milky milk.

this weekend, a 1000 pound animal was delivered to my doorstep. may the milk cow. and i feel transformed. i'm on a whole new level of farming. i feel old timey. and yet simultaneously progressive. but mostly, i'm just completely in awe. this giant animal gives forth milk. something of which i am not capable (see breast cancer). she has taken to our farm immediately. making it her own. and settling into a routine. so effortlessly.

first day's milking (i'm up to two gallons a day now!)

and i am not the only family member that has fallen head over heels for may. the dogs, pigs, chickens are in heaven. and the cat who rarely shows emotion. well, he is... reluctantly content.

pigs love milk!

a milk-nosed chop

jerry says, " i don't mind if i do"

and later has milk obsession embarrassment

beat the heat with comic relief.

choppy learns his ABC's (always be closing)

a glimpse at the elusive jerry cat

oh brother!

del ray's orbit gum commercial

raspberry dream

LOL!

you gotta walk down that road...

alejandro

please adopt this stray pup! my stepdaughter found him starving to death along the highway after witnessing him almost being hit several times. she took him to nearest building to ask if it was their dog or if they knew who the pup belonged to. the response was horrifying! the person said it wasn't their dog and if they saw it again they would shoot it! my stepdaughter quickly placed dog in her truck and got out of there.

we have been calling him alejandro or "dro" for short. he's a smart and sweet puppy. who likes to play. he loves toys. and food! he looks like a cross between some kind of hound dog and a red heeler cattle dog. he still has puppy teeth and puppy nails. so, my guess is he has a long way to grow.

please adopt him! if you can't, tell all your friends about this beautiful boy! he needs a forever home fast!

what's up doc?

so i met with pulmonary specialist this week. still trying to figure out what is going on with my lungs. i am having a new test run next week. hopefully, that will shed some light as i feel i have wasted the first 3 months of 2010 in medical limbo.

i need to get back to life. back to reality. we are knee deep in pre-gardening season and i have to get to work on my garden plot. jason tilled it last week. so now, it just needs raking and ground cover (straw) for weed management. but i get so winded and tired after only an hour of work that i'm only getting about one row done a day. but that's how you eat an elephant. one bite at a time. and by the end of next week, my garden should be all ready for seeds.

i'm also going to have to rabbit proof (chicken wire) the garden as armel jr and josephine jr (i know i really should come up with more original names but they look EXACTLY like their mom & dad) are completely wild and have access to all fields until we re-do the rabbit field and make it baby-rabbit-proof.

armel jr & josephine jr hangin while little bit supervises

the ducks are still sitting. chicken little still sitting. and oh, i do believe we are expecting piglets in may as well. i happened to witness "the act" back in february. the gestation period of a pig is 3 months, 3 weeks, and 3 days. and i do believe ms penelope is starting to show. i think she will make a wonderful mother. samson is requesting cuban cigars if anybody knows where we can get contra ban?

proud mom to be (cloven hooves crossed)

spring fever.

wow! it was 84 degrees yesterday. and 4 days before that it was below freezing and i had to bring baby goat marton inside for the evening. spring weather is crazy!

marton is doing well. we had a scare with him 2 days ago when he had a touch of frothy bloat and constipation. two things that are incredibly serious in baby goats. i caught it in time. and was able to administer enemas which eventually revived his peristaltic action and alleviated the gas from his rumen. i am so relieved. i was not about to lose our newest little guy. it was pretty much the nastiest thing i've ever had to do. and i'm sure he was as confused as i, but it worked. and he is thriving now in this warm spring weather.

i had my 6 week follow-up with my plastic surgeon regarding my implant replacement. it went great. i've healed up nicely. and have been allowed to start doing yoga and farming again!

tried my hand at a little garden work today since the sun was shining. but got very winded after only 1/2 an hour. which was discouraging. but it's hard to get upset when it is an absolutely gorgeous day outside. i did get a chance to peek at the soil in last year's garden. it is a beautiful rich dark color. can't wait to till it and start planting our seedlings. the tower grove farmer's market is coming up in just 5 short weeks! opening day is may 8th. look for more info on our provenance farm blog.

seedlings a growin'

as for my breathing issues, i was able to get an appointment with a great pulmonary specialist next week. he comes highly recommended. and am hoping we can get to the bottom of what is happening with my lungs. wish me luck.

and now, some gratuitous doggy photos (taken during last weekend's thunder storms). all dogs took full advantage!

the GLOPs

little bit (in MY chair) because...

the beagles claimed little bit's chair

and choppy in jason's chair

little bit "nursing" márton

meet márton

meet márton... our first angora kid born 03/01/10. we named the little feller márton which is hungarian for warrior from mars. jason had to sub as "goat mid-wife" as i was in st louis staying with my mom. jason did a great job! unfortunately, márton's mommy, bianka, pulled an "842" and rejected the little bugger. bianka is a maiden. it was her first pregnancy. and she just didn't have a clue. after the birth, she got up and walked away to be with her other goat friends. jason, then confined her and her baby to a kidding pen for a while but no such luck. she just kept butting him away. and the little guy was in danger. the first 24 hours are so important. they need to get colostrom. so jason packed him up and brought him in the house and we have another bottle-baby on our hands. tito heard the news and is a bit jealous.

this time, however, i have the help of "other mother" little bit. who cleaned márton off after the birth. and has been pretending to nurse him ever since. i can't believe it. she's only one year old (and spayed) and is usually a crazy wild child. but all of a sudden she has taken on this massive responsibility with grace and composure. it's utterly bizarre. and so freakin' cute.

little bit cleaning off the "after-birth"

my first time holding him!

márton enjoying the comforts of home (like my favorite wingback reading chair!)

snow day.

warning! dexter spoiler alert!

hay, it's what's for dinner (can i get a doggie bag, please?)!

it's officially winter. the ground is frozen which means time for hay. three round bales arrived over the weekend. which makes for some happy animals. the donkeys/horse/llama got one bale. the goats and sheep got another. and for some reason, the dogs claimed the third. who knew? hay, it's not just for breakfast anymore.

this just in... donkeys love hay!

the long and lean queen of the castle

"i got short legs, so this square bale's mine"

gratuitous pic of tito von peenerhaus

little bit turns one.

yes, our wild and crazy black mouth cur pup turned one yesterday. although we spoiled her with a special peanut-butter filled bone and an overflowing chow hound, i think the best present of all was the weather. sunny, sunny, sunny, with a chance of more sunny!

biddy's birfday bone

"lil'ann, wanna see my bone?"

"lulu, i got a new bone!"

"want it? can't have it!"

"haha! i will steal all the chow while the dogs fight over bones!"

wogum

secret lives of farm animals returns with little bit, porkchop, and del ray pondering life, getting older, and the addition of "the chow hound". an honest and humble documentary. however, this video could have benefited from the use of subtitles during the little bit segment. the black mouth cur pup is hard to understand due to her unique accent/speech impediment. so, a heads up... she is discussing her new job, turning one years old, digging holes, catching moles, chewing bones and her scary "wogum" mantra.

kids love kids (and llamas too).

we had a tiny visitor yesterday. delaney (jason's cousin ron's daughter) flew in all the way from sunny california to visit family (and more importantly, goats). she loves them. especially tito. but was very concerned about tito's negligent mommy (842).

welcoming committe member baby snakes greets ron and delaney

and offers kisses

while tito and his big sis little bit crash from all the excitement

"in labor" day weekend.

what a lovely weekend. started with some general home/farm improvement. cleaned up the laundry room and installed a new-to-us refrigerator which will be used solely for curing meat and aging cheese.

an amazing harvest from the garden...

then a visit from sam the drummer, his wife kate, and their gorgeous baby ophelia. this baby is crazy about animals and loves to give them hugs. a simultaneous visit from jason's daughter, amber. much fun was had playing with baby goats, chickens, the llama, the pigs and the zillion dogs. plus a bottle of italian prosecco didn't hurt, either.

ophelia leading the way for sam

ophelia waving in her very own chicken parade

then today, labor day, the goat stork visited. 842 finally had her baby. a beautiful blue-eyed blond buck, tito (named by our friend kendra's daughter). labor and birthing went brilliantly. unfortunately, that's where the brilliance ended. 842 wasn't too keen on being a mom. perhaps she imagined her role as mere surrogate? after much counseling upon our part, 842 still stuck to her guns and gave the baby up for adoption. she rejected the poor tike. luckily, we have colostrum replacer on hand. and he is currently being bottle fed indoors by his new mother, me. his big doggy sister (little bit) is doing a wonderful job at keeping him clean. and he seems to like the extra attention.

tito

although tito is currently doing well, baby goats that are rejected have a hard road to travel. right now he's still about 50/50 for survival. so all well-wishes and strong-goat-baby-vibes you want to throw our way will be ever so appreciated.

music move.

today the recording studio was moved from st louis to belgrade (with help from sam and his giant truck). our house is now a wonderland of various vintage gear and a maze of musical instruments. i finally have a piano. it's old too. a 1929 howard.

hear are some photos to document the move...

choppy on the ramp

little bit supervising choppy & del ray

a song for the tractor

the howard at rest