And this is the noise they make when they're laying

 I hear this noise for several minutes before those huge eggs show up in my chicken coop.  I swear they're screaming from contractions or something.  

Two Goats in a Bowl

Nope, there isn't anything hiding in my jacket

Rucker took a nap in my jacket yesterday and I managed to get a picture before I took him back outside

Snow Day

It was our first snow day in the house (the new goats were born today but that post trumped this one).

5:30 AM, each goat hiding in their own house

Just a little sledding

A garden will be here very soon

His creation

Clyde was the only one to venture out in the snow - I found his footprints all the way by the house

Twins!

Sometime between 6AM and 11AM this morning Jenny gave birth to twin boys.  They're both healthy and feeding from mom and she's cleaned them both up.  I wish I'd been here to see it happen, but I'm just glad they're healthy and I don't have to bottle feed.

They are the cutest little things :)

What I stumbled upon when I went to let the chickens out

I literally dragged mom into the mud room so I could keep the babies warm

YES!  No bottle feeding!

He fell asleep in his arms

I pity the girl

I pity the girl that laid this egg.

These are large to extra large eggs, and then there is THAT one
Yes that is THREE inches long

Just in case you didn't understand just how large that sucker is

Candeling week 1 or 2

We tried candeling again yesterday.  Yesterday would have made the eggs 7-14 days old.  I don't know when they were laid, only that I brought Silkie Sue into the house on the 23rd, so none of the eggs can be more recent than 7 days, and she wasn't broody before 14 days ago.

It would have made sense to take pictures yesterday when I had another pair of adult hands that could have helped.  It really makes it easier to see inside the egg when TWO hands are around the flashlight and egg, but that wouldn't leave any hands for holding the camera, so this is the best I could do.

That dark black spot on the right side is something - I think it's the heart, and I know it's part of a baby chick

That area on the left is an air sack inside the egg

That dark mass is something growing and you can see an air sack on the right side of the egg

This is the same egg, but the mass moved

I can't see anything in this egg except for the air sac.  That could mean it's completely full of a baby chick

Next time I have an adult in the house when it's dark enough to candle eggs, I'll try to get better pictures.

Progress

I forced myself to get up and go finish at least one project.

So the youngest son helped me put the dots on the strawberry rocks after I painted the green stems and I finished painting the vegetable rocks.  I set them outside to spray the clear coat on top and got a picture.

Then I decided to try to brush the goats when I fed them.  I did manage to get a bit of extra fluff off them.  Trust me, you don't want to see it.  I did a quick clean of the chicken coops and then measured the garden so I could make my official planting layout.

Unfortunately either my measurements are off, my brain isn't working, or my garden hates me because I just can't seem to get an accurate diagram going...

Just a little goat play

We got this playset two weeks ago and finally got it put together (with the help of a much stronger male friend) last night.  

The goats can't climb rungs, so this morning I nailed a piece of plywood to the rungs and nailed a couple pieces of wood across it to help the goats get up.  

We tried to lure them up with treats

Kelly has always been more agile and athletic than Carrie, so it was no surprise that Carrie quickly gave up.

I realized that the plywood was just too steep for them, so I moved a crate over hoping it might help a little.

Kelly was the only one that was willing to try.

Checking the gap

Look at the back foot dangling

She got down and came back two minutes later to try again

And she made the jump

After she finished eating she discovered this handy head scratcher.

 And she seemed to enjoy tasting all of the pieces of the structure.

Carrie on the other hand didn't get very far.

She spent the first 15 minutes just pressing her face against my leg.

She managed to take one step off the ground.

And then I tried to lure her up with more treats.

But the jump was just too much for her and she quickly got off the crate.

I'll build something to make their climb up a bit easier for them.

During all of this, Jenny was perfectly happy laying her fat belly down in the old dog house.

Only about 7 more days until she gives birth

Clyde is wooing the girls

I finally got a video of Clyde going after one of the girls.  Unfortunately you can't see the initial dance he does, but this is once he catches a girl.