These are a Few of my Favorite Things...

A "Totes Ma Goats" bag and a soap chicken, complete with soap eggs:  What's not to love?  

Ohio Trip

Here are some photos of our trip to Ohio.  We greatly enjoyed the day we spent at the Cincinnati Museum.  The building is the old Union Terminal train station and it's absolutely breath-taking!  When you enter the museum you are in a huge rotunda and can only imagine what that was like years ago as a bustling train station.  

Turkey Day by the Numbers

Thanksgiving has now come and gone and most of us are recovering from our tryptophan hangovers. Obviously, the turkeys are no longer gobbling in the pasture.  Good thing, too...there is now close to a foot of snow out there.  Anyway, the turkeys very much exceeded our expectations with their amazing growth.  The hens dressed out at 22, 24, 24, and 27 pounds.  In case you need a reference for how heavy that is, my car alarmed at me as I was delivering them because they were sitting in the passenger seat and were not buckled in.  

We prepared the other half of Big Ken for our dinner.  That was another 18 pounds of amazing pastured turkey.  Brining is a winner.

Pow-wow in the Pasture

Cat Nip

Eric brought Mr. Harvey home some cat nip plants.  Shortly thereafter, Harvey discovered them...yum!

Gotta love November snow

Woke up today to a snowy mix.  The goats and chickens remained inside, even Harvey refused to venture out.  Winter is coming, ready or not!

Another Brick in the Wall...or stone

Last Monday began the re-build of our stone wall and less than a week later, Shambo Stone Masonry has rebuilt the entire wall!  They even brought in a huge excavator to remove the giant maple stump.  

Before and After photos.

So here is the finished wall.  Another project checked off the "to-do" list.

Why I love Vermont...

Set Scene:  8:45am on a Saturday morning.  The sun is shining, the air is crisp and smoke is billowing out of the chimney from the wood stove.  

The door bell rings. 

One of our neighbors is there with his huge smile, holding a bag of frozen moose meat for us.  I love this place:)

We're losing birds left and right!

Farm-life continues and this weeks theme seems to be poultry.  

Over the weekend we processed the last male turkey.  We think he weighed in between 35-40 pounds!  He was named Big Ken by our guests.  We then cut him in half with a hacksaw so we could fit him into the oven.  I only hope the females are a bit smaller.

This morning was sad as we found one of the Barred Rocks dead in the chicken coop.  It's unclear if she flew into something or simply died of other causes.  We're now down to 13 chickens, which seems like a rather unlucky number.

Thirsty Kitty

Mr. Harvey is in the fun habit of snagging a free drink whenever he can.  He will cry for a drink out of any sink in the house.  I think Harvey believes that by crying and rubbing the faucet that he can control the water!

Golden Apple Cider

Why golden cider you ask?  Because any cider that costs $17.00/gallon must have some gold in it right??

This weekend we continued on the tradition of pressing apple cider with my great, great grandmother's cider press.  Due to the late spring frost, however, we had no apples on our trees!  One cannot possibly make cider without apples, so we did the logical thing and went and picked them.  Aunt Sharon and Eric climbed the apple trees (all the lower apples were already picked) while I caught apples flying left and right (I must say I am a rather talented apple catcher).  I was only pelted a few times when multiple apples came from two different directions at the same time!  We filled up 4 bags of apples weighing in at close to 110 pounds!

We then came home, cut the apples, pulverized them in Eric's new apple grinder, then pressed the apples into cider.  The end product was 7 1/2 gallons of delicious home-made apple cider, for approximately $17.00/gallon plus labor.

We're hoping for free apples from our trees next year.

Maaaaahhh!

Who doesn't love a good goat video:)

"I'm so ticked off I'm molting..."

Contrary to the famous words of Iago from Aladdin, birds do not molt out of anger.  We continue to learn new things every day about farm-life.  Molting appears to be a normal part of the chicken's cycle.  The other day we noticed a lot of white feathers in the chicken fence, which from experience causes us to panic and do a head count. All 14 girls were accounted for, but the one Colombian looked rather rough.  She looked as though someone had been plucking her bum.  After research, it appears that around 1 year old, all chickens molt.  This process helps to create a fresh coat of feathers and during this time they also stop laying eggs while their reproductive tract rejuvenates.  (This explains to lack of egg laying lately).  During molting, chickens need extra protein to help with these processes, so each morning the girls have been getting a cup of sunflower seeds, much to their delight.  Nothing makes one smile more than a half-naked chicken.  Here are some humorous photos.  

Green eggs and turkey.

This Sunday marked a very exciting milestone:  Our first green egg!!!!

We also said goodbye to our dominant Tom on Sunday as well.  He was HUGE and there was no way he was going to make it until Thanksgiving and still fit into an oven.  We may have to process the other male prior to Thanksgiving as well.  Who knew that turkeys grew so fast!

Teresa the entrepreneur

Over the weekend marked the grand opening of Teresa's pumpkin stand.  Sales for the weekend totaled $39.00 and included the sale of 6 large pumpkins and 31 gourds!!  Teresa is now VERY excited for next fall and already has plans to expand the pumpkin patch.

You say potato, I say potahto...

Over Labor Day weekend, we had help from the lovely Burdine Clan digging out our red potatoes.  The final harvest weighed in at 105 pounds total!  This past Saturday, we dug the remaining bed of potatoes (which consisted of 4 different types of white potatoes).  While we didn't weigh the crop, we are positive we won't run out of potatoes until 2052!!!  If you come to visit, be prepared to eat a lot of potato dishes (breakfast potatoes, baked potatoes, mashed potatoes, potato soup...etc.)

And in the spirit of Adleigh: 

"Knock, knock"  

Who's there?

"Potato"

Potato who?

"Aren't you glad I didn't say potato?"

Three-month-old giants.

Behold, the "baby" turkeys.

Two hens a wandering...

Teresa arrived home today to find not only 1 chicken out of the fence, but TWO!  

Chicken #1:  

As in daily tradition, the buff orpington is out munching on grass when Teresa arrives home.  Once Teresa exits her car, the hen runs over from wherever she is in the yard, clucking with delight.  The routine continues as she follows Teresa back into the barn in usual fashion, and when the coop door is opened, she hops right back inside.  Now, onto chicken number two.  

Chicken #2:

The red araucana was also out today munching on grass and bugs, however, she is not trained in the proper ways of returning to the coop.  So for 10 minutes, Teresa chased her around the yard, after which time the chicken panicked and tried to run through the fence (twice), before flying back over the top of it.  If the madness continues, someone will get her wings clipped!

Big zucchini, little egg

 Apparently we've been grossly neglecting the garden.  Saturday morning I went out to check on things and found this 14" monster zucchini!  I think even Piper is unsure of what to make of the large vegetable.

This morning I was crazy excited (as chicken owners can get) when I went into the coop and saw one of our chicks in the laying box.  I slowly backed out as to not disturb her and below is the result!  Behold, the first pullet egg of the season!!!  Well done, we will henceforth call you a hen.

$24.95 = magic

Teresa does not like to be touched while she's sleeping, but for some reason, Harvey seems to LOVE sleeping right next to Teresa only.  Last week while buying collars for the goats, Teresa bought a cat bed, hoping to deter Harvey from continuing to sleep against her.  Behold the magic of a cat bed....

I've married a five-year-old!

When you ask your husband to dish out dinner, does anyone else have their dinner plates end up like this?!?!

Sunny Plants

The sunflowers have finally started to open (and thank goodness since they're for Kim's wedding).  Less than two weeks to go and about 10 of the 60 sunflowers have bloomed....keep it up sunny plants!

And what would a post be without an adorable picture of the kids.

The Money Shot

Teresa was stalking the hummingbirds, trying to get a good picture and "BAM"...money shot!!!

Eric vs. Winslow

Today we finally got the camera out and took some pictures of the goats.  They're 3 months old now and still seem rather small.  Here are some of the pictures and a nice video of Eric and Winslow having a duel!

Baby Loons and Farm Updates

We had a relaxing day Saturday at a lake in Island Pond, VT.  Eric read on the beach while Teresa napped.  At one point we noticed loons nearby, however there was a special treat....two babies!  It was so much fun watching the loons dive under the water and come back up with small fish.  They would then swim over to the babies with fish in mouth and feed them.  A few times the babies stuck their heads into the water, as if testing this whole fishing idea out.  It was such a nice afternoon.

We have diagnosed Abby with goat polio (which thankfully, unlike human polio, can be cured).  A few shots of vitamin B and she seems back to her normal self.  

It appears Eric was correct as Teresa must now admit George does not look anything like a rooster.  He shall hence-forth be called "Georgette". 

Our injured turkey is doing so well.  Her wing seems back to normal and she is now limping along using both legs!  The first time we say her walking it almost made Teresa cry...what a fighter!

In the Long Run

After the umpteenth thunderstorm induced communication interrupting power outage, we are back in business.

The big news is that the VT100 is in the bag.  Teresa and I finished our 100K on Saturday into Sunday in a bit over 17 hours.  Our time out on the roads and trails of central Vermont left plenty of time to talk.  One of the things that I was telling Teresa was how, on the starting line of my first marathon in Philadelphia, I thought to myself that I was, "in for a long run."  I now stand corrected...100K is a long run.  After seeing the 100 milers and hearing about those who were out for almost 30 hours, that is a really long run.  We did pretty darn well for ourselves, though.  Considering a relative lack of training, I think that we can be satisfied that we achieved our goal of finishing.  Teresa can be especially proud with a solid ultra marathon debut.  We were both thankful for absolutely perfect conditions and a beautiful course.  It continues to amaze me that this type of an event occurs almost quite literally in our backyard.  I can't say enough about how well organized the event was and we are now looking forward to joining the great volunteers of the VT100 for many years to come.

A post on the blog would not be complete if we didn't mention some type of animal.  The farm report is as follows:  chickens are laying eggs, turkeys are still stinking the place up.  The injured turkey is mounting a strong recovery and is no longer separated from the others.  The goats are back to their normal selves after a rocky start to the week.  We noticed that Abby was acting a bit dazed and was having coordination issues on Monday evening.  I dove into my many goat books to make a diagnosis.  The excellent  book on goat veterinary medicine from our friends Bob and Missy via my parents had me convinced of goat polio.  Polio in goats is a potentially deadly but reversible neurologic disorder caused by a thiamine deficiency.  Some ferns in the "back 40" were the likely culprit.  Our vet was able to make a visit on Tuesday and we have been treating her for a variety of issues until a more definitive diagnosis can be made.  Thankfully, she was looking back to her normal self on Wednesday morning and she continues to do well.

There is a "surprise" weekend getaway in the works to which I am blinded.  Updates to follow.

I've created a monster!

Last week when Eric was away, I invited the dogs to sleep in bed with me.  While this is against house rules, I figured, what was one night going to hurt?  There was a huge thunderstorm and the girls were shaking with fear.  Fast forward to last night...

I awake at 12:15am and stir a little.  (cue sounds) Thump, thump, thump.  I open my eyes and see Izzy laying on the bed staring at me wagging her tail.  Sadly there was no thunderstorm.  I've created a monster!!

Vermont 100

 Less than a week now until we run the Vermont 100.  Our bib numbers are #405 (Eric) and #406 (Teresa).  For anyone interested, you can follow us throughout the race on Saturday (and into Sunday as well) at this website:  http://www.barttiming.com/summer/results14/vt100-splits-14.htm

Turka-durka-durka

Some evenings this place feels like a circus.  Take last night for example.  After a long week of work, Eric gets out late from work, only to arrive home and once again have to fix the broken tractor and take care of the turkeys.  One would think that fixing the tractor would be the more difficult task, but we beg to differ.  Lets start at the beginning:

Wednesday Evening

On Wednesday evening while moving the turkey tractor, Eric slipped on the wet grass when the handle broke loose.  The tractor continued forward, pinning one of the girls underneath.  She had an obvious broken wing and her leg was dislocated, as it hung at a strange angle.  We debated putting her down, but the thought of processing a turkey at 9pm wasn't appealing (and besides, how much meat could be on a little bird?).  The decision was made to wait until Thursday to see how she was doing.  

Thursday Morning

Thursday morning Teresa found her in the same spot, eyes closed and Teresa was convinced she was dead until she touched her and the turkey hopped away on one foot.  Her little head was all red from the other turkey's biting at her.  At first this seemed cruel, but as you observed longer, they only did this until she would open her eyes and then they would snuggle in next to her.  Right before leaving for work Teresa checked in on her again and she was sleeping by the food bowl!  She would wake-up, eat and then immediately close her eyes again.  This was a good sign...dying animals usually don't eat.  Right before leaving for work, Teresa made a little pen for her inside the tractor to keep the other turkeys from picking on her during the day.

Thursday Evening 

All day long Teresa couldn't wait to get home to check on the bird.   You know your crazy when you start saying prayers for a turkey.  Upon arriving home things appeared the same.  Occasional eye opening, and then back out cold.  Right before bed, she was caught (excuse the pun) gobbling down food!  She emptied half her food dispenser; a good sign.

Friday Morning

During the morning goat walk, Teresa peeked in on the turkey and she was sitting in place, but this time her head was up and she was alert and looking around!

Friday Evening

It was once again time to move the turkey tractor.  It's quite the balancing act trying to walk inside a 3 foot tall pen, while not touching the ground (which is covered in turkey poo).  At one point, we had 6 turkey's, two people and three goats inside the turkey tractor...quite the circus act.   

We wonder how full-time farmers survive and figure sometimes it's better to just laugh at yourself. 

Oh cruel world!!!

Weaning has officially begun on Silver Hill Farm as murderous screams of angry kids bellow out of the barn....oh cruel world!!!!

Calm After the Storm

Back with power after last night's severe thunderstorms.  Very heavy rain and high winds left us without electricity for approximately twelve hours.  The result was an early bedtime and lazy Fourth of July morning.  Luckily, everything is intact and we are back in action but still a bit lazy.  We had a nice lunch with the goats out in the pasture.  They enjoyed their grass and clover while we dined on "Vermonter" sandwiches.

Our posts have been quite sparse lately due to our busy schedules and travels.  Many of our projects have been crossed off of lists.  The animals are tucked in for the most part.  The goats are obviously doing well and are rapidly closing on being weaned from their bottles.  There is semi-harmony in the chicken coop and we are anxiously awaiting some blue or green eggs.  Lastly, the turkeys continue to impress with their growth rate and smelliness.  Our garden appears to have gained a bit of momentum with the recent rain and warm temperatures.  We  have been eating fresh cut salads and made garlic scape pesto the other evening.  We are also rapidly approaching the VT 100K...send good vibes our way.  In all, it has been a beautiful summer so far.  We hope to post to you soon.

Why we love our farm...

There's nothing like standing outside in the rain and lightening at 1:30am, putting a tarp over the turkeys so your future Thanksgiving meal doesn't drown.  

Goats, goats, goats!

This past weekend was very productive.  The garden is officially planted...woohoo!  

We're starting to get into a lovely routine here on the farm.  In the evenings after the goats have their bottles, we all go for a nice walk around the pasture.  There's an apple tree in the far corner that we stop at every night (goats LOVE to eat apple leaves).  We take turns holding the tree branches down so the goats can snack.  In order to better reach the leaves, they usually try to stand on each other, Piper or us.  This video is them approaching the tree and waiting for it to magically lower to their level:)  

 Little Lola posing for the camera.

Teresa snuggling with Winslow and Abby (or them trying to eat her).

This place is really going to the birds

Well, I think it has officially happened...Silver Hill Farm has gone to the birds.  As previously reported, the new layers have "graduated" to the coop with the older girls.  After the establishment of a new "pecking order" and some creative maneuvering by Teresa to keep the peace, it appears that all is reasonably harmonious again.  George is pictured below.

With the six chicks out of the house and in the barn, there has been a distinct lack of chirping in the mud room.  As luck would have it, our turkeys landed a few days early on Wednesday.  The new birds seem to be settling into the water trough brooder quite well.  They seem to be living up to their reputation as being...not having such good self preservation instincts.  The turkeys eagerly run straight up to one's hand when in the brooder as compared to the chickens who scatter.  Apparently, a baby turkey's prime activity is figuring out creative ways to kill itself.  We hope to prevent our six from succeeding.

Not to be outdone, our layers appear to be taking field trips to the hay bales to make a cozy place for egg laying.

We continue to have regular hummingbird visits in the mornings and evenings and have confirmed that we have a pair of Ruby Throated Hummingbirds.  Eric even spotted them together at the feeder.  The female is peeking out below.

Teresa continues to hone her amateur wildlife photography skills and shot this bluebird while stalking hummingbirds.

Our little goat friends are doing well but had a rough morning at the veterinarian.  They were disbudded/neutered as appropriate and received CD/T shots.  Needless to say, things are quiet in the pen right now as they all recover.

Why did the bear cross the road?

A couple nights ago we were heading to trivia night at the Skunk Hollow Tavern.  At the top of our hill Eric suddenly shouted, "BEAR"!  This was no surprise to Teresa that while driving Eric managed to spot an animal in the woods (he has a knack for that).  Sure enough, a big black bear was running along the ridge, parallel to the car.  Eric stopped the car as the bear made it's way down a steep bank and it ran right across the road in front of the car.  Eric said it was one of the largest black bears he's seen; Teresa was just shocked to see a bear so close for the first time.  So, why did the bear cross the road?  We have no idea, but it was quite the awesome site to see.

Darling little Lola

Yesterday evening Teresa was planting pansies into the old bourbon barrel in the yard.  Little Lola was outside hanging out with her.  Lola approached the flowers and bent down to sniff the largest of the white flowers.  CHOMP!  Gone!  Teresa came into the house laughing hysterically, holding little Lola as she continued to chew and swallow the flower.  I guess we should just be happy they're starting to eat things other than milk.  Lesson learned, never plant flowers with your goats around.

Winslow is doing really well eating dandelion leaves from the yard as well.  This is a skill we hope he continues to perfect!

The baby chicks went outside with the big girls yesterday as well.  We soon discovered the baby chicks were scooting right through the electric fencing....not very protective if they're on the outside!  When we shut all the birds in the coop together, some of the chickens were picking on the chicks.  The big girls were done laying for the day, so we put them outside and locked the baby chicks in the coop.  At dusk we opened the door to the coop and wouldn't you know, the big chickens climbed onto their perch to roost and went to bed!  This AM things seemed a little more harmonious, but the chickens were blocking the chicks from getting to their food.  Teresa put the big girls outside with a block of wood in front of the door.  Hopefully this will keep the chicks inside, but  allow the chickens to hop over it (to come and go as they need to lay their eggs).  We will see if we've outsmarted our feathered friends.

Our little helper

Piper has resorted to licking the goats as we bottle feed them.  She's quite the motherly dog!

Amateur wildlife photographer

Teresa has decided to quit her day job and sit in front of the hummingbird feeder all day to capture the tiny bird when it comes to eat.  Here are a few of yesterday's photos! 

And their names are....

The goat train is as follows (left to right):  Winslow, Abigail (Abby), and Lola 

The goats are continuing to eat us out of house and home (I mean settle in well)!  Here's a cute video of them enjoying time outside in the sunshine.  

Last night Eric hung the hummingbird feeder after a hummingbird was spotted in the yard.  Since then we've seen a hummingbird drinking 3 times from the feeder!  

The kids have arrived.

The babies came home today from Trevin Farms.  It was a very quiet car ride, surprisingly!  We are currently naming the girls, but they are just perfect (see below).  They love snuggling with each other and seem to have settled in very quickly.  Mr. Harvey jumped in with the goats to give them a warm welcome.  I'm pretty sure he scared them, but Winslow got Harvey back outside when he very loudly "Maaahhh"ed at him, causing Harvey to jump and run!  Stay posted for many more pictures and videos to come.