A new chapter in the pig adventures

You might remember last year when AR bought a bred gilt, well he(we) enjoyed it so much that we have decided to raise pigs for show.  Since making this decision we have learned quite a lot about breeding pigs, for instance they are fed 4-7lbs of grain per day so that they don't get too fat.  Turns out that if they get too fat it can make it hard for them to get pregnant and if they do get pregnant it can make the birth difficult.  I cannot tell you how many questions we've asked over the last few days to breeders from Indiana to Texas.  I am impressed by how friendly and willing to help most seem and it really is heart warming to see  how passionate they all are about their pigs.  A great resource we have also found is showpig.com oh and WOW the AI world of pigs is amazing, people pay a small fortune for the "right" genetics.   Well, right now we're playing the waiting game since we lost our boar we will be looking to see if the sows come into heat over these next couple days.  They were AI'd last month but she was not certain if it took.  We have a line on several boars at this point and we are looking at some options for the pork side of the business too.  Ahh, so much to do, so little time.

The heat

The worse part of this life is when conditions outside of your control take the life of the animals in your care. For the past week temperatures have spiked hitting 104 and feeling even hotter, my poor pigs could hardly cool down fast enough to keep up, the ground drank the water rather than making mud. By the end of the weekend we had lost 1 sow and the boar and with temperatures continuing to rise and winds high, all we could do was move them away from the other animals. 


 Dh contacted the rendering plant yesterday but we discovered that they do not take pigs, only cattle and horses. Today I began to search for options and thankfully the Farm Bureau came through with options. It's something you ever really want to think about but it is part of this life and knowing your options sure helps. Dh and AR are working on a fire pit of sorts and we will incinerate the bodies. I pray it goes well and that we will never have to do it again. :( Thankfully we have been able to keep the other 2 sows comfortable and Praise the Lord, the temperatures this week are much milder.

HAPPY FATHERS DAY :)

A little of this and that

Yesterday we picked up 3 sows and a boar, they are show quality I am told and even registered.  We got a GREAT deal as she wanted them to stay together.  Dh and I have converted the corrals to a summer pig pen.  We also picked up a truck bed trailer and a riding lawn mower, all were priced for us far below market, I firmly believe they were God's blessings on us.  

 

Our grape tomato plant is producing nicely, I am eager to see how the other plants do.  We have tried to water them faithfully and even weed the tiny garden, I pray that it will produce well, I am not impressed by the strawberry plants, but we'll see.
Walmart clearance racks are AWESOME!!  I got all 4 girls matching 5 matching shirts each @ $1/ shirt (Girls team RULE, lol).    DH, AR and I lucked into 6 or 7 thanks to the same deal.  The deal wasn't as great for little boys clothes, but SL got a few and now all boys team have cute fedoras :)  
Today SL turned 6, it's flown by so fast, much like his new remote control helicopter.  He's really gotten into school now, he LOVES the Funnix reading and math programs.  I am so excited to watch him grow and mature. :)
AR is getting better at driving, it is so much better having 3people who can move vehicles and get the trailers hitched up.  
BREAKING NEWS: We just had a RIR chick hatch, our very first.  YAY!  Wait, what do I do now?  Off to research, we have another broody sitting on a nest :)

Dear John . er . Wichita

It's not you, it's me.  Actually it's dh, he's getting tired of the frequent trips so I'm cutting WAY back.  Given the current gas prices I agree but I'll miss you.  I won't miss the long drive or long lines or getting lost but your treasures (we got a free shed and bricks, Menards had 20inch bikes for 19.99 after rebate - we need 1 more so now all kids have bikes), places to go and eat.  Well It's not quite goodbye, I will see you again. :)


The kids and I went down to Dallas last weekend and had a blast celebrating my birthday and Memorial day with my mom and sister's family.  It was so great to get out of town for a bit, the kids and I had such a great time.  It may seem crazy taking 7 kids on a road trip alone but we had fun.  Here are a few pics

I am still getting all our supplies together for the numerous house projects (Menards has a 3day sale the vinyl flooring is marked down 43%), slow and steady wins the race right? :)  Dh's schedule has made it slow going but we'll get there eventually.  
The summer heat has kept the kids cooling off in the pool almost daily.  My sis got a pool for our visit and sent us home with it :)

Well I better get back to work, more to come soon.