2024
Our 2024 was a year of hard work and challenges. The challenges we faced were no real surprise. We just didn’t fully comprehend the mental, physical and emotional tolls they would have on us.
We started off 2024 kidding out our commercial meat goats in the beginning of January. Just days before a severe polar vortex hit us. To ours surprise, all of our kids survived the extreme cold beside a couple frozen ear tips. Ryan and I spent many days and nights ensuring our barn had power (thanks to our little generator) for a heater, heat lamps and heated buckets. I don’t think I slept longer than 2 hours at a time. But I trucked my pregnant belly to and from the barn.
During that polar vortex, we welcomed 2 new litters of kune kune piglets. It was exciting and terrifying all at the same time. There was no information or mentorship I could find to help us navigate newborn piglets in such severe temps. I spent days and nights carrying a laundry basic full of piglets from the barn to our house every couple hours to nurse off their mothers. After the couple days -50C (with the windchill) felt pretty comfortable. We did end up losing a couple piglets to the significant temperature shift. After filling their bellies and resting in the basket of towels, blankets and hot water bottles, they would become hypothermic. I couldn’t recover them fast enough as I would rush to the house to try and warm their tiny bodies. I learned to put a heated blanket in the basket for the prolonged cold exposure.
February felt like a whirlwind. We had our first every experience with pneumonia in piglets. I was shocked by how fast piglets will succumb to the affects of pneumonia. I utilized our local vet but unfortunately I lost 2 more piglets. I felt defeated but I dug deep into where I went wrong. I learned the importance of humidity and ventilation particularly in brooder boxes with deep bedding.
March was a lot of fun with animals going to their new homes and meeting new people. We were excitedly waiting and preparing for our newest addition.
April we welcomed our fourth child into our family. Life became even more busy. Postpartum felt more challenging than before. But looking back now, I can see that I was putting a lot of pressure and stress on myself.
The rest of the spring and summer went by in a flash. It was full of newborn baby, 3 young children, camping, beach, gardening, more piglets, family reunions, etc. We butchered all of our meat chickens and one of our kune kune feeder pigs. They were delicious and we were blessed with lots of help from friends and family. We put in the biggest garden I ever had. I put in ZERO garden planning. I took all my kids to purchase seeds and let them pick out everything while i cared for a fussy newborn. We ended up with every purple vegetable you can buy. The Dragon Tongue bush beans were a happy accident! Definitely buying those again!
I did more canning this year than I have ever done. But I pushed myself to the point of exhaustion and gave myself some very severe burns in the process. My oldest daughter reminded my that when we start having accidents like that, then that means our need to take a break.
So, I planned the rest of my year to prepare for a well deserved break.
Fall was focused on back to school, hunting and winter feed prep.
Hunting felt long and tiring this year. More because of the lack of game around home. And our fourth child was not a great sleeper so I was feeling the effects of being up frequently through the night. But I had tags to fill and I wasn’t going to say no to an opportunity to go hunting.
In December we butcher the last of our feeder kunekunes and put them in the freezer. Then we went into the Christmas season.
Busy, busy, busy.
As I sit here thinking about 2024, it feels foggy. But I remember feeling very tired and a little over whelmed. I never gave myself permission to rest or take a pause.
2025
My goal for starting off 2025 was to rest and heal. That is exactly what we have been doing. A lot of sleeping, reading, watching moves, playing card games. Its been so good. After January 2024, this January already feels like a cake walk. I go do my chores everyday and I am not terrified of how the weather will affect the new born animals.
I have time to read, write and exercise. I am forcing myself the slow down in the mornings and enjoy a hot beverage.
The rest of 2025 will hopefully be about slowing down and enjoying. We will still be busy, but a more controlled busy.
I am still ordering 65-85 meat birds, expecting 17 goats to kid and 4 sows to farrow. All between the beginning of March and beginning of May. But I think it will feel less frantic. We know what to expect. We know our animals and we know more than we did the year before.
I am hoping to give myself more grace and patience for our busy but fulfilling life.
I also want to be able to slow down and enjoy the process again.
2024 felt lie a rush to check things off the list. I hope 2025 is where I am back pausing in the moment and appreciating it all.
My sister said to my once that “child Alex would love to see what adult Alex is doing right now”. And I whole heartedly agree. How cool is it that this year we will be butchering the most home grown animals to date with 4 small children at our side. 10 years ago we were only butchering 1 or 2 deer a year. 2 years before that I never butchered anything. Its wild how much you can allow yourself to grow.
I welcome the challenges that come our way this year. After 2024, I realized that I can only control so much. And if I make a mistake, I will continue to learn and do better next time. I don’t need to be so hard on myself.
“It is never a mistake as long as you have learned something”
-Alex
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