Rampant April Fool's Jokes

I usually fall for every April Fool's joke I see on April 1st of each year.
This year I caught myself a whole bunch of times before being completely gullible, so I was feeling proud of my new found disbelief.
Today I wasn't so astute.
I got right up to Sabrina the hen before I realized she was just sun-bathing, not actually deceased. You can't see in the picture, but she's on a hill in a precarious looking posture. Ick.
Then I found Fuzzy Wuzzy Ewok out in the field, apparently dead from the sudden heat wave. I was listening to his chest for a heart beat before he woke up. He's perfectly fine, just a little tired!
Probably adding to my sensitivity about death in animals today is the fact that old Mr. B was having a hard time with the heat yesterday. A very hard time. The whole reason I went outside was to make sure he was alive and okay because he wasn't where I could see him with the herd.
He was on the other side of the hill and feeling just fine.
Well played, farm animals!

Romper Room

Danny commented this morning, "The teenagers are hanging out at our clothesline."
We put the two little Dexters in the yard last night to keep the fuzzy-wuzzy baby company. This morning, the teenaged Jerseys were curious about the new kid and spent considerable time chatting over the fence.

The Dexter bull worried me by pushing the baby around lightly, but Dan soon set me straight on that issue: baby bull had been shoving the Dexter for all he was worth in the driveway earlier!

I will give a tutorial on the identity of our young cattle: in the second picture down, Clara and Jersey Bull are in the back. After this gorgeous young bull breeds all the ladies, we'll put him in the freezer.
The Dexters are closer. Heifer is next, followed by Dexter Bull ( I admit we weren't ambitious with naming this year.)

And in the foreground is the new addition, Mr. Fuzzy Wuzzy Ewok, we call him for short.

When it Rains, it Pours

I saw a likely prospect for a trailer on Craigslist Friday night and asked Big Dan if he wanted to go check it out. It looked pretty, and it was the price I decided must be paid for a trailer that works. (Not considerably more than a model with bad tires or no floor.)

Before we left Saturday morning, I providentially checked craigslist again. There in front of my eyes stood the fuzziest, most adorable little Highland calf who I needed to have.

We drove with the truck to the trailer place, made fast friends with the excellent young couple selling the trailer, wrote a check , hitched up, and headed to the farm with the fuzzy calf.

I'm overwhelmed with good and happy farm excitement. Piglets, a long awaited trailer, and a sweet bottle baby for a new pet.

Blah

Here's a view of all sorts of animals on Providence Farm. Like the humans, they're just sitting or standing around.
Waiting.
We're all waiting for spring!
The days are often gray this winter. It seems like we're perpetually in some part of the cycle of: getting ready for a storm, watching a storm, cleaning up after a storm, repeat.
I have a copy of the garden catalog. You would think that would cheer me along. But when I see it, I think of how hard and hot the work will be, weeding and harvesting and canning in August.
Is winter the dues we agrarians pay for being the ones who get to feel so fully the joy of a newborn goat, or the smell of grass growing in spring, or the satisfaction of beef and milk and eggs and garden vegetables all coming to fruition after a long season of dormancy?

Better than Rubies

Today was generally a taxing and aggravating day for me. I knew it would be since I knew I would be calling our curriculum provider for tech support. I would rather speak in public than set up a hard drive on a new computer.
But after a distressing morning, I headed out to look at these gorgeous creatures.
After looking, I spent my husband's savings on them. Surely they'll be worth more than any old retirement account.
The top girl's name is Ruby, the bottom red cow is Rosie, and the bull in the bottom photo is Meathead.
They're Scottish Highland cattle.
The whole herd captured my heart as soon as I saw them. I can't wait to get to know them well, so I can compare them to the Dexters.