2016 - A Year of Changes

    Happy new year! 2016 already, and I vow to blog this year. Yup, I know, it's about time. After opening a restaurant in 2014, and trying to keep up with that business, running our hobby farm and still taking care of the family, I had very little time to blog.  No, that's not true...I did not MAKE the time to blog. So, today I made several short videos of the farm to get things started that I will share with you over the next few weeks. My kids say I talk to myself all the time (Actually half of the time that's true, the other half I just talk out loud when I pray, kind of a "daily conversation with God" you could say), so I figured why not talk to you all instead. It will alleviate the need for an insanity plea later on I think.
    2016 is going to begin with us facing difficult choices.  The restaurant is not succeeding, which we knew was a long shot to begin with.   Feb 15th marks the end of two years and the day we decide to keep going or call it quits. Trying to keep a viable business in a town of 900+ is very tough.  The general population is divided into two groups; The ones that care about the welfare and prosperity of the town, who encourage growth and new business, and who attend every special event held by every local chapter, church, or school organization. We love that group, they are keeping us from going totally broke. Then there are the others who have no interest in anything town related (unless free food is offered), refuse to patronize local businesses (unless the beer if cheap), have never joined a local club, church, charity, or school event. They are the majority. They are also the reason our town struggles to stay afloat and businesses close their doors forever. Our business may be one of them. So what if the restaurant fails, at least I tried! God is good and He has a plan.
    Knowing this truth has helped spur on my sudden interest in our farm again. Everything seems fresh with possibility. I acquired 2 new goats last week. One is a Nubian/Boer/Toggenburg mix and was supposedly very pregnant and ready to give birth any day. Nope. She was fat from eating grain and bloated from not foraging properly. It figures. The other goat is a gorgeous 88% Boer buck that we are borrowing for awhile. Hopefully he will do his duty and do it well.  Our other two goats are ready for breeding again, and we are more than ready for goats milk!
    The chickens have started laying in earnest again after their molt, so we can start selling eggs once more. I have a new coop to build and an old one to refurbish and clean. I also want to build 2 more 5-gallon bucket feeders and a nipple watering system. Check it out on the Chicken Chick's website, they are an awesome way to keep the water fresh all the time.
    Then once the roof is finished on the donkey's lean-to shed, the shelter is built for the horses, and the last stall is rebuilt in the barn, I can start raising the garden bed! The floods this year turned it into a swimming hole. It's always something isn't it?!
Enjoy the videos, and I hope that by sharing them you can all learn along with me what works, and what doesn't, when running a hobby farm. Happy farming!