Naturally, as soon as we left the farm for our family vacation, Mama Goat (yes, that’s her actual super creative name) delivered the most adorable triplets you’ve ever seen. Nothing like pure insanity on the farm while you try to relax with time away, right? Much like our other mama, she delivered all on her own without any problems. It …
Our First Goat Babies of 2022
The entire Crossley fam has been on goat watch for the last couple of weeks. We’ve moved 4 mommas to the pole barn as they enter the final stages of goat pregnancy. You might be wondering what that means. Honestly, I’m not sure. But it involves too many pictures of goat butts being texted to you at random times of …
Another Barn Stall for Too Many Goats
The chilly, snowy weather is officially here (thanks, January) – and it’s quickly become obvious that the ratio of pregnant goats to barn stalls available is…uneven. In the past, a momma or two has shared the pen in the pole barn as new kids are welcomed to the farm. This time, though, we have one momma with two new babies, …
Nature’s Corn Nuts
Remember those dried corn snacks of the 90s? They are literally what comes to mind every time I’m around actual corn. Especially, if I get to feed that corn to some animals – they go bonkers. For Christmas, my mom (Nana Jeanne) got the kids a full toy farm complete with silo full of actual, real, from-the-big-farm, harvested corn. There are, …
Fresh Snow and Goat Babies
We welcomed 2022 with fresh flakes covering the entire farm. Aaron and I have spent the last couple of days in 2021 getting various parts of the farm ready for the cold temperatures to move in. All of the animals needed fresh hay, water, shelter and heat – the standards during winter. The shed in the Goat Grove got a few …
The Ladies are Laying
Our sweet ladies in the henhouse are working overtime apparently. They’ve finally hit an amazing stride of delivering half a dozen eggs every single day. You guys, it’s so many eggs. So, we’re on a mission to be a little more entrepreneurial in what happens with these golden butt nuggets. We’ve explored some options on price, distribution methods, packaging, etc. …
We Say ‘Goodbye’ to the Chucks
It’s been about 18 months since the first Chuck arrived at the farm. Since then, we’ve been collecting orphaned moomakers year-round, feeding them bottles and eventually turning them out to our pasture. This morning, our three original Chucks – Ground Chuck, Chuck Roast and Chuck Norris – were hauled in for processing. The animal lovers in us absolutely hate this part of …
Livestock Guard Dogs Standing Guard
After about 5 months on the farm, our livestock guard dogs – Kili and Denali – are officially standing guard over our animals. They’ve been outdoor dogs since they arrived here. We set them up with a cozy space in our pole barn. They spend their days snuggled up somewhere around the house, but each evening, they head back to the …
Here, Cow-Cows
Before we can get too comfortable for today’s Chiefs game, the pantsless toddler needs to check his cows. Morning, noon and night – this is by far this kid’s favorite activity on the farm. He calls them in with his adorable “Here, cow-cows! Herrrrrrre, cow-cows!” on repeat. It’s genuinely awesome. Then, after we spend a few minutes looking to make …
Free-Range Goats
The goats have done an incredible job of keeping the Goat Grove clear of underbrush, weeds and general overgrown junk. It’s truly awesome. Naturally, while trying to catch up with our not-quite-end-of-the-season mowing, I thought it’d be a great idea to start free-ranging the goats on the farm. Free-range animals are allowed to move freely around the land to forage …