Hello everyone, it has been a bitterly cold weekend here at the farm and according to the news today was the coldest April 10th on record! I took a little stroll around the farm to look at the ice storm damage and to see how the lambs are doing.
I knew that we had lost many large trees in the recent ice storm. While strolling around today I could hear the sound of chain saws in the distance; many of our neighbours are working on clearing up the fallen trees.
It is going to take us months to get the fallen trees cut up. We do have a woodburning fireplace so will be able to put the wood to good use. We will be able to chip the smaller branches using our chipper. If there is too much we will ask the fellow that looks after our lawns to come with his commercial chipper. We are always able to use the mulch in the gardens, and if I dont manage to get all of the mulch spread quickly (yes, that is usually the case!) the lambs love playing in the piles of mulch!
Some of our trees were completely uprooted.
When the weather was mild we spotted goldfish in Lake Ophelia. As this pond is self-contained there is no danger of our goldfish escaping into the waterways in our areas. In some areas goldfish dumped into streams are becoming an invasive species. People in urban areas are being asked to return unwanted goldfish to pet stores to avoid having them released into the wild. Each year we also have a heron visiting Lake Ophelia and it seems to quite enjoy feasting on the fish in our pond. For now though Lake Ophelia has a thin coating of ice and there are no goldfish to be seen!
There is our farmhouse in the distance. The wing on the rear of the house was the new construction which was finally completed last spring. We still have quite a bit of landscaping to do and we have not finished all of the interior work.
Our last two muscovy ducks are still doing well. At this time of year they tend to look muddy and dirty. The ducks are able to range with our sheep and when the temperatures get warmer we will find the ranging in the grove eating fallen apples.
And of course I have some photos of our lambs! There are about 25 lambs in the barn at the moment.
This little lamb has a dirty face!
What better way to spend a Sunday than relaxing with a friend?
A moment earlier this lamb had its' head in the hay feeder.
I hope my daffodils recover from the ice damage. Many of them have full buds but were crushed under the weight of the ice. While the tulips tend to deteriorate year over year the daffodils reliably naturalize each year. Their cheery yellow blooms are always a welcome sign of spring...and a symbol of our fight against cancer-many of us know someone that battled and then lost their fight with this horrible disease.
Freshly baked banana muffins fortified with walnuts and white chocolate chips!
Well dear friends it is hard to believe but I have broken my camera yet again. I think I need to find something just a little hardier! In order to prevent a recurrence of the previous damage I am always careful to use the wrist strap but while walking outside today I removed my gloves to take a photo and in the process...yes, you have guessed it. I am not sure if I should pay to fix it or buy something a little sturdier! In the meantime I hope you enjoy my photos.
~thank you for visiting~
