I am starting this journal late in the year so I will attempt to recall dates and happenings in this first entry.

On March 13th we received 24 fertilized chicken eggs to be hatched. We put together a plastic storage box wrapped in towels with hay in the bottom, a brooder lamp with a 60 watt bulb and an indoor/outdoor thermometer with the outdoor gauge inside the 'incubator' at the top of the eggs. We put a towel over the top to hold in heat and adjusted as needed to keep temps at an average of 100 degrees F. We sprayed water inside and on the cover towels to keep moisture/humidity up and also had a bowl of water inside the 'bator.

For several days after putting the eggs in the incubator the temp went fluctuated greatly between 90 F and 104 F. We frantically tried to keep a balanced temp but were unsuccessful. We changed the bulb to a 40 watt and this helped to keep the temp easier to regulate. However, I was afraid that serious damage had already been done. Only time would tell.

We began to prepare the garden the first week in April. There has been much rain and the weather has been unseasonably warm. The last freeze date is the 7th so we plan to get the garden in the 7th and 8th. We tilled and double tilled. We had to remove an overgrowth of turnip greens that the past owners planted in all the garden sites. Much of the turnips we put in a pile as the beginning of a mulch pile, although they were not chopped and will probably take forever to decompose! We have no other mulch material and the garden is clay soil, so I am not sure how well things will grow. We did lime the garden this past winter so hopefully that will help.

I got the garden in and it froze the next night. I am not sure what will survive, I am sure I have lost the tomatoes.

April 8 we had 5 eggs hatch, one died and one chick is sick. We are not sure if he will survive. We will get some chicks from the feed store.

April 16 We got a goat. Her name is Nana. She has been bred with a Nubian buck (I hope). She is ½ Nubian, ½ boer goat. She was not well cared for the past few months and needs lots of handling, love and attention. She needs her shots, I plan to give her CD&T 1 month before the baby is due (She's due some time in July so about the middle of June).

April 20 Ken built a stanchion for me to do Nana's hooves. I will be rubbing her udders and brushing her to get her used to me.

April 21 we picked up 24 chicks at the feed store. We got 8 Barred Rocks, 8 White Orpingtons, and 8 Rhode Island Reds. All are heavy breeds and will make brown eggs. They will also be good meat chickens.

April 25th the sick chick died.

May 1 Nana is getting used to me and allows me to touch her and brush her. She is still a bit skittish.

May 3 Sugar had her kits. She had 5 of them. I do not know gender yet. They are all doing fine. Alice is also due any time, we are waiting.

May 7 We will be getting a mama goat and her two babies next weekend. She belonged to Bev and Ron and Erthnsky in GA. She was sold to a lady in Ft. Payne and is currently residing in Ft. Payne at Linda Gore's place. We are looking forward to the new additions to the farm.

15 May 2000

May 11th I found a sore on Nana's udder. I will watch it to make sure it heals well. She does not want me to touch it. It is about the size of a quarter and feels and looks like a scab.

May 13th we picked up Zoe (all black) and her two kids, one buckling, one doeling. Zoe is ½ LaMancha and ½ Alpine, the kids' sire was pure LaMancha. Ricky named the buckling Packer (all white), the doeling was named Maggie (mostly black with white trim). Zoe was not used to being touched. Her kids were also afraid of us. The person (pam) that bought her from Bev had not kept up with her. She needed brushing and her hooves are awful and need trimming. We put her and her kids in the small stall in the barn and closed off the exit to the barnyard.

The kids will need CD&T im in July and two boosters every 21 days after the first shot (total 3).

Bev's daughter Kate gave Shelly a doe bunny baby. She is black with a white spot on her forehead. We are calling her Starr and she will make a good start to the meat rabbits we will breed for next spring. Of course she will be a mama and a pet, not food!

May 14th we put Zo in the stanchion. She does not like it at all. She does not like being touched! I brushed her down and rubbed her belly and udder. She kicks quite a bit and moves away as far as she can. She is squatting when I touch her udder.

The kids are doing fine, but still don't want to be touched. I am hoping the children will play with them so they will get used to people.

May 15th I put a warm wet washcloth on Zo this morning to try to get some milk to let down. I was not able to get any milk this morning. After some thought, I decided to remove the kids from her and integrate her with Nana. The kids are in the barnyard stall and Nana and Zo are in the pasture side. They are getting along fine. The kids are upset and bawl a lot for mommy. I started bottle feeding them on milk replacer. They drank a total of 1 quart each today. I went out to Zo this afternoon and put her on the stanchion. I rubbed her down and tried to milk and got nothing. Tonight I put her on the stanchion and washed her udder with a warm wet cloth. I was able to get about a quart from her. She knocked the bucket over several times and so I was only able to get about 15 oz for the kids for tomorrow.

The garden is growing. We only have about 3 corn stalks growing the rest of the two rows did not come up. We have beans, cabbage, squash, beets, cukes, lettuce, carrots, potatoes, and some of the herbs that were planted around the plants. I need to get some more tomatoes as all of them froze. I feel like the garden is a waste, since the ground is so hard and it will be difficult to harvest. I will see how it does, but will start building my raised beds soon!

We have strawberries coming in and a few each day ripen. I do not know what type they are but they look as if they are everbearing.

The grapevine is over burdened with grapes. I need to pick some off and thin it out a little. The vine was not pruned in I don't know how long. There are also an over abundance of peaches on the peach tree (that the last owner said was an apple.)

They will also need to be thinned and pruned next winter. This is a small tree and I am worried about the small limbs being over burdened. If they swag too much, I will have to thin back quite a bit.

The three apple trees are over crowded and need to be thinned and pruned next winter.

Alice still hasn't had her kits yet, she looks like she is going to pop! Poor thing can't get comfortable. I hope she will have them soon. Sugar has moved her kits tonight. She had them in the drawer under Ricky's bed and tonight moved them to a basket in our room. I think the kids have been bothering them too much.

16 May 2000

This morning I was able to get 2 lbs of milk from Zoe. She kicked the bucket a bit but not as bad as yesterday. I did a double bucket method to keep from loosing as much milk when she kicks. This worked ok, but I am still working with her so she won't kick. I put the kids on her after the milking to finish stripping her and put them in the barnyard after an hour or so with her.

I picked up the Tetanus Antitoxin and syringes for Packer's banding on Monday. I found a feeder at the feed store for the stanchion that I am building today. I found a table base on the side of the road and sawed a piece of plywood to put into it for the surface. I will probably still need to put it up onto something as I believe it is not quite tall enough to be comfortable.

I milked Zoe this afternoon to get her used to milking and to help increase the milk supply. She did better this afternoon. I got about 8 oz and will add this to tonight's milking for the total. I put the kids with her again for an hour or so.

I got the stanchion finished and it made milking more comfortable and much easier. Tonight's milking brought about 1 pound and Zoe is doing much better. She did not kick and was much calmer. She is still squatting, but seems to be standing more. We got a total of 3 ½ pounds today plus the kids nursed from Zoe for about 3 hours. I need to trim her hooves they are really bad. I have put it off due to the new environment but I think they are bothering her while she is on the stanchion. Tomorrow at lunch time I will try to trim her hooves a little.

17 May 2000

This morning I milked Zoe. She gave 2 ½ pounds! I am very pleased with the results. She also was very calm and did not kick. She was reluctant to get up on the new stanchion, however once she got up there she did wonderfully. She started out squatting a bit, but in only a few minutes was standing normally for the duration of the milking.

This evening I got 2.25 lbs. I did not put the kids on her today. I may start back up tomorrow letting them nurse. I did notice some teeth sores on her udder so I want to keep them off of her somewhat, maybe an hour in the morning after milking and an hour in the evening after milking. The kids aren't taking to the bottles very well. We are getting it down them with difficulty. I am using only milk in the bottles but they still don't want it. They have chewed large holes in the nipples and I can't get new ones today (no transportation.) I will have to fix them somehow.

I mixed cracked corn in with the chick feed today as a transition to the scratch. They were starving as usual and have done just fine. The chicks are almost completely feathered out and we need to finish building the chicken house soon!!!

The garden is over grown with weeds! We hoed the cucumber row and spread hay on the corn/bean rows and the cucumber row in hopes to keep the weed growth down and moisture in.

After lunch I trimmed Zo's back hooves. She was not real happy with me but did pretty well. I will trim the front ones tomorrow.

18 May 2000

AM

Zoe gave 2 ½ pounds of milk this morning and I didn't strip her out completely. I let her in with her kids for about an hour after milking because they would not take the bottles. I told the children not to force the kids to eat. I hope they got enough. I will try feeding them again tonight. Zoe did real well. She only squatted when I washed her udder and teats. Her teats are very small and it is difficult to milk her. I am getting better at milking too! Sometimes I sit on the bucket and sometimes I sit on the stanchion. My back is the worst problem so the change of position periodically helps. I know the muscles will get stronger and I will stop hurting eventually.

April and Ricky found Alice with 2 kits out by the water hose this morning, she had another kit coming and they were all soaked by the hose leaking. Ricky picked up the kits and let her in the house. She went straight to the box we had made for her and Ricky put the kits in the box with the blow dryer on them to stay warm and dry off (he's such a quick thinker). Later, we took the dryer out of the box. Alice had 5 cute little kits. All are doing well and are happy to be warm and snug.

Sugar moved her kits again today. She moved them under my dresser behind the drawer. I hope she leaves them there. She is so fidgety.

I thinned the grapes and fruit trees. I am afraid I may not have done enough…everything needs pruning this winter! I expect to have a slow year next year from all the pruning I need to do. I have some bugs on my apples and will do some looking for an organic spray to help keep them away.

PM

I trimmed Zo's front hooves and she gave almost 2 pounds of milk even after being on the kids for an hour after her last milking. I put her in with the kids again tonight for an hour.

The kids drank the bottles better tonight. I had used electrical tape to seal off the extra holes that the kids had bitten into the nipples and they had a much easier time of drinking without being drowned. They were also very hungry, since they didn't get much this morning. They finished off their bottles and were happily on mama for what is left. I feel that the kids and the children are getting used to feeding time.

I found an organic spray formula for the garden (found to be useful and proven so by a magazine.) It is similar to the one my mother gave me but added red peppers to the garlic mixture. I will pick up the stuff to make it this week and begin using it on both the garden and the trees.

19 May 2000

This morning I went out to the barn and found that Zoe was in the barnyard with her kids. Needless to say she had no milk to give. I think that when I sent the children out to move her they ended up playing and not doing what they were sent out to do. I put both goats on the stanchion for their breakfast and brushed them.

We cleaned out the stalls and put the muck on the potato row in the garden. I hope it will keep the weeds down and help fertilize the potatoes. We have 3 more rows in the garden that need to be weeded and mulched or hayed. Our rows are 60' long, so doing a row is a great undertaking.

The chickens are almost completely feathered out. I still haven't done the chicken house. I hope to get the post holes dug on Sunday after church.

Tonight we put together a cage for the bunny that I bought at TSC. Putting it together was…fun? Ok, less than fun. But it will serve the bunny well! I need to get a piece of wood to put in for a resting pad for the bun to sit on. And tomorrow we will put her out in the barn. We need to devise a way to hang her from the rafters so that she will be safe from predators. She may stay in the house for a few days, now that I think about the weekend coming up. Too much to do and not enough time to do it!

While at TSC I found some more small feeders for $2.00 less than at the feed store, so I bought 2 red and 2 blue. The blue are for the minerals and the reds are for feed for the 2 stanchions and the kids' pen. It made milking and feeding much easier for Nana and Zoe and the children didn't have to hold the feed bucket for Nana. This frees up the children to help with the other chores and feed the kids.

Zoe gave 2 pounds 10 oz tonight! She still had some milk and so I let her in with the kids for about 30 minutes after milking. I found a small amount of solid milk fats in the milk at the beginning of the milking and I am concerned about mastitis. I didn't see any blood or discoloration of the udder, nor did I feel any abnormally warm area, so I am not sure if this is a first sign or warning that I need to watch. I don't have a teat spray or dip. I looked in the herbal handbook and it says nothing about white clots showing in the milk. I may be worrying for nothing. I will study further to be sure it is ok.

20 May 2000

AM

I milked Zo this morning. She gave about 2 ½ pounds. Daddy tried milking today. He was having trouble and I ended up taking over. He will get the hang of it eventually. I think I will let him do it again tonight.

The kids took the bottles like old pros. Maggie drank all 20 oz of hers. Packer drank over half. I put them on Zo for a half hour after milking to strip her. There were no clots in her milk this morning. I am still researching to find something that addresses clots so I won't worry about it.

All's well on the homestead! Things are calming down a bit and we may get caught up with the work. I still need to have the pasture mowed. The grass is now up to my waist in some areas.

PM

Dad milked Zo tonight. He got a little over 2 pounds and let her in with the kids. I am sure they were happy! I fed them each 20 oz of milk before they went on Zo. They both ate voraciously and were still hungry. I think that Maggie ate the piece of tape off the nipple, yuk! I will put a new nipple on her bottle for tomorrow. I need to find sturdier nipples than the soft lamb nipples. I looked at TSC and didn't find anything that would go on the bottles other than the lamb ones. I will keep looking.

I purchased 50 pounds of feed today. I am trying to figure out a better feed that will be more natural and without the animal meal and antibiotics. We are talking about mixing ourselves. We may do that next month. We are really working toward an 'organic' herd if at all possible.

21 May 2000

AM

Good Morning! Daddy and I did morning chores. Zoe gave us 2 ½ pounds of milk this morning and her kids ate wonderfully from the bottles. Her coat is beginning to look much better than when we got her last week. She still has a lot of dry skin flakes but I think with a good washing that will get better. When the weather dries up and gets warm again I will probably wash both Zo and Nana and trim them. I don't have any heavy duty trimmers to completely 'mow' them, but I have a small set of trimmers that will work well for udders, legs and belly area.

The light has gone out in the Chicken house. They don't need the light for heat any longer so we won't replace it, however, a coop has to be built soon. I hope today we can get the post holes dug if the rain lets up.

The garden has remained untouched since last week. It has been raining all weekend and the weeds are having a field day!

The neighbor across the road has a relative that may do the pasture for us for the hay. I will talk with her later to see if we can get it done. I hope he will hay it for shares.

PM

Today we got a metal cabinet out in the barn and started cleaning out the side of the barn that has been used for storage. We put the manure on the garden. We also went 'junking' and picked up 2 tractor tires, 6 truck tires and several logs. The tractor tires and logs went in the barnyard and pasture for the goats to play on. The truck tires we will use for raised beds in the garden.

The chicken house was not started today. I hope we can start it tomorrow. I also need to mow the yard and garden areas and should get it done tomorrow. We got an email today from a person in Fayetteville who has a 6 month old purebred Great Pyrenees that she will give away! It has been raised around children and goats and according to the owner has wonderful manners. This would be an excellent addition to our farm. I replied and am waiting to hear from her.

I went out to the barn to milk Zo tonight and she was not full. I went ahead and milked her out and got 1 ¼ pounds. After questioning the children I found out that they had let Zo in with the kids for a few minutes. Well that was all it took and a whole pound of milk was gone! I am going to have to find a way to keep the children from letting the kids in with mama. That is twice this week.

The children have been drinking goats milk for almost a week without knowing it! They have been drinking it thinking it is store bought cows milk. I put it in the milk jug and they kept insisting that the milk in the jug tasted better than the milk in the glass jar. I finally told them that the milk in the jar and the milk in the jug were the same and that it was their imagination that made them think that the milk tasted different. They didn't believe me at first. Finally, I was able to convince them that they truly were drinking goats milk without knowing it and liked it! I think that they will have to admit they like it now. I can't wait to get enough milk to begin making cheese!

22 May 2000

AM

This morning I milked Zo and got 2 ¾ pounds. I am very pleased with the increase and hope to see this throughout the season. I didn't put the kids on her this morning. They both drank 18 oz each and took the bottles very well.

I am rebatching some jasmine soap I made several weeks ago and plan to make some milk soap today. Margaret is coming over to help with the soap and to band Packer. I am looking forward to the new milk soap experience. Melody, the owner of Rainbow Meadows in Michigan, has a wonderful "Baaa-sic" milk soap recipe. I will be using it as my first recipe. (Thanks Melody.)

PM

Margaret was here and forgot to bring the elastrator so Packer didn't get banded. He needs to be done soon as he is getting very big. I will have to buy one for myself I guess. We did make some nice soap today. I waited for the oils and the lye/milk solution to cool before I mixed them together and it didn't stink as bad as some say it does. Margaret was surprised that it worked so well.

Zo gave 2 ¼ pounds tonight and the kids drank 20 oz each. The evening went well. We are reformatting the computer! Ugh!

23 May 2000

AM

Zo gave 2 ½ pounds of milk this morning. I put her on the kids for about half an hour after milking. We are working on cleaning the barn to put in a metal cabinet and hang the bunny. I need to have a yard sale to get rid of stuff! The grapes are getting bigger and a limb on the peach tree needs to be supported before it breaks off.

PM

Zo gave 2 ½ pounds again. She is pretty consistent now. I hope she begins to increase. I didn't put her on the kids tonight.

I went to Tennessee to get a Great Pyrenees tonight. The person was giving him away. He has been raised around small children and goats. She was breeding them and couldn't sell them this past season, there are too many people breeding them now and the market is swamped. So she gave him to us without the registration papers. Her children nick named him Trouble. He is 5 months old. We will have him neutered. She still has 2 left of his litter and is keeping the female. When we got him home I introduced him to the other dogs in they yard. He backed himself against the fence. He finally began to be less fearful and walked around. I put a collar on him and we took him out to the barn. He seemed very comfortable around the goats. The children named him Courage. He needs a bath and to be clipped.

24 May 2000

AM

Zo gave over 3 pounds this morning! I am so excited. I put her on the kids for about 30 minutes after milking. God is so Good!

Courage is doing great and seems to be right at home here. He likes to be with the family, though and we are going to have to figure out a way for him to go between the barn and house. He went for a walk with us and ended up in the pond! He was happy to be cool!

I finally got the barn clean enough to get the cabinet in and the rabbit cage up. Starr is enjoying her new surroundings.

We discussed how to increase the barn size and add a milking area. I really want a milk area with cement floors, running water and electricity! Boy, we are going to be broke!

PM

Zo gave another 3 pounds tonight! I guess my methods are working!

The kids are growing like weeds. Ricky is working with Packer to lead train him. He's not doing too bad!

Dad mowed a path to the pond in the pasture. The Lord continues to bless!

25 May 2000

AM

Zo gave us 2 ½ pounds of milk this morning. At first I noticed that she was not as hard and full as usual so I asked Ricky if he let the kids in to Zo and he said, "not exactly, well sort of." So he began to explain that he had Packer on the lead this morning to walk to the pond and let him get to Zo. I explained that Packer can drink all of her milk in a matter of minutes and that he has to keep the kids away from the mommies before milking time. I let the kids on her after milking for about half an hour.

I mowed the garden area, back and front yards today…big job! I have started digging the holes for the posts for the chicken house. The children helped a little. I have not finished them by any means. I hope to have it done by Sat. The chickens are much to big to keep together in the brooder now and are fully feathered out. I really need to get the house done.

PM

Shelly let the goats out of the pasture tonight. Then Ricky put them back in and didn't check the gate inside the barn, so then they were all in the barnyard and needless to say Zo was drained dry! I went ahead and stripped Zo and hope it is enough for increasing production. I got 5 oz.

26 May 2000

AM

Daddy had duty last night and I had to drive to Huntsville this morning to pick him up and push his car home. I don't know what is wrong with it but it is broke real good!

Zody gave me 3 pounds and 2 ounces this morning so I guess yesterday's mishap didn't hurt anything.

The holes for the chicken house are still not finished. The ground is hardpan and rocks. The chickens are getting out of the brooder so we are going to let them out daily and 'herd' them back in at night until I can get the house built. I need to get it done this weekend.

PM

I spent an hour at the neighbor's visiting. She is a wonderful elderly Christian Lady that lost her husband last year. We had wonderful fellowship while sitting outside in the shade of an old maple tree. She has diabetes and is a very active Sister. I hope that I am as blessed and active when I am in my 70's.

I milked Zo tonight and got a little over 3 pounds. I am pleased with the increase!

We got one hole finished for the chicken house, 2 more to go. I hope Daddy can help this weekend to get it done. The chickens are really needing space!

The computer is still not working right. I can't get online at all. Maybe it is a blessing!

Daddy went to Montgomery tonight to get a friend's car moved up here. They will be moving here next weekend and cannot drive 2 cars and the rental van, so they asked Satch to go down there with them today and drive their car back. They will be letting him use it for the next month! What a blessing! It is a nice Toyota Camry and worth about $5000. I think they're planning to sell it next month. God is truly good! We are keeping their dog, Shadow, for them while they are living in the apartment here and when they find a job and a house they will come get him. Satch will be helping them move on Tuesday. I am glad they are moving back up to Huntsville, I really missed them and the kids.

27 May 2000

AM

This morning I went out to the barn to find Nana down. I was able to get her up to walk and onto the stanchion. She would not eat. I took her for walk ½ way to the pond and put her in a stall by herself with some water only. I am going to use the internal cleansing recommended for sheep and goats in the Herbal Handbook For Farm And Stable. She is off all feed and only on water. I have to make a trip to the store to get molasses and to the feed store to get bran for tomorrow's treatment of bran mash and milk. Tonight I will give her a purge of Epsom salts and ginger. I also need to find gentian root and some charcoal.

I got 2 ¾ pounds of milk from Zoe this morning, and put her in with the kids to strip her. I felt worried about Nana and so I didn't take time to strip her myself. The kids ate fine.

I wish Daddy were here. He is still in Montgomery helping our friends and will not return until later today.

Noon

I checked on Nana. She is still lying down and did not great me as usual at the barn. I felt her stomach and it doesn't feel like bloat. I think she may have tried eating the dog's food. I gave her the molasses and garlic water. She really doesn't want it but I think she will take it at some point when she is thirsty. It is supposed to be 90 degrees outside today. What a terrible day to have a sick animal! I guess it could be an ice storm. Thank you God for the wisdom you give us and the health of all in our keep.

Daddy is still not here. I couldn't find the gentian root or charcoal for the goat cleansing treatment. I thought I had some activated charcoal capsules here but am unable to find them. I also couldn't find linseed oil and opted for mineral oil for intestinal coating from the Epsom salts purge.

PM

Nana wouldn't take the Epsom salts and I don't have a large syringe to put it down her. So I just kept her in the pen and gave her fresh water. I will check on her today.

Zo gave 2 ¼ pounds tonight and I put the kids on her for about 30 minutes.

28 May 2000

Nana was up and happy this morning. I think she may have gotten into the dog food. I went ahead and gave her bran mash with molasses and she ate it all quickly. I let her out of the pen about midday and she was doing fine tonight and actually wanted to eat feed. I suppose the fast yesterday was all she needed. I will keep an eye on her for the next few days.

Zo gave 2 ¾ pounds this morning and 2 2/3 pounds this evening. The we are leaving the brooder house door open for the chickens to go in and out on their own. They are eating scratch and what they can scavenge now it the fenced area. Once we get the chicken house done they will be able to scavenge the fenced area and the barnyard. I hope this will give them plenty of free range area. They are getting really big! I still cannot tell the difference between the roosters and hens yet. There is no consistency between size of individual birds and the size of the combs. I guess when they start to crow I'll know who the roosters are!

We found a 3 side cattle fence down the road in a pile of trash. I asked Daddy and Ricky to go down and pick it up to bring home as we can use it as a kid pen in the barn. One side is no good but the other two are in great shape. This will be perfect for the corner of the barn. It was too heavy for them to carry and too big to fit in the van so Daddy brought the lawn tractor down to help carry it. Ricky drove the tractor and Daddy and I held the ends of it and we slowly walked it home. What a sight we must have been! Both of us still dressed in our church clothes walking behind a tractor carrying a cattle fence! I'm sure the neighbors think we are nuts! Oh, well?

29 May 2000

AM

Nana is doing fine and was head butting me this morning in her playful way. I am glad to see her back to her old self again.

Zoe gave 3 pounds of milk this morning and I put her with the kids for about an hour.

Courage is limping today. He is favoring his right front paw/leg. I checked out the pad and the leg, moved the leg at the shoulder and knee and it didn't seem to bother him. I didn't see anything wrong with the foot or pads so I am not sure why he is limping. I'll have to keep an eye on him maybe it is just a sprain or something. I think next week we will take him to the groomer down the road and have him cut and dipped. He has so many ticks I can't even start to get them all. I picked a bunch off today and do daily. They have been there for a while they are huge. YUK!!

The holes got dug for the chicken house and the posts at the fence line are being dug up. We have one of them done. I want to move those posts to the back of the house and put in taller posts for the front of the house. I also want to wall up 3 sides and put a divider down the middle of the house for a storage area. It will probably be about 12' X 8' in size and with a divider at about half, well maybe at 5' that will make the chicken house 7' X 8' which should be plenty of space for the "15" layers I hope to end up with. This will give me 4½ square foot per bird and I could easily have 25 layers at a little over 2 sf per bird. This will give me room to hatch next spring and each year for new pullets and culling.

PM

We had company for this Memorial Day holiday. A friend brought his ATV four wheeler and the children got to ride it around the pasture! They had a wonderful time. We had Marco and Kev for the night. They and Ricky spent the night in the tent in the backyard. They also let us borrow their trampoline, which I will finish putting together today. Everyone tried milking Zoe. She was so patient! For the small children I held the udder just above the teat forcing the milk into the teat and they squeezed the milk out of the teat. The older ones I let try on their own first. It was so cute. And Zo was wonderful! She did get a bit nervous when the older children sat at the stanchion without me there, but she was very tolerant! Some of the children were afraid to touch her, but they finally did. I would love to open a petting zoo or hands-on farm for children to come visit. It would be fun. I am not sure how to do it. I guess I could look around and see how. I would even like to do a summer camp, too.

Zo gave 2 ¾ pounds tonight even with all of the children playing with her. I put her on the kids for about 30 minutes.

30 May 2000

Zo gave a little over 3 pounds this morning. I put her on the kids for about a half hour. She gave 3 pounds tonight as well. She was in with her kids tonight for about 2 hours. I hope this 6 pounds a day is consistent or increases, she is doing wonderfully.

Courage is still limping a little. I checked his paw and leg again, but saw nothing. I took him to Kirsten the groomer down the road. She clipped him down to about an inch and dipped him and removed the ticks. She said he was a really good dog. She looked at his leg as well and found nothing. I will watch for a few more days. He looks clean and so cool now.