Updaty-ness
I haven't posted in awhile, mainly due to my killer work schedule and a bout with strep.
Work schedule:
I'm currently working down in the Potomac Mills store, which is 1.5 hours or so from home. We are all meeting at our employment office (about 35-40 minutes from home) and boarding a bus for a shuttle ride down to the training location. It's four 10-hour workdays, but if you add my normal commute on top of it all it adds up to a very, very long day.
In addition to that the kids are still being weaned so we are bottle feeding twice a day, that means getting up at 4:30am and being in bed by 8/8:30 - and doing lots and lots of dishes. I'm getting real good at mixing and filling 5 or 6 bottles at a time while half asleep. :) Just think, next year we're going to be milking *and* bottle feeding at the same time. The plus side is that I won't be doing the long commute next year, just my normal one.
Future plans:
I'm going to have to sit down with a calculator and pad of paper to figure out how many goats we need to maintain before we can start breaking even. Once you start bottle feeding two it's just as easy to feed 4, 10, or 20. Some genius invented this need thing called a "Lambar", it's a lidded bucket with bottle nipples that ring the outside along the top. Each of the nipples is connected to tubing so it acts like a straw when they suck on the nipples. You put as much formula in the bucket, slap the lid on, and put it out in the feeding area. Viola! Then, with a milking machine you can milk two goats at once in less time than it takes to milk one. I've got access to markets to sell my cheese, but I need to rent or construct an approved production facility in order to do so legally. The more animals we have the more space we need to raise them. So it was no surprise when I mentioned last night that the security cameras we've been looking at could move to the farm with us. It just popped out, but it sounded right. It's going to be awhile but it looks like we might be heading in that direction.
Friends:
Yesterday was a wonderful, special day. I got to spend it with my two very best friends from high school; Carla and Sherry. I see Carla every year or so but I hadn't seen Sherry in more than a decade. The best part was that from the moment we all saw each other it was like no time had passed. There were no uncomfortable, awkward moments; we just fell right back into our friendship like it used to be. The three of us all ended up going our separate ways after college, as usually happens. Carla now breeds dogs and works as a dental hygienist, Sherry is a teacher and has a 7 y.o. little boy. The time went by far too quickly.
Health:
I had my quarterly check up with my specialist last week and my numbers are still phenomenal. If you didn't know the facts, just looking at the lab values would make it seem like I were a perfectly normal, healthy person. It makes me want to go out and buy some additional life insurance just to get the lower rate. :) We've upped my magnesium level though to see if that will counteract the fatigue. It seems to be helping.
The strep was pretty unpleasant and Kirk managed to get it shortly after I did, naturally. The doctor prescribed an antibiotic and I sweet talked her into making it liquid, lately they've been giving me these horrible horse pills that are a struggle to get down. I told her I didn't care how many pills I had to take at once or how horrible the liquid tasted I just couldn't cope with more massively sized pills. The liquid was terrific! It had a flavor base added to it so it was quite tasty. My last dose I practically licked the bottle clean. :)
Work schedule:
I'm currently working down in the Potomac Mills store, which is 1.5 hours or so from home. We are all meeting at our employment office (about 35-40 minutes from home) and boarding a bus for a shuttle ride down to the training location. It's four 10-hour workdays, but if you add my normal commute on top of it all it adds up to a very, very long day.
In addition to that the kids are still being weaned so we are bottle feeding twice a day, that means getting up at 4:30am and being in bed by 8/8:30 - and doing lots and lots of dishes. I'm getting real good at mixing and filling 5 or 6 bottles at a time while half asleep. :) Just think, next year we're going to be milking *and* bottle feeding at the same time. The plus side is that I won't be doing the long commute next year, just my normal one.
Future plans:
I'm going to have to sit down with a calculator and pad of paper to figure out how many goats we need to maintain before we can start breaking even. Once you start bottle feeding two it's just as easy to feed 4, 10, or 20. Some genius invented this need thing called a "Lambar", it's a lidded bucket with bottle nipples that ring the outside along the top. Each of the nipples is connected to tubing so it acts like a straw when they suck on the nipples. You put as much formula in the bucket, slap the lid on, and put it out in the feeding area. Viola! Then, with a milking machine you can milk two goats at once in less time than it takes to milk one. I've got access to markets to sell my cheese, but I need to rent or construct an approved production facility in order to do so legally. The more animals we have the more space we need to raise them. So it was no surprise when I mentioned last night that the security cameras we've been looking at could move to the farm with us. It just popped out, but it sounded right. It's going to be awhile but it looks like we might be heading in that direction.
Friends:
Yesterday was a wonderful, special day. I got to spend it with my two very best friends from high school; Carla and Sherry. I see Carla every year or so but I hadn't seen Sherry in more than a decade. The best part was that from the moment we all saw each other it was like no time had passed. There were no uncomfortable, awkward moments; we just fell right back into our friendship like it used to be. The three of us all ended up going our separate ways after college, as usually happens. Carla now breeds dogs and works as a dental hygienist, Sherry is a teacher and has a 7 y.o. little boy. The time went by far too quickly.
Health:
I had my quarterly check up with my specialist last week and my numbers are still phenomenal. If you didn't know the facts, just looking at the lab values would make it seem like I were a perfectly normal, healthy person. It makes me want to go out and buy some additional life insurance just to get the lower rate. :) We've upped my magnesium level though to see if that will counteract the fatigue. It seems to be helping.
The strep was pretty unpleasant and Kirk managed to get it shortly after I did, naturally. The doctor prescribed an antibiotic and I sweet talked her into making it liquid, lately they've been giving me these horrible horse pills that are a struggle to get down. I told her I didn't care how many pills I had to take at once or how horrible the liquid tasted I just couldn't cope with more massively sized pills. The liquid was terrific! It had a flavor base added to it so it was quite tasty. My last dose I practically licked the bottle clean. :)