Welcome to March!

When I think of March, I get a tingling hope of Spring. This past week has given us a glimpse of Spring with new life. Two of our does freshened, each with a healthy set of twins.

Mary cleaning one of her kids

Ruby cleaning one of her kids

 The first doe, Mary, one of my first two originals, freshened with a buck and doe. Ruby followed the next day with a beautiful set of twin does. Thankfully, I was able to be present for their births. Ruby did wonderful delivering her first doe, but the second one took her sweet time and then ended up being stuck in the wrong position. I had to reach in and rearrange her a bit so that she could make her grand entrance into the world. As nervous and impatient as I get around kidding season it also gives me feelings of joy, hope, wonder, amazement, and awe. I can't put into words how blessed I feel to witness these births and each time it is so special to me.

Mary and her kids

Ruby and her kids

I am eager to for Spring to get here, as we have decided to once again raise a small flock of chickens for eggs and this year will dabble in raising meat rabbits as well. Our garden last year produced so much that I had wished I knew how to can. This year my goal is to do some research and learn to can so I can save our harvest and lower our grocery bill. I am also very excited for the apple trees to fill once again. I found an awesome recipe for apple pie last year and it tasted especially divine using our very own apples. We also have a cherry tree, which I didn't take advantage of last year but I hope to figure out something to do with the cherries as well.


What are your plans for Spring? Leave me a comment and tell me all about it, plus I'd love some tips about raising rabbits!

Have a wonderful day dear followers!

I've briefly introduced you to my goat adventures, but I figured I would give you all a glimpse of my whole starter herd of Nigerian Dwarf Goats, which includes 2 does and 2 bucks. 


"Dyna" as we call her is the Diva and the spunky one out of the group. She loved to run and play and kick up her heels. She is bold and doesn't seem to be afraid of anything. Dyna tends to do pretty well at shows, she placed 2nd in her class at our first show and 1st in her class at the second show plus was awarded Reserve Champion Junior Doe. She seems to mature faster than my other doe and I hope that she milks well in the future! Big Sister insists that Dyna is "HER" goat.



"Mary" is a sweet quiet girl. She is go with the flow and easy to get along with. She loved to run and place but seems to be more interested in her surroundings and exploring. She seems to be a little slower to develop than Dyna and hasn't placed as well as in her first two shows. The older she gets it seems like her body is catching up. I plan to breed her much later than I will with Dyna, so that she has plenty of time to mature into a great milker. Little Sister insists that Mary is"HER" goat.


"Joey" is my shy boy. He isn't too wild about human contact, but will tolerate it. I wasn't sure if I would like him when I first bought him, but he is really growing on me, I like him build and his resilience. His dam raised triplets, so I am hopeful that he will pass on some nice milk genetics.

"Johnny" was a bottle baby growing up and boy can you tell it. He is like a puppy dog and will follow me everywhere. He is very friendly and just loves Big Sister. He will eat ANYTHING that a human gives him, even icky medicine that the other goats fight me with. He appears to have more of a dairy build than Joey and his dam was a good milker, so I am hopeful that he will pass on nice milk genetics as well. 

I would like to get another doe, maybe a yearling, after winter to round out the herd a bit. I plan on breeding my girls next year for summer kids. If I am blessed with a doeling I will be keeping a doeling from each of my does and selling any other kids (assuming I can part with them, I know I will fall in love!) I can't wait to start milking and making soap and cheese! I have been doing a lot of research so that I am prepared once the milk starts flowing.

We have a show coming up mid September and this time we will be taking the boys as well. I am new to goats so I am curious as to what the judges think of my little bucks!

Have a wonderful evening dear followers!

At the start of this blog I wrote about several horses we have around the farm. My husband and I spend a large about of our time taking care of rescue horses. We both have a great passion for horses and horses are what brought us together! So, when I was contacted by Standlee Hay Company, Inc. to review their Hay Products I was over joyed because the review would directly benefit one of our rescue horses!


Standlee Hay Company, Inc. has several different types of forage for sale designed to help feed your animals as each has different needs and circumstances. Their focus is on alfalfa, timothy grass, orchard grass and mixes of alfalfa/timothy and alfalfa/orchard grasses, however they also provide beet pulp, whole oats, and even horse treats. Their hay products come in cubes, mini cubes, and pellets.

Blade, our review subject for Standlee Alfalfa Hay Cubes!

Blade's topline

When feeding rescue horses, particularly those that are elderly with teeth issues, we like to feed hay cubes. I decided to check out Standlee's Alfalfa Hay Cubes for our elderly horse, Blade. Blade is a 28 year old Thoroughbred/Quarter Horse cross. He raced for several years before be retired to enjoy trail riding, mounted posse, and 4-H. Blade's previous owner had several life changes that made it impossible to take care of her horses, so she donated Blade and his buddy Sabrina to the horse rescue. Blade has proved to be quite the hard keeper. We have tried a lot of things to keep weight on him, regular deworming, teeth floating, and different diets designed for elderly horses. Out of all the horses on the farm, Blade is fed the MOST feed. The only thing we have not tried yet, is hay cubes!

Blade munching on cubes!

Blade LOVES his Standlee Alfalfa Hay Cubes! He can chew them easier than regular grass or alfalfa hay, as it is soaked in water before consumption. I actually believe he looks forward to them at breakfast and dinner time and although it may appear that it is not a large quantity of food, once it is soaked and expands the amount is amazing and the quality is great. We have tried other brands of Hay Cubes with horses in the past and the Standlee Alfalfa Cubes take a shorter amount of time to soak and expand completely. I am pretty sure it has to do with some of the binders that the other companies use to keep the cubes in their compact square shape.

Dry Standlee Alfalfa Hay Cubes

Soaked Standlee Alfalfa Hay Cubes (Half Eaten, lol)

Blade has not been on his cubes for a long enough time to see big results yet, but I can tell that they are helping little by little. I will be updating you all throughout his progress. The older the horse is, the harder it seems for them to put weight on, so it may be a couple months before we will see the noticeable difference that we are expecting from the Standlee Alfalfa Hay Cubes.

Click here to see what My Rating means!
Cost: 50 pound bag Alfalfa Hay Cubes were $12.99 in Evansville, Indiana. Prices may vary depending on the state in which you live. Contact your local feed store. 
Where to Buy: Standlee Hay Company makes it easy to fine a retailer near you, click here to find one through their website tool! Our local Tractor Supply Company in Evansville, Indiana had the best selection of Standlee Hay Company, Inc. products. 
Like Standlee Hay Company, Inc. on Facebook and Tweet with them on Twitter!


Have a wonderful day dear followers and don't forget to hug your horse!






Disclaimer: Standlee Hay Company, Inc. provided me with $120.00 worth of their hay products in order to provide this review. I was not compensated in any other way. All opinions are 100% mine based on my personal experience with their product. I, nor Standlee Hay Company, Inc. makes any guarantees about this product. I am not a veterinarian, so please consult with your animal's veterinarian before making changes to their diet or implementing anything suggested in this post.

Please give a warm welcome to my new babies!

It may not be surprising that my husband affectionately calls me "Ellie Mae" from the Beverly Hillbillies when I bring up wanting to add a new addition to the farm. My adventures in poultry raising has been...interesting. Rural King is my worst enemy in the spring, as they faithfully have the cutest day old chicks, ducklings, and goslings, every year. Don't get me started on auctions, I brought home a calf in the back of my dear sweet husband's van once, as well.

So, when I admit that I have been researching goats for a while now, this will probably not be surprising as well. I am really interested in making goat's milk soaps, especially after purchasing some online. I became even more intrigued as I learned about raw milk benefits for my girls.

Well, a couple days ago, I decided to bring up goats to my husband, again. You see, this isn't the first time we have discussed it, last year's adventures at the Petting Zoo really brought the idea to the forefront of my mind. As we get closer and closer to finishing the house, I feel like it is something we need to do, for our family. Maybe I caught him on an off day, because my husband said yes and he even is making suggestions on where to put their pasture and shelter!

I have decided that I want to start with a pair of Dwarf Nigerian does for milking and as pets. I chose this breed for their ability to produce a nice amount of milk for their size and because I think that they will be small and docile enough that the girls can enjoy them as well.

So, I am in the planning process, trying to decide on pasture/shelter size (alloting for babies in the future) that won't put too much strain on our budget.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
Have a wonderful day dear followers!

Both of my daughters have a love for horses, however they both have an infatuation with donkeys. Whenever I take them to the barn, they casually look around, check out the horses, play with the barn cats and then ask me to go see the donkeys. We currently have two donkeys that live at the farm, Samuel and Solomon. Both came from not so great pasts but both have made great improvements. This summer we learned that Samuel would accept a young rider, which is saying a lot since when he arrived he would just assume kick you as look at you. He just LOVES kids and after several months of coaxing from our friend's 10 year old grandson, Samuel decided life was okay here and that he could trust us (okay the kids at least). Big Sister was the first to "ride" Samuel, that first day, he acted like he was carrying precious glass that could be broken with the wrong move. I was amazed! I think that that day was the day Big Sister REALLY developed her infatuation with donkeys.
  About a month ago I was contacted by Cheryl Pollak, the producer of a children's animated series, "Jasper the Mule." I was excited and honored at the opportunity for us to review "Jasper the Mule" , espeically since the girls love horses and donkeys so much.

 "Jasper the Mule" is a series of holiday-based 22 minute specials following a young mule named Jasper and his best friend, a Jack Russell Terrier named Moxie, on their adventures.

Screen shot from JasperTheMule.com

I knew that my girls would love these specials and boy was that an understatement. There isn't a day that goes by that my girls don't ask me to watch "Donkeys" as they call it. They don't quiet get the concept that a mule is a cross between a donkey and a horse, yet. To them, are the same thing. Anyways, "Jasper the Mule" was a HUGE hit in my home! My girls are 3 and 1 1/2 now and just get a kick out of Jasper and his adventures. I have to admit that they are addiciting to watch for adults as well, my favorite is the Valentine special. Althought, after the girls fighting over and pulling out the "Jasper the Mule" DVD out of the drawer constantly for me to play, it has scratches now that affect our Valentines special a little bit.

 As a parent, I found it very neat and educational that during each special the animals discuss the "meaning of" or the "reason" people celebrate that particular event/holiday. The language and conversations between characters are poliet and not contriversial. The subjects are relevent, up to date, and enjoyable for the whole family. The colors are also vibrant and attractive for children.


Have a wonderful day dear followers!