Back at the farm, Brittany

If you have ever watched a very old movie or TV show you will see the header come up that reads, “Meanwhile, back at the ranch,”. I believe that was done to help viewers, new to the media, understand the flow of the story. Well, in our case it is “meanwhile, back at the farm.” So far Victoria has handled the morning feeding and watering and I have taken care of the evenings; except yesterday. She was off yesterday so the only thing I did was close up the chickens after I got home from church. I will have to start setting out the trap for raccoons again. On the way home last night I saw two young coons crossing our road. It will not be long before the smells of the farm draw them to the chickens, the rabbits and the garden. In Mama’s absence, we get a deeper appreciation for all she does daily at the farm; not just the feeding and watering of the animals but all of the scheduling of feed purchases, the setting up of allotments for the various groups of animals and the little treats she makes sure each type of animal gets every morning and evening. All the animals miss her – even if they are not able to express it. The dogs are very forthcoming about the little things Mama does that Victoria and I do not typically do – especially in the area of evening treats.   

So far, everyone is doing well enough in this heat. The daytime highs are now over 100°F and the heat index associated with that, depending on the relative humidity, fluctuates between 104° and 107°. The rabbits seem to be the most stressed by the heat, but even they are getting along well enough. Mollie, our oldest pig, has shrunk down in weight by about thirty pounds since the piglets were born. The problem is not the heat or the nursing piglets; she refuses to eat anything but scraps. She will not touch the feed we normally put out for her. I wanted to see how long she would go without eating her feed but finally gave in to her demands and fed a her a healthy portion of scraps. She would not allow any of her babies to get the smallest bite of the meal. So, Victoria and I have amassed all the eatable items we have in the pantry that need to be thrown out and have begun feeding her with those items – brown rice bowls, chips, grits, pancake mixes that are expired and overripe veggies from the garden. Mollie wonders just where we have been hiding the delicacies.

As of this morning, Brittany is having stronger contractions, dilated to a five and they broke her water early this morning. Mama called me to let me know she was on her way back to the hospital anticipating the arrival of the twins by midmorning. Her only concern was that the last ultrasound showed Zoe, who is in the birth canal, to be face up. That is not the best position for birth. Most doctors prefer the baby to be face down to reduce the pain of birth as the head passes over the tailbone of the mother. I suppose the face is slightly more elastic or pliable than the back of the head as the child is extruded through the compressed opening. I also think it alleviates the risk of the child ingesting fluids during the end of the birthing process – depending on how vocal the child is at the birthing. Brittany and Andrew should meet their children, and Mama meet our grandchildren, sometime in the next several hours.

She was trying not to speed on her way to the hospital.