Unusually Warm Weather

This fall our weather has been very warm.  The grass is still a bit green, and it’s usually completely brown and dormant by now.  The weather has also had an effect upon the animals.  Stella seems to be very lazy.  She sleeps all day and just manages a leisurely stretch before deciding to go back to her napping.

Stella

The warm weather has had the opposite effect on the goats.  They have been very bouncy and playful.  Blaze challenges her twin, Bonnie, to “Queen of the Picnic Table.”

Blaze Blackboer

Cinnamon and Victoria play.

Cinnamon Blackboer and Victoria Blackboer

Even the big girls, Maggie and Vinnie, are getting in on the fun.

Maggie Osboer and Vinnie Osboer

Me, well I’m grateful to have decent working weather while I’m on winter break.  I decided it was the perfect time to get rid of corn cobs and the brush from our storm in July.  I dropped the box over the fence and climbed over myself.  Boeris and Osmo thought the box of corncobs was a treat for them.

Osmo and Boeris Van de Yell

Granted, this was supposed to be my Yule fire, but I was still working at that time and cleaning and cooking for my family’s gathering on Christmas Eve.  At least, I’m getting it taken care of now.  I gathered some dried grass and it was easy to light.  It didn’t take long before there was an impressive fire.

There is something truly awe inspiring about fire~the way it consumes everything in its path.  It seems lifelike with its dancing flames, and it creates an incredible amount of energy.

I continued gathering fallen limbs from the pen where I had the fire, and it was burning most of the morning.  Eventually, I quit hauling branches and let it burn down.  I could have continued hauling more wood to the fire, but I have enough respect for it’s dangerous nature that I decided to stop for the day.

The south winds were beginning to pick up and bring us even more warm weather.  Even though Fireman Boeris was keeping careful watch, I figured it was best to wait for another calm day to burn again.

By the afternoon, we had nothing but a pile of ashes.  There was only once tense moment when Osmo decided the ash would be a nice warm place to lay.  I’m not sure if it was me yelling that he was going to catch his fur on fire or actually getting warm that made him move.  I did check, and he hadn’t even singed a hair.  Goofy goat.

Hopefully, I’ll continue to get a lot of work done while the nice weather lasts.  I have to say though, I’m ready for it to turn cold.  It concerns me that our trees are used to a long winter’s nap and might be fooled into coming out of their dormancy.  It’s also hard on the animals when we have such chaotic swings in our weather.  They do much better with consistent temperatures.

Linking to Friday’s Fences.

Linking to Farmgirl Friday.