Good news and bad news from the playground.

The bad news is that Preben will be leaving us. He may already have left in fact. I was talking to Per about it on Thursday and he told me Preben would leave by Friday or early next week. So I shall see if he’s still there tomorrow. It’s always sad to say goodbye to goats, but things weren’t going so great for Preben. And I don’t think he was happy. Per told me that things had calmed down after they started tying him down in the pen, but that it had made him angry at them too. I’m not the only one he’s been butting. It’s really sad, because he was such a sweet goat when we got him. I remember we talked about how we had never had such a well behaved buck before. I’m not sure what caused him to change so much, but I guess being around the ladies all the time made him go into pure buck mode. He went from being incredibly sweet to being a real buck with all the bad habits that they have. And that’s not so suitable for the playground. He might be dangerous for the kids too. I think keeping him was a mistake, honestly. But I did have some good times with him, we were quite close when he was still a good boy. And he fathered Mia. And there could be more kids on their way from him too. So he has contributed a lot to my life and to the playground. It just sucks that it turned out this way. I feel bad. Like I let him down, or we let him down. I have tried to make life better for him while he’s been tied down, but he’s just not happy. So I guess it’s for the best. A shame, though.

The good news could potentially be amazing. As you may know, dear reader, we don’t usually get to keep the goat kids once they reach a certain size. And Mia is getting bigger and bigger…. So I have been dreading the news. Every time I arrive at the playground I immediately look for her, hoping she will not be gone. A couple of days after she was born there was a guy who said he had bought her already and would be coming to take her when she was older. Sigrid later told me that no one had bought her but that she would be sold. But I asked Per about it after we had talked about Preben. And he said that with Preben leaving they had no immediate plans for Mia to go too. Depending on what happens in the future, she should be staying for now. Maybe even permanently. So naturally I am hoping so much for that. I love Mia and she has been a big boost for me. A big help and a source of happiness and fun. After Magnethe passed away, 6 months ago now, I really needed something good. A new life. And she came along and provided that life. I have met new friends through her videos being posted on Buttermilk and the Goats community on Facebook too. You know Buttermilk, right? I can’t remember if I’ve mentioned her. The famous Buttermilk: youtube.com/watch?v=5IuRzJRrRpQ. Got internet stardom after jumping on one of her friends. Her video was featured on the Ellen show among other things. I have become somewhat friendly with her folks on Facebook and they have reposted a couple of Mia’s videos and photos. They do a lot of charity stuff too, along with their farm and its production. Good people, good goats.

Anyway. All fingers crossed for Mia to stay. I would absolutely love that. She’s a special little girl and I appreciate all the time I get with her.

Now, let’s take some pictures.

First off, the kids at the playground made signs for the goats! Nametags on the trees. And they used my photos for it. That’s sweet, I like the thought of the kids having fun with the photos. And as you can see some people are apparently still calling Mia “Omar”. The three choices were Mia, Omar and Lis. And they did pick Mia. But I guess not everyone was happy with that decision! I think Mia suits her better, but a goat by any other name would still smell as sweet. Well, if you like the smell of goat.

Bob’s sign.

Kamel’s sign.

Mia’s sign.

Mio’s sign.

The aforementioned Mia reaching up for the hay I craftily stashed in the window grating.

Sweet Mia.

Still up for raisins.

Mio and Kamel wondering if there are treats to be had.

She’s growing up. I think her body is growing faster than her legs, though.

Okay, okay. I admit. This is photoshopped. I thought it would be amusing to see Mio wearing a hat as well. I tried copying the scarf over too, but that didn’t really work.

The happy three.

Preben. We had some good times, we did.

And a couple of goatlogs. First from Monday. You can see me stashing the hay about, so the goats can try and find it. Bob chases Mia around a little, but she quickly ducks behind the bench. Running around is more fun if you have a little buddy to join you!

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And from Thursday. You can see the goat signs at the beginning. Bob chases Mia around the christmas tree. I propped it up so they could have a proper dance around it!

And that’s all for today.

The first week of the year has passed. One down… some others to go. What am I, a calendar? If I were a calendar I’d bring all the Mayans to the yard.

Anyway, my main concern the first days of a new year is always whether the goats got through new year’s eve safely. And happily they did. Always a relief. Now hopefully the kids can blow off all their excess fireworks and we can have a quiet year.

There were kids without fireworks at the playground on Friday. A kindergarten class or something like that. They came into the fold and I got to help them feed and pet the goats. That’s always nice to do. They get so happy and proud when they dare to touch or feed the goats. And when they realise I have raisins in my pocket they keep coming over saying “can I have some raisins to give to the goats?”. And everyone is happy. The kids named Preben “Santa”. Because of his great, white beard. Adorable.

Good times. But let’s go to the pictures.

A nice pose for Kamel.

Mia picking off the leftovers from the christmas tree feast.

Mia invading my personal space.

Mio taking her position at the fence. Feeding time, humans!

Mio seems to think she’s at the dentist.

Kamel chewing the chew.

And videos.

First a goatlog from Wednesday. January 2nd. It was great to see all the goats safely through the holidays. The christmas tree almost stripped. A woman with a dog came up to the fence and the goats were immediately on guard. Bob went to investigate while the others hung back. Eventually Mio and Mia went for a closer look as well. They’re not fans of dogs. There was a plastic bag that got stuck in the fence as well, that made them a little nervous too. You never know what those unpredictable plastic bags will get up to!

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And a goatlog from Friday. A shorter one but it starts out amusingly with me taking out a bag of treats and being swarmed by goats. Help, help I’m drowning! And some cute headrolls by Bob and Kamel. And huffnpuffs from Preben.

That’s all for today. It’s late and I must go. Hope you all got through new year’s safely and happily.