BUSY! VERY BUSY!

Goodness, I am so busy right now and I know it's going to be worse as soon as I have more kids and does to be milked! I don't have near enough energy to keep up with all I'd like to get done right now!

I have a couple does I'm watching closely. I bought a cam for the barn a couple years ago and it's now obsolete due to the monitor being a combo tv and monitor. It's not up to the digital tv signals we now have. It didn't work well in the metal pole barn before so it's a lost cause that I could dearly use.

Since Spirit kidded and one buckling didn't make it and Buster almost didn't, I'm afraid to not be checking on them much more frequently. That entails doning barn boots and a coat and high-tailing it to the barn. Being goats, one can't just walk into the barn and take a quick peek. EVERYONE expects to be greeted and to get their scratching. The 3 and 5 am checks are getting to me already! What do I find when I make those checks? 2 pens of sleeping goats. Sometimes they have laid down in a different direction after I leave and I find they've moved since the last check. It was horrible to lose the buckling and I just can't have it happen again.

I'm trying to get feet trimmed, which I'm behind on. My nippers are too dull and I can't find the whet stone. So I bought some cheap ones to "get me by" and they aren't going to do much trimming. Maaaayyybe for the ND's but not the standard sized goats!

Bandit is being a bad buck right now. He's gotten an attitude and doesn't want to cooperate. He does one to bash everything he can and flip it around, relocate it, etc. I haven't got a pen I can keep him in at the moment. He's just being horrible. This has all started with him since Nipper died. They were penned together and I suspect it's got something to do with not having a head-buttin buddy to help keep him occupied and entertained. I've tried putting him in with the herd queen and her buddy and he was stressing the two of them beyond tolerable. He totally terrorizes the ND does. I also have to wonder if he head-butted June Bug causing her aborting her quads. I just don't know. I do know Bandit is being a total jerk at the moment and none of the does want to be near him but he wants to be with them.

I have the 6 kids in the house and the 3 LaManchas are big enough to be outside now but it's still too cold out for them without a heat lamp. I can't do a heat lamp at the current time as the wood chucks burrowed and chewed the electric line to the barn. This falls under that category of "if it's not one thing it's another"! Fire code now requires that a barn have it's own circuit box and electric hook up. So it's not a cheap fix. :(

Anyway, these 6 in the house are a hoot and they are fun. BUT it's not fun to have 2 who have found they can jump out and run thru the house screaming for me. The 2 mini Aussies are fine with it and just tule along with them but the 2 corgis are older and don't like it. They have the opinion (as do I) they have a place they belong so they should be where they belong. That is not going into the dog crates, jumping on beds, jumping on the couch or chairs, etc.

Buster and the 2 ND boys are doing fine in the house and don't cause the commotion the LaManchas do simply because they are younger or smaller or both. Tiny Tim is so tiny we keep saying he could stay small and stay a house goat. He's considerably smaller than the cats, so SMALL.

I've lost a few hens to varmits again. In 3 days I've trapped 2 opossums and a huge racoon. I hope that's the end of it for some time but who knows. I do know I've lost a couple good hens that I'm not happy about. :( No offense to anyone, but out in the country, one has to either allow predators to help themselves or trap and dispatch them. It's illegal to transport them for relocation due to transporting illnesses and especially the potential for rabies into other areas. Most of the rabies around here is bats and feral cats. It's figured it's only a matter of time before rabid coons hitch a semi ride or such and introduce the coon type of rabies. They are very tough on anyone breaking the law due to being on the edge of the current coon rabies spreading west.

On the gardening front, I was finally able to stick a shovel into one of the raised beds. I also was finally able to pull the last of the brussel sprout plants up. I have one left to take the sprouts off of and then they are done. That's pretty good to still have veggies from last year's gardening! Plus we both love brussel sprouts so it's nice to have them when I see them in the stores for $2.99 and up /#!

It's time to do a bit of soil turning and readying the beds for planting. I'm sure enjoying having some better weather even if it's still coat and boots weather!

Spring is always a busy time with tons to do and yet I always wish Winter would get over and Spring get here.

So, I'm busy but it's a good busy and inspite of some of it being chaotic, it's productive. Soon I'll be able to get by with just a flannel shirt and skip the boots!