What's Genny For?

Kids

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I've got goats on the brain.

For years I've dreamed of owning a couple of goats. Of breeding does and raising little kids. Of learning to milk and using that milk for the benefit of my family. In the past, it wasn't feasible. But now...now it could be possible. Sure, I'll have to jump through a few legal hoops that my city has dangling, but once that's done my goat dreams can come true!

Okay. It's not that simple. I have to get approval from the city and pay a fee. I also have to have our backyard ready for goats. We have a shed on our property that would be perfect for some 4-legged critters, but it needs some work. We also have an old chicken coop that's mostly taken down. I need to clear out all the junk it created. Aaaaand we might need a fence to divide the yard. I figure in one year's time I can save enough to actually buy the goats and a good supply of hay, pay that city fee, and clear the backyard.

Until then, I'm still dreaming. And reading about goats as much as possible. One of my favorite animal sites is backyardherds.com. Lots of good information there about breeding goats, diseases and sicknesses, feeding...In fact, I've been binge-reading several goat blogs there. It's gotten so bad that I've started dreaming about goats!

Woke up this morning, groggy from a bad night's sleep, thinking, "I've forgotten to milk the goats!"

Took a moment to remember that the only goats I own are in my dreams!

My favorite breeds are Nigerian Dwarfs (small animals but higher milk fat than their bigger kin) and Lamanchas (they look earless) and Saanens (one of the best dairy breeds). I'm leaning towards Nigerians since they can be bred year-round (the others come into a heat cycle once or twice a year) and often have 3-4 kids. Not to mention that smaller goats fit in a city backyard better than larger goats!

So my goal is to have goats 1 year from now. Unless, of course, I win a contest —

Fun Fact: I to enter contests! Both my eldest daughter and I have won some pretty decent prizes in the past, so I'm always hopeful I'll win again!

— in which case I'll get them sooner!


On a different note:

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Got the results of my boys' state tests today!

B, who took the 5th grade test, got a Total Battery of 99%. He totally aced the math portion of the test (32/32). Only missed 2 answers in Language and 1 in reading. Woohoo!

C took the 3rd grade test. It was his first year testing. Looks like he missed 4 answers in each test (Reading, Language, Math) giving him a Total Battery of 75%. Better than most public school scores but a little lower than the average homeschooler. Given that C has always been my slow learner and is more interested in crafts and playing rather than sit-down work, he did a pretty good job on these tests.

Sheesh. I think I'm at the point, now, where at least one of the redheaded minions kids will have a state test for the next 4 years!

Wow.