The Animals of Crazy Boy Farm and Open House

For years now we have been saying we want to do a calendar. But you know how it is and other projects keep pushing it to a back burner. But as we are loving this spring weather and all the animals on our farm (who are also loving the spring weather) I got an idea for a post–the Animals of Crazy Boy Farm.

But first I wanted to invite all you to our spring open house on May 31st, from 1-4:00. We will have tours, up close encounters with some of our animals, tasty food (we will provide the main dish, please bring a dish to share), great conversation and more. Hope to see you there. And don’t forget we still have some CSA shares available here.

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Avril and Buddy, the pony we were given last year. Avril is training him as part of her 4H horse project.

Avril practicing backing Buddy up.

Mavis would love a pony of her own but we are working on being content with what we have and what we do have is a mini donkey. Donkey (his name was Jack but since we already had a Jack he became Donkey but now Mavis has decided he needs a better name so she chose John) came to our farm 2 years ago. For a long time he was the biggest animal we had. He loves the attention but is still stubborn.

Mavis and Avril practicing “ground work.”

Berkshire hogs joined our farm last year. We are expecting babies in June. Here they are waiting for dinner.

In this post we talked about jersey calves joining our farm. Well here is what they look like now. It was a rough winter and we have learned alot along the way. Out of the 5 we have 2 left but they are going strong. As another farmer friend told us when farming with animals “the learning curve really stinks!” But we are very happy with these boys.

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It is now goat season. These 2 were born yesterday and we actually got to see it. All the children except for the baby were there to see at least the 2nd baby born. As Two said, “boy the miracle of life is messy!”

Then of course there is Jack, our constant companion. He is loving this warm weather and a quick role in the leaves.

Spring is here

I cannot tell you how blessed I feel that spring has come early for us this year. Proeun and I were just talking over the weekend that last year at this time (and the year before) we still had alot of snow cover on the ground. In January when I laid up after the birth of Lith it already felt like such a long winter and I could barely bring myself to hope for an early spring. And then it came.

The great thing about Minnesota in the spring is everyone feels wonder.

This weekend we finally got around to getting a hammock for Proeun as a birthday gift. He has wanted one for years. We will see if he gets to use it much. Now he is saying we need 2.

Even our work had a fun, festive feel. We had some repairs to do on our hoophouse from the winter. Here the girls and Pray Grant just enjoy the warmer temps the hoophouse offers.

Pray Grant is our little fix it. If there is any project being done involving tools he wants to be involved. Here he is looking for something to measure.

While we were building the hoophouse last year Two had great fun digging a hole. I love how this life lets the children experiment with there imagination, and really create a fun game. Here the left over poles became a bridge that was used for a star wars reenactment as well as a conquistador.

Now that the hoophouse is ready and the weather has warmed the plants in the greenhouse will soon be finding there way to the soil and I can’t wait. I am so ready for fresh from the garden veggies. Are you? If you haven’t looked into purchasing a CSA share it is a great way to get a good mix of veggies, learn some fun preparations and support a local farm. Local Harvest has listings for CSA farms across the country. If you are in our area you can find out more about our CSA here.

Get out and enjoy spring!

Science Class

Oh we do have a bustling household. With 6 children it seems like there is always plenty to do. Now the older ones are starting to develop their own interests and school in becoming more involved. Sometimes at the beginning of the week I look over my schedule and think how things have changed from the days of 2 or 3 little ones content to be home all day. Those days it was mommy who felt the need to be out and about.

Our last birth was this January. I was so thankful that the cold and snow encouraged everyone to a more laid back pace and for many weeks it was nice just to be home. But now it is time to get back to our regular schedule. Including stepping up on school, homeschool coop and science class. We are blessed with a church that is very supportive of homeschool and that offer some supplemental classes.

This year the children have really been enjoying a science offered by local naturalist and author, Julie Von Vett. We took some time off over the new year but now we are back. Recently the children were able to dissect sea stars (star fish for all you ancients like me).

Lessons from Lith

I have not been very active on the blog this year. Some of you may have figured out the reason–we have been preparing for a new addition to the farm, a new human addition. And for some reason this time around it just all seemed like such a rush. I was desperate to figure out systems and get things set up around the farm to make our work easier before baby number 6 arrived. I hadn’t realized what a frenzy of anxiety I had worked myself into until she was born this last month. There was the initial craziness of mom in the hospital (we decided against a homebirth this time) and dad and children trying to take care of everything around the farm. Then we came home to a wonderful welcome home party, clean house and children all anxious to hold their new sibling. But the initial craziness soon subsided and we found a routine and since it is winter a bit slower pace.

I found a new rhythm and stride and a weight lifted off my shoulders. Normally I love being pregnant but this time around not so much. Now I am free to enjoy our newborn and feeling much healthier then I have before. Hopefully that will translate to more energy for writing and farming as the new season approaches.

But I have discovered that each child gives me valuable insights and lessons as I grow to become the person I was meant to be. This child is no different. Whereas my first child started me on this journey and that I should expect the unexpected, my 2nd child taught me how much work I had to do on character and that for sure if you have a character flaw your child will get it. My 3rd child taught me the beauty of life and letting go my ideas of the perfect sized family, my fourth taught me what a blessing health is and that it should be guarded. My 5th and 1st child born in our new life on the farm challenged me to set up ways to make work easier and this last child has taught me how futile worry is.

Last year was not a particularly good year for us. The wacky weather continued and seemed worse than usual. The CSA market was flooded and our membership was way down, so we had to look for other income streams and could not hire help like we had previously and I was pregnant, worried about how we would continue, my health, the baby’s health and a multitude of other things. I worried about having a homebirth, then I worried about having a hospital birth. There really wasn’t much I didn’t worry about, but in the end I have a beautiful perfect baby in my arms and both our health is preserved and the Lord provided through last year. Surely I didn’t need to worry. Now I am relaxing in a feeling of contentment. I am still planning and dreaming, but trying to let go if things do not go as planned. I am thankful for Lith and the lessons she has brought as I am thankful for all the other children. I am so thankful for this life, though it is hard at times. Many of the choices we have made are not the popular choice, but they are ours and we continue to grow as individuals and a family.

A New Year Begins

It is hard to believe that 2014 is actually over and a new year has begun. We have so been enjoying the quieter part of the year though plenty has still been going on. As the children get older it is so fun to see their interests growing. Avril and Mavis have been enjoying planning 4h projects for next year and Two has been loving learning all about basketball through his first year on the local traveling team and some tutoring from his dad. This weekend he has his first tournament and his sisters have been planning cheers and picking out their cheer leading outfits.

I have been thinking this holiday season about how much I love the fact that the children have their own support group. Yesterday Avril was making bows from a craft book she had gotten from the library. Her sisters (and Mother) thought they were just great but I am reminded how cruel the world can often be with a focus on tearing down, rather than building up and I almost cried thinking about how blessed our family is to be able to provide this environment of love and support.

For new year’s resolutions I am pretty lax this year. In fact as I await the birth of our next baby I am a pretty tired momma, and I think a great resolution would be to learn how to use systems more and teach the children how to do more for themselves. Of course I want to continue focusing on an environment of love and support. I am hopping for a more smooth year.

And then there are crafts. I would love more crafts. Today we made pom poms for the Doeun cheering squad.

First cut a length of yarn around 12 inches long. Then begin wrapping yarn around your hand like so. You will need to go around 50-100 times.

When you reach the desired thickness gently slide off fingers and keeping loop intact slide pre-cut yarn through the loop.

Tie using a square knot on one side and flip it over and tie the other side with another square knot. So it is tight in the middle and you have loops on the top and bottom.

Slide your scissors in the loop and cut. Then do the other side.

Fluff and use the strings you used to tie the pom pom as a handle.

While I am resting Proeun has already started planning our 2015 CSA season. I can hardly wait for the warmer weather, fresh veggies, and being able to be outside comfortably again. If you are looking for a CSA please pop over to our CSA page and check us out.

Hope you have a peaceful and blessed 2015.

In Preparation

It has been a pretty lean year here at Crazy Boy Farm. This is nothing new for Proeun and I in our lives. Honestly I am so thankful that my parent’s always employed a budget for Christmas. We still had wonderful Christmases growing up–the highlight of the whole year. But I have to admit I loved most when the whole family got together and made a day of it. Now we have our own crowd but it is still fun to get together with family. I love that for the adults we like giving handmade gifts and just spending time together.

So this year even with a tighter budget than usual I have found that I am really enjoying Christmas preparations–and preparations for the new baby. I am 8 months pregnant and expecting our next baby just one month after Christmas, so in addition to preparing for Christmas we are preparing for a new baby and momma is pretty darn tired most of the time. Because of that I have forgone most of the homemade gifts and instead tried to pick out things that the children need, with a few extras thrown in.

This week we are working instead on filling the freezer with good things to eat for after the baby is born. So far we have lots of chili–Effie’s favorite, Chicken soup–Avril’s favorite, meatballs for spaghetti–Mavis’ favorite and lots of baked goods.

Avril decided she wanted to bake all by herself so we started with chocolate chip cookies. She even read the recipe all by herself!

Mavis helped with the blueberry muffins. So in one day we made chocolate chip cookies, apple peanut butter cookies, blueberry muffins and oatmeal chocolate chip muffins, so snacks and breakfast are taken care of for awhile.

For homemade gifts we are being pretty lenient on the timeline. I also decided that working on projects together with the children is a huge part of the gift. Effie saw me knitting a sleep sack for the new baby and asked if I could make something for her. So I found this pattern and had some pink yarn (she is in a pink stage). Now whenever she sees me knitting it she knows it is for her and loves to sit on my lap and watch the progress. I am hoping to begin an art kit for Avril. I had picked the pattern last year and have to find it again. It is a bit complicated. I thought about making it as a surprise, but have been enjoying my relaxing evenings cuddling with the children so much I wasn’t sure I wanted to give that up. But if we work together on it then she will be able to have 2 gifts, and if it doesn’t get done for Christmas that is OK.

On a side note as I progress with the pregnancy, get more tired and spend more time on the sofa I am finding these impromptu cuddling sessions they best gift of all. Feeling so grateful for the lean years!

November in Review and CSA memberships make great gifts

A couple weeks ago we got over a foot of snow. This put a quick end to many of our outdoor projects other than taking car of the animals, making sure they are comfortable and coming up with a system for cold weather care that works for us. We have more animals this year then last including–1 horse, 1 donkey, 4 cows, 3 pigs, 8 goats (with babies coming soon), 4 turkeys, lots of chickens, 5 cats (some indoors, some out) and 2 dogs. The horse alone will drink 10 gallons of water a day so figuring out systems is pretty important.

But even with all this craziness I love the slower pace. It took me a little bit to get used to driving, walking and doing chores in the snow but now that I am settled in I am enjoying winter and the time it allows me to work on some of my favorite things like cooking, reading, creating and spending time with family.

Cooking–I love cooking but sometimes it can feel so rushed just keeping up with the family’s needs. Now that things have slowed down more outside I can take the time to cook those hearty meals that require a little more time. Another great perk is that Proeun and I get to cook together and try some new recipes. Here are some I am loving right now–

20 Crock Pot Recipes You’ll Really Want To Eat and

Healthy Holidays-Slightly Indulgent Sweet Treats. Who doesn’t need that right? It is at The Humbled Homemaker. If you subscribe to her blog you get a free copy. I love handmade gifts and love getting and giving gifts of food. This ebook has my mind running.

The children have also discovered a love for candlelight dinners and with the sun setting earlier it makes it so much easier to indulge in a little treat.

Reading–I am finally finding time to read more. I was so happy this week to get the newest issue of Taproot. My favorite article was “Dinner with Sadie.”

The author talks openly about how she loved the idea of cooking with her children in the kitchen but found that her personality and time constraints made it very difficult for her so she and her daughter decided that solo cooking nights worked best for Sadie. It was interesting that I just read it yesterday and today Effie, my 4 year old, really wanted to cook with me. Lunch was curry and she loved cooking it with me. At lunch she asked her dad, “Daddy do you like my curry?” She was so proud. At the end of the article the author lists some cookbooks that are kid friendly, maybe Christmas presents for my children.

Creating–I love knitting but normally only do it in the winter. This year I am trying to focus on a sweater I started for Proeun oh say 7 years. But now I am going to finish it. I have decided that I will knit at least 2 rows a day and limit other projects until it is finished.

Of course with a new baby coming I am itching to make some cute baby projects. Maybe after I do my required 2 rows I can work on a smaller project.

In other news before the snow fell we were actually able to do a photoshoot for one of our sponsors. They sent us a nice picture for us to keep.

So I know I could just scan it but after a crazy busy year and trying to wind down this month and since I was already taking other pictures I decided to just take a picture of it for you.

Finally we have already had our first CSA share of 2015 purchased. It was purchased as a Christmas gift. This got me thinking and we made up some cute gift certificates if you are interested in giving healthy, local food for Christmas. You can pop over to our CSA page for more information.

Hope you have a wonderful start to your holiday season.

Hoophouse, etc. etc. etc.

For the past couple of years as soon as the CSA season ended we crashed. We had just completed a marathon of work and it was time to rest. But also for the past couple years the springs have been horrible for planting–snow on the ground till May, followed by lots and lots of rain and more cold. So this year we knew that if we have projects that we wanted to complete before the next growing season we were going to have to complete them in the fall. So this year as soon as the CSA season ended we began projects and have been working every since.

The first and biggest project was our hoophouse. This will allow us to plant earlier in the spring regardless of what the weather is like. We knew with the weather patterns of the past couple of years a strong growing season depended on it.

We ordered from Zimmerman High Tunnels and have been very happy with both the customer service, quality and price. Thanks to my wonderful husband assisted by our oldest son and my father-in-law the hoophouse went up in just 2 weeks! We did have neighbors and family come out to help with the plastic where more people is definitely best, thanks mom and dad, Sambath and the Leathermans!

The kids favorite part was digging a hole. Not sure what we do with it now.

Originally I had planned on spending the month of October doing 31 Days to Clean. Another side effect of a really busy growing season is that it seems like the house begins to fall apart. So I wanted to go on a guided cleaning spree but with so much work to be done outside that had to take a back burner. But I find that I do know what areas really need attention and try to work on it a little everyday.

So after the hoophouse there was the field to get prepared for next spring. Another wonderful neighbor of ours, Marv, loaned us a plow to help break up our perpetually hard soil.

Last weekend it was planting garlic, again thanks to my father-in-law as bending over is getting more and more difficult for me.

So great that the nice weather is holding. More projects this weekend. How are you spending your fall?

Welcome Jerseys

I am sure anyone who has tried to start their own business understands the struggle to stay on top of changes in the market. But when you farm you also have to stay on top of changing weather! My the past couple of years have been weird–long, long winters, super wet springs, cool summers, etc. At least this year we didn’t have the number of severe storms we had last year. But anyway you get the picture. While we are adding a hoop house this fall for our vegetable production we decided that it was time to branch out into meat production. You have already see our pigs. Now it is time to meet the cows.

It has always been a dream of Proeun’s to have cattle. We always thought that we would go with a traditional beef breed but the price of cows is particularly high this year. We were lucky to stumble upon a local dairy that uses Jerseys (jerseys have always been my favorite), They sell their bull calves for meat production and we purchased five (not all of them are pictured). They are only a couple weeks old now and the children really love handling them. We are still bottle feeding them twice a day and we keep them in a stall at night but bring them out to their own pen during the day so the children are getting plenty of practice leading them.

While I love eating vegetables I have always found working with the animals more rewarding on a personal level. 2014 has been a difficult year for crops but at least some good has come out of it by pushing us to expand our business (and family life) into other ventures. All in all it has been very good.

State Dog Show

This year has been an incredibly busy one. As much as Proeun and I value the simple life and not over extending ourselves with too many off farm activities as the children grow so do their interests. So we try to be really conscious about what we take on but there were times this summer when we had swimming lessons for the 3 older ones every morning then between Tae Kwon Do, horse back riding lessons and training for the 4H dog show it seemed like we had something going on almost every night during the week.

Well with the coming fall things have slowed down a bit–no more swimming lessons or riding lessons and we decided to let Tae Kwon Do go for now while momma recovers but this weekend was the highlight of the summer–the 4H dog show. My children have been in 4H since we moved and we love it. This year Proeun II decided to do the dog project (with a little prodding from mommy who felt the 2 year old huge black lab living in our home could use a little discipline). So one night every week since May II has been training Jack. At the county dog show in August we didn’t know what to expect but were pleasantly surprised when II won first place in both obedience and showmanship and it was on to the state show this past weekend.

II getting ready to show his dog in showmanship. Quite the good looking pair!

It was a long day and September has been a hard month in many ways for me but it was worth it to see II come out of his shell and Jack really show off his talents.

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II and Jack waiting on stage to collect their awards. I wanted to go home and skip this part but II really wanted to stay. I remembered back to May when he was so shy he wouldn’t look his instructor in the eye when she talked to him now he is excited to go on stage! He won blue ribbons in both odedience and showmanship at the state level. He already said he is excited to next year.

Home School Farm

Learning to be Holistically Sustainable