I Love Weekends!

The first thing I love about the weekend is it means two cups of coffee while still in my pajamas and that Mark does the morning chores. During the week I do morning chores because I leave for work later than him. He does the evening chores while I cook dinner.

After coffee on Saturday morning we make our weekend to do list on the big white board in our kitchen. There is something very satisfying about erasing chores completed off that list. When I finally get dressed it's into my favorite jeans with ripped out knees. Not the ripped jeans you buy in the store, no these are  genuinely homemade from wear. Then I wear one of my favorite (too large for me sweatshirts). Either the red one that someone left at our house forever ago or one that says Beer is Good, and if you know me than you know I hate beer & never drink it.

Then it's outside we go. Today was sunny & warm. I really can't believe it's mid November.We made a pretty good dent on our list, good thing we have one more day left and it's suppose to be as nice as today.

Hope you enjoy your weekend, and make sure to get outside!!!

My Top Ten Thankful List

·       For being a Mom. It's the best job, the most challenging, and the most rewarding.

·        Our three beautiful, unique, and loving daughters. They are my whole life.

·        My husband of 20 years. I've spent more of my life with him than without him. We've built our life together, share the same dreams, and support each other.

·        My family (My Brothers, Sister, Brother & sister in laws, Nieces, and Nephews ). I can always depend on them, and know they love me as much as I love them.

·        My friends. I don't get to see them or spend much time with them, but when we do we have a blast. You know who you are and that I am only a phone call away.

·        My animals. They give me great joy, and plenty of hard work (keep me in shape)!

·        That I live in Vermont.

·        For the good health of myself & my family.

·        That we are able to raise and grow our own food. I love providing for ourselves.

·        That I am happy, and have a great life!

Storm days...

Sunday was prepare for the storm day.

•  I went grocery shopping, which was a mad house! 
• Mark & I got 60 bales of hay & stacked in the barn.
• Took grain out of my trunk & K3  helped me deliver it to chicken coop, pig pen & sheep barn.
• We moved the chicken coop, so they can clean up the remainder of my garden.
• Took the chicks out of the basement & moved them into the little coop.
• Brought the ewes in from the pasture & put them in with the ewe lambs
• What to do with Dave (ram)? First we put him in a pen in the barn,  he rammed his way through that. Then we moved him in the corral ....Sorry Dave guess you won't have shelter from Sandy. 
• K3 cleaned her coop & I cleaned the cows
• Brought in all the outside furniture
• Phew...finally ready! 
• Ended the day by making popcorn we grew. Yummy!

Monday:

Dave & the steer kept head butting each other between the fence. The steer was bleeding. Stupid Boys! We decided it was time for Dave to go....Mark loaded him up & off the commission sales he went. Mark decided to brace up the chicken coop, we didn't want that to blow over. Then we settled in to await the storm with drink & a house full of kids. Since school was cancelled, my 2 nieces & nephew came to stay the night because their parents had to work in the morning. Lucky me had a storm day...one of the benefits to working in the school system.

Tuesday:

Home for the day...it's 68 degrees, a little rain, windy with a few big gust...but really uneventful. No damage or power loss here. Enjoying my day!

Skunks!!

We have a skunk issue!

 Our first skunk encounter was our lab cross Carter. This was several years ago, I let him out in the middle of the night & when I let him back in, I smelled skunk. I checked him but didn't smell anything, then I touched him, still nothing. I woke Mark & had him smell my hand....Yup skunk. Apparently, it takes a few minute for the odor to appear. In one weeks time poor Carter had 8 baths, needless to say, he now despises baths. We tried vinegar & douches. Douches worked better & we were buying them by the four pack. Then every time he got wet for months afterwards we still smelled a slight skunky odor.

Next was the sheep. We had a skunk spray them in the barn. When we sheared them months later, we had to throw away the wool because it still smelled.

Two years ago, Carter was sprayed again! This time we let him in the sugar shack, because we were sugaring...again it took a few minutes before we realized it was him. This time, we put him in the back of my brothers cab truck & brought him to the groomers. It was the best $50 I have spent! He smelled great & he knew it. He came home with a bandanna around his neck & a happy face!

Last month it was the kitten, Ryder. She just got a little on the side of her neck. I Googled what to use. A mixture of peroxide, baking soda, and soap (which actually seemed to work). I thought, this should be interesting...giving a cat a bath. Silly cat, didn't fight me at all. When I was done, I wrapped her in a towel & she let me hold her while she was shaking, terrified. Poor Baby!

Now, it's the pigs! Good thing they are babies & were not ready to eat them! It sure does make chore time, not as pleasant.

Triple K Farm Long Overdue Update

•  We have 3 new sheepies....they have been here before & now they are back for good. My niece brought her two sheep here last year to breed & they each had a ewe lamb. We got the ewe lambs back & one of the ewes.
•   Dave (ram) is doing his job & lambing will be in February & March.
• We sent 3 of the ram lambs off this week....they weren't as big as we hoped :(
•   You might be a redneck if........ We moved the piggies in a new pen of pallets & baler twine.
• K3's chickens are showing their age....we are only getting 8 to 10 eggs a day out of 26 chickens.
•  25 new chicks arrived in the mail this week. We were waiting every morning for the Whiting post office to call & tell us the chicks were in. Finally, on Thursday afternoon Mark got a call from the Brandon post office to come get our chicks.....not sure how that happened!!

Happy Piggies!

Monday Madness

Monday we go to K3's game & she is the goalie. This is her first year & she is doing great! We come home do chores, eat dinner, and watch TV. Miley is outside on the porch barking like crazy. I get her in, and think nothing about it. Half & hour later I go into the laundry room to finish the laundry & hear Dora whinny twice. I head for the door & tell Mark "something is wrong....Dora never whinnies." We grab our flashlights, boots,and make sure to leave the dogs in.

Well, on the lawn is Dora, Little Man (the big beef) who was suppose to be in my freezer but we decided he needed a few more months, and Buddy (the herford steer). OH GREAT!!! Guess that's what Miley was barking at.  The barn gate is wide open. Mark, obviously never latched it! I open the door & ask K1 who is doing homework to help. K2 is already in bed, K3 is in the shower.

Mark locks the other animals in the coral, so he can leave the barn gate open & nobody else will get out, with the hopes that they will just walk back into the barn. HA! I grab grain & a lead rope. I walk right up to Dora & lead her back to the barn. Mark thinks he can herd the cows to follow her. WRONG!

K3 gets out of the shower & lets the dogs out. This is not helpful because they will just scare & chase the cows where we do not want them to go. We get the dogs back in. The cows are close to the pasture so K1 runs to the barn & shuts off the fence. Next, K1 is on a mission for new batteries because of course ours are dying.  Mark lowers the wire & we herd them into the pasture, put back up the fence, and turn it back on. Maybe we can leave them there for the night?

Here comes the ram (Dave) to investigate, now we remember they can't be together because they fight. Off they go into the darkness. Meanwhile, for all those who have seen Mark in stress full situations, know what a joy he is. He is barking out orders, yelling that we did this & that wrong....K1 & I just ignore him & remind him several times that actually this is his fault.....he left the gate unlatched.

Somehow Dave chases Little Man thru the fence & into the chicken pasture. Now, he is after Buddy. He is chasing him toward the coral gate. Mark opens it, keeping Dora and the other animals inside while Buddy runs thru. Two down one to go.

We go over to the chicken pasture & Little man jumps back out onto the lawn. He runs down the driveway, somehow Mark manages to cut him off before he gets to the road. I think Little Man is as stressed with the situation as we are, so he just calmly walks back into the barn. We shut & LATCH the gate.

This ordeal lasted about an hour. Once inside Mark apologies for his behavior but states we are not good at chasing animals. I laugh and again remind him he caused this, and that I had my animal (horse) in within 5 min and no problems. His animals (the cows) were the difficult ones. Now that everyone is back in their place we can finally go to bed.

Back to school!

I bet everyone thought I was done with blogging since it has been forever, but the truth is I have been out straight. Back to school also means back to work for me & field hockey for the girls.

I started a new job. After ten years as a preschool assistant in Whiting Preschool, I moved to Neshobe as a Kindergarten para educator. I am only working part time, but have worked extra hours for the first two weeks of school.A new job is an adjustment. I do miss Whiting & seeing all the kids. I know everyone in the whole school since most of them I had in preschool.

The K's are on 3 different field hockey teams & only K1 drives, so that means I am on the road back & forth to OV all the time! Last Wed. I drove to Manchester for a game, Fri. was Rutland. This week was Rutland yesterday. Take K3 to orthodontist after work today then game at OV. Game at OV Wed. & Thurs. Friday is just practice. Then  Sat. is homecoming game at OV!  This goes on until the end of Oct. I do love watching them all play! I will post pics soon!

Garden is in full harvest. Last weekend I was in the kitchen for about six hours both days. I made spaghetti sauce, salsa, jalapeno jelly, and froze broccoli. This weekend looks like  I will make more sauce, freeze pumpkin and possibly make raspberry jam.

Animals are all good. We put the ram out, so hopefully lots of lambs in February. Two weekends ago we moved every one around. When we put the ram in with the ewes we had to give Dora (horse) a new friend, so we moved the cows in with her. We had to put the ewe lambs in a secure fence, so their were no oops with the ram. The ram lambs were getting out so we moved them in the corral, which meant we had to move the chickens. The piglets are growing fast, so they need to be moved this weekend but first we have to put up electric fence. It's a constant game of musical animals here.

Mark is hopefully baling the last of third cut today.Then haying is DONE :)

That's all I have time for, because it's off to work for me....

Ohhh, almost forgot CQL is the winner of the sweet surprise!

Piglets

I said we were never having pigs again, but that was before I tasted the meat. The down side to pigs in my opinion is they stink & are obnoxious. They make this loud noise when they see food coming.We are always challenged trying to move them around, and they destroy wherever they are.

But...they are cute when they are little & very tasty in my freezer,crock pot,or grill. So, Mark see's this sign on his way home from work that says baby pigs for sale. We drive up to this house & a 12 year old boy comes out. "They are my pappy's pigs, but I will show them to you". We climb in his gator & drive down this large hill & down a trail into the woods. I am almost laughing thinking to myself, only in Vermont. We go back the next day with a dog crate to buy the pigs. The same boy comes out and says"Howdy Guys!" with a big smile on his face. He and his brother catch the pigs & help us load them. They wipe their filthy hands off in the grass & I ask "whose hands are cleaner?" as I hand them the money.

And now we have pigs......

Kitty Sittin"

My friend rescued this sweet little kitten. She took him to the vet & he (they think) weighs 1 1/2 lbs. They fittingly named him Peanut. Last Wed. they were leaving on vacation & I was going to take care of Peanut. Then he became ill with diarrhea. They called the vet,  had to go to a pharmacy to pick up meds, and postponed their vacation by a day to make sure Peanut was going to be okay. He arrived a 5:30 Thurs. am. In his dog crate complete with litter box, bed, toys, and food. Then a large basket with baby blankets, extra food, meds, and cotton balls.

Peanut needed to be feed 3 times a day, meds 2 times a day, and constant cleaning (eyes,nose,and butt). He was stinkin (literally) cute. Since he was smelly we would wrap him up & carry him around. He loves attention. Even when I was cleaning him he would fight me for half a second they just let me clean him, and when I was done he would purr. For such a tiny thing he has quite a roar. By Sat. he was much better & smelled better too!

K3, my nephew , and peanut snuggling

Miley kept a close eye on Peanut

K1 texting & cuddling.



. K1 kept calling him Simba from the lion king. She walked around holding him up while playing the theme song. Should have videoed that! They also dressed him in a Bryer horse blanket & he looked so cute.

We had lots of fun with him & were a little sad to see him go on Sun. night .

Not so Great Maine Vacation :(

As most of you know, Mark & I don't get away very often. We hope for a long weekend once a year. I love the ocean and Mark loves to eat lobster. It's been years since we've gone to the ocean. So I planned a camping trip to Maine  and told the K's they could each bring a friend. This required us to rent 2 campsite & drive both the car & the truck.Mark thought it was an insane idea, and that 6 teenage girls was surly a recipe for drama & disaster.

Well, K3's friend decided the week before she wasn't going. K3 was disappointed but loves to camp so it was OK. The four hour drive went really well & K1 drove my car the whole way. She did a really good job, even in four lanes of traffic.

Thursday- We arrived around 2.We had a tent setting up competition & the teenagers won. It was a cloudy overcast day so we took the trolley to the ocean. The tide was in so we just watched the waves for a little while then went back to camp.We made burgers & dogs, and then we went & played mini golf.

Friday- The plan (I am a big planner, and had the whole weekend mapped out) was to go to the Kittery outlets,and take the girls out to lunch. Then drive home on 1A along the ocean stopping at York beach & spending the afternoon if it warmed up enough.When we got back we were going to get pizza for the girls , while Mark & I went to have an ocean side dinner.

K3 woke up saying she didn't feel well. I thought she had a small upset tummy- no big deal.We got to Kittery & K3 got sick, so Mark & I turned around & went back to camp, while the girls shopped the outlets. When they came back we picked up pizza.By late afternoon K3 was feeling a little better, so we went to Wells beach & walked along the ocean for about 1/2 hour until she wanted to go back.

By dinner time she felt awful :(  Mark & the teenagers decided to go out to dinner. They came back 1/2 later saying everything was over an hour wait. Now it had started to rain. The teenagers went to McDonalds.When they came back it was pouring. Both tents were leaking & our tent (which is 20 years old) had water over the entire bottom. Our clothes were wet, but at least we had air mattresses so the beds weren't too bad. except K1 who woke up soaked because apparently she had a drip over her bed.Mark went to bed dreading the morning. He figured he would have 6 wet & unhappy campers. Well, he was wrong, no one complained, the girls all got along great,and no drama.

Saturday - The plan was to go to Old Orchard beach. Poor K3 was seriously sick, weak , and wanted to go home. I was worried she was going to end up having to go to the hospital, so we packed up & left a day early. Everyone was so disappointed. It was a beautiful day. No one got to swim in the ocean,and we never went out to eat, so no lobster for Mark.

We had to stop a few time because K3 thought she was going to be sick, We got home around 5. I called the Dr. and she said K3 was border line of needing to take her to the ER. We decided if she was dizzy or got sick one more time I would bring her in for fluids. Thankfully, she made it through the night. She was a little better yesterday & still not herself today.

My long awaited vacation did not go as planned., but I am so proud of all the girls and hope to take them again sometime. They were all sweet,thankful, and lots of fun to be around.

P.S. Big Thanks to the Crawford Family for taking care of all our animals!

Tuesdays Thoughts

• We are an official teenager household. The littlest K (who is also the tallest K) turned 13 last weekend!
• Gardens are doing well, we've had lots of beets, green beans, carrots, potatoes, cukes, zucchini, broccoli, herbs & garlic, and we are starting to get tomatoes.We eat from the garden every night!
• Sadly, our corn was over run buy weeds :(
• Sunflowers are amazing & I love having fresh flowers on the table. Makes me Happy!
• Funny story about picking green beans: Carter (our lab) like to come in the garden with me, rummages around in the plant & picks his own green beans which he happily eats.It's so funny!Who knew dogs liked fresh raw veggies.
• Speaking of silly animals we have a ram lamb that runs over every time I water them to drink out of the hose - guess he likes his water fresh & cold!
• I bought some goat milk soap (from local farmer) that I love- think I am hooked! I've tried Vt organic soap but just didn't like the feel. Need to add this to my sustainability list. (Still waiting for more ideas)
• Hate to say it but August means back to school. So begins school shopping. We have started getting the field hockey gear. K2 needed a new stick  (hers cracked), we are getting mouth guards today. Practice starts next week!
• Have a great week!

Another Giveaway! This is a Sweet Surprise!

Here is the  challenge of the month. The winner will receive a "sweet surprise".  I will draw September 1st. I have re-posted my sustainability blog. I want ideas on how I can be more sustainable. I will enter you for every idea you give me. I will enter you if you tell me ways you are sustainable. I will enter you if you share my blog or find a new follower, and of course I will enter you if you are just becoming a follower. There are just so many ways to enter! 

Sustainability to me

In 2009, during my sustainability class @ CCV, I decided to try  to come up with 100 ways to be more sustainable. What exactly does that mean....sustainability?  I came up with my own definition: Ways I can improve the environment & leave the least impact, try to reduce our trash, and our use of fossil fuels. Buy local food, grow or raise food for my family, organic as much as I can, and hopefully increase the health & happiness of my family.

Easier said than done..Try looking at all aspect of food. Is it organic? Is it locally grown or raised? How about how much packaging or waste is there? Oh, and is it affordable? As you can see grocery shopping is not an easy task for me anymore.

While I feel we have done so much and come a long way ....I am far from my goal of 100.

Here's my list:

1. Use cloth grocery bags. (I always have some in my car but...) The other day Mark & I had the truck and we ran in to get a few things, he checked out the groceries. Out of the store he comes with no bags and all the items were just in the cart. I had to laugh! I love him for being such a awesome partner in my cause!

2. We gave up paper napkins (we have a colorful basket of cloth ones on the table).

3. We reuse our towels after a shower. This has been really hard for the K's. I even put hooks on their doors so they have a place to hang them. This is a work in progress.

4. We put our TV's, appliances, and cell phone chargers on power strips that we turn off when they are not in use.

5. Compost! Most gets fed to the chickens. Our compost bin is primarily egg shells & coffee grounds.

6. We traded in my van (in 2009) for a more gas efficient car. I love my Fusion, although I wish we could have afforded a hybrid.

7.We started maple sugaring.

8.We have layer hens.

9. We planted blueberry, raspberry, strawberry, and blackberry plants.

10. We made an asparagus bed. Mark & I had a spring full of asparagus pee!!

11.We dry our clothes outside & on a rack....trying to use the dryer as little as possible.

12. No baggies...only glassware for lunches.

13. Reusable water bottles.

14. Energy efficient light bulbs.

15. We heat our water with wood heat even in the summer. We use as many construction scrapes as possible, but no pressure treated boards or plywood.

16. We spray foamed our basement sill & our roof for a much more energy efficient house.

17. I  gave up Pam cooking spray & use a reusable olive oil sprayer.

18. Greatly reduced our takeout pizza, I often make my own.

19. No Microwave popcorn we have a popcorn maker.

20. I buy in bulk as often as I can.

21. Re-use paper for notes.

22. Think of creative & reusable alternatives to wrapping paper such as towels & scarves.

23. Rags instead of paper towels. ( I must confess...I do use paper towels for cat puke, puppy pee, and washing mirrors/windows)

24. We don't use garbage bags inside the house. We have a big one outside that we dump into, so we only use one large bag every 2 weeks.

25. Online banking & bill paying.

26. We gave up cable.

27. I grow my own herbs & dried them.

28. Make our own ice cream.

29. Can & freeze a year worth of vegetables,

30. Make our own salsa & spaghetti sauce.

31. Jelly from our berries.

32. Switched to all natural cleaners & detergents.

33. Make all our own hay for our animals.

34. Planted 3 apple trees ( my goal is to plant at least one tree a year).

35. Raise our own beef.

36. Raise our own roasting chickens.

37. Raise lamb.

38. Raise pork.

39. We have greatly reduced  the amount of lawn that we mow, with portable fencing  we pasture animals on it instead.

40. After we split wood we gather all the scrapes & bark in paper grain bags that we then use for kindling. We waste nothing.

41. Most recently, we started buying raw milk. We skim off the cream for ice cream. We use glass reusable jars, it's local, and all natural...perfect!!

I am asking for any ideas from people to help me reach my goal of 100! 

Winner!

Drum roll please........and the winner of the yummy syrup is Laurie Bertrand!

Can't Wait Any Longer!

I was really wishing for 25 followers...but I just can't wait any longer....so tomorrow August 1st I will draw a winner for Simonds Sugar Shack  Yummy Maple Syrup! You have one more day to sign up or share to be entered! Good Luck!

I Wanna Talk About Me

Twenty Random Facts:

·        I love country music (especially Tim McGraw, who I have seen in concert 3 times)

·        I type really slow and struggle with all technology ( computer, cell phone)

·        My favorite color is red

·        I milked cows for 10 years ( by myself @ 2 a.m.)

·        I have my associates in Early ED from CCV.

·        I am a glass half full not half empty kinda girl

·        I am a picky eater (drives Mark crazy!)

·        I love babies

·        I don't like loud music (drives the K's crazy!)

·        I like to take pictures

·        I love watching my girls play field hockey

·        I like riding horses

·        I really don't like to drive tractor

·        I am clumsy & uncoordinated

·        I bruise really easy and have cold hands & feet (runs in my family!)

·        I hate beer & most red wine

·        Flip flops & dansko's are my favorite

·        My favorite movies are 8 Seconds, The Bodyguard,and Pretty Women

·        I make a really good lasagna & sugar cookies

·        I am scared of bats, snakes, and rats. (I also really don't like bugs)

Super Busy Saturday!

My alarm clock (Mark) wakes me at 5:30. I hit snooze ("wake me when coffee is ready"),this buys me half an hour. We enjoy our coffee on the porch, do morning chores, and by 8:oo am we are stacking 400 bales of hay that we made & unloaded Friday. We get home & run K2 to work & then make a trip to the dump. Mark leaves to go rake &  round bale. I do some dishes, hang out my laundry, and help K3 get ready for her Quenneville camping trip. Next, I run back to Brandon to pick K2 up from work. When I get back I have to water all the animals. Mark comes home & we have a late lunch. He wants me to drive the tractor & baler home from his parents house. Usually, I drive the Grandpa tractor, but today I was promoted!  First I have to help him jump start the Grandpa tractor . 

This is the Grandpa Tractor!

Then, down the road I went with the Case IH!

 Next, I follow him around the field with the truck & dump trailer while he loads the round bales. I truck them home. Now, it is evening & the K's are off to the rodeo. Mark & I move the ewe lambs & check everyone for worms. All the adult ewes needed worming, none of the  ewe lambs, and only half of the ram lambs. Not great, but not terrible either. We do chores & clean the barn. PHEW! Now it's 9:00, and finally everything is done. This means tomorrow we can spend the day on Lake George with my family & drop K3 off.

Sunday we leave @ 8:00 & enjoyed a perfect day @ the lake. I even took a nap in K3's tent!

Still looking for followers! Come on, help me out and spread the word - get a chance to win some yummy VT Maple Syrup! 

Localvore Feast

I'm going to start by saying, Summer is the best! It is so easy to eat locally. Here's a  look at my last few days. Sorry, I wish I had taken pictures but I thought of this blog after dinner last night, and obviously it was too late :(

 Every thing listed came from our farm unless otherwise noted :)

Tuesday night dinner:

Raw milk from a local Whiting farm

Roasted chicken 

Boiled Red Potatoes

Broccoli

Green Beans

Baked breaded Zucchini

For Dessert - Zucchini Bread

Wednesday:

Cucumber sandwiches for lunch (I have to confess I do not make my own bread) CQL - it is one of my goals)

Dinner:

Steak from local Whiting farm

Roasted red potatoes with fresh garlic & rosemary

Beets

Green Beans (which my 8yr old niece ate 3 helpings!)

Ice Cream (not homemade...but I usually do) with Cajeta (caramel made from goat milk) a delicious gift from Trevin Farm.

We start our days with coffee using maple syrup instead of sugar.

Beautiful flowers on our table :

I took K3 to breakfast at Rosies (Remember we are used to fresh eggs that are supper yummy& bright orange) Her plate came with very light yellow eggs. "These look disgusting", she tried one bite and said they were disgusting.

As you can see Life is Good!

I have 17 people entered in syrup giveaway. Need 8 more to draw a winner.

P.S. I have no idea why some sentences are highlighted.If  anyone knows, please let me know.

Sweeten Your Day!

Syrup Giveaway!!

Getting closer to drawing a winner. I need 25 followers. I know some people are having difficulties joining (wish I could help, but I'm not that smart!), so even if you just leave me a comment I will enter you. If you get a friend to enter, post on your blog or Facebook  (let me know), I will enter you twice!  CQL you are entered already multiple time (think your my biggest supporter).

Barn Attire

When picturing barn attire I am sure Carhartts &  boots come to mind. Well, here at Triple K we have our own barn fashion.

Muck Boots are our number one fashion accessory. They go well with pajamas, bikinis, and occasionally skirts.  Regardless of the season you will find me most mornings in my pj's doing chores. Since, I am the number one photographer in this family, unfortunately thank god!, I have no pics to post of this. I have also been known to slip on my boots while in dress clothes/skirts to run to the barn for a quick check. My other accessories are a pair of chewed on Dansko clogs (thanks Miley!), and a very old work coat that was Marks (he outgrew 15 years ago). K2 (non farm girl) tells me I look like a hobo & smell like an animal when I wear this coat all winter long.

K3 rocks the bikini & boots. This is one of my most favorite pictures:

As you can see it was taken many years ago. Now, I am not allowed to take pictures of her, but just like her pink boots in this picture matched her bikini, her current black muck boots match her black stripped bikini.

If your not a follower...become one! Leave me a comment  and/or join then you will be entered to win a half gallon of yummy syrup from our very own Simonds Sugar Shack! Get a friend to join & I'll enter you twice!

Never a Dull Moment

Here is a little preview of my summer. Early June the lambs (all 15) come down with runny eyes & noses. After a day or two I decide to call the vet. For eighty dollars he tells me it's viral. Then we had the worm incident with the steer (blog worthy).I stated we were on top of the whole worming thing. Jinxed myself. Had several ram lambs get diarrhea. I needed to take a fecal sample to the vet. Mark was working so I attempt this myself. I straddle the lamb, so it looks like I am riding it backwards. I can only imagine what people think as they drive by. Well, the vet calls with results, guess what? they have worms. He is puzzled because we rotate pastures & I had just wormed them with a strong wormer that he was going to recommend I use. He ponders this for a minute and gives us something else, hoping it will work. Then he  tells me we are doing everything right, but worms in sheep are such a tricky problem . Four days later we run in another two fecal samples. One is clear the other still has worms, so we worm them again. Now, our heifer, Bailey gets pink eye. She is currently unhappy & bellowing in the barn. We are treating her twice a day. This is a two man (actually man & women) procedure. Mark pins her in a corner and I squirt stuff into her eye.


The biggest chore of the day is water, especially on these really hot days we have been having.I  feel like I am constantly dragging the hose all over. It gets kinked or caught on something, so I have to back track & fix it. Some places the hose doesn't reach meaning I lug water buckets. For a while the cows were far enough out that we had to haul water with the tractor. Currently, we have sheep in 4 different pastures/corrals: The ewes, the ram, the ram lambs,and the ewe lambs. The cows are with the horse, except for Bailey who is locked in the barn. Then we have MJ the calf who we bring hot water out of the house twice a day to mix with the milk replacer. Oh, and I can't forget the chickens who have a water inside & outside the coop. 


Cross your fingers & wish me luck- I am ready for only healthy animals & no more vet bills.


Hey, I really want to draw a winner for the syrup, so write a comment or become a follower! 

Lambing

Lambing

The first thing I have to say about lambing season is there is never a dull moment. It is both amazing and heartbreaking (I have read that the average lamb mortality rate is 20%). During lambing I try to check them every six hours around the clock. This is also sugaring season, so I am beat! Here's a few of my experiences:

2010- We bought Phoebe & Raquel who were bred, with a due date anywhere from the end of December to end of January. K3 & I watched those ewes closely, they were getting fat and had little udders. For weeks I would get up in the middle of the night to check them. NOTHING!! Turns out they were never pregnant ( I told everyone we were having lambs, so it was embarrassing to have to admit what a novice shepherd I was!). They were older ewes that always have little udders & they were  just well fed & wooly. What a disappointment! So,  in April we bought a ewe and her 3 week old twins. The female was Addison & the male we were just keeping him until he could be weaned than bringing him back. I said we are not naming him or getting attached. I called him Nameless, K1 called him Buddy, and Mark called him Trouble because he kept getting out. The ram that wasn't going to have a name had three!

2011- This year we had five bred ewes! Cloey was a ewe we had bought bred in the fall. We had no idea when she was lambing. Well, late January I  went out in the morning & standing in the snow next to the barn was our white ewe Cloey with her little back lamb with the most unique markings (we have no idea what kind of mutt she is... ) K1 named Anna. 

Anna

Cloey & Anna

2012- This year we had seven ewes that lambed. The hardest one was Myra, she is our wildest sheep! She was a small  ewe with an enormous belly!

When she finally lambed Mark & I were there to assist. Typically, I am the sheep midwife & have watched or  assisted most of our sheep. This day Mark was home. Brandie was also here, excited to watch her first lambing. Myra's lamb was huge in comparison to her tiny body. Mark & I struggled trying to pull that lamb out.  I finally sent K1 up to the house & before she got the call into the vet we finally  got the lamb out, but he wasn't breathing. Mark rubbed him & swung him but nothing happened. As a last attempt he gave "sheep p r ". I told him I could not believe he did that (slimly.. nasty.. lamb), he replied "me either". Bran & I laughed...but the baby did not make it. Then we had to pull baby number two. When we were finally done, poor Myra was swollen & bruises & exhausted. I was up to my elbows in blood & slime. I looked at Bran & said " will you get my hair out of my eyes & pull up my pants (I forgot my belt)." I think this was an experience none of us will forget. The rest of them lambed with no problems. We had lots of fun watching the lambs run around. See for yourself how cute they are.

Peony with Mystic & Dash (I checked the sheep & no one in labor and one hour later I went down & she had lambed). Mystic is short for mystical & Dash is from the movie The Incredibles.

Baby Bliss

Anna with her baby Alyianna  a.k.a. Tiny A

Harley

Barn Cats & Farm Dogs

What's a farm without a good barn cat & farm dog?......Well, ours are really more like pampered pets, but they do like to follow us to the barn. Does that count?

Jessica: She actually was a barn cat from my brothers farm, but has been ours for the last ten years. She is a typical female cat, she loves you when she wants to, otherwise don't bother her or there will be consequences. All the pets & humans in our house understand this about Jessie. Her favorite place to be is in my bed.Some nights if she is feeling friendly she likes to sleep curled up next to my legs. Every day she suns herself at the foot of our bed. I have learned to make my bed right after I get up or Jessie will claim it and I will feel bad & not make my bed. Next thing I know it is noon & she is still there and my bed is not made. Jessie never strays far...I can look out the window at any time & find her. She loves to watch the chickens (wishing they we not so big), and chase chipmunks.

Ryder:  She also came from a barn. K2 wanted a kitten very much. We told her if she made the honor roll then she could get a kitten, but it had to live in her room. She made the honor roll & we got Ryder. Ryder & her litter box lived in her room for a while.... Now, Ryder uses Jessica's box and they both go outside a lot. She is still a kitten & can be crazy. Such as taking a running leap off our kitten chairs and clinging to the sliding glass door handle. She hides in my plants. Suddenly, I will hear a rustling sound & see my plant move. The list goes on......

Carter: Is the man! He is our guard dog, fiercely loyal especially to me & K3.He is K3's dog & she has been known to sneak all 80 lbs of him into her bed. He also has a fondness for skunks & has been sprayed twice. The first time we tried everything. Douches seemed to work the best & we would purchase several boxes at a time. Poor Carter had a bath ten days in a row, and because of this he now hates bathes. The next time he was sprayed, we spent $50 and took him to the groomer. Let me tell you, it was worth every penny. Then, we have the prom incident. In May, K1 went to the prom. They had car trouble and long story short, arrived home at 2 a.m. I met them (her & her friend that is here so much we call her K4!) at the door and just as the boys started to back out I heard a yelp. I panicked & yelled for Carter...Phew! Here he comes up the steps, but his nose is bleeding. Somehow, he must have been sniffing the tires as they backed up and it caught one nostril & ripped it all the way through. For the next hour we stopped the bleeding, washed the blood out of K1's prom dress, and then finally went to sleep. Poor Carter! I am happy to say he recovered fully.

Miley: Well, K1 made a plea for a pet of her own. (We had to put down her dog & horse in 2010) Last year we gave her our first baby lamb...but that wasn't good enough. She wanted a puppy. We caved and got Miley. We got her as a puppy from  *Potter's Angles Rescue. Miley is 99% housebroken unless she sneaks into K1's room, then for some reason she likes to pee on the carpet. She loves to wrestle with Ryder, steal & chew flip flops (we've had to send kids home with one shoe), pull all the stuffing out of her dog bed, and follow us & Carter everywhere.

* P.A.R.S. : K3 became slightly obsessed with saving the dogs after we got MIley. She did a bottle drive & raised $100, bought collars & leashes with her own money, and collected donations of dog food. Then she made amazing cupcakes, chocolate lollipops, and homemade dog biscuits for a bake sale at a P.A.R.'s event. One guy purchased a tree of her "dog themed" cupcakes for $100!! 

More Pics, because they are so cute!

                                                                            Ryder & K2

K3, Ryder, & Carter who is not so sure he likes sharing his bed with the kitten.

                                                           Ryder wants to go to school with K1.

                 Ryder is so helpful, she wants to help me pay the bills, or just chase the cursor around.

                                                    Homecoming Dance. Girls with their babies!

                                                            Jessica had company this morning!

                                                        Miley & Carter love to cuddle.

                                                      Miley helping K1 with homework.

Tomorrow is July 1st!

Need followers and/or comments!! The challenge was 25 followers by July 1st, so I can draw a winner for yummy syrup.Come on it's easy!

Escapee of the week

Just like employee of the week, here @ Triple K Farm we have escapee of the week.Actually,this week we have two, since apparently the work as a team:

We moved the lambs onto the back lawn next to the house (sustainability blog). They seemed less than pleased (even though our lawn had a month of growth), and were quite vocal about it! They had been pastured next to the adult sheep, so I think they were a little upset about being taken away. The next morning I awoke to what I thought was someone knocking at the door, but the dogs weren't barking so must be I was dreaming...or it was the sheep!

You might be a redneck if..........

Later, when we came back from family dinner night the lambs were making quite the ruckus.Mark who always manages to beat me to bed, asks me what their problem was. I grab a flashlight & go check on them. Perfect, it's raining!, but I found the answer to all the noise. One section of the fence is almost down & one escaped. Now, he is pacing the fence wanting to join the others and they were all calling back & forth to each other. I get him in & then I am off to bed.

The next morning I awake to Mark telling me the lamb fence is down and he doesn't see them. Great! I look out the window, they are not by the other sheep, not in the garden ???? We throw on our boots get outside and....they are all in the pasture. 

A few hours later I am heading out the door to a doctors appointment. There are two loose sheep. I wake up K3, telling her I have an appointment and do not want to smell like wet sheep (which is as bad as wet dog!). While she is getting up I walk to the barn to get grain. The white one follows me so I open the gate & he goes in with the calf. K3 & I corner the black one & it plows through the fence, gets a little tangled, but we help it. K3 goes back to bed & I leave.

Hours later I come home. The two sheep are crying back & forth to each other. I feel bad, so I get the white one & put him back in with his friend. Seriously, five minutes later they are both out.

This is how the rest of my afternoon goes.K3 and I put them in, attempt to fix/barricade the hole, minutes later they are out. Finally, Mark gets home & we move them to a new pasture,and they are much happier....So Far!

Time to Join!

So, I posted this giveaway......but only have half as many followers as needed.I am hoping to draw  by July first. Please spread the word :)

http://triplekfarm.blogspot.com/2012/06/monthly-giveaway.html

Blog Worthy?

We were sitting on the porch Friday night with my brother & sister- in- law and I was telling them about how we tried to worm our steer Little Man. My sister- in- law asked if it was blog worthy.Hmmmm, I think it is. Thanks Gale!

Parasites are a huge problem. We have learned this the hard way by losing a sheep and close calls with some of our lambs last year.This winter Bubba (cow) got worms so bad he almost didn't make it. Now, we are on top of it & keep a close eye on everyone by doing routine worm checks.  

So, Little man looked a little thin and I said "I bet he has worms". Mark agreed & also thought we should move him to a pasture with more grass. Little Man is very skittish. He will come up to us for grain & we can lure him around with the grain bucket but very rarely can we touch him.We managed to lure him threw the gate & lock him in the 12 x 14 run in. This was no easy task because we had to slowly convince him to follow the grain threw the gate.While  keeping the horse & ram in.

We grab the only wormer we had which was a shot. OK, Mark thinks he can get close to him & stab it into his hip.There's only one problem, the shot is SQ.Meaning under the skin.I suggest we look for a different wormer & just send him into the new pasture for now. Mark says, "You give up to easy". Whatever, I am not going in with 700lbs of crazy cow!  Mark gets Little Man in a corner, puts his hand on him & he spins around. "You are going to get kicked. It's not worth it". Mark did get it under the skin once but Little Man spun around before he could squeeze any in. So far so good, at least Mark hasn't been kicked or run over yet.

So our barn is divided in two.This division is made with pallets (I keep saying one day we are going to build a pallet barn, because we are always using them to make pens & divide up spaces). The bottom 1/2 is pallets & the top 1/2 is chicken wire. We are on one side & the other side is where we just took Little Man from.

Well, Mark keeps trying....then Little Man decides he's had enough. He jumps up  & puts his front foot threw the chicken wire. Then to our amazement he keeps going, right threw the wire & over the top of the 4 foot pallet.Now he is back where he started & we just wasted at least  half hour.

This time we lure him back threw the gate & into the other pasture. A few days later I buy a wormer mixed in grain. We walk up to him & he eats it right up. Total time = 5 min. & zero chance of bodily harm.

Likes / Dislikes of Farming

Just like everything in life there are things we like & things we don't. Farming is no exception. So here is my list:

Likes (actually Loves):

1) Babies of all shapes & sizes! (I also love human babies) Nothing is cuter than woolly lambs & fuzzy chicks! It's great to see the mama's caring for their babies (lambing blog soon).

2) Harvest & providing for ourselves. Nothing beats fresh vegetables from the garden - think corn on the cob, fresh green beans & cukes...oh the list goes on. Anyone hungry? How about a shelf full of  maple syrup, jams, and spaghetti sauce. Can't forget the freezer full of pasture raised pork & beef. Breakfast would not be the same without eggs from K3's Koop!

3) Starting my morning on the porch with Mark, coffee, and watching all the animals. Ending the day with a drink in our hand in the same place, doing the same thing.

Dislikes:

1) Death - Unfortunately  it comes with the territory. We've lost many chickens, several sheep, and one horse. Some are easier than others.

2) Escapees - (remember the pig & horse blog). Escapees always run for the road or chow down in the garden. Actually, Anna (sheep) has been banned to the barn today because she has chosen not to stay in the fence and she has a fondness for broccoli which I have already replanted once thanks to her.

3) Poison Ivy - as I am writing this it is vivid in my mind, due to the fact that I have poison ivy. That I got as a bonus for weed whacking the fence line to keep the sheep from escaping into my garden.

Some Days I Like / Some Days I Dislike

1) Working outside or in the barn - I love being outside or going to the barn.... The exception (in my book) is when it is over 80 degrees or under 10 degrees. Then I either want to be in my pool with a cold drink in my hand or snug in the house, wrapped in a blanket, with scented candles burning.

2) Working together - Some days it's great, but others.....warning do not come by if Mark & I are fixing fence or we are making the K's help with firewood. It can get ugly!

3) Having a Farm as our home - I love being & working at home....but we can never leave. Some days the to do list is just too long and overnights are next to impossible.

Well, there you have it! All thing considered, to Mark & I it is definitely worth it. Farming is something we love and have dreams of doing much more. The K's don't agree but that's pretty typical of teenagers.We are sure someday they will appreciate it...