Wash your paws

Relish Today

Here we are, still in quarantine mode (some more than others) and continuing to practice our social distancing (some better than others). I have a mask, you have a mask. I drive with hand sanitizer in my car. We are learning more about our QuaranTeam-Mate's personality than we ever expected or even wanted to know. We are feeling new feelings - or pushing new feelings down, in some instances. We are connected to humanity more than ever, as the world is struggling together. Our empathy has grown. I find that I check in with myself on a regular basis. How am I doing? Am I tuned in? How can I reach out to others? How are others doing? This is all new territory, and yet somehow, the animals are the ones teaching me how to live life during this unusual and unprecedented time in the world.


So apparently, this is how dogs talk now

Thank dogness my fren staz home now. Gib up work. Ah, wurks hur now. Am unsur if okey. More chimken pweez. Ugh. Hekk. Nows fren is pawlice. No sits on cowch now. Dis is bad. Tired of fren hur. Pweez go back to wurk.

I often wonder if my dogs know what's happening during this change in the rules of life. Certainly they know things are different. Both of The Littles (Sugar and Maybe) likely think: Dad is home working, and trying to teach me new things.

This lesson will need to be repeated, either
that, or Saturday school is in their future. 

Woof from home

Yet, old habits are hard to break. Sure, we're supposed to wash our paws more often, sing a song while we do. But The Littles have their daily routine too. Let's see.....breakfast, see Mom off to work, settle in for a morning nap, all the while fooling Dad that we will be quiet. Once The Little's know that Dad is on an important conference call, they hear something outside that needs to be investigated right away. Right now. Must bark. I see Dad's face scour, hit extra buttons on his machine he stares at all day, and let's us outside. False alarm. Just kidding. We want back in. Now. Dad will do anything right now to keep us quiet. I can see it on his face. Then, Dog School again. We smile and nod our heads and this time, Dad puts us outside to nap on our bed in the sun, all while deciding who the little spoon will be for this nap. Then, we help ourselves to a trip down the gravel road to smell the mailbox, eat some grass or donkey poo. Maybe even roll in it. Then back up and into the barn for our daily field trip for a special treat of chicken poo or chicken feed, depending on our mood. Chase a barn cat, lunge at a chicken for fun. Then, back to the outdoor bed for more sunning. The remainder of the day henges on UPS delivery man, chicken-egg buyers, and weather. All while David is trying to work and pretend like a circus is not going on around him - at the same time. This is the world's new dilemma. Our new co-workers as we all now call them. They make the old co-workers not look so bad now.


Hatch A Plan

As I've settled into selling eggs from the refrigerator in front of the garage, it's become a daily routine to gather, clean and stamp eggs. I have ordered flat egg cartons that I use to sell the eggs in. It's working out well thus far. We have some regular egg customers (whom we greatly appreciate) from the UPS man to our neighbors. We recently had some chicken changes, as we gave 6 of our chickens to our neighbors daughter's family. They are starting a chicken flock of their own. Such a nice family, and we share the same enthusiasm for chickens - and the eggs they give us each day. They ended up picking the 3 teenagers (wyandottes and leghorns), 2 cinnamon queens and one buff orpington. This way, the teenage chickens can grow to bond with the children, plus the other chickens are older and laying eggs already. All is well. If I did my chicken math correctly, that now places us at a total of 36 chickens.
Unfortunately, this past Tuesday morning, we lost Goldie to old age. She's a chicken we've had for quite awhile and had come to us as an adult. She was sweet and kind, and we saw her progression into old age. We watched her move less, then slower, then not at all. It's a hard thing to watch anyone dying, but we were grateful to be with her and make sure she was safe.

The dogs would go lay next to her.
I wonder if they knew.

RIP

Goldie Girl, All your friends were with you til your last breathe. You will be missed.

This has to be one of the hardest things about having farm animals. Lots of love, but it comes with a price. Loss. That may just be the theme of life. With love, there is loss.

We hope to hold strong at 36 chickens now for a bit. The loss of Goldie is hard, and yet watching another family start their own chicken flock brings so much joy to my heart. My chicken cup inside my heart empties, then fills. The ebb and flow of it keeps me moving in a good direction. Chickens are fragile creatures, and I have to accept that regularly. All my life I had no idea I was a chicken lady. It makes me wonder, "What else am I that I did not know?"


Real Goat-Getter

Our three goats are a ray of sunshine around here. Chia and her kids Petunia and Dottie (Dotty) are quite the team. Sweet, kind and easy. I can't ever imagine not having them with us. Some animals are meant to be with us. Others pass through.

Mama Chia

Dottie and Petunia

Recently, we had a guy (Jason) come by the farm asking to buy the sheep and goats. This guy has purchased from us before, and he thought he'd pop by and see what we had for sale. I said No to the selling of goats, but was willing to negotiate on Deuce, our Dorper Ram. Deuce has done a marvelous job of impregnating the ewes, from what we can tell. It's now time for him to find somewhere else to continue his work. Jason has about 20 ewes he's wanting to have lambs. We agree on a price, and sure enough, he comes back the next day to get Deuce so that he too, will have more lambs. So the way this seems to work (I am not an expert here) is that people will use a ram for several cycles, then sell it, and buy another ram so that the babies daddies are not all the same - over and over. Jason said he had just sold his ram, and needed a new one. I get it. We do the same thing. New daddy each time (not everyone abides by that philosophy, and that's okay). Deuce was placed in the pen on the truck, and off he went, leaving behind soon-to-be single mothers of Belle, Grace and Lulu. Not sure that Licorice is really prego.

The dogs may actually get their dog beds back now, Deuce.

I'm always relieved when the rams leave our property, as they can get overly protective of "their" ewes and will ram the heck out of you. It's downright dangerous if you're not careful, and I really try not to get attached to the rams. I know they will leave us eventually. My neighbor friend says she keeps her male lambs, and bands their privates. She says the fixed males then act generally like the ewes do, if banded early on as a baby lamb. I may just give that a try if any baby lamb ends up being a male. We've actually only had girls thus far. Note to self: Think of boy lamb names. And buy a bell for around their neck just in case.


I'm her person

I'm not exactly sure what was underneath the idea I had about getting a "small house dog", but it showed up one day in my heart. We have Maybe - and adore her smile, never-ending happiness level and awesome attitude towards life. She's loyal and kind to everyone, and is the most popular animal on the farm. Everyone knows her. She welcomes all who come here and never discriminates. She was alone a couple of years ago after we lost Bridgette to old age, and is now 9 years old herself. A little twinkle of another small dog to join us was something I toiled with. Then we did it, and brought Sugar into our lives at the end of 2018. We adopted her as an adult dog, as she was a little over 1 year old at the time we got her. Although we had no idea, she would show us resiliency and what love looks like from the viewpoint of a broken little girl. Yes, it took about a year for David to be able to even pick her up. She disallowed it, running from him. She had such a scared and fearful heart, leaving us wondering what she has gone through before coming to us.

When I see her, my eyes turn into little hearts.
David named her Sugar. She had never been given a name. 

We adopted her broken and fragile. After (at least a year) she is now trusting, happy and learning from the best, Maybe. She watches Maybe be enthusiastic, happy and carefree. It's taken time to get there, as she used to howl when I left the house.

This little 4 lb nugget would howl to David, asking for my return. She was so uncertain. Time and lots of love healed her heart enough that David was eventually blessed with the opportunity to pick her up. When Lauren would come over, this is the distance she kept from her. But I'm happy to report that has all changed. Sugar loves nothing more than to be petted and held by Lauren as well as pick up by David and loved.



Sugar observed others from afar, yet I was her person. I was her life. She trusted and bonded with me like no other dog has. What we thought would be a family dog took 1 1/2 years to begin to truly be a family dog. That's okay, Sugar, sometimes we need a little time to heal our souls.

She waits for my return.

David made her her very own doggie door

He even made her a special small bed

She does everything possible with me

Yet, who has helped her transform the most? Maybe. Maybe has taken her in under her wing and showed her the way. Showed her that it's fun to ride in a car, go on walks, ride in the stroller/cart and even become a runner. Maybe tolerates all things Sugar, and is patient and kind.

Sugar learned to play with toys, although will still not eat treats. And strangely enough, will not eat dog food either. I've tried every possible dog food. No, thank you. Her preference? Cheese, meat and more cheese and meat. In addition, she has watched Maybe eat the chicken food so long now, she now eats the chicken food, too. Thanks, Maybe.

She's always by my side. (Yes, David
is mocking me)

Halloween unicorn

This girl is growing emotionally by leaps and bounds. She is becoming a real dog. Thank you, Maybe for teaching her well. Thank you, David for your undying patience with her.

Her favorite thing to do in life? This.



The Littles do get out and run or walk - depending on what I'm doing that day. This is indeed their happy place. That's interesting.....it's my happy place, too!

Sugar may not be for everyone. I'm not for everyone. Sugar, like myself, have rewritten the stories inside us. Reprogramming and reconditioning ourselves to live our truth unapologetically. On this Mother's Day I recognize and honor the inner child whose need to explore and (as Glennon Doyle, author of Untamed, would say) be uncaged. To live wild. To live a life we choose. It feels good, and I think Sugar would agree that we all can do a little self healing from our inner self to become who we're meant to be.

I don't want to just be a caterpillar,
I want to be a butterfly.

On this Mother's Day, I celebrate life. We are here because of our mother. Thank you, Mom! I love this life you have blessed me with, to live and breathe, healthy and well, raising me through the thick and thin of it.



I'm just a girl, standing in front of a Monday, asking for it to be Friday again,


Cyndi