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We have a flurry of birthdays in the barn this week beginning with Crystal’s today.
She is now 8 years old and I can’t believe where the time has gone! She was one of the first ewes we purchased, a twin, stemming from a flock in Washington. She traveled across country that spring of 2002 all the way to us here in NH. I didn’t have a digital camera back then so I don’t have the cute lamby pictures (and she was cute!) but this is her a year later at one year old.
Crystal is probably our steadiest, mellowest ewe, always has been. She rarely has a issue and always loves a hug.
Here she is this morning, enjoying cake with her friends!
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Many moons ago and I mean MANY moons, we owned two beautiful Oxford ewes pictured below. They were our first sheep that we bought in 2000. I was soooo excited and boy did we spoil these girls. Pearl (left) was named after my maternal grandmother and Viola (right) for Jack’s childhood family nanny.
Here they are running out from the barn to the hay feeder, about 4 months old and feeling good!
Oxford wool is great for outerwear, blankets and socks. And at the time I didn’t even know how to knit, I just had to have some sheep.
So I sent the raw wool off the following spring to a mill to be spun to yarn and a few blankets. I knew nothing about good mills from bad mills and this was not a good experience. The yarn came back single spun with massive amounts of slubs (for you non-fiber people that means areas of the yarn that are unspun). But when I say slubby this was awful. I couldn’t market it at all. So I kept it for us to knit up. It would make fine barn sweaters and heavy socks.
In 2002 we sold Pearl and Viola to an farm that raised Oxfords so we could make room for the beginning of our CVM/Romeldale flock. Secretly we have felt badly ever since as they didn’t get the life we had hoped. I know Viola has since died and I suspect Pearl has also. In the summer of 2004 I decided to knit a pair of socks for Jack from their yarn as I reminisced about them. But I also wanted to try my hand at dyeing and so I used some synthetic dyes to paint the yarn. It was so exciting, having never dyed before. And then I began knitting the socks in the fall of 2004.
This project fell off the face of the FO list when I realized I didn’t have enough yarn to finish them and also the first sock came out too short for Jack’s measurement. I stashed the project, fell in love with natural dyeing and never looked back. I’d pull the project out of the UFO drawer look at it, sigh and close the drawer.
But then whilst in the middle of my block a few weeks ago, I decided “I can do this!” So I dyed (with the synthetic dyes) another skein of yarn, tore out the finished sock back to before the toe decrease, remeasured Jack’s foot and off I went. It was so easy once I made up my mind to finish them!
I was captive in the truck for a day last weekend while Jack ran radar for our local snowmobile club’s annual radar run and I was able to wrap them up.
Webster was thinking they might make for an interesting bed.
Jack wore them to do the chores this morning and I am happy to report they don’t slip down in his boots, they are warm, he loves them and they are DONE!
For all my friends who knit alot…you inspire and amaze me!
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Today Jack and I enjoyed a local snowmobile ride….one we have done many, many times and we never tire of it. We trailered to a dairy farm in Westmoreland, Windyhurst Farm, where we began the ride. It is without a doubt one of the prettiest farms in the state and has earned the NH Farm of Distinction award. Windyhurst Farm is a working dairy farm, milking holsteins. Owned for many generations by the Adams, they also operate the best pancake house around, Stuart and John’s. Starting February 15th the pancakes are once again on the griddle along with unbelieveable waffles, french toast and Grampy’s homemade donuts. Stuart Adams and John Matthews started the business as teenagers and it is now a thriving business. They have a large maple syrup business and so as you can imagine the pancake house serves all that great food smothered in pure NH made maple syrup. Oh my it is the best!
So we took off from Windyhurst and wound our way around Westmoreland and up into Walpole across some of the prettiest farmland the state offers. This is a view of Derry Hill in Walpole. We stopped on top of a huge field to take in the view and way down below the County Road winds through the fields. An old pickup drove along the road and from so far away gave a big toot on the horn to say hello as we waved back. Nice.
Winding down from these high field we came to the Graves Farm in Walpole. Also a working dairy farm, milking holsteins and raising some beef cows also. To the right and out of view was another group of cows around a feed bunk and there was a huge flock of wild turkeys with them, eating the left over feed the cows didn’t eat. Tranquil.
And yet another field just off from the Graves Farm. Beautiful. I can also visualize a summer day, the grass so green and a breeze out of the Southwest, cows grazing and bees buzzing.
We continued down to the railroad bed and rode up to Diamond Pizza in Walpole for a refresher. It was a busy day there…the place was packed with snowmobilers enjoying the day on trail.
Heading home we traveled along a huge corn field owned by the Malnati Farm in Walpole, also a working dairy milking holsteins, and another NH Farm of Distinction…just beautiful.
The trails travel through field after field after field….this is the Chickering horse farm in Walpole….as I stopped to take the picture, the horses were all so frisky. Was it my presence or were they having some fun themselves?
And finally we arrived back at Windyhurst Farm….such a pretty spot.
We felt so fortunate to live in such a beautiful town and area, still steeped in farming and the lifestyle it offers.
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Just a bit chilly this morning but the sun was bright and strong so it felt reasonably good for a winter’s day!
I got home from work early and we took a snowmobile ride into Keene (25 miles). The trails are splendid! After 2 feet of snow, an ice storm, more snow and now frigid temperatures the trails are hard and smooth as glass.
On trail today we watched a flock of turkeys crossing the trail. You can see them to the left of Jack, just crossing into the woods.
We rode to Chili’s in Keene for a refresher. I must say as we rode the railroad bed into town at 55 mph, with the air temp at 0 and the wind chill factor at 55 below zero we were warm as toast! It is really miraculous if you are dressed accordingly!
Yup, this is me, hanging out on trail….no such thing as having too much fun! Be warm!
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The cold?
Sidney and I braved a walk across the fields this morning at zero degrees with a wind chill factor of 25 below. Almost froze the water in my eyes!
This is the railroad bed on a snowmobile trip we took this past Sunday….water frozen in suspension and an ice climbers delight.
The Love?
Jasper and Tybee, two of our wethers are fighting for Ashley’s attention during breakfast today. Ashley, in heat, is tucked in against the wall, trying to grab a mouthful while Jasper(left) stands attentive. He seemed to have won out over Tybee(right). Little do they know they are not virile! Love conquers all.
The warmth?
The hen house (far right little building) is cozy as can be today…the snow on the roof is insulating so much that there are icicles forming on the back side! I keep the bedding good and dry and with the warming bulb in there it is running 30 at night and 40 during the day in this wretched cold!They get treats to entertain them from a fresh pear to timothy hay and alfalfa. And in return 6 eggs a day come forth.
Be warm!
