Fitting Right In

The lambs were a quick studies on cookie eating ;-).

The Playground

A favorite toy for all sheep, young and old, is the utility trailer. I'll have to go back and see if I posted a video of Baaxter jumping around on it when he was really little. He figured out how to jump on and jump off and jump on and jump around and jump off...when he was quite young.

Baaxter is happy to share the trailer with his new friends.  Or at least two of his new friends.

This guy has yet to make it up on the rocket ship.

"They said they're flying off to the moon without me!"

"What do you mean you're going to go back in time?"

"Yeah, we just need to make some modifications first."

"Um, can't we just jump around?"

We've been watching the white faced lamb for a couple of days and have no idea why he can't figure out how to get up there.  We toyed with helping him up there once so he'd get the idea, but decided to wait and just watch.  Of course, if it'd had been Baaxter, I'd probably have helicopter parented myself right over to give him a boost ;-).

Baaxter Buddies!

As the sun set after a long drive from New York, some brothers for Baaxter :-).

Stella apparently didn't get the green shirt memo ;-).

Everyone got a colorful bandana.

Baaxter mixed right in with them :-D.

And they mixed right in with Auntie Reg.

"So what's up with the scarves?"

"I don't know.  Just go with it I guess."

"It will be okay little buddy."

"Now you go play with your new buddies."

More later!

That Darn Cat

Just when you're ready to string her up by her screen door hanging toenails...

Baaxter's feeling much better this morning.  I'm sure sleeping in his hay bag with his best cat friend yesterday helped :-). 

Under The Rainbow

 

It's been a crazy few days - bad storms, barn flooded...twice, Baaxter relapsed and gave me another scare (Tim thinks he's faking being sick so he doesn't have to move to the barn ;-), Bill was here shearing Elizabeth and re-shearing the longwools yesterday. I'll have a post coming on that hopefully tomorrow, Lord willing and the creek don't rise...again.

That Embarrassing Moment

When you have to admit that you have chickens waiting on your back porch every morning - just kidding.  That's actually pretty awesome.  I love these two Welsommers.

When your boss catches you asleep at your desk!

Betsy had had a rough night.  She'd been kicked outside for clawing the carpet and then when she tried to hang from the screen door to force us to let her back inside at say 3:00 a.m., her freshly trimmed nails wouldn't grab the tiny screen holes and I could hear her sliding back down, give it another try...  

I didn't feel the least bit sorry for her and the birds sure appreciated the breakfast break at the feeder in the morning :-).

The Year Of The Horse - Part Two

Remember this project?  They're finally finished!  Tim had Claire at Clever with Leather make me a pair of custom chaps :-).

While I picked my colors mostly as a tribute to Handy, the big red horse of my heart, there's a bit more to it.

The main color matches Handy.  The fringe has white mixed in just like his gorgeous tail.

The weaving worked perfectly!

The silver western style buckle is in memory of Aria.

The brown piping is for Hickory.

I love them.

And the chaps, too ;-).

Dreaming Of Last Week

I think I had thrown a long sleeve flannel shirt on to go out and take this picture of the ponies.

The heat index was 97 here yesterday.  And while I don't really care what the wind chill is in the winter, that heat index in the summer...piling misery upon misery.  Saint Tim says I have SAD.  SUMMER Affected Disorder. 

Me, Baaxter, Buddy, Woolliam, Boudreaux, Keebler, Blossom, Lila, Henri and Hank are looking for a charter to Alaska.  Maybe one of those knitting cruises!  And then we could get off at some point and "forget" to get back on ;-).

Baby Bird Camp

"Mom!"

"Mom!"  "Mom!"

"Mom!" "Mom!" "Mom!"

"MOM!!!"

Just off the back porch :-). 

Lesson From Some Dumb Ol' Sheep

Baaxter is feeling much better!  In fact, by last night he was feeling so much better that, with as tired as I was from having stayed up with him for two nights, I sort of almost kinda a little wished he could be just a wee bit sick again.  Not really ;-).

Maisie nearly died so many times as a baby that it's still amazing to me sometimes that she's out running around (with her propeller twirling :-) the fields playing with her friends.  The big lesson I learned from Maisie was the importance of rest.  When she was having a really, really tanked day, if I could just get her to fall asleep, sound asleep, she would be almost miraculously turned back around when she woke up.  

She usually had to sleep tucked in next to me covered up with her favorite blanket until she got too warm and I'd pull it back a little until she got too cool and then I'd cover her back up...  Baaxter slept next to me when he was at his worst, but by yesterday afternoon, he'd headed back to one of his favorite nap spots behind the wicker chairs.  Like Maisie, it was amazing how much better he'd be when he woke up.

But really, is it that amazing?  We've been told our whole lives to rest when we're sick.  Maybe the reason I never really believed it mattered that much is I've never actually made myself rest.  There's always something that HAS to be done...  We now have two very clear, shall we say black and white ;-) proofs that rest really does make a difference.

Hazy, Hot And Humid

I couldn't decide which of these I liked best. I like seeing the horses in the front field almost as much as the sheep. This morning was especially pretty.

The morning coolness won't last long.  We have a brutal forecast this week.  I'd be happy if I never saw the 90's again and we are stuck with them all week.  Yesterday was exceptionally miserable.  

Baaxter was sick - a combination of the heat, disrupted weekend schedule and vaccination brought on pneumonia which in turn brought on an episode of bloat.  It's scary being a sheep mom.  As I sat on the floor of the kitchen with a fan blowing on him all day, I tried not to think of the 90s outside, the 80s inside and the 104 snuggled up next to me.  I was just glad I was able to help him feel a little better.

He's much improved this morning, but still not himself.  I'm hoping another day of stall (because at this point we really can't call it a "kitchen" ;-) rest and a second day of meds will really help.  Saint Tim put the window ACs in last night so we can keep him a little cooler this afternoon.  Maybe with the "stall" door open, the rest of the farm will cool off too.  Just kidding.  Sort of...

Nice

But just not the same.

Hank likes the front field best too.  It's easier to keep watch over the early risers and the sleeper ins.

Her Fleece Was White As Snow

Except for all the grease, dirt, hay, straw, chicken feathers, dog hair, wild flowers, burrs, tree bark, fishing lures, shotgun shells...  ;-)

Guess who this is!

I've been spinning for an exchange project and the fiber is pretty and super soft, but with just enough of dryer lint feel to make me crazy.  I'm a coarse wool girl through and through and need a break.  This fleece is exactly what I'd hoped it would be :-).

If you'd like to know what this feels like, put a good squirt of dish soap in your kitchen sink, hit it with the spray nozzle and hot water.  When you pat/squish down on the big peaks of bubbles...that's exactly what it feels like to pat/squish down on Maisie's combed wool.

I left this picture file size a bit larger so you could biggify it.