The Neighbors Think We're Crazy

    One of my earliest memories of being out in my backyard was the day my mother planted small hemlock trees along the property line to the left of our house. They were so small back then and I wondered why my mom planted so few trees spread so far apart. Well, today each tree is taller than our farm house roof and provide more privacy some the neighbors than any fence could. I think the neighbors are grateful for the hemlocks.

    To be clear, our neighbors may be the quietest people we know. Either that or they are downright scared of the crazy people to their right... Regardless, we have had this long-standing joke that the neighbors definitely think we are nuts. Unfortunately, it might be true considering the amount of animals we have in our backyard (often running around on a daily basis). 

    It all started with the goats. If you look back on my previous post "What do I have to do, buy you a goat?" you can read the whole story as to how we ended up with goats in the first place. By now, we have had bleating goats in our backyard for the last 15 years. We do our best to keep the goats quiet (aka well fed and with hay at all times) but sometimes I think they just enjoy being loud and bleating at the top of their lungs. 

    Then we have the ducks... The ducks may be the biggest spectacle because they are free to roam as they please. We have a beautiful running, spring-fed pond that stays nice and clean all year long. You'd think the ducks would never want to veer more than a few feet from it but alas, that is not the case. Apparently ducks are very mischievous (or at least mine are) because they seem to very much enjoy wandering over to the neighbors yard during their family cookouts and Saturday morning yard work. 

    It's funny, it has been over 15 years that we have had a backyard full of animals including dogs, cats, chickens, goats, and ducks, yet we've never heard a single complaint from our neighbors. Whether they think we're crazy, they are scared of us, or they secretly love being next door to a mini farm, I'll always be thankful they accepted us for who we are!