Anticipation and Excitement!

Posted by kenleighacres on January 4, 2011
Posted in: Farm Life, Jacob Sheep, Lambing, sheep. Tagged: . 8 Comments

Lambs are almost here!!! 

I love this time of year.

The girls are starting to get very big and the anticipation is mounting.

The bellies are hanging a little lower…

and a lot wider.  This is Althea and she isn’t due until the 20th. 

Flirt and Queenie are two of the three first-timers we have lambing this year.  Queenie is due any day and I can’t wait to see what she has!

*Sorry for the non-flattering shots! 

Holly is the next one due – sometime this weekend.  She has only ever had singles, so I am curious to see if she has twins this year.  Nice sized twins is much easier on them than BIG singles. 

Azera just keeps getting bigger and bigger…

and lower and lower.  She has to wait until the 20th.

Here is Amber with her daughter, Allegany, from this last year.  They are so cute together.  Every morning when I go out to feed they are snuggled together and they are always with each other. 

Hopefully I have lamb photos to share soon!

Reflection and Why I Blog

Posted by kenleighacres on January 1, 2011
Posted in: family. Tagged: , , . 6 Comments

A few weeks ago, my friend Lora at Rocking Dog Ranch asked the question ‘Why do you Blog?’.  This got me thinking and the blogpost has been rolling around in my head, just waiting for the right time .  Today, the first day of the New Year, seems a very fitting time to reflect on this past year and remember why I blog. 

I blog to remember the joy and to keep a journal of the good memories.  Life can get drug down by the negative and it seems like it is human nature to remember the bad memories first.  So, even though life is not always Rosy, you will not be reading about it here.  This is my place for all of the good memories.    

‘May you never forget what is worth remembering, nor ever remember what is best forgotten.’ Irish Blessing

We have so much to be thankful for and many wonderful memories from this last year, here are just a few…

Thank you for sharing this journey with us!

This is going to be my quote for 2011 –

‘One day at a time – this is enough.  Do not look back and grieve over the past for it is gone; and do not be troubled about the future, for it has not yet come.  Live in the present, and make it so beautiful it will be worth remembering.’

Wishing you a happy, joyous, wonderful, brilliant, fabulous, and delightful 2011!

Just a skiff…

Posted by kenleighacres on December 30, 2010
Posted in: Farm Life, Jacob Sheep, sheep. Tagged: , , , . 5 Comments

but it was much better than the deluge of rain we have been enduring the last couple of days.

Our pastures have turned into a wetland and the local waterfowl have been enjoying the accommodations!

I think the sheep enjoyed the little bit of snow we got because it was accompanied by just a touch of sun.  It was a very welcome sight!

The bellies are really starting to show now and the girls are kicking up their heels a little less and spending more time in the barn.  Much to their disappointment, I make them leave the barn while I feed.  I assure them that exercise is good for everyone!!!

Most of the girls go along without a complaint…but there are a few…

that have to tell me what they really think…

poor Rae-Ann really wanted to be heard this afternoon.  She has always been a vocal girl and today was no exception.  Soon they were all let back in the barn and started chowing down on dinner. 

It was also time for Queenie to take her rightful place – her throne.  She is not shy about telling all of the other sheep that they are not allowed on her throne and she is very good at telling the llama to find somewhere else to eat.  Another one of those cases where the name really fits the animal.  I am going to have to draw the line if she requests a nursemaid when her lamb(s) arrive next week 😉   

A new Christmas tradition

Posted by kenleighacres on December 27, 2010
Posted in: family, Uncategorized. Tagged: , . 5 Comments

This year we did something a little different on Christmas day…we went sledding!  It was so much fun!  In fact, it was so much fun that it will probably become our new tradition.  Our son has been wanting to go sledding soooo bad and since Christmas is also his birthday, we thought it would be a fun birthday gift.  This year there was an extra bonus…

my brother and his son went with us.

The cousins are great buddies and enjoyed the day together.  They couldn’t wait to go sledding, so while they were waiting for us they started sledding on their bellies 🙂

Ah…to be a kid again 😉

Finally we were ready and we headed up the mountain.

This is the view from the bottom of the sledding hill.

There were two options – you could walk to the top…

or you could catch a ride and get pulled up to the top.

The first option was MUCH faster because of how many people were in line waiting to get pulled up, but it sure looked good after walking up 2 or 3 times.

The view from the top definitely made the climb worthwhile!

 This mountain in the background is Three Finger Jack.

 

No matter what way you went up…there was only one way down.  I had to be pushed coaxed by my brother to go down the first time.  It was crazy fast and while you were flying down the hill your tube would spin in circles.  Sometimes you would be facing forward and other times you would be backwards.  I found that closing my eyes helped 🙂

They had double sleds available and the boys had fun riding down together.  I tried getting pictures of them coming down the hill, but it was a little scary standing at the bottom.  Several people flew through the stopping area and crashed into the barrier fence!  The weather was just perfect and it made the slope fast!

In addition to having a great time, this was also a good way to work up an appetite for the excellent Christmas dinner waiting at my parent’s house. 

We all hope you had a very Merry Christmas!

Precious Moments

Posted by kenleighacres on December 20, 2010
Posted in: Farm Life, Jacob Sheep. Tagged: , , . 12 Comments

On the morning of shearing my son asked me how much it cost to have each sheep sheared.  I told him that each one cost $5.  He said ‘ok’ and walked away.  I thought it was a little random, but didn’t give it a lot of thought.  A little later he came out of his room with a $1 bill and 16 quarters.  He said that he wanted to pay to have Precious sheared 🙂  He had counted out enough money from his piggy bank to pay for his little ewe lamb.  My heart melted.  I helped him get a ziploc bag and he put his money in it.

He wanted Precious to be sheared first and he watched very intently.  Instructing the shearer the whole time…’she likes to be talked to’, ‘she doesn’t like to be held like that’, ‘she may be a little wiggly, just be patient with her’, etc.  It was very cute.  As soon as she was done, he handed his baggy of money to the shearer and told her ‘thank you’.  Once again my heart melted.

Precious was happy with the hay, but my son was very concerned about her and quickly grabbed a little bit of grain.

She was happy with his idea and the two of them shared a quiet ‘precious’ moment.

Who knew a little ewe lamb named Precious could teach him so much.

Shearing day!

Posted by kenleighacres on December 19, 2010
Posted in: Farm Life, Jacob Sheep, shearing. Tagged: , . 5 Comments

Shearing day was originally scheduled for November 21st, but due to circumstances out of our control it was delayed for a little while.  Luckily, we were able to reschedule it for the 16th of December.  I was getting a little concerned because the first lambing date is getting very close!  I like to shear the ewes before they lamb for many reasons – everything stays cleaner and the barn stays drier, the ewes are more likely to bring the newborn lambs into the barn when it is raining, it is easier for the newborn lambs to find the udder, and the fleeces are beautiful – before the lambs have a chance to climb all over them!

We used a new shearer this year and I am very pleased!  She handled the ewes with care and the fleeces look great.

The new chute was a very big help.  I was able to load a sheep in it while she was shearing.  When she was done shearing, she released the sheep and they exited through an open gate and I swung the gate open on the chute and she grabbed the sheep.  It worked just like I was hoping it would – I love it when that happens!

My son had 3 weeks off for Christmas break, so he was my big helper.  It was a bit chilly when we started…

 

but it turned into a beautiful day!

Even though the sun came out, I think these girls were talking about how lucky they were not to be on the shearing list.

Queenie is the first to lamb on the 4th of January.  For a firt time lamber, she has a pretty big belly and udder already.

Holly is next on the list and is due on the 8th of January.

Poor Azera isn’t due until the 20th of January, she is definitely the biggest of all the girls.

I love seeing how crisp and clean they look after they have been shorn!

This pile seems a little overwhelming at the moment…

but I love looking at what is inside 🙂

Lessons learned!

Posted by kenleighacres on December 15, 2010
Posted in: Farm Life, Jacob Sheep. Tagged: , . 2 Comments

Have you ever looked at something that needed done and said ‘I’ll get to that later.’?  Have you ever regretted not taking care of that something when you first noticed it?  I did just that this afternoon while I was doing chores. 

There was a section in the ram’s fence that they had pushed the bottom out of.  You know the saying ‘the grass is greener on the other side’… well, they were trying to reach that green grass.  Instead of fixing it or having my husband fix it the ‘right’ way, I tucked it back and had forgotten about it.  Until I headed out to do chores tonight and there was Reno schmoozing with one of the ewe lambs.  Luckily, there was a fence between the two of them, but still…he wasn’t where he was supposed to be!  My first thought was, how in the world did you get there?  I didn’t see any holes in the fence and Wrangler was still in the pasture, so my first thought was he jumped the fence, but it didn’t seem likely.  As I scanned the fence I quickly found a big hole at the bottom, right where the problem was that needed to be fixed.  The really scary thing is that this hole led out to the driveway, out to the road!  I am so thankful the cute little ewe lamb enticed him to turn left instead of right. 

If it had been any other ram, I would have been a little concerned with getting him away from the ewe lamb and back into the correct pasture by myself, but this boy has such a nice temperament!  I slowly walked up to him with my hand out stretched and he stood there and let me scratch his chin, he then let me walk him (very reluctantly) back to his pasture.  I then grabbed a hog panel and fixed the fence 🙂  I will not be putting projects like that off!  Thank goodness he didn’t head towards the road!

The other lesson I learned was to double triple check the gates in the barn before I head back to the house.  As I walked into the barn to feed the ewes, I noticed that my wheelbarrow was knocked over – weird…I then noticed sheep poo in the aisleway – uh oh!!!  Sure enough there were sheep on the hay pile…naughty girls.  I was sure I locked the gate when I left last night and I was more than willing to blame the barn sprites, but I guess I could have just swung it without double checking that it locked.  Luckily, the grain was all locked up and they didn’t make that big of a mess. 

Infiniti says that she had NOTHING to do with it! 

A bunch of pregnant girls and a bag of grain could have spelled disaster!

Hopefully my lessons learned will help you!

I can make that!

Posted by kenleighacres on December 12, 2010
Posted in: family. Tagged: . 4 Comments

Have you ever said that to yourself?  Have you ever said that to yourself and then thought ‘what in the world was I thinking?’  I recently saw these felt playhouses on Etsy and thought they would make great Christmas gifts for the little boys in the family.  I called and asked my sisters if they wanted to make them together.  They should have told me I was CRAZY, but instead they agreed. 

It has been difficult to coordinate all of our schedules, but we were all able to work on them earlier this week and we made a lot of progress!  I can really appreciate all of the work that is put into these playhouses!  For one, it is a lot of fabric to work with.  We made the side panels first and then sewed everything together.

This is the giant mass of fabric with the roof attached.

Now that we have two fully done, I am happy that we stuck with it and that my sisters didn’t tell me I was crazy.  I will be saying ‘I can make that’ less and supporting other handcrafters more 😉

Here are pictures of the two we have done…

This one is for our nephew –

I love this little snake!

and this one is for my son –

 

I can’t wait to see their reactions 🙂

Doing a little bit of catch up…

Posted by kenleighacres on December 7, 2010
Posted in: Ducks, Jacob Sheep, sheep, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , . 5 Comments

ok, a lot of catch up! 

How has it been two weeks since doing a blog post? 

Where is the time going? 

How is Christmas only a few weeks away??? 

Time to take a deep breath……….ah, that’s better.

I am very thankful for the daily routine that stays the same, no matter how crazy the holidays get.

Lulu and Infiniti are waiting for their evening chin scratches…

the sheep are all fed…

the pigs are enjoying a feast of pumpkin…

the cats always enjoy a snuggle…

and I love watching the ducks swimming and bobbing on the pond.

In addition to the daily routine, I have been teaching a few classes.  These have been SO much fun!

We traveled over the mountain and through the snow to deliver a sheep to his new home.  I am so thankful my husband was willing to drive through this…

it was so pretty, but there is no way I would have driven through it!

While there, we saw this adorable little guy…

He is a Scottish Highland calf and oh so cute 🙂 

I have also been doing a lot of crafting…

I was so excited when I recently found the pattern to make this horse.

My grandma made horses for us when we were growing up and used this same pattern!  A friend ordered this purple pony for a christmas gift for a special little girl – I think she is going to love it!  I am working on a few more, one for a certain little boy 😉

Hope you are all doing well during this fun time!