Deja Vu...all over again

Weren't we just here a few days ago?

Kidding season has begun again, and like last time, with a goat deciding to surprise us.

We made it for this kidding, unlike last time. I had just snuggled down into bed, exhausted, when a reassuring thought crept into my mind...at least I wasn't going to be called out of bed in the middle of the night for a goat labor! We still have almost a whole week to go, the very earliest anyone was likely to be kidding wasn't until the 19th.

Just as I was sliding into sleep there came a sharp urgent knocking on my bedroom window "Goat kidding!" (Kate and Chris were in the dairy working on bottling milk for tomorrow's market--well, make that today's market, I guess! They had heard the tell-tale sounds of a goat pushing.)

As I jumped out of bed and into my clothes (who says dropping your clothes on the floor isn't a good idea?) I ran through my head...we are 6 days from earliest due dates, that must mean that it is one of the lamanchas kidding, for they are known to deliver earlier than the nubians or alpines, as a rule. (Though earlier this year the alpines decided that they didn't like this rule and we had several going early.)

Lamancha it was, Nueces. Last year Nueces had a single buckling. This year she had a big boy and a petite little girl, both black and white, very striking. I wish they would be old enough to bring to Tuesday's farmers market, but in truth they will be too early for me to feel comfortable bringing them.

That is OK, though...we have 11 more due to kid in the next 5 weeks. There will be plenty of babies to bring to market!

That is the benefit of staggering breeding tomake sure that you have a consistent amount of milk all year round...kidding season doesn't really seem to end!