Raindrops fell into the dewy grass and created a quiet hush in the early daylight. Or at least it was hushed until I brought my tired baby and rambunctious kiddo kicking and screaming out of the house to wrangle some birds before 7 am.

Our pastured poultry are raised in pens that we rotate over fresh grass at least once per day. These pens provide plenty of space to forage grasses and grubs, focus the nutrient-rich manure, and most importantly provide safety. Our birds live out their days happily without a care in the world. That’s usually what happens. After having cattle with these pens all summer, our docile mama cows decided they wanted to rip apart our pens, push around the frames and become chicken bullies. 

A few days prior to the general destruction we noticed the girls slightly rubbing and nudging the pens. We attributed it to curiosity and decided to keep an eye on it. Costly mistake.  After wrangling nearly 100 birds, two times before noon I decided the remedy was happening that afternoon once the hubby dearest came home with the pick up. We moved pens, chickens, ducks and kids back and forth across the road countless times.

Bed-time seems to be something normal families do for their children, but as a full-time mama dragging children around as I go about my lady-farmer business there seems to be a trend of working until dark and throwing multi-grain cheerios or Graham crackers at them for a snack. Hubby Dearest helps where he can, but often times that means we are working to dark as a family unit. 

Thus we were moving chickens, ducks, and pens at 8.30pm with kids starting to fuss (Cue more Graham crackers) and the sun starting to sink beneath the treeline. 

As I start to feel the season change from summer into fall I am anxious to see what the peak of our season will bring. I know we will have over 300 broilers, 8 pigs, our first sow, 13 cattle, an incredibly handsome horse and handful of laying lady ducks/hens in September into October. It may not seem like much, but it’s our biggest year yet and it has me giving pep-talks to myself and self high fives on the daily. So many unknown trials, adventures, tantrums, animal escapes, and special moments to come.

Getting pumped for the peak of our 2017 season. Bring it on fall. 

(Smiling instead of getting frustrated)

Wind was blowing rain into our living room window in loud sporadic sheets.  Sweet Little Miss Q was staring wide eyed as leaves ripped off branches and swirled away out of view.  Dense clouds turned the sun into a gray-blue twilight that lasted from dawn to late morning.  Only poultry remain on the farm as the butcher has come and our pastures recover over winter.  Though we are striving to have breeding livestock year-round, I’m not upset that I don’t have to water hogs, chase sheep, or mend fences today.  I will watch the storm and maintain caffeine levels.
Coffee is a food group on days like today.  I need the energy to continue the battle against spiders attempting to colonize my home.  Spiders of all shapes and sizes have decided that our humble abode would be the perfect place to nest.  I’ve found them in boots, blankets, beds, toilets, you name a room and I’ve likely chased a spider there.  My methods of removal vary based on my level of horror: when a choice specimen was crawling up the chest of my 15 month old I squished a quarter sized arachnid with my thumb and forefinger, when one crawled out of the towel drawer in the kitchen the weapon of choice was a cheese slicer, and when one dropped onto me in the shower I’m not sure which karate chop move did the trick but only one of us walked out alive…
The farm is a horror show in terms of spiders, webs and their ability to get in or around my hair or on my baby. I don’t mind spiders, they are important to food-webs and I am in awe of their natural ability to spin silk art.  But I pity the spider who chooses to jump from the chicken coop door onto Little Miss Q or flies through the air to land on my head… “oh was that an alder cone falling from that tree?” NOPE.
A few fun facts about spiders from Random History: 
1)There are typically 1 million spiders in 1 acre of land
2)Spiders are not only pollinators of plants but support bird and small animal diets
3)Spiders help control insect populations (which is increasingly important for years like 2015 when insect populations boom, thus negatively affecting food crops, timber production, and other environmental sectors)
4)Some of the most deadly spiders in the world include black widow and brown recluse (both of which have been found in the Pacific Northwest).

So, though I love spiders and all the work they do, I will fight the good fight to keep them out of my house and off my baby. If that includes squishing a quick little spider with the baby monitor as I write blog posts- so be it.

     
Little Miss Q watching the storm