Monthly Archives: April 2018

2018
04/30

Category:
Life

COMMENTS:
1 Comment »

Socks and sheep

Socks and sheep – let’s start with the socks.   These are the “Impossible Girl” socks.  Since I’m a slow knitter, they are just now ready to turn the heel.

These socks are starting to pill quite a bit.  The yarn is so soft and comfortable, maybe I should have expected that, but it is sold as sock yarn.

And now the SHEEP

 

 They would be very happy to follow me right into the house, but I squeezed through the gate, leaving them out.

2018
04/29

Category:
Life

COMMENTS:
2 Comments »

Princess wedding

Our son waited a long time for his princess, but the wait paid off.  So I shall bore you with a few family photos today. Tomorrow we will resume regular programming.

Rehearsal dinner

 Pre-wedding photo – that is a very long train.

The wedding party

Most of our children are in this photo

The venue was a vineyard high in the Saratoga hills.  It was simply gorgeous.  I don’t have a cake photo because the winds kicked up and it was so very cold, some of us left after the bride/groom dance.  Our prayers are for a long and happy marriage.

 

2018
04/26

Category:
Life

COMMENTS:
1 Comment »

ANNOUNCEMENT

So no one will be concerned, I’m taking a vacation.   Will see you again on Sunday

2018
04/24

Category:
Knitting
Life
sheep

COMMENTS:
1 Comment »

Chores aren’t exciting

I was startled awake at 4.30 this morning by something screaming.  When the sun came up and I was able to go see what was going on, I found the animals all safe and Daisy was not letting the rams out of their night enclosure.   I’m assuming she had a run in with a coyote and the coyote lost.

Because we are still clearing land of blackberries for pasture, the coyote dens are  being destroyed, which leaves the coyotes looking for new dens.  Hopefully, they will decide the dogs are not worth the risk.  There are many acres next to us loaded with wild rabbits.   They will just have to talk to the coyotes who are in charge and see if they will share some of that land.

Chores are not exciting, but part of the day.   After going to the gym this morning (I have to go or DH doesn’t go, and that is important for him), I went up and did the exciting chore of cleaning the messiest stall.   If I clean it twice a week, it is not difficult.  But if I leave it for a week or more,  it gets too deep and then it is work.

These two babies thought I needed watching, or maybe they just know that after clean-up comes dinner.   By the time I fixed meals, went to the gym, cleaned a stall, and watered the hoop house, I had used up my energy for the day, so I am spending the evening knitting.   It may be another week before I get back to the sewing machine.  I had wanted to finish a quilt this month, but ……so far it hasn’t happened and I’ll be out of town for the weekend.

2018
04/23

Category:
Garden
Knitting
Life

COMMENTS:
2 Comments »

Easy impossible socks

With this lovely spring weather, I started the day weeding, then putting bulbs in this front area.  After that and some hoop house planting, it was lunch and a few errands.  And so goes the day so quicklySo tonight I was able to sit down with “impossible girl” socks.   They are so very easy, it is the girl who is impossible, not the socks.   I love how fast they are working up.   The yarn was on one ball and when I rolled half of it off, one side is a  bit redder and the other has more blue tones, but not terrible different – sister socks.

2018
04/22

Category:
food
Garden
sheep

COMMENTS:
Comments Closed

Tomato and other plants

These tomato plants have been in for three weeks and are doing very good, so today I planted some tiny little sauce tomatoes that are barely up, but it’s now or it won’t happen.   Tomorrow I will try to get some more peppers in.   The peas, onion, garlic and cauliflower are doing good.  The kale is ahead of me.

I took out most of the winter broccoli to make room for something new.   I picked a large amount of kale.   It is amazing – first you plant and water and fertilize, then you get to wash and process the food.  This all seems to take so much time.    Grocery store food is CHEAP.   But what we grow is better.

When I got to the fairgrounds there were still many unsold fleeces to be picked up.

I was happy as half of mine sold.  The fleece that went with this rosette was sold.  Though I know this day had 24 hours, like every other day it seems it has  been a long day.

 

 

2018
04/20

Category:
Life
sheep

COMMENTS:
Comments Closed

Shepherd’s extravaganza 2018

Kirsten was the judge for the Shepherd’s extravaganza 2018 here in Washington.   She judged more than 300 entries yesterday and today.  We entered 14 fleeces.  I was disqualified because of a break in the fiber we missed.   The others all received blue ribbons.   One of the Shetlands will receive a third place ribbon in the primitive breeds.   We are delighted with the results.

These are two of the Cormo fleeces.   I’ll be getting either the sales papers or the fleeces of any that did not sell on Sunday evening.   It has been a long 2 days.

2018
04/18

Category:
Knitting
sheep

COMMENTS:
1 Comment »

Impossible socks

I have finally started a new pair of “impossible girl socks”.    The designer, Madeline Gannon, says they remind her of the “Impossible girl” on Dr. Who in a BBC series.   So the socks are not impossible, the girl is.   I need to look for a label for the yarn as I can only tell you that it is wool with a bit of nylon.

I entered fleeces in the spring fair today.   This is my first  time to enter a fleece, so I will watch the judging over the next 2 days as she explains her judging of each fleece.   I also signed up to take a class on the use of coats on the sheep.  It will be an educational week.

2018
04/16

Category:
sheep

COMMENTS:
1 Comment »

Ava’s baby


Ava’s baby is the last of the Cormo babies this year.  She was  a hefty 11# 1 oz and had to  be assisted into this world.   Two of us really held onto those back legs and pulled.   Wet lamb legs are very slippery.

Several of our Shetland’s don’t appear to have taken this year, so this is probably the end of the season which Is okay with us.

2018
04/15

Category:
Garden
Life
sheep

COMMENTS:
1 Comment »

Juliette – dog or sheep?

Miss Juliette wants to be a dog most of the time.   She must think the dogs have it better and maybe they do.

She wants me to see that she can play bow, run and jump just like the dogs.  She only wants to be a sheep when she has babies.    So do we class Juliette as a dog or a sheep?    Seems she is as confused as some people.

I went to the feed store for stall lime today.   They said they didn’t have any unless it was  in the garden section.  They wanted to sell me zinc carbonate instead at 74.00/bag.   I finally found the calcium carbonate – dolomite – lime at 9.00/bag.   No wonder they don’t think they have any – that’s a big upsell.   But I think the employees really don’t know there is a difference.

That being done, I went off to purchase seed potatoes and onion.  Now I just need a week of sun to dry out the ground so I can put these in the ground.   There is not enough room in the hoop house.