As I sat there on the couch tonight, cuddling with my Baylee Paige and actually got to relax and watch TV uninterrupted, I realized it felt like months since that has happened. Which then led to the never ending chain of thoughts and here I sit to write an overdue blog post. I don't normally do more than report on the family but sometimes, the fact that to talk to someone eye to eye most of the day, this someone must stand on a stool; it leaves one with lots to say and not always someone to say it to.
I'm not really sure if it was the nonstop rearranging of an inquisitive, exploring Tanner back to the middle of the floor from the entertainment center, pool table or half wedged under a couch(the downfall of a big cranium); the time and commitment I have in my MOPS group or especially my teen MOPS group; the challenges of searching, finding, and purchasing a family ride(thankfully not crossing over to the darkside of MOM MOBILE KINGDOM, bless your hearts for loving the minivan, it's just not in me, 3 cheers for Acura not making a minivan, go team MDX); or the act of fully embracing the lovingly dubbed nickname of "country bumpkin" but March just got away from me.
Which leads me into the country bumpkin part of things. March has been a year since I began to embrace the lifestyle. Yes it is a lifestyle living out of town. Though small our farm may be, it is nonetheless a farm. A year ago we got our first go round of chickens. Many eggs later, I can report of the original 13, we were left with one hen. We call her She-ra. A well deserved name indeed, she survived the killer river otter that was stalking us, a wayward opossum attack, many coyote visits and most importantly the overbearing taste our one white wolf Odin has for feathered friends, mainly hens. Truth be told many of our roosters went on "adventures" with Cody. Yes they attacked the hands or literally legs that fed them. We even had a special ed rooster that walked with a limp, had a crooked back and was mostly blind, fittingly Dopey, also in the end met his fate when he ganged up with the last rooster and attacked Baylee.
There was much to be learned from our year. Most importantly, it made the Baylee and the Baylee's friends happy to be able to hold or just sometimes touch for those who were less than sure, these feathered friends. The hassle was definitely worth it. It's springtime and it means time to give this chicken thing one more shot. If you have seen my Baylee smile, you know every trip I make out to the barn to check on or deal with these squaking things is time well spent in anticipation of more smiles. Cody wanted a few more than I had planned on getting, somehow we ended up with 30 chickens, a few have met another fate and the white wolf struck again. We are hoping for more hens out of the deal.
March was also a time for us to increase the farm inventory into new categories. We added Boots and Firefly, the goats. We just love the them. They are spunky entertainment in a little coat of fur. While I originally fought having to embrace the "country bumpkin" name, the goats made me fully accept that I was born to be a goat whisperer. I did just say that. I have a way with the goats and I have tamed these small feisty little jokers to the point of eating from our hands. I still have a ways to go but it takes hours of sitting in their fence just being calm and letting them realize all humans don't chase them around. It is fun to chase them , but it was getting us nowhere. I have become quite the goat snatcher and snagged a few mid air. During a wind storm, they got out and it was a long process but we still have 2 goats. Enough said. I think everyone needs a goat. Whether balancing on some random board, standing on top of barrels or the slow motion attacks on each other, they just make you laugh. It's nice to peek out the window and be able to laugh at any given time.
So I guess enough rambling from me, the kiddos are doing well. Tanner is getting big. He's a fast little guy when he wants to be. He's by any and all items that are not his, of course. He is eating like crazy and really enjoys when I give him food off of my plate. For those of you who know what O'Charley's is, he had his first roll. For those of you that don't...its because you have not been blessed with one close enough and I promise it's better to not know after you have tried it.
Baylee is doing equally fantastic and while she loves to be on the go like we are most days, she keeps me grounded and tells me when we need to just stay home. She is doing better with her sassy days and they aren't quite so numerous the past few weeks. She is so excited for Lilli and Aunt Faith to head our way in June as we got tickets booked already.
Cody and I are both just plugging along getting things planned out for our garden that will once again be some learning experiences, I'm sure. We too are excited for Lilli and Faith to visit. And knock on every piece of wood in sight, we have all been healthy for a bit.
I guess to summarize, everyday that Baylee gets excited to go sit with the goats, it makes it worth this effort I put into making goats our friends. Never would I have imagined I'd have goats and chickens and enjoy it. I would have at points in my life considered myself something of a city slicker. But I'm learning to enjoy the opportunities we are handed. I may never get to live on a farm again, so we are trying to make the most of it while we do.
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