![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfcKc6TZHnPwU2fvCa7omVuqEAtYBxuegOaK9PXQd7celhv2ODrRZssIaYPlArBGQ3WVTQFhe12U7GeinBcgPcpnwgR3yz30OhBM9PXOJyKVKjruwt0HU8WodeErsBs_Eapg5iGctaaXI/s400/DSC06118.JPG)
It was 23 degrees when I went out to feed this morning. Today was a tank top-thermal shirt-underarmor shirt-fleece sweater-hoody-Carhartt's jacket-long underwear-Carhartt pants-and 2 pairs of wool socks-kind-of-day. I felt like a giant marshmallow. My fingerless gloves, that up until now have done the trick, proved entirely insufficient today.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAv9enYSfGMsORon6vP1jVTKtZbl8K0pFFMURTWODM64wfBeylg9PAObeJnHRWaCI26x6eZKL50PQzfxpFQw1PS2B0MdxwMcHmHSnK46m5ER50kDoPoPIwJbgPFd5WrVomBcyYz0IijiI/s400/DSC05951.JPG)
Once I had finished bundling myself and managed to squeeze myself out the door, this is what I saw:
Icicles hanging from the raspberry trellis:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh67rAO92jn-QZPCS8IHGDqoorpBUYbwQbsmqtx5g6lrs8tIQ9sO79OlE-GNXLjK9UK4V8b3Ik0rRalBe2UUrD0WcTL5Q4Y3Jj5T2SaYsytE3VVBqaKqEi8kw9jfX7fLe5d6J7Gb8IHFXo/s400/DSC05950.JPG)
Stoic donkeys, who met me at the fence closest to the house:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuzDv_9Wug6ArRMZ-LK31gvi2oa0pX2iJinaw7tG_Gu0QWOd4BwABYD-7SE21s326bwNj38NNsbDBYgo9sH8gOWvdDB8y2TAWRDYja0jj2Fc3xpdRFxLNWufSRojAC6ei1nEZa-_-Fw0Q/s400/DSC05953.JPG)
..and then beat me back up to the barn:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjla8FuWuVOdJp6ucLE34fCZTe27I6ZG9x1sfOkCl8sXWHRVmUK9jlIqYwxA-1auP5SZdoIlypsKi1hczrr4XdLivQBuvQguX6-5ecugf9RUw3Z7Dl3xe6ArqTuavfotousPLv7hZNlQrs/s400/DSC05962.JPG)
A frozen stocktank with a lone, orange goldfish still swimming at the very bottom:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnWHlVFQo4ArUBxMx16a8zB5KB4TW22kkso4eTIiPK0TRemv-eDgGq4Gac7o02WRem-iXr-UgXPR2lep-WBm4DG-vLrNyWl8Nt0guC0Q0rKoPfmQBbjAb-aXnwFDnUA41Nz7usahXwr4Y/s400/DSC05964.JPG)
A devoted farm pup, shivering in the cold, who refused to go back into the house:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhusgebbqNht4kyY7rhUKVQhSs-uWsI-S-gxBU9u-zbEr0jpcgAqfxiKimpzIuHhLtWVvTSFKLNCk8kxExIgmGheYXNNiL3YbX7FlhZdFaoDaMzsZIR9BCe7psQmfOeP6VezbQ-fWysKM/s400/DSC05970.JPG)
Hearty eaters who knock their hay buckets over after the second bite:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirfVMe8D_xW_LdDNL4lTP3Fx3wZdDx6741Zoeynf2GYetAA-DzXeSfTzb_qp38NJIiyLYzOCqtJEjMXkKRdYLFYSRJK-QkmtX_9tJwYbGSlYp_D6dQdcPPlhUKddlZB2QCNjm4vJdw4Vc/s400/DSC05990.JPG)
Donkeys with fuzzy winter brows who will stop anything they're doing to have a carrot coin:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZPljtAZH0HgfDD0e8kMAXNQVhTuL_T7vOpyqCcZiY0KYTLMEGjGRgA4R7V3HR7Mh5oePQOpCao752IycY6S3Zz6E4g2Akxd9PBFFQH9kGHvVAtocoPn7oHgyhzMQ4-eIB5WDYuJTe-MA/s400/DSC05993.JPG)
An alien creature with tentacles that used to be a Japanese maple:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFFztot7Vt3aq1lFBV5mxOvIRMm7RTwqevcFfOVuCGP-6ZMhxrbvzSS29nD1QhWymetcFyFFbb_C71t8j-tl3_sEmTfhKx7kFsPTCz8vhKc0CDN1MOK0gxAdZCAqbBd1PwY1ZiaPbRLxw/s400/DSC05999.JPG)
Two goats telling me they haven't been fed in a week:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEwWT8-WBxeYtXz1r0p57c9vJz03q6FhkQ-JdoksFnDJZ-8wdEjCzBpQwSwBjWY5slcbvNXOI3EkMFI4Y1fVsaYm-2LqUpF8Q3SDjR2JtRSair85BvPzsASFuxUkn-pKSYBE_mvBXQqZg/s400/DSC06005.JPG)
A disgusted face looking at a frozen water bucket:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8uLQds69c9AAQeSJObR9o5GvkLt7UBPW7-tIuhhxmt-6IzPJsXVUAe_zc7jfhUKV0wiI1WXsTaUVpv3xylgINfgoGHm60ac8fHPb0dmrVPIt_dcK5zKKufksb1rLE7018NIJm0mn1Xys/s400/DSC06013.JPG)
Slippery feet on frozen surfaces:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1vW7F-Qf06_lST7eCYsEhkjmohYnHzaRGE_6aoZ8LQbidei5Oiub_Xf9IBwhgsPJjdaoTgu65hhXmFXR5sgV_w18Mwjyszx4TLj7Q4H6jUIo3LgVHh8auZNcAaJwh5bEuFnsZyuw1h9Q/s400/DSC06019.JPG)
Goat displeasure expressed at being left so soon:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDNWocWLBvi6av1kCHuZVU26r8Hc3xvP7j6qj0CyFJllT9M7_qYBjAbUK3VLWf5mmM_ToiCo3SKjqcMq2mQiZRg27Ls7C-gXCCc8Iu7Tv1NihZY2Fmf4LAA6SxYbYhAbJIKHkjJGDJQv0/s400/DSC06038.JPG)
...and then using a sweet face to try to coax me to
please stay just a bit longer:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIIgEwdlnWciLoBnjjGib0jvb5HtNri5lbqfZ7v4TZNx5Y6yWIsmymuRKwVyYlxzU2N18acEtOKhfK6NevjNgcGHKfIs_lmWz7gXR5d2wyu992FTNFOgThFyAbxf6K1GBX3ZNdjCYzbU0/s400/DSC06039.JPG)
An oatmeal breakfast hand delivered to the spoiled chickens of Critter Farm:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD-GzyFz5CvXkFcH59YPZ3i3KdWjGbbuWsPpZ7paxHGeUFSboejRz40VW1epmWESMYQ222Xl1L7SW4W0PwJ1JOCVl3BdZ116TTig-BdghBkv4BM7wU4-ZBlOloVq7Q8ZLQmJk5x6-w3sg/s400/DSC06050.JPG)
...which the chickens devoured with great gusto:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibQZmIhYBygON4X0oI-UL2A2sFNjDxCGYGfcDV_UJil5Xu8iyohU8l_zJtLYJmgRiwPEI1fzeL5L9oTwpBL9R65s6JSGaon4JHeiQaRGTN9EmZXvxsnALrZsDTRrBYY_5pdif0VJUbKzA/s400/DSC06053.JPG)
An awesomely feathered head of my girl, Dottie (pretty girl on the right), who hasn't had a full head of feathers in almost two years!:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1T7zB21dtHz9820tRzQsOQ0pDYD2hYQiJt6AAoX0tDSGMuaBEhx_KOBJOq1Q38TuN_WcagAF5hFQ65acvHi-c2L7znTfPXukCPH3_mmC8zKb8lKhuMw1NNJgFakdRAN_TETo4cx06Frw/s400/DSC06060.JPG)
The removable wedge used to secure the coop door frozen solid to the door itself:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEUirh9GLIUWR2oKVD8c-rVwX6f3vnmbp7jjOrNAdI-CxpHjQui15Pr5r7SzmcufH_-oL3F4JHdBnDnHysIIljMYUPxJqiSbl_eRApAZP028DKmj_pWgH4mKH4_askx2iYbnJx2Ft7fZg/s400/DSC06081.JPG)
Frozen chicken waterers:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUN6PxUTndndh5krl_iedNRr5eYA6ceRpN-yfDao6qp7_uoHaQFxzaHIEPwoyV4Gt2EV1FEEvge3PzzCfQ3i_IMyCnkMwi8OtXRhsk5dUtIpNWnXK3S-_FdMjdHIW1rH7fe4qxqsv5MPk/s400/DSC06085.JPG)
...thawed with a 5 gallon bucket of hot water:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuy34-aSccnYmlS_9Wb8yaPfO8Im0X0YPg3iugxcwTFxs0ObvTm-nZPidFHOeHv9v36w6I6Ilc09nitqNlXaRlUpI_zlMzpumtJr8HoBwXlLv5idlkRaJg-ueV29vYRYJlYXbHU8lTt8U/s400/DSC06086.JPG)
And a beautiful face, unexpectedly appearing around the corner of the coop, who left me with a smile on mine:
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYwahjb-2km7oLwGhfb20CwusZ0_SZq9W4tm69h8jyRsrMX5UEybN-uHLXJDo5iSk9MtoDKNK9zfD_OPzUnbTB6ml-8HFcy09m7O5Z6iXWDDDVMZqvnn9bhyJrlgj2YE5_QwF6Mx0X4CY/s400/DSC06066.JPG)
Tonight, it's supposed to get down to 15 degrees, much colder than we normally get in our rainforest atmosphere of northwest Oregon.