Farm Update - Got Goat??

1st Raised Bed

Raised bed #2

OK, I haven't given a garden update in a long time but I have to say I'm left wishing I had inheirited my Dad's Green Thumb!The garden fortress seemed like a fix but not against the hideous slugs that wanted to eat anything that bloomed, the birds were still getting in under the net and the weeds were growing like, well.....weeds!!! So I got this catalog that was selling very expensive raised garden boxes (like we could afford the shipping on those!), and though I don't have my Dad's green thumb I do have my AMAZINGLY handy husband, who promptly said "no problem"...off to Home Depot and Lowes we went and yet another couples shopping trip and came home with all the fixin's.... of course we also had to buy the dirt to fill these bad boys since we don't just have dirt laying around on top of the lava rich soil..... let it suffice to say, I have a very long, long term time frame on our return on investment future here!! The plants are starting to sprout and so are my hopes of success! I've got zuchinni, beets, spinach, green onions, lettuce, green beans, eggplant, cucumbers, tomatoes and pumpkins started and I'm adding mustard and chollard greens! Fingers crossed the slugs don't learn how to climb and the netting keeps the birds out!!

Eggplant!

Goats for sale!

Little Ippy in the middle!

Now, I've been wanting a GOAT really baaaaadly! We've been watching this sign about a goat sale for weeks now as we drive to and from Kona town! Every time we drive past a yard with a goat I remind John I want a naaaaaanny goat! I reminded John the goat sale was TODAY when he got up and off we went... gotta love shopping together..... to check out these goats! Of course having a goat would totaly be in keeping with our philosophy of doing things we know NOTHING about, but farmers have to have animals, right? And those wild feathered rats (known as turkeys) don't count! Well, once we looked them in the eye we couldn't NOT get a goat so we bought "Ippy", how cute is he??? We are not going to bring him home until we come back from the mainland, but in 2 weeks we will have little Ippy down on the farm! Also, we will get Ippy a girlfriend in August or September when they have the females for sale.... we can't let Ippy be lonely!

Finally we have thought of the name for our farm, and I made this cute logo for us! Now to find out how to make it ours! Ohana means "family" in Hawaiian and since Carolina, Shadow and little Layla will be joining us in August on the venture that was important, it is orchads plural for the 3 different prchards, macadamia nuts, avocado and coffee!