Winter is Coming

This past week has been Winter is Coming week. Bill took a few days off and we've been stockpiling important things for the coming cold.

Hey! It's hay! We have a pile of hay that we (mostly Bill) scythed this year, but it's not enough for the entire winter, so we purchased some bales as well.

We've been stacking wood too. Last year we got a small electric splitter which is tied with our chicken plucker as one of my favorite purchases.

This is about an hour of splitting. Not nearly enough yet! Some of that wood is cherry, which means our shed smells amazing. 

Lastly, I've been doing a little quilting. Having my own craft room and working on project bags for my little Etsy shop has reacquainted me with my sewing machine (and fabric shops), so I'm hoping my quilting bug returns. I'm machine quilting a pepper quilt I started when we first moved to Indiana.

The archived process of making this quilt is on my very first (I think), rather old blog. Here's the best photo from the series:

We have lots more work to do before the snow (I hope!) flies, but we've gotten a good start.

That new car and goat smell

Earlier this month we bought a new car. We were hoping to keep the old one until our next scheduled trip to NY in the fall, but it was not to be.

The first cargo we carried in the car can be seen in the back window of this photo:

Need a closer look?

Goats, naturally. Two 8-week old Nubian doelings. They very sweetly held their bladders during the hour-long trip until we released them into the barn.

This is Kaylee (aka "The Ears" - they stick right out of her head).

And her half-sister Saffron.

The sheep are very skeptical, but they all seem to be sharing space alright. The goats are curious, friendly and sweet. They are a bit timid about going outside by themselves, but they seem to enjoy eating the thistle, and that rocks my world.

This is Poofy. I went to take a photo of the adorable chick poking its head out from her wing and every time I snapped a picture, a new chick popped out. Can you see all three (plus the backside of the fourth)?

I leave you with goats being adorable: 

What's in the Box: The Reveal!

The new toy Bill was excited to get last week is....

A LIGHTSABER

...for cutting grass.

It's his own, made-just-for-him scythe. There are lots of exciting details about this scythe. I, though, haven't paid attention to a word of Bill's explanation. Something about a snath? Or a ball sack? I dunno. But a lot of the details sound very sketchy and dirty.

Bill intends to hay 4 acres of pasture with this handy tool. Much like I prefer sweeping over vacuuming, Bill says he'll enjoy scything much more than mowing. Mowing is loud, he says, and "bees sting you and you smell like gas." Apparently scything is rhythmic and soothing.

Our strawberries and peas are growing!

The hay mulch we've been using to prevent weeds in the garden is working pretty well. We just need more of it! Let the scything commence!