Breakfast Delights for Everyone

Sometimes I am smitten by the views on our teeny tiny farm.  Perhaps the beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but yes, at times I am smitten.  With the simplest of views.

Morning Rise and Shine

 

Mornings mean tending to the donks immediately, if not sooner.  They can be relentless in their demands for breakfast.

Spice takes a moment mid-meal to make sure my phone is not a treat in disguise.  Its always best to double check.  Sorry Spicie.

And then its time to tend to little chickie chicks who can get pretty darn vocal when they think  breakfast is being delayed.

Although treats don't come until afternoon for the flock, I have to show you the hot mess I recently made.  They swooned over the combo of banana and scrambled egg with spinach.  

 My next project is making suet cakes for the girls using coconut oil instead of grease.  My plan is to include peanuts, oats, and raisins.  

There have been three escapes recently during afternoon free range time for the clucks.  Free range means not leaving the donkey yard and pasture.  Clearly I need to send out yet another memo to the hens.  The three new girls have delighted in roaming beyond the defined boundaries.  Thankfully they continue to arrive back at the gate when I return two hours later.  Like clockwork.  The first time it happened I was perplexed at to how they escaped, but the second two episodes were clearly my fault.  On the second occasion I stumbled through thorny thickets to shoo them back in and finally decided the cuts being sustained were not worth it.

Today it happened again.  Yet again my fault, I neglected to put the barrier across the gate.  When I discovered my error and went to the gate to rectify the situation, Etta was standing there contemplating the escape she could have easily made but chose not to.  The three little girls apparently are the hooligans of the bunch.

* * * * * Say Yes * * * * *

It's the perfect time of year to incorporate this yummy Sweet Potato Smoothie into your day.  A little bit of turmeric gives it a little kick, but also provides a bit of anti-inflammatory goodness.  It really is like having a bit of pumpkin pie in a glass.

 

Fall Molt, Shavings, and *&!* Neighbors

 Happenings this week --

Without revealing an indiscreet amount of detail (much as I'd enjoy doing) I can say I had a quite unpleasant one-sided interaction with The Neighbor.  If you've been with me for a while, you know who I mean.  We disagree on adequate animal care in so many ways. 

On this particular afternoon I was throwing a handful of sliced carrots to two of her cows and a couple of goats.  In the midst of this quiet activity, a screaming voice is heard telling me to quit feeding the animals!!  The reason given (still screaming) isn't relevant to this story, but goes along with our divergent ideas on animal care. I admit I haven't been spoken to like this in... maybe never.

So the next day I had to say no to these adorable faces.  And told them the *itch wouldn't le me give them treats.  I can't tell you how hard it is for me to not run counter to good judgement and throw carrots.

Weather-wise, it was a beeuutiful day today.  So whether the girls have completed the fall molt or not, it was a good day to clean out the coop.  Feathers of assorted color have littered the floor for a couple of weeks now.  To counter the stress of the molt I've been upping their protein snacks (mealworms Grubblies, sunflower seeds, etc.) and have , for the first time, introduced chick feed into the mix for the duration of the winter.  I now mix regular organic feed, organic starter feed and a third feed that has more whole grains. 

The girls always enter a freshly cleaned coop slowly and carefully, taking in the new blanket of shavings on the floor. 

On the subject of coop floor materials, I've read shavings are not always advisable because of the dust factor.  I don't care for straw and some of the other options are beyond my budget.  For you chicken keepers out there, what do you use?

It's also that time of year that earns me a bad rap with the donks.

The pasture is now closed for the season until the end of next May.  Today while I was cleaning the coop, I opened the gate and they were allowed the run of "the compound" - the fenced area surrounding the house.  Little buggers were back in an hour asking for lunch.  In years past they would wander at ease for at least a couple of hours.  Don't know what was up today.    

Scenes From a Teeny Tiny Farm

 Continued rain has caused the donkey yard to become a sloppy, muddy mess.  Donkeys, chickens and people are all slogging and slipping through the stuff.  Sometimes I feel like I'm living in these boots!

The good news is there's no rain on the horizon for the rest of the week so cross your fingers it dries up.

The rain did its job of filling any and all receptacles.  Including the metal chicken waterer that is waiting for cold weather, warranting the heater (hence the need for metal).  Our original metal waterer finally bit the dust earlier this year and this new one is harder than heck to slide apart.  I got tired of struggling and turned to the plastic one (yuck) for the time being.  Anyway, it's been sitting outside the gate and when the new little girls snuck out they stopped for a drink.

They've lined up nicely in order of color.
From left to right:  Violet, Jewel, Henrietta.

Soggy Spice with her Flying Nun ears

Sometimes you just catch that perfect photo -- Sugar Booger

And sometimes it's time to pause during chores for a moment to look around, or up, and take note of the wonder