As I sit here on my bed starting to write this week’s farm journal, I keep getting whiffs of sheep. Yeah, it sounds pretty weird and that’s because it is, but, if any of you have ever spent time around sheep, then you know the smell I am talking about. It is kind of musty and grassy, and I currently smell like I doused myself in Chanel’s finest sheep scent perfume. Really, Willa, is the culprit of the fragrant perfume on my neck and face. She had her very first vet appointment today to get a couple of shots and her puppy wellness check and I got to cuddle her on the drive from the farm to her appointment. Woo-wee! She is one STINKY farm dog. She is really embracing her role as protector of sheep and has the smell to prove it. She definitely could use a bath…and now, so could I.

The first week of August is flying by, literally. We have had such strong micro-bursts of wind on the farm this week that one forced a 6 ft. pile of wood to blow over. We have always had strong winds on the farm, but have never had a stack of wood blow over because of it. I am happy to report that no one got hurt or happened to be by the stack that fell, but it was definitely an intense few minutes as the micro-burst pummeled the farm. In other news, we have finally gotten a good chunk of our projects on our “things to do” list started or completed. So far this week we have butchered our second lamb of the year, butchered our first pig, hatched 25 quail, prepared for the arrival of more chickens, harvested loads of vegetables from the garden, expanded the turkey run so the turkeys have access to more pasture, and picked up our spray foam insulation! We can finally start on the last phases of the walk-in cooler and I cannot wait to have it fully insulated so that we can see how the walk-in will work for us.

The weather continues to be very, very hot and quite dry and the grasshoppers are swarming in numbers I have yet to see in my lifetime. They literally cover every inch of grass so as you walk through, they swarm around you. It is absolute insanity! They are also wreaking havoc in the garden, shredding my basil, bean, and winter squash plants, and eating the leaves of my eggplants, too. We have moved one of our mobile chicken coops into our fruit forest with our very young, tender apple and cherry trees to try and combat the grasshoppers and keep them from eating our young trees’ leaves. At this point, I am not actively trying to manage them as it seems futile at this point to try and protect my plants, but if anyone out there has any tips for managing grasshoppers in the garden, I am all ears!

We continue to add things to the list of things to do, but are grateful for the help we have gotten from our family who has come to help us with Kade so we can work on some projects. I am feeling more confident this week that we will get everything done before winter, but I know that the road ahead is long, winding, and apparently, outrageously windy!

Well, I’m off to spruce up and get this sheep perfume off me- until next time, farm friends!

Farmer Kinzie