Computer crashes and other interruptions

I can hardly believe it's March already!  Where has the winter gone?  Don't get me wrong; I'm thrilled to pieces that spring is getting closer, but goodness, the time is slipping away quickly.

So, by way of excuses for neglecting my blog, my computer crashed in dramatic fashion in January.  I had been forced to keep it plugged in most of the time because the battery was going.  However, one day I thought, "You know, I should look into backing up my computer.  In case it crashes."  Yeah, just when I started to download the software to back it up, it shut down.  Completely.  As in, won't stay on for more than a minute or two before just giving up.

In the meantime, I've been using my husband's computer, but it's just not the same.  My plan is to get a new computer this month.  I'm not sure what I'm going to get, but I'm saving my pennies and hoping I can get something that works for me.

Also, I spent a lot of time getting ready for the Carolina Craftsmen Spring Classic craft show in Columbia, SC.  That was this past weekend and, although sales were a bit slow, I had a great time.  It has become a nice tradition for me to spend Friday with the wife of the Cousin-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named.  She's a fellow homeschooling mom and I admire her courage in marrying my cousin.  She says we should have warned her, but I say, "No way!  We like you and didn't want to scare you off."

The second day, my daughter helped me in the booth.  She loves it and we had a fun day together.  Sunday, my sister-in-law went with me.  She can decorate a booth in her sleep and it looks fabulous!  Love to have her eye for detail!

On to farm news, Huey the Rooster is doing well.  I love to hear him crow.  He's gorgeous, a lilac Orpington.   We are also planning to add some new chicks this spring and possibly retire the older girls to the pasture with a chicken tractor.  That's not a plow pulled by chickens.  A chicken tractor is really a movable chicken coop.  That way, the chickens can have the protection of a coop while enjoying all the bugs they can eat on fresh grass every couple of days.

There are also two new baby goats in the pasture.  We were hoping for girls, but both are little boys.  They are just too cute!  I love watching them play and jump around in the grass.  We will probably buy a few girls this year, to help build up the herd. 

That's the quick-ish update.  How have you all been?

More Adventures Around the Homestead

We had a frost warning (or advisory or whatever they call it) for two nights this week. It's not unusual to have a cold night or so in April, but we've had such a warm winter that I had hoped we were done. Not quite!

So, what do you do with tomato plants that have been in the ground a mere few days? You cover them with anything you can find--half bushel baskets, buckets and sand castle building forms. I think we saved the plants, but time will tell.

Also, Timmy (the new baby goat) is doing well. He and his mother joined the rest of the goats on Thursday. He's discovered the salt block.

And he hasn't learned to escape the arms of a little girl who thinks he's the cutest thing EVER.
Anything new at your place?

New baby goat this morning!

The children came running back to the house this morning, after their usual chores, to tell me that there was a new baby goat in the shed. This one was a bit of a surprise since we weren't sure if the mama goat was pregnant.


We had not moved her into our kidding pen, so it was up to me and the two younger children to move baby and mama out of the big shed and into the separate kidding area. It was an adventure, trying to get mama to follow me. I finally picked up the baby and sort of tempted her with him. Once we got them settled, I took a few pictures. Isn't he a cutie?

At least, I think it's a "he".

Update on Baby Goats

My daughter is a great goat sitter. The babies love her and snuggle up whenever she holds them. Here she is, checking on one of the little girls.Both of our babies are doing well and have been springing around the pasture. I think they are going to be best friends!

Baby Goat Report for Thursday, February 2

I spent some time at the goat pasture this morning, just watching. Both babies seem to be doing well. The older one (white with a brown head) is running around with her mother. She also has an Aunt Fudge watching over her. Aunt Fudge is a brown goat with a very sweet face who doesn't have a baby of her own. She watches over her friend's little one, when she needs a baby sitter.

The new baby (born Tuesday) was standing up and nursing when I checked on her. She gets tired pretty quickly, but seems pretty energetic when she's had a little nap.

One of our neighbors, who has had goats for many years, came over yesterday afternoon to look the babies over and give us some advice. We are grateful to him for his encouragement. I feel much better after getting an expert opinion. I'm hopeful that these two girls will survive.

Tuesday--Supplement

The children and I were headed out this afternoon to join our homeschool group for activities and stopped at the goat pen to check on things. What did we see but a new baby, born to another mama! I immediately called our friends and let them know that we wouldn't make it for our lessons today. We've spent the afternoon and evening helping this baby along and hoping for the best.

I'll try to post more pictures soon!

Quick update on our baby goat

As I said in yesterday's post, we lost one of our baby goats. The remaining kid seems to be doing fine. We've given her some milk replacer as a supplement to her mother's milk. Mama and baby were both up and walking around this morning, so we are hopeful that this baby will make it. I'll keep you posted.

Sad afternoon around here...

When I went to check on the baby goats this afternoon, I found that we had lost one. She was lying, limp, in the shelter. We immediately brought the other baby into the mudroom. So far, we've gotten some milk replacer in her and she's moving around and letting us know, rather loudly, that she's not too sure about the new set up.

I'll keep you posted on our progress.

Update: The surviving baby seemed fine after we got some milk in her. She's producing urine (a sure sign that milk is getting through) and one of our "goat friends" said she should be okay to go back to her mother for the night. We'll keep supplementing with milk replacer until she's a bit stronger.

More Baby Goat Pictures

Okay, prepare for cuteness overload. First up, is a little girl completely in love with a baby goat. Me, also completely in love with a baby goat. The milk around her mouth is the icing on the cuteness cake.

Kids learn to walk really fast, although they are still adorably wobbly.

Even Abby, the gigantic Great Pyrenees, is falling for the babies. She constantly woofed at the other goats when they came too close.
Excuse me, but I have to go check on the kids. I think they miss me.