Farm Fresh

Dana has a cousin, that has a daughter, that lives in a house where she has a little farm going in the backyard. I knew she had goats but then I saw her post on FB that her goat had babies. So I thought- I have these kids that are animal lovers (well one really sticks out in my mind) and thought that might be a fun adventure for them. Anyway, she is so sweet and let us come by on President's Day.

She is a Renaissance woman! Her husband is away for work right now, she has 3 little boys, a bunch of goats and chickens, and a rabbit to take care of. You know, plus all the many other things that keep you busy in the house. I just think she's amazing. She is a true animal lover.

Here she is getting the newborn goats out that were born the day before, for the kids to hold. She's holding off the boy goat ("billy" goat right?) who kept trying to butt her. He is a very physical creature. We'll just leave it at that :)

So here are the cute babies :) The kids loved them as much as I expected. I thought they were super cute too.

The mommy's usually have twins so they have 2 newborn goats (they can already walk and were trying to run), and 2 that are 3 weeks old.
These are the 3 week old ones. They grow quick.

Sadie was nervous even with the chickens roaming around her feet. So this was her goat experience.
I got to hold a newborn one too.
She also let me buy a carton of eggs from her. The kids were having a great time gathering them. The chickens lay one per day and I think they collected about 9 during the time we were there.
Eli liked that they were warm. We've gone through all of them already. Each time Eli ate one he would say how it tasted so much better and fresher than eggs at the store. And the kids called them "chicken eggs" rather than "eggs" because they connected that they came from chickens.
We had such a great time visiting with them. The kids would've stayed all day if I would've let them. They have such a huge area out back for kids to just run around too that I was kind of jealous of that. But we make due with what we've got and try to get as much from our backyard as we can. We have been really enjoying our oranges this winter- they seem extra yummy. I never really did a winter garden but Eli brought this little cabbage plant home from school and soon it became a big cabbage plant.
2 days ago I pulled it up, cut the head out, and made...
...cabbage soup:) Emma was very skeptical when I told her what I was making. "Why would anyone name a soup 'cabbage soup'? Then it sounds so disgusting." (My favorite word when I'm making dinner). But she changed her tune after a few bites and ended up having 3 bowls. It was super good. I'll add the recipe in case you want to try it. I also have started going back to the gym so I'm feeling pretty healthy.
I did a "Zumba" class day before yesterday after the elliptical and I'm wondering when I'll be able to walk normal again. But I LOVED the class and will definitely be back. The teacher had me come up on the stage with her for one song! But at least she told the class it was my first time so hopefully they weren't too hard on me. I was smiling the whole time in there. I miss dancing so much. And now I have an outlet for it!

Kayci- if you catch this post by chance thank you, thank you for being so amazing and welcoming!

Cabbage Soup

3 T olive oil

1/2 onion chopped

2 cloves garlic chopped

2 quarts chic broth

1/2 t pepper (i did less)

1/2 head cabbage, coarsely chopped

1 can italian style stewed tomatoes drained, diced

I added:

2 lrg peeled, chopped carrots

about 1 cup frozen sweet corn (the yummy organic Costco one)

In a large pot heat olive oil over med. heat. Stir in onion and garlic. (Here is where I added the carrots as well after about a min) Cook about 5 mins. stir in broth and pepper. Bring to a boil, then stir in cabbage. Simmer about 10 mins. Stir in tomatoes and return to a boil. Simmer 15-30 mins, stirring often. (I added the corn about the last 5 mins).

I also cut some rolls in half, buttered them, put parmesan cheese on them and broiled them for a minute.