There are always plenty of things to do on the farm(s). Yesterday we were blessed to have great help to get up the hay from second cutting -- the first time we've used our own tractor and equipment to cut our hay. Some of the bales weighed nearly 100 pounds early in the day, and took gargantuan effort on the part of the men "liftin' and totin'" them to get them into the wagon and from there into the hay stacks. We have two more small fields to cut and bale. We put up around 200 bales on Wednesday. It is nice hay, with plenty of lespedeza in it. My part of the job was to fill in wherever help was needed, and to fix a warm supper for the hungry "hands". That, and picking up the trailer from a neighboring farmer kind enough to share, was enough to tire me out completely.
While I was at the farm I got to visit with Andy and Rudy, which is always a pleasure. Rudy is getting spoiled, though. He thoroughly checked ALL my pockets looking for treats! Poor baby -- no treats from mama yesterday. I came home with muddy mouth prints on the top pocket of my overalls. The other day, friend Neil was working on the tractor in the pasture and Rudy came by to "help." He started by stealing Neil's hat off his head when he wasn't looking. That situation resolved, he grabbed one of the plastic jugs Neil was using, and made off with that, instead. A personal escort out of the pasture lasted only long enough for Neil to get back to the tractor. Boys will be boys! Rudy is a 15 year old Morgan cross, 14.5 hands. His friend Andy is a 16 hand Appaloosa. They loved the new hay.
Hungry hands dinner was simple. We call it goulash. Sauteed onions and ground beef mixed with diced canned tomatoes and combined with cooked pasta. They worked hard enough and it was cold enough that everyone enjoyed eating when they were done. No fancy spices for this crew, they like "just plain food." Another neighbor brought home made corn bread.
The turkeys took a wild turn last night, (berating mama for not feeding them before dark) and three of them spent the night on top of the garage, one huddled next to the dusk to dawn light. This morning they had come down and were wandering by the creek, and with some coaxing and a lot of unhelpful help from the goats, I managed to encourage them to go back in the pasture. I did feed them early enough tonight that they were satsified to go into their coop. And this morning the three silkies in the back wall coop had let themselves out, so it took some feed and some stealthy stalking to get them penned again. Baby Polish chicken has moved out of the baby brooder and in with the larger birds, the ones that aren't quite large enough to be mainstreamed yet. He likes the company and the warmth. I am still giving them a light at night as it's getting down into the 40's. We may even have a hard freeze over the weekend. Tomorrow will be a day to stuff hay in all the coops for warmth and comfort, and to take the Duke of Renfro to his off season home in Chatham. Keelee, the Toggenburg doe due the end of the month, may be ready to come home tomorrow too. She has been sharing milk with friends, but finally seems to be drying up, which is a good thing with her kidding imminent.
Hope you enjoyed some sunshine today!
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