Onyx and Pretzel

Since I weaned Lemuel, I thought I’d try milking Onyx.

Onyx and her mom, Victoria

On just her fourth time of going in, she stood perfectly for me.  Now I just need her to learn to come up at milking time.

standing perfectly

She was obviously already cutting down feeding her boy because she doesn’t have a lot of milk, but this is more about training for next year than it is about me actually getting the milk.

So what did I do with a cup of milk after I was already done milking everyone else.  Well, Pretzel got it.

Pretzel

She was not happy with the idea of not getting her bottle, and she was so certain that I was trying to starve her that I couldn’t even get her attention to show her that I had a bottle for her.

She did finally notice and drained the bottle.  Then she went for the sweet feed.

That girl.

Still Milking

Every evening when I go out at 6:00pm, I have four girls waiting for me on the hill.

Astra, Caroline, Joy, and Ava

Well, sometimes, I have a couple more girls who think they should get to come in too.

Haley

They are really annoying, especially in the morning before I go to work.

Dolly and Haley outside the door. They literally try to push their way in when I switch milking girls.

After we are done milking, they head back out to pasture to rejoin the rest of the herd.

Ava, Joy, Caroline, and Astra

I am currently working on filling the freezer with milk for next year’s bottle kid(s) if I need.

I only have a tiny bit of milk left from last year.  When it’s gone, Pretzel will get weaned.

Pretzel running (and yelling at me) for her bottle.

Don’t worry, she’s plenty chunky.

And a couple of evenings, when she’s come running for her bottle, she’s already had milk on her mouth.

Pretzel

I think she and Hera have an arrangement so that Hera’s udder isn’t so full and Pretzel will try sucking anything that might give her milk.

Hera

Anyhow, I’m also still making a bit of mozzarella with the milk. That is for my mom. I’m still making soaps for sale.  I’ve almost restocked everything, and I’ve added some new fragrances to replace the ones I can no longer get.

Sunflower Sandalwood is new.

I’m hoping the soap room will be fully up and ready for sales again by the first of October.

Most of the soaps curing

Of course, I have a lot of soap labels to make now.

Milk and Tomatoes

My tomatoes seem to be ready a bit earlier than a lot of other people’s this year.  It’s probably because I got mine in just before  a week of rain and cool temperatures. It didn’t work out well for my seeds–many rotted, but it was just fine for the tomatoes.

I’m canning.  I’ve done cold pack tomatoes.  I’ve done a bit of roasted tomatoes.

I’ve done taco sauce.

While I have tomatoes ripening on my desk, I am doing things with my milk.

 

I haven’t had the energy to add Cutie to the lineup, so it’s still just my four girls.  I can barely keep up with what milk I’m getting. And Pretzel cracks me up.  Sometimes, she comes up from pasture with my milking girls because she knows it’s bottle time.  Of course, by the time I get my milk filtered, in the refrigerator, and her bottle made, she’s also gone back out to pasture with them, so I have to deliver it.  But, hey, it’s a good sign when I want to train her for milking.

Astra, Caroline and Pretzel, and Joy  (Ava was following behind)

I have done a lot of mozzarella cheese.

before it even looks like Mozzarella

I have been making soap.

Top to bottom: tea tree, Tahitian vanilla, lightly lavender, cornmeal scrubbing with tea tree, and black amber and lavender

I’m trying to get as much done as possible before I go back to work. All I’m doing is milk and tomatoes.

With a side of zucchini.

I am freezing it as zucchini patties for the winter.  I also did some homemade frozen pizzas that were broccoli and zucchini.

At least I have help with the zucchini if I need it.

Sky

What a good dog.