The chicks came today. I was going to order 25, but since I was ordering 2 different breeds, I decided to make it 30—I guess I got a little OCD, and just couldn’t decide which breed I would get one more of! Pesky odd numbers. So anyway, the hatchery called to tell us they had shipped the chicks, and said they had some extra in the hatch, so they threw in an extra 5 of each breed. So now, instead of 25-ish, we’ve got 40, which feels a little more like 50-ish!

The last one I posted about, Butcher Shop at Sugar Mountain Farm has met and surpassed its goal, and has great plans for what to do with the extra.

My latest, and one closer to home is Paper Crane Farm needs a Market Van. These folks are right down the road, though I haven’t met them yet. They have a gorgeous organic CSA farm in Big Laurel—the pictures are beautiful! There are six days to go to meet their goal, and they’re at 85% funding.

Lamb #1—Santana’s Lamb:

And Lamb #2—Brittany’s lamb:

We sold the two Dexter cross calves—Hester from last year, and Maeby’s new calf. We just don’t like the Dexters, and there’s always the issue of breeding when you have a breed that’s smaller than any of the other breeds in your area. We would have to find Dexters to breed to, or Dexter crosses, and they’re not very common here.

I’ve also sold the Khaki Campbells. They are just too much of a pain to deal with; a pond or stream would help, but it also turns out I don’t really digest duck eggs all that well. Chickens and chicken eggs are more my thing. We’re keeping our little flock of Anconas and one Muscovy—they’re so much calmer than the Khakis, and then we’ll have a few duck eggs for DH.

I’m spending a lot of days in the kitchen making cheese right now. The girls are bringing in 6-7 gallons of milk a day, and we’re about to have a goat and a few sheep in milk. The relentless tide has begun! ED and I (and DH and Bernard to a lesser degree) are revisiting the idea of a small licensed cheesemaking facility—a micro-creamery. I’ll keep you all posted on those plans! Meanwhile, I’m pleasantly lost in the world of acid titration, butterfat, and flocculation.

Lambing has begun. This little guy looks a lot like his older brother, don’t you think?

Joon had six puppies last night—five males and one female. They look just like a bunch of little Border Collies! Well, the larvae of Border Collies.