Friday, February 6, 2015

New Year...New Additions!

Well friends, I honestly can't believe that we are into 2015...and already a week into February! I think with all of the changes that happened in the middle of last year...that sped things up for us and time just flew by!

Living on a farm...okay so I shouldn't really call our place a farm...because technically it's a house on 5 acres with a few garden beds and some animals...but hey, if they can call Disneyland "the happiest place on earth," then I live on a farm! But I digress.

I can't even being to tell you how much I've enjoyed living out here, life seems quieter...well except for my hillbilly neighbors that like to drink and shoot their guns at all times of the day or night! We live on a beautiful piece of property and our house sits on top of a hill in the middle of the 5 acres. We have a wonderful buffer of hemlocks, firs, cedars and big leaf maples that surround the cleared part of our land that blocks the sight of all the neighbors. I truly feel like we live in some sort of a park.

The entrance to our property

The driveway up to our house

Looking down the driveway (heading from the house towards the gate)

The view of my coop from our deck.
We've added so many things to this property in the past six months...but in all honesty...the fun has just begun! :) Over the summer I managed to get myself up to a staggering number of chickens, a number that I refuse to reveal for fear of judgement by others...and shame that I inflict upon myself! ;-) But I'm happy to say that I'm now down to a healthy 32, one of them being a rooster. Of the hens that I have, about 15 of them are laying or have laid eggs. I'm waiting for the rest to start catching up!

But all that being said, it's been wonderful navigating the space where the "World of Housewife" and "World of Farmer" collide! I find myself daily learning new things, things that I had no idea would be a part of my life. I also find myself enjoying living out here, dreaming of the updates to the house and the property...as well as the addition of new animals! Oh...so should we talk about the animals now?

I guess now is as good of a time as any to let you all know that Michael and I have welcomed 4 kids into our lives. Yep...it's finally happened. We thought we only wanted two...but I decided...what the hell...I'm already feeding two...why not two more. They are just kids, right? What kind of kids? Goats...that's what I'm talking about. There is a dairy near us that raises Oberhaslis, a beautiful breed of milking goats. We have been talking about getting goats for quite some time, mainly because I'm tired of doing brush and grass control on my own! But we didn't know that we'd be willing to get day old kids to bottle feed.

Edgar and Allan came to live with us on on January 9th. Edgar was 2 days old...and Allan was a wee 1 day old. :) 


I honestly fell in love the first moment I saw them. Hearing them bleat is so cute...and watching their little tails wag is enough to make anyone smile and melt. As the days went on I took them outside to explore...and they were quite intrigued by the chickens...who wouldn't be! :)


I had to figure out how to feed two kids at once...so after thumbing through a goat book I purchased I found this idea and made one of my own! It worked quite well.


Cooper was NOT thrilled about the new additions to B.P. Farms. HAHA :) But he's slowly starting to come around.


And because I don't have enough things to do already...Betty and Rue came to live with us on January 24th. They are twin sisters that were about 24 hours old. :)


So I've gotten a lot of questions regarding the goats...so I want to take a minute to answer a few of them.

1) Why did you get two boys? Because...we wanted to. ;-) Just kidding. We started with Edgar and Allan, and we will have them castrated so we don't have to deal with smelly bucks that want to break through everything. We initially just wanted them more for brush control...and the biggest factor...they were only $25 each.

2) Why did you have them in the shop in an enclosure and not out in a barn? Well, we don't have a barn here on the farm...and I was going to build a house for them, but I wanted to wait until it stopped raining for a day or two. And being that this is the Pacific Northwest...it was raining non-stop, so the easiest thing to do was to set up a pen in one of the bays of our shop.

3) Why did you get the two females? And will you now not castrate Edgar and Allan and mate them? We, well I, decided that now is the best time to get two females because I'm only wanting to do this feeding thing once. So if I'm feeding two, what is two more. And we are still planning on castrating Edgar and Allan, and we'll have our girls bred when it comes time for that.

Okay...so that was only three, well kind of 4, questions...but believe me, those same questions have been asked over and over and over...almost to the point of me pulling my hair out. So there you have it. We have kids...finally! I told my mother that now I've given her four grand"kids"...and my kids LOVE Amazon gift cards! I don't think she really bought it! :) But who knows...we'll see when their birthdays and Christmas roll around!

Life on the farm has really been an amazing adventure. I sit back and think about the fact that we haven't even been here for a year...and then I think about all the major changes that have happened here on the farm as well as in our lives. I'm loving life, tired as all get out...but that shall pass when the kids get weaned. This new year has many things in store for us as I add ducks and geese to our growing number of birds. And who knows...maybe I can talk Michael into a miniature donkey! :) Wouldn't that be grand!

Well, I'd better get a move on...chores wait for no one, nor do they wait for the rain to stop!

Until next time, Keep Cookin'!

**here are a few more pictures of the kids**

Edgar trying to bust out.

Rue, Better, Edgar & Allan...The B.P. Farms Kids :)

26 comments:

  1. Sandy Striffler SchwagerFebruary 6, 2015 at 7:59 AM

    Love your blog!

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  2. Jennifer Haga JohnsonFebruary 6, 2015 at 8:01 AM

    I love your farm! It is so pretty. We are looking at 5 acres here in Colorado and most places there is not a tree in site LOL It is so much fun watching you add your kids to the farm. Awesome blog post!

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  3. Thanks! :) So happy that I can share all this with people! :)

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  4. No farm is complete without some sort of equine ;) Love seeing the kids getting bigger everyday and hearing all about the going ons! Have a great day!

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  5. The sad thing is Michael is allergic to horses...and we aren't sure about donkeys! Eeek! You have a great day too!!

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  6. If he is allergic to horses than chances are donkeys and mules are out too :( I'm allergic to horses (and hay and dust and everything under the sun) but it doesnt keep me from owning one! Maybe there is still hope ;)

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  7. I just love watching those little tails!! I oh so enjoy watching your "Kids" grow! Love your farm!

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  8. I love all your postings here, on FB and Instagram. Your humor, wit and occasional "bite" entertain me. And your pets/farm animals...well. Let's just say I am a fan of all things furry or feathered...and you. Have a happy day!

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  9. I'm so glad that you posted on your blog! I commented a few times on your fantastic trip to France, but only a few comments actually 'stuck'. You are living the dream! I've been watching your videos on FB for awhile now and loving it. We have half of your space in Woodinville, but similar aspirations. Starting with chickens, then goats, then mini donkey. Post on, Brian!

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  10. Beautiful piece of property! Michael should be fine as long as you keep the horse out of the house. 😉 A mini donkey would be awesome--attach a cart and now you have a chore helper. The possibilities are endless! My best to you this year with your new adventures!

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  11. Love your blog an your kids pics..Edgar is growing so fast..have a great day an weekend...

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  12. Thanks! :) Believe me I want one so badly! LOL

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  13. That's too bad that the comments didn't post! :( But I'm happy you keep coming back! :)

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  14. Awww :) So happy that you love my page and all my critters! :)

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  15. Thanks! Yea those tails have a way of making people melt!

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  16. I am tickled that you're having so much fun. When I was growing up, we had 3-1/2 acres with chickens, ducks & a couple cows. My dad called it a "Gentleman's Farm." Heck, we have 6 acres & call it a ranch!

    I love your musings, Brian.

    Hugs,
    Lucy Golden

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  17. Nice blog post. I love that you gave some background on how you ended up on your farm and what you've done since you moved there. Filled me in on what I missed!

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  18. We moved out here to the country from Amherst NY 2 years ago...and we have Hillbilly Rootin' Tootin SHOOTIN' neighbors now too. Very different than back home. I'm getting used to it though. It gets really obnoxious the 1st week of deer season. But it's worth it, our mini homestead on the edge of a forest that we love to hike in :) Plus....Chickens! I could not have kept them legally back home.

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  19. HAHA :) We are having fun...most days! LOL :)

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  20. Awww! So happy you liked it!! :)

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  21. Yea...gotta love the drinking, shootin hillbillies! LOL :) I, like you, feel it's worth it!! :)

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  22. Love your property! I thought you had lived there a lot longer. Y'all have certainly got quite a lot done!

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  23. Cute kids, Brian... Miss you! Ethel ☺️

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  24. Wow soooo much cuteness in your kids! And your place is gorgeous. Yep I'm quite envious ;)

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