Still winter but someone else is getting our snow.

Happy Valentine's Day.

The kids are on vacation this week from school.

It's pizza night. We are redoing our kitchen and have ordered new ovens. In the meantime, our old oven burned out and for the past 2 weeks Jake has been making our pizza on the grill. It's pretty good stuff. It's a bit tricky to flip though. I think I'll either offer to help him flip it tonight or suggest he make 4 small pies instead of 2 big ones.

We had a new Jersey heifer calf born 2 days ago. She is little and really cute. She has dark features and looks as though she is wearing eye liner and dark make-up. She is being bottle fed still. Her mother's name is Cookie. She doesn't have a name yet.

Our grandson came to visit for the first time last week. That was fun. He will be one month old on the 18th. My how time flies!

Our renovations are still moving forward. Yesterday the new drywall got put on the kitchen ceiling. It's been quite a while since we've had a ceiling.
We need to make decisions on counter tops. If we go w/ Formica, I think I'd like one counter area that is a stone surface for dough and pie making. We also have to decide on what we're going to do w/ the floor. We put slate in the mudroom and bathroom. I think it's a tad too cold to do the whole kitchen w/ but I'm not positive.

We have very little snow down here by the house and barn. Up the hill it's still pretty covered. It's strange how it's like 2 different worlds.

Last week we got 5 pick-up trucks full of firewood out of the woods. It was 22ºF and it seemed so warm. It was beautiful in the snow covered woods. Our 3 sons and one of their friends along w/ 2 of our daughters made light of a lot of work. Everyone got along and the work went quickly. Just a nice day in the woods. Almost all of the wood fit in the cellar. There is a little still outside the cellar door on the lawn.

I'm about to head outside to check on the goats.

Summer vacation

The boys have their last exams today. The girls got out of school Monday. Now if it ever stops raining we can make some hay!
We've got oatmeal cookies in the oven. Boy, do they smell great. Taste even better.
The girls are walking their calf to where their dad is working this morning. It's quite the hike. Over 3 miles one way! I'm off to meet them there with a picnic lunch.

New baby calf!

Black Jersey had a heifer calf this morning. She is a really neat dark red color. The girls are in love with her already. Looks like a beautiful day. There is some freshly smoked bacon in the pan in the kitchen. Have to run. I'll try to post a photo of our new addition soon.

Memorial Day Weekend

We had a great weekend with family and friends. Some of them come on Friday and camp until Monday. After much planning and cleaning, it is so nice to just sit by the fire and visit and relax. And boy! Do we have some nice bonfires! We probably burned 3 cord of mostly pine this year. I even came out ahead in the poker game this year. We only play nickel, dimes and quarters, and it's fun. The kids games were on Sunday, same day as the big potluck.

Green Tea

I've been drinking green tea today. Never thought I'd like it, but you hear all kinds of good things about it, so I tried it. Me, who likes to try nothing new. Anyway, Carrington Tea Company distributes the "lemon" flavor I'm drinking today. The last glass I had was iced since I've been out mowing for hours now. Awesome day! Apple trees are in bloom and the sun's shining!

Beautiful Day!!

Supposed to be near 75º today.
The baby goats are out on the lawn enjoying the sunshine.
Almost all of the mama goats are outside searching for those sweet green tidbits too.
I've got some peas planted and need to get the spinach seeds in the ground. Should probably plant some carrots too. I've been busy trying to get all the flower beds in order. We're supposed to get 4 new apple trees so I need to figure out where to put those.

The first kid of the season at a couple hours old.

We are now up to 14. We had twin does born this morning and have several more on the way but they're not coming for a while yet.

Today's mother is named Belle. I think she's going to name the twins Liberty and _______??

They're keeping us busy.

Bottle babies

Anyone have any spare time and care to bound with some really cute babies? Baby goats, that is. We have 6 bottle babies at the moment. They are sooooo cute and funny to watch too. If anyone was planning a visit and couldn't decide when to come? The time is now. Especially if you wanted to help with barn chores!

Cheddar today

Making cheddar cheese again today. Used yogurt as starter. I made the yogurt a couple days ago from raw Jersey milk and it makes the creamiest cheese ever. I can't wait to see what it tastes like.
My washing machine is giving me trouble once again. It has been making the worst piercing, screeching noises lately. Today it wouldn't finish the rinse cycle. I think our repairman is probably getting as sick and tired of it as I am.
It's not raining as promised. I think it's in the low 40's.
Everyone is in school today. Let's hope the bug that was w/ us earlier in the week is G-O-N-E!

Kid's February vacation almost over

Our kids have been off all week. A long weekend probably would've been enough for them. I'd rather they have a longer summer break. I guess if we were going on some fabulous trip somewhere then it would be different.

Baby goats aren't scheduled to start arriving until the 3rd week in March. That is really late for us to be kidding. Our buck goat had a mishap and we were lucky enough to borrow one from a friend. Let's just say our babies should be like opening Christmas gifts this year. All different colors. They should be super adorable.

We've got quite a few bunnies in the barn. Anyone looking for a bunny for Easter should give us a holler.

Our son is working on a house that is off the grid. I've never seen it. If the directions he left me are any good at all, hopefully I'll see it today. I would love to be off the grid and not be dependant on the power company. We receive 3 bills every month and I never look forward to it.

Turkey Jerky

Wow did husband make some awesome turkey jerky over the weekend! It takes a couple days to prepare, even before it hits the smoker. He really enjoys experimenting with his smoker. This latest batch was definately one of his best.

The snow is melting

We've had a couple days that have gotten into the 40s. Wow did it take away our snow quickly. We are still pretty much snow covered but the layer is pretty thin in spots.
Basketball season is almost over. YEAH! Chasing two teams is quite the challenge.

Today I made Colby cheese

I made Colby cheese today. The last couple of days I made Monterey Jack. All of these cheeses were made with raw milk from our Jersey cows. The Colby is still in the press, the others are drying and they will all be waxed w/in the next few days.
To read the blog on our website, go to http://www.falkenburyfarm.com/blog

0ºF

It is 0ºF this morning. Pretty chilly.Our youngest and I went snowshoeing yesterday. We hiked for over an hour. I was wishing we brought a sled with us so we could slide most of the way home. You should've seen all of the animal and bird tracks we saw! Wow! We know where some of the deer are hanging out now. I was neat to see all the different tracks. We need to find a book or chart to figure out what more of them were. I know there is one around here somewhere.

We picked up another jeep yesterday. It's a CJ7. It has a nice hole blown thru the side of the motor though. We have a lead on a new one (used). Now we have 2 and still don't have one to drive around.

Bunnies for Sale!!

That about says it all, doesn't it?

-22ºF this a.m.

Too cold! It was 22 degrees below zero and no school delay. Borderline crazy, especially since the bus was 45 minutes late!
It is so cold we let the goats stay in this morning. I think they are healthier when they go outside every day but this is ridiculous. Maybe around lunch time I'll let them out for a bit?
The boys start exams at the high school today. They'll be done at noon. One will go to work, the other will be home on the bus. He gets dropped off almost a mile from home so I should go pick him up so he doesn't freeze.
A family is coming later today for the weekend in the guest house. I would love to write about our guests on this blog because they very often are quite interesting but I guess that wouldn't be right. We've had people from many different parts of the US and world and it is extremely fascinating to meet them and have the kids learn things about their ways of life. It is very enriching.

Pizza Night.

Sunday has turned into pizza night at our house. And who do you think is making this pizza? I used to make one in a deep dish and my husband used to make one on our stone. Now, our youngest teenage son usually makes 3 big pizzas on pizza stones. Let me tell you, the boy is good! His younger sisters tell him he should open a pizza shop and that someday he'll have a chain of them. He enjoys the praise. I should add that this teenager is all boy. This cooking is out of character from the rest of his persona. He is the outdoor type that likes to hunt and fish and work on his go cart. But he likes to cook. It's a wonderful trait. I tell him he'll always be able to get a side job and make a few bucks if he needs to. Right now he is helping a neighbor who is building a new house. Back to the pizza....it is fantastic! They aren't done all at the same time, but he keeps them coming one after the other and we polish them off as fast as we can!

Welcoming children with special needs

Recently we welcomed a family with a child with Autism to our farm. He seemed to enjoy his stay immensely. You could see that his parents were relaxed and comfortable during their stay. They really enjoyed helping out at chore time. They fed the cows, goats and llamas. Their child seemed to particularly bond with the goats. They really have unique personalities and can be very curious. While talking with the mom she conveyed to me that is often difficult to find places to go that are "hands on". At Falkenbury Farm you are welcome to be very "hands on" if you desire. I've read a bit about Autism and understand that it is often helpful to show your child photos of where he will visit before arriving so that he is more comfortable. On our website we have many of the animals that are here on the farm. Also there are photos of our own children on the website. They love to meet new people and will be in the barn to help visitors get to know the animals. It is also quiet in the guest house since you are not sharing it with others as compared to a hotel or B&B. If you need to take a walk to 'get away from it all' and have some quiet moments alone, there are also plenty of places for that. If anyone has any questions about our farm, please feel free to contact us. www.falkenburyfarm.com We are located in Benson, Vermont.

Boy! It's cold outside!

It's 15ºF at 9:15 a.m. and not expected to get much warmer today. We heat the main house with wood. Lots of wood! We have a wood furnace in the cellar. There are also 2 wood stoves upstairs that we light of it gets really cold. The guest house is heated with oil. I'm waiting for an oil delivery this morning. It's supposed to be $2.34 per gallon. If the last people didn't leave the windows open, maybe we wouldn't need to buy any oil. Why would people leave the windows open when it was 20 degrees F out anyway?
I think I better go throw another log on the fire. I'm cold.

Another snow day!

Snow, sleet, freezing rain here in Vermont today. Kids just left to go up to their fort. Their fort is awesome! It's a tree fort. It's up in the woods. They brought their sleds and their calves. Yes, calves. They have a special corral for them up there. They made it themselves. They bring hay and the calves are happy all day. I wish my son's snowmobile wasn't in the shop. I don't like to go out alone. The roads haven't been touched by the road crew yet. That's the best riding.