.
But, as we feared, it means other things (farming/family/photography related) don't always happen as timely as they would.

Our small project right now is a steady flow of seed planting. We're about a week behind, but that's okay - last year we were about a month (or two) behind.

Our big project (as always) is the creamery. Ren Man is regularly making delicious un-saleable cheese (because we're not licensed and inspected).
In order to be licensed and inspected we need to build a creamery.
We have the plans.
We're trying to find a contractor - everyone has their favorite to recommend - but we're not getting called back.
And then we need to find funding - I'm hoping to do some crowd sourcing and assuming we'll need to go through an ag lender.
Or do you get the loan first?
I'm hoping the contractor can provide and itemized list so we can say to people: "We need $X for the foundation. Anyone want to help with the foundation? Or if you'd prefer, the electric system is going to be $Z. We're laying the foundation on such-and-such date and we need X number of bodies to help - are you in for a little "barn raising"? The electric will be ready to go in on THIS date - anyone up for the job?" ... that sort of thing.

It feels like such a big overwhelming thing - organizing building a structure that you're whole financial future rests on. All advice welcome!

In the meantime I'm enjoying the days when Ren Man is gone and unreachable. The farm (not to mention everything else) is in my hands. I also really enjoy the days when Ren Man is at the farm - even if he is elbow deep in cheese making.

Hibernation

I've definitely been hibernating!
But it's getting warmer.
Spring is coming. Or as the kids would say: spring is here - and we STILL have snow!!
Piglets are almost 8 weeks old.
One set of lambs have been born.

Today is Del's birthday and she loved hearing her birth story on the way to preschool. When Noah stopped the story to ask a question, Del was quick to suggest I keep relaying the story. They both liked hearing about their role in the story.

It's so crazy that she's five today. FIVE. I feel like she's been here WAY longer than that :) I also think that's the expiration date on birthing more babies. It's all complicated, our feelings on the number of children to birth, but this feels like a milestone to say: "okay, we're done".
Hmmm .... that whole thing probably requires it's own blog entry.

Del was excited to bring brownie cupcakes with fancy blue frosting for a snack at preschool. Her teacher's were thrilled the cupcakes were gluten free, as they both are too.
After school we're going to meet up with my parents, brother, and Ren Man for some yummy lunch at a restaurant Del requested. Her initial request was Chinese buffet - which thrills Ren Man, and makes me gag at the thought. So the change in venue was welcome.

I think it's appropriate to re-visit the "monthly" letters as annual birthday letters ... so that's to come. I just checked and there were 100 monthly letters written. That's a nice lovely number, I think.
In the meantime, Noah and I are chilling at the library - excited to see Del at the end of her school day around noon!

A year ago ...

 

A year ago I was a lot more stressed but was looking at the light at the end of the tunnel.
March 8, 2012 was the day we closed on this farm.
It was a big busy day of moving and then Josh went back to the place we were living to take care of farm chores there while I stayed here with the kids to start the big wallpaper removal and painting jobs.
The kids slept on the floor of one bedroom in sleeping bags, and I slept on a different bedroom floor in a sleeping bag.
The house was big and cold and empty, save our sleeping bags and overnight bags ..... and the entryway that was packed with all of our belongings - waiting for rooms to be painted before the belongings were put in their place.
My parents stayed in a hotel room so they could get to work more easily while I stripped their room of wallpaper (with lots of their help and Josh's mom's help) and then painted it Benjamin Moore's Iced Mauve.

In the last year we bought two cows, watched one of those cows birth TWINS, survived a winter farming in the adirondacks, felt completely supported by our new community, connected with an awesome homeschooling group, went camping for the first time with kids, hung Christmas lights, hosted an awesome summer solstice party, have the beginnings of awesome photography enthusiasm, started fostering, participated in organized sports .... you get the idea! What a full full year. And ... did I mention I'm not as stressed as I was a year ago.

It was hard to give up our "plan" of moving to VT and raising our family there. The whole year in Vermont was so painful and hard .... but it had to be ... or we wouldn't have adjusted our plan to include this move and this farm and this community. We're so so so thrilled to be here.

Hawkin' a Loogie: A Secret How to

 

I've been sick.
This is the second time this winter.
And that's just crazy.
I literally did.not.ever get sick before kids entered the scene.
And ever since I those babies showed up with their big eyes and pudgy cheeks I'm usually sick at least once a year.

So I got some advice from Noah as I horsed out my words while reading Life of Fred insisting that today we really would only be able to do one chapter.
"Mom," he said. "I know what to do to make your voice better."
"You do?" I asked all husky and barely audible.
"Yeah, you just do this: *draws a bunch of saliva into his mouth loudly* and den dis" he says with his mouth full of saliva.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"Then sometimes there's a thing in your mouth," he explained, "and you spit it out .... it's like what Ugug (my brother) does all the time."
"Oh, okay" I replied, not sure what to do next.
Then he lowered his voice and said: "I figured that out by myself but this is the first time I've ever told anyone."

Oh! The secrets mothers are told ....

Thankful

 

Noah has been doing what I've been trying to do over and over and over again. (I'm actually quite embarrassed by this ... I was recently stumbling through past entries and saw the repeated promise of actively seeking peaceful joyful moments and being thankful for the small things.)

So I'm taking notes.

Noah has done this before but I am surprised every time.

We'd said our goodnights, I was walking away.

"And Mom," he said, "thanks for changing my sheets."

The response that tries to rise up is: "don't be thankful, of course you can have clean sheets!"
But then I realize: Yes, good idea. Be thankful for sheets. For clean sheets. For a mom who changes them.

Isn't that the better approach? To just feel grateful for the small details?

He's thanked me in the past for doing his laundry.
This might be because apparently we don't do it enough.
He requested a separate laundry basket and now starts a load from the basket that he shares with his sister. And I watch, impressed.

He's also thanked me for making dinner.

So even though thanksgiving is over and it's no longer the seasonal thing to ponder ... we're still dwelling in a state of thankfulness for the relationships we have, the moments with people, the security of each other, the small routines, and each other.

Joy

 

My mom recently pointed out that I seemed stressed all.the.time ... not joyful.

I answered defensively very maturely and explained rationally that I often don't see her until the end of the day and life is stressful. Figuring it all out is not easy.

I felt frustrated at feeling like I needed to defend someone else's perception of my emotions.

I feel joyful.
I think.
Don't I?

And if she's my mom, she knows me pretty well. So maybe she was on to something.

So I started thinking through the small moments that give me joy.

And also found myself feeling like I had permission to slow down and enjoy life more.
It is okay to sit down for five minutes.
Most importantly, it is okay to hang out with kids with no agenda.
I think I often feel like time with our kids isn't "productive" enough.
But then I feel guilty and frustrated for not spending enough time with them ... and wanting MORE kids.

I would still argue that my life is joyful, but I'm not always conscious of it. Instead there is the oppressive stress of moving forward, making progress, being decisive.

So I put my brain to work, ignoring all the stressful decision making I want to work through, and focused on joy.
Just that word.

Joy.

And it seemed an appropriate time of year to focus on joy.

When I'm up early for chores I'm so thankful that I was up and outside early enough to see the sunrise. I don't know why the sky thrills me so much - but it does. Every day. And an early morning is not hard to catch this time of year. I love the pre-sunrise dram of the sky. And the bright orange as it hits the barn window and I know the sun has just crested the horizon.

When I'm making and buying presents I'm thankful that we have what we have and suppress the part that wishes for more.

When we're enjoying a meal I'm thankful that so much of our food comes from a season of growing on our farm.

When our children beg us to stay in bed in the morning and snuggle I'm thankful they still would prefer to sleep in our bed than their own. I'm thankful that we have time on most mornings to hang out and don't need to rush into our day (despite aforementioned farm chores).

When my mom points out a concern, I'm thankful we are one of the lucky few in our culture that get such day-to-day contact with my parents.

When the phone rings and it's not a call saying there's a child that needs a home, I'm thankful that parents in our community are able to provide for their children in their own homes.

When the office is a mess, I'm thankful for a husband that can see the big picture and not get overwhelmed by the details of cleaning up.

When it's cold outside, I'm thankful that I have snow pants to wear over my clothes while doing chores. It means I can be a little sloppy with water and mess because the ice cold water won't get to my clothes underneath.

When we have lifestyle differences with friends, I'm thankful to feel affirmation in our choices, even if someone else wouldn't make the same choices.


It's not all easy. There are day-to-day frustrating details. But overall, I am choosing to live this life with all its pros and cons. The next step is to choose to focus on the pros and minimize the cons - even if it's just in my own brain.

What small daily details bring your joy?

A nonblogger

 

Apparently I don't blog anymore. Not even kid letters this month. Life is busy and I'm enjoying living in the present (mostly!).

We're enjoying Halloween candy, stacking wood, moving animals into the barn for the winter (which requires cleaning out/organizing the barn), working on dairy plans, bringing Farm Girl to preschool 3 times a week, enjoying the busy season of photography, reading lots of library books, spending time with new friends and friends we've known for years ... lots of busy.

Two days ago Chance, our calf was castrated and de-horned ... Libby, his sister, was de-horned. The vet came to do it, and I'm so glad because he used a numbing agent, which doesn't happen without a vet. We had some sleepy calves for about an hour. That same day our Large Black (hopefully pregnant) pigs (there are two of them) got out .... twice.

We're hoping to get a dairy up and running by spring. This is a huge undertaking because of the moving target of inspector rules - so one inspector may think this rule is important, and another that rule - and the rules may be difficult because they overlap and don't always co-exist sensibly. This is to say nothing of organizing the space, funding the space and supplies and equipment ... so we're overwhelmed but keep plugging away.

On the fostering front ... no news. About once a month we get a letter saying more information is needed. I know that placements have been slow this fall .... which I'm glad for. Isn't it better for there to be NO children who need placements? I hear that things get busy over the holidays, which is line with my experience working with mental health clients. It's stressful over the holidays! Hopefully placements stay slow ... but if not, we're ready!

I really really hesitate (as I've said before) to make this a: "today we did this, then we did that" - but if that's what readers want ... tell me! Maybe it would make blogging come more easily ... or maybe not ;)

day in the life (sometime last week) :: with oh so many pictures!

I thought it would be fun to do a "day in the life" again - now that were on this farm and in full swing. I thought my day would be more of a mix (kids, reading, writing, farming, photo-related) but it turns out this day was ALL farming.
Lots, and lots, and lots of pictures ... and a hiccup half way through. Just roll with it ;)
8:30am Here's an idea of our routine - I just recently wrote this up on the freezer that is right as you walk through the back door. My parents were asking what they should be doing and when, whenever we aren't around for whatever reason. So this was to give them an idea:

 

So first thing: time to milk. Ren Man's feet had been bothering him a TON, so I was doing most of the farming - including milkings. So the milk bucket is ready to go.

 

My view when I walked towards the parlor (to the left of the picture). The camper in the background on the left is where the laying hens are, the a-frame roof a little closer and almost centered in the picture is where the pullets are (and behind them, meat birds), and the truck cap right behind the split rail fence is where the ducklings are - where are the cows?

 

The second post on the split rail fence from the right, look straight up. That dark lump, that could be a rock - that's Hope. Right above Hope is a post from the fence behind, move to the post to the left of that and then come down almost even with Hope, - that's Shadow. I see her ears there.

8:36am This is me with the view of the camera shifted slightly to the left - see the hens camper in the right middle of the frame? That bucket is heavy - even with no milk in it! And that's Thurman, a rooster following me.

 

There was big drama here because I thought a piece of the tubing that connects the milk pump to the bucket was broken ... but I had simply lost a piece on the way. So several minutes passed before I realized everything was okay. I was grumbling about - not a good day for "day in the life".

8:46am I noticed the ducklings making a lot of noise - they were hungry. I asked my mom to feed them while I milked. Here she is with all the backyard chickens following her - hoping for some food :)

 

 

8:50am My dad opening the gates to let the cows through for milking.

 

Hope meandering up for milking. Sometimes they are waiting by the gate, but rarely. Usually we have to go and sweet talk them up for milking time.

 

8:54am Teats are dipped with iodine, wait for 30 seconds, then wiped off before the milkers are put on.

 

Each quarter is a different unit, independent of the other quarters, so we have to make sure each one is milked out.

 

9:25am Shadow being milked. It doesn't normally take this long but both my parents were there and Josh had come out so we were probably talking and then Shadow wasn't convinced she wanted to be milked and Hope takes a while to milk ... so looking at the times the pictures were shot apparently it was a slow morning.

 

While I finished milking someone (mom?, Ren Man?) went to feed the calves with Hope's milk and a bucket. We went back and forth on having the calf (which we assumed it would be one calf - wait I haven't shared the calving story!) nurse from it's mother. For many many reasons we thought it would be best for the calf and cow to be together. Then we read about a cow holding her milk back for her calf. So there went that romantic idea.

9:30am Milking done, one last dip for the cows before they head out.

 

We needed to get the calves (with their Babydoll sheep, Zeus) out to pasture, and we needed to get "the girls" (the female Babydolls) out to pasture too. That meant setting up fence and here is where we planned to put in the fencing for the calves and Zeus, with the barn as shelter for them.

 

This is where we planned to put the girls:

 

But first breakfast.
9:49am duck eggs and sausage with a hotdog roll.

 

Oh, and Ren Man should prep some cream for butter making.

 

9:52am Noah decides he'd like some eggs for breakfast too.

 

10:10am Oh yeah! Before fencing I should clean the milk bucket too!

 

Cleaning supplies for the bucket - I like Ren Man's descriptive warning label.

 

 

10:38am check on the girls and tell them we're working on fencing to get them OUT of the barn today. We got them three days before and we'd been trying to figure out fencing needs for outside. All the sheep came named (just a disclaimer of sorts ;) ). This is Sydney:

 

Sweet Thing (yes, that's her name):

 

Check on Turkeys and Guineas. Here is a Guinea:

 

and a Turkey:

 

We have a couple of broody ducks - here's a nest that was still being added to:

 

Finally really working on fencing!
11:03am My mom has the day off - and the Babydolls are "hers" so she's all about working on fencing with us - perfect! There is a ton of high tensile wire surrounding the perimeter and we need to make sense of it all.

 

17 seconds later - the perils of fencing:

 

I totally blame Ren Man - I told him to "WAIT!" but he pulled the wire a little more and the end I was holding sliced through my hand.
11:10am consent to bandaging up poor ouchy hand

 

A view I often don't see - this is in a pasture that seemed REALLY abused when we moved in but it's very much bounced back. Unfortunately (for us) it's too tricky a field to mow so fortunately (for us) it makes awesome pasture. The calves and sheep are the first to enjoy this bounty.

 

11:28am in the more overgrown areas straightening the top line (the only line we were electrifying).

 

Farm Girl showed up to check on the grownups after a morning of playing inside. It wasn't long before she was back in the house.

 

11:55am When we got to the top end of the fence project we realized there were insulators on the barn and decided to attach the fence to the barn so we could get electric to a small piece for the calves/Zeus right near the barn. The insulators were higher than Ren Man could reach...

 

and we didn't want the hassle of getting a ladder

 

12:06pm Ren Man wanted to move this upright freezer to use it as a cheese cave in the workroom right near our backdoor. So a little freezer-moving-break.

 

 

I'm not sure what I did next - lunch would be the sensible thing but I'm pretty sure it wasn't lunch.
1:55pm trim the overgrown shrubbery around the top line to maximize the power of the line.

 

During trimming my mom heard crows cawing and given our recent weasel problem I thought it prudent to check on the meat birds. No weasel and I couldn't figure out what the crows were freaking out about.

3:31pm trimming is done and final hookups on the fence are being made - we want to avoid turning the fence off once the animals are in so we want to get it all perfect now.

 

3:46The calves and sheep are in their grassy paddock! Zeus:

 

Poor Zeus with these immature calves who are running around like crazy things! Libby:

 

Chance:

 

 

 

Lots of Chance because he seems to be the most excited!

 

3:50pm Chance ran through the fence and Zeus followed him.
3:51pm I go to turn off the fence and notice our pears are coming in well. So that's nice.

 

Cows are put back in the barn and Ren Man and my mom start working on fencing. There's a big lag in time here because we see a random red car pull into the drive. They are people who own a camp on the local lake and are up for the summer. They explain that they'd seen our farm sign and wanted to stop for a pastured chicken. This lead to a couple of hours of talking and a farm tour.

7:55pm dinner time!

 

 

 

We're running late - but we like to say we milk in the "8 o'clock hour" - so off for evening milking.

 

Bonus:
Since the afternoon was missed in pictures from the day before - this is the afternoon chores the next day ...

4:41pm whey to bring to the pig feed. We mix local corn and soy with whey to soak for about 12 hours and then feed the mix to the pigs who gobble it up - so apparently it's yum.

 

The mix soaking for the next day:

 

4:55pm Farm Girl is coming to do chores with me, we're almost to the pigs - they are snorting like crazy, anticipating their feed.

 

Farm Girl after tossing the tiniest handful of feed in - that the pigs didn't find when we were there.

 

Pigs gobbled up the two piles I poured out for them. And then wiped their mouths and thanked me mightily for such a scrumptious meal.

 

It's tricky convincing this girl to walk ... or to have her picture taken. So when she wasn't walking, I couldn't help but take her picture, that was the news I told her.

 

 

5:02pm so we're walking

 

5:08pm and egg collecting.

 

Hope the hodge-podge day made sense! We're currently helping neighbors hay, reading a ton of Jack and Annie (as the kids call it), enjoying lots of visitors to the farm, and the summer weather!