Mid Summer Update

I've been so bad about updating the blog this summer! It isn't for lack of things going on on the farm - but more because busy, busy, busy. Between farm, work, guests, and my fear (for good reason) of wasps, I haven't gone out to take any photos. I finally did take some today. Nathan's parents are here for a month and they've been a huge help around the farm.

Some succulents in the yard

Pond all covered in duck weed - ducks are happy!

My hammock in the perfect spot for farm viewing. 

Blue Copper Marans roo almost all grown up...I just posted him and his brother online to see if anyone wants them before they go to freezer camp. They are pretty but we definitely don't need them to stick around.

I don't like them because they go after my little sick-ly rooster, T-Rex. When all of our chickens went to chicken camp this summer (that is very different from freezer camp), one of the little chicks got sick and was suddenly weak and almost dead one morning. I thought for sure he was a goner but since there were 20+ people hoping he would be ok, we gave him some electrolytes, fruit and mashed up food. He survived overnight and is still here, a month later. The problem is that he is about 1/10 the size of his monstrous brothers and they try to kill him every time they see him. Lil' T-Rex has to be separated from them. He is so cute though! He runs to me and jumps up to sit in my lap...

Pippa is fully integrated into the sheep flock. It's nice because she is happy to be in there with them full time, but then also more than happy to come out and follow us around or nibble at the plants around the pond. 

Thomas is actually pretty gentle with her and she is quick. Here he is giving her a little 'love-shove'. 

Lots and lots of tomatoes! We are putting a few pounds out a day at the stand. 

Victoria is sitting on 13 eggs. She disappeared for 2 nights a month ago and I was really worried, but also knew she must be on a nest. We finally found the next under the hay barn so we moved her up and into a dog crate for the 35 days incubation. Ducklings due to hatch in a week!

The littlest lamb-y (Pippa's bestie). 

These two girls are up to no good...probably looking for chicken poop.

Abby doing her eagle-patrol duty (2 days until she turns 11!):

Ryan is the best at eagle patrol, but it would be nice if he was slightly quieter about it...

Spring updates!

Does this angle make my nose look big?

Just wants pets. He is so itchy when his hair/wool starts coming out!

Just wants a bit of grain, please!

Phillip is BIG. Probably because he still tries to nurse from his mom!

Oprah and her minions after her hand-shearing job by moi. 

Amelia halfway through her shedding job taken care of my nature.

We have lots going on right now! Our meat birds are a week away from processing, the lambs and pigs are growing quickly, Pippa keeps us constantly on our toes and we have 3 dogs staying with us for the next week (let's not bother tallying that total number...plus one is little Lucy so she doesn't count. And one is elderly. And the other is short.) I'm also helping to get our chickens ready for camp. That's right, we're sending our chickens to summer camp. 

We're going to camp??

Yep, it's true. Our chickens are going to be trained for 2 weeks by trainers coming from as far as Alaska. Chickens are ideal animals to use to really improve your timing and mechanics...dogs are way too easy to be sloppy with since they're so forgiving. Chickens, on the other hand..

Pretty Penny - one of the incubator chicks from January.

Her sister, Goldie. These barnyard mutts turned out so pretty!

Plus....

Ta DAAAAA!

If you've been following my journey into crazy chicken lady-ness, you will know that my life's goal has been to breed chickens that will produce olive eggs. Technically if you breed a dark or blue egg laying hen with a rooster that carries genes for the opposite colour, you will get some hens that lay olive eggs. When you take into account that you get 50% hens, it takes them 5+ months to start laying, not every one will lay olive eggs, and then untimely deaths (damn you, mink!) on top of that....well, you can see why I was so excited to find those green beauties in the nest box yesterday. Green eggs and ham, Sam-I-Am!

Um, did you say HAM??

Sorry, piggies. Maybe we'll make goat sausage, instead. PIPPA!!! That's her new sneaky way into the meat birds pasture to check if they left any food behind. The large gap on the right was blocked with a board...which she knocked down, and then climbed the coop roof instead (just to show that she is unstoppable). She took a few bites of plum leaves and then gracefully leapt all 5' down into the field. Sigh.

Maybe she should go live with Loic ;) They were so cute together when Erika, Jess and Loic visited a few weeks ago.

Loic loves all the animals

Jess working on her fear of chickens.

Meat birds looking for grubs. 

These are a french breed called Sasso. Good looking birds, and they have been super active foragers.

Oh we were also busy celebrating my birthday this weekend! We drove across to the coast and did a big loop back. We stopped at some really cute markets and went horseback riding!

These two came with us. So cute together.

Ryan is not pictured because he's been taking 'conserving energy for the big event' to the extreme and lazing around the house. We are going to agility regionals this weekend! Then I come back for a week and then I go galavanting off to LA for a vacation. So much to look forward to!

Silver looking forward, too. 

This is Finn. He/she is about 1/10th of the size of his/her egg-mates. Don't know why, but seems to act just fine. Funny!

One of the egg-mates. These are called Marans - another french breed. 

Abby is my protector. One look from Thomas and she's on it. 

The garden has also been keeping us busy. Up until today it hadn't rained in weeks. Our irrigation system isn't quite up and running so that means lots of hand watering for now.

Tomatoes, beans and some potted squash and cukes.

Apples! We didn't think we'd get any yet this year.

Garlic, kale, onions, broccoli, tomatoes in front.

We got some nice heads of broccoli this year.

Hugels seem to be doing pretty well. 

Some corn seedlings to be transplanted.

 Lots of raspberries:

These blueberries are huge.

The pond bank has magically filled in with grass where we cleared it. It actually looks nice instead of mucky and/or covered in brush!

Coffee

I promise I will find time for a real update soon, but for now, here is my hammock collie and I having our morning coffee.

Snuggle Buddies

 Our house raspberries are going gangbusters!

What a pretty flock of ducks (one of these things is not like the others). Google actually tells me it is a "safe" of ducks when they're on land and a "raft" when they're in water. Oh google, so handy. 

I would say these sheep have enough to eat... they are enjoying their time at the neighbour's so much that we never hear a peep out of them!

Errr...strange place for a bed, Pips.

 Our big pre-summer house project - new floors in the kitchen and painted cupboards! I love how it looks in there now.