The iron arrived in time. Friday, March 1 after Lynne left for the city, I got a call saying it was there ready to be picked up. She got it but decided to go to the Hutterite Colony after all. When we weren’t sure the iron would come, Lynne thought of going there to buy some. Since they have pigs, it was safe to assume they would have iron as well.

She went with Raine after picking up what I’d ordered online. The man at the Colony gave them two syringes full of iron and walked Raine through the process.

Thank goodness that was all sorted. The piglets arrived Sunday after a heavy snowfall made it impossible for us to get to church. Raine spotted the signs of labour in Lucy. After lunch she went out to check and saw the second piglet being born. That was it – only two females. Cora named them Elizabeth and Queen.

The temperature was terribly low. I’m in a bunch of Facebook groups for farming, homesteading, and what not. Recently there had been a discussion on using heating lamps for piglets. Many people discouraged it due to the risk of fire. They said a good amount of straw would be just fine. We had that but things weren’t fine. The next day, after lunch Raine went out to give the piglets their iron shots. One had already passed away and the other was about to. She brought the living piglet into the house. We wrapped her in a towel and tried to feed her some cow’s milk mixed with molasses. It’s all I could think of. I sat with the children and their grandmother as we watched the piglet take her final breath.

“Queen is dead,” Cora declared.

Tears rolled down Branch’s cheeks.

“You did everything you could,” Lynne assured us.

Then she took the piglet, still wrapped in a towel. The children’s grandmother rocked the lifeless form and shared about the passing of her parents. Her father had gone long before I entered the family but I had the chance to briefly meet her mother once. The children all listened to the stories which seemed so fitting. She cried about the piglet and the loss of her parents. It was exactly what I’d dreamed of when I invited the grandparents to join us in this adventure – not the loss of the piglet or the sorrowful memories exactly but the experience of family history and the opportunity for extended family to be there in the moments that matter.

Farm life can be hard. As the saying goes, “If you have livestock you’re going to have dead stock.” It’s sad but death really is a part of life.

Monday, March 4, our neighbour came to dig us out of the snow. The little snowblower I’d bought was out of gas. Lynne was going to go to town to get some. Sunday evening, the main driveway was mostly clear except for a small drift. However, over night the wind had shifted everything around. I didn’t realize the driveway was completely covered or would have suggested we abandon the mission. She tried heading down towards the barn but the snow drifts there were knee deep. The van quickly got stuck. Lynne and I tried for a long time to get it unstuck. Though we managed to move it some, it kept getting stuck on the ice underneath the freshly fallen snow. We gave up and I contacted our neighbour. The initial text was asking for the number of a guy to hire to plow us out. Shortly after we moved in, a couple stopped by to meet us and he said he could help with snow removal. I’d completely forgotten until that moment. Our neighbours, Steve and Connie, know everyone and everything there is to know so I asked him for the man’s name and number. Steve called to say there was no reason call anyone. He’d be over later since he had to plow out his work yard at the end of our road anyways. Steve showed up with a skid steerer and in no time had our driveway cleared. I walked down to get the van. It was still stuck on a bit of ice. Raine and Branch gave it a push and we were on our way.

March 14, Adley, Branch, Cora, and I headed to Calgary. Raine and Athena stayed behind to take care of the animals. We went to see the orthopedic surgeon following Branch. He was incredibly impressed. Born with club feet, Branch has had extensive treatments in an attempt to turn his feet. For the most part, they didn’t work. Just before the pandemic hit, he was going to have complete reconstructive surgery. Then everything was onhold.

When we got to Alberta, I was expecting to have the surgery done. It was high on the list of things to do while we were waiting for everything to align for us to buy a farm. When we first saw the orthopedic surgeon in Calgary, he said, “I hate to disappoint you but I don’t think there’s any need for surgery.” That was completely unexpected. The doctor recommended serial casting which we did over a year ago. If that didn’t hold, a minor surgery would be required. Branch has seen the doctor a few times since the casting. So far his feet are staying straight. This appointment was the same. Thankfully, the doctor said he can continue seeing us even though we’re now in Saskatchewan. It’ll be a yearly checkup to ensure things continue as well as they are. Being able to stay with the same specialist is a huge relief as is the verdict on Branch’s feet.

While in Calgary, we got to see my mom’s new apartment and had supper at my brother and sister-in-law’s. The kids were happy to visit with their cousins. It was a quick trip that included Ikea, Superstore, and Rona to get things not easily obtained where we are in Saskatchewan.

March 23, we celebrated Lynne’s birthday with a roasted lamb dinner and mini chocolate peanut butter cheesecakes. She doesn’t like to discuss her age which has kept the children guessing for months. Finally, Athena solved the mystery by asking the see her grandma’s newly acquired gun license. Lynne was happy to show it off, never guessing Athena was taking note of the year she was born.

Our Hutterite neighbours were very sad to hear about the piglets’ passing. Lynne called one day to reserve some eggs. The woman who answered said they’d all been waiting to hear how things had gone. Sadly, our report was not good. Lynne dropped off a thank you card when she picked up our eggs. Despite the outcome, we were grateful for the iron they gave us and time taken to help us.

I’m not sure if it was the card, sympathy over our loss, or a combination of that prompted the next event. On March 27, while Lynne was at her weekly prayer meeting in town, two Hutterites came by. Raine answered the door. They told her to fetch me and come out to their truck. There they loaded us up with three large bags of pork, a freshly baked cake, and a box of crackers, cookies, cookie mixes, cereal, and chocolates. They didn’t say much except, “This is for you.” I thought perhaps Lynne had ordered the items but turns out it was a gift. The cake was exquisite – orange with dates and walnuts and butter cream frosting. We thoroughly enjoyed it.

March 28, we picked up some Speckled Sussex chicks. The lady I ordered them from on Facebook is an experienced breeder with a fancy new incubator. While waiting at the pick up destination, we enjoyed some Freedom pizza. Unfortunately, the turner that moves the eggs in the incubator malfunctioned one night. By the time she realized, most of the eggs were lost. Instead of getting 30 or more chicks, we only got six. This wasn’t terribly concerning since we’d ordered 40 Barred Rock chicks from a hatchery. They arrived on March 20 via Canada Post. The plan was to put the chicks in the chicken coop I attempted to build in the fall. However, the weather was so cold, they’ve been in the basement.

The next day was Good Friday but we didn’t go to church. Lynne took most of the children ice skating. Branch and I went to Swift Current to pick up a vintage knitting machine. It’s been on my wish list since I discovered there was such a thing. A lady was selling one from her aunt’s estate that appears to have never been used. I’m so excited to try it out once I create a suitable workspace in my room.

When we all returned home, Raine went to check on the animals. In the barn she found our Icelandic sheep, Josephine, with two newly birthed ram lambs. What a lovely Easter surprise!

That night, we had a bonfire to roast hotdogs and marshmallows. It’s becoming our holiday tradition much to Adley’s delight. He loves a fire, as do the rest of us.