Sugar Creek Farm

As I mentioned yesterday, Matt’s brother, his wife and their 3-year-old son came to visit last weekend. They live way way down in Texas, and this was the first time we got to meet our cutie pie little nephew. I don’t know who was more excited to play with him – Rafe, or Matt.

He seems to be a natural born farm boy. He loved helping us out for the weekend with every single farm task.

There was watering…

and feeding…

a ride on the tractor,

a ride on the horse,

and many games of “chore boot ball”, a Sugar Creek Farm tradition.

It was so fun to spend the weekend as an extended family – we’re missing them so much now that they’ve returned home!

3 years ago:

Don’t try this at home kids

Sorry for the lapse in posting, but we were enjoying our holiday weekend with Matt’s brother and his family visiting from Texas. Pictures of that coming soon – too many fun ones to choose from!

Then last night we loaded up broiler chickens to deliver to the processor. I ended up with 144 – a 6% death loss, which I was quite happy with. And none were condemned at the processor! How much do I love it when the processor tells me “those are some really nice birds”? If anyone knows quality chickens when she sees it, I guess it would be her 😉 I went back late this morning to pick them up, and then took them to the locker here in town that does our pork & beef. They’re freezing them for us (hooray!) It takes them 3 hours to freeze them, versus 2 or 3 days for me to do it at home. Tomorrow we’ll go back and get them.

I wanted to share the photo above. Monday we visited the Catholic cemetery where Matt’s foster parents are buried. The sun was playing some funky tricks on me, but it made for a pretty cool photo of the monument in the cemetery.

3 years ago:

A horse story

(Let’s be clear that this one was Matt’s idea, not mine!)

4 years ago:

The bachelor

Olivia & Star, after workout tonight

Kris @ Quilted Simple asked yesterday if Olivia is going to show Star for 4-H. As a matter of fact, she is!

This is Olivia’s first year in 4-H. The 4-H horse club holds twice-weekly workouts for the horses and riders to teach them the basics of riding and games and what will be expected of them at the county fair. Next month they even do a 2-day overnight camp at the fairgrounds for the kids and their horses. Olivia’s having fun with it so far!

Olivia is the only one of us that Star will let cuddle with her like that – she’ll walk away from the rest of us if we try any of that affectionate stuff with her.

Can you believe Star turns 21 years old this month? She’s in great shape for her age, and still likes to run if you let her. She’s been the perfect first horse for Olivia. And hopefully in another year or two, when Olivia’s ready for a newer model, she’ll be the perfect horse for me!

3 years ago:

Makeover

Star the Supernanny was hanging with poor little land-locked Zorro the other morning. What a good horse!

Thanks for the kind comments about my attitude towards allergies this spring. But I have to confess, I’m feeling less than stoic today. Today I may have gladly traded just a couple of hours of this glorious spring weather for a couple of hours of dead winter when I don’t feel like chopping my own head off.

1 year ago:

Ava, and her herd of one

The maple tree in our back yard is full of those little helicopter-like seeds. And my allergies are in full swing as well. But that’s okay. I’ll take spring with allergies over winter with a clear head any day.

3 years ago:

Marketing meeting

When the cows and their calves get turned out into the pasture, it takes the new calves a couple of days to figure out how to cross the creek. Their mothers are so grass-crazy that they don’t care whether their babies come over or not. Then towards sundown they come back and feed their poor neglected children.

I don’t know if you noticed in yesterday’s post, but if you look again you’ll see Zorro laying near the creek (with a duck to keep him company) while everyone else is over on the other side. He’s the only one that won’t cross yet, and it’s been about a week since Matt turned them out.

I feel sort of sorry for him – I hope he figures it out soon!

2 years ago:

Naptime

I know, technically spring has been here a while. But it’s finally become a happy spring, with sunshine and warm air and blue skies.

Happy cows (and one happy horse) out on grass again…

…and 145 or so happy broiler chickens on grass as well.

2 years ago:

D. t’the E.

The second batch of 150 broiler chicks arrived last Thursday. One of the (many) fun things about having new chicks is that it brings young visitors around to see them! This past weekend the girls from the Cute Little Farmhouse were here, but I was having too much fun catching chicks for Molly & Elsa to remember to take a picture.

And that anonymous baby and her brother were here as well. I did get pictures of that. A cute little chick checking out the cute little chicks 🙂

3 years ago:

I really must stop

Yesterday afternoon we gathered “the cousins” for a little bluebell photo op. Bluebell pictures are a mostly annual tradition over at my parents’ farm (there have been a few years in the last 12 when the spring weather didn’t cooperate.)

The boyz…

and the girls.

3 years ago:

Quack