Winter on the Farm

I love winter.  When I was a suburban girl I hated it...rain, mud, and seasonal affective disorder.  As a farm girl I love it.  It's still rain and mud, but the seasonal affective disorder disappeared as I learned to accept the dark, short days as part of the beautiful cycle of seasons that God created.

A pasture in progress.  In the spring, this will be green and in about two years it will be lush, thick and green.

Here's what goes on around here in the winter:

In late November or early December, we do one last clean up of our poultry.  Every bird that's left gets harvested.  This allows our pastures to rest, free from chicken, duck, turkey and goose manure (all very high in nitrogen, which is fine while grass is growing and not that great while grass is hibernating) for three or four months.

Then it's time for a big long rest. Praise the Lord and pass the bonbons.  Not really, but you get the idea. There are still cows to milk, gardens to tend, and pigs to move around, but overall the winter is a time of rest, family, and warm fires.

Pile o' piggies in their warm, snug winter barn.

Jesse and I use our evenings to catch up on all the movies and TV shows that we don't have time to watch during the other three seasons. I crochet like a madwoman.  The kids color and we all drool over seed catalogs and dream of the coming spring.

Joey with a silly flap-eared hat that I made.  I have to keep my hands busy so I don't plant things too early.

 

This winter, for the first time, Jesse and I took a vacation as well.  We spent four days in beautiful Cashmere, WA.  We explored Leavenworth (adorable and fun) and marveled at the amazing divinely-designed architecture of the Cascades.  Truly gorgeous and a sight to behold.

You'll have to forgive me for going off topic, but I would move to Central Washington in a heartbeat...just for the view and the fact that they get four seasons! Then there's the cheap land, affordable hay and perfect orchard growing climate! Frankly, though, the idea of packing up six people, 1600 square feet, three cows, two steers, fourteen pigs, five leftover goats, eight sheep and a 2000 square foot barn...well, it's enough to give me palpitations.  So I guess you're all stuck with me.

In a few days I'll do a post about wintertime eating...otherwise known as "How to Make Your Family Think You're Nuts in Five Easy Steps."

One last picture, just because I think my kids are cute.