The chicks arrived Wednesday morning. We were hoping they would be here no later than 3 pm on Tuesday, having been shipped Monday morning, but unfortunately they were delayed. We were quite happy to get the call at 6:30 am to come and pick them up. Most had survived the trip and were happy to be offered water and food and to run around. The first week is tenuous; you hope that you have provided them with all they need to survive but you do lose some. Hopefully, we are past that now and able to watch them grow.
The other ewe had her two lambs Tuesday morning without any problems. They have been grazing the fields right in front of our house. Teddy and I both love to gaze at them from the big window inside. The cows have finished grazing the other farmstead and are moving back across the front field. They should start calving any day now as well!
We planted the wheat and oats last Thursday. We were hoping for a little more rain than what we received but it was still lovely. When I heard it start last night, I just sat for a while and listened. While the forecast does not look good, I do hope there is more to come this spring. We also planted the wildflower ring around the herb garden. Most of the fields are tilled and we will start planting vegetables next week. The soil here is rich and beautiful but also damaged from years of cropping and lacking good structure. Each year we learn more about how best to work with it. We hope that with careful management it will only improve.
The barnyard is full of activity: Jose working on the chicken trailer, Jorge greasing the spader, and the sheep are mowing the lawn. Somewhere, the rest of us are busy at work too.