future generations

peek-a-boo

A morning ride to Cranbourne to pick up our 400 new lovely mini ladies.

Our babies are packed so beautifully and safely in these perfect little boxes - they are warm and cozy and happy - we haven't lost any of these ones in transit ever (which can easily happen as they're only a day old).

My two youngest and I pick them up and have a very cheep cheep cheepy ride back home to their new home for the next few weeks...

Their cozy and warm container where they learn to grow and socialise.

Savannah was particularly excited with many very expressive pointing sessions and squeals of delight.  I have to admit, they're so darn cute that you need to have some cuddling sessions.  She wasn't THAT brave yet with the day old chicks.  I bet next time she will be though!  Monty however is always the right hand farm man.  Helping with all and fearless of everything.

 

 

These girls are the future of our cow herd.  Feeling a bit frisky and cheeky the other day - braving the electric fences for a bit of a tiki tour around the farm... Hooking a 9 in their tails and kicking it up. 

Fingers crossed that we'll be able to buy our farm this year.
We've got so many irons in the fire, but we wouldn't have it any other way.  

Life is good. Busy, stressful at times, muddy at times, warm and blissful at times, but good. We never take for granted that we have all we need at our fingertips to nourish ourselves, sustain our lives and create a healthy future generation.  We're happy that we can share a bit of that with you too!

new life

My husband is the one that can walk up to a mama giving birth and gently give her a hand.  This one just needed a bit of foot guideance to come out.  She was sniffing at the calf by the fence hoping that it was hers and that she had already done it!  

Once that foot was aligned, it was full steam ahead...

to a brand new life.  Always a miracle and always special.

 

 

My friend Emma and her husband Matt looked after the farm 2 weeks ago for us while we visited family in NZ.
Here's her little tribute to the farm.
Happy days to you and yours from me and mine. xx

Calving time

The babies are abundant these days.  Glorious days to be Born.

our eggs need some new homes!

Hello out there - we're up to our eyeballs in lovely eggs at the moment 

- all of our girls are in full swing and loving a bit of sunshine.

We've gone from having a very long waiting list of shops interested in selling our eggs to an oversupply for a number of reasons... we raised 1500 babies last season to meet demand - and they're all laying now! There has also been a glut of "cheap" organic eggs from Queensland that flooded the market last month that has sent us into an oversupply...  So if your favourite shop hasn't been able to get our eggs, ask them again because they're now available.  

We really work hard on producing the ultimate egg - Soy free, outdoor, bug and grass eating happy girls.  

We hope that the demand for our ethical and nutritious product comes back up to sustain the business.  

We will be doing our first market in a long while

Red Hill Markets - 1 December!

Stop by to say hello if you are there.

I'll be the lady with a new baby in the sling!  

Happy warm days to you and yours...

Biodynamic Baby

Hello world.

Savannah Bronwyn Paul

Welcomed to our family in a planned home waterbirth

1 October 2012

8lb 8oz

Nic thought it was very biodynamic of me to have our baby on the full moon!

We are all very well and so very happy to have our little girl.

x

Eggs Eggs Eggs!

Hello there - just a quick and exciting message that we are now supplying our wholesale eggs into the Organic Growers Group in the Footscray markets! This means that we will be able to supply the smaller shops around Melbourne that could not previously access our eggs because of trucking logistics.  If you have a favourite shop and want our eggs - let them know!

Come on Spring - bring on some sunshine and a baby for us!

We've had loads of other kinds of bovine and ovine babies - I am 40 weeks on Friday - so watch this space!

The Fish Creek Primary School had a grand old visit the other day - it was a sublimely warm and sunshiney day - we did all sorts of talking and looking around and had a great egg and spoon race as well!

Happy Days to you and yours from me and mine...

Witches Brew or Sustenance!?

"Good broth will resurrect the dead"
south american proverb

We've just done a trial run.  Our original girls that we started out with 2 1/2 years ago - we culled 100 of them and had them processed.  Reason for culling? Their eggs are large and wonky and somewhat unpredictable.  For a backyard - they're still perfect - and probably even better as there's a lot of double yolkers in there! However, for us, collecting, carting and packaging them and feeding "not so prime" birds is quite a challenge.

So off I trundled in the ute, 35 weeks pregnant, 3 year old in tow to the big smoke to a clean little processing place in Melbourne.  I bid our old girls goodbye and thanked them for their lives and generosity.

You wouldn't believe how many processing plants (about 15) that I rang prior to having a friend mention this one that would finally take our birds.  Every one of them said that they only take orders from 20,000 to 200,000 hens as a starting point.  My jaw dropped as I saw the reality of our poultry industry today.

Well, out of the 100 we're doing a few trial runs with 25 going to two Organic Butchers and the others to friends - I can't believe that less than 24 hours after returning home that I only have 10 birds left to cook with!!

My trial included legs thighs and breasts in the crockpot on low in an apricot sauce.  SUBLIME.  Oh, the flavour!! Yes, the meat is not pale and insipid and tender, but it is not like a boot and has intense whole flavour that is lovely when it's slow cooked.

The carcasses I browned well in the oven then chucked the whole lot - skin, fat, and pan drippings in cold water with 2 small onions, some fresh celery and carrots a couple of grabs of parsley and 6 chicken feet.  It's been on the fire overnight.  My home smells amazing.  Our bodies will be thanking us over the next few days.  If you want to know why those feet are in there - have a read: "Broth is Beautiful" from the Weston A Price Foundation.

What do you think?  Would you like to have a chance to get some of these from a shop?  We are considering selling them with a reputable Organic Butcher.  Leave us a comment to let us know.

Hope to have some baby news for you soon!