Dang Mice

Our grain corn was in the garage in boxes with air holes.  Apparently they were also mice holes.  My husband knocked the stack of boxes and saw a little mouse face stick out.  When we investigated, we discovered a mouse haven in the lower boxes — full of corn power and mouse droppings.  The upper boxes were cleaner, but still contained evidence of mouse presence.  The whole batch got thrown to the chickens.  Dang.

You had to know it would happen sooner or later, losing food to little rodents.  I'm trying to be grateful that they weren't in the house — because that's creepy — but I'm feeling pretty snarly about losing all that corn.  We still have some that we already cleaned off the cob, so it's not a complete loss.

It's the middle of December and we are finally getting to the leaves.  In our defense, the first frost was really late, into November, and the first heavy snow was less than two weeks later.  The kids begs us to leave them so they can play, and we're pretty agreeable to not working.  Another big snow storm is predicted, but we got some up.

The Christmas story has taken on a new depth for us as we enter our first Christmas with a barn and manger.  It's a warm place, milking with only a jacket in 20F weather is fine, but not very clean.  Every manger scene I've seen has clean yellow bedding, but in real life, fresh straw quickly becomes pee-soaked and smeared with cow pies.   What a place to sleep, forget about birthing.  But the animals are gentle and sensitive.  Do you think the cow moo gently for Mary as she was in labor?  Did the calf give little nudges that feel like loves?  Did Joseph get strength and comfort from the animals as he helped Mary?