Down on the farm!

As promised

2008-02-09T21:59:00.000-08:00

Here are a couple pictures of the newborn babies.

This is Stout

Another of Stout

This is Rueben

This is Ole White with Stout and his Sister

I will post more later.

Butch

2008-02-09T21:50:00.000-08:00

I have one more thing to share with you. The other night it was very cold and windy out. Snow was flying and the wind was blowing very hard. All the goats went to the barn to get out of the weather with the exception of two. Dixie and her daughter Scarlett decided to stay out in one of the many sheds we have out there. I knew they would be fine in the shed so I thought I would try something just for fun, not really thinking it would work. I called Butch and Brownie down to the shed they were in and showed them the goats were in there. I talked to the dogs as if they would understand, telling them to watch after and take care of the goats, and to keep them safe. After petting them and talking to them for a little bit, I left and went inside, but kept a watch out to see what they would do. As expected, Brownie headed for the barn. Shortly thereafter, so did Butch. I kept watching out the window wondering, even hoping a little and sure enough, about 10 minutes later, Butch came back out. He went inside the shed with the goats. I watched for quite some time, and to my amazement, he never came back out. Butch spent the night in the shed with those two goats. I was really proud of him. I can't say enough good things about the dogs and this instance is one of those reasons. Needless to say, I believe in my dogs. Sometimes I really think they understand more than they let on.

Busy Busy

2008-02-08T09:58:00.000-08:00

It's been very busy here lately. Haven't had time to do much of anything. The kids starting coming last Sunday and it hasn't let up yet. Sunday evening Ruby started things off and it has been pretty much a two a day thing every since with the exception of today. It's almost noon, and there have been three does drop already today. I think the action has come to a stop for the day though. That would be nice. I have been getting up every day shortly after 4 am to go out and check on things, feed the new mothers, make sure they have water. Then come back to the house for some coffee and a shower. Then it is off to work. I usually get home around 6:30pm, go out and feed, water and check on everything again. Then in for dinner. Check them over and hay the new mothers again around 10:30. Get a little rest, check on them around midnight and then again at 2 or so. It does get tiring after a while, but that's the price you pay if you want to do this sort of thing. I will be posting pictures of some of the newborns shortly.

Now a little about the dogs. These things are incredible. The instincts they have are so strong and they are so fun to watch. When a doe goes into labor, two of the dogs(usually Corey and Brownie) will go up and lay down real close to the mother. They actually keep the other goats away from the one in labor. It is truly amazing to watch. When the baby is born, the dogs stay real close and will even help clean the newborn if the mother will let them. The other two dogs will tour the rest of the herd and keep lookout for intruders. I know that is what they are bred to do, but it truly amazes me to watch them do it, knowing they learned it all on their own. They will get right up there and lay next to the new baby after it has been cleaned, I suppose to help keep it warm. They are so gentle with the newborns, I can't even explain it. Just to watch them lay there and lick it so softly then jump up growling at anything that comes near it. As soon as whatever they were growling at leaves, they go right back to the baby. They are a joy to watch. I have never seen anything like it.

Don't forget to tune into the next episode of: Two and a half Kings of Knots Acres.

Till then, have a great day.

Almost there

2008-01-31T17:02:00.001-08:00

So it looks like it's about that time again. We are expecting kids (baby goats) any day now. Seems like it is kind of a race to see who will drop the first set. There are several that look like they will at any time. There are even a couple that look like they are to the point if they don't drop quickly, they will just pop like an overinflated balloon. I am thinking that Peta or Ole Whitey will be first, we will soon find out. I really thought Peta was going to go last night. I went out to check her a couple times before I went to bed, but she was just laying around sleeping. She wasn't near as concerned about it as I was. I will post pictures of them as they come. May not post pictures of all of them as there should be around 60 or 70 babies born in the next couple weeks. Not to mention a litter of pups in a couple weeks and then another litter around the first of March. Needless to say, it may be a little crazy around here for a while with 60 or 70 baby goats and 15 or 20 puppies. I have a funny feeling there are many sleepless nights in my near future. You can bet, if there are babies being born, I will be in the barn just in case someone needs help.

Gotta run for now. Ciao

Almost there

2008-01-31T17:02:00.000-08:00

Can you believe this weather?

2008-01-23T19:13:00.000-08:00

They always say if you don't like the weather in Missouri, hang around a few minutes and it will change. That saying could not be more true lately. Today the high temp got up to near 40 degrees. Tomorrow the high is supposed to be around 18. It was beautiful today, with the sun shining. On the way home, it was snowing and the wind was blowing. Too bad it can't just make up it's mind. Although I do have to say that I would like to get the coldest of the weather over before the goats start to kid. Makes things a lot more difficult when they kid when it's so cold out. Not to mention that puppies should be getting born in a couple weeks.

This is a picture of Brownie. She is one of the expectant mothers and should be the first to have puppies. She is 5/8 Anatolian Shepherd and 3/8 Great Pyrenees. The daddy is Butch, so the puppies will be 1/2 and 1/2. I am anxiously awaiting their arrival and I am very curious to see what they will look like and who they will take after. Either way, they will be extremely good guard dogs or loyal pets. They are protective by nature to whatever or whoever they bond with. I will post pictures of the other expectant mothers in later posts. If you know of anyone who is interested, let me know. Anyone interested in one of these dogs as a pet should understand they are a large breed dog.

Anyway, that's about it for now. Trying to stay warm seems to be the order of the day, or at least it will be tomorrow.

Talk to you later.

God Bless

Good Ole Butch

2008-01-20T22:33:00.000-08:00

Today was a little warmer. A regular heat wave. Must have been up around 15 degrees or so. I was going to put hay in the barn yesterday for the goats to eat but changed my mind due to the fact that when I went out to do it, they were already outside eating. It seems the cold didn't bother them as much as it did me. I did go out this afternoon and put out another big bale for them. It has been so cold lately that the fuel in my tractor was starting to gel a little. Not a good thing. I remembered that I bought that fuel almost two months ago when it was still warm out so there wasn't any additive in it to keep it from doing so. I did manage to get it going long enough to put out hay though. No way I would let the animals go without food. I always make sure they eat before I do. Figure its only fair as they are totally dependent on me.

The dogs are doing great, and the cold doesn't bother them what so ever. I am going to try and put a picture of Butch on here so you can see how big he has become. He is quite the behemoth, and he seems to get bigger with each passing day.
I will post pics of the girls on future posts. Butch is a beautiful dog with a very good disposition. He is a wonderful working dog. There is not so much as a bird that can stay in the field. He doesn't like intruders of any kind. Between him and the girls, I really have piece of mind when I go to sleep at night knowing they are on duty.

As far as the guitar goes. I am on to lesson 5 & 6 learning mostly chords and strumming patterns now. It is actually very interesting to me. Only problem I seem to be having at this point is getting all my fingers to work together. I am sure I will overcome this with time and I am not about to give up now. I have come a long way, with even more to go. But that is half the fun.

Gotta go for the evening. Talk with ya'll later. Have a great evening.

Cold

2008-01-19T08:14:00.001-08:00

And I thought it was bitter cold yesterday. Today I woke up and it was -6.5 degrees outside! I was thinking about doing a little hunting, but after seeing temp, I think I must re-evaluate. The only thing I am going to hunt today is a warm spot.

I do have to go out a little later. I am going to put out some hay in the barns so the goats don't have to go outside to eat. Not that it needs to be done, I just want them to have the option. When I looked outside this morning, the only thing stirring around was the dogs. Seems the cold doesn't phase them what so ever. They were out in the snow chasing and playing with each other like puppies. That's hard to swallow that the cold doesn't get to them.

It is definitely a winter wonder land today. I may head out to the store today just to get out for a bit, but I think I will spend the larger part of my day playing guitar and trying to learn a few more things with it. Any requests?

Winter

2008-01-17T19:21:00.000-08:00

My how twelve hours can change things. Last night when I went to bed there was a little snow left over from the last storm we had. This morning when I awoke, everything was white. About 4" of new snow on the ground and very cold. The roads on the way to work were dangerously slick as well. It normally takes me about 1 hour to get to work. This morning, it turned into a 2 hour ordeal. You almost had to call ahead and make a reservation to slide into the ditch!! Of course, once I was at work it didn't matter anymore. I could stay inside and do what I needed to do. But it wasn't to be that way today. I received a call from home informing me that the heat lamp I turn on when it gets really cold had burned out. I went ahead and left work early so I could try and get things back in working order before dark and it turned cold again. After moving the hay that covers the entryway to get under the house. I found that it was as simple as a burnt out heat bulb. However, living in the country means it is never really that simple. The local store in town 4 miles away didn't have any bulbs. I had to end up going to Walmart which is 26 miles away. Needless to say, it was dark by the time I got home. Bulb in, light on, goats fed, dogs fed and now it's my turn to eat, rest and relax. I can tell you this. I was happy to get in from the cold.

One last thing. If you want a cheap but tasty dinner. Try the boxed dinners put out by Banquet. They have many to chose from and are actually quite good. They come with everything you need in one box, right down to the meat, and for less than 4 bucks, it can't hardly be beat.

Well that's about it for now. Time to play a bit of guitar and then try and get some rest. Tomorrow should be a busy day at work with a little more snow on the way, then on to what is supposed to be a bitter cold weekend.

Goodnight.

One more thing..

2008-01-13T15:58:00.000-08:00

For those of you who don't know. I have decided to learn to play the guitar. I am pretty much teaching myself. I did purchase a course that includes DVD's and music that you can play along with. I was going to borrow a guitar from a friend of mine, but got to thinking I would rather just have my own. I bought a very nice guitar October 20th and started plunking at it. I was skeptical prior to buying it. Was afraid I would spend the money on a guitar and then after a couple weeks give it up. I am happy to report, that has not happened. I play it nearly every night and I think I am progressing well. I can now play about 8 or 9 songs!! I continue to improve and I am happy with the progress thus far. We will see where I go with it. I do enjoy it quite a bit.

Well everyone, that's about it for now. Take care and we'll visit again soon.

P.S. If you are familiar at all with guitars. I bought a Takamine G series. It is awesome.

My Best Friend

2008-01-13T10:47:00.000-08:00

I would like to take just a moment here and give a pat on the back to my Best Friend. Seems that there have been a lot of changes in her life lately. Positive ones I might add. Let's see if I can sum it up pretty quickly.

She moved across the state from Liberty to St. Peters, leaving behind all her friends for a hope and the chance to be "home" and spend time with family. I think this is a very positive change for her. She is moving forward, but will be greatly missed. She will not be forgotten about. St. Peters gain is our loss. She has now found a great new place to live, has a new computer on the way (which is something she has always wanted) and is very much excelling at her job. Great Job, keep it up!! You know I will be rooting for you.

Just a little of what you have meant to me. You have been the source of great inspiration. You have shown me the true meaning of faith. I have seen you grow, watched you mature, and in so, it has helped me grow as well. I am thankful to you for this. I will miss the times we spent together. The movies on the weekends, running across town to get to a store in the nick of time before they closed. I will never forget the Boston Baked bean incident, and I don't think you will either. Your smile still sticks with me today. I will forever cherish the memories we made together. I will miss being able to share in person with you the accomplishments and growth you are enjoying. I will miss the late night dinners, the way you light up when you discover something new, or how much passion you put into everything you do.

Bottom line: You are missed! You are loved!!

Been a while.

2008-01-13T08:11:00.000-08:00

It's been quite some time since I have made any posts. My apologies, I will try and do much better from here on out. Now for a quick update.

At one point I was up to almost 80 head of goats. That has changed. I am currently only running 39 head, 36 of which are about ready to drop kids in a few short weeks. They should start kidding around the first of Feb. That was not really the idea. The original plan was to keep Roman (the buck) away from the does long enough so they wouldn't start kidding till March 1st. He decided differently. Once his girlfriends started calling his name, there was no keeping him away. Things will be different this upcoming year, as a steel fence will keep him separated from them. I also have 4 guardian dogs. They are Great Pyrenees mixed with Anatolian Shepherd, except for Butch (the male), he is full blooded Great Pyrenees. They are beautiful animal and quite the blessing to have here on the farm. They protect the animals and only want a little food and affection in exchange. They are unbelievable animals. Two of them are going to have puppies pretty soon. Brownie should have pups mid Feb, and Corey should have pups around the first of March. So if you know anyone that is wanting a puppy that will show great affection and has a natural guarding instinct, whether for animals or for humans and their property, let me know. There will be a friend and family discount. This spring I will start rebuilding the herd, I would like to have at least 100 head of breeding age females by this time next year.

So many things have changed over the past summer it's not even funny. Nothing seems to be the same anymore. I will maybe touch on that in future posts. That is a bit of an update for the farm. I may touch on it more later. Till then, take care and God Bless.

Another day down

2007-06-14T21:17:00.001-07:00

Another day is gone. Thank goodness it is over. I got up at 4 this morning so I could go work early. My boss has a new boss and he was to arrive this morning. It didn't start off so great and I won't say that we got off on the right foot. Sucks when you try and make a good first impression and it sort of backfires in your face. Oh well, just the way it goes sometimes. I didn't get out of work till almost 7, then headed home.

I got home, changed and headed straight to the hay field. Last night the baler worked pretty well after I got it straightened out. This evening would prove to be a different story. It was late when I got started and I couldn't see real well. I had a lot of trouble. I didn't even get to finish. Now I will have to go back yet again. I was really hoping to be done tonight so maybe I could get a little rest tomorrow. Not a chance. Not only do I have to finish that tomorrow, I also have to get ready to take a few goats to the sale barn.

Old Bo is headed out. He is going to the sale barn Saturday and I have to say that I will be a little sad to see him go but that is the nature of the business. He will be missed. He has done a good job for us and we will keeping many of his offspring. He will leave some pretty big shoes to fill. One thing I liked about Bo was that he threw a lot of color. Bo had a lot of character too. Kind of wish we could keep him.

I need to head out to bed soon. It has been a long day and it is getting late.

Have a great night.

Night to all.

Todays events

2007-06-13T23:03:00.000-07:00

Today started as most others do. Get up, go through the morning routine and so on. I know work will be hectic today. My boss's new boss is coming in tomorrow so the place has to be spic and span. I left early the day before to do the baling so I had to catch up on all that work as well. I totally forgot that a vendor was coming into town from Chicago to meet with me and one of my customers. I sold an expanded metal job a few months ago to a contractor for a railroad job. So I was to talk with the vendor of the product and introduce him to the customer and go to the job site for some photos. Anyhow, he shows up and we go to the job site, we get the photos and all is well. We are about to sell this customer another 13 miles of this product. Hopefully anyhow. It should end up being a project well over the million dollar mark by the time we are done. I talked with him for quite some time and he gave me some very interesting news. Very exciting for me anyhow. We will see how it pans out. Could be a very, very good thing. I could use it right now, that's for sure.

Here's a funny one I just thought of. Yesterday while I was at a job site, my boss calls me, gets my answering machine and leaves me a message that basically says "hey, turn on your d@#m phone. When I get back to work, he starts giving me a hard time about it jokingly. I told him my phone was never off and to let me see the number he called. Funny thing was, he was calling my home phone. It was fun. Guess you had to be there.

Good news is this. Got the baler fixed today. Took it back to the field and it broke withing 50 feet of getting started. Nothing major this time though. I fixed it in the field in a matter of minutes and guess what. It worked very well after that and I actually got all 28 acres of it baled. It is now almost 11pm mind you, but it is done. Only 3 or 4 more acres to bale tomorrow and then I get to start on the hay here at home. What a great deal.

I haven't had the chance to eat this evening and it's late so it looks like I will just skip it. No big deal, I am really not hungry anyhow. Don't have much appetite lately. Too busy and too many things on my mind. I think I will sign off and go to bed.

I am not sure how much longer I will be posting. I haven't made up my mind yet. I have gotten some feedback, but I am wondering if I would do just as well sending an email to those of you interested. I plan to try and keep writing something every night as best I can. I am kind of enjoying it. Plus I may find it amusing to read at a later date. IF I ever start to get past the things that are occupying my mind, it would be nice to be able to look back and see what and how I was writing so I don't forget what caused these issues in the first place. Maybe if I had started this 6 or 8 months ago, I could have avoided a few things. Who knows, I don't. Anyway, if you have any thoughts about posts vs. email, let me know.

Last reminder. I still have a day or so left to get tickets to Worlds Of Fun/Oceans Of Fun for those who want them. I do need to know by Friday noon though.

Have a great evening and I hope you all rest well.

Good Night

Race Lost

2007-06-12T19:51:00.000-07:00

Well it looks like we lost the race against time that I was talking about last night. Not entirely our fault though. That is what happens when you deal with old worn out equipment. The baler broke down. I fought it constantly from the time I got on it. It took me almost 6 hours to make 7 bales. That really sucks. I should have been able to finish no problem, now I have to hope it doesn't rain, hope I can get the baler fixed and then get back over there and finish. Oh well, that's the way things go I suppose. Sure would be nice if they went right for a change though.

I read some one's blog today. I guess I am going to have to quit reading it. I keep reading into the things that are written. If I thought I was suppose to, it would be fun. I would do the same, but I don't believe that to be the case. Sorry folks, off on a tangent there. I know there is someone out there that understands what I am saying though.

I have to run for a bit, I may post a little more this evening but I am not sure yet. Guess you will just have to check back to find out.

Toodles for now.

2007-06-11T23:36:00.000-07:00

Well I guess it will be another late one. I started a post earlier but had a medical emergency with my daughter Brandi. I think for now it will all be fine. We will see.

So last night improved a little when I received a phone call from a buddy of mine I hadn't heard from in a while. All is well and we enjoyed a good conversation. It was definitely needed. I really miss having someone to talk with.

Today I had to take my Weld Shop Supervisor to a job site to check out some gates that we were told were made wrong. We checked 4 different gates and the gates weren't too short. The contractor had set the post 2" farther apart than they were supposed to. That was a good thing. Of course, all good things must come to an end and the last gate we checked was actually made a little short. Good thing I kept the comments I was thinking while measuring the other gates to myself. I have heard that crow doesn't taste that good.

My mind is still kind of messed up, but I thought I was making progress. I soon found out that was incorrect. No real progress at all. Oh well, guess it will all work itself out someday. Guess I shouldn't spend time worrying over something I have no control over. That sure was easy to say, just not so easy to practice.

I am still contemplating the Worlds Of Fun/Oceans Of Fun thing. I don't want to go alone because that would be pretty pathetic, so I probably won't go at all. If there is someone out there who would like to take your girlfriend, boyfriend, wife, husband, or whatever, just let me know and I will get the ticket information for you. As I said before, it would only be $30.00 for the two of you, which is a pretty good deal considering it would normally cost $60.00 each.

Tonight when I got home, I had to prepare the rake and the baler to be ready to head to the field. I am trying to take off early tomorrow and come home and get started. Dad will leave here early in the morning with the small tractor and the rake with Michael following in the golf cart. When I get home, I will finish greasing the baler and head over and start baling. Dad has to make two rounds raking to my one baling so I will probably catch him pretty quick. We will see how it all turns out and if we can get it all done before dark. The smaller tractor doesn't have lights so when it gets dark, we are done. A race against time so to speak.

Enough babbling. I still haven't eaten anything today and it looks as if I may as well skip it again. I nearly fell asleep at the wheel twice on the way home and that is not a good thing. I really need to get some rest. I hope my mind and body agree with that tonight and work with me.

Today

2007-06-10T17:35:00.000-07:00

Today has been one of those not so great days. Seems I have had many in the past week or so. I got up this morning and it was raining. I was suppose to mow hay, but didn't want to do it in the rain so I put it off for another day. We fixed the hydraulic leak on the tractor and made a couple adjustments to the baler to help make it work a little better, then I decided I wanted to relax and try to recharge my batteries.

I watched two movies today. Hannibal Rising was the first and it was not that great in my opinion. It was supposed to be how Hannibal Lector grew up and got his start. I wasn't too impressed. The other was Ghost Riders. It was from a comic and was kind of entertaining but still wasn't that great. If you like comic remakes, you will probably enjoy a little, but if Marvel isn't your thing, you will not be impressed.

I have decided to do a small project on my own. There are two bedrails in the garage that are just sitting there collecting dust. I have figured out that if I cut them into 18" sections I will have 8 sections between the two of them. I will turn 4 of them bottom up and 4 bottom down and screw them together. Then I will pick up a nice board and make a top which will be slightly below the top edge of the table. It will basically make a stand 18" square and about 2' tall. I think it will turn out very nicely. I will have to miter cut the corners so they will butt up nicely but the rest should be pretty simple. Don't ask me why I am making it, just another project. I have no idea of what to even do with it when finished.

That's it till later. Hope everyone is having a good one.

Maybe some fun......

2007-06-10T08:51:00.001-07:00

I just found out that next weekend Aaron's work gets tickets to Worlds Of Fun & Oceans Of Fun for a very reduced rate. Instead of the normal $60.00 fee it will only be about $15.00. I am thinking this might be a good break. The $15.00 gets you into both parks for the whole day. This could be pretty fun as I haven't been to Worlds Of Fun since I was like 16 or 17, and I have never been in Oceans Of Fun at all. If there is anyone out there that is interested in going, let me know and I will get the tickets. I haven't even been on a roller coaster in I can't remember how long.

Let me know.

No sleep for the weary

2007-06-09T22:12:00.001-07:00

When I sat down here earlier, I thought I was very tired. Thought I would make a quick post and get some rest. Guess what, I am no longer sleepy. This sucks!!! Oh well, haven't been getting that much rest lately anyhow. Too many things going on. Trying to get Mike to his mother's, things at work, and of course the personal things that somehow still seem to occupy my thought process. I have been trying very hard to get some things out of my thought process. You know my motto. No regrets, lessons learned, move on. For some reason, I am having a real problem living that motto this time. First time that has ever happened. You have no idea how much time you have to think when you are sitting on a tractor all day with no one else around. Solitude in it's finest form. I used to have someone I could talk to in times like these but they have decided to remove themselves from my life. I don't care to discuss why, it's their choice and I will accept it and live with it. I really didn't do so well with it in the beginning but after much thought, especially in the past day or so, I have decided to let go as best I can. I don't know where life's path will take me next, but I suppose we will see. Hey John, that still doesn't make Oklahoma an option, although at this point it is a thought. Just don't really see it happening.

A quick thought. For those of you who know my father, you know he is deathly afraid of snakes. He stopped by the field I was mowing in last evening and I asked him to move a bit of debris next to a brush pile. He moved two pieces and ran into 3 snakes. Needless to say, he was done. He told me to just mow around it or move it myself. I really thought he was going to have to head home to change after the last snake came running out, but he made it out ok.

PS..The stars were beautiful last night. Not a cloud in the sky, there were too many stars to count.

Have to try and get some rest now.

Goodnight all.

New Beginnings

2007-06-09T22:01:00.001-07:00

As most of you know by now, there have been a lot of changes in my life lately. I don't care to dwell on that right now though. The past couple days have been very busy. Thank goodness, I really needed something that would at least attempt to keep my mind busy. Hasn't really worked the way I thought it would though. Here is something I thought of today that I found interesting. I don't particularly care for leftovers and I very seldom will take the time to prepare food early just to take for my lunch. I have spent the biggest share of the past two days cutting hay. Essentially preparing the meals of most of my animals for the entire winter. I know it's not the same, I just found it ironic.

Well, it's the bewitching hour and I have guess what, more hay to mow tomorrow. Guess I had better be hitting the hay. Pun intended.

Goodnight all.

Here goes

2007-06-09T21:40:00.000-07:00

I have decided to write this blog for various reasons. I have been reading other people's blogs for over a year now and some of them are quite interesting. I have several friends out of state that in the past couple weeks I have found out to have these as well. I have a way to keep up with what they have going on in their lives, but not vice versa. So I am going to give this a try. It will also provide me with a log so to speak so I can look back at what is and has been going on. Anyway, here goes..........