Heat Wave

We have been hit with a heat wave here, and we are loving it! Thunderstorms at night, 80+ during the day... if this is just the peek at summer, I am going to buy myself a kiddie pool and join the critters. Everyone has been loving their kiddie pools that hubby brought home one day. The pool in the goat/duck pen empties real quick. Lately, Jumpy has taken to curling up in the empty pool and sleeping. Everyone gets extra water and shade to help keep cool.

Yesterday I painted Hubby's shed. When we bought this house, there were 4 outbuildings. One we tore down right away as it was super un-safe. The other three were the barn, the random shed, and the playhouse. The playhouse became the chicken coop. The barn became the barn. After this weekend it now holds pullets too. And the rabbit cages to get them out of the sun and heat. The random shed became Hubby's shed/workshop. All 4 buildings were different colors and looked "cluttered". We painted the chicken coop red and white. Finally the shed joined the ranks and is now red. It looks a million times better! Once we fix up the barn, we will paint it to match. I dont want to paint it, and then redo the siding and waste all the paint. The red buildings blend in so much better now. We still need to trim the shed in white, but its looking better already.

The goats are enjoying the weather too. Hugs is able to be out in the open (he has access to shelter/shade at all times) and is so fun to watch. He is just starting to jump sideways. Its as if he is on a pogo stick. Kisses is a doting mother. I never tire of watching him nurse. Its amazing! All my research says to let the kids have complete access to the milk for the first two weeks. Then its ok to milk mama for human use. I ordered milking supplies today, and will be watching the mailbox non stop. Look forward to milking supply pictures! We have not decided what to do with Hugs. We could keep him intact but he would require a whole different pen, with super strong fencing so he couldnt get in with the ladies. We could neuter him, but then what would we do with him? If we neuter him, we will have to take Jumpy and Jackie to a stud next year. If we keep him, we could breed him to them. I have read mixed reviews about breeding a buck to his own mom and am still unsure. At least we know for sure he could be Jumpy and Jackie's baby daddy.

Speaking of babies, Batman, one of our rabbits (given to us by my friend Nicole) is starting to nest. She should give birth within the next couple days. This is the first time she will have a litter here at the farm. Nicole said she had a litter before, but they all died. Hopefully its because it was her first litter and this time go around she will be a great mama.

The chickens are enjoying their free ranging days, not that its not rainy, snowy, sleety, or muddy. I attempted to make bean soup in the crock pot and it was a huge fail. At least the chickens enjoyed it...