Nose to the grindstone

So much has changed here at Skookumchuck Farm...but it feels a bit deja vu in a way. Want a hint? It involves ironing boards, commuter mugs and hour-long lunches. Yes, it's true...I got a job! After a long but eventful (and enjoyable) ten and a half months as an unemployed American, this girl got a great, permanent job working for the State of Washington. Today was the middle of my third week on the job, and boy, do I ever feel out of it! My employer is thrilled to have me, which is super, but I feel like I need a reboot on my brain! Needless to say, blogging hasn't been tops on my priority list lately, but I hope to change that. Starting today.

So...in the past month, here are some of the things that went on at the farm:

We recognized the cattle were eating their way through our hay supply at an alarming speed, and switched over to haylage bales.

Sheila's udder started to swell a bit, then stopped for three weeks. It's on the increase again, but her pins aren't flexible yet and there's no discharge. Maybe we'll have a Christmas calf.

One of my own black pullets started laying a cute brown egg and has continued daily (or almost daily). All three of the Easter Egger hens laid at least one egg (and one lays baby blue eggs - pretty!), but all but one stopped. I'm getting a total of an egg or two every day or two. :)

Paul spent several days at elk camp, my uncle got a bull elk, and they butchered it in our garage. Fun times. (Ack.) The meat is a little strong for some reason, but thankfully it was split between five guys, so we only have a little bit.

T-Bone and Brigit are co-existing well in the North pasture. They don't even head-butt all that much anymore. Is she more tolerant? Is she mellow because she's (hopefully!) pregnant? Has he given up on her? Who knows...we'll have to watch this soap opera longer to find out.

Paul brought home a gorgeous stump from work one day, a gift for my aunt and uncle. He used logging equipment (blocks and lines) to lift it from the back of his crummy (a.k.a. work truck), and pulled a little too hard on one of our (ugly, ant-attracting) pine trees. The stump now lives happily in Edmonds.

I spent too many days frantically shopping for "business appropriate" work clothes. I luckily feel very appropriately dressed for business now.

We pulled out the rest of the garden, then let the cattle (in two separate shifts so as not to co-mingle T-Bone and Annabel) much away on what remained. Good times were had by all!

That's all from the farm...for tonight. I'll work on being a little more on top of the news from now on. But for now, it's dinner and then bedtime! Working girls have to get up early!