Overwhelmed and Overjoyed

I knew this calf and the cow and the chickens and the bees and the house full of children would keep me busy. Yes I did.
This week has been extra busy with the new calf and cow chores especially.
I also have several quilt and crochet and sewing projects that stare at me throughout the day. It's a reminiscent feeling of when I had three little ones running around the house and my days were consumed with diapers, naps, play dates, and meals.
The projects can wait because there will be a week down the road when I have a few less chores to accomplish.

Feeding the calf has been a great experience for the young girls, and it helps me out tremendously.  We fill his bottle up right after the milking is finished so that it is still warm.

It tends to be a very slobbery event and we are usually covered in milk and calf saliva by the time the bottle is empty.

Lucy has again proven herself to not only be an expert at hiding in the trees and brush, but also to be a champion milking cow. She's back to a twice a day milking routine that goes smoothly and yields a total of 6 gallons of milk a day.
She has the classic dairy cow temperament of being easy going, friendly and curious. She has adjusted very well to our family.

We have more honey to extract! It's not much but I think it will be enough to sell at the local Farmers Market here. I plan to utilize a booth to not only sell honey but to round up some folks for a mailing list for pasture chickens next year. It will be a day of marketing.
This weekend we plan to process our chickens, but some have not grown as well as others. I blame the extremely high temperatures. We will likely process only half and let the others grow a couple more weeks.

This year of raising pastured poultry has been very helpful by showing me how much food they consume. It will allow me to estimate and plan better and even buy the feed in bulk next year for a discount.

****************************

My second oldest daughter, Quinn, is using her art skills to try and win a contest. There is an organization here locally that provides food, shelter, clothing, education, etc to people in need. This organization was donated a large van so that they can transport people who have no transportation of their own. Here's where the contest starts. They asked local artists to come up with a design that will be painted on the van and Quinn is currently in second place!
If you feel inclined, will you please hop over there and give her a vote? You can only vote one time and voting ends in a couple of days. 
I really like the theme of her design which is titled "City of Families." Her van is blue with a rainbow.

Thank you. It's a great organization and I love to see that they invited young, local artists to participate.

*************************

It's another hot, muggy day in Georgia and I feel sorry for those kids who are starting school. It's still summer, folks.
We start after Labor Day, so I still have a few weeks to get ready. Yes, I have lots to prepare but for now we are still enjoying summer.

When do you start school?