King Of The Dirt Pile

"What are you doing, Biscuit?"

"Nothin'."

"Okay then.  Carry on."

I'm still not convinced they're not up to something, but we can puzzle it out...with a new puzzle :-).

Watching...

...for fall?  For rain?  For cooler temps?  For the upcoming Kentucky Wool Festival?  For a new puzzle :-).

This has been the hottest September I can ever remember.  We are still in the 90s and my "if I can just make it until Thursday..." has been changed this morning to "if I can just make it until Friday."  If this trend of pushing back the end of this brutal heat stretch continues, it's just going to become "I hope I make it..."

To make matters worse, other than a freak rain storm yesterday morning, we have had no rain.  Everything is brown and crispy and when the wind does blow, it's a hot wind that does nothing to help anyone.  Speaking of the freak rain, it rained 2" at the house, but only 3/8" at the Wool House, just yards away.  The rain was that spotty.  

Hank is doing pretty well.  His foot has healed up beautifully, but he's back obsessively licking both of his elbows now and right after I took this picture I had to stick the cone of shame back on him :-/.  They are actually blow up pillows now and if it wasn't so blasted hot, it probably wouldn't be that uncomfortable to wear, but still.

I'm in the final crunch week of getting ready for the wool festival.  My Ohio Valley Natural Fibers run scheduled for last week was cancelled, but they are hoping they can run my roving this Tuesday.  I have my fingers crossed, but am still stressing about a contingency plan if they can't get their machine back up and running.  

I've got a good amount of wool pumpkins made, lots of wool balls, quite a few mini wreaths and I'm finishing up some big wreaths.  I'll also have all the usual Punkin's Patch "swag" in tow and hopefully some felted sheep as well.  The calendars won't be ready until after the festival, but we have plenty of the "...and to all a good night" Christmas card packed up and also mixed sets of all 15 years.

Tring Farm has eight pretty raw fleeces to sell and for some reason Andy and Tavia's fleeces (two of my favorites) didn't sell back in the spring, so I'll have them there as well.  Everything else is washed and ready to process,  so it will all work out somehow.  

The booth will be full and fun and pretty and if the forecast holds, it should be a great weekend.  We might even be able to wear some wool in the evenings...which seems odd to say after so many weeks/months of not breaking out of the 70s at night.  

I'll believe it when I see it.  I'm watching!

Something Special At The End

We...well 20, Pip, Auntie Reg, Miss B and I...had a great weekend at the Kentucky Sheep and Fiber Festival.  Tavia, Tabitha and Kaala...won't be going out in public ever again.  They hated it.  A lot.  And Tabitha made sure everyone heard about how much they hated it.  A lot.  

This was the 10th year for this festival. Seems kind of crazy when I think about it.  That just flew by!  Here is a quick tour of the booth for anyone who wasn't able to go and would like to take a peek.  You can even hear Tabitha...because I know everyone would like to hear what she had to say...all weekend long :-o.

We were stopped by a road block on our way out of the park last night.  As the person walked up to my truck to explain why the road was going to be closed for a few minutes, she laughed and said "Oh, I don't need to tell you what's going on."  The Bluegrass Classic Stockdog Trial was over and they were moving 500 sheep into a secure field for the night.  I got out of the truck and walked up to watch.  

Before there was a fiber festival I used to set up my Punkin's Patch booth down at the stockdog trial.  It was my favorite weekend of the year.  I'd be set up close enough to the trial field that I could watch the sheep and dogs all day long.  I'd bring my spinning wheel and my dear old collie Sam.  I made some really good friends down there over the years and it was like the best vacation ever.

I'd stay until the very end of each day because once the last handler finished they'd run all the sheep out into the open field to graze for the night.  That was my favorite.  I love big flocks of sheep and I wonder now if my love of big flocks came from watching all those sheep filter out across that big field each night.  

I didn't have a good camera back then.  Heck, I didn't even know I liked taking pictures in those days.  Maybe that was a good thing.  I might be able to still see things in my mind and heart that I probably couldn't have really captured on film.  Now, 16 years later, I pulled out my iPhone and recorded some video as they trotted up the road.

I included a bit of that footage at the end of this compilation.  I did that mostly because it is a treasured memory from my weekend.  A little gift from the universe to a crazy sheep lady who, while she enjoys being a part of the fiber festival, sure wishes there was a way to be two places at once.  

I also included it because there's something of Punkin's Patch significance at the very end.  The man walking past in the red and white striped shirt is Paul Tucker, now one of those good dog trial friends.  But I met Paul long before I knew anything about border collies or sheep or that I even liked sheep.  27 years ago he gave me a little bottle lamb...that I named Punkin.

Peeking In

Several times a day I go peek in on everyone to make sure all is well in the barn.  This is one of my favorite things to do, especially on a sunny, but chilly "winter" day.  As I quietly walked down the barn aisle I noticed Maisie cashed out (one of my most favorite sights) so I quietly walked out, grabbed my camera and snuck back in.

The little darlin'.

Jared, aka Big J, soaking up some sun.

I seldom catch Kaala asleep.  She's always "busy".

Petunia, with Tavia and Clover Belly on the left.

Andy

Rebecca Boone, for the first time looking like she might be happy(ish) moved into Easy Breezy.  I've been trying for several days to get her settled in there.  A Cotswold with an opinion... ;-).

Good afternoon!

Just A Bunch Of Pictures Of Hank

I'm sure no one is going to complain about that :-).  There are also five new Hank puzzles :-D.

Gold Christmas

No white Christmas this year, but the golden sunlight was a pretty good trade.  A couple new puzzles for you :-).

Merry Christmas!

Fall Snow

For anyone keeping score at home, this is actually the second snow.  Neither has been very "big", but if it snows enough that I'm excited about it, I'm counting it as a snow!  Maybe these were mildly foggy mornings back in August ;-).

I was walking around the barn trying to figure out a way to take a cell phone picture that really showed how pretty it was this morning, not having any luck, grumbling to myself, "This is one of the many bad things about not blogging enough - no good camera pictures anymore."

...um...

...hel-lo!  If you took 14 steps to the right, you could go pick up your very lonely camera from the Wool House...

...oh...yeah... (insert eye rolling emoticon)

Burrnie looks like he has a posse!

Spud in the foreground, Jared and Tavia, one of his many "girlfriends", on the left.  Jared is still quite the ladies man even after being 'tutered this summer.

From a slightly different angle.

A new favorite picture (and puzzle :-).  I couldn't have captured the colors this well with my phone, hel-LO!  Sigh... 

I took about 20 pictures of Muffin eating a leaf.  Want to see them?  Oh, Muuufffiin ;-).

"Muffin, Muffin, Muffin.  Who wants to see a billion pictures of Muffin eating a stupid leaf!"

Fine Fall Day

We've had a couple stunner days this week.  Twice I sat down out in the barn and just enjoyed it.  Both days Muffin laid down, curled up next to me.  Treasured memories for sure.

"Spend the afternoon.  You can't take it with you."  Annie Dillard

Rebecca Boone

Tavia

Burrnie

Spud

The little darlin' ;-)

Pretty Petunia

2017 Hug A Sheep Day Party - Part One

We almost cancelled the party this year. Every day for a week the forecast looked worse and worse and by Wednesday/Thursday/Friday it was calling for 45 degrees and 90% chance of rain.  Rain is not fun.  Cold is not fun.  Cold and rain?  No one would want to come out in that :-(.  

Turns our we were all wrong!  One of Saint Tim's big sayings is 90% of the things you worry about happen 10% of the time.  There was a 10% chance it wouldn't rain and it didn't!  And the sun even popped out for a little while.  And as the afternoon went on, we had about 50 sheep huggers...and cookie feeders ;-).

Amy (Auset Images) came down from Indianapolis and took a ton of pictures for us.  Thankfully.  Not only because I never pulled my camera out, but also because she always gets such fun pictures.  The best part is you never even notice she's doing it.  She also sees shots I'd never notice.  Very fun and a great eye.

Woody and Murphy: "Now that's what I'm talking about!  Wait...are those cookies low fat?  What are you saying, lady!"

Buddy never fails to crack me up.  He is licking the bag of treats ;-D. 

As usual, Ewen preferred to just stand next to me while Liddy worked the crowd.  Boy bottle lambs... ;-)

We rotated sheep in and out of the "hugging pen", but even the sheep not in the pen were able to get plenty of attention...and cookies.

"Plleeeeeeeease???"

Chocula and Woody showing how it's really done.  "You've got to climb up on the door!"

Liddy trying to mind meld "Look at the cookies.  You know you want to give me one."

Tabitha made several attempts at being brave enough to come up for treats.  I was surprised that Tavia never came around.  She's usually the friendliest of the Ts.  

Dear old Annabelly was the only Jacob who got duped into volunteered to come out in the hugging pen.

Woody worked the crowd from inside the stall to the hugging pen to the field to the back of the barn to the hugging pen back to the stall and then the field and...

Next up - Biscuit, Muffin and Mrs. Pepperpot :-D.

The 2017 Kentucky Wool Festival

Well, another Kentucky Wool Festival is in the books.  Whew!  This was probably my favorite booth set up to date.  Or I should say booth design.  The set up was as brutal as always :-o.  A huge thanks to Auntie Reg and Uncle John for all their help.  Setting up a festival booth is not for the faint of heart!

The weather was atrocious - upper 80s on Friday and Saturday and then deluge rains on Sunday.  Still, the crowds were heavy (even in the rain!) and they were happily spending money, which was a huge relief.  Maintaining a flock of increasingly aging sheep is not for the faint of wallet and we desperately needed a good show.  Thank you!!!

Here are a few booth shots.  

Can I say once again, Thank You, Auntie Reg!  Not only do you keep everything running smoothly, but you are a great salesperson.  I am Not Good at self promotion.  It was a huge relief to hear you covering that awkward part for me.

I've never tried to make something like felted wool pumpkins before.  If I'd had any idea how cute these would turn out, I'd have been trying to make them all summer.  They sold out quickly and I was sad to see them go, but I can make more and that bushel basket paid for 83 bales of hay :-D.

There were some funny votes for sheep throughout the weekend.  It was pretty much a toss up between "Maisie" and "Everyone because I can't pick a favorite."  I guess because a vote for everyone includes a vote for Maisie, we'll let her think she "won".  The prize for playing was a packet of farm note cards.  

The fleeces inside the booth were from the Christmas Lamb Camp lambs, just recently shorn.  This was one of my favorites.  

Tavia was the festival's "cover sheep" this year.

I think the wool wreaths were very pretty.  That is Petunia on the left and Blossom on the right.

I made some Biscuit and Muffin Christmas ornaments that look like the Tour de Fleece ravatar.  Instead of grazing on clover, they are eating hay...since that's what they'd be eating at Christmas time :-).

I really like the new small tote bags.  I really like the original bags, too, but since Biscuit, Muffin, Mrs. Pepperpot and the Ts aren't on there...  

A few felted sheep.

And a few you can wear :-).

If you saw the new table cloth at the Kentucky Sheep and Fiber Festival in May, you may remember that only baby Biscuit was looking at the spinning wheel.  I can no longer think of Biscuit without Muffin, so even though she wasn't technically here when she was a tiny baby, she was already in our hearts so I painted her on :-).

I have some cute 20 pictures to share tomorrow.  For now I'm signing off and heading to bed.