My Crazy Life as a Farmers Wife

Planting Begins...

The farming season is officially in fully swing. David started planting potatoes on Monday morning, and he has been working long hours trying to get them all in the ground as there is a slew of storms set to roll in over the next week. I've been busy carting food back and fourth and taking over my single mother duties at home. It's been nice to have him around all winter, but I know all good things come to an end. And from here on out, we won't see him as much (unless we go to work with him). Lily and Kate were excited to go for a ride with daddy the other afternoon, and Russell looks forward to tractor time after school...

Fun Weekend...

with lots happening...Ash & Todd's wedding was great...I just love these silly pics of them :) They're such fun. This past week has been hectic trying to keep up with all of the spring chores, family, work, wedding, photos for the wedding etc...but it was fun! Sorry for the blogging hiatus...I hope to be posting more often in the near future.

Here are Ash & Todd's wedding invites I made a while back (click on the photo to enlarge)

Coloring Eggs...

 

Egg Hunt...

Grandma Christensen had her annual egg hunt again this year...

the kids were lined up and ready...

 

I'm behind the camera 99.9% of the time, but for a wee second, Lisa grabbed the camera from me...

and then she soon realized why I am usually the one behind the camera, and not in front of it...and she gave the camera back...

 

Spring Has Sprung...But Spring is a Lot of WORK!!!

I've neglected my blog...and my house...and maybe a bit of my laundry...because I just can't stay inside when it's so nice out. Temps were in the mid 60s today, and that is pretty nice for an Idaho spring. It doesn't mean a whole lot though, because we could wake up to snow tomorrow ;) The nice weather has been keeping me busy. There are so many things that need done around the yard and farm. We've been very busy, so here is a quick recap on happenings around here...

We finally finished the Chicken Mansion (I'll share more photos of the process later). I designed it all on paper, and David made it happen. He is such a talented guy. I love him so much. I wanted it to look like a mini barn. The ladies love it...when we first let them loose in the new coop, they went crazy...like kids going to a new park for the first time...they were running around checking everything out, scratching in the fresh straw. They were so funny!

We knew earlier this spring that several of our cats were expecting, and we had seen that one had already given birth, but we didn't know where her babies were at. You see, our cats and our chickens were raised together in from babies in our old chicken coop. There was a special entrance/exit for the cats, and they would come and go from the coop as they pleased...never bothering the chickens. But when we tore down the old coop to build the new one, the cats were confused. They would walk up and look around wondering where their house was, and once the new coop was built, they would circle the building trying to find a way in. David finally got a special cat door built, and Everest, our calico cat, decided to bring her babies into the coop. I guess she was forced to have them in the cellar while we were building the new coop, and a skunk kept trying to get her babies, so as soon as the cat door was built, she brought them in. We were surprised to come into the coop that day and find three sweet little baby kittens.  Lily actually discovered the first one on the floor, and the chickens were pecking it, so she lifted it up into the top chicken box and came to get me. We watched Everest bring her final two kittens into the box, but while she was off fetching those second and third kittens, the chickens decided to be really motherly and the kept trying to "lay" on the kittens.

This is Buttercup....one of Everest's three babies...isn't it just so sweet! We took her outside for the first time today (mama cat was with us of course), but as soon as she started mewing, mama picked her up by the back of the neck and hauled her back into their "nest" in the coop.

Kate is holding one of the sweet little grey kitties (the other two are grey)...

this first photo is of the Three Little Kittens in their nest...

So Saturday morning, David tells us all to hurry out to the chicken coop. Whitey Girl (Lily's cat, with a super creative name ;) was having her kittens in another box. My kids were able to watch her give birth to four little kittens. It was such a neat experience (the photo above is of the new four...the best photo I can get since the mom is very protective). Every time the mom leaves the coop for a second, those darned chickens would get up and lay on the babies (poor hens...they want to be moms so bad), so David had to devise a quick little fix for the cat "nests"...

he fixed it up so that the mama cats could get in, but not the hens.

This hen below...well, her name is Lola (or Little Spike). She never leaves the laying boxes. We thought that she was really hoping for babies, because she is ALWAYS laying on eggs. But...we recently threw her out of her nest to clean the boxes and proceeded to watch all of the other chickens pick on her and peck her to pieces. They are all so mean to her!!! Shelby and I decided that the other chickens must not like her because she has such a little spike or comb on her head. Shelby and I giggled about it all day...we decided that Lola would fare a lot better in the chicken heirarchy if she got a comb implant or augmentation!!! LOL! Look at that little spike!!! It's okay Lola...I understand your pain ;)

Russell has been busy riding his four-wheeler around the farm after school...

I've been busy working in my new greenhouse. It was an early birthday/10 year anniversary present that David secretly ordered for me. I have always wanted a greenhoues, and I have been enjoying growing all of my own vegetable and flower plants from seed...

we've also been very busy getting the garden ready. After cleaning out and pruning the whole raspberry patch and expanding the strawberry patch...and raking/burning debris and weeds, rotatilling the garden with the tractor and fertilizing everything, I was finally able to get my spring items planted. So far, here is whats in the ground: red onions, yellow onions, white onions. Nantes Carrots, Hybrid a#1 Carrots, Tendersweet Carrots, Sugarsnax Carrots, and Multi-Color Blend Carrots. Ithaca Head Lettuce, Iceberg Lettuce, Tangy Mesclun Mix, Buttercrunch Lettuce, Mustard Mix, Arugula & Romaine; and of course, Maestro Peas :)

In our Idaho climate, we can't plant much else until the end of May because of our late frost dates...so this will be it for now.

when the kids aren't outside playing with animals, they're inside playing with animals...

or with their dolls...

And I can't forget...David's birthday...my man is actually older than me for a little over a month...

On the farm: our seasonal workers arrived this past week. David has been trying to find odd jobs for them to do while we're waiting for the official farming season to start. They are currently disasembling an awesome old barn on his late grandfather's farm and moving it onto our farm yard/shop. If the weather stays warm and dry, we're going to be starting to water the grain soon. And...there are some sand hills of spring wheat that are going to need replanted because of wind damage. Things are moving slowly, but before long, it will be full throttle.

so there you go. a super jumbled...random mix of things happening around here :)