Contributor's Introduction, Pat Collins

After much procrastination and many excuses I am finally getting around to posting something, many thanks to Amanda from Rocky Valley Farms for setting up the blog and all the work that she has been doing on her other blogs. Plus my many many thanks to the entire family, they have been a huge help to me since I moved to the "farm"

I guess I should give you a bit of back ground about me. About 5 years ago me and my family moved out to New Brunswick from southern Ontario full of hopes and dreams leaving the city and moving out to a beautiful 100 acre piece of land in Central Hainesville NB. The "old Wallace place" as it is know in these parts. The land is a mix of about 40 acres of cleared land (mix of nice hay fields, brooks, farm hours and barns) and the rest is a mix of brooks, beaver ponds, woodlot. All the barns and farm house are the original ones that were built by the first Homesteading family on this land. I am still working on more of the history of the Wallace family and will be posting more about that later.

It is amazing to stand inside one of these old barns in the middle of a good old fashioned "Nor Easter, well yes sir she's going to be a nasty one" look up at the original hand hewn timbers from tree's that were felled by hand probably from the very spot that the barn is sitting on. See the hand carved pegs in the mortise and tenon joints holding the timber frame together. Hold one of the hundreds of hand forged square nails that still hold the vertical boards that are blocking that wind. That bone splitting Nor Easter wind, a wind that I have seen blow snow balls as big as basketballs up the side of Crabbe Mountain. Standing in the middle of that barn, watching the goats happily munching on some fresh hay, warm and snug in there winter pens. You hear the wind scream whisper and that old barn just stands there saying nothing, not moving an inch completely ignoring how pissed off the wind is that it has to go around the barn. I imagine they have been having this argument for over a hundred years. The wind constantly complaining and nagging, day after day ever since that damm barn got in its way. The barn just standing there taking it, saying nothing but I heard its voice.

If you stand for something long enough you don't have to say any thing about what you stand for.

patio

Not off to a good start!

Well, things on the farm have not been as peachy as I'd like them to be. That is, unfortunately, the reality of farming livestock. Sometimes things work the way you want, but more often than not, things go a bit awry.

About two weeks ago, we had a doe kid 12 days early. That early, we knew the kids would not be viable - one was filled with fluid, the other was tiny - both premature. I have started milking that doe since, and she has turned out to be a great doe. She stands quietly, I don't even tie her, and she comes to the door of the pen when she sees me coming - I will have to get a video of Mabel heading for the door when she hears my voice! She has turned out to be a quiet, good milker despite being something like 87% boer - not a milk breed at all. I guess some good can come of the loss of the kids as I am planning to soon start making cheese and yogurt with the milk from Mabel, and have an opportunity in April to visit with a friend who is an avid soap maker, who is planning to show me the ropes of soap!

Yesterday morning, I went to milk Mabel and found an otherwise perfectly healthy looking buck kid dead in the pen. How frustrating! He was probably still born, but either way, not a very pleasant way to start the day.

3 for 3... it's not looking good so far, but I am hoping this means that the rest of our kidding season will go awesomely and without flaw. Here's hoping, my fingers are crossed anyways!

It is hard to leave the farm when you are on your first real day of "Kid Watch 2010", but that is the reality of it. All of the adults on the farm work full time jobs most of the year (I get a few months off in the winter as I work seasonally), my sister goes to school. Most of the time, there is no one here on the farm full time to tend the animals. Things can go wrong when you're not looking, when you're sleeping, when your back is turned for a split second. They say when you have livestock, you have deadstock, too.

Fortunately, my father has a couple of weeks off so he is keeping watch on the herd and the flock now, getting some spring cleanup done, and working with a couple of horses. Sometimes it feels like our work is never done, though!

Contributor Introduction: Amanda

At the time of this writing, I am a 24 year old young woman living on a farm that has been in my family for at least three generations. The city once called my name but it turns out the farm has a much stronger call, and after living on my own, I have returned to my roots.

There is nothing I love more than the farm in the early morning when the air is still a little bit crisp. Everything is quiet except for the impatient morning sounds of the animals as I make my way to the barn. It is that atmosphere that I missed the most when I lived in the city.

We have, on and off, had our own meat, at the very least, here on the farm. Over the years, we have also had chickens (for meat and egg), cattle for milk purposes, and some semblance of a garden. Though we've deviated from that plan more or less since my high school days, we are beginning to come back around.

This year (2010), we have three calves - two intended for the freezer, and another that we will raise to be the "family cow", breed yearly and milk for personal consumption. We also have a small herd (12 adult does) of goats, as well as a slightly larger flock (22 adult ewes) of sheep. The kids and lambs are used for market or breeding stock. I have plans for chickens when the weather begins to warm a little, and a pig as soon as possible (I love having pigs around!).

The garden is a tricky stick. Our farm is called "Rocky Valley Farms" for a reason - it is both within a valley, and rocky. We have to take our stock elsewhere to bury it if we need to bury it deep, with the exception of a couple of family dogs that are buried about a foot deep with a huge rock monument on top of each grave. The only thing we can grow with any success and consistency is indeed rocks. Either way - we try our best and build on top of the land with composted horse manure. This year, I would like to make a bigger attempt with the garden.

Also residing on the farm are six dogs, a couple of which are our "charity" cases, five horses and a pony, as well as a llama and an alpaca. It is certainly a diverse group full of interesting characters that I am excited to share!

Why this blog?

The basic concept of the blog is to share the idea of homesteading and sustaining oneself from their own land and stock with the online community. Along the way, you will receive the very personal, thoughtful, humorous and sometimes thought provoking stories and opinions of our contributors.

We think of the blog as an opportunity to share the little slices of our lives that are trials, tribulations, success and joys that inevitably make the cycle when you are living on a farm, far from the conveniences of a city, with livestock as some of your best friends.

And lets face it, the people we talk to day to day are sick of hearing our cute alpaca and goat stories!