Life on the farm ain't laid back.

Who was it that famously sang "...life on the farm is kinda laid back..".I can't remember at the moment, but whoever it was was a big fat liar.Life on the farm is anything but laid back.I often break into song when we're doing our chores "...life on the farm is kinda laid back...ain't much an old country boy like me can't hack...it's early to rise, early in the sack, thank God, I'm a country boy...". Stuart glares at me. He doesn't like the song, but I can't help but sing it. It pops into my mind every single time.Even though we're now well into fall, farm life has progressively gotten busier since we moved to Beatha Fonn a mere four months ago.And it's pretty fun (and simultaenously exhausting) to think about all that lay ahead for us still before winter. There are still projects to be completed before the ground freezes (such as our milking station and the pig pen and pasture) as well as projects to complete at the appropriate time of harvest (such as butchering our meat chickens and the fall harvest of the garden).Allow me to take you on a tour. Sit down, take a sip of the hot chocolate you should have sitting next to you while you read this, readjust your seating for optimum comfort, and enjoy the farm:1. Let's start with the 'ol Rainbow Rangers. I cannot say enough good things about these birds! They are fairy quiet, fairy clean, willing to forage and scratch for their food, and resilient. I've been super pleased with them and will likely keep this as my 'go-to' meat breed of chicken. Their feed is still working really well and I'm more than pleased with their weight gain and growth thus far.As many of you know, I've made many of our homesteading mistakes quite public on the 'ol blog - such is the case with the chicken tractors we originally built for these guys. What a horrible idea. Considering we live on a hillside, with uneven terrain, moving the tractors around was nearly impossible. Without a set, flat, even piece of land to move them easily around on, we found ourselves dreading the task more and more each day. The worst part was that we couldn't utilize a huge chunk of the property because we couldn't get the tractors down there. So, as I briefly mentioned before, we built a giant, fenced area for the chickens and they've been doing awesome in there. Thankfully, we haven't lost any of the birds to predators, which is awwwwwwwesome.What's not awwwwwwwwwesome is that the other day when I was feeding them, I accidentally dropped a piece of plywood on one of them and broke it's neck. It then proceeded to flap around, trying to stand up, but realizing that it's neck was broken, and within about 30 seconds died.I cried.I know, I know, I can hear you know. But Shaye, you're going to butcher them! Why do you care if one dies? What are you, a softie? You big 'ol softie-chicken-farmer-you.Yes, we are raising these birds for butcher, but it still did make me sad to loose one this way. First off, because I hate to loose anything before it's optimal time to harvest it. Secondly, I was sad that the chicken seemed to have suffered for those 30 seconds. When we butcher, we will do it as quickly, quietly, and peacefully as possible. Breaking the neck of a bird and watching it flap around was not peaceful.But after I got over the shock of killing the chicken, I had Stuart gut it and clean it. Then, I threw the carcass in a pot and make some delicious stock and then some delicious chicken soup. Even the small bird was still able to feed us for 2 meals, plus stock. So, chicken, I'm sorry for breaking your neck. But you were delicious. And my belly was thankful for you.2. On top of the meat birds that are currently fattening on our hillside, we've also been busy (my brother-in-law Jeremy and Stuart, rather) building a new retaining wall. After a few big rains this summer, we noticed the hillside was slowly washing away. Or not so slowly, rather. So our Landlords helped us to put in this big 'ol guy:It's not quite finished in this picture, but you can get the general idea. It's beautiful.In the springtime, we will plant the bottom terrace with trellised raspberries and (hopefully) replace the bottom retaining wall with rock to match.The wall was a really big project that took the better part of a week. I've been happy to keep the men full of good food while they have been hard at work, so I've been busy cooking up pulled beef sandwiches, egg drop soup, scalloped potatoes, soft boiled eggs, and sourdough artisan bread. It seems to be a fitting trade. You work. I'll cook. Booya.One of the best parts about the wall is that it extended our walking path alongside the house by four feet, which means that I no longer have to balance as steadily when carrying a five gallon bucket of water to the chickens.Because sometimes, when girlfriends carrying a bucket of water that's super heavy, she just needs to stumble around a bit to try and get it where it's goin'.Point being, I no longer have to fear for my life as I'm carrying the giant bucket. Can't you just see me? Rolling down the hillside getting splashed with chicken water? Me too. And it ain't pretty.3. The fall garden is growing!We've got a little bit of spinach (and by a little, I mean enough to add as a garnish next to a fried egg or something):A little bit of lettuce (if you're the size of a doll, it'd be enough for a salad):And a little bit of new kale (like the old kale plants, but much smaller still):We've also got some beautiful rye and field peas coming up as our cover crop! I've never utilized a cover crop before and I'm excited to see what sort of affect it has on the soil come spring. I also laid down a heavy layer of poo and hay from Kula's corral as a mulch. Feedin' the soil man, feedin' the soil.The soil likes to be fed. As do I. But that's not the point of anything.4. I know I've already briefly mentioned this, but my chickens have started laying! Well, two of them have started laying. I'm still awaiting on the remaining twelve hens to step up their game. Come on ladies. Don't let me down, now.For the moment, I'm quite happy with the two eggs that await me each day. Okay. Quite happy may be a serious understatement. Obsessed is probably more accurate. I check the coop for eggs approximately 39 times per day. Just to see.5. Kula's blood sample will be sent to the lab this week to check for a pregnancy. If she is open, we will be selling her and purchasing a bred cow. We don't have easy access to a bull, or to artificial insemination, and getting a cow bred can be a challenge (especially if the cow has failed to conceive previously, as in Kula's case). It makes me horribly sad to think about selling Kula, but the fact of the matter is that we need a cow to produce milk. And if Kula can't do that for us, we need to find a cow that will.WAAAAHHHH!!! I'm sorry Kula!But I need butter.I've been in touch with a few different sellers across our state that have cows for sale and am patiently praying that the right cow, and the right situation, will find us through all of this. I'm already much smarter this go-round (GET A CONFIRMATION OF PREGNANCY, MY FRIENDS!) and am hopeful.The sun is shining. The chickens are scratching through the compost pile. I've got some yogurt culturing in the crockpot, a new batch of kombucha fermenting, and some artisan sourdough rising. I'm soaking up the deliciousness of fall, the busyness of the harvest season, and new experiences that still await us on the farm.It's busy. It's hard. And it's beautiful.