Here’s what the heck I have to say about tending your goat herd in the springtime.

• Deworm and trim hooves after each kidding.
• Provide Copper supplements to lactating does.
• Disbud and tattoo kids.
• Rotate pastures if possible.

My year begins in March with the onset of kidding season. I chose to kid a bit later than other farmers, mainly because I don’t find bringing frozen kids into the house to warm by the fire in the least bit cute and I have learned through experience that it’s much easier to keep new moms healthy when the pasture is green. She will be able to get more of what she needs to produce milk for her kids and heal from the birthing process if she has access to leaves and brush than if she’s on a diet of hay and grain.

So the day after kidding I always give my new moms a dose of dewormer and a thorough hoof trimming. They won’t have had either treatment since just before breeding and the birthing hormones trigger a worm population increase. I will also give my does a copper bolus shortly after they kid. This is something I learned the hard way…Even if you provide free choice minerals for your herd, and I highly recommend that you do; your goats may still need some supplements, particularly copper and selenium. However, copper can be toxic when overdosed so do your homework on this one and find out of you have copper deficient soil in your area before you go crazy with it. Cows also require higher amounts of copper than other livestock so you might get some insight on the copper levels in your area by speaking to local cattle farmers. You might even find your goats perform better on minerals formulated for cattle rather than your typical goat mineral.

I disbud all kids as soon as soon as I can feel the little bumps on each side of the top of their head. I will tattoo them the following week. I will blog more about disbudding at another time.

When the kids are two weeks old I latch them up with other kids at 7pm every night. That way their mom’s will have plenty of milk for me in the morning. And so the milk season begins! Around 7am I milk my lactating does on a stand in my milk parlor. While on the milk stand, they receive their morning grain and a good brushing. I examine their eyelids for any signs of anemia, check for mastitis and trim their hooves whenever they need it.

Early spring is also when I rotate my does onto a new pasture if possible. Sometimes, I have other groups taking up all of my spare paddocks so its not possible to give one a rest over winter. It is most certainly ideal however, to move your herd from one paddock to the next to avoid parasite overload and to promote regrowth and diversity in your available browse.

Maybe next week I’ll do Part II. But then again you never can tell with me can ya?

Last week I’d forgotten this monster existed. Ignorance is bliss they say but this rediscovery is exciting. He is the Dragon of Thou Shalt and I’ve been hunting him. At some point along the way his scent mingled with the sweet perfume of goats, soap and True Love. He slipped my mind; crawled under the rug and off the grid.

The Dragon of Thou Shalt holds the keys to the Painted Picture Puzzle Door beyond which life’s limitations vanish and anything is possible. And that my friends, is where my compass is pointed. So the question for this farm girl is, how do I get those keys?

First things first…

Remember and Forgive.

Simple Black Bean Cakes Topped with Over Medium Eggs

This recipe makes about 12 bean cakes (6 servings).

Drain and Rinse 2 14 oz cans of black beans.

In a medium skillet sauté a handful of diced onion and two cloves of finely chopped garlic.

Mash the beans and onion/garlic mixture with a potato masher until smooth. Using a fork incorporate about ¼ cup of cornmeal. Form bean mixture into 2 inch balls and flatten into cakes.

Heat cakes in skillet over medium heat until brown on both sides and warm in the center.

Top each pair of bean cakes with 2 eggs fried over medium, a couple of spoonfuls of green salsa and some bleu cheese or feta crumbles.

Serve with a salad of baby field greens!

I’m linking this post to Real Food Wednesdays on Kelly the Kitchen Kop.

And so it’s gone for the last 3 weeks. I wake, feed the creatures and feel grateful for this beautiful world I am blessed to occupy. And then I go about the business of making it to the office while the hubs holds down the fort for a few hours.

Then there was last Friday and the pain in my neck is still there to remind me of it. The thing is my little sis has a baby with a “man” who mistreats her. They live together in a town about 250 miles away so we don’t see one another very often anymore. She rarely calls because he keeps the phone with him at all times. She doesn’t like to ask his permission to use it either…causes a big fight. When we do get to see her, it’s because he has to come to town to meet with his probation officer. Yeah, he’s super classy.

So anyway, last Friday was one of his appointments and she was in town for just a little while. Seeing her triggered some extremely negative emotions, and now I’m feeling guilty about some of them. On the one hand, I’m angry with her for not keeping in touch more, but then I remember how it is to live with someone like him. I’ve been there too; a long time ago…seems like another lifetime to tell the truth. I know what its like to walk on egg shells, to wonder what might set him off, trying to be perfect and blaming myself for his rages.

He was a fool, on a fool’s path not entitled to my imagination, my creativity, my destiny.

I try to explain this to the rest of the family. And tell them she’s in danger and that he’s abusive but they won’t listen. No one wants to really deal with it because there’s not a whole lot we can do and it’s just easier to ignore the signs and pretend she’s irresponsible and she should leave if he’s such an asshole.

The drama of it all is stirring up my past, things I never want to think about or feel ever again. My neck and shoulders are killing me. I haven’t slept well in a few nights and I have a knot in my stomach. I’m worried and I feel helpless to help my sister. I want to escape my body, fly out into the universe, detach from everything and melt away into a billion particles.

…to cope with it all, I did what any reasonable farmer would,  I got a kick ass hair cut at an expensive salon and drank a bottle of Chardonnay.  Maybe its the hangover?

I found last week’s County Times particularly interesting because it featured an article about what state auditors discovered when reviewing our county’s accounting system (a term I use very loosely here). I would provide a link to that article but our newspaper doesn’t appear on the World Wide Web at this juncture in human history.

Anyway, turns out our sheriff’s department has some very creative accounting practices, including allowing inmates to carry the department’s cash deposits to the bank. Well, they’re understaffed said the sheriff and besides, the important thing to remember is none of the money has gone missing. Really Sheriff? And how could you possibly know none is missing in light of the fact the auditors also found your department doesn’t even reconcile the bank statements from month to month. “Well,” you say, “that’s because we recently switched from doing it all by hand to using the computer and the change over has got us behind.” OK, WHAT? You mean to say you just now this year began keeping books on a computer? And you let inmates carry deposits to the bank IN FRONT OF THE AUDITORS? Wonder what goes on there  all the rest of the days of the year when no one is watching.

In other news: Family drives 11 Hours to purchase rare bird, Free Zumba classes being offered, Unemployment climbs to 9.6%, and Hooded Klansmen Walked the Square.

Here’s an excerpt:

A New York City subway train holds 1,200 people. This blog was viewed about 8,000 times in 2011. If it were a NYC subway train, it would take about 7 trips to carry that many people.

Click here to see the complete report.

In addition to having a plan, Leo also says you should use visualization to help keep yourself motivated while changing habits. So here goes.

I see myself basking in the rays of positive energy…better yet I see those rays shining from within me out into the world. I am a light moving about on the farm, laying my hands on the backs of the goats, looking into their eyes and connecting with the cosmos within me and within them. I see this energy filling me with a passion to DO, to create, to be active, to come out of my bubble of lethargy and shyness and connect with the excitement of the universe! I see myself feeling alive all over and feeling light and free from worries. When a negative thought threatens these happy moments, I squash it! I SQUASH THEM ALL!!! And replace them with gratitude for nature’s beauty and the love of these dear sweet creatures.

Hope you started 2012 out with a bowl of black eyed peas and collards. If not, try throwing a pinch or two in some scrambled eggs with a bit of cheddar cheese. It’s the best!

Well today is day 3 of guilt busting and I think its going pretty well. I am following the methods described on zenhabits.net mainly because Leo has used them to transform his own life. He got out of debt, quit smoking, lost 70 pounds, and created a career, all in just a few years! I’ve come a long way myself but I’m not finished yet. There is so much more growing and learning to do. That’s why I am dedicating this entire month to getting rid of negative thoughts.

According to Leo I need to write down my plan, have a mantra, identify my triggers and make it public. So here I am doing just that. My guilt busting mantra is “Squash every one!” I am going to squash every negative thought and replace it with a positive one. I have identified the things that trigger me to have negative thoughts. My two biggest triggers are procrastinating and getting ready in the morning.

Procrastination is a habit in and of itself. I’m not sure if I can tackle that one just yet so I have decided to eliminate one component of my morning routine that makes procrastinating really easy, SITTING MY BUTT ON THE COUCH.

I’ve also invested some time in figuring out why I hate getting ready in the morning. What I realized came as surprise to me. I don’t feel confident about my appearance anymore and I actually CARE how I look to other people. I want to be pretty (er). So I have taken a few steps to remedy this problem which will hopefully eliminate the morning blues. After a few hours on the internet, I now know what hairstyles flatter a round face, what colors look best on a winter complexion and what types of outfits flatter a pear shaped body. Armed with these helpful tips I will have a MUCH easier time squashing those negative thoughts and replacing them with positive ones!

Avoiding the couch and knowing how to choose my clothes and makeup are the baby steps I am taking for week one of this project. I hope these two things will have a dramatic effect on my daily routine.

What is it that triggers your negative thinking? Any of yall super positive already? I’d love to know your good habits and your challenges too.

A great leader inspires and uplifts and directs the heart and mind of each individual to discover greatness within herself, not to dwell on disadvantages or handicaps.

How are we to carry freedom to other nations when we do not protect it in our own land? How are we to inspire and uplift the oppressed when we ourselves are subjects of oppression? We need to turn our vision inward, to heal and rejuvenate our spirit; to reform and rebuild and regain our credibility as a free and prosperous nation.

The challenge is to dig deep. Take advantage of each and every opportunity afforded us by the men and women who have gone before us to preserve freedom in this great country. Harness our talents; meditate on the positive and create peace and love in our homes. Give thanks. Give to those in need and accept love from others. Prepare for the rocky road ahead so that when hard times are upon us, we will remain strong against those who wish to oppress us. Beyond these troubled times lies America’s destiny. There are no limits to what we can achieve as individuals and thus as a nation.