Rain

Thank goodness for a little rain today - Jim ran errands for the Cafe and I picked up a pair of Black shouldered pied peafowl, our old peacock having been laid to rest last fall. This new pair will join our 2 year old hen (Hen) enlivening the yard with not only their grace but their truly exotic calls. Nothing like a peafowl call in the dawn or dusk to make one forget they are in the midwest U.S.!

Tomorrow we take Mr. Dog back to the airport for his return trip home after a week vacation here on the farm where the intention was for him to sire a litter of puppies for us. It was not to be! We'll make a half-day of the trip to Minneapolis, lunch with the kids, a few vital plant purchases and some banding rings to finish up the lambs who are still running about with tails. We used a 'hair' ram this year, a Dorper - on our good Texel x Dorset ewes and are curious to see what they look like this fall when it is time to send them off.
We're hoping to see good carcass quality without too much grain finishing. The pastures are starting to come on now so that they are eating very little hay/grain but of course are nursing and will do so for another couple months.

I think it is later this week that the calves come here from Draxler's enormous dairy farm - we're getting 6 this year - for training the dogs mostly; they'll be our trial cattle for the fall Kelpie Trial in September. Trouble is doing well with the kids now, at first she was overly stimulated by them but yesterday she managed to put them as well as our dairy goats in the back pasture. The calves will give her great experience. Here's a pix of Trouble at her first AHBA trial this past fall where she got her JHD.

Made a batch of chevre yesterday which is now safely in the refrigerator mellowing :) I'm going to use some for a cheesecake - I have to believe it will be delicious!