"Ode to Some Yellow Flowers" -- poem by Pablo Neruda

"Against the blue moving its own blue,
the sea, and against the sky,
some yellow flowers.

October arrives.

And though it may be
so important for the sea to unroll
its myth, its mission, its yeast-like inspiration,
there explodes
over the sand the gold
of a single yellow plant
and your eyes
are fixed
on the ground,
they flee from the great sea and its rhythms.

We are and will be dust.

Not air, not fire, nor water
but
earth,
only earth
we will be
and maybe also
some yellow flowers."

--translated by Jodey Bateman

#poetry #eggs #pabloneruda #pastured #yellowflowers #october #freerange #earth #chickens

Speckled beauty, like flakes of snow left melting in those first sunny Spring days.

"A Light exists in Spring
Not present on the Year
At any other period —...

A Color stands abroad
On Solitary Fields
That Science cannot overtake
But Human Nature feels.

It waits upon the Lawn,
It shows the furthest Tree
Upon the furthest Slope you know
It almost speaks to you.

Then as Horizons step
Or Noons report away
Without the Formula of sound
It passes and we stay..."

-- "A Light exists in Spring" by Emily Dickinson

That feeling when the day is done and we can all lie around, squinting at the sunset, smelling fresh spring grass. #done #spring #grass #freedom #freerange #Maremma #workdone #eggs

#stuckwithyou and the adventure continues #lovelyday #springsun

Photobombed by jumping Jack
Have you ever seen a happier dog?
#photobomb #maremma #happy #happydog #free

The red bin got stuck, and try as it might, red tractor couldn't pull it and got stuck. Try as it might, the yellow tractor tried to pull them and got stuck. Try as it might, the green tractor tried to pull them and got stuck. Try as it might, the hilux couldn't pull anything but got us humans out of the paddock.

Fun was had by chickens and humans alike.
Nobody is complaining because rains and tall grass are a blessing.
#farmfun #bogged #fun #stuck #mud #chickens #tractors #bringiton #anyothertruck #farmlove

 1. Learned to 'bark' (sound is not to be missed! )
2. Socializing well with chickens
3. Drinking from a bowl.

They definitely improved employment skills in the first four weeks of life
#puppies #Maremmasheepdog #learning #jobready #cute #freerange #firstthings #growingup

Could not believe where we found an egg today: on top of the fallen tree which is the chicken Disneyland playground, and beautifully nestled within the better bark fissures.   #freerange #eggs #hardtofind #hiddeneggs #pasturedeggs #findtheegg #trees #playground #chickenplayground #eggfinding

Raising Maremma puppies is easy.
Sleeping in a pile and shifting for a comfortable position: the tough life of a puppy on Hilltops Free Range eggs farm.

#cuteness #sleep #puppies #sleepinginapile #cutepuppies #cutenessoverload #freerange #Maremmasheepdog #farmlife #toughlife

"Sowin' things an' growin' things, an' watchin' of 'em grow;
That's the game," my father said, an' father ought to know."

With sowing done for the winter, we praise the rains and watch our oats grow. Not letting the chickens near that paddock now, but they have done the fertilizing bit well.

From the book "Backblock Ballads and Later Verses", Wheat by C. J. Dennis

Welcome to our three puppies, born and bred on Hilltops Free Range egg farm.
Mother and kids are all doing well.

Just beyond the sunset
Lies a home for me
Where the world is peaceful
Like a paradise should be
Just beyond the sunset
Someday is where you’ll find me”.       
-- “Just Beyond The Sunset” — poem by D. Harris

Just jump in the car and drive! Jack the Maremma dog thought he did enough walking today 😀

The GIANT egg found today: living proof that chickens are related to dinosaurs. 
An egg the size of my hand.

Looking out my window
In [May]'s golden light,
I see a beauty unsurpassed,
A truly lovely sight.
 
"Portrait Of Fall" -- By Alora M. Knight  

I’m on top of the world! 😎 says the bosslady chicken at Hilltops Free Range eggs farm

Introducing: NEW Super fancy layer house with hydraulic suspension! 
 
Not to worry of you don’t know what that is, we’ve marked it with a big white arrow in the video. It also helps that the thing is BRIGHT RED 😀
 
What this means is that our chickens will be traveling in even more comfort. 
 
We keep constantly innovating and experimenting with equipment. The standard off-the-shelf equipment assumes that the chickens stay in one place, and preferably that the eggs come through a hole in the wall of a barn or a cage.
 
Not much commercially ready equipment for pasture-raised, roaming, grass-fed chickens. 
 
So we have a massive welding shed and have welded every single piece of equipment here on the farm, starting with the design drawings, and borrowing bits and pieces from some commercial equipment builders.
 
Our additional challenge is that the terrain is beautiful but rather hilly - hence the ‘Hilltops’- and so all equipment needs to have high clearance, good car tyres, and —introducing — hydraulic suspension for the girls' comfort! 
 
Lots of lessons learned and fun times on the way.