Oh the weather outside is frightful ...

Yes, winter has come and is beating us like bad children! WOW is it cold!! Our HIGH today is supposed to be 10 degrees. 10!! The winds are really blowing out there....so the "real feel" is negative one! Luckily for the chickens, I can open their doors to the sun...and the winds are not blowing in. Hoping the sun will warm it up a bit in there. I have a thermometer in the coop...and even though it is 10 degrees outside, it is 30 degrees in the coop. Not too bad. Of course the waters stiff froze, but just a thin layer on top. So far, no frostbite on the birds. Whew! As for the goats....well....lets just say, they have brain freeze...it is the only reason I can come up with as to WHY they will not leave their coats on! Silly goats.Oh, sure, they might not be the prettiest coats....but they are warm...and shouldn't that be all that matters? Not to my girls. They rub the coats off within 20 minutes of me putting them on them. Then , they stand there and shiver. GRrrrr. There HAS to be a way I can keep these coats on them! Im going to work on it....just because...well... I WILL WIN this battle of the goat coat! This morning I hauled several buckets of warm water to all of the critters. Everyone drank with gusto. After I warm up a bit...and get some groceries in ME..... I will go back out.. with more warm water. I really AM looking forward to spring. So as the cold winds blow....I sit here by the fire....looking through seed catalogs...plotting my spring garden. What do I need to start inside...and when? This at least will keep my mind off of the cold...for a little bit. Are you getting this cold snap? Try to stay warm...and don't forget about those critters outside. Take them warm food, or water....This will end...soon....I hope!