Getting settled in?

The move is now complete but far from over. As you may have noticed, I haven't been posting to the blog lately. That's because I have been spending all of my spare time getting animal facilities ready. Although I am now living on a 250 acre farm, There was not a single fence or barn to hold in animals. I set out during the month of October to rectify the situation. The animals were still in Arkansas. The plan was that, I would return in late October to show the boar at the State Fair and get the  animals and the family (they were finalizing work on our home that was to be sold). Well, the boar won grand champion, but the work on the house wasn't done and the kids were in no hurry to get here. So, I returned to Ohio with a U-Haul truck loaded with household goods (second load), one son and my mom in tow. This gave me more time to work on animal facilities. Things continued to drag on. A fenced area for the dogs was completed, a barn and small fenced area for the goats was mostly done and plans were underway for the pigs. Well, it was now almost Thanksgiving. Work at the old home was progressing slowly and a plaintive cry came for me to come help finish the house, tow the stock trailer and get the last household and barn items. So, I loaded up my construction crew (mom and son) and headed back to Arkansas for a fun filled Thanksgiving holiday. We hit the ground running, barely stopping for the festive meal, but still giving thanks. The plan was to rent a small trailer to carry the stuff back to Ohio while the other vehicle pulled the stock trailer. Well, I could  tell  that there was more stuff than I thought. So, we ended up renting another truck. By the end of the weekend, I had a completely full truck (third load) and animals loaded on the the trailer, but the house still needed some work.  I knew then that I was going to have to leave a crew member behind (mom was selected for this duty). Me and the son ended up coming back with everything, except the rest of the family. It was then that I started on my portable pig barn while my sow hung out in the fenced in front yard with the dogs. And that's where I have been every night and weekend since.And so, as you are celebrating New Year's eve tonight, send up a  special toast to the man who  will be outside, diligently working on a nice home for his pig.

As a post script, my family finally arrived a couple of days before Christmas. In my next post, I will tell you about what happens when a sow in the front yard comes into heat (and other exciting adventures).

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