Happy March on the Homestead

Chloe and Zeyta: We had a joint Dr. Appointment this past Tuesday and both girls did really well and are pretty healthy. Zeyta does have an ear infection so we started her on Amoxicillin, but Chloe is doing great and he says could be an 8 or 9 year old with how big she is.

 Grandma came for a short visit and we all loved having her here for the weekend!

Chloe and Aya blowing out their candles at the family party. Gotta love those Aya lips!

Chloe using the Birthday knife to cut her own piece - we trimmed it up a bit...

Chloe with her green milk on St. Patrick's Day - 46.5 inches (74%) 58 lbs (93%) with 20/20 vision

Baby's fist St. Patrick's Day - 27 inches (32%) and 15.6 lbs (10%)

 She is feeling much better and eating like a champ again! She loved her beans and rice like a good Mexican baby!

Bath Time! She likes her little baby bath but I'm trying to phase it out and have Blain hold her while he and Avenlea take a bath so she can get used to the big kid bath tub.

Homesteading: I am feeling so self sufficient lately! We are going going going these days from (before) sun up to sun down. We are out in the barn milking by 7 and end the day the same way at around 7 pm. In the mean time we are keeping busy planning all the projects that will shortly be upon us (planting raspberries and fruit trees, building the Bull area, mapping out how/where we will run water for the barn and enclosures) and of course making good use of all the milk! I've started working in the garden preparing it for planting and trying to expand it a little, and I need to get the big raspberry patch ready too. Really I just need a plow and a wider gate to allow OUR NEW TRACTOR into the garden for mulching and digging purposes.

 We are selling eggs daily and continue to get tons! The most we've gotten is 20 and the least in the last couple days is 14. Double yoker - It was so big I couldn't fit it in the carton!

 Family effort to make butter - they rolled around the jar for a while

 Zeyta helped too! We are getting a pint of cream a day from twice a day milking. I have a butter mold coming in the mail and 3/4 gallon of cream in the fridge waiting to be turned into delicious butter. I'm realizing I don't use butter as much as I thought I did. At this rate we'll be able to make a year supply (and freeze it) in a month or so! But I have some yummy meals that I've been wanting to make with cream and now that we have plenty we will be eating good! Not to mention maybe figuring out how to make ice cream and whipped cream and cream cheese!!!

 We used our tax return this year to buy this old but very functional back hoe and front loader tractor. We also bought a trailer to transport it on but Nate has said he will never put the tractor on it again because driving it home from Price was the scariest experience of his driving life. We plan on using it to get wood chips from the place by Molly's house then selling it and letting our tractor stay home until we can afford a really really big one that can safely transport it.

 Zeyta's photo shoot with the cows ;) Cutie cutie babies!

 Not too sure if she likes sitting so close to Bella who kept wanting to sniff her

 Avenlea asks to go see "the baby cow" quite a bit so we skipped out on scooters to go see little Ferd

 Our little herd of jerseys :)

I made my first batch of yogurt from Bella's milk yesterday and it turned out great! Nice and thick consistency with a creamy texture. Avenlea ate two bowls and Zeyta had one too! Now that my cheese making stuff has arrived I have lots of plans for all the milk in our fridge (about 6 gallons right now) It's getting a little desperate as we now have no room to put the milk that we will get in the morning... Chickens and kitty have some yummy milk coming their way I think! 

We are planning on getting some more pigs (3 this time) in a month or so and I think that will really help me feel better about not wasting extra milk. Hopefully by that time we will be down to once a day milking and separating at night. I wonder if he'll ever eat enough that we feel like we're not getting our fair share and need to separate, either way I think we will go down to once a day because twice a day is a lot of milk and a lot of work. My milking muscles are sore but I do enjoy the peaceful time either sitting and talking with Nate when we both milk or losing myself in my thoughts about our homesteading endeavors when I'm alone milking our family milk cow :) It's a dream come true!