Last Thursday was a highly unusual day. The kids all had a sleepover at Deedee and Papa's house, and Mommy had an extra shift at work, so Daddy had a morning and part of an afternoon to work on the farm. However, first things first. On a weekday with no other responsibilities, it is always… Continue reading Project Day
Category: Our Pigs
Iris
Meet the newest addition to the farm! The last two weeks have been more than usually busy. Daddy was away for National Guard, Mommy was busy trying to hold down the work schedule, get school schedules planned (we start back up Mid August) as well as planning for tutoring at Classical Conversations, and prepping for… Continue reading Iris
Goodbye, Piggies!
Well, it's that time. A local slaughter company came out and killed and dressed the pigs for us, and transported them to the butcher. Yes, it is more expensive, and it is a job that Adam and I know how to do ourselves, but don't have the time or the infrastructure to kill, field dress,… Continue reading Goodbye, Piggies!
It never goes smoothly…
Last Saturday, after the bull calves casually walked through our (somewhat) electrified netting for no apparent reason, Mommy and Daddy went on a date. I record that here because we made a resolution at the beginning of the year that we were going to do one date per month, and so far so good! Of… Continue reading It never goes smoothly…
Good Lard!
When we had the pigs butchered last fall we made sure to ask the butchers to save us the lard. Why? Because that's the homesteading thing to do. Apparently you can cook with it, bake with it, make soap and candles with it, and all kinds of other things. We have only just begun researching… Continue reading Good Lard!
Friendly Piggies!
This is one of the things we like about the Meishan pigs. They are super friendly. They can be a bit skittish, and don't like to stand still unless they are eating, and they get pretty nosey when they think you are bringing food, but they don't bite or nip, and they don't get aggressive.… Continue reading Friendly Piggies!
Chores
When I was a kid, I hated doing farm chores. They were the same every day, and they took time away from the things I really wanted to be doing, a.k.a., reading books and daydreaming. Now, I love the days when I get to do chores. The simple repetition, the ritual of caring for the… Continue reading Chores
Sunday Rest
Winnies favorite animals? The piggies! We love how friendly and gentle these pigs are with our littlest farmer.
Getting Colder
It has been getting cold for the last few days, well below freezing in the morning, and up into the upper 40's/low 50's during the day. The farm has been very foggy in the mornings and evenings. It is perched on a valley overlooking a river (not that you can see the river from the… Continue reading Getting Colder
A Quiet Sunday
We do not allow ourselves leisure so that we will be able to work better. We work so that we will be able to be at leisure. (Paraphrase of Josef Pieper, "Leisure, the basis of culture.") We got home from Mass and told the girls to change out of their church clothes into their relaxing… Continue reading A Quiet Sunday