Taking it all off...!

I hope it's not a sign of aging but yesterday I looked all over for that darn camera that I had fixed. I had taken a few pics last week & made a mental note to get new batteries as there was not enough power left in them to upload the new pics. So shearing day was yesterday , and where oh where is the camera?? Right along with  the bbq lighter that has also sneaked off into the sunset. So I had to rely on some picture taking by Vanessa from Booth Boys Farm.





 

It is difficult to book a shearer when you only have 2 animals to be done.the shearer was previously over at The Vaanderlaan Barnyard Zoo & then popped by to shear our woolly beasts. So, Vanessa brought Billy- we believe he is a Jacob and Andy-?? but boy is he ever HUGE!! This has to be the biggest sheep I have ever seen. I honestly felt intimidated by this boy!





Billy & Andy waiting their turn in the barber's seat

Andy!!

My two are barely recognizable after such a loss. The poor lambs bleating for Mom & then "What the heck? You're not my Mom!" Night & day after shearing; in fact they don't really look like sheep anymore....



Before Shearing



After Shearing

 Judging by their current size, it won't be long before the lambs outgrow their mothers.
Now for the fleece. Hubby is in the process of building a skirting table which should also be a good drying rack for fleece also. I'm still debating about what to do with the fleeces as I am not a great spinner but would like to use some of this as commemorative pieces...

Tomorrow is my first day at the new job. Bittersweet as I look forward to  a new start but will miss my time with the animals. I keep telling myself that I must work in order to feed the animals instead of myself. I wonder if they'll all miss me too? So, the knitting will be slowing down. almost done with Snowcloud- just working on the short-row collar. I have started Maude Louise- cardigan pattern that calls for 3 different needle sizes for shaping. I have the back done already! And now for something completely different: It's not green!

Down on the farm...

It's Spring and with that come changes, especially when you have farm animals. My 2nd batch of seeds have been sown. I am waiting for some not so windy weather to plant as the stems are still very fragile..

Now, all the critters know it's Spring, especially the horses. You know that saying, " The grass is always greener on the other side..."? Well, Tessa, whom I thought was acting peculiar yesterday morning decided to test the fence. Twice people came to my door yesterday to tell me a horse was out. Took 3 hours to fix, sort out etc.. why the fence was not providing the jolt required to prevent this from happening again. All is good now.



Day old Australorp chicks



On Saturday I ventured out to the Bird auction in South Mountain. I came home with a hen of mixed breeding-don't care what it is as long as it lays an egg! Sadly, it was cold & windy even inside the building. There were indoor birds there & day old chicks suffering. I was not pleased to see that. They finally decided to auction off the chicks as they could not wait. I did not go there to buy chicks but I bid on 4 -day olds. I paid for them & left. 2 chicks were upside down in the box & the other 2 were chirping albeit very slowly.Long story short, I was angry & scared all at once. Paid $8 for a box of dead chicks. I prepped a brooder all the while keeping the precious cargo warm. I opened the box put the 2 in, looked at the other 2 & they wereNOT DEAD!!! Slow movement when I rolled them. So, I held them under the heat lamp so the body temp. would increase. I flipped them over belly up so they could warm up all over..at this point they are doing the swallowing thing that means they are about to die... I made them drink, continued to hold them for 15 minutes...they are now fine & fully alert!!



Liam & Mom Clarice



Now for the Really big news..THE LAMBS ARE HERE!!!! 2 weeks early and I had no bloody camera. Well today I fixed the camera- which is why I did not post earlier. Liam was born around 11 am Sunday morning & Magnus was born early Monday morning. They are both rams which means as adults more fleece  moahhaha!!




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Magnus & Mom Beyonce-messy girl...

  So this is the first generation of the Karberry flock. I wonder if I will have ewes next year?? I may add some Icelandic & Jacob to my flock...We'll see...until then I will have the ladies shorn- yes that was booked in May before they were due to lamb. Oh well....Come vist the babies if you can. In about 4 months they should have a large set of horns already!!! Need much better fencing for sure....