Stump Jumpin' Hootenanny

Hi Everybody!

Today all the kids are playing together. I don't like to brag, but I think it is pretty easy to see who is the smartest and cutest. Also who is on top of the stump...

Left to right: Kitty, Mel, Tiger, Jingle and Tinker.


Kid Party 

Sorry for the delay!

Hello everyone! Sorry for the delay in my blog. The farmer has had the flu and wouldn't type anything for me. That doesn't mean nothing has happened - no indeed. Jingle and Tinker are growing like weeds. They have learned how to do baby goat motocross and stump jumping. I hope to get some pictures up soon of that. Breezy's babies are doing well also, and we have a new Lamancha baby. He is very handsome.

Next on the kidding countdown is cranky old April - she will be having minimancha babies the second week of March. You cannot believe what a crabpot April is. She loves to bite our ears. She is BIG, too.

Ok, I will do my best to keep things going but the farmer is wheezing and sneezing a lot, so I don't know how much luck I will have. The weather is still unspeakably beautiful. All of our rain went to California. The farmer is gloomy and says we will pay for it later, but I for one love the sunshine, so I am happy as a clam.

Glorious Sunshine!

The spring has been unbelievably beautiful!

It makes us love life!

Today Jingle and Tinker and I are just basking in the sun! AH!


Sunbathing with my babies 

Jingle and Tinker, climbing Mt. Belle 

Thanks Everyone

Thanks to everyone for all the nice comments and excellent name suggestions!

I really had a hard time choosing names. If I had had a girl who was all white like me, I was going to name her Snow Belle. If I had a girl who was dark, I was going to name her Blue Belle.

If I had a boy who looked French, I was going to call him Bel Ami and have the farmer buy him a jaunty beret.

I decided on Jingle and Tinker for my two baby Belles in the end.

On their birthday they were very cute but of course kind of smushed-looking. Today they are supremely adorable, like supermodel goat babies. (And much bigger than Breezy's kids, who just look like little shrimps by comparison. Heh heh.)

Anyway, today we are going outside for a frolic. All the kids will play together since it is a beautiful sunny day here in the Pacific Northwest. So soon we will be able to add pictures of the outdoor kid jamboree.

Introducing Jingle and Tinker!

Here are the pictures of my kids. Jingle is the boy, and Tinker is the girl.


Whew, having babies is hard work! 

Young lady,

you are not going outside today,


so please stop pestering me! 

FINALLY!!!!!

Well, guess who just got born! My twins! They are very beautiful (AND BIG! I HAD TO PUSH HARD, AND THE FARMER HAD TO PULL!). One is a boy, and one is a girl. I will put the pictures up after I take a nice long nap. Then I can tell you the whole story.

Introducing Breezy's Triplets

While we wait (and wait) for MY kids to be born, let's meet Breezy's surprise birthday triplets, born on Saturday. They are already hopping around like jumping beans.
Just born: Kitty, still a little gooey... 

Mel... 

...and Kimmy, getting a rubdown 

Kidding Day Has Arrived

Today the countdown reaches zero...today is my Kidding Day.

But guess what? My kids have not come out yet.

While I wait for their arrival I am keeping my spirits up by eating lots of food. Here is a list of some of the things I have nibbled on today: alfalfa, grass hay, cob, salted peanuts, a Granny Smith apple, blackberry leaves, sunflower seeds, brewer's yeast, tums, barley straw, regular old grass, part of an oatmeal cookie.

YUM! When you are in the maternity wing the service is VERY good.

One of the surprise triplets, just born 

Breaking News!

Holy Goat, see if you can guess what happened here last night!

Breezy stole my thunder!

Thank Goodness Atty was paying attention. When the farmer came out to give him his dinner in the pasture just after dark, he was barking and making a ruckus and running in and out of the shed.

First the farmer was grumpy and said, "Atty! Eat your dinner! Stop making so much noise!"

Then the farmer heard a big scream and ran to look in the shed. Yep, you guessed it, Breezy had just popped out a baby. The farmer grabbed the baby and ran up to the barn.

Atty stayed on watch. Before the farmer got back, Breezy popped out two more babies. The farmer grabbed the two new wet babies and went up to the barn, and Breezy ran along behind, following the babies' little cries. Soon they were all dried off and full of milk and tucked into a cozy warm stall with lots of fresh straw.

Breezy was not supposed to kid until the end of March, but the dates must have been mixed up. She fooled everybody! When Atty came off his watch duty this morning he ran right to the barn to sniff the new babies and make sure they were okay.

Good job, Atty! It was freezing cold out there, that would NOT have been good for those little kids!

Pictures coming soon: two girls and a boy. VERY cute. (But probably not as cute as my babies will be, if I ever do have them....)

And yesterday was Breezy's birthday, too, isn't that funny?

Surf's Up!

Stevie Hangs Ten 

Juniper Breeze, the birthday girl

Here is a picture of Breezy, the other birthday celebrant. Isn't she pretty?

Breezy's quadruplets enjoyed "Mama surfing," which is something that Nigerian babies do a lot. They jump up on their mothers' backs and ride around until the mother gets too annoyed to allow it any more. Breezy was very patient and let her quads surf for a long time.

Breezy's daughter Stevie was the best of the surfers.


Happy Birthday, Breezy! 

Happy Birthday!

Ha! I fooled you. No, my babies did not get born yet, but they have stopped squirming around so much and I think that means they are getting ready to come out. But today is a big Birthday date here on the farm.

Breezy is three years old today, and Willen is four.

Breezy is a Nigerian doe. Last year she had quadruplets, three girls and a boy! One of the girls is named Quattra (she was born fourth) and she is partner in crime to my daughter Hannah Belle. They used to go around together making trouble before Quattra got too fat to squeeze through the fence.

Willen is not a goat, he is a Haflinger horse. Haflingers are very smart (almost as smart as goats), and Willen is a very smart Haflinger. He knows how to fetch, and he knows how to say yes and no, and he will be very happy to do any of those things for a treat. Today he is four years old.


Happy Birthday, Willen 

Three Days to Go!

K-Day Minus Three! That's right, there are only three days left in the kidding countdown. I am so ready for these baby goats to come out. It feels like they are player soccer in there!

I got some more name suggestions: Liberty Bell (woops! I had this listed as Liberty Belle at first!) and Southern Belle.

The list is getting long - I am glad there will be several to pick from.

Did you know that up until this year there were only six breeds of goats, all full-size, allowed in the ADGA? (That's the American Dairy Goat Association.) Those breeds were:

a. Alpine
b. Lamancha
c. Nubian
d. Oberhasli
e. Saanen
f. Toggenburg

Guess what? Now there is a new breed in town! The Nigerian Dwarf! The mighty mite milkers with everything - smart, funny, cute, colorful, yummy milk!

Go little girls! Dwarf Doe Power!

Our friend Atty

This is a picture of our guardian dog Atticus. He is a Great Pyrenees; he weighs 165 pounds. He was born in a goat barn in Eastern Washington and grew up with goats all around him.

He sleeps with us in the pasture at night to make sure no coyotes or other creatures can hurt us. Before Atty came some raccoons and hawks used to take the farmer's chickens all the time. Now nobody bothers them or us. Atty also hates crows, and won't let them land on the ground.

Atty is a good guard dog. He is very gentle with babies. Last year Winnie had her babies in the pasture; only Atty was here to take care of them. He did a good job, in fact he didn't really like it when the farmer came home and took the babies to the barn to warm up.

At night he has a special bark that means "go inside right now!" We all go in the shed right away if he gives the special bark. No one would ever disobey Atty.

When Snow Pea was crying because she couldn't go out, he went and laid outside her stall almost all day so she would have company. I'm glad Atty will be here when my babies come.


Our guardian dog Atticus 

Only Four Days to Go!

Good Golly, there are only four days to go in the KIDDING COUNTDOWN! Luckily I have had some excellent name suggestions. Thanks everyone who wrote in! I could always use more ideas, though, so if you think of a good "Belle" name, you can still send it.

Today I will get my birthing haircut. I don't like it much but I don't pitch a fit like some girls. (I don't like to name names but April the Lamancha acts like she is being tortured with red hot needles when she gets her hair cut. You'd think she would be embarrassed acting like such a baby - she is the biggest goat here.)

Here is the list of possible names so far:

Jingle Belle
Tinker Belle
Bluebelle
Snow Belle
Belle o' the Ball
Belle Ami (for a boy)
Belle Amie (for a girl)
Belle Ringer

My milk is coming in, and as you probably know, Nigerian milk is the yummiest of all the goat milks. And of course goat milk is a thousand times yummier than cow milk. (Once when I was just a little kid I got cow milk in my bottle and I thought I was going to gag. Yucch!) So that tells you just how yummy Nigerian milk is.

DANGER!

Good Heavens, we almost had a terrible accident here at the farm yesterday! My daughter Hannah Belle, who is quite an escape artist, decided that she would just jump over the fence to go visit her friend Clipper.

Now Hannah Belle is 8 months old, and she used to be quite a skinny little doeling, but as she has become a teenager her figure is not quite as willowy as it used to be, if you know what I mean. Anyway, Hannah Belle did not quite clear the top of the fence, and on the way down she got her leg caught in the wire, and she was stuck in the fence swinging upside down!

Luckily the farmer happened to be right there or I shudder to think what might have happened. We thought her leg was broken but after she hobbled around for a while she was fine. I hope she has learned a lesson, for once! Anyway, you kids out there, do NOT try to jump wire fences!

If you are keeping track, today is DAY 5 in the KIDDING COUNTDOWN!


Hannah Belle gets a vet check after fence mishap 

Dot and Snowy

Here is a picture of my niece and nephew, Dot and Snowy. Dot and Snowy were the first kids born on the farm last year. This year my kids will be the first born, so everyone is very excited.


Dot and Snowy 

Day 6

Hi Everyone -

I am feeling pretty chipper this morning. Yesterday everybody went out except me, since I was on maternity watch. Well, I didn't like that, so I just jumped over the top of my stall. They thought I couldn't do that any more but they were wrong!

Heck, I may be a pregnant lady but I still have plenty of hang time!

Anyway, the farmers got the point and they brought my fat little sister Snow Pea back up to the barn so I wouldn't be alone. I guess I will stay in my stall as long as I have company.

Right now, though, since it is so sunny and bright (cold, though) I am strolling around the pasture with my buddies Breezy, Eo, Marty, Scout, and Boo. It is important to keep getting exercise when you are pregnant, you can't just sit around eating alfalfa all day.

Below you can see a picture of Eo back when she was just a kid. She was a housegoat like me, and she loved to stand in front of the stove soaking up heat. Once her diaper even started to melt, but she didn't care. Anyway, that's my friend Eo in the picture.

Six Days to Go in the Kidding Countdown! Don't forget to send those names in! Also, if you would like to see another cool goat blog, you can go to this link. It even has pictures of our guardian dog, Atticus, who keeps the coyotes away and makes sure nothing bad happens to us.

Eo the housegoat, soaking up heat 

Super Bowl Party

It's Monday morning and we are in the final week countdown. The babies are bouncing around a lot!

Below you can see a picture of the Super Bowl Party we had here at the farm yesterday. Sometimes the horses just lie down and stare at us like they are watching a tv show, as you can see.

One of the horses, the black and white one in the background, thinks he is a cow horse and likes to chase us if he has a chance. The farmer does not allow this, but he thinks it is very funny.

His name is Laddy and except for chasing goats and cows he is the laziest horse in the world.

Ok, everyone, keep your fingers crossed, because it DAY 7 in the KIDDING COUNTDOWN and it won't be long before my babies hit the ground!

Super Bowl Party at the farm! 

Super Bowl Sunday = Eight Days to Go

Hi Everyone!

Today my babies (or is it just one baby? Sometimes I'm not sure) are really squirming. They can hardly wait to get out and start causing trouble.

Their dad's name is Marquee and he is very handsome. Marquee has wattles, and all his kids do too. Wattles are cute little tags that hang on a goat's neck; we call them "goat jewelry."

Marquee's dad is a champion show goat, and so is his mom. Marquee has done very well at shows also. One thing about his babies is that they all seem to have really sweet dispositions, although some of them, I have to say, can be very mischievious.

Sometimes Nigerian Dwarf goats can be a little shy and skittish of people. This is not a problem with Marquee's kids. One of the biggest problems with Marquee's kids is trying to get them to stop jumping in your lap and chewing on your hair and kissing you all the time.

Nine Days to Kidding!

Good morning, everybody. I hope you are enjoying our early spring. The chickens are laying and the horses have started losing their coats. I hope we don't get a hard hard freeze because everyone will be very chilly and confused if that happens.

Below you can see a picture of our friend Scout the Nubian. We all like her a lot, but she is a Nubian, so she can be a little bit intellectually challenged. But to tell the truth, even though she is afraid of hats and doesn't understand that it only rains outside, she is not the dumbest Nubian on our farm.

No, that honor belongs to Stacy. Stacy is four years old, and even though she loves food (like all Nubians), she still hasn't figured out that if you jump up on the milkstand there is a big dish of grain waiting for you.

This is something Eo and I learned when we were two weeks old. We would have done it sooner, but our legs were too short to jump that high. Anyway, the poor farmers have to lift Stacy onto the milkstand every time they want to trim her feet, and she weighs about 150 pounds.

She's sweet, though, and she's an excellent hummer. Most of the day she lies on the ground humming Nubian songs to herself. Go Stacy!

Today is DAY NINE in the KIDDING COUNTDOWN.

Our friend Scout the Nubian, trying to figure out what those drops falling from the sky are 

Ten Short Days to go!

Hi everybody! Here I am on a windy Friday with ten days to go. My friend Eo (a miniature Toggenburg) is visiting me in the barn because she got bored down in the pasture. Eo is spoiled because she lived in the house when she was a baby.

When Eo finally went outside to live she was shocked to discover that:

a) there were other goats in the world.

b) the other goats didn't wear a t-shirt and pull-ups and lie on the couch with the farmer eating Cheerios and watching tv.

It has taken her about a year to adjust.

Anyway, Eo and Snow Pea and I are relaxing in the barn but someone will probably come and make us get some exercise later.

We get our entertainment by watching the Nubians try to figure things out. Nubians are the blonds of the goat world: one of our Nubians bellows in fear whenever the farmer comes outside wearing a baseball cap (which is just about every day in the winter, because it rains a lot.)

She thinks it is a whole different duck-person-creature with a bill growing out of its head. Probably carnivorous, of course. Yo, Nubians, it's called a HAT!

If you have a good Nubian joke, send it in, maybe we can start a list of Nubian jokes.

Day Twelve!

Hi Everyone:

It's DAY 12 in the Kidding Countdown. Twelve has always been one of my lucky numbers, so I think it will be a really good day.

This morning the babies were kicking inside my belly, just squirming around like little hoodlums. The farmer served a delicious breakfast of cob, black oil sunflower seeds, and alfalfa pellets, mixed with minerals and a spoonful of linseed meal. YUM!

I am officially on maternity watch in the barn now, so I have a semi-private stall (my fat little sister SnowPea is with me). The stall has its own paddock, so I can go out and stretch my legs whenever I feel like it. (Not very often.)

The farmer made me take a walk, which wasn't too bad since it is a nice sunny day here in Western Washington. Below you can see a picture of me all tucked into my suite in the barn.

Waiting in the Maternity Ward

Me, Baby Belle, in the barn