Cherry On Top

Ok, we were fortunate enough to have our large animal vet come out to take a look at Sundae. He didn't want to sew her as she will be delivering within the week he believes. He gave her antibiotics and we're to keep her area clean, but otherwise she'll be fine. Thank goodness!

She even felt better this evening. There was a nice cool breeze that I think helped, but she ate some food and drank some water. She's going to be ok, the kids will hopefully be ok. Everything looked ok is what the vet said, so we'll see. 

But as I leave y'all for this week, I'll let you know that the summer is almost over and new surprises are just around the corner. Stay tuned!

Banana Split

Poor Sundae, things are not going well for her. What I thought was active labor was her actually prolapsing. And sometime today, she also split her area. I'm trying not to be graphic, that's the best I can do. We're calling the vet first thing in the morning to see about getting her fixed up and hopefully taken care of with all this. The only blessing is, according to my friend who knows a lot about goats and looked at her, is she still has a little time before the babies have to be born. 

Sundae wasn't supposed to be pregnant this early. We had separated Nutty from all the does before any of the first kidding season started. However, we did allow them a shared fence that we were stupid enough to think kept them from copulating. Lesson learned, that will not happen again!

I love Sundae and rest assured, we're going to do everything we can for her. Farm life, it's always something!

Within Hours?

Sundae is completely on the cusp of birthing. When we went to feed just now, I caught her in the midst of a contraction. The canal is wide open. We are almost there!

She is completely and utterly miserable. She didn't want me around at all, so I'm giving her space. I wish I could help her in some way and I truly hope everything goes well. None of the other goats are acting like anything is going on right now, so either they're clueless, or there's nothing for me to worry about. Honestly, I doubt all the other goats would be clueless. Some are questionable, but still. 

I'm going to have Rob go check again in about an hour. Let the kidding season begin!

Maybe Baby?

It's been a long day, and I have a feeling it's going to be even longer for Sundae. By morning, we should have a new kid or two on the ground! I just know she's miserable right now, and I wish there was something I could do for her. 

It's cute, all the other goats are giving her space, except for S'mores. Now in case y'all don't remember, S'mores proved herself to be quite a nanny goat during the first freshening. She was there for every birth and she routinely checked up on both Mom and kid. After a few days, other than feeding, she would corral all the kids in the corner and keep an eye on them. She's ready to fill that role again as she's been nosing Sundae and staying near her. 

The secret to finally getting Sundae to kid? Turns out it was alfalfa! She needed that extra sweetness to give her the strength. Wish I'd known that sooner!

And Sleep

There have been a couple of times in my life where I overdid it and needed days to sleep. I don't mean drank too much or worked out too much, just overdid life. This past weekend, it all caught up to me. 

In college, this happened and I slept three straight days. I wasn't sick, just exhausted. My roommate kept poking me awake to make sure I wasn't dead. She wasn't the greatest roommate, but at least she made sure I kept breathing. 

Several years ago, when I was volunteering a lot, I helped out for a concert and walked the equivalent of eight miles and about twenty flights of stairs. It took me about a week and some prescription strength vitamins to get me back to good. 

I say all this because running a farm, dealing with my teeth and not eating properly, rehearsing for the play, getting the barndo in order and trying to keep up with all my social activities, I hit the wall in the middle of last week. So I've been sleeping a lot this weekend and I'm getting better. Just know, I'm seeming to work more as a lady of leisure than I ever did when I worked full time!

My sweet Sundae, still no babies

Reggie's Playdate

Early this afternoon, when Reggie was the only pup outside, I happened to glance out the window and notice an unusual sight. It appears somehow, the pups next door learned we had a pool. They're good friends with Reggie, so I have a feeling he invited them over for a swim. 

Unlike others, I have no problem with dogs swimming in the pool. They do so much for us, it's the least I can offer them. These particular dogs have kept predators away overnight and keep our farm animals safe. While I wish they would remove their sticker burrs beforehand, it's ok they take a dip in the pool. 

What was cute to watch was Reggie just sat on the side of the pool to let them just relax. Reggie is usually quite hyper and playful, especially with these pups, so it was sweet to see he understood they needed a break. 

Jack of All Laughs

There's that saying that a person is a jack of all trades, but a master of none. I feel that personally, but this isn't about me. It's about my jack, Dandy. He has mastered almost everything except his hee haw. Instead, his sounds like a snicker or a chortle. Either way, it makes me laugh. 

The girls aren't much better than him, they get the hee, but sometimes no haw. They're like nah to the haw. I don't blame them, I'm right there with them at times. 

One thing Dandy is getting better about is selfies. I'm going to have to get Rob's selfie stick out one day, the poor donkeys have to bend their ear just to get me in the shot. I ask them why the long face? 

Focus on the Good

While southern parts of the state got rain today, at least we got some wind and slightly cooler temps. We need to focus on the good: there was rain in the state so it can happen one day for us!

In other news, I'm beginning to wonder if Sundae is ever going to drop her babies. Her belly dropped two weeks ago, but still no sign of her delivering anytime soon. I'm beginning to get worried she might not be a good deliverer, but I'll focus on the good that she's healthy and otherwise one of the sweetest goats you'll ever know. 

All the animals are hopefully going to get a good treat tomorrow. I have a watermelon I need to cut up for them, but it's just been so busy around here!

Arach-No!

Do you know what comes out with the intense heat? Every insect, spider and creepy crawly known to man. I'm only terrified of snakes, but that doesn't mean I particularly enjoy the others either. Case in point, we've had a ton of wolf spiders. I guess they travel in packs? Haha

Yes, the spiders are more afraid of me than I am of them, but it's a close contest. I leave them alone, but I keep my eye on them. If I lose one, well then my time outside is done. Luckily, they stay outside. I couldn't handle them inside!

The other pests are the teeniest tiniest ants who magically appear and invade everything. Again, it's the heat driving them, but my goodness they are annoying. If Rob finds one on him, the rest of the night he keeps swatting himself thinking there's more on him. It's fun to watch, but still. 

When It's Hot

We've reached the point of summer where Rob and I fear it's never going to end. It happens every year around this time. Something about endless triple digit days of heat drain the hope right out of you. 

When it's this hot, the name of the game is to find things to do in an air conditioned building. We could stay home and unpack, which we did on Saturday. But then, we can go see the neighbor town's talent show, which we did today. 

Overall, there are some talented people in the area! From singing to jump roping, playing game bells to cheerleaders encouraging us to go team, it was a fun mixture. We especially enjoyed seeing our Sweet Tea's son play Amazing Grace on the bagpipes! I might hire him to play for my coos. Ok to another busy week!

New Ride

Not quite farm related, but I can't resist bragging. We bought a new (used) car today! We have two pickup trucks, so having an SUV was a little redundant and horrible gas mileage for our out of town trips. Can't beat the Toyota GR86 manual transmission with 27 mpg. Plus, it's feisty!

It handles our roads like a champ and is very responsive to those elusive deer around here. It luckily even had the PPF guard on it which protects the paint job from chips of rock. We're adding on mud guards when they're in stock because we believe with our whole hearts that we will one day get rain again. 

And no, we haven't finished unpacking. We still haven't found the utensils. However, the dentist told me today that I can indeed start chewing on both sides of my mouth again! I still can't bite off anything, but we're getting there!

Cool Front

Last night and this morning, it felt wonderful outside! I'm guessing it was the briefest of cool fronts, or all of my friends and I had a simultaneous episode of great exhaustion, but boy was it nice!

Of course, it didn't last long and by shortly after noon, we got the ever present Excessive Heat Warning. Does Arizona and Florida get these warnings too now? It's a daily thing here and it's really like adding insult to injury. Yeah, we know it's excessively hot. Duh!

Tomorrow and Friday are supposed to be the hottest days yet. 107 and 108 because we don't just score perfectly on the temperature scale, we've got to get extra credit. Does each additional degree hurt? Yes, yes it does. May the rains bless the plains soon!

Scheduling Woes

I know I don't have the structures of schedules, but I am quite a nerd when it comes to filling my calendar. I had not one, but two of three appointments flake out on me, and then I was late to the third! I also hate being late, I'm usually early. 

Anyway, Rob and I keep weird hours. I stay up late, he wakes up early, there are the animals to care for and things needing to be done. But, we always make time for anyone who needs us. Please don't squander that time. All time is precious. 

We did make some good use of that time with a quick trip to Killeen. Y'all who smell me, will hopefully like the new smell. I didn't use perfume in the RV, so I treated myself to a new scent. It should pair well with cuddly cow smells. 

Monday Mayhem

Been doing all the things and finally have a moment to write. First and foremost, a thunderstorm is brewing all around us and we're praying we get the rain! I'm sitting on my back porch as I write this and grasshoppers are literally popping off all around me with the breeze and lightning charged air. 

Our first play rehearsal went wonderfully. I really enjoy my character. I get to be naughty and who doesn't like to be naughty at times? It's all an act, or is it?

The animals didn't mind the late night feeding and luckily Callie stayed still so I could grab a pic of her. 

A New Week

A new week on the farm, but pretty much a repeat of last week weather wise. All I know is the HEAT mineral is working for the cows and other than a few occasional spritzes of water at feeding time, they're handling the heat well. 

Now, I'm a member of various farming and ranching groups online, and something was posted that had me shaking my head. It was saying if you hammer a pipe between five to ten feet in the ground, you'll tap into water and be able to use it as a well. Our well is 400 feet and even then we're careful about not using too much water in this drought. I'm not a well expert, but I don't believe ten feet will get you much unless you're doing it right next to a lake or pond. 

Blogs will be a little later this week though as rehearsals start for the play. If all the pics are dark and hard to see, you'll just have to excuse me. 

Rob and I at the Friends of the Night Sky event. Point outside lights down, that's all we're asking

Outside the Farm.

I try to only write about life on the farm, but while farming is most of our daily lives, there are other parts, too. Living in a small town, you try to become one with the community and this includes neighboring communities as well. Since we don't have school age children, and we're not quite the get up early to have coffee for hours people, we look for something we'd have fun at. 

Tonight, Rob and I decided to audition for a play in a neighborhood community. I've acted before, but Rob never has. Guess what? You're looking at the two villains of the play! So for the next couple of months, you might get some updates about that adventure!

As I sign off for this weekend though, I wanted to update about Callie. She's growing beautifully and has such a spunky spirit! Meaning, she'll do just what she likes thank you very much, and she'll dance around while she's doing that. 

A Stubborn Drove

Do you know what a group of donkeys is called? The answer is a drove. Tonight, I marveled at how well my drove worked together. They were stealing the cows cattle cubes, but still.  Out of all of my farm animals, the donkeys are true to their stubborn stereotype, but after working with them, they become the biggest sweethearts. 

The donkeys have also made special friendships outside of their species. Fancy and Maesie really like each other, Dandy and Coorie get along well, and Patches I think might be either the socialite of the farm, or the biggest gossip. She is constantly checking in on everyone. 

Don't get me wrong, all the animals get along well with each other. Brogan and Nutty have become bros, but I really wish the bucklings would tire of the does and hang out with Nutty more. Here soon, I think we might force the issue and make it where the bucklings have no choice. We just have to fix the holes they keep finding!

Foxy Fun

Rob and I knew our town was perfect for us when on our state highway a chicken crossed the road in front of us. She ironically went to a beer barn establishment, so I guess for a drink is the answer to why a chicken crossed the road. 

Anyhow, that was two years ago and tonight, a gray fox ran across the same highway in front of me tonight. He or she looked healthy and lets just say it's a good thing the speed limit is enforced at 35mph, otherwise the fox would've had to hustle more. 

That's all I got for you tonight. See y'all tomorrow!

Red Flag Warning

It's unconfirmed how many, but anywhere between two to four wildfires sprung up in our small town today. We're desperately needing rain and cooler temps here!

But emergencies like wildfires show what it's like living in a small town. News travels quickly by word of mouth. Social media actually makes it worse because people start to get confused when they share information of what is the latest. For example, I know of two confirmed fires. You can still see them smoldering, but thank goodness they're contained and will burn out. The other two, I think were based on wrong information like it was so and so's house, when they actually moved to a different area sort of thing. Everyone is pretty much related to everyone around here so it's an easy mistake to make. 

We did drive by one of the still smoldering fires after it was dark and I'm just thankful that was handled so quickly. In our county, everyone pitches in and I even witnessed the fire helicopter heading to the fire. Let's hope we get rain soon!

Coorie and her little sister Callie

Hot Everywhere Avoid Texas

This week is all about the HEAT. It's going to be hot everywhere. Avoid Texas. On average, it'll be 105, which is twenty degrees hotter than I like. Our low temperature is 75 which is still not cool enough for my liking. I'm ready for fall. 

Our biggest concern this week are the animals. Specifically, the cows. In our pole barn (not fully enclosed) we have two big oscillating fans, one mega huge regular barn fan and one huge swamp cooler. It worked out well for them today, but we've got more in store. 

We're adding what a friend recommended for loose minerals called HEAT. It's to help them regulate their temperature a little bit better. We hose down those who look to still be hot and we're constantly refreshing their water. We'll still be doing a stock pond, but it doesn't do any good right now. There's not a chance for rain for us probably this who month. 

Flora and Coorie trying to look cute in this heat

A Little Props

While I've been undergoing two weeks of dental surgeries and work, I haven't had the strength of energy to do much around the farm. Luckily, my hubby steps up when I step down. 

Tonight, after a four hour dental visit for seven crowns on my teeth, Rob took pity on me and fed all the livestock and got them in their stalls by himself tonight. I could have pushed myself to help, but he knew how much I've been going through lately. I would like to say I'd do the same for him, but I know I wouldn't. If the roles were reversed, I'd call on a friend to help. At least, until I build up some muscle strength. Those cattle cubes are heavy!

We'll just be resting and enjoying our home for the weekend. I'm on a soft foods diet for awhile, so I'm not going to be the most pleasant to be around. 

New Digs

While most farms have barn cats, we have overly spoiled indoor cats. Since they were confined to a 37' travel trailer for eighteen months, I decided it was time to reward them with something they'd really like. 

Now showing, the Feandrea all in one cat condo. The bottom level is their box, then there's a hidey-hole, a cat hammock, and multi levels of fun. The cats would probably prefer I put it near a window, but otherwise they love it. What's great, none of the dogs can bother them when they're there. 

So, the cats are mostly taken care of (have to find a good place for their food bowls), the dogs are already living the lap of luxury, now, time to figure out some fun ways to make August more tolerable for the livestock. I think here soon, they'll feast on some deliciously cold watermelon. 

Full Moon

We haven't gotten blinds or curtains yet, so last night, we got to see the full moon in all its action. It lit up the backyard so clearly, Reggie and I could see the deer come close to the barndo. Yes, Reggie barked to alert the rest of the household who were sleeping, but oh well. I was still awake, so at least I quieted him quickly. 

The barndo is still coming along. While I want the boxes to disappear, I do find that I'm bringing even more in. It's not my fault, some things were needed for the house, some things were not usable after the storage container, and some things are just for fun to Rob's chagrin. 

For now, I'm just going to kick my feet up and relax in the blissful air conditioning.