Weekly Update 3/27

All our tree orders are in ! Our first chickens and ducks arrived friday as did our first 50 trees! We are so nearly there on the parking lot design! We have the basement in usable shape as work shop space, laundry room and an additional room for whatever we may like- we redid the ceilings, rubber flooring in one room and stenciling the concrete in the other, the trim, painted the walls, removed spalling brick, new wainscoting, installed a new hearth (the Polman men did the masonry work), the formal fancy living room is set up with a few seats and one big armoire. I will do a before/after post of the basement! We finally started sleeping upstairs in the bedrooms and the large room we were originally using as a studio/ everything room is set up as a workhorse of an office/farm planning/farm running space. The chicken coops have been cleaned, cleaned again and are now drying out. Luke built our first version of a mobile chicken home. We had a few on site edits and one of the Sussex ladies was real intrigued by the whole welding thing. Glen got jealous of the chickens and then found out how electric the electric fence was.

Finally, in a non farm related matter. We spent evenings making masks in our new shop space for a local hospital here that has run out. It is super easy and if it helps out the people who are helping those who need it most it is 100 percent worth it. We used this template from Deacon Hospital.

Animals we will have in house by the end of April :

15 Black Australorp females , 15 Light Brahmas females, a mix of 28 cold weather laying hens assortment of heritage breeds from McMurray, 10 Sussex females and 5 males (too many males…), 20 Moulard Ducks, 25 Muscovy Ducks and 6 Toulouse Geese!

Can’t wait! We are also on the look out for a draft horse, a goat and some Blanc de Hotot or Beveren Rabbits!

In the meantime, once to twice a day I go in the baby duck sauna (their home until 3 weeks old) to sped some happy warm moments out of the cold and away from all the sad news.