Nosey Buggers

The Engineer has plenty of construction supervisors.

They all just want to make sure the stalls are installed to their specifications, I’m sure.

They also like to peek in on what the sheep and goats are doing.

“What are you looking at?” asks Daisy.

I don’t think she likes being peeked at.

They are warming up to everyone here but still don’t want to be touched. That is a good thing. You don’t want an overly friendly alpaca boy because they could become an overly aggressive alpaca adult. We don’t want that. So while it is very tempting to tame them to the point that they will eat out of your hand and let you cuddle them, it is a temptation you must resist.

We have the round pen set up and will work on halter training and desensitizing them to their feet being touched, but outside of that there will be no touchy-feely stuff going on. It is going to require all my willpower.  Not only are they cute, but after skirting their super soft fleeces I have an overwhelming desire to run my fingers through their hair.

Broody Bantams

It is that time of year again. Time for me  to steal the eggs the bantams have been stashing behind my back. We recently had a staff meeting and discussed the fact that we were closing that assembly line down for this season but they keep taking it upon themselves to continue production.

I don’t want any chicks this year so every day, a couple times a day, I’m kicking them off their nests. I now understand how the term “pock” mark came to be. It stands for Pissed Off Chicken.

They are down right vicious.

Seven Days

Remember dirty Shirley and how I wanted to wash her?

Well I thought after I sheared her I’d have plenty of time to go back and snap a picture of her all nice and clean to show you her true color.

Then I found her decorated with burrs. One week. She stayed clean for one week.  That means 51 weeks of looking at her filthy body again.

Slob.

I Love Laverne

She is the perfect sheep. The natural break in her wool (similar to a shedding dog) makes her very easy to shear. You can almost literally cut on the dotted line. It makes me look like I know how to give a decent haircut.

Her katmoget color markings make it easy to sort her fleece. The neck is one color, the belly another, even her britch wool is different than the rest. She’s a skirt-by-number sheep!

Her lamb fleece, in my opinion, is to die for.

She is so soft and crimpy, I cannot wait to wash her and spin her into some fabulous yarn.

I even like her britch wool.

Combine all this with her calm and sweet personality and Laverne is quickly becoming my favorite. Just don’t tell the rest of the girls I said so. You know how they can get.

Home Sweet Home

I didn’t put The Rat Pack in with Willa right away because I thought it would be a big deal. She tends to get overly excited and scare the snot out of those she protects. I didn’t want the boys to feel unsafe in their new home.

I decided to at least introduce them today to get a feel for each other. I figured it wouldn’t last long and I’d need to put her back in a separate pasture. Instead she sniffed them, then their poo pile and promptly laid down for a nap.

The boys aren’t even remotely afraid of her because there were plenty LGDs  just like her where they came from. To say the Great Willabeast introduction was a non-issue would be an understatement.

They are settling in quite well and really showing off their personalities.  Every time I try to get a good shot of Sammy, Frankie sticks his head in the shot.  He’s a bit of a ham.

Little Peter hasn’t stopped eating since he got here. Well, none of them have for that matter. The farm they came from was a little crowded so the pastures were not as plentiful. They must think they’re at an all-you-can-eat buffet by comparison.

The first night we guided them into the barn. Every night since then they’ve put themselves to bed. We’ve had the same bedtime routine for the sheep now for how many years? They still don’t understand to do it themselves!

I think the boys like it here. I know I’m enjoying having them. By far the smoothest new-hire orientation we’ve had so far.

Yesterday I spent part of the day cleaning out the old sheep shack to get it ready for the next round of newbies. Hopefully they’ll be here within the next week or so. I hope that transition goes as smoothly as this one.

It’s All in a Name

Sometimes their names just come to us. It seems obvious right away what they should be called. Then other times we get helpful suggestions from our friends, like all of you. Usually something just seems right and I never question it. When the Engineer suggested we name the boys after the Rat Pack it seemed right. But now that I’ve spent some time with them, I’m wondering if we should have considered another theme? Star Wars, anyone?

Jar Jar Binks?

Yoda?

Wicket, the ewok?

Chewbaca?

Nah, maybe not.

An Old-Fashioned Quilting Bee

During the month of May, Billie Creek Village opens its doors on Thursdays and Fridays to school groups to visit and learn. If you wander past the log cabin, the churches, the old schoolhouse and the general store you see the road that leads to the farmhouse. As you walk back along the winding creek  you might spot a man panning for gold and when you reach the farmstead, inside you’ll find and old-fashioned quilting bee going on.

I am volunteering as the farmwife again this season. Karen, an avid blog reader, has joined me and we’re having a great time.

We’re working on an old quilt top that one of my ancestors pieced but never finished. It is fun to watch the kids reaction when you explain how the quilt is made. You can tell that most are wondering why we just don’t go to Walmart and buy one, but sometimes you’ll run across a child who is really intrigued by it. Today for instance we had a young boy who knew how to sew because his Mom had showed him how to sew the patches on his boy scout uniform. Then there was a little girl who wanted to know if we had crocheted all the doilies in the room (that Karen had found and donated). It seems the little girl knew how to crochet. Of course, I asked her if she’d teach me someday because I’m clueless when it comes to crochet.

It’s a lot of fun, we’ll be going back again next Friday. If you are nearby and would like to join our little bee, we would love to have you just bring your thimble.