Cows? Yup.

On Tuesday, our barnyard family is going to gain some girth, in the form of three Highland Cattle.  Actually, three & 1/2.  One heifer named Firefly is pregnant.  Her ultra-cute name makes me like her already.  The 21st century part of it is – I actually watched John bid on and win these cattle from my computer at the farm.  He almost lost the second heifer, when a (semi-illegal) bid snuck in last minute, but they re-opened the bidding, allowing John to win the little lady.

Who am I kidding, she’s not little at all!  These cows are huge.  Huge.  And we’re going to have three of them.  Today, my eyes are staring at my screen just a little wider than usual.

Food Magic

Like the effects of a bad high-school rumor, coconut oil came out of the 80′s with a horrendous reputation.  Demonized for its saturated fat content, you’d have thought that every heart attack began with tub of coconut oil and a spoon.  The clarification that I believe went unnoticed was the difference between organic, unrefined coconut oil and the highly refined hydrogenated version.  The media is beginning to scrub the graffiti from poor coconut oil’s locker, touting the possible connection between unrefined coconut and heart health, but there’s another beautiful story about the positive effects of coconut oil that has thus far, gone largely unnoticed.  And folks, it could be huge.  Here’s why…

The Duck ICU

Two weeks ago, a shipment of 100 teeny tiny baby ducks arrived at the Post Office for Apricot Lane.  Perfect timing in preparation for the on-slot of snails in the spring, these Khaki Campbell ducks will be replacing many hours of labor spent spreading organic snail bait.

And I thought baby chickens were cute…