Funny looking chicken, eh?

Buttercup figured out how to get into the chicken yard and then how to walk up the little ramp and go in to eat their feed.  Goats.   Shesh….

We need to harness their abilities for our secret service.  We would be amazing…

I just love when the big sugar maples in our yard change colors…  they are so beautiful.  And big.  And they make me think about spring and sugaring time.  Oh yes….  can’t wait to go that again, only better, bigger, more efficient!!!   Already thinking about those plans!   How can I hardly contain myself for the next oh, 5 months???

Aw….  little Otis is so darn cute.   I just love this little ram boy.    He’s very nice and sweet, yet still seems to know he’s a ram.  He is a gift from my friend Rachel and I just adore him and the thoughtfulness of his presence here.  Putting the boys up front, near the driveway and all was the best thing!  They are out of the main farm yard’s flow, yet by being next to the house, sort of, we can keep an eye on them and interact with them.  It’s working perfectly!

In this picture, he’s a little put out that my visit did not include cookies.  Darn.  Contrary to some of the pictures, we don’t treat everyone all the time.  In fact, most the time, it’s no treats other than our praise, chin rubs and pats.  I don’t want everyone to think that we are nothing but food dispensers.

Still, that doesn’t mean that they are hopeful….

Beautiful cherry leaf from our pair of little trees at the front door!   They are the only fruit trees that made the transistion from the moby to the farm.  Because of that, they are very very special to us.   They did really well this year and I think next year will be wonderful for them!  Can’t wait.  They flank our front door steps and will be beautiful when they really fill out nicely in a few years!

Shadow is doing so well…  he’s helping himself to a nibble of carrot peelings from our pot roast supper in the crock pot.  Nothing goes to waste around here, no thank you!  Something is always waiting to eat just about anything we have leftover!

Except citrus.

No one in the outside crew likes citrus.   Kinda weird.  Not even the chickens.

Cody can not resist an apple treat from his mom.  No way.   I am slowly winning his trust back and yep, it does involve treats and such.   But also just time to let him come back to me.   I’ve been taking to sitting at the fire ring or near by him as he is grazing and just sit.  Waiting.

At first, he ignores me.  For a good while.  But then, the urge to see what I am up to just overtakes him.   He will get closer and closer, and I know he’s scoping me out.   Does she have those nasty shots?  Does she have a lead rope?  Is she going to do something ucky to me?  Once he’s decided I’ve got no ulterior motives, he finally will come over.  And we share a little itchy time, perhaps a pony cookie…  just a little silent bonding time.  He’s getting over it, slowly… I am so glad.

Rafeka is becoming my big goatie buddy.   It’s taken him a year, almost to the day, but he’s finally my pal.  I just love his goofy curly hair.  It’s so beautiful.   I can’t wait to see their fleeces come this spring, they will be amazing.  Just so pretty.  He is such a sweetheart now.   Rana is still a little hesitant to be my pal, too, but she is thinking about it.

And of course… B & D are just as friendly as possible.  They are finally calming down a wee bit, maturing….  but they are still lap goats and want to be in your face as much as possible.

Dreamy escaped the ram pasture a few morning ago, and ended up in the middle yard when Maggie caught him walking around in the courtyard, of course, eating my zinnias.  We assumed that one of the does was in heat, so we put him in with everyone.

Well, Buttercup was in heaven.   She really really really likes him.  She comes trotting over and gives him a little smile and a sniff and leans in to give him a little sweet neck rub and whisper her sweet nothings in his ear.   He takes a good long look at her, pulls back and then WHAM… hits her in the head and staggers her!   I swear she shook it off and was seeing stars!  And then he walked off to go and explore the new space.  He wanted nothing to do with her!!!   Awwwww….. poor sweetie.   She came over to me and I swear she had little goatie tears in her sweet eyes!   We cuddled for a while and I did my best to explain boys to her.

A few hours later, Dreamy wanted to be let back in the ram field with his guy friends, Otis and Travis.   Apparently, he found the middle yard to be no fun and wanted back into his original space.  This might be a hard breeding season!  

Raven is helping himself to a few of Cody’s apple bits and juice slobber.   Life of a rooster I guess.

The goatie girls are getting fuzzy!  I was worried that they might not grow winter coats!   But they are getting a nice little fuzzy coat on, thank goodness!  They are both about the same size now…  it’s so cute, they are adorable.  I can’t wait to see goat babies next spring!   I hope…

Sure am glad we found a leaf blower at a garage sale this summer.   Shesh….  And this is just the beginning!  Raking will begin in a few days.   It’s been rainy and that is no fun, raking wet leaves.   I like to give them time to all fall and to get a little dry and crinkly.  Makes it a lot easier on the arms and back!  Some day we will get a little riding mower and a few attachments.   That would be so swell.  But in the meanwhile, we just get the rakes out and that new blower and go to town.  Doesn’t take toooooo long.

Silver and Pierre and some of their women.  We just don’t have a huge flock of chickens anymore.  We will probably add more hens in the spring.  But right now, why feed them over the winter when they just don’t lay much.  This is about half of the flock…  the rest are out wandering about the farm.  One of the goats got tangled up in the netting and ripped it away.  So we took it all down.   Funny thing is that most of the birds don’t realize that they can just hop over the little fence and be free.  They like it in the run and their lovely coop inside.  Funny, eh?

This is little Beulah!    She is so grown up and beautiful!  Her fleece is just remarkable.  She used to be solid black like her mom Holly, but then all the sudden she started to change to a sort of dark tipped cream color!   Just striking.  Funny thing, her twin Pearl, is still jet black!  Weird how genetics work, isn’t it??

My boys….. awwwwwww….. I love how sweet Shadow is being to his new best pal forever Cody Pony. These two are just the happiest couple on the farm, let me tell you. Always a few feet apart… Shadow is so protective of Cody, he’s like an extra three sets of eyes for him! Cody’s eye looks a lot better… and he seems to really getting by without much of an issue. He was out in the back this morning and I called for them and he neighed so loud and came trotting over to see me! I’m so glad… He’s still very head shy and I don’t blame him one bit. Still… we’re getting along.
They were playing this morning out by the back barn in the chilly mist… I need to get a barnyard remote video cam! I call it thunder ponies… they wake up, have a little roll, stretch and a big yawn and then commence to being horsey farts… One bites the other in the butt, and then the other does this little half kick and then they turn and head butt and toss their manes… and pretty quick they are rearing up and pawing at each other, trying to nip each other in the neck or shoulder… It’s so cool to see their snorts in the steamy mist and their little battle grunts like wild stallions. They will drop back to the ground and twirl around each other, trying to get a good shoulder push or a hind leg kick in and then rear up again, usually leaning on each other and pushing with their whole might. Then they both just sort of drop and whinny a bit and take off running around the yard for a lap or three. The sheep and goats watch in fascination at the mock battle, but then scatter in sheer panic when the near thousand pounds of equines come thundering by them!

Once they have made a couple laps, they slow down, stop and meet up, head to head and start grooming each other. All the good itchy spots. Kinda rough, but they seem to like it that way. Then you can see them take in huge breathes and sigh like they just finished something perfectly contentful and begin to graze, side by side.

So happy they have each other.  I know we have two very happy ponies…

Buttercup is trying to change the winds of destiny…

Or she’s hungry.   Could be both.

 

Awww…  our little farmhouse is looking so cute.  Jessy finished weeding the front side of the house and we hope next year to just pour about two thousand pounds of mulch over all the weeds that keep kicking our butts!  I’d like to see a few tastefully arranged bushes and a flower patch or two, perennials of course, and that is it!!!  We have plenty of things to do in the back and rarely visit the front for much.  But I’d like the place to look nice for drivers by and our few neighbors.  So it needs to be something SIMPLE and easy to maintain!!!  That is the plan!!!   I want the courtyard to be beautiful because we spend a lot more time in there.  We’ll see how it all plays out next year!

Hope you’re having a beautiful bit of fall weather in your part of the world!!!

 

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