What did you do today?

[Nanno]

Today we found out why our internet went down yesterday and wouldn't come back no matter what Phil did to it. We jiggled the wires and got it back, but we've got a service call in to the phone company to come fix it properly. Naughty goats!
   

[Nanno]

In other news (which I couldn't post yesterday), I made some delicious caramel sauce the other day out of goat milk. The recipe called for a quart of milk to make one cup of sauce. It also called for an hour of constant stirring. I thought to myself, "That's an awful lot of standing around stirring to make only one cup of sauce. And I have a TON of milk in the fridge right now. I have a brilliant idea! If I've got to stand around for an hour either way, I'm going to use a gallon of milk and make a quart of caramel sauce!"

What I failed to take into consideration is that four quarts would take four times as long to boil down as one. Oops.

After an hour and a half of dedicated stirring and no significant change to the milk mixture, my mistake finally dawned on me. Phil came to the rescue and we divided the milk into three different pots and both of us stirred. We still cut the operation short and ended up with nearly a half gallon of sauce, but I have to say it's extraordinary. Phil even likes it, and he's not really a fan of caramel. It's extremely rich and sweet, so we have to use it somewhat sparingly, meaning I have way more than I know what to do with. I gave away three small jars last night when we had company over, and I'm sure I'll be able to find some more takers. It's so good I'm thinking of buying an automatic pot stirrer, canning the stuff, and selling it at craft fairs. I'm thrilled to finally have a goat milk cooking success!

Also, the whipped cream from our goats is fabulous! It's a little frustrating to have to leave all that milk in the fridge long enough to separate sufficiently to make cream skimming worthwhile, but I can't complain about the end results. We've been eating it on fresh berries.

And as a last tidbit, Nubbin's milk is wonderful! Now I know why I'm bringing Nubian blood into our herd! Lilly's milk is ok, but it usually has a slightly bitter, goaty edge to it (although the cream from it is amazing). Nubbin's milk is creamy and almost indistinguishable from cow's milk. And she's such a wonderfully easy milker too. Her teats are just the right size (Lilly has Saanen-style whoppers I can hardly fit my hands around), and the milk practically falls out of the udder when I squeeze. Nubbin is a nice change from Lilly the milk machine. Not only are Lilly's teats enormous, she's got tiny orifices and what seems like about 15 gallons of milk to squeeze out of them. It's a good thing she's a quiet milker because I always have to take several breaks when I'm milking Lilly.

[sydneyjd]

Sounds tasty.

[Curtis King]

I had my veterinarian Doctor Mathew Fulwell out at my place today. We put tattoos in the ears of all six of my pack goats. They all look like they went to a Halloween party with all the green ink all over their ears and face. Oh well they will get over it. We had a lengthy discussion about the bighorn sheep issue and the current study being conducted at WSU in Pullman WA by professor Tom Besser. Very interesting.

[Dave-Trinity-Farms]

Great to hear Nanno. Cant wait to see the boys in about a week for the vet check Curtis

Me, worked another 10 hour day and am pretty much numb to all stimuli. 12 more minutes and Ill go out and start the evening chores...

[Taffy]

The same thing I've been doing since the evening of June 1st. I've been quite ill. Dr. visits, an ER visit, an unsuccessful spinal. They suspected meningitis at first and have now concluded it is a viral infection that may last 4-6 weeks or longer until it finally runs its course. I am finally feeling like I may be among the living with only a low grade fever and extreme exhaustion remaining. It is not a contagious virus which all of my family and friends whom I was in contact with are very thankful.

I finally got out to see my goats a two days ago. My family has been caring for them. It was so good to be greeted by the goats. I think they've missed me.

I am thinking positive and still plan to attend the Rendy at this point.

[Nanno]

I'm so sorry to hear you've been sick like this! I hope you recover quicker than they predict. I'll bet you've sure missed your caprine buddies!

[Dave-Trinity-Farms]

GET WELL SOON!

[sydneyjd]

Hope you feel beter quickly!!

[Nanno]

We've been on Petunia watch all day. She's been behaving very differently all day. The ligaments are still there but were noticeably softer by this evening. Her bag isn't looking overly full yet, but neither were our other goats' udders until they went into labor. (How does nearly two gallons of milk suddenly appear in less than ten minutes? Where the heck do they hide it??) I hope she kids tomorrow and doesn't go on like this for another four or five days like Lilly did last year. She nearly drove me crazy!

I'm nearly positive Pet's got two babies in there. I distinctly felt a bony little body on each side at the same time tonight, and surely one baby could not be that big! After the heartbreak with Nubbin I'm more than a bit anxious about Petunia. So far everything looks good, and I'm hoping for a smooth and easy delivery. I'm also hoping I get to be there for the blessed event!

Well, I guess it's time for my late night check!