It’s off to freezer camp for this batch of broilers! First batch of the year, and it couldn’t come too soon, because we’re almost completely out of chicken! I’ve only got a couple packages left of thighs and drumsticks. 🍗 #homesteading #pasturedpoultry #growyourownfood #homegrown #chicken #pastureraised #homesteadlife
Benny is the sweetest puppy! He was born and raised on a working homestead around chickens and other livestock, and it really shows! He is very calm and comfortable around all of our animals, especially the chickens! Pretty good for only 12 weeks old! #greatpyrenees #livestockguardiandog #puppy #farmdog #greatpyreneespuppy #chickens #homesteading #rooster #farmlife #pasturedeverything #pastureraised
What an amazing experience to watch our chicks hatching!!! Unfortunately, for this first batch, only 3 out of 10 eggs made it to hatch. 5 died earlier on, we think possibly because of a short power outage we had around day 7, and 2 others died only a couple days before the hatch day for reasons unknown. We have 2 more batches of eggs incubating right now, with one ready to hatch in about 5 days! Hoping for more success with this next batch!
Curiosity got the best of us, and we cracked open a couple of the chicken eggs that stopped developing after a couple weeks in the incubator. Don’t worry, we made sure they weren’t viable before we cracked them open! The other eggs were MUCH more developed than these. We had a power outage about a week into incubation, which we think may have caused half of our 10 eggs to stop developing, unfortunately. 😞 We have cows on the property next to us, and we went outside in the dark to crack these eggs open. Little did we know that there was a cow right next to us. Freaked us out a little when it started moving around! 🤣 The good news is that the rest of the eggs in this batch are now starting to pip (crack open their shells), so we should have some new baby chicks in the next 24 hours!!! So exciting! The very first animals to be born on our homestead! 💗
You see, what had happened was…..my chainsaw got pinched when I was cutting the branch, and I had to step forward to apply more force, so I wasn’t able to get out of the way as quickly. I knew it was going to fall when I cut that branch, I just didn’t anticipate having to push harder on the chainsaw, thereby thwarting my escape. 🤦🏼♀️ I even cut the underside of the branch first to try to avoid that happening, but obviously it didn’t work. Thankfully I had the forethought to clear away the stumps around that area so I wouldn’t trip over them when I ran (or was shoved) away. I’m so thankful it wasn’t worse, and I only ended up with a bruise on the arm. Jesus was definitely watching over me! 🙏🏻 Ahh, life on the homestead. 😄 #homesteading #chainsaw #forestry #girlscandoittoo #lifeonthefarm #farmlife #homesteadlife #accidentshappen #mistakesweremade #homestead #countrylife
The deer are eating our baby apple and peach trees! We used some old T posts and woven wire fencing that we had previously removed from around the farm to make little protective cages for the trees. No more snacks for the deer! #orchard #homesteading #lifeonthefarm #homestead #homesteadlife #appletrees #peachtree #georgiapeach
Our barn was destroyed........on purpose! The horse barn on our property was old, patched together, and falling apart. Every time a storm rolled through, I was afraid the roof would be ripped off. It was already missing several pieces, and the inside got soaked with every rain shower. I think watching the barn demo was one of the boys' favorite things that has happened on our homestead so far. 😄 I could hear them yelling with excitement whenever a big section came crashing down. We have big plans for this space! Follow along to see what happens next! #demoday #barn #homesteading #farmlife #demo #lifeonthefarm #homestead #countrylife
All 10 of our eggs are developing!!!!! We’re going to check back on day 10 to make sure they’re all growing, so stay tuned. This is so exciting! Freckles is doing his job! 😄 #chickens #eggs #incubation #babychicks #homesteading #lifeonthefarm #homeschool
We ordered this All American pressure canner about 6 months ago, and it was back ordered because I really wanted this beautiful Berry Blue color. It was definitely worth the wait! I’m excited to finally use those many chicken and Turkey carcasses in our freezer to make delicious stock! #canning #pressurecanning #homesteading
It’s Graduation Day for our 18 turkeys!!! They finally get to spread out and forage within the safety of the electrified poultry netting fence. They weren’t thrilled to be picked up and moved to their new home, but once they were there, I’m sure they were pleasantly surprised. 😆 🦃 #homesteading #freerange #pastureraised #turkey
Our meat chicks have graduated to the chicken tractor! It’s crazy how different they are than our laying hens! They grow so much faster, and are so much more smelly and ugly. Lol! I guess that’ll help make it a little bit easier when it comes to processing day. This is the first time we’ve ever grown our own food. I’ve never been successful with tiny container gardens in our previous backyards, let alone ever raising any sort of meat, so this is a totally new experience for us. But we’re glad that these chickens will have a better life out on pasture where they can scratch around, eat bugs and grass, and eat GMO free food, instead of being cooped up in a hot, smelly barn with thousands of other birds, never seeing the light of day or breathing fresh air. We don’t just know where our food is coming from, we are immersed in it. We are raising these chickens from start to finish, and we know they’ll have a good life before providing our family with nourishment to live and thrive.
These alpacas were so adorable, they looked like cartoon characters! They were right outside the alpaca wool store in Quechee, Vermont. You could buy food from a little vending machine for a quarter and feed them. Their mouths tickled your hand as they ate. 😆 🦙 Steve may or may not have looked up how much it costs to buy an alpaca after this encounter. 😂 Once I heard this audio, I knew I had the perfect video for it! #alpaca #alpacalove #alpacafarm #alpacawool #quechee #vermont
