The storm has passed and we have over a foot of snow with banks of over 3 feet in places. But the sun was shining. Was 10 degrees outside when I started the chores. Gave the ducks and geese clean water, funny to watch a goose standing in a small container of water :) while ducking, doing an air bath.
Found an egg in the chicken house, but not in the lower barn this morning. My intrepid hen didn't do the long trip in snow deeper than she is high ! Bought a dozen eggs at Wally World today. Was amazed to see their pricing of $4.39 / dozen for cage free eggs. Wow, I sell our free-range eggs for $2.50 - nearly ½ of the store prices. No wonder my eggs are in such high demand. Also saw that skim milk was $5.69. Skim ! Food prices are sooo high ! We don't buy dairy or meat, and yet our food bills seem astronomical. Don't know how people survive who don't have the farm supplied food we have. OK, it's lots of physical work, but I know it's healthy, non-GMO food.
Received our cheque for the sheep today - sold at average prices but after the replacement alternator we are actually in a hole with the deal :(. Would have been cheaper to keep them.
Talking to someone about selling 2 bull calves, Shaw and Larry. Planning on keeping Parrot to impregnate Daisy May and Star, and then sell him or butcher him. Then considering keeping ½ of Big Red for our freezer and selling the other half. Then moving to AI-ing our cows in future, just keeping all boy calves for selling or meat after weaning.
Have a new routine in place for milking. Keep the pulsator in the house as leaving it in the cold means it won't work. So there is an additional 3 trips through the tunnel every day. After milking today also brought the oval loop into the house as there was a chunk of ice in it that blocks the air flow. So tired of this cold. But still think the actual snow is pretty. Plus, I haven't fallen ..... yet ! Can feel my arm again, tipping the large water buckets out for the animals may be a little too much.