More rain forecast for today….followed by more…and yet more. The 80 something days of blistering sun, overbearingly hot temperatures and no rain are already a distant memory. It’s for sure with all this damp air, my hair will frizz and my face will colour up beetroot red.It’s time to pull out the comely (NOT) warm long johns(ok, …. I’ve admitted it, I’m really a down home farmer now) Forget colour co ordination, pink purple and red no longer clash if they are warm. Size 20 isn’t too big if it makes the top layer of umptyump Winter warmers and I WILL wear a “meadow muffin” hat if it’s warm and I’m cold. , I feel so much better now I’ve got that off my chest…so, if someone comes to visit the ranch and find an oversize, frizzy haired, red faced, un coordinated bundle of clothes that clash outrageously……it’s sure to be me. So far the Fashion Police haven't visited and the livestock haven't commented. Just for the record.....neither has Greg ! (smile).
So, everything is under water, everything is dripping wet, everything is miserable and it’s undoubtedly going to get worse. Currently our equine barn residents are warm and dry in cosy stalls, the sheep are comfortable and secure in a big hairy hug in the sheep barn and the cow barn will be full of cows snuggled up, contentedly chewing their cud and jostling for favoured spots. We hope......we are never quite sure what will meet us when we open the barn doors !
Daisy May who calved just one week ago is not finding it too difficult to become adjusted to being our family milk cow ( yum)….the milking routine means that Daisy May who would sell her soul for another jug of grain gets an extra ration and a back scratch. The first couple of days would have set me firmly on the road to being a millionaire should my swear jar have still been operative. The new bovine momma has a very efficient cow kick and clearly Miss Daisy was a little ticklish in the area that mattered.( can you blame her?) Greg and the milking machine were sorely challenged, Greg’s vocabulary was “rich” and Daisy May was irritated. It was challenging, Granny McMorrow’s “hold the tail” remedy was tried and very quickly refuted when Miss Daisy decided she wasn’t interested in ancient Irish wife’s tales and, just to prove her point, she kicked..... even harder. The milking machine spluttered and Greg put another hypothetical 25c into the hypothetical swear jar. I gave Daisy a back scratch, I rubbed her tail, I sang “ A Mother’s love’s a blessing” and I prayed that Greg’s wrist wouldn’t be broken, Daisy’s tail switched, she re adjusted her legs, we took a deep breath and Daisy melted. Daisy May now walks willingly into the milking bay, she inhales her grain and she absorbs the twice daily back scratch ……without kicking. I have to admit that my off tone/key/note rendition of the old Irish folk song probably didn’t help….it maybe aggravated the situation… (but I think I sound good in the shower !!!) I believe that Daisy willingly donates a gallon and a half ….providing she gets her bucket of grain and a thorough back scratch which seems to me a pretty good trade.
Mojo-Anne is thriving. Still not particularly enthusiastic about wearing her blue head collar ( maybe not her colour) I have developed a strategy. Sometimes said strategy results in me riding a bucking calf and sometimes little Mojo-Anne just slips her little wet nose into the collar. The little lady already enjoys a neck rub and, on her short trips out to the pasture kicks, gallops and bucks.Hopefully she will get all that enthusiasm out of her system before she gets much bigger. Each day for little MJ is an adventure….each day, wind rain snow or sunshine is for us a treasured experience that we wouldn’t trade for a day back in a warm dry office…..mmmmm? …ok…maybe sometimes !!!.
Our big brown LaMancha goat doe Acorn has a lot of love to give and cleaning out her stall usually involves Acorn under the brush, eating the brush or chasing the brush. The wheelbarrow is always a source of investigation...rejected food is suddenly the most enticing morsel ever and if there is nothing too eat, it's always fun to tip the wheelbarrow over.
Lady's re modeled stall is progressing and Winter shouldn't cause her any problems when her Ritzy stable is completed. Always happy up a ladder wielding a hammer Quatre helped Greg create the outer wall which will keep out the Winter wind and rain. Greg and I are currently home alone, Quatre is off to California today and Carla is also temporarily in the Golden State, hopefully the weather will be kinder to them than it is for us. Have fun girls !!!
Got to go, a little brown calf is waiting for a bottle. Take care, keep safe and dry, M
So, everything is under water, everything is dripping wet, everything is miserable and it’s undoubtedly going to get worse. Currently our equine barn residents are warm and dry in cosy stalls, the sheep are comfortable and secure in a big hairy hug in the sheep barn and the cow barn will be full of cows snuggled up, contentedly chewing their cud and jostling for favoured spots. We hope......we are never quite sure what will meet us when we open the barn doors !
Daisy May who calved just one week ago is not finding it too difficult to become adjusted to being our family milk cow ( yum)….the milking routine means that Daisy May who would sell her soul for another jug of grain gets an extra ration and a back scratch. The first couple of days would have set me firmly on the road to being a millionaire should my swear jar have still been operative. The new bovine momma has a very efficient cow kick and clearly Miss Daisy was a little ticklish in the area that mattered.( can you blame her?) Greg and the milking machine were sorely challenged, Greg’s vocabulary was “rich” and Daisy May was irritated. It was challenging, Granny McMorrow’s “hold the tail” remedy was tried and very quickly refuted when Miss Daisy decided she wasn’t interested in ancient Irish wife’s tales and, just to prove her point, she kicked..... even harder. The milking machine spluttered and Greg put another hypothetical 25c into the hypothetical swear jar. I gave Daisy a back scratch, I rubbed her tail, I sang “ A Mother’s love’s a blessing” and I prayed that Greg’s wrist wouldn’t be broken, Daisy’s tail switched, she re adjusted her legs, we took a deep breath and Daisy melted. Daisy May now walks willingly into the milking bay, she inhales her grain and she absorbs the twice daily back scratch ……without kicking. I have to admit that my off tone/key/note rendition of the old Irish folk song probably didn’t help….it maybe aggravated the situation… (but I think I sound good in the shower !!!) I believe that Daisy willingly donates a gallon and a half ….providing she gets her bucket of grain and a thorough back scratch which seems to me a pretty good trade.
Mojo-Anne is thriving. Still not particularly enthusiastic about wearing her blue head collar ( maybe not her colour) I have developed a strategy. Sometimes said strategy results in me riding a bucking calf and sometimes little Mojo-Anne just slips her little wet nose into the collar. The little lady already enjoys a neck rub and, on her short trips out to the pasture kicks, gallops and bucks.Hopefully she will get all that enthusiasm out of her system before she gets much bigger. Each day for little MJ is an adventure….each day, wind rain snow or sunshine is for us a treasured experience that we wouldn’t trade for a day back in a warm dry office…..mmmmm? …ok…maybe sometimes !!!.
Our big brown LaMancha goat doe Acorn has a lot of love to give and cleaning out her stall usually involves Acorn under the brush, eating the brush or chasing the brush. The wheelbarrow is always a source of investigation...rejected food is suddenly the most enticing morsel ever and if there is nothing too eat, it's always fun to tip the wheelbarrow over.
Lady's re modeled stall is progressing and Winter shouldn't cause her any problems when her Ritzy stable is completed. Always happy up a ladder wielding a hammer Quatre helped Greg create the outer wall which will keep out the Winter wind and rain. Greg and I are currently home alone, Quatre is off to California today and Carla is also temporarily in the Golden State, hopefully the weather will be kinder to them than it is for us. Have fun girls !!!
Got to go, a little brown calf is waiting for a bottle. Take care, keep safe and dry, M
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