Sunday barn report

More signs of spring…This morning when I was walking Sam, I heard a very strange bird noise and stopped to listen more closely.  It wasn’t a bird but frogs croaking…spring peepers have come out of hibernation!

Three gallons of milk this morning that I made right into feta.  Four duck eggs, five chicken eggs.  Three broody hens still sitting on duck eggs, no new hatchings this last week or weekend.

Emma asked for french toast for her birthday breakfast.  The ducks eggs and goat milk made a nice crispy egg coating and the kids ate all that was on the table.  Bacon from our own pig and maple syrup from our own trees.  Hmmm.

Delilah does better in the barn each day.  She does not have the prey instinct towards the chickens and barn cat that Sam has.  She gently sniffed Sweetie this morning and Sweetie sniffed her back.  The goats are still balking around her but she just sits and watches  When Daniel walked her this afternoon with her walkng free with a drag line, she explored the electric fence and got her first shock.  Daniel said she yelped and bolted back to the house as fast as she could.  Poor thing!

At a friend’s house, I gathered two truckloads of white pine boughs, broken off in the last ice storm.  The goats were delighted!  The Christmas trees I gathered in January are dried up carcasses and my last gathering of pine boughs are stripped bare and look like white bones in the pasture.

Tomorrow on St. Patrick’s Day I will plant peas as I traditionally do.  The ground is a little damp but we will see what germinates.

When I return from my Florida vacation, things will really start to take off on the farm.  The chick order comes the week of March 31st.  I will need to prep the garden and start the early spring vegetables.  There is lots of spring clean-up needed to be done, including mucking out the barn.  I will have to update my to do list!