A Cold, Blustery Day at the Farm

As many of you know, Tuesday is Brandon's day to go to the farm. Today it was cold and windy. With the windchill factor, it was -7 C or approximately 19 degrees Fahrenheit. Now that's not really cold for this area, but it was the brisk wind that chilled us to the bone. I asked Brandon if he'd rather stay home (hint) but he said no, he'd like to go. So off we went.

As we were driving toward the outskirts of town, it began to snow - a fine and heavy snow. We couldn't see a city block in front of us. Again I asked Brandon if he'd like to change his mind. (another hint) But he said, no, he wanted to go. So we continued on.

The snow didn't last long and when it was coming down I didn't figure it would. However, I was trying to convince him that we should stay warm and cozy. Grandma doesn't like the cold nor the heat, but alas, he wanted to see the animals. By the time we arrived at the farm, the snow had stopped. We buttoned up our jackets and headed to the barn.

The wind was so strong that it blew the barn door shut behind us with a bang! We headed into the barn and there were all of the goats in new pens that had been built since Jordan and I were out there last Thursday. One pen held the baby goats and sheep. In the other were all of the adult goats butting and pushing each other because they were in such close quarters.

The goat in the background facing the camera is Gertrude. She had three babies in April. One was stillborn, one had broken legs and Baby Pueblo was very small. Pueblo is the only one that survived. He is between Gertrude and the wall of the stall, but you can't see him. I will try to get a picture of Pueblo when Jordan and I go on Thursday. He follows Brandon around and when he was a baby, Brandon would sit on a stool and Pueblo would climb into his lap. Brandon loves Pueblo. Unfortunately Pueblo cannot be bred to these goats as they are all related. So Pueblo will be leaving the farm and be replaced by another Billy.

Matthew is the lamb that was born about two months ago. When he was with his mother, I couldn't get a photo of him because the stall was too dark. However, he was separated from Rosie (his mother) today and he was protesting fiercely. He was crying and baaing the entire time we were there, except for when Brandon coaxed him to eat a little hay. Here is a photo of Matthew:

There were 300 baby chicks brought to the farm about a month ago. You won't believe how they have grown.

There are only 202 left. Unfortunately the chicks got chilled when they first came and 98 of them died. When they are full grown, all but 50 will be sent to slaughter and the remaining 50 will be left to roam free in the spring with the roosters.



Chickens help to keep the amount of insects under control and they are also good for the soup pot and to keep fresh eggs on the table. In this instance, once the eggs are fertilized, they will be put in an incubator and then more baby chicks will be born. The people at the farm are hoping to have a flock of about 50 chickens and three roosters on a continuing basis.

The barn wasn't too cold because the animals' body heat help to keep it warm. Brandon had a great conversation with James, the hired man, about all that is being planned for the farm. He holds a great interest in farm life, probably because I've told him about living on the farm when I was a child. He does love the animals and he's come a long way since he began this animal therapy in March. It's good for his self esteem and when he helps feed and water the animals, it makes him feel good about himself. He knows the names of every animal on that farm. Before we knew it, an hour and a half had passed.

We left the farm and stopped at Tim Horton's (coffee franchise.) I got Brandon a hot chocolate and I enjoyed a hot cup of tea. We were chilly, but had enjoyed our time together.

I hope you enjoyed your tour of the farm. I will try to get more photos on Thursday when Jordan and I visit.

Carolyn at Talk to Grams has so kindly asked me to accept not one, but two awards from her. Grams is one of my most special blogging buddies. Carolyn, thank you so much. I'm truly honored and cherish your friendship.

Thanks again, Carolyn.

Now, in the spirit of giving, I would like to give these awards to any of my blogging buddies that would like to have them. You can take one or both. Enjoy!

Note: Blogger was giving me a bit of a hard time tonight, so please excuse the mess of this post. I'm not sure why some paragraphs are double spaced and some single. *sigh* However, I must get back to my writing.