Christmas Time

It's THAT time of year!!!!!

 

It's almost Christmas! My kids are excited and are wishing for a white Christmas. It can happen here in Georgia and it did back in 2010. It won't this year though.

 

Aside from the baking and movie watching that is happening over here, we are still milking cows and making cheese.

In fact, I think I have the Camembert cheese down quite well. I also have several hard cheeses in the cave aging for at least 3 months.

 

 

Usually it is Zeb who hangs out with me the entire time I do cow chores, but Fletcher decided to visit with me instead.
He is barefoot and in unmatched pajamas. His hair is a mess too, but that doesn't stop him from having fun.

Today after milking we had lots of baking to do for Devin's birthday tomorrow. I am taking full advantage of this weekend and plan to squeeze in a movie later this evening.

I took this picture to illustrate how much cows love being together in a herd. These ladies are done being milked but will stand outside the gate until the last cow is done, then they head out to pasture together. In the meantime they pass time by licking each other on the faces and butting heads. True cow fellowship.

It affords me the chance to snap a cow selfie. I prefer the *cow face* over the *duck face* personally.

I hope everyone has a fabulous Christmas and is able to enjoy the time with family. I have simple plans here for us. Warm home, good food, family movies.
It is nice to be able to stay home and enjoy down time after the last couple of very hectic weeks.

See you after the holidays!!!!

The Clampett Phenomena

Today my barn stalls are complete, in fact the entire barn is finished.

Devin found a nearby sawmill and purchased some rough cut lumber. Do I love my new barn? Yes!!

I have 2 stalls, one on each side. They are closed in with wood and each have a gate. The gate is wide enough to allow a tractor to come in a scoop out muck.
Eventually we will own a tractor, eventually.

There is also electrical outlets so that I can plug in heat lamps or anything else I might need.

There is still plenty of room to walk around and behind the ladies when they are being milked too.

The wind was fairly gusty and cold last night so I kept one stall open. Lucy was quick to find shelter and get away from the northerly winter wind.

Now what to do with the old, temporary milking area?

Well, Devin tore it down. It was a useful area for 3 years now, but it was meant as a temporary area and needed to go.

A big fire followed. We actually had several old animal shelters that were looking rough and worn that also needed to go. One large fire later, the yard looks good again.

Sidenote:
This is how we combat the *Clampett Phenomena. This is important because I know some of you have dreams and images of  living on a beautifully landscaped farm one day. Just know that farms are real life and can get messy. They can get cluttered. You will have animals that make messes and sometimes the messes stay put for a while until you have time to pick them up. Unless you have lots and lots of wealth, you will some times look out and think the Clampetts moved in. You will find trash in the yard and broken animal feeders and oops! a feed sack blew off and is tangled in the tree line. You will walk outside and find chicken poo on your driveway because that is what free range chickens do.
Fear not! You will find a nice day and the motivation to get it all cleaned up, I promise. In the meantime, try and lose that picturesque image of the beautiful gentleman's farm. The real working farm is just as beautiful if you look at it with a positive mind, and I promise it is much more fulfilling!
End of lecture.

Later we decided to get busy and get the Christmas tree up and decorated.

The last couple of years we have placed the tree in our basement. The basement is in process of being finished, but it has been a slow process at times. Who wants to go into debt finishing a space such as this? Not us!
We work on things as we have disposable income, which isn't as often as years past. Devin finished windowsills in time for the tree to go up!
We hope that by early spring we can get flooring and then it will be finished!!!! In the meantime, it is a comfy and spacious area for holiday festivities!

Hand Made Holiday Recap

3 weeks until Christmas!

Usually I am whipping up hand made gifts, and this year is no exception. I admit that I have slimmed my hand made gift giving list down a bit though from previous years. The cows and the cheese making has really swallowed up my time. Yes, cheese will be a gift for some on my list.

I wanted to go back through older posts, ones where I shared hand made gift ideas.

I hope some of you might find a gift or two to make.

Now......time to get busy!

The Sharpie Plate. Popular on Pinterest, make sure you buy the right kind of Sharpie.

The Washer Necklace. If you have girls, you need to check this one out.

The Book Mark. This is really a great and pretty gift for the avid book reader!

Hot Chocolate Mix. This is still a favorite in this family!

Kid's Can Craft Too! This is always a popular gift your kids can make for friends and cousins!