So, as some of you that know us in real life, know that we just got back from Texas recently for our daughter’s wedding. For those of you that don’t know – we have been incommunicado due to our daughter’s wedding :)
I apologize for staying away, and it certainly wasn’t intentional – but BOY HAVE WE BEEN BUSY! In the past month, we have had a lot going on here at the homestead and in our lives as well.
The Homestead
Goats – we sold them ALL.
WAIT – it’s okay, I have enough milk stored and frozen to get all the wonderful products you want. This should carry us through the next year. We plan to start with a fresh herd of goats in the spring. Why did we sell them? Simple – We had only started with a few. All three nannies were bred, and two of them were sisters. Once we had the babies, we realized we wouldn’t be able to bred much more. We sold the buck (because of his attitude and my ever expanding display of bruises), and of the four babies, only one was a female. So, for the most part – they are all related (with one exception).
We are planning on a new herd, each will be purchased from different breeders, and we will be getting more than we had before. Likely, we will not get a buck. Instead, we are considering having the nannies breed by a “rental” buck. Wow, that just doesn’t sound legal – LOL.
Rabbits – we lost all the babies.
As mentioned in my previous blog, we lost them all. It seems the stressor was the heat and we are heart broken. We still have the two doe and the two bucks, but we will not be breeding them again. We will be getting a new line of Silver Fox rabbits. We are looking into reputable breeders and will update you all when we get to that point.
Garden – big & small.
We didn’t plant as much as we usually do, but we did plant a TON of loofah plants. These seem to be going strong and I can’t wait to see how many we get this year. Most of you have asked for them, so they will be up for sell before the holidays.
We also tried our hand at a few new varieties of tomatoes, and they seem to be doing very well also.
Heirloom seeds – so last year we purchased some “open pollen” tomato seeds of a few different types. We followed the directions, and low-and-behold, they took! Jeff did a fantastic job and saving, soaking, drying, and growing these seeds. We are elated – we will officially have heirloom seeds. For those of you that want to know more about this, I will make that the next blog.
Home – so much to do!
Now that the wedding has passed, I need something new to focus on. I have designated this to be the perpetual remodel of our current house. It needs to get done, so… I’m going to “eat my frog and just get it done (for those of you that don't know this phrase, it was part of an older blog that I apparently will need to re-write since it is missing from my files.)
Business – New & Exciting things coming!
I have decided it’s time to include some much requested items to our Bath & Body line. Shortly, you will see the addition of Bath Bombs, Shower Steamers, Lotion Bars, Lotion, Body Spray.
For our other products, we are going to start selling CANDLES! Also, Wax Melts, Soap Dishes, and anything else Jeff decides to create. The best part is that we aren’t doing this alone – our kids have decided to help on some of these. I can’t wait to get these items posted for all of you J
The wedding – so perfect.
We are extremely happy parents, and now we get to add a wonderful man to our family. We couldn’t be more proud of the fantastic and wonderful lady our Vanessa has turned into, and the amazing man that Hayden is. I know he will take very good care of her… and I know that she will also take very good care of him. However, now that he has married into our craziness – he also has to put up with us! Hopefully we won’t make it too crazy for him. I’m sad that they live so far away, but with all the help we may need once we get the new animals and property, I’m pretty sure they are happy I can’t pull them out of bed at 5 AM to help milk goats. :)
Now that I have caught you all up on our last bit of life, stress, joy, and crazy – we will try to keep our postings on a more regular schedule. Thank you all for your continued support!
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