End of Year Update

Boy oh boy, have we been busy! We're loving farm life and seeing our plans to improve the farm play out.

The trees:

In November we planted 650 new macadamia trees! We have been blessed with a few incredible advisors and they have helped us make plans to really improve the health and productivity of all of the trees.

(Nick, Bayani, Thulani, and Mafayo planting baby macs)

The chickens:

After a bout of avian flu in SA during which we weren't able to get chicks, we are back in business! We currently have 400 meat chickens--half 4 weeks old and the other half 2 weeks old. We've built more sleds to pasture raise them in using scrap wood we already had on the farm, and the next step is to expand our coop (where we start them with heat lamps) up and out so we can stand in it and fit more chicks. We are also raising funds to buy processing equipment so we can increase our productivity by over 1000% (that's not a typo, 1000%!).

In addition to the meat chickens we also have about 60 free rangers for our own eggs, tick and fly control, and we are considering selling day old chicks in the future.

The sheep:

We currently have 4 sheep grazing between the macadamia trees and they're doing great! We plan to add more to the orchard and a more significant number to a designated field with better grazing. We are working on the exact plan to make sure we get the right number. The cover crop seed blends for the grazing hectare were donated by a local company, and we also had a donation of 15 hectares of cover crops to use elsewhere on the farm (largely between the macadamia trees). God always provides!

(The sheep after being moved to a fresh camp. The previous camp is in the foreground.)

(Initial cover crop trials in the orchard growing wonderfully, restoring soil health to retain moisture and nutrients for the trees)

Other animals:

The farm dogs and our dog, Ember, are all doing well. The shed cats both got pregnant before we had a chance to spay them, so now we have 13 kittens. They're adorable and we're enjoying them until they're old enough to rehome. We will keep a few to help with pest control. About two months ago we were given a horse who ended up being pregnant, and she foaled December 1. They're grazing and fertilizing all over the farm. It's a dream come true for us to own a horse, something we thought we had given up when we moved to SA. God cares so tenderly for our hearts--He is so good. We have named the mare Perseverance.

Ministry:

In November I started volunteering at Zoe Pregnancy Center, a ministry Emoyeni works closely with. The girls in this country face horrifying situations and it's clear their hope and identity must be found in Christ. Vimbai runs the center and has worked with Emoyeni for more than 10 years. She walks alongside the girls in the community through thick and thin, modeling the love of Christ and offering wise counsel. It has been an honor to work with her.

 

In December we hired one of the young moms that Vimbai walks with to help on the farm. She's doing a fantastic job! Nick has had many opportunities to encourage her that God has a purpose for her life and to show her that someone believes in her--something she says she has never experienced before. We are excited to walk with her and her younger sisters and watch them grow and rise above the lies that Satan has fed them through culture, poverty, and catastrophe.

The New Year seems to have changes, new opportunities and challenges, and growth in store. As always, we look to God as our hope, comfort, guide, and Lord. He is good and we praise Him for all He is and all He does.