A Day in The Life

I thought I would take you along with me to do the morning chores. You'll have to bundle up, it's freezing outside. Ten degrees with a wind chill of much lower....we'll be out for about 2 1/2 hours, so dress warmly!
A warm hat and warm, waterproof boots are essential.
We'll get the gator rolling and drive down to the barn...arriving just as dawn breaks. It's a still and peaceful time of day....my favorite!
The bigs are hungry, so we'll throw them a couple flakes of hay first.
Then we'll open up the fancy chicken pen, replenish their food and water and clean up the night's accumulated manure.
Can you hear Rod crowing? Let's head up to the hayloft and open the barn door a bit. There he is...."Good Morning Rod!"
You might have noticed that the barn kitties are under foot.
Let's feed them next.
By now the horses have had enough hay, so we'll give both the Bigs and the Littles their grain.
Next we head up to the goats and the rest of the chickens.
Everyone gets food and water.
The chicken coops are cleaned....especially the nesting boxes.
My chickens have a habit of pooping on and in their boxes....so we'll clean them out before today's laying begins.
One last chicken house to check....the babies.
Again some food and water and a bit of cleaning.
Now back to the barn to put the Bigs out to pasture and the Littles into the dry lot.
Later this morning we will go out again and switch them around.

Last but not least, we will muck the dry lot....cleaning up the night's accumulation of manure.
Then off to the manure pile to dump it all.

I don't know about you, but I'm starved. Let's head back to the house for a big breakfast of farm fresh eggs and home made bread with jam from last year's blueberries. Fresh Bee Haven honey for our tea......and all the work is worth it! We have a few hours free now, until we head back out to do it all again in the late afternoon.

And so this is life on the farm....up with the sun....there is never a question of what we will do each day....it's pretty well mapped out. But there is a certain comfort to the rhythm of life. It's hard work in sometimes brutal weather....but I wouldn't have it any other way!

Comments

Julie said…
I like mornings the best too. However, going out before the sun rises when temperatures are quite chilly to scoop manure would take a lot of getting used to, but getting the warm greeting from all the animals would be a blessing in itself!
Glo said…
That's a lot of work, especially in this cold weather! I imagine it is all worth it when the animals come out to greet you. Rod is so adorable! He looks like he has a lot to say!
Anke said…
Bev, your hat is gorgeous!!! Did you make it or buy it?
You are a very busy person in the morning, but I like what you said... "there is a certain comfort to the rhythm of life." I totally get that, and I love mornings as well.
Unknown said…
Oh, wow, I am so tired from reading all about your work(play) that I am going back down for a nap! lol I quess I never realized how much work was involved! You go girl!
Ginny said…
Bev, mornings are my favorite time as well. I only have 4 ducks and two inside cats and hubby to take care of in the a.m. before I head off to work, but I wouldn't have it any other way. Thanks for the tour.
Anonymous said…
I ,also am a morning person..I have to be..Molly Lolly gets me moving every morning with a 45 minute walk FIRST thing...that wind has been brutal but she doesn't seem to be anxious to get back inside....and yes, I get to do it all over again just before supper time...fortunately I only have one fuzzy responsibility..Oops, almost forgot about Max...Yippee..He's all indoors..Gotta love our animals
Thanks for sharing your morning chores! What beautiful animals you have. Love the rare poultry breeds you pictured.
http://all-natural-mama.blogspot.com
Katmom said…
Whew! I am exhausted! haha!
Think I will put on a pot of water for tea and pull out some decadent "Death by Chocolate cake" that I have stashed in the back of the freezer(so Gary won't find it-lol!).
Miss you and hope all is comfy & cozy at your homestead. It's snowing here but the snow is melting just as fast so I guess I should say it's "slushing"....
hugz from WA to PA
>^..^<
*Ulrike* said…
I love seeing the mornings real early too. That is a lot of work that keeps you busy, and in this cold right now too. Our weather has been very cold here in the south with snow forecasted for the end of this week. HA! A believe it when you see it thing!
Do you feed back to your chickens their egg shells? I have heard pros and cons about it. I'm not doing it right now, but I had done it a long, long time ago. Even with this cold weather we have gotten 9 eggs a day, give or take a few, which is pretty good for the moment.
I'll be back to check again as I really enjoy reading everything!
Ulrike
Anonymous said…
Thanks for taking us along on the chores. Totally enjoyable!
Bee Haven Bev said…
We do not feed our eggshells back to the hens...my feeling is that it encourages them to eat the eggs in the laying boxes. I do feed them oyster shell calcium, however....in little stones.
Aussiemade said…
Beverly thankyou so much for taking us with you this morning. It was lovely to escape the heat here in Tasmania. I feel really warm after all that. I love the smell of the barn. Wish I could have all that manure for my garden.
Thanks so much for the hearty breakfast. Delicous! wish I could have helped this evening.