Never In My Wildest Dreams..

Even though the pear tree is in bloom..

..and the grape hyacinths are up..

..it's still really cold here.

And, never, ever, in my wildest dreams, did I see the events of last night coming my way.

The power went off.

Normally, no big deal, till you have five baby chicks who are one week old and have to maintain a 95 degree temperature or..well, chicksicles.

It was around 4am - I didn't know what to do. 

I was in full panic.

Then, it hit me.

I picked them all up, and they were pretty cold.  Not moving much at all.

I took them upstairs in the laundry hamper, put on my housecoat, tucked each one inside against my belly, and then played statue for three hours. 

They were sprawled out, happy, and they were warm.

Of course, I had a shoot to shop for today, and felt like I'd been hit by a truck - looked like it too. 

When people asked what was up with me today, I simply said I had five chickens in my housecoat all night and didn't get a wink of sleep!

What would you have done?

The Latest Buzzz..

Something was a buzz in the blueberry patch this weekend.

Yes, we have bees again. 

We use to keep bees, but my husband became very allergic. 

Since he was the bee keeper, that was that.

Now, a lovely neighbour has taken up bee keeping, and asked if he could keep them here.

Bee keeping is magical, and when I get more time, I'll get back into it. 

I think I have shot about 5 stories on bees over the years for magazines.

The smell of warm honey in the summer, the taste of fresh honeycomb!

Can't wait.

On the Mabel front..not so good. 

She is going in for her second foot surgery.

I'm so torn - am I torturing her with all this medication, surgery, injections, wraps.

Should I just let her be.

I've decided to give surgery one more chance.

I don't think I'd forgive myself if I didn't give her a shot at a happy life.

On the cuter, less sad side of farm life..

we've been letting the baby chicks flutter about the room. 

They are trying to fly, and love to run.

It's hilarious to watch.

Seems to me, that Peep (the yellow one) has discovered what we didn't know either...

...Cocoa's bottom is damn cute! And white?!

Size perspective.

Meet the Girls...

 Can one be considered a farmer is there are no chickens on the farm?

I didn't think so.

So, meet the newest girls here at Missing Goat.

All of six days old,.this is...

Haddie Doe.

Yes, you read that right - my wee girl of three got to name one..and that is the name she picked.

Now you know why I only let her name one.

She is a silver laced wyandotte

Here is Coco. 

She is a cuckoo maran - originating in France..so, coco it is.

If she is nuts, we'll go back to cuckoo.

My niece named this one Peep. 

Lets face it, Easter is coming, and she looks like a marshmallow peep.

She is a buff orphington.

This is my very pretty lady.  An Araucana.  She almost looks like an owl.

She is yet to be named, and I'm looking for ideas!!

Already declined:

Princess Snow White

Princess Belle

Princess Cinderella

Foofie, Woofie and

Haddie Boa - very similar to Haddie Doe.

This feisty little mama is Johnny Drama. 

I know, that is a boys name, but she reminds me of Johnny Drama from Entourage.

All puffed up and full of herself.

She is a dark brahma - thus the name drama.

   But really, she's not so tough. 

A happier girl, there could not be.

PEEP!!

What better way to welcome spring, than with some spring chicks!

Welcome the new girls on the farm.

I've always wanted chicks. 

Always.

I've been waiting a year for this day.

They are about 72 hours old. 

Fresh from the shell you could say.

Hardest part of this day..photographing them under the heat lamp.

(So, excuse the red glow)

Second hardest part - getting them to stay awake to get a picture. 

They literally fall over on their faces asleep every few seconds.

Scared me half to death for several hours.

I picked out five.  A good start. 

This is my dark brahma.

psst..do you want to take a nap with me?

shh.

This is my araucana - the green/blue egg layer.

I'm such a Martha wanna be.

Have You Ever...

Eaten an entire bowl of jello.

I did today.

The whole house is sick.  The dog, the duck, the wee girl and the husband. 

I had a quiet moment for the first time in a week, and since no one else was eating it..

Once everyone woke up, I told a lie.  I just had to get out.

I said I had to give the ducks some water and I ran outside (with the camera and my cold tea)

My garlic is looking very happy!

Could I make a tiny tart from these wee rhubarb stalks?

Get real. The last thing I want to do right now is make pastry.

Boy, last time I looked at these chives, they were just starting to pop up.

On the Mabel front...I thought she was doing better, but I was a fool with a dream.

So, back to the vet tomorrow. 

She is better than a month ago, but her ankle is still very bad.

Please dear lord..don't make me assist in vet surgery again tomorrow.

I learnt the difference between a city vet and country farm vet last week. 

In the country, you are the vets assistant during surgery.

Didn't I use to travel to Paris shooting stories for magazines?

How did I get to this!

How did I get here?  I'll be honest, I came here, and I love it.

Am I a farmer..yes. 

Am I the posh stylist talking design..not so much.

And, one glimmer of extreme excitement in my life...

...you'll have to wait till next week.

But this shot is your hint!

Behind Me...

In an attempt to get today's vet visit out of my head, I'm posting happy macaron shots. 

To the west, I eat cake bombs from Butter Baked Goods..

..but to the east, I eat macarons from Little White House.

My favourite is the toasted coconut.

I try to deliver my jam quietly, then buy two macarons.  One for me, one for my girl.

Natasha will not let me leave without a box - that's a dozen.

If you go to your window, no matter where you live in this world, I think you can see my bottom.

It's that big thing right behind me.

Because You Asked...

I'm taking care of a lot of requests in this post.  To start, the yam and leek perogie recipe.  I halfed this recipe and it still made a lot!

Dough:

4 cups flour

2 eggs

1/2 cup sour cream

1 tsp salt

2/3 cup warm water.

mix and knead well until very smooth and soft.  Divide into two balls.

Roll out nice and thin.  Cut out circles.  I used a mason jar.

The filling is a wing it style - I wrap up in foil two or three big yams and bake them till really soft in the oven - about an hour or so.  You can even do this the day before.  I then saute three sliced up leeks till really soft and slightly browned.  Then grate in a cup or two of smoked gouda cheese.  If you can get some fresh chives, chop those up and drop in there too.  They really add a good flavour.  S & P as enjoyed.  Mix it all together.  If you have extra filling, and I always do, just freeze it for next time.

Put a dollop on the top of each circle, fold over and press together edges.  You may need a bit of water on the edge of the dough to help seal the crack.

Drop into boiling water till they float - about 6 minutes or so.

Done! 

Sour cream and dill on top..YUM.

Big Question:

What do duck eggs taste like?

They are thicker and richer than a chicken egg. 

The shells are hard to crack, and you have to really whack them.

The whites and the yolk are thick - makes a chicken egg seem runny in comparison.

They taste good, but I'd never know the difference if I did a taste test with a chicken egg.

It's not super attractive, but this is my commercial kitchen.  It's new, it's clean, it's sanitized and all mine.

If you could see what is available to rent in commercial kitchens, you would devote a post to the loveliness of my commercial kitchen.  

But, as most of you haven't seen these places, you will have to take my word for it.

EWWW!

This is where I happily make my Missing Goat jams.  My daughter slips a bowl through the crack of the door, waiting for a hot spoonful (or three) of jam.

How is Mabel?  Not so good.

I've come to realize the vet just doesn't know what to do.

She has bumblefoot. 

I know just why & when this happened.  She took off up the street a few weeks ago, and hurt her feet on the hard cement of the road.  She's always been on grass.  So, infection got in. 

I'm soaking, cleaning, giving antibiotics, and vitamin water.

Thanks for all the suggestions - I LOVE and laughed hard at the suggestion by Krys to put the medicine in a worm.  If anyone has any idea how to inject 2 mls of medication into a worm...

Very funny!  Just what I needed.

In My Garden...

It's been a tough week. 

Not because it snowed...AGAIN!

But because little Mabel, my duck, has a terrible infection in her foot.

Each day, I've had to take give her medicine - orally, with a syringe.

Twice a day.

Imagine that if you can.

I couldn't.

Four trips to the vet in one week, three types of antibiotics, and I don't see improvement.

What did seem to perk her up - was a warm hot tub in the snow.

Don't tell my husband, but I drained the hot water tank filling this silly pool.

Is it me, or does this snow seem to be holding hands?

My kind neighbour invited my girl over to build a snowman with him. 

He made it ten feet tall so she could see it over the fence from her bedroom window.

How sweet is that.  It's huge!

Any tips on ways to get medicine into a duck are welcome.  

This morning I wrapped it in lettuce - a spring roll of sorts.  I then spent an hour searching the entire farm for a snail.  I thought putting the medicine in the shell, then throwing it to her (as they swallow them practically whole) was brilliant!

Think I could find one!  No.