The day begins and ends

The last couple of mornings I’ve walked from the Yurt to the house through wet dewy ground, it’s wonderful! The sky still dark with just traces of a sunrise. My eyes scan the shadows and darkness for things that have changed from the previous morning. I don’t know what I expect to see, something out of place, out of the ordinary? A Coyote crouching waiting to pounce on a half-blind from darkness hen who is early to rise? But all is well, Ginger and Cosmo are guarding their area of the Pasture which is in front of the yurt so really guarding us and the other two Gergo and Elek tromping around who knows where until they get a whiff that we’re up and come bounding toward us like puppies which would be cute if they weren’t 120 pounds.

The day begins like this each dawn; Dogs are fed, the chilled milk from last night’s milking is poured into glass jars. The milk vat is cleaned, milk pails made ready. Clean and dry eggs placed in carton and put in the refrigerator. The dishwasher is emptied, and if there is time, cheese strained.  By this time it is now light and milking begins, eight goats stand in line and wait to come in, some mornings with no fuss at all and others try to charge the gate and force their way in the parlor.  Milking will usually take about 30 minutes from start to finish with the two of us. After milking, waters are filled and chickens are tossed some scratch. Time to make breakfast and return e-mails.

After breakfast I go about farm work.This is about eight O'clock. I either work in the garden or work in the barns. Today is chicken bus day, I’ll scrape and shovel out all the soiled wood chips and scrub the hen house out, put hay in the nesting boxes and new chips on the floor. Hopefully that will only take me a couple of hours, then I will work the rest of the day in the garden, spreading compost and preparing beds that must be planted in the next day or two. That should pretty much be all I am able to do. After that everything goes back to the beginning but backwards, starting at about 4:30; eggs are gathered chickens are tossed some scratch, all of the animal waters are filled, hay is fed. Then the chilled milk from morning gets put into jars and into the chiller, milk pails made ready and vat cleaned and eggs washed.  Then Eight goats stand in line sometimes it’s without drama sometimes they to storm the gate. I never know what kind of mood they will be in. The day wraps up around 7pm

After that the day is done, dinner is started. A quiet evening begins. When the sun is down and chickens go to roost we feed the cats and dogs. The alarm goes off at 5am