I cannot believe it’s been almost a full month since I’ve had the space and time to make this blog a priority. But OH, how I’ve missed it (and you)! So, here I am, carving out a pocket of time!
First, thank you for all the Happy Anniversary wishes you all sent! My wife and I enjoyed a quiet weekend alone full of good food and the Kill Bill movies 🙂
Now…
There’s an inside joke in the farming world that August can only be summarized as a hashtag: #august.
It is often unbearably hot and busy leaving us humans unbearably hot and exhausted.
Add to that our family’s personal schedule shifts (summer camp ends at the end of July but we don’t start our homeschool learning until September) and our chosen delayed goat kidding season (July/August instead of March/April) and August becomes quite the roller coaster of liminality…
A time of pushing myself to do all.the.things while watching Nature’s subtle signs that a seasonal shift has already begun and a more restful time is just around the bend.
And so, what does any of this even mean? Well, for example, it means:
Harvest!
Berries and chile and squash and herbs and and and, oh my!
Events!
In addition to our local Fiesta de Dia de Santiago I mentioned in my last post, the non-profit my wife leads celebrated their 70th Anniversary with a community gathering at the beginning of August. Both events were great fun and such lovely ways to engage with our friends and neighbors.
The happy, smiling gentleman in two of the below photos is Joe Hayes, a local storyteller who has retired this summer. I grew up listening to him every summer and developed some beautiful core memories around those experiences. He told stories as part of the Anniversary event as his second to last appearance. My heart was so happy 🙂
Babies!
You learned about Daisey in my last post, but since then our second mama, Marilyn, delivered her kids.
Marilyn’s was not an easy delivery and I was home alone for it. We were gifted two beautiful babes (a girl and a boy) but she lost a third after a breach delivery that was very complicated and required me to intervene and pull. I’ll spare you the details (and me the very visceral memories) but let’s just say it was very hard on us both, as my Chiropractor could attest. I wound up with pulled muscles and dislocated ribs (six!) and am honestly still recovering physically.
Marilyn is just fine, thank goodness!
In ten years of goat keeping, never have we ever had such a rough delivery. And never have I been alone for a delivery before as usually my wife can be here, too. A lesson in humility and resilience, no doubt.
Alas, the two surviving babes are thriving and adding lots of joy to our days (if not to their mama’s back 😉 )
We also have a clutch of turkey babes learning how to Turkey with a first time mom which has been quite the experience to behold. They’re just so darn small when they hatch compared to how big they get!
Visits!
Summer on the farm often means hosting friends and family! Sometimes this just means harvesting or hanging out for a few hours and sometimes it means a harvest party spanning a whole day or weekend.
We are so lucky to know so many people who want to come see us, help us, or just sit in nature with us for a short spell.
Every visit is special in its own right, but last week brought my cousin out to visit, which was especially special! I am not incredibly close with much of my extended family (though we do our best to stay in touch semi-regularly) but my cousin Sky and I have remained close throughout all the seasons of our lives despite living many states away from each other in our adulthood. While our visits are few and far between (it’s been ~10 years since I saw him last) we talk regularly and know much of what’s happening in each other’s lives.
Last week he finally made it back to New Mexico and finally got to see our farm! We shared the day together and it was absolutely lovely.
Life is good. Full and so very good.
I want to thank those of you who reached out to me in my silence to check in and make sure everything is OK. It truly is just so very busy.
I intend to get back to a consistent schedule soon and aim to prioritize this space in the coming weeks. Thanks for sticking with me through the ebb and flow of the seasons while I work my butt off, do my best to stay present, and daydream about the quieter months.
Thanks for sharing a cuppa with me today! I so appreciate the company
As always, big thanks to Natalie for hosting us and providing a platform for us to find each other.
If you have a few extra minutes, please pop over and see what others are up to, too!
Onward,
Melissa
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What a busy season for you! Happy belated anniversary and congratulations on the 70th anniversary of your wife’s non-profit. That’s an amazing run! The photo of Marilyn is so captivating. I hope you can recover quickly from her difficult delivery. Thanks for sharing all the beautiful visuals on your farm. It looks like such a special place.
Thank you so much for your kind words! The balance of it all is such a beautifully wild experience <3 I am forever grateful for the lessons in each and every moment.
That does sound like quite the busy season! I’m having a hard enough time just keeping up with all veggies we get in our CSA box and from friends’ gardens. I try so hard to make sure nothing goes to waste so there is a lot of food prep and freezing and canning (jarring?) going on. I almost start to dread the deliveries by this time of year. But I know I’ll be so glad for this hard work in fall and winter. So sorry to hear that baby goat delivery was so rough. I hope you are healing well!
Hi Joanne! Busy indeed! Though I do remember the abundance of CSA boxes and they can be *so abundant* this time of year! You body and your wallet will thank you in mid-winter though 🙂 Thank you for popping by and for the healing thoughts!
Beautiful photos! I am so sorry about the delivery. I hope both of you are healing well. A storyteller – what an amazing job. I think he will probably continue to do that “job” even after retiring.
-Soma
Hi Soma! Thank you so much for your kind words and healing thoughts! I agree about Mr. Hayes, I can’t imagine he’ll ever run out of stories to tell 🙂 What a career to build for oneself and such a lovely legacy to leave behind in all of our hearts!
You do sound busy. Here in England our summer has been unusually hot and dry and autumn has come early. I am sweeping leaves already.
Hi Anne! Thank you for stopping by! We have leaves turning here already, too! Not all of them, but it seems some of the trees are just plain tired of the scorching heat! We’re all looking forward to a bit of cooler weather and the respite it provides! Hope you have a lovely weekend!
What a busy season for you, Melissa. The harvest looks so good and abundant; a reward for all your hard work. I love watching the goat video. I’m sorry about Marilyn’s rough delivery. I hope you are feeling better and continue to heal well. Thank you for your weekend coffee share.
Thank you, Natalie! Good and abundant, indeed…even when it’s challenging 😉
Oh look at the turkey baby!
So cute, right?! It’s never ceases to amaze me how *tiny* they start out and how quickly they grow!
I hope it cools off for you in September, “cooling off” in every sense of the word. Glad Marilyn and the remaining kids are doing well. I hope you heal soon! I have seen many wild turkey chicks of all sizes – they are cute! Of course I can’t hold them 😉
Anyway, sounds like a good month over all, despite the down sides.
Enjoy your weekend and I hope you have a wonderful week!
Hi Trent! I definitely looking forward to the “cooling off” period in all respects 😉 Hope your weekend is rounding out wonderfully!
Life is good indeed! Such a bountiful harvest and happy memories in the making. Your little farm has come a long way.
Thank you so much, Maria! It’s such a joy to watch it all grow and change each season <3 Hope the week ahead is a good one for you and yours!
MElissa, what a wonderful summer! So busy and filled with love and happiness 🙂 The baby goats are cute but I confess their eyes give me the ibie jeebies LoL
It has been wonderful, indeed 🙂 I must say, I’ve found people either LOVE goat eye or they don’t like them at all! Funny how’s there doesn’t seem to be a middle ground LOL! Hope your week is off to an awesome start!
Joe Hayes is an amazing storyteller. I’ve heard him speak at many library conferences here in Texas.
You have a life filled with meaning and activity. Not just everyone gets to be right there when baby animals come into the world.
Oh I am so very glad you know of Joe Hayes and have had the opportunity to hear him! He is such a joy!
Thank you so much for you kind words. I appreciate your honest reminders <3
What a beautiful harvest! And beautiful community gatherings.
Wishing you continued healing.
Thank you so much, Joy 🙂
Looks like most things are going well in your world – the loss of the baby goat and your subsequent injuries being the exceptions. Your farm sounds like a delightful place!
Thank you so much, Michelle! Yes, life is good even when it’s hard, thank goodness 🙂 Hope your week is off to a great start!
Great harvest and that event looks like fun!!!
Thanks for stopping by, Kirstin! It was great fun 🙂 Hope you’re having a great week so far!
It looks like you have had a truly beautiful summer, despite the goat birthing injury (yipes! hope you keep healing well. I am so sorry you had to experience that pain!) and thanks for sharing all of this. Summer really is magical, and such a great reason to take time away from the computer/writing and enjoy the fleeting moments. I am glad you had the opportunity to relish your beautiful land, family (human and non-human), and plant magic.
Hi Jessica! Thank you so much for your kind words and healing thoughts! Summer is truly a wonderful time, even with its challenges, and full of magic in every corner! We just have to keep our eyes peeled for it 😉 I hope the tail end of your summer is going smoothly and your week is off to an awesome start!
Happy Belated Anniversary! Love all the pics you share, you place sounds like Heaven.. Sorry to hear about your ribs, ouch! Glad the kids are well. They are adorable. I’ve loving this time of year, I just came in with a shirtful of tomatoes and was able to gift some to our family on our labor day camping weekend. I’ve got lots of blackberries, too, that the birds have been gracious enough to let me keep. Glad you are all well and thank you for this peek into your world!
Thank you so much for visiting, Kathleen! We are so lucky to live here and experience this abundant life! I have to say, I’m a little jealous of your tomatoes! We got hit by a massive hail that killed half of ours and knocked the rest back by over a month! We finally have some fruit on the vine and I am hoping against hope the heat stays around long enough to size and ripen them up! In the meantime, have a bite for me, will you? 😉 I hope you had a lovely camping trip and your week is off to a smooth start!