Animals

Baby Girl Has A Name annnnnnd A Few New Residents

Baby girl’s name is Juna :). I was torn between Juniper and Luna, so BJ said, “what about ‘Juna’ from both?” How cute is that?!?!?

Juna is doing great. She has adopted Elsie as her big sister and Elsie is very much behaving as a big sister. For the most part, she’s just fine with her, but from time to time she will put her in her place.

Mama Allie is not the most cooperative milker. That has been a challenge. I had wanted to start her on a milk stanchion prior to birth to get her used it, but BJ thought otherwise. We both now wish I had done just that, and will definitely start Elsie training well before she kids.

Have you had goats milk? What did you think of it? This is both of our first experience with goat’s milk, and I was *amazed* at how sweet it tastes! I will also add, the first time I milked I put it immediately in the freezer (after filtering, of course) simply because I was anxious to try and wanted to chill as quickly as possible. The second time around I just put it in the fridge and tried it next day….. GROSS!! Third times a charm. I filtered, and put immediately in the freezer again and it was sweet.
According to an article I read, all that good bacteria in yogurt, kefir, and what is needed to make that yummy goat cheese multiplies super fast in goat’s milk and will give it that “goat” flavor if not chilled quickly.
Lesson learned! Sadly, I did not get any milk this morning. Ms. Allie girl was not having anything to do with the stand. I could have wrangled her to it, but I want it be as stress free as possible on all parties involved. If it ends up that I am no longer able to milk her this go round, I will simply chalk it up to a learning experience for us both for better success later on. 🙂

The bunny, the bunny Whoa, I love the bunny……… The bunny, the bunny Yeah, I love the bunny

Yes, yes I do sing this song each morning as I am care for them. I do believe they are bigger fans of all my lyrical antidotes than BJ, but I digress.

Since I had several suggestions for “Dolly” as a name for baby Juna my mind was already thinking country singers when we picked up these two girls (and a boy named Thumper-not pictured). I introduce to you Ms. Dolly Parton-tale and Ms. Reba Rabbityre. I need to get some better pics of everyone and add Thumper to the mix, he’s so handsome.

No, we are not really planning on raising them for meat, but that might happen later on. Mostly, they are just good fertilizers for the garden, and a happy addition to bring cheer and cuddles to the farm.

I leave you with a few other fun pics, cuz who doesn’t enjoy seeing animal pics.

Top left and clockwise:

• Kermit and Ms. Piggy enjoying a romantic sunset (come on, is that not the CUTEST thing you’ve ever seen?!)
• Ladybug when I got on the floor to do a plank… who needs planks anyway, Lady pets are certainly better for your well being.
• Little Ms. Reba getting some outdoor grass time for the first time on the farm
• Roses!
• Ms. Paula Dean. This hen has made herself a favorite. She comes up to me every time I go in the coop or the pen.
• The girls!! You gotta look to see Juna as she is a carbon copy of mama.

IT’S A GIRL!

Allie had her first kid, it was a single birth and a beautiful baby girl! Looks just like mama.

We noticed her mucus plug on Thursday so moved her and Elsie into their own paddock, early Friday morning she had delivered. I am not sure exactly what time, but when I went out around 6:30 mama and baby where still wet and a bit bloody, so I imagine somewhere between 5 and 6 that morning.

My father in law had said, “next full moon” and sure enough!!! Not only was it a full moon that night, it was also the lunar eclipse. SO! I need your help naming this little cutie patootie. Originally, I had thought Juniper was a cute name, but since she was born on the lunar eclipse I thought Luna might be more fitting. What do you think? Should her name be Luna or Juniper?

Meet our animal family so far, and let me tell you, it’s quite the circus! We’ve got four lovable dogs: Brutus, our lovable grump who could win a medal in the side eye, Lady, the gentle sweetheart who loves to love, Lucy, the furry tornado who is also just a cuddle bug when she calms down, and Titus, the pint-sized mischief maker who’s convinced he’s a wolf. On top of that, we’ve added an adventurous pig to our crew, along with a gaggle of lively geese and some goats that are 20% charm and 80% mischievous. The geese and goats were deliberate additions to our farm—think of them as our feathered and furry entertainment committee. But Ms. Piggy crashed the party in the most hilarious way! One day, BJ texted me about a baby pig prancing around in our backyard! Apparently, she was camping out in the neighboring cornfields before deciding to bust into my garden with the grace of a bulldozer. While much of my garden succumbed to her digging spree, we gained an adorable companion who’s brought endless joy—and a touch of chaos—into our lives!

Our grand plan involves recruiting more goats for milking—who doesn’t love a frothy goat latte?—and finding a charming suitor for Ms. Piggy because let’s face it, she deserves a more suitable companion and so we can have the joy of sausage and bacon babies. As we embark on our farming adventure, we’re also on the hunt for more feathered friends, though we’re still knee-deep in research to find the best bird breeds that won’t squawk too loudly about our master plan. BJ wants chickens, Christal wants ducks and more geese. You’ll just have to stay tuned to see who wins this one. While we’re busy plotting the best ways to cultivate a lucrative, thriving homestead, we can’t ignore the fact that we need a few more upgrades, like more housing and fencing to keep the party animals under control. But hey, we’re ready to embrace the chaos ahead and will be documenting every hilarious mishap and triumph, sharing our farm shenanigans with the world!