Whoa, it’s May!

We’re currently sitting 51 days out from our projected first week of deliveries – woohoo!

In the last month or so we’ve experienced a few ups and downs, a phenomenon known to many as farming. It’s just the way it goes.

At the beginning of April (Up #1) I wrapped up my part-time marketing job to be full-time on the farm. It was a moment we had been anxiously anticipating. Up #2: The Fargo-Moorhead Forum graciously featured an article about Forager Farm on the cover of the paper. Holy cow were we excited! Plus, it brought in many needed sign-ups.

Shortly after, Down #1 happened: our 72′ x 30′ hoophouse did not fair well after a few days in a row of 60+mph winds. For the second time we had to repair a whole side of plastic, but this time the wind had ripped most of the North wall right out of the ground.

We thought, what next?

But we forged through, kept planting, transplanting, and fixing and we finally felt like we had our feet beneath us and we were ready to run.

Then this past Monday, Down #2: Our dear Coffee girl developed an abscess on her udder that sent us into a tizzy of worry and sadness. Goats have 3 terrible diseases they can contract that can mean life cut short. After consulting with many goat-savvy friends we were worried Coffee could have 2 of the 3 diseases.

Yesterday our vet came out to draw blood samples of both Coffee and Tullah to send off for tests to ensure they don’t have the diseases and lanced and extracted Coffee’s abscess, also for tests. He was pretty sure the bacteria from her abscess was not the terrible one which attacks the lymph system, but a different common bacteria in livestock with little to no harm.

We won’t know for sure until we receive the test results, but we’re hoping and praying she’ll be just fine.

Up #3: We sold my car and were able to buy my brother’s pick-up to better suit ours and the farm’s needs. Yahoo!

Up #4: This past week Jonathon was able to get into the field to form beds before the next round of forecasted rain. And we got some early beet, carrot, and onion direct seeded in the fixed hoophouse, along with trays and trays of seedlings waiting for warmer soil to be transplanted into the ground.

And between each up and down there’s this little detail that is constantly being factored in – we’re getting married in less than 4 months! Many times I find myself saying, “Oh ya! We have a wedding to plan. What have we not done and what’s the most urgent?” It’s me trying to compartmentalize the to-do list, but always at the top is Forager Farm and our members.

H.