# FAC ~ February 2015



## Marchwind

February is a funny kind of a month but I've always liked it. It's shorter than any other month but it contains Valentine's Day and my son's birthday. I tried really hard to have him on Valentine's Day but I missed it by a few hours. He is still my Valentine's baby 

This is the Fiber Arts Chat (FAC) thread. I start a new one each month, more or less on the first of the month :huh: This thread is where we come to talk about all the things in our lives, not necessarily fiber related. If you are new to the Fiber Forum this is a good place to introduce yourself or if you like, start a new thread. We love our new members no matter what your experience level. We learn from each other, share experiences, and ask questions. Please don't be shy. Oh yea, and take pictures and post them, we love seeing what you are talking about. It inspires us all. Also if you talk about a pattern or post a picture of a FO, please try to post a link to the pattern or give the name and where it can be found. Again it's a great way to inspire us all.

Well, we are having a winter storm. We are due for 8-12" of snow, the warning goes on until Monday at 6am. I went to work this morning but most of our flight were cancelled (Chicago must be shut down) so we only have 3 flights all day. I worked the only two that went out on my shift and went home. So silly to just sit around. I've shoveled once already. I think I'll spin or knit and watch movies.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Wow, its February already. I still have to remind myself that its no longer 2014 when writing the date.


----------



## Kasota

Marchwind, my son's birthday is in February also.  Hope you enjoy your "snow day" and have lots of fiber time!

DBA, how are those seedlings coming along? It will be Spring for you before you know it! 

Mom made some blueberry muffins shaped like little hearts. They are so cute!


----------



## Miz Mary

What do you do, Marchwind ? Airline attendant ?

Curious to see tomorrow if the groundhog sees his shadow ..... looking forward to spring !! 

This month I need to cut the ferns back,and the roses ..... trim the fruit trees if needed


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Kasota, lots of little plants are starting to pop up. Planted 60 tomatoes this morning. Once they germinate and are an inch or two tall, I will move them to bigger, 3" pots, then start another batch of the same varieties, then I still have 5 or 6 other varieties to get started.
I'm running out of room, but, I will manage. If I have to put plants on the kitchen table and we eat in the living room, I will do it....well, maybe.


----------



## Johnny Dolittle

Tomorrow is Groundhog Day and I live 30 minutes from Gobblers Knob where Punxsutawney Phil resides.

People from all over the world come to this event .... but us locals could care less. I have never attended.

So tomorrow we will either know that there will be 6 more weeks of winter ... or else Spring is just around the corner.

Lately his forecasts have been at least as accurate as The National Weather Service.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groundhog_Day


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

I &#9829; the movie "Groundhog Dog".  
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107048/


We have a light powdery snow falling now- won't amount to much- and we still don't have enough to snowmobile!  It was -2ÂºF when I went out in my robe to feed the deer and birdies. BBbbbbbrrrrrrrr.

Today I WILL take that Christmas tree down :grin:

and I started knitting a pair of socks yesterday. I have soooooooo much knitting to catch up on- but February is my month to do it.  

I just heard that Spunky Eclectic is coming to Shepherd's Harvest and teaching classes- yee haw! I will be sitting up til the midnight registration opening bell to make sure I get registered for her classes- I expect they will fill up FAST.  

Thanks to all of y'all, I am now itching to go watch youtubes on arm knitting. :grin: 

Y'all have an awesome day.


----------



## hercsmama

Had one of our famous Nebraska winter storms blow through last night.
After the last few weeks in the 50's and 60's, it's a bit of a shocker to wake up to blowing snow and -30* wind chills.:huh:
But it's best it happened, as we were so worried that the trees would start budding, so at least now they can go back to sleep for a bit longer.
I managed to get some spinning in yesterday, and will do more today. Need to ply up what I've got spun first, as all 6 of my bobbins for Serephine are full.
Making a big pot of chili for later during the game.
Ya'll take care.


----------



## lambs.are.cute

I live in Seahawk country and today is going to be wild one way or the other. The past week they have had all the school children cheering every morning, every business is having Seahawk sale, innumerable Seahawk flags flying, and quite a few flags on cars. Talk about die hard fans. Personally I prefer soccer and dressage if I watch any organized sports but is a hoot to go watch the crowd. I just leave before the 4th quarter, don't care for all the drunk people.


----------



## susang

Dark cold, rainy here typical Orygun winter weather.
We celebrate three birthdays this month great GD (was 1/25 but our daughter comes down for one weekend to celebrate), grand SIL and great GS. Our daughter does two amazing cakes for the kids. Last year when she came down it was the big snow storm in Portland, it took them 11 hours they sat for 5 hours in one spot. Our youngest daughter comes too.
It will be busy cakes to decorate, tarts to make for pre-school auction event, knit and have fun. Then I go back up with them and stay for a couple weeks. All our kids live in Kelso/Longview. So next three weeks for me will be full of fun Portland yarn shop, food trucks, great meals and more knitting.
This gives hubby the time to concentrate on his truck without me wanting him doing other stuff. When I get home it's a push to start getting raised beds ready and green house cleaned out for plants. We have chance of freeze until end of May. Last year I cheated and put plants out end of April in beds wrapped with plastic. Didn't increase yield in fact we had less tomatoes at the end of the year.
This time of the year I also look for deals on meat to can. Our kitchen is very hot in the summer. I get up at 4am to start canner in summer before heat.
WOW I guess March isn't the windy month for my mouth.


----------



## Tommyice

Reading all you talking about your snowstorms is like watching the previews at the movies--it's on it's way East. LOL

We're expecting 5-8" plus a bonus inch of ice on top. Wooohoo! ~she said sarcastically


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

We're in the midst of it. There is 12-15" out there now with another 2-4" predicted before it ends late tonight. Winds have picked up 25-35 mph so there is whiteout conditions.

Loving this weather!










The snow now covers the bottom rung of the ladder to the treehouse.


----------



## Kasota

I'm insane...

Gonna bid on this methinks... 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/331466216747?_trksid=p2060778.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

I must be sick, Mullerslanefarm- but isn't that just beautiful!??!!?!?

but as a reminder that its not winter everywhere-  

here are a couple of pics of the daughter's new house with its stone hot tub/spa with fountain and water fall, and the pool, and the 2 story guest cabin we'll be hanging out in for a short time next winter, and the winter after that, and the winter after that and....

Kasota thinks it will be a great place for a winter fiber retreat! Turns out its just about 40 minutes from Lexie's!


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

WIHH, I'm suddenly looking for a new home....guests houses suit me just fine 

I'm stuffed! For supper tonight I broiled some salmon fillets, served with broccoli and rice, with a light cheese and garlic sauce over the broccoli/rice.

Found a really good salmon recipe online, had to modify it a little, but it turned out great.

The snow storm bypassed us for the most part. We only got about an inch or so, then it warmed a bit and started raining. It is snowing again now, but just lightly. Our area was right on the line of getting 2-5 inches or 4-8 inches.


----------



## kandmcockrell

Kasota, what a beauty. Wish I could find one like that and sneak it in the house. I am jealous of the snow. I remember snow when I wad little. Enough for snow forts and snowmen. Have not seen much in the past couple years.


----------



## Jacki

Good thing you posted that you were going to bid on that Kasota, because I was watching it too. I REALLY don't need it, but I feel sooooo sorry for many of the wheels I see on eBay that I want to rescue them all. 

Good luck on getting the wheel.

Jacki


----------



## Kasota

Thanks, Jacki! You are a sweetheart! 

WIHH - you are not either crazy. I think those pictures of Cyndi's place are oh so beautiful! Your daughter's place is stunning, too! You must be so proud and happy for them!


----------



## GeorgiaGirl

> but I feel sooooo sorry for many of the wheels I see on eBay that I want to rescue them all.


Haha. I've been "rescuing" lots of yarn lately from Ebay, Etsy, Ravelry stashes, etc. I recently made a scarf out of Noro Nadeshiko. Now I'm on a mission to find all the Nadeshiko I can. 

Had a really good lunch today. Went to a restaurant I've never visited before. It was called "Sweet Tomatoes." A mile long salad bar, (well....not quite that long) 7 or 8 different kinds of soups, potato bar, pasta bar, dessert bar. It was really good.

No snow here  Just some rain. I have to admit, I love rainy days. I pile up on the couch with my needles and yarn...............http://www.homesteadingtoday.com//www.pinterest.com/pin/create/extension/


----------



## lexierowsell

Wind in Her Hair said:


> Kasota thinks it will be a great place for a winter fiber retreat! Turns out its just about 40 minutes from Lexie's!



If your daughter won't host, I will! We can just go visit her pool and hot tub ;-)


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Great idea!!!

I'll run over to LatherMaker's and you'll pick us up on the way down!

Remember this 236 yard skein?










I showed it off on a FB Homesteading page ... a couple folks inquired if I sell my yarn. I told them, sure ... .25 yard plus cost of fiber thinking that would dissuade them.


Just sold it for $90 

:huh:


:shocked:


:happy:


----------



## Marchwind

Well I think we must have got the brunt of the storm. MizMary I work for TSA and our work schedules are based on the airlines schedule.

I shoveled three times yesterday, once at about 8 am, again a few hours later, and again just before bed and I woke up to another 4+ inches on the ground. I'd say total is about 2 feet of snow. No sign of a plow on my road. I got stuck 3 times this morning trying to get out to work. I got stuck at the end of my driveway, shoveling didn't help so I called in and went back to bed. The whole city is closed from what is being reported on the radio. No schools, all government offices, many businesses. I have a very sick cat that needs to go to the vet today but I'm not sure if I'll get out. <sigh>. This town needs to learn to deal with snow it's rediculious that no plows were out yesterday. Low teens for our temp with subzero wind chills. Oh well, this too will pass


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

you GO, Mullerslanefarm!


----------



## hercsmama

Morning!
Cyndi, that's fantastic!
I'm so in for a fiber retreat at either WIHH's dds or Lexie's, just let me know when the train leaves!
I got a bit freaked out yesterday morning when we went out to feed. Mind you it was blowing snow winds were about 40mph, so the temps were well below 0*. Miss Mollie one of the expecting Corriedales, had one of her eyes frozen shut. Dh helped me catch her, and we haltered her up and basically dragged her to the house. She is not halter trained at all. Got her to the backyard and he ran in and got a pot of very hot water and a few cloths for me, along with my blow dryer.
Spent half an hour thawing her poor eye. I was mostly concerned that it was damaged somehow, but as soon as she was able to open it, she did. It's clear and bright, looks great this morning. Bless her little heart, I think next winter I will shear off the wool around her face a bit, she is particularly woolie in the face, and it looked like maybe when she was drinking water, it simply froze on her.
Today should be in the 30's,so yea!
I did manage to get some of that merino plyed yesterday, 400 yds so far, and three more bobbins to go.:nanner:


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Thsnk goodness miss Mollie's eye is okay.
400 yards & more to go? That's some serious spinning.

Officially we got 15.2" of snow but I'm seeing 20"+ where it hasn't drifted.
No snow plows out around here when the wind picked up ..
Blizzard conditions ... the roads would have just drifted shut again. Why waste the manpower & fuel and put the drivers in danger? I heard of at least 2 plows going into the ditch before they called a stop. The 3 highways closest to me were closed with people getting fined.

I fear I may have spoke too soon about the sale ... after I told the lady the price, she said she wanted it & asked about payment (paypal or money order). I haven't heard back from her ....

BIG, BIG, BIG HAPPENINGS this Friday, but I'll wait until it's final before I start rejoicing.


----------



## Osiris

Wow just dug out from the storm here. We had, conservatively, 19 inches. Glad I blew it yesterday too (pic) or it would have gobbled up the blower. It is twice the depth of the picture. What you see a 1/4 of the driveway. It take a good 3-4 hours to do it all. Not complaining tho because we haven't had much snow this year. All in all, it's good for the ground, good for the plants, good for the trees, bad for the birds, but I feed them. The woods are beautiful tho. So all this snow in the sunlight is just mild inconvenience. Everything will be back to normal soon. Mother nature takes care of her children in ways we humans don't often agree with. I remember the storm of '67. Something like 42 inches! This is just another storm. Of course, I was 10 years old then so shoveling wasn't the dangerous endeavor it is now!!!


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

This stinks, my rabbit should have had her kits Saturday night, but she didnt. Before I went to work this morning, she was feverishly pulling hair and repacking hay into her nest box....today, the coldest day of the year.
I returned home from work to find 8 frozen solid kits at the bottom of her nest box.
I'm bummed. I know not to put a lot of faith in a first litter, but i got my hopes up this morning. She did try, but it didn't look like she had as much hair in and on the nest as I thought she should have. That coupled with 11* temps today....dag nabbit!!!


----------



## 7thswan

Sorry DBA. Get some of that solid foam, the pink stuff, for the bottom on the nest box.. I know that won't help now.


----------



## Kasota

I hope everyone's backs and arms are holding up with all this shoveling going on! Stay safe on those roads! 

Cyndi, that is simply terrific about your sale! Wooot!  

DBA, that stinks about the bunnies.  I feel badly for the momma bunny, too. 

Work is about as crazy as it gets. I'm ready for summer. Gardens. Sunshine. Planting things. Listening to the birds chirp.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Kas, I couldn't have said it any better, I am more than ready for spring/summer.
Gardens, more baby chickens, baby pigs, gardens, mowing rather than shoveling, gardens, more rabbits, fresh air, gardens, and....ummmm, oh yeah, gardens.

I'm going to give mama rabbit a week before breeding her back. I have no doubt that had it been at least 30* today they would have survived. But 11* today was just brutally cold. Going to be in the 30's tomorrow, 40's Wednesday, wish she could have waited a day, but then thursday the high is supposed to be 16*

Yeah, I'm ready for spring.


----------



## Osiris

Hey DBA! Maybe she figured if they make it thru this they'll make it thru anything! I remember a pet rabbit of mine.....had her first litter in the cushion of a chair! WHAT???? I had no idea what was going on, but I figured it out fast. Rabbits are such cool animals.


----------



## Marchwind

Sorry DBA . Do you use any other bedding I the nest box? When I had rabbits and bred them (angoras). We used straw. My rabbits were outside year round and many a litter was born in the cold subzero winters. I loved those nests they were always so warm and cozy and soft, I wanted to crawl into them. Our biggest worry was moisture in the nest box.

Here's hoping her second litter goes better. Lots of rabbits seem to sort of not get it the first time around.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

DBA - so sorry about the kits. 

0ÂºF today to start and it is February - the LONGEST, grayest, most sunless, albeit shortest month of the year. If I can get through February, I will be "good". 

I spent last evening ripping back a heel gusset after I realized I dropped two picked up stitches :sob: 

BUT I did manage to get the whole leg knit in less than a half day - and it is stranded/Fair Isle knitting! I am simply amazed at how much faster I have gotten. :dance: :bouncy: :nanner:

So for those of you that think you will NEVER get faster - its not true - you WILL!


----------



## MDKatie

Howdy, everyone! Happy February! Like WIHH said, it's hard to not get the winter blues in February!!

Cyndi, awesome job selling that yarn! 

Glad Mollie's eye was ok!

DBA, so sorry about the buns. Man, that stinks. 

DH and I are thinking about buying a new house. We saw a foreclosure near us, on 5.3 ac with a 4 bed/3 bath house. We saw it on Saturday. If we could get them down to a price we are comfortable with, it would be a wonderful upgrade for us! We currently only have 1 acre. I could have LOTS more sheep on 5 ac. :happy2:

I'm just really overwhelmed with the thought of selling our house. It'd need major cleaning/staging/painting, etc. It'd be a lot of work, but the payoff would be worth it. We spoke to our lender last night, and got the pre-approval. Now we just need to plan where we're going from here. There's one more property we would like to look at, too.


----------



## Miz Mary

Sorry about the kits DBA ..... always stressful for us AND the mama !! 

Today I am going to check out a potential job ... the ad says "Sewing Machine Operator. Home sewing experience welcome. " Then it has an address ...... Hmmmmm...... When you look up the addy its a small building with no name on it .... but with my sewing / quilting experience I would enjoy it ! 
I have had a "job" in 20 years .... except taking care of the inlaws and their place ...
Wish me luck !! 

MDKatie, sounds like an adventure on the horizon !!

WIHH, you are a speed knitter !!!


----------



## hercsmama

Hey all!
DBA, so sorry about the Kits, here's hoping the second breeding goes much better.
WIHH, yu little speed demon you.:happy2:
MW, how are you healing? Is your mobility coming back?
Katie, how exciting on the possible move! Although it is a lot of work to get a house ready for sale.
Mary, good luck on the job, sounds like it may be a good fit.

Well we are expecting another round of 40mph winds, sub zero temps, and blowing snow tonight and tomorrow.
It's currently about 36* and clear and bright sunshine. So in true Shepherdess fashion, I've just gotten back from Menards and picking up some more tin siding and 2x4's to add to Shiner and the twins shelter.
This last round we had over the weekend, made me realize that they need a bit more of an enclosed space than the three sides they have.
Quite a bit of snow just blew right inside with them.
So this afternoon, I'm going to add to the open side and close it up a bit, also adding a wing to the west side as more of a wind break.
I also just got off the phone with my vet, and he will be stopping by later this afternoon, as Shiner has somehow worried himself a sore on the side of his mouth. It's actually on his face between his mouth and the bridge of his nose. I think he has been rubbing it on a bit of fencing, I've been keeping an eye on it for a few days, but this morning it is starting to swell a bit, and while he let me look in his mouth, he doesn't really want it touched. I'm guessing he may have some sort of abscess, so we'll get that dealt with directly. 
I am not one to allow them to go long without the proper help. I admit, I am a fuss budget when it comes to my animals. But they can't help themselves, and are my responsibility.:happy2:
Tomorrow, as I am expecting to be snowed in for a bit, I shall be sitting by the wood stove, spinning my little heart out.
After all the building I have to do today, I am so looking forward to this storm, you have no idea!:nanner:


----------



## Marchwind

Hercsmama I'm good . My arm is a bit sore from all the shoveling and it is swollen, I had to take off my bracelet again. I've been taking my ibuprofen and I should ice but I have had much time for that.

******warning this is a bit graphic********

Speaking of taking care of your animals. I have one of my own kitties who has been sick off and on for several months. She has been to the vet 2 times before yesterday when I took her again. She has herpies and occasionally gets the sneezes and needs an antibiotic shot and then is good to go. Well I'm not sure if all this stuff is related but I can't believe it isn't. First she had what I thought was ear mites, scratching her ear madly to the point of making deep scratches to the front of her ear and swelling her eye up. Went to the vet discovered is wasnt mites but a blockage in her ear (wax?). We got that all under control. Then she started sneezing, that went on for a long while and didn't clear itself up so I took her back in for her antibiotic shot. She rallied, then got bad again, then rallied, and got bad again. Every time I was going to take her back in she would rally. Well I made the decision to get her in on Monday since she had discharge from her nose. On Saturday she started to get a bit of swelling under her eye, I was thinking sinus. Then on Sunday her whole eye was swollen and Monday morning it was very swollen and oozing nasty looking stuff. I took her in as soon as I could get out if my driveway. The doctor was pretty stumped. Used a tip to get some gunk out of her eye and all of a sudden really nasty stuff poured out of her eye. It isn't her eye, that is fine, it was coming out of her tear duct. It's an abscess. The sedated her and drained it. Until the swelling goes down they can't tell what us causing this. Poor little girl . Sorry this is pretty graphic. We will take X-rays in a few weeks to find out what caused this abscess. I'm taking her back in in a few minutes since the incision sealed back up while I was at work and I can't get it opened again. I think I'll ask for a shunt to be put in.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

About the rabbits nest boxes, I put a layer of pine shavings in the bottom, then hay, lots of hay, and yesterday, because I knew she was close, I also put dryer lint in there. All combined, it should have been enough, if it was just a little warmer, I think it was just too cold.
Now, if Hercsmama would just quit being so generous....Debi, you dont have to share, i won't be upset if you keep your cold weather, I promise


----------



## hercsmama

Poor kitty.

DBA, my momma raised me to share, so share I will.:happy2:

Well, that is done. We got another section of roof on, and enclosed part of one more side, and added the wind break. Then we even moved their hay feeder to right outside their door, so all they have to do tomorrow morning is wake up and it's breakfast in bed! LOL.
The vet came by and thinks the big guy got a sticker in the inside of his mouth, the hay I buy is really good quality, second cut and very weed free.
I'll have to check it again, but I'm thinking he jammed his fat head through the fence, and was eating the weeds on the other side:huh:.
We checked it for and abscess, none there, thank goodness. So he gave him a shot of antibiotic, and left me a second dose for Thursday.
i also slathered some Vaseline over the wound on the outside of his face, just to protect it a bit more.
He is eating fine, so he should be better in a few days.:happy2:


----------



## Miz Mary

Poor kids with abcess' !!! 

DBA, sounds like you did all ya could, in this weather the only other option would be bring her in the house ? 

Today was just a "fill out this application and we'll call you " ....... now the praying for a call soon !! If I dont hear anything, I'll call them Friday .... this company hand sews drysuits and waders !!! Pretty cool ! 
http://ossystems.com/


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

So yesterday this lady messaged me and said she has two knitting machines for sale, would I want them? I asked her what type and how much, and here they are great big knitting machines and come with four huge garbage bags of cones of yarn and boxes and boxes of patterns and instructions and accessories. Turns out her sister used to use all these for a knitting business and has now retired and moved to California for health reasons.

She told me the price tag and it's more than I can afford. $1,700 for all.

But I told her I would help her sell it for a seller's fee, added on top of what she wants, so now our car is PACKED full of knitting machine stuff. She was so tickled to find someone who knew a little about them to sell them for her that she gave us a big hug when we left her house.

These are nice machines that would sell for over $1,000 each easily. One does fingering and one does heavier yarn. I'll try to get pictures tomorrow and if anyone here is interested I'll post them here first.

I have people call me about the wildest things out here. :spinsmiley:


----------



## Osiris

Hoping the best for you Miz Mary! With a small operation like that I don't think employment history is as important as experience itself. You can sell yourself on your hands on experience. If they need any references, you tell 'em: *log on to Homesteading Today!!! * We'll all give you great references! 


Lordy Svens! Now you're going _automation_! LOL. I've seen some knitting machines on SGW, but not big ones. Sounds like you're in for a new experience!


----------



## lexierowsell

Osiris said:


> If they need any references, you tell 'em: *log on to Homesteading Today!!! * We'll all give you great references!



This, this, this!


----------



## lambs.are.cute

Look what I'm up to. I am terraceing a waste space hill that the hens have scratched bare and is eroding using hugelculture. I have a stack of branches the size of a mini van plus what I havnt had time to stack so it seemed perfect. Anyway this is going to be fenced off and planted as a garden to feed my hens. I have a list of 20 plants I want to plant, including a pie cherry tree, blackberries, vegetables, herbs, grains, alfalfa and clover. Hopefully this will cut my feed bill. My hens are utterly fascinated with the work and stand in a line watching, whoooo? Whooo?

I get chicks next week and the week after that lambs! Yay! I love babies!


----------



## hercsmama

So it begins again.
The wind woke me up a bit ago, snows blowing in sideways, and already starting to accumulate.
Looks like a nice fiber day in the making.


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

Oh no Osiris. I'm not going to keep and use these machines. I'm going to sell them for her. They are the find of the year but I can't afford them.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

hercsmama said:


> So it begins again.
> The wind woke me up a bit ago, snows blowing in sideways, and already starting to accumulate.
> Looks like a nice fiber day in the making.


 I need a snow day. 

have fun - relax, unwind, bake something yummy, and play on all your wheels!

Three years ago, I searched someone out on ravelry when I was trying to find a certain skein of yarn - the gal was kind enough to send it to me -along with 4 MORE skeins - AT NO CHARGE - and just asked that I "pay it forward". 

Today someone searched ME out for one of THOSE skeins - and I was able to pay it forward! :bouncy: :dance: :nanner:all I asked her was that SHE continue to pay it forward. 

It feels so good to know that someone's generosity has started a chain reaction!


----------



## MDKatie

I desperately need a snow day, too! Hercs, please send some snow to Maryland!! :happy2:


One of my ewes is getting closer to lambing. I'm hoping she'll go in the next week. The other girls are taking their sweet time. I'm thinking they easily have another 3-4 weeks.


----------



## Miz Mary

Osiris said:


> Hoping the best for you Miz Mary! With a small operation like that I don't think employment history is as important as experience itself. You can sell yourself on your hands on experience. If they need any references, you tell 'em: *log on to Homesteading Today!!! * We'll all give you great references!
> 
> 
> !










lexierowsell said:


> This, this, this!



*THANKS* guys !! I have planned to take a shwanky vest I made the DH for his Magic shows , and a miniature quilt I made to an interview..... I may not have a great resume on paper, but examples of my work should sufface !! I'm hoping they dont see me as OVER qualified .... after seeing some employees when I went in , I was over dressed in jeans/ boots and a long sweater ! 


WIHH, always a good feeling helping somebody and paying it forward !!:thumb:


----------



## Woodpecker

I know I've been quiet lately. I have one more test tomorrow to check something out before I'm out of the woods for awhile. Anyway I was going through some of my needles when I started thinking. I was musing that the tools we work with are way undervalued. Don't you just love picking up your favorite needles and they feel so good and right in your hands? It's a sort of therapy for me at least to be able to knit. I consider myself a novice but plan on working on that. I love working with my Lantern Moon's or Signature Needle's they are my favorites.:knitting:


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

DEBIIIIII!!!!!!!!! I said you DON'T have to share your weather.....


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Svenskaflicka, ok, I was going to ask one question, but after typing your user name, i also have to ask, what does that mean? Is it Norwegian?
And I was wanting to ask, of your many quite advanced talents, are you self taught?


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

Ummmm. 
SvenskaFlicka means Swedish Girl in Swedish. I got that nickname in High School rifle club. 
I'm almost entirely self taught, but I have learned a lot of things from others along the way. I guess I started by myself and have been a sponge ever since.  :knitting:


----------



## kkbinco

never mind!


----------



## Kasota

I have caught a head cold. Blech. I hate colds. 

Hot tea for me, please, with some elderberry and a dash of honey.


----------



## lexierowsell

Please don't share this way! All my fruit trees are budding. 

Debi- sent you a message on Facebook earlier!


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Kasota, look out :lookout: - looks like you have SNOW headed your way - we might only just get brushed. :grin: Hope you knock out the cold and feel better soon. 

It is MISERABLY cold out there with terrible wind chills - actual temps in the -teens ÂºFs and windchill I don't even want to think about. I have been out in it EIGHT times this morning running errands to and from work and now I can't get warm. 

In other news, I got my MAMS grammed this morning! :bouncy: :nanner: :clap: I do not take this test lightly after so many loved ones have had to battle breast cancer. &#9829; Get those tatas checked out, ladies!

Looks like our weekend plans have changed (again) :shrug: Now it looks like we will be home this weekend - so my "roadtrip knitting" will instead be "fireside knitting" - even better. Ahhhhh. I really NEED a "down" weekend of knitting, spinning, hot cocoa and soup and crusty bread. :thumb:


----------



## Woodpecker

Kasota said:


> In other news, I got my MAMS grammed this morning! :bouncy: :nanner: :clap: I do not take this test lightly after so many loved ones have had to battle breast cancer. &#9829; Get those tatas checked out ladies!


Good job WIHH for taking care of _you_! :buds:


----------



## kandmcockrell

Hot soup and crusty bread sounds great. I made some before christmas that I cooked in my dutch oven in the regular oven. It was great! Crusty on the outside and chewy inside. :sing: 

Both little ones are fighting something. Well the 3 yr old has kicked it and feeling much better, the 10 month old got her meds switched. We will see if that helps. DH has it to, so got him meds, and I am fighting something. I am soooooo limited on what i can take. Not only am I pregnant, but 10 month old is still nursing, and i am allergic to pen. Well, hopefully we can get over this and get on with life. :facepalm:

I need to see if I have everything to make a really good beef stew, hmmmmmm.


----------



## GeorgiaGirl

I'm having friends and relatives over tomorrow for a day of knitting/crocheting. Should be no more than 5-10 people. Just finished cleaning and have sat down for a few stitches plus a nap  I'm excited about it. It is suppose to be in the upper 20's here. I plan to have a fire going when they all arrive. Some hot teas and coffee also. 

OH.......in case you haven't been on the Sheep forum, I posted my new lambs that were born on Jan. 21. They are so cute! I can not believe how much they have grown in just a few short weeks.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Need some prayers.

Tomorrow we're supposed to close on land we are selling. The lady buying the land is high risk pregnancy (placenta attached to c-section scar). She is 34 weeks, started contractions this afternoon & heading for the hospital. 

She doesn't know if the doctors will give her something to stop the contractions until her scheduled c-section on the 27th or if they will do a c-section this evening. Please keep her, Christina, and the baby in prayer that all will be okay.

Ideally, they can stop contractions so the baby can have a few more weeks of baking time.


----------



## Woodpecker

Praying here Cyndi. 

I got my test done today and also got the results. Thank God everything is OK, my oncologist called to tell me this afternoon. May God bless you and yours for your continued prayers, clearly they are working!


----------



## Kasota

Surely prayers for all in need.

WP - so glad you received good results! TY Lord!  

WIHH, you are so right on how important that test is! 

My cold has gone from bad to worse. I went to work this morning and sat at my desk wearing my long black woolen coat, typing away wearing gloves. I was soooo cold. Normally even in Winter my fan is going. I was productive until 230 when I started to get that glazed feeling and came home. 

Everything aches. I brought up a little space heater for my room. I can't seem to get warm. I'm going back to bed. I hate being sick. Blech!


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Hang in there Kas, stay warm and hydrated.


----------



## BlueberryChick

Wind in Her Hair;7369065
In other news said:


> I went to my gyn in December and he's with a bigger group practice now. They can do a mammogram right there. No need for an extra appointment or trip to another facility. It was nice to get everything done in one (long) morning.
> 
> kandm and kasota, sorry you all are feeling sick. Please take care of yourselves. Knock on wood, we are doing fairly well this winter. Two of five (husband and 9yo daughter) had a stomach bug around the beginning of December but just minor sniffles in the house since then. I'm hoping for a healthy spring.
> 
> Always glad to hear good reports from you, WP! :dance:


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

WooHoo Dreamy! Praising the Lord for good reports!


----------



## GeorgiaGirl

I meant to put upper 20's when I first get up! Not the temp for the whole day


----------



## GeorgiaGirl

Woodpecker.......that's the best news !........ Singing His Praises


----------



## Marchwind

WP great news! :bouncy:

Kasota I think we need to send a crew up to strap you into bed. Stay home, don't get coworkers sick, and take care of yourself. You don't need this to get serious, stay put lady :nono:

KandMcockrell I hope you little one gets well soon and you keep well.

MLF keeping your buyer in my thoughts.

Things here are going better. I didn't have to take my kitty to the vet yesterday. The abscess found its own way to drain (I won't go int details). She is a bit more perky and eating well. Hopefully I can get some weight on her so we can find out what is causing this.


----------



## Woodpecker

Thank you all!:grouphug:


----------



## Miz Mary

YAY WP !!! Such great news to wake up to today !!!! 

Glad kitty is doing better , Marchwind ! 

Kasota, chicken soup for you !!! Drink lots of tea, its warm and will keep you hydrated !!

Praying for the Mama & Baby Cyndi !


----------



## Kasota

Thank you all. Marchwind, you are right. My manager and I had this discussion a few months ago when talking about my work load and she said, "You need to develop some self-preservation skills." It was about work load, but it applies to pushing myself too hard in other areas as well so 2015 is going to be my year to find some balance and some self-preservation skills. So, yes, I stayed home. Slept until 830 (I am normally up at 5). Chicken soup, check. Elderberry tea, check. Naps, check. 

Prayers for my cousin's grandson if you have any. Little Jace is only a few months old and he was born premie and he has meningitis. He was in surgery yesterday to install a pick line because he keeps blowing his IV. And another just had surgery and her brother is in the hospital with 3rd degree burns everywhere....caught in a fire that burned his garage down. Rough couple weeks for family. Here is a picture of little Jace...he is soooo precious!


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

WOODPECKER!!!! THAT IS THE BEST NEWS EVER!!!!

:clap: :bow: :clap: :bow: :clap: 

Kasota and KandM - feel better soon! 

Kasota - that precious little baby with those IVs and monitors just has me bawling :sob: - of course, prayers are going out for that sweet little angel and his parents and family - sometimes the adults suffer far more than the babies when the babies are hospitalized.  That little angel looks perfectly comfortable - and I'll bet the family is just miserable!  

I can't stand it. :sob: 

I just wanna snatch him up and hold him. 

Cyndi, prayers for the soon-to-be-mama and the baby  and prayers that all the pieces that need to fall into place will fall into place and both mama and baby will be fine and dandy.


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

I just did something really crazy. I put in an offer on a building on the city square that has been vacant for 30 years. It is not technically on the market but my shop would be perfect in it!
I would appreciate prayers that everything works as it should and as God wants it to.


----------



## hercsmama

Kelsey, how exciting!
Is it that one near the Apothecary shop that you pointed out to me???:sing:


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Baby has decided to stay in for a bit longer. Yay!!

Now if we can just get to closing on this land. We started this process the last of Sept and have waited for an appraiser until the end of December ... then 2 weeks for the title search and now this.


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

hercsmama said:


> Kelsey, how exciting!
> Is it that one near the Apothecary shop that you pointed out to me???:sing:


That's the one!


----------



## Jacki

I finally got PierreVezina up and running. I got a flier with a spare bobbin from Lithuania, and it is working well. It needed a little cleaning, but was in good condition. 

Pierre is very powerful, and the take up is stronger than Lizzie, and more sensitive. It is going to take some more time spinning to be able to get the most from Pierre, but I am finding the tilt tension very effective.

I also have a small Saxony Lithuanian wheel (Ana) and the flier is the same size as Pierre's. Ana is in the process of being cleaned, and does spin and take up, but still needs a lot of cleaning and oiling.

Jacki


----------



## lambs.are.cute

The ram and friends are finally out in their own pen! :sing: I can now go out with my girls and not be watchful. My dad was helping me since the ram is too much for me to hold. He seriously impressed my dad with his sweet temperament and strength. My dad is 6'4 and big boned and he barely was able to hold him long enough for me to give the shot and get the door open. The ram is happy with the move - I had to rescue him yesterday from one of my very prego ewe who was throwing a tempertantrum and creaming him.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Jacki said:


> Pierre is very powerful, and the take up is stronger than Lizzie, and more sensitive. It is going to take some more time spinning to be able to get the most from Pierre, but I am finding the tilt tension very effective.
> 
> Jacki


 I just love tilt tensioning- how easy is it to just tap and add a bit more takeup?


----------



## lexierowsell

I think one of my BFL cross dairy ewes will have her baby(ies) tonight. My lambing season has been devastating so far, if you have any prayers to spare Gertrude and I would greatly appreciate it.


----------



## Ketoriverfarm

I feel like I have been missing from here for quite some time. 
December the short dark days just drain all of my energy. Then January I went back to Indiana to deal with health issues of my 88yo father. The last few years have just been one medical crisis after another. 

I have been back about 10 days and I am finally starting to get caught up here. I have four bred ewes who are starting to look pregnant. We have 6-7 weeks before lambing. So we will be vaccinating and shearing in a few weeks. And I finally found time to pull my wheel out and spin one bobbin full. I have intentions of posting more often. I will see how things go. 

Susan


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Welcome home Keto.

Lexie ... prayers for Ms Gertrude


----------



## BrownYaks

Went to a weaving class yesterday and today. It was awesome!
Warping ( although time consuming) wasn't nearly as scary as it seamed. She showed us direct warping and using a warping board. 

We have the week to finish our projects


----------



## lexierowsell

Hate to get ahead of anything, but Gerty has a pair of ram/ewe twins on their feet and nursing! 

Left them alone for the night, hope dawn brings continued happy!


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Atta girl, Gerty


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Oldest son got home last night on his way to TN. He got a new job with Nissan. DIL is stsying in IA until there house sells or June 1. Her due date is 7-4.

Some travel mercies as well as prayers/ good thoughts the house sells quickly would be much appreciated.


----------



## lexierowsell

I couldn't wait for dawn!! That's two babies and a healthy mama!!!


----------



## lexierowsell

You couldn't beat the grin off of my face this morning. 

















AND to top it off, one of my other BFL ewes is in early labor; Ella. She's always cuddly, but she was in my lap this morning while I was trying to capture pics of the babies:









Almost forgot to add: these babies should be very interesting fleeces. BFL x Rambo...


----------



## Miz Mary

AWWWW ... good job Gertrude !!!! Such cute babies !!! Ella looks so sweet !!


----------



## Woodpecker

Good job Gertrude, I'm so happy for you Lexi!


----------



## lexierowsell

Best day to be born, 75* and sunshine!


----------



## hercsmama

What a good momma she is.:birthday:


----------



## Ketoriverfarm

I just love lambs! My favorite babies! :cute::cute::cute::cute:


----------



## Kasota

Oh, such beautiful lambs!!!!! Wooot! 

Such good news for our WP!!

Lexi, I LOVE the pictures! Keep 'em coming!  

Cyndi, sure will be saying prayers! Always nerve wracking to be buying and selling and moving. 

Keto, I hope all goes well with your lambing season! 

BrownYaks, what fun to have a weaving class! 

Keto, I hope all goes well with your lambing season! 

BrownYaks, what fun to have a weaving class! 

GeorgiaGirl, how did your knitting day go? 

Cydi, how did the sale of the land go? Is it still in the works? How about that baby? Are they staying put still?? 

Marchwind, how is the kitty doing? 

Svenska - what happened with the offer on that building?? 

LAC, so glad the pasturing situation is a lot better! Yay! We need pictures.  

I am finally feeling like I am back to my old self again. Yay! I am well just in time to go to work. I dyed my hair, took a long hot soak and now I have a bit of time to surf or knit or what have you. Life is good.


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

I haven't heard anything yet on the building. I mailed the layer Friday, so...
I'm a nervous Nelly.


----------



## susang

Up north for 2 weeks. Passed by Miz Mary waved and honked, but it was dark and raining.
Thought of lexie we saw several fields oh sheep one field also had babies easily 300 moms and babies. So wonderful to see.


----------



## Miz Mary

AWESOME Susang ! Next time pop in for coffee!! Love to have ya visit !!! It's pretty WET out today, eh ?!?


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

G'mornin all.
Looks like Lambs O' Plenty in here, Congrats on the little ones.
Kas, glad you are feeling better.
Good luck on the building Kelsey.

This weekend was a nice change of pace for me, after another frigid week, this weekend warmed to the mid 40s. Was able to get some outside work done. Moved the baby chicks, now about 2 months old out of the garage to the chicken coop. Built a few new rabbit cages, did some yard clean-up, and carried some more firewood up to the house. Last evening we even got in a couple games of driveway basketball.
I bred back my cali doe Saturday. She was quite receptive to the buck this time around, so i should see babies on March 10. I ran power to the bunny barn so if we get another cold snap I can use some heat lamps if needed. Then started the planning stages of expanding the rabbit shed. Planning on at least one more cali doe this spring and looking to add 2-3 more mini lop does.
Now its Monday, time to go back to work and look forward to another nice weekend.  I think, if the forecast looks good, I will tap my maple trees next weekend.

Have a great day everyone.


----------



## hercsmama

Lexie, you're just making me so excited about our upcoming lambs. love the pictures.
DBA, good luck with round 2 of the bunnies!
Kelsey, all appendages crossed about your building.:thumb:

Everyone is just busy, busy, as usual.

Just a lot of drama around here lately I'm afraid. So not anything worth posting really. I'm just not that much of an over sharer I'm afraid, lol.:hand:
But, on the non drama front,
The injury, scrape, on Shiners face is healing, and the mystery has been solved, we think. We use a repurposed chute from a slaughterhouse as their feeder. It is stainless steel and really is perfect. BUT, Shiner has an exceptionally large head, and we think he has been rubbing on the sides when he plunks his massive self in there to eat.
So that feeder got hauled out yesterday, and was replaced with another type we have. Cross your fingers that is the end of that.
Of course now he seems to have developed another issue. He has somehow cracked a hoof!!!!:facepalm:
I'm just freaking out about it, his diet is very good, so I don't believe it is related to nutrition, he also has never had hoof issues before, I checked.
It is split in a diagonal, from the bottom almost all the way across the front about 1 1/2 inches up.
I tried trimming yesterday, but the top is still attached to the pad, so I just don't know what to do.
I am making him a foot bath today, to soak his feet in, and hopefully things dry out back there in the next few days, which will, I think, help tremendously.
He's just such a big guy, I wonder if his weight is causing some of it... he came to us from way up in northern Nebraska, a lot sandier soil than we have. Need to look into that.


----------



## Marchwind

Yay for more healthy babies Lexi :thumb:

Kasota I'm so glad you are feeling better. Keep taking care of yourself so you don't have a relapse.

DBA. How nice to have such a productive day.

The kitty seems to be rallying. I can't remember if I told you but on Thursday when I got home from work I discovered that the abscess had chosen its own path and opened up another opening. This is a good think and in all my years of dealing with abscesses this has always been the case. So I have not had to take Boo, the kitty into the vet again to have the abscess drained again. The new opening is remaining open and continues to drain more or less on its own. I help it along several times a day. She is eating well, so hopefully we can put a couple of pounds back on her and then be able to sedate and X-ray to find the cause of this abscess. It could be a tumor in which case I need to decide how I will progress. I cannot afford to to drop $$$ oh heroic measures if the end result will be the same only postponed a few months. That isn't fair to anyone. But no one knows yet why this happened and it's all speculation at this point.

I'm in my midwinter blues mode right now. Not much motivation or energy to do anything. I. Sure a lot of it has to do with not being able to go and walk with my dog for so long. I still haven't been able to get out there. It's either, too cold and windy, snowing a blizzard, or icy. I'm hoping to get out and start regular walks again in the next couple of days. Right now I. Feeling like one of those cartoons where the feet are running around really fast but they aren't going anywhere. My house is a mess from not being able to clean it and now I don't know where to begin. One room at a time, then begin over again :rain::hair

Tonight is the weavers guild monthly meeting. We have Amy Tyler coming as our keynote speaker. She will be talking about inspiration, I can't wait. Amy is a very sweet person and a regular fixture at the Michigan Fiber Festival. We will be having dinner before the meeting 

I finally got to the eye place and made an appointment for a check up. I normally go every year but I got too busy and funds were low last year, plus I had a bad experience with the place I went to last time. It's a chain,but it's one of the better ones, they make the glasses just down the road so you get them fairly quickly. Plus they also take my insurance. I went to a different one of their stores than last time and the people at this one were great, I found a pair of glasses I love too. It's always a challenge for me to find glasses because I have suck a little pinhead, I tend to have to get children's glasses.


----------



## Marchwind

Hercsmama could he have stepped on something or kicked something that caused the split? Poor guy, I hope he isn't in a lot of pain.


----------



## MDKatie

Morning, all! We had a busy weekend. My DH and I totally repainted our mudroom (all walls and trim). We also replaced the door trim that one of the dogs destroyed. We had to take down the vertical trim on either side of the doorway (open doorway, no actual door), and also replace the jam leg (learned the name for that piece). DH did a great job, and it was much easier than we thought. 

We also got the replacement part for our dishwasher, and DH fixed it (hooray!), and he patched a hole in the acrylic of the bathroom sink. We're crossing things off our list to get our house ready in case we list it. Feels good to be productive!

Tonight I'd like to patch the hole in the vinyl floor, but I also have soap to make. Hopefully I'll have time for both!


Lexie, congrats on the lambs! Hercs, sorry about his hoof! Hopefully it'll heal up well!


----------



## hercsmama

MW, I'm just not sure.
Mind you, he is gentle as, well, a lamb with people, and other sheep, but he is very "Rammy" with Murphy, our male Pyr. Whenever Murph gets too close to the gate, Shiner rams it, and does paw at it a bit, and ya know what? He does it with that hoof. Hmmm, might just be what caused it.
Of course the soaking wet, semi flooded pastures aren't helping at all.
Thanks for making me think about that!:thumb:
Now to figure out just how to get him to not be so aggressive with Murph, and get that hoof healed.:facepalm:
The good news is, due to the mess on his face, he has had two doses of antibiotics, and good CDT booster.


----------



## Woodpecker

lexierowsell said:


> Best day to be born, 75* and sunshine!
> 
> View attachment 43822
> 
> 
> View attachment 43823


Those pics are HT calendar worthy!

I am convinced I live in the land of ice. We have so much ice here, it's more than we've had in years. Of course we have that white stuff here and it's extra cold too. I have to be very careful getting to Lorretta. She wants me to let you know that's she's fine and she even has her special treats agian. I put the heat lamp with a 100 w ceramic bulb in there months ago. I didn't used to when I had 3 hens but as you know Lorretta is spoiled. I've been doing more embroidering than knitting lately. That's pretty much what I've been up to.

ETA: WIHH how is darling Clark Henry?


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Marchwind, Cabin Fever and I signed up and now we are officially approved and registered "walkers" of the halls of two area high schools. 

Immediately, after work, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday - we put on a credentialing badges and we walk in the relative comfort of the high school hallways. 

Woodpecker, you be careful on that ice - we rely on "Yak Tracks" to keep us safe on ice. Those tiny metal spikes do a great job of giving us traction. We see folks that even wear them into church. 

We have a LOT of ice right now - our drive is a skating rink and quite treacherous. 

https://www.yaktrax.com/


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

This is part of my living room. This is maybe half of the yarn I have from the lady with the knitting machines. 
Anyone need cone yarn? Lol


----------



## lexierowsell

Omfg. KITTEH! 

Love him.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

You could almost do a series of Where's Waldo type pics with that kitten amongst the yarn.


----------



## hercsmama

Kelsey, I'll take that little orange and white one in the middle, the one on top of the big pink one.:benice:


----------



## hercsmama

Dixie, what are you doing up?
Go back to bed young man, and get some sleep, only old ladies are allowed up at this ridiculous hour.

I forgot to take my Motrin before bed last night, and between my shoulder, and my knee, well, no point in just lying there. So Motrin in now consumed, and I'm having coffee.
My own fault entirely, as I over did a bit yesterday. I was starting to get sore when I went to bed, should have known better.:hammer:
Between dealing with wrangling Shiner into his foot bath, twice, and laying the new floor in the guest room/office, shifting 10 bales of bedding into various sheds for sheep, and having to give Maggie a skunk bath, it was a busy day.
Yeppers, apparently, the skunks are coming out a bit early this year, lovely. I also have house wrens and Robins building nests, and saw three formations of Canadian Geese winging over head.
Guess it may be time to start my seeds, and get that amazing tiller the Kas gifted me with tuned up one last time.:thumb:
Today, will, I hope, be a little less eventful. We shall see.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

G'mornin Debi
I woke up to stoke the fire and couldn't get back to sleep. Typical lately.
Sounds like spring is coming early for you....ok, now is when you can share your weather.


----------



## Miz Mary

Good EARLY morning !! It's 4:30 here, and I have my interview @ 6:30 am ! Kinda strange having an interview this early, but hey, it's a job !!! Wish me luck !


----------



## MDKatie

Morning, all! We've got some freezing rain here, and a thin coating of ice on everything, so schools are closed. The kids will be happy for that! I was hoping for at least liberal leave at work, but no such luck. 

Kelsey, that's a cute kitteh! King of the yarn mountain!

Miz Mary, good luck to you!!!! We're rooting for you!


----------



## GeorgiaGirl

> GeorgiaGirl, how did your knitting day go?


My knitting day was awesome. I had 7 ladies to attend. We knitted, crocheted, laughed, had lunch together, and one even stood up and done exercises. She demonstrated the T-tapp hoe downs (I think that's what it's called.) Next thing I knew, about 4 ladies were standing doing them. It was comical. Such a wonderful day. I could use a day like that each week!


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

SvenskaFlicka, are any of those cones* wool*? If they are, I might be interested!

Up early and off to work early since Cabin Fever has a convention out of town. He dropped me off and here I will be until he comes to fetch me. Winter weather Advisory with ice and snow on tap during the day - it could be an interesting trip home. In any case, I brought knitting. 

Happy Tuesday everyone!


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

Some of them are. Most are acrylic, though it is about the nicest acrylic I've ever encountered. Some are cotton. A good many are rayon. Some have silk blended in. 
It's a huge pile.


----------



## lexierowsell

Mr Washington basking amongst his harem this morning:









I gotta say I'm gonna miss this guy. He's no pet, but he's the gentlest intact creature I've ever known. Even when cornered, roped, and haltered he has never turned on me. He had a pedicure yesterday, and stood tied while I worked my way around all four feet, haha just like a horse. He's also got the best parasite resistance of any sheep or goat I've had. 

Glad he's going to a fabulous home instead of the freezer.


----------



## Mrs. Jo

How are you pricing the cone yarns? I've been looking at some but I really need to shop around for lower prices.


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

It will depend on the fiber content. Some of the wool-silk blends have price tags on them for $50 a cone when bought new. Most of the acrylic has tags for much lower, like $20 a cone. I won't be charging new price but I will be charging something fair. I'm selling these all for a local lady.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

I would be interested in the some of the wool silk blends!


----------



## hercsmama

So, I'm having an interesting day.
Starts off with me finding a vertical crack, at the top, of Shiners hoof. Just a small one, maybe 1/2 inch or less. OK, clean, soak, spray,offto TSC to get him a halter that fits better, so I can tie him off to soak the foot, and get some Hoof and Heal for further treatment.
Mmmmmk.
Come home to a message from oldest ds, I haven't said really much about what all is going on here, but the judge ruled on the custody today, and it is not the best news, Joint custody, one week with one parent, and one week with the other.
I don't understand. This bar whore of an ex wife of his, has moved I want to say three times, in as many months, has a habit of going out to party almost every night, with who ever is buying, lived with two separate guys, who she professed to be in love with, one is a drug dealer, the other just a worthless p.o.s. who uses them.
She has multiple police reports filed against her for assorted assaults, and also has multiple restraining orders against her.
Oldest ds, has been in the same house he rented right after he left her, has had full custody of dgs this entire time, has a good job, doesn't go running around with anyone, dgs is enrolled in an excellent day care/preschool, someone please explain to me, why this crack whore is allowed to share custody?
Sorry, I don't normally get into personal stuff here, but I really am at a total loss.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

I am so sorry, Debi. I can't imagine what these judges are thinking, I really can't. All you can do is pray that she will love him enough to let him go and to allow what is best for him. Just breaks your heart. 

:grouphug:


----------



## hercsmama

Thanks, and yea, it does.
I know it could have been so much worse, and he is only 2, so hopefully any damage she does can be corrected in time, but I just do not get it.
Ds is going to let it lie, for now.


----------



## hotzcatz

Perhaps you can hope, Debi, that what the courts say and what actually happens isn't always the same thing. Hopefully she will be flakey enough that she will find it easier to drop the kid off and not pick them up for several weeks or even a month or two? It will work out somehow.

Lovely lambs! Lovely kitten! Lovely yarn! 

Hope everyone who wasn't feeling well has recovered by now.

This is just a quick fly by since things are still crazy busy around here. There was a lot more work in restoring this old house we bought than it had seemed. It hadn't been lived in for twenty seven years so the pipes had rusted solid and the electrical was out of date. Termites had been well fed during that time, too. Houses like being lived in, when they stand vacant there's a lot of stuff to fix. But, it's getting there. There's now cold water piped to everywhere, still working on the hot water heater. If there was hot water to run in the pipes, though, the hot water pipes are at least there. The current water heating project involves building an extension on the roof eaves to keep the electric water heater out of the rain. That little temporary bit of tin just isn't big enough.










That's a 120 gallon electric water heater which will have two solar panels to do most of the heating. Our electric rates are around forty four cents a kilowatt hour so we don't want to plug in a 120 gallon water heater without the solar panels. The roof extension is not only going to keep the rain off the water heater but give us a nice solid place to put the two panels.

We don't have freezing weather here, so plumbing is frequently just hung on the outside of the building. Mostly because there's no inside the wall space to put it. The walls are just 1" thick vertical boards so the inside of the wall is one side of the board and the outside of the wall is the other side of the board. When the plumbing gets painted, there is the option of painting the plumbing the same color as the wall or painting it the same color as the trim so it stands out more. Since it will be dark green with white trim, more than likely the plumbing will be painted forest green. But, that's a project for after we move in. That black piping is from the kitchen sink and has the extension off to the side for the washing machine. I'd planned on putting it into a laundry room attached to a new bath, but more than likely after it gets installed right outside the kitchen door, it will most likely remain outside.

The fiber room is being painted after it gets too dark outside to work, so that's about half done. Because of the termites, each wall board has to be checked for termite damage. When it is found, it's picked open and then Fix-All is used to repair it. Kinda reminiscent of picking scabs and band aids. Eeuwe! 

The fiber room shares a wall with the kitchen and we accidentally bought way too big of a refrigerator. We did switch the stove/refrigerator locations, so that helped a lot, but it was still a huge looming refrigerator. So, I cut a hole in the wall and made a space to set the refrigerator back about 10" into the wall. 










It improved the kitchen to no end. This is what it looks like from the fiber room side of things:



















The paint is still wet and shiny in the picture, but it will all be a soft green color. There will be white shelves off to the left and the door will swing into the space on the right.

And there's a new bunny:










This is Cerulean. He's a blue buck and a great grandson of City Slicker who is another bunny who lives here so it's kinda like a family reunion. Someone brought him in since they realized it's rather a bit of work to keep up the coat on an angora. So, Cerulean - who I usually call "Blue" since it's easier to say - is settling in nicely. He will probably get to meet a girl bunny sometime later this year after we get the herd moved to the new house.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

I think I figured out a shortcut to be able to upload pics from my phone, so here goes a test.
I have had folks ask to see pics of some of my rabbits, so here is test one: this is the last mini lop buck we aquired. He is a broken blue steel.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Ok, that seems to work, so here is test two:
Here are two pics, these are six week old doe mini lops.
A new friend is reserving these two for me. He emailed the pics to me and appologized for them not wanting to cooperate with the camera. One is gold tipped black, the other is black.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Hotzcatz, I can't see your pics, all I see are blue question marks.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

I can see them fine.


----------



## kandmcockrell

Hercsmama, tell him to keep a diary. Put in any time she calls or anything she says. Put in any marks, with pictures, and anything she says, or if his behavior is off or changes in any way. Also, have the drop of and pickups be in a public place and try to have a witness if possible, with video. He may need it if she is that flakey.


----------



## Osiris

QUESTION!!! HELP SPINNERS! I found this on SGW. I'm wondering if it's worth the interest. Can any of you ladies/guys tell whether this is usable fiber - I mean like to wind onto balls?
http://www.shopgoodwill.com/viewItem.asp?ItemID=19928627


EDIT: Oops.....never mind. Silly me. $53 shipping alone!


----------



## hercsmama

According to the description it sounds like it.....


----------



## Marchwind

I can see everyone's photos 

Debi I have a LOT of words but none I can use here . The best piece of advice I got from my mom when I went through my divorce is to NEVER speak badly of the children's other parent, no matter what you really think. I will come back to bite you and not as you might hope. Also, every child has a right to their own relationship with their parent without interference. Obviously he has to be kept safe that goes without being said. But if mom ends up doped up and in jail, instead of voicing your opinions, bite your tongue and just say, "Mommy made some bad choices". I have bitten many holes into my tongue and cheeks not saing exactly what I felt like needed to be said. It is do hard. I wish you all every ounce of strength and fortitude you will need. The serenity prayer is particularly helpful in times like this and becomes a valuable mantra 

About Shiners foot. Would it help to maybe use pine tar on it? I know that was helpful in horses, granted sheep feet are very different, probably more like our nails than a horses. Does the crack go all the way through to the quick (fleshy part) if the hoof? Would it be helpful to bring him to higher, dryer ground temporarily? Poor boy I hope he isn't in pain.


----------



## hercsmama

MW, you are so right about not talking badly in front of the kids. I was that way about my ex, with DD. Neither Keith or I ever said a bad word about him, she figured him out all by herself when she was about 12yo.

As to Shiner, I'm going to try soaking some cotton wadding in the Zinc that I have been using, and using horse tape, wrap him up for the night.
I got some hoof conditioner as well, for when it heals. I'm starting to think it was a combination of our really dry weather, going to very wet conditions.
I think his hoof was drying out somewhat, and all the wet recently, has caused the splitting.
First I need to heal it, then I'll use the conditioner to keep it that way.:thumb:


----------



## MDKatie

I'm sorry, Debi. Gosh, that stinks. But yes, I agree on keeping a diary/log of events/conversations/moves/etc. And, I also agree about not saying bad things, as hard as it is!! There are SO many things I *could* say about my s-kid's mother, but I would never do that to them. I won't make excuses for anyone, but I won't talk bad either. They'll figure it out on their own when they're old enough. :thumb: That thought keeps me warm at night. LOL.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Besides keeping notes, monitor fakebook activity....


----------



## Kasota

Just a quick drive by wave to everyone before I hit the hay. Shoveling snow took up a chunk of my evening. 

Debi, that situation was what I had to deal with when I got divorced and my son was 18 months. I have BTDT. My heart sure goes out to all of you. It's incomprehensible to me what judges sometimes do. What I do know is that you and your son will do everything you can to help that little one through the rough patches. And whoever said that just because it is this way now doesn't mean it stays that way was totally correct. My X actually moved out of state at one point. 

The thing that made life REALLY hard for my son was that while he went to the same school...he lived in two different neighborhoods, so he was always "that kid" who would come and go and he never really developed the neighborhood friends he might otherwise have had. I think that was a really tough place to be, especially when they are younger. That part got easier the older he got, but it was a bear in elementary. BUT he got through it and he's got LOTS of life coping skills and a really positive attitude and he has this confidence that he can figure things out and make a go of life whatever comes down the road. 

I am headed off to bed....


----------



## Miz Mary

On a good note ..... my interview went fantastic and she will be calling me in next week for a second interview/ sewing test !! The hours are 4 AM to 230 pm ...M-T ....3 days off !!! I have wanted to work 4, 10 hour days ....hope its not too hard !!! 

On a crappy note, my DH's sister has started an investigation with the life insurance co .... they called saying she is complaining that he is not a legitimate son and should not receive any $$ ....this has been DH's dad since he was a year old , but never got legally adopted .... really hurt my DH that she would think this because of a last name ....over a measly $8,000 that we had no intention of keeping - it belongs to her according to the will .... SAD the greed of people ...... 

Debi, I agree with everybody else, keep a log , it DOES help in cases !! Give her enough rope and she will hang herself .....


----------



## MDKatie

Wonderful news about the interview, Miz Mary!!! I'm so sorry about the family issues though. Gosh, isn't it awful how death of a parent can make some siblings lose their marbles? It's a real shame.


----------



## lambs.are.cute

Got a call just before 6 this morning that my chicks come in. About 15 minutes before I normally wake up and I was fast asleep. Bah. At 
East I had the presence of mind to ask when the post office opens. Not til 8. Couldn't they have delayed their call? At least the chicks are loud so maybe they survived well this time! (And are annoying the guy who woke me). I have baby chicks! :sing:


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

LAC ... My PO will wait until 8:00 ..... unless it is honey bees .... then the PO that is 2.5 hours away will call early, early morning and ask if I want to drive up to get them ... 

Debi, most times a judge thinks that one party or both are exaggerating and gives both enough rope to see which hangs themselves. Keep a detailed log, give it 6 months and go back to court. Even though children become legal wards of the court in a divorce case, the courts do not put the best interest of the children first. Document with as much of a paper trail as you can. If your log has supporting documents from the police or school or non-family members, the better. Six months seems like a long time, but the behavior needs to be established that it is not going to change. Remember, our court systems are no longer about truth and justice but policy and procedure.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Well, my wifes dog is in her kennel on our front porch right now. We used an old cushion from a patio chair for the bottom of the kennel and a couple of old towels for warmth.
I just went out to check on her......one so far...


----------



## hercsmama

:sing::sing::singUPPY!!!!!:sing::sing::sing:


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Up to 5 now. How many would you like, Debi?


----------



## hercsmama

Tell you what, I'll work you a trade, when I finally manage to get Maggie bred, for everyone of hers you buy, I'll let you keep one of your wife's puppies!
Sound good?:thumb:


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Ummmmm, Nah, think I will pass.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

The little brown guy looks like his dad. 
Dad is chocolate lab, German shepherd mix
Mom is Chihuahua, Italian greyhound mix
Puppies are hienz 57


----------



## lambs.are.cute

Well a wild disaster this afternoon. The heat lamp in my brooder popped the gfci and almost all the chicks were all almost out cold (pardon the pun). Got the lamp back on and put them all under the lamp. I held the worst ones right under the lamp until the started moving too much and then put them down. Saved all but one. I have never had a bunch of stupider chicks - instead of huddling they were spread all over pen. 

I forgot how much work babies are. Well now they are warm and happy. I put a second lamp into the brooder (one red, one white), interestingly enough the chicks prefer the white light.

The post office here usually won't call until 10 and the chicks have been there since 2 am. I could have picked them up at 8 and gotten them in the heat that much faster but....... I complained last year because they left the box outside for hours in freezing weather and I lost 23 out of 25. I guess they made a note of it.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

I had to warm a couple almost dead chicks last winter. It's amazing how they can bounce back.


----------



## hercsmama

Lexie, I always used a white light in mine.They just seem to work better.

Well, had the vet back out again this afternoon. Luckily when I called he was doing a c section on a cow, next door.
Shiner is on another round of antibiotics, his hoof looks great, but his poor face is a mess!
He got three injections, one was just some Ivermec, and he gets another one tomorrow and another the next day.
If this doesn't work, he will be getting a cortisone shot. This is just nuts, he just itches and itches and of course is rubbing on the wire fence and just shredding his face.:facepalm:


----------



## lambs.are.cute

I usually have a white light but the red bulb was left over from a few years ago when I had problems with my last batch or Rhode Island red chicks eating other chicks. The red lamp fixed that, but I should have gotten rid of the hens. They killed and ate 6 other hens once out of the brooder. No idea why they were well fed and watered the whole time but they actively hunted and killed hens.


----------



## lexierowsell

hercsmama said:


> Lexie, I always used a white light in mine.They just seem to work better...


this left me VERY confused. Haha!

<3


----------



## Kasota

I am so behind. 

Hotzcatz I meant to say I really enjoyed the pictures! Keep 'em coming! You sure have a lot on your plate! 

Svenska, any word on the real estate offer? 

I am so tired I can't think of who I am missing. It is annual review time at work. Time to deliver these things I have been spending so much time writing. It's always crazy because everyone is trying to get them done all at the same time. Weeeee. Gonna be some late days for me but hopefully I will be done by the end of the week. I had my own review today and I am oh so tickled pink with how that went. 

So I am tired but happy and headed to bed...


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

The closing on the land sale is supposed to be this Friday. Pray it all goes well and the buyer doesn't postpone. This sale was started at the end of Sept. We thought we would have closing by mid-November. Land didn't get appraised until after Christmas, then 2 weeks with the title company. It has been a lesson in patience.


----------



## hercsmama

LOL!
Whoops!
Sorry about that Lexie, and LAC, apparently I really do need to start wearing my reading glasses a bit more often. I got you two mixed up.:ashamed:


----------



## Kasota

It's -10 degrees this morning, wind chill -25. Brrrrr.


----------



## hercsmama

Thank goodness we aren't that cold right now!
Although, we have been enjoying unseasonably warm weather lately, the news last night said we are going to drop, like a rock, again. Snow for Monday, and below normal temps for at least the next week or two. It has been a crazy roller coaster with the weather this winter.

Today I need to run into town for a bit, then I literally have no plans. 
I COULD work on taxes, or clean out the pantry, but seriously, who wants to do either of those things?
I do, really neeed to figure out a website for the farm, maybe a blog, I just have no idea where to start, or, to be honest, how to start. I look at all the sites that tell you how, and just get confused. I'm not stupid, I figure I'm just over thinking and making it more than what it is..maybe I'll give it another go today.


----------



## lexierowsell

Before I was a farmer, I built and maintained websites for a living. 

Let me know if I can help!


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

WordPress blogs are really easy. 
And I like cleaning and organizing my pantry. Of course, I have an old-fashioned butler's pantry. . .
My cat woke me up this morning by jumping up onto the bed and landing on my face. One paw went right on my eye. Good thing he's not heavy enough to give me a black eye!


----------



## hercsmama

Lexie, (that is you right?), thanks so much for the offer!

I'll give it a go later today, and pm you if I get all turned about.:buds:
The biggest issue I'm having is I need to be able to add a paypal link of some sort, as I want to be able to sell from the site. It all just gets me confused as I don't want to do something I can't undo, does that make sense?

Kelsey, someday I will have to tell you the story of how the wonderful Abisinion (sp) cat I used to have got his name, it was DC. I'd let it out here, but I'm afraid Marchie would have to ban me! LOL!


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

I think I win the prize for coldest this morning - this was on the way to work as the sun was rising this morning.


----------



## lexierowsell

Totally makes sense, I can walk you through that on Facebook after chores if you want. 

It seems the mobile app just broke when it updated. Well, partially broke. All my "subscribed" menu is gone so I have to click through all the forums to get here... VERY aggravating! Also, my messages button disappeared? Waaaahhhhhhhh


----------



## lexierowsell

Oh em gee. EFFF that WIHH! I was cold at 45* at dawn this am!


----------



## hercsmama

Holy cats Susan!
I totally agree with Lexie on that one. It's 12 here this morning, I'm good with 12, you keep that temp of your up there!


----------



## MDKatie

BRRR, WIHH! That's craziness!


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

7 Here. Currently.


----------



## Marchwind

12 here right now but wind chill is about -12 to -15.

Well that's it, I'm officially OLD :ashamed: turned on the oven last night to make a quick naan pizza last night and, sniff, sniff, oh s#*t my fleece. Not the same alpaca but a bit of a fleece I wanted to play with. It's fine, smelled better than the alpaca though . I think I'll have to start putting a sign over the oven controls to remove fleece from oven first. Obviously I don't use my oven very often or I'd remember these things.

WIHH Letty is really twisting my arm about going to Shepherd's Harvest with her this year. She told Deb P. that she needed a room for 3. I'm going to see what I can do because I would really love to go. If I can make it or even if I can't, my friend Jan from here will be there. You will love her she is a wonderful person.

I had my eye exam yesterday. I normally have one a year but I had such a bad experience last time I haven't been back. But I found a place I really like and my new glasses are so cute. I have never loved a pair of glasses like I love these, it's silly. I'll get them next week.

While I was there the Dr. Told me he was going to refer me to the glaucoma specialist. I don't have glaucoma, my pressures are great and my optic nerves look very healthy. What I have is apparently the angles, the space between the cornea and the iris is very narrow. So narrow in fact that he is afraid that when my eyes dilate it could block off the flow of fluids to my eyes and create a glaucoma like incident with built up pressure etc. so I go to the glaucoma specialists and I may need to have surgery to put holes in my eyes (iris) so the fluids can flow freely. Of course this makes me wonder about my headaches, in particular, the ones that feel like they are in or behind my eyes. I guess it isn't a big deal, it just sounds scary.


----------



## lexierowsell

Look what I found this morning!
















Big, healthy ram lamb! Mama is doing great, was one of the sheep torn up by dogs last year. Her abdomen was perforated (like, stuffing intestines back in...), and when I had hands on her the other day for feet I could feel baby through the holes so I was worrying about her. Yay for me! 

Only 3 left, all dairy sheep, experienced mamas the lot.


----------



## BlueberryChick

Yay, lexie!!

I didn't check this morning but I think we were in the mid-20's. It's warming up nicely now, headed for upper 50's.


----------



## Woodpecker

Lexi what do you do to celebrate when you are done with lambing? I will heave a big sigh of relief with you that's for sure!


----------



## Miz Mary

Lexie,how adorable !!! 
WIHH, Im surprised a car will run in that cold !!!

I got my second interview for Monday !!!!!!!!!!!! It's an actual sewing test, to see how I follow directions !! Has anybody worked 10 hour shifts before ?? I'm worried , I know I'm working myself up and shouldnt .... I will have to get up @ 3 am and be out the door @ 3:30 am to be to work at 4 am ...... work until 2:40 pm ...... Looooong day !!!


----------



## Billie in MO

I've worked 9 hour shifts before and then a short 4 hour shift for Fri. 6:30am to 3:30pm then 6:30am to 10:30am
I really enjoyed getting off early and was able to do a few errands, even doctor appt's, too instead of having to take time off. Good luck with your sewing test.


----------



## lexierowsell

Last year I was sad when lambing was over. Now I'm dreading ever lambing again. It's been a heartbreaking year for me. This year the live babies are celebrated every morning, and my gone babies are mourned every night. 

Relief will be the overwhelming sensation at the end of this season... Relief for my liver too, haha, I have unashamedly been soothing myself fluidly ;-)


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

I work 10 hour shifts 4 days a week (I hate being gone from home for 12 hours a day  - but I just got a raise! :dance: :nanner: ) and sometimes I work a little extra some Fridays.


----------



## 7thswan

Miz Mary said:


> Lexie,how adorable !!!
> WIHH, Im surprised a car will run in that cold !!!
> 
> I got my second interview for Monday !!!!!!!!!!!! It's an actual sewing test, to see how I follow directions !! Has anybody worked 10 hour shifts before ?? I'm worried , I know I'm working myself up and shouldnt .... I will have to get up @ 3 am and be out the door @ 3:30 am to be to work at 4 am ...... work until 2:40 pm ...... Looooong day !!!


MM, it is going to be very hard sewing for 10 hours. I missed where you said what you will be sewing and on what kind of machine. Do you have any other things you will be doing besides just sitting and sewing?


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

I once sewed 10+ hours a day 6 days a week for two months. Not a fun time.


----------



## Woodpecker

lexierowsell said:


> Last year I was sad when lambing was over. Now I'm dreading ever lambing again. It's been a heartbreaking year for me. This year the live babies are celebrated every morning, and my gone babies are mourned every night.
> 
> Relief will be the overwhelming sensation at the end of this season... Relief for my liver too, haha, I have unashamedly been soothing myself fluidly ;-)


Hugs Lexi!


----------



## Osiris

At the very least Miz mary, it'll give you more experience. And that's what counts. 

I used to work 10 hour days/55 hr weeks in tool and die 7-5:30 and 5 on Saturdays. 
Long week- but I was moving around. Sitting in one place and doing piecework is another type of fatigue.


----------



## hercsmama

For almost 10 years, I worked just over 70 hours a week, naturally I was on salary and only actually got paid for 50. It was Monday thru Friday, from 4 am until I finished for the day, and every Saturday morning for 3 hours.
It was hard, really hard, but it paid the bills, and I did enjoy the job. I used to spend my entire Saturday when I got home just sleeping.
I wish it had only been 4 10 hour days, that would be a piece of cake!:thumb:


----------



## Miz Mary

It is said to be cross training on industrial machines, there are cutting positions, glue machines .... this company makes hip waders and scuba diving wet/dry suits ...gloves ...

I assume you move around ... I hope ....

I will at least try it .....


----------



## 7thswan

MM, my mother reupholstered furniture,anything actualy, I worked for her. I did the sewing and takeing apart. Then I had my own biz, sewing anything out of lycra, for dancers,skaters, gymnasts,bodybuilders ect. until it became mass produced. I sewed tops for autos, simulated convertable tops,ect. Then I worked at a mens suit shop,doing taylor work. I can say, the best thing you can do is to move arround. Look on the net for exersises to do for people that sit long periods. Just little things to avoid too much repatition. I still like to sew, but cannot take it for hours on end,my neck hurts now. My hands got to bothering me because of heavy fabrics. I had to stop sitting for long periods,when I broke my back. So now, I really have to stop and do a varity of diffrent things. Make sure you have a good chair and always keep your posture in check.


----------



## Marchwind

I loved working 4/10's when I did it. Having that extra day off was great. But I also have a job where although I am standing almost all day long, we do rotate every half hour to a new position and a new job to do. We also have the freedom to come and go as needed to the bathroom. If we "need" to step off the checkpoint for a bit we can also do that too. Obviously we need to check with, notify a supervisor before we do.

By all means try it out. Maybe, if things are tough, you can institute changes. But here are minimum standards, OSHA, standards for the safety and health of the workers than must be followed. Check on noise levels and if hearing protection is offered to you. Being around machinery like that can be really loud.

Good luck on your interview. It would be nice if you could actually see where you will be working and maybe meet some of the people.


----------



## hercsmama

Well now.
Today is the day that Colton goes to his moms for the week. Ds is handling it, I think it helps that today is also his 25th birthday. He has several friends coming in from out of state, they should be here shortly. 
They are giving him a "Quarter Century" party tonight. I'm sure they will help get him through it, for tonight at least! LOL! 
Our weather forecast has changed for the coming week, the crazy cold front that was due to hit us , has moved further east, look out Kelsey! So that means our highs will only be in the 20's and 30's, I can so deal with that! Also our big snow is not going to be anything over a few inches. Thank goodness.
As much as we could always use the moisture, with the issues I've been having with Shiners hoof, a bit more dry weather is welcome.
Speaking of the big guy, he is doing fantastic!
His face is healing really well, his hoof is looking amazing, and if both my vet and I weren't already married, I'd run off with the man.:sing:
Still need to give the big guy 2 more antibiotic injections, today and tomorrows, and one more Ivermec shot next week, but whatever was causing him to shred his face is totally under control.
My vet is doing research to figure it out took some samples of the discharge and sent them in for testing.:thumb:
I never did get to work on the web site stuff yesterday, and today is most likely out as well, as I will be picking up dgs from daycare right after lunch, to hang out with him for a few hours before his Daddy has to drop him off.
We are making cookies for him to take with him.
Off to get a few critters fed. Take care all, and have a Blessed day!


----------



## hercsmama

gre:gre:gre:
AAARRGGGHHH!!!!!!!
Spoke too soon.
Shiners face is hamburger this morning!
Dad gum it! It was amazing yesterday, and last night, today, hamburger!
God bless it all. This is crazy. Poor guy just itches and itches, I just do not understand what can be causing this.
He has been given antibiotic, he has been given vitamins, tetnus, ointments, creams, He's been wormed, short of surgically removing his head, I just do not know what to do for him that we haven't tried.:catfight:


----------



## susang

When I worked I worked two 16 hour shifts, for about a year, good money. I also worked four 12 hour shifts in ER not bad as long as it was busy.
Hercs so sorry about shiners face, has the vet done a skin scraping and looked at it under microscope?


----------



## kandmcockrell

Can sheep have allergies?

Tell your son to have fun on his 25th, but not too much fun.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Woosh!
Closing is over ... now gor the BIG NEWS .... we're paying off the farm mortgage!!!!


----------



## Woodpecker

Congratulations Cyndi!

ETA: God is good!


----------



## Miz Mary

YAY Cyndi !!!!!!! I can imagine the excitement .... we have 6 years until this place is paid off !!


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

All the time, Dreamy! This is 3.5 years early.

AND!!! If this wasn't enough good news, I just heard better ...my 27 yo favorite niece is Cancer Free!!!


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

congratulation, Cyndi! What a momentous occasion and such a huge relief! 

I know you two have had some hurdles and some roadbumps but hallelujah, the day has come!


----------



## Marchwind

Wow, rake in the good news MLF! Yay for you.

Hercsmama, I wonder about a fungal thing, like yeast? Do sheep get yeast infections? With all the moisture ..... Yeast is pretty itchy stuff and can be a beast to get rid of. A diluted vinegar rinse, tea tree oil, or gentian violet might help, and Lotramin or anything for a vaginal yeast infection would too. Obviously check with the vet first. Poor guy, it's got to be bothersome for him


----------



## lexierowsell

I would shear him down real close on his face, and then use any of the OTC ladies yeast infection creams. 

grats on all the wonderfulness Cyndi!


----------



## lambs.are.cute

Congrats cyndi! That is wonderful! 

Anybody want to play find the hen? Hint she's 3 stories up in the tree.


Oh and meet Carla (east Fresian milk ewe), who isn't due until after the 20th and I think maybe not until March. Last year she had quads....


----------



## Woodpecker

MullersLaneFarm said:


> All the time, Dreamy! This is 3.5 years early.
> 
> AND!!! If this wasn't enough good news, I just heard better ...my 27 yo favorite niece is Cancer Free!!!


That's awesome Cindy!! So happy God is answering prayers.


----------



## Kasota

Cyndi, I am so so happy for you that you can pay off the farm!!!! Wooooot!  My home may be tiny but at least she is paid off and that sure feels great! 

Debi, I can only imagine what you are going through with Shiner. UGH! Itch mite, maybe? Ivermectin doesn't necessarily work with all mites. Did they do any skin scrapings? Poor thing is probably miserable. UGH. 

LAC, oh does that photo bring back memories. I had chickens that would often as not like to roost in the trees at night. Sure looked odd. Carla looks very, very wide! LOL! 

I used to work 4x10 shift and loved it IF my day off was Wednesday. If it was Friday by the time it rolled around I was so tired all I could do was catch up on rest and I really didn't get the enjoyment out of a three day weekend the way I thought I would. But Wed off worked great. A day off was always just around the corner. Having a day off during the week let me get stuff done that I couldn't do otherwise. 

Tomorrow, cold though it may be, I am getting to the post office. Something keeps coming up every time I turn around and I can't get my stuff mailed off. So tomorrow I am taking the bull by the horns and I'm going to just get 'er done. 

But I might sleep in just a wee bit. Like until 7. That would be so cool. 

My sister ran into my brother and his wife (the mean one) and it's the first we have seen them since the Great Baby Shower Theft. They didn't even call my sweet momma at Christmas. UGH. Apparently they are going to condescend to stop over. I will do whatever I need to do so my mom can have her sons back in her life, at least to whatever degree she would like. She is 88. But they still take no responsibility at all for how they have treated mom and that rather turns my stomach. I am praying for wisdom and self control so that I don't say something that will make it worse for my mom. What I really want to do is give them both a piece of my mind. Mom says she wishes she could give him a good kick in the rear. I hope she can retain her spunk. IF they come by it's going to be a really rough weekend for mom. Well, it will be rough if they come or if they don't. Why are people so mean? Anyway, enough of that. I only brought it up in case anyone has a spare prayer for my sweet momma. 

What I AM going to do this weekend is look for new drapes. Mom hates the livingroom drapes and when you are housebound more or less and in a small house and have to stare at them all day... well, it's gets bothersome. So we are splurging on new drapes and some paint.  I still need to finish a couple wee things in the bathroom before I take pictures but I am almost there. Maybe it will be done on Sunday.


----------



## Billie in MO

Miz Mary said:


> It is said to be cross training on industrial machines, there are cutting positions, glue machines .... this company makes hip waders and scuba diving wet/dry suits ...gloves ...
> 
> I assume you move around ... I hope ....
> 
> I will at least try it .....



It is more than likely that you could be standing/moving around. The company I worked for made fire fighter suits, so I envision a similar set up. The only people sitting were the girls at the sewing machines, all the others stood/moved around with all the other machines. Make sure you have good shoes!! Your feet will be sore. Good luck.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Of course there will be more prayers for Grannie Annie. When/If they do come over just get a mental picture of Grannie Annie kicking them in the rear every time they do something ugly ... in the very least they might wonder what you're smiling about ..


----------



## hercsmama

Kas, keeping Grannie Annie is my thoughts today, you as well. Maybe they have seen the error of their ways, even if they are too proud to admit it?

Cyndi, WOOHOO!!!! So happy for you! We haven't carried a mortgage in about 10 years, and it is wonderful.:sing:

I haven't been out to see what sort of mess the big guy has made of his face over night , yet. But, I did pick up some diatomaceous earth, some MTG, and some nutri-drench for the pregnant ewe's.
They are fine, just getting things together for the lambs coming. Already have the colostrum replacer and milk replacer, just in case.
I spoke to Shiners former owner, and she suggested the DE and MTG, and said that perhaps, his eyelid is turning inward and causing the irritation. SO, picked up some cat and dog eye ointment at the vets, gave him a dose last night. Poor guy is so good, he just stood there and let me smear it in his eye. If it turns out to be an eye lid issue, I'll have the vet stitch it back a bit so we don't have to deal with it again.
In the mean time, the DE is going in the bedding, in case it is a mite issue, and the MTG is going on his face to try to get back his handsome self.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

prayers for Granny Annie this morning! :grouphug:

Brrrr- its a cold one. Glad we don't have to get out! 

We celebrated our Valentine's Day early yesterday by plowing out from under the snow, getting my MRIs on my shoulders done, having lunch out, then running by the yarn store for some needles I had ordered. Oh and we went into Best Buy to get a replacement IPOD cord and ended up buying a new TV.  :teehee:

Our old TV has some issues and even though we don't do much more than watch the weather and play movies via the internet or Netflix, a new one was in order. We had saved three gift cards we had received throughout the year and that helped defray the cost. :nanner: :bouncy: 

Today, the Cabin Man will enjoying tinkering with setting it up- that'll give him a nice project to do. 
I finished the socks I was working on and need to wash and block and photograph them. 

Next: the scarf for the swap. I am really kind of stumped on this one. Suggestions?


----------



## Marchwind

Hercsmama what is MTG? I sure hope you Shiner's issues figured out, poor guy.

It's snowing to beat the band here this morning. We are in a storm warning until 10 pm tonight and we are supposed to have really big winds, 45 mph at times. I have an adoption event to go to this morning for one of my foster kitties. She has been with me about 6 months trying to work through some GI issues she has. New finally got it all under control but whoever adopts her will have to keep her on a very strict diet. I'm not sure how I will feel about her being adopted, she is a total lover and I love her very much. I'd keep her but I can't afford her special food for the rest of her life.


----------



## MDKatie

Happy Valentine's Day, lovelies!  

There's a lot I should be doing today, but I don't really feel like doing any of it. Not yet, anyway. DH has to go into work at 1pm since we're supposed to get some wintery weather. Bummer! I think I'll wait until tomorrow night to have our Valentine's Dinner (heart shaped meatloaf and pink mashed potatoes ) 

I feel like watching movies all day, but I really need to PAINT! I think I'll tackle the livingroom/diningroom and try to get that all done. Hopefully the trim just has to be washed, not repainted. 

Good luck to Granny Annie today! And Cyndi, congrats on the mortgage!! That seems like forever away for us, but I know it'll come one day!

Hope Mr. Shiner is feeling better! And good luck to Miss Kitten, Marchie!


----------



## Kasota

Thank you all for the thoughts and prayers for Granny Annie. She is torn between "how could they just throw me away?" and "I can still paddle your backside for being disrespectful!!!" My brother had best hope the broom is not in easy reach or she just might give him a good swat. lol! I love my mom! 

I am still trying to work out the CPW thing. I need to get it from the person's house at least into Waco so Lexi can get it from there. The wheel is in Buffalo. I did find one person on Ravelry's RR who lives in Waco and I'm hoping she can pick up and foster in Waco or even bring it to Lexi's place. We'll see how it goes. 

Today I swear I am going to make it to the post office!!!! Windchill this morning is -34. A tad chilly....


----------



## lexierowsell

Gertrude with her twins, Ronnie (retained as ram prospect) and Elenore, also retained. 








Wee Ellie, so pretty and feminine. 








Ronnie and Ellie

GOSH I LOVE LAMBIES!


----------



## lexierowsell

Debi- I had a horse that had such a severe allergic reaction to MTG that I'll never use it again. The horse ended up looking like the small spot of rain rot (a fungal infection of the skin, akin to athletes foot) had spread over her entire haunches, then she lost all the hair and eventually the skin sloughed off. Buyer beware.


----------



## hercsmama

MW, this is MTG http://www.tractorsupply.com/en/store/shapleys-original-m-t-g-(mane-tail-groom)-32-fl-oz

Lexie, that's awful!
I used a cotton ball, well a handful of them, and dabbed it on just one area last night, to see what sort of a reaction he will have. That particular spot looks much better this morning, so I dabbed a bit more on this morning.
I also have given him two doses of the eye antibiotics, and really worked that lid down, we shall see.....


----------



## Kasota

Oh, how I love those lamb pictures!!! Nothing sweeter! 

Debi, sure keeping Shiner in thoughts and prayers. Yeah, I can pray for sheepies, too.  

MDKatie, I should be painting, too. I would rather take a nap! lol! 

WIHH - you sure had wings on your feet yesterday! Congratulations on the new TV! Woot! A few years ago I got mom a new tv for the living room. She was still using her old console TV that was decades old. Thing is, she LIKED being able to put things on top, like her little antique light and some odds and ends of whimsy...so I bought a book case that was large enough length wise and pulled out all the shelves and tucked the tv inside. I need to get her a sound bar, though. 

I'm washing up the last of Ula's fleece today. And maybe washing the bedspreads and such. Itchin' for Springtime... may as well clean....


----------



## lexierowsell

This is my little hypothermia baby. He is a hybrid bottle/mama baby. Today he chose to hide behind me, only pic I could get was between my knees!


----------



## Tommyice

Lexie you are killing me with cuteness there! LOL

They are all so precious and sweet looking~~especially that little fella hiding behind you.


----------



## lexierowsell

It's been a glorious morning outdoors. 








Baby apple trees blossoming with abandon








Chickens standing on Martha. Martha is the mama to Frank, the little guy hiding between my knees. She's having a tough year <3








My cow is feeling especially productive. That's 4.5 gallons at once, from my 100% grain free dairy.


----------



## lexierowsell

Seems I can't edit that... It was supposed to read "my cow is"


----------



## Skandi

How did I not see this thread before? I've been wondering why there was no random thoughts thread on this forum!

Today we postponed Vday.. as he wanted to play a online game this evening (Hex) and it's not working ha ha. so tomorrow I get lots of attention, and he's cooking dinner. First time for everything I guess.

Been painting the small bedroom, I will eventually get it fixed, though we discovered the door is a gonner, so will need to sort something out there. everything is always more work than I think it will be! (can't just buy a door it's a tiny tiny door!)

Chickens layed another double yolker today, that's two in two days, om nom nom! Just wish I knew which chicken it was, they're all young so will probably settle down.

And almost got the the heel turn on the sock kal.. so this is where it all goes wrong!


----------



## lexierowsell

Let's try this again.


----------



## lexierowsell

This Valentine's Day my hunny got me a 6-pack of this:









And some 6 lbs of acrylic yard from the local JoAnns for playing with my loom until my real fiber gets here!


----------



## hercsmama

For V-Day here, dh actually took the whole day off!:sing:
Then he helped me feed this morning, and this evening, he even took me out to breakfast, Belgian waffles with strawberries and whipped cream, yum!:thumb:
I sat and finished plying that purple merino I've been spinning up, a total of 632 yds of three ply ,fingering weight. Not to bad for a 4 oz braid.
I also started spinning a lovely braid WIHH sent me last summer during TDF, it's a Merino, Bamboo, Silk, very nice! It is spinning up with the most wonderful pearlescent sheen to it. I'll try to get a pic tomorrow.
Shiner seems to be responding well to the eye ointment, but I have thought that before, so we shall see what tomorrow brings :facepalm:.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

well, I only THOUGHT we weren't going out today.

After breakfast, it was announced that we "needed a few more things" to hook up the new TV we bought yesterday- so we dashed off to town. 

Now remember how this all started. I JUST needed a new charger for an IPOD Touch- (the most basic, cheapest IPOD there is)

AND it was a gift - it was free. 

So, we went to Best Buy to pick one up...but when all was said and done, we walked out with a new TV. 

Today we went back for a few connector cables ...

and

we came out with a new DVD player and a sound bar. :sob:


----------



## Kasota

You will not regret the sound bar. Just sayin'


----------



## Miz Mary

Lexie, thoes pics made my day !!! How cute is that , a chicken on a lamb !!!!!!

Sorry Granny Annie, we too have family actin up .... sad ...

WIHH, todays TV's dont have speakers in them that work proper , they are now made to work with the sound bars ..... thats at least what I was told


----------



## Ketoriverfarm

Love all the sheep/lamb pictures. My six ewes spent the afternoon sunning themselves where the snow has melted off. They were running and jumping - spring fever I guess. 

I got my shearer scheduled for Mar 25. We shear our Icelandics spring and fall. My husband normally does the spring clip and we have a professional do the fall clip. But this year I am splurging. DH was thrilled - one less chore! 

I spent this afternoon skirting a lamb fleece from last fall. Still trying to get caught up. I am in the sandwich generation thing big time. I have a 88 yo father in the Midwest who is having major health issues. I just got back from another trip to Indiana. Looks like I may have to go back the first of March. 

Hope everyone had a great day! Susan


----------



## Osiris

Happy Valentine's Day to all the ladies. *CHOCOLATES* and *FL**OWERS* for EVERYONE!:sing:

Just stayin inside and pumpin the pedals today. Too cold to go out. It's 4 degrees out now (11pm). Heading down below 0. Sure is a cold one this year! Gotta keep the faucets dripping! 

I found a real cool manuscript on the Digital archive. The weaving manuscript of a Samuel Hunsberger of Pennsylvania from back in the late 17's early 18's. I took one of the pages and turned it into a graphic. I think I'm gonna frame it and put it above the loom. I used to be heavily into music (piano) and this reminds me so much of a music manuscript of Bach. I think it's a really neat visual! A musician would instantly try to 'read' it. You actually can hum a melody from it. See! Hmmm..Hmm..Hm..Hm..Hmmm .....Hmmm ;o)


----------



## Marchwind

Osiris I saw sheet music at first and then I thought, hmm what a clever idea, turn sheet music into a weaving draft.

Lexi, I fixed your photo about the milk for you. Absolutely love the lamb pictures . You cannot help but smile.

Kasota did your brother gave the nerve to actually show his mug at your house? How's Granny Annie dealing with it all?

Katoriverfarm welcome to The Fold! I don't recognise the name so I'm assuming you're new here. So welcome! If I'm showing my age by forgetting sorry :ashamed:

Yesterday was crazy with wind and cold. Driving in town and the wind would kick up and suddenly you wouldn't see past the hood of your car. Today is just cold.

I worked an adoption event yesterday, not many people came because of the weather. But there was a litter of 8 week old kittens and all but one got adopted. One of the adult cats got adopted too. My girlie didn't but she was so afraid she hid in her litterbox the whole time


----------



## Woodpecker

Lexi those pics are killing me, nothing better than budding apple trees and lambies!!


----------



## Kasota

Good morning, everyone! 

Osiris, that really does look like music! Delightful!! 

Marchwind, they have not shown up. My brother said he was going to come over but he was busy on Thursday. Well, he was busy on Thursday and Friday and Saturday. He was, in fact, so busy that he could not take 5 minutes and even pick up the phone. I am totally and utterly disgusted. Granny Annie says she doesn't understand why her sons have thrown her away like an old dirty dishrag. My heart just breaks for my mom. :Bawling:


----------



## MDKatie

Brrrrrr!!!!!! Holy cow, we're getting some crazy cold temps! Our wind chill last night got down to -15, and our actual low tonight will be only 3*! That's not normal for here, really. The wind was gusting up to 60 mph last night. 

I know there are some of you who deal with this on a regular basis, but we're just not used to it. Our house has a heat pump as the main heat source, with supplemental pellet stove in the basement that helps a little, but not a ton. 

The animals are all snug, though. The goats are in the barn because they just don't handle the temps as well as the sheep, even with a nice shelter out in the pasture. I've got 2 ewes who are looking closer to lambing, though, and I'm afraid if that happens the goats will have to give up their comfy home in the barn. I'll keep doing frequent checks, because babies won't last long in these temps!


----------



## Tommyice

My Sunday morning routine involves going next door to Dad's and making breakfast for the two of us. Today was french toast. It's 15* here but the wind is gusting furiously and making it bone chillingly cold outside. Baking blueberry muffins now.

Worked in getting that wheel working. It throws the drive band and I've narrowed it down to the hub where the axle sits or the footman. The footman is string and isnt taught anymore. I would like try and replace with a wooden one. I'm thinking that might give the operation more stability.


----------



## kandmcockrell

Cold and windy here. DH went in the woods yesterday and came back with a bunch of cherry and locusts so we are supper snug. 
Here is a picture of my new kitchen all finished. Between sick babies and getting everything moved to the new kitchen I have had no time to knit.


----------



## Billie in MO

Ok, I have to ask, what is a sound bar?? I still have the old tube TV so I know nothing about new ones.

I still have not got the shawl off my loom that I started way back in Oct of last year. Was weaving it at a show, it was the end of the day and I messed up. Have tried several times to figure out a way around my goof up but nothing so far has worked.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Billie, a sound bar is basically an additional external speaker - since flat screened TVs have no surface area for a speaker except in the back. Without a sound bar, the sound gets muffled and broadcast to the back of the set. With the sound bar you can direct the sound out toward you. As we get older, we find the options on the sound bar gives us sharper sound. The sound bar is a real improvement. 

Sound bars run from $99 on up to  $700 and more :shocked: - we went with the cheap one. 

http://www.walmart.com/ip/23990928?...30446752&wl4=&wl5=pla&wl6=78289071152&veh=sem


----------



## MDKatie

It's still cold out there. ound: Our upstairs bathroom pipes are now frozen. Oops! Not much we can do about it, as they're in the outside wall of the house, facing the prevailing winds. 

I made rolls, but I'm having to keep the oven set to "warm" to get the dough to rise since it's so cold in the house!! We've got the thermostat set to 62, and the pellet stove running on high. What I wouldn't give for a wood stove upstairs!!!


----------



## Skandi

MDKatie said:


> thermostat set to 62, and the pellet stove running on high.


62! I would love to have the house at 62, back room (where we live at the moment) is at 15C rest of the house is about 10C that's 59F and 50F

We don't have a thermostat.. it's wood boiler jugling time! We can get the whole house up to 18 ish, and the back room over 20, but the fuel it takes isn't even funny. Having a front door that the wind considers invisible really doesn't help  Oh and rotten windows and and and lols. but hey, 5 years and tjhe mortgage is paid off, and it's 1/3 of what our rent on a two roomed appartment was, so I am not really complaining.

Today I did nothing, painted the woodwork in the little room, and removed a load of nails and screws from random bits of wood, seems to be my main occupation since moving here, more metal than Brick in this house it feels like.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Good evening everyone!
No fiber related news to report, well, sorta, i now have all the yarn I need to finish the big blanket i started almost a year ago. Fortunately, yet unfortunately, I have been working more and more hours at work so have limited time to work on the blanket.
I have been getting a lot of seeds started, but still have lots more to go.
Has been colder than a snowman's colon here. And windy too, so that makes it even colder. Oh, i can't wait for spring.
Puppies are doing good, rabbits are all doing fine, two are pregnant.
Baby chickens, now about 9-10 weeks old have been moved from solitary confinement in the garage to the chicken coop with the older birds. They seem to be doing quite well.

So there is my life in a nutshell lately. 
Oh, for Valentines day, I went non traditional this year, bought my wife new tires for her car. She bought me a new pair of boots. Between her old tires and my old boots, I'm not sure which had less tread. And to top it all off, I carried some firewood today, and wouldn't you know it, weeks of no problems, and now my back goes out again.... Flexeril and hydrocodone are my friends

Looks like you all have been busy with family, furry fellows, and fiber.
Hope y'all that have been sickly get back to new soon.


----------



## Osiris

Looks like everyone is cold except for Lexi!!!! :grump: Man this winter is a tough one. *We (IL)* didn't get the snow like last year but the cold is a bear. And the electric and gas companies all their got their rate increases just in time (twice)!!!! Villians! 

Won't be on too much this week. Won't be weaving much either. Got our annual wild game dinner going on here at the club. Gotta cook goose and duck for buffet. I'm doing both mexican style. Tinga and Tostadas. Plus I have to direct parking the night of so everything has to be cooked by Wed. 100+ people sit-down buffet!! It's a major fundraiser for us. Helps pay the darned electric/gas bills!


----------



## Miz Mary

...62 an sunny here in the PNW !! Not going to see rain or snow, just SUN for a week !! 

Sorry about your back DBA, mine does that too .... with a left shoulder issue .... sounds like your house is full of fun critters !!! 

BEAUTIFUL kitchen KandMcockrell !!! Love your sink !!!!


----------



## Billie in MO

WIHH, thanks for the explanation of the sound bar. Did not have a clue.

Been snowing all evening, 2", maybe 3". Will have to leave earlier, than normal, in the morning for my treatment. Bill is off so I will let him drive. People will no doubt be crazy.


----------



## kandmcockrell

Mix Mary, that is the sink my DH cut down that came out of my grandparents basement. Lots of memories for me, standing at that sink processing veggies for canning. 
Looks like we are in for quite a bit of snow for this area, and some seriously cold temps. 
So glad I went to the store Thursday.


----------



## Marchwind

Colder than a snowman's colon :hystericalBA you sley me! Its neem about the same here but you know, it is Feb. in Michigan. Or as my mother used to say, there is no such thing as cold weather just inapproperately dressed people, go put a sweater on if you're cold :facepalm:

Kasota id like to give your brother a nice piece of my mind :catfight:

Hey MDKatie are your pipes visible on the inside of your house? i had pipes on the outside wall of my basement and one would freeze if the wind blew just right. I wadded up a rag and put it between the wall and the pipe than I got a trouble light with a 60 watt incandecent bulb in it and hung that right where the ice-up problem was. I also used a hair dryer to help thaw it. the light stayed on it the rest of the winter to keep it thawed. You don't want burst or cracked pipes that would be a very expensive mess to have to deal with. Good luck!


----------



## hercsmama

That kitchen looks great!:thumb:
DBA, you do have a way with words, lol. Good luck with all the pregnant mommas!
Well now, I'm hesitant to report, that Shiners face is FABULOUS!!!! The triple antibiotic eye stuff seems to have done the trick. The MTG, has everything healing so well, and fast, it's freaky, and he is starting to act like himself again. With the exception of his new thing, every time I go out there he starts of running away from me, then turns around and lets me catch him. Then he buries his big old head right in my chest and just rubs. Poor guy, it's almost like he is begging me to not hurt him anymore:facepalm: , I didn't want to, but he had to have all those shots, and the ointments, I couldn't just leave it alone. Bless his big old heart.
He has been a little off his feed, but this morning he attacked his alfalfa with a vengeance, so I think he is about totally put back to rights, knock on wood.:thumb:
I still need to get a picture of the braid I'm spinning right now. It really is working up a gorgeous soft creamy pearl color, with just a hint of light green, and a tiny splash of peach here and there. Really lovely.:sing:


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

so glad Shiner is doing better! 

Snowing here again today, the Cabin Man has the day off, I have to work. 

Got the walkways at work all shoveled off before I remember my crumby shoulders and the reason I had the MRIs on Friday.  I will be interested to hear what the radiologist sees and what my doctor has to say.

I FINALLY started my Scarf Swap scarf yesterday after much "analysis paralysis" - then I just told myself "Just DO it, already!" So I am. 

It will be simple and lovely in its simplicity. So there.  And it might even be finished by the weekend - or over the weekend.


----------



## lambs.are.cute

Hate to tell you all but it's 50-60 here today and sunny. It is almost warm enought to ditch the coat, maybe wih long sleeves I will. 

Today I want to get my new chicken garden mostly done, if not done. I am half way done the base layer, then need to put the next layer of slightly finer material, and finally he top layer of soil. Also need to fence it so the birds can't get in until the plants are big enough.


----------



## Woodpecker

It's 11o here and that's not including the wind chill. We are expecting yet more snow tonight into tomorrow. I'm starting to think spring will never come. Well when it does we are going to have so much mud from all this snow. 

Lorretta laid after 4 days of trying and she pecked the egg .I wanted to give that one to my doctor but I guess she wanted it. I was really ticked until I realized she's a good girl most of the time. Not much but snow and ice going on here.


----------



## Skandi

Started digging the veg garden, didn't get very far, lots of nettle roots, stones, random bits of concrete. Chickens enjoyed the worms though.

As for the KAL.. managed two rows! not going to get far at that rate.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

all you folks enjoying springtime already and me, up here in the frozen tundra! 

:facepalm:

We plant our gardens on Memorial Day weekend - and THAT can be pushing it!

Skandi, two rows are two rows - it DOES add up! You'll see!

Woodpecker - sorry about the egg. Chickens will be chickens.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Marchwind said:


> DBA you *sley* me!


now THAT'S funny!


----------



## lambs.are.cute

It's safe to put tomato plants in the garden Memorial Day weekend here, but you have to remember that my summer will get up over the 100*f for at least 5 days sometimes weeks on end. 

We ARE having a particularly mild feb this year. I'm tempted to plant peas.....


----------



## Skandi

Wind in Her Hair said:


> all you folks enjoying springtime already and me, up here in the frozen tundra!


I may not be on frozen ground, but I can't plant anything out till May. we still get frost up till then.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

we still get an occasional snow in May - and it has happened as late as June.  

Trouble is our first frost can be as early as July 26th! Some years we don't get red tomatoes.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

So, I'm a crochet hook looking thingy now????
Y'all are lucky I said colder than a snowmans colon, I was going to say, colder than a penguin's..................(little boy part)

And I'm still cold. Someone asked me today if I was ready for spring, I said, I have been since October.


----------



## MDKatie

Marchwind said:


> Hey MDKatie are your pipes visible on the inside of your house? i had pipes on the outside wall of my basement and one would freeze if the wind blew just right. I wadded up a rag and put it between the wall and the pipe than I got a trouble light with a 60 watt incandecent bulb in it and hung that right where the ice-up problem was. I also used a hair dryer to help thaw it. the light stayed on it the rest of the winter to keep it thawed. You don't want burst or cracked pipes that would be a very expensive mess to have to deal with. Good luck!


The pipes are unfrozen now! There's only a very short (6") portion visible. I opened the cabinets and turned the faucet to the slightly on position. I went upstairs a few hours ago and water was running, so now I've got it so it only drips. I'll keep it open like that for now, since temps are going to drop back down after tomorrow. 


The snow is coming and should be starting about now. I'll have to do more over night lamb checks!


----------



## Skandi

Wind in Her Hair said:


> Trouble is our first frost can be as early as July 26th! Some years we don't get red tomatoes.


I wouldn't expect frost until september here, but we can only grow cherry toms outside, anything else has to be in the greenhouse. Don't you just hate all these threads on growing sweet potatoes, corn, avocados.. peaches. lols

I've been trying to find some nice ideas for getting more out of the land, i.e extended seasons, some permaculture.. but everything is written for people SO much further south! Given up on winter crops, (other than cabbage etc) we just don't get enough light, and with the most expensive electric in the world.. I aint using artificial ones!

But hey.. in summer I only get two hours of true dark! :buds:


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

My Philip just keeps starting more and more plants inside. I think that is the best solution for us!


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

I can relate. I am quickly running out of room for plants, yet still have a couple hundred more I want to get started.
Here's a list of what I have started so far
http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/co...ardening-plant-propagation/531157-begins.html


----------



## BlueberryChick

All the gardening talk is making me feel lazy! I haven't started anything, although our last frost can be as late as the first part of April. My dad, who was a wonderful gardener, usually planted around Easter.

We spent the weekend in Mt. Pleasant, SC. We have a new-to-us RV and took it to the KOA campground. It was really nice and we were just a short drive from Charleston. The children had a great time bike riding around the campground, as well as touring Drayton Hall (historic home near Charleston) and playing at Blackbeard's Cove (mostly an arcade, but with mini golf and go-carts).

I'm glad to be home, especially since it's going to be pretty cold this week. Well, cold by our standards, meaning lows in the teens and highs in the 30's and 40's.


----------



## Miz Mary

DBA...HOLY COW thats allotta seedlings !!!!! Way to go !!!! I have 6 peppers up now, and 6 tomatoes ! Started more tomatoes ..... 

Today I had my 2nd interview and did a sewing test .... industrial sewing machines are FAST !! I think I did pretty good though ! I will know the end of the week if I have the job !!! 

The weather here is phenomenal !! Blue skies, high in the upper 50's ... but a tad chilly with the wind , so not much outside fun ! Dont want to get ahead of myself , we can still get a freeze ! 

WP, keep an eye on Loretta.... sometimes chickens will develop a habit of pecking eggs, andyou will never get any ! You can give her a little cat food crunchies before bed, and it will help keep her warm during the night ..... ( protein )


----------



## Ketoriverfarm

A gorgeous day here in NE Washington. We hit 50 degrees with sunshine. Took the dogs for a long walk. The buds on my lilacs are swelling. Way too early. I started working on taxes today. Not my favorite chore. I do two returns for my dad in Indiana- one is personal and the other is corporate. Then I do the taxes for my brother -but his is short form. Then I get to ours. The corporate taxes are due march 15. 

And my ewes are looking heavier. I will know more after we shear in a few weeks. Susan


----------



## kandmcockrell

Still snowing here. Not sure how much we have gotten. Need to get DH to check.


----------



## Kasota

Good morning, all! Just slipping in for a drive-by wave. Life is crazy busy. It will be better in another week when I am done doing all the annual reviews. In the meantime I just pretty much scramble through my day.


----------



## Marchwind

WIHH and Skandi are you buying Siberian varieties of tomatoes? I had great luck with those ripening for me. Off hand I can't remember any specific names right now. Early Girls used to do really well too. I think the worst part about living in Northern Minnesota is not so much when the first and last frost dates are but when the frost goes out of the ground. With a frost line that can go as deep as 8' it will take a long time for that ground to thaw and to warm up enough that things like tomatoes will grow well.


I forgot to say fantastic kitchen! What I wouldn't give for a kitchen with counter space. I'm so sick of having to shift everything around when I want to bake or cook.


----------



## Skandi

Marchwind said:


> WIHH and Skandi are you buying Siberian varieties of tomatoes? ....
> 
> ....I forgot to say fantastic kitchen! What I wouldn't give for a kitchen with counter space. I'm so sick of having to shift everything around when I want to bake or cook.


Never even heard of siberian tomatoes. We buy what they sell here. Denmark is a tiny tiny country, so you would think anything sold here would grow here. I have a greenhouse luckily (pretty much every house has one)

And I am with you on the no kitchen space. my kitchen is here
Kitchen help
the table is not there anymore, there's a fridge there. you can see how much surface space I have!


----------



## Woodpecker

Miz Mary said:


> WP, keep an eye on Loretta.... sometimes chickens will develop a habit of pecking eggs, andyou will never get any ! You can give her a little cat food crunchies before bed, and it will help keep her warm during the night ..... ( protein )


I have been keeping a good eye on her in this weather. Thanks for the cat food tip! She laid the egg on the roost for some odd reason, she did that last time too. I can tell when she's been in the nest box and then I start on egg watch. She's really unpredictable now that she's almost 4. 

We got more snow this morning around 1.5". I was reading the paper yesterday and it is the coldest Febuary in decades. I want spring and sunlight and to dig in the dirt.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Skandi, what terrible news out of Denmark this week.  Our hearts go out to all those affected by terrorism there and elsewhere in the world. 

Skandi, I used to live in Texas where gardening started in January (onion sets) and ended in July when everything BURNED up from the 100ÂºF heat. I have really had to learn gardening all over living up here at 46Âº latitude. 

Marchwind, I will have to seek out those Siberian tomatoes:thumb: I normally only grow heirloom varieties - 22 different ones last year - and we had a BUMPER crop, so I will only be growing "slicers" this summer. My pantry runneth over!


----------



## lexierowsell

WIHH- we have now been gardening year round for a couple years. Last year was HARD, had freezes down to 12* and August was above 100* for 3 weeks. We also had late frosts (April!) that cost us 500 tomato plants....

So far, knock on wood, this year has been much more level. 

We are in full blown planting mode, it's insane how much we're growing this year. 

In the last weeks we've 200lb of seed potatoes (5x 250' rows), 175' late spinach, 50' parsnips, 750' each garlic, onions, leeks...


----------



## lexierowsell

Also our 5 acre "food forest" is going into its first spring so we are starting trees, bushes etc too. We are only two people running everything (including my dairy and meat growing), so for now we go from dawn to dusk 7 days a week.


----------



## Kris in MI

All this talk about gardens and seedlings, I guess I'm not the only one thinking Spring despite this cold weather. Sunday was a record low "high" temperature here: 1F. Guess it broke the previous record--set in 1880-something--by like 10 degrees. Crazy DH and I decided to go out and trim our trees that day, since it was bright and sunny and so cold we knew there was no chance of the maples 'bleeding'. We stayed nice and warm bundled up and working, but the neighbors sure thought we were nuts.

Anyway, back on the Spring thinking. . . I've finished ordering my garden and now await shipment of seeds, seed potatoes, and onion and leek starts. Working up a poultry order too, just waiting for my 17yo dd to decide if she wants to take a goose or turkey to the Fair. If so, I'll need to have my birds delivered in April. Typically I wait until May, when there's less need for the heat lamp to be on 24/7 until the birds are all feathered out.

Looks like dd will be getting a lamb to raise for the Fair. She is still doing sheep chores 5 days a week for a local family whose wife/mom is having severe health problems. They have offered to sponsor dd if she wants to show a lamb at the Fair; they'll keep it at their place (where she will continue to do chores) and teach her how to work with it and show it. All she will owe is the cost of purchasing the lamb and it's feed, she will sell the lamb at the auction at the end of Fair and keep the profit.


----------



## Miz Mary

Isnt that so funny to find an egg in an odd spot ?!? ! Sorry you got more snow !! I always remind myself " chickens can live in Alaska with no heat lamp " and it makes me not worry so much ....... your such a good chicken mommy !!!!


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Lexie, reading about your gardens is highly upsetting to me. I want to come down and live on your land.


----------



## lexierowsell

Dixie Bee Acres said:


> Lexie, reading about your gardens is highly upsetting to me. I want to come down and live on your land.



I'm sorry, didn't mean to upset you! We could always use another pair of hands that like the gardens....


----------



## Marchwind

Those of you who garden, whether it is for yourself or profit this website is wonderful. Lots of great information, ideas, recipes and they advocate for gardeners, even in legal issues.

http://kgi.org/?utm_source=Kitchen+...il&utm_term=0_db7f55b98b-ef2ee294ef-327172805


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Great website, thank you. Sorry, but I can't use the like button. Viewing HT on my phone, I run into a lot of agrivating issues, all are remedied by disabling java script, but when I disable java script, the like button doesn't work.


----------



## Woodpecker

Miz Mary said:


> Isnt that so funny to find an egg in an odd spot ?!? ! Sorry you got more snow !! I always remind myself " chickens can live in Alaska with no heat lamp " and it makes me not worry so much ....... your such a good chicken mommy !!!!


Thank you so much for the compliment! I do try my hardest to take good care of her.


----------



## hercsmama

WP, if she is starting to peck her own eggs, it could be a few things. 
She may need more calcium, get her some crushed oyster shell, you can find it at any decent feed store. She may be bored, take a small head of cabbage, or lettuce, and hang it so she can peck at it, it'll keep her busy.
Lastly, she MAY be turning into an egg eater, not a good thing at all.
But, try the other two things and see what she does. Hopefully that'll take care of it.:thumb:


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Widdle buggah


----------



## MDKatie

Lexie, have you heard of the WWOOF program? It's awesome. It links up "interns" who want experience working on farms/gardens with host farmers/gardeners. In exchange for meals and lodging, hosts get hard workers to help with gardening! My sister just signed up and already has a few WWOOFers lined up to visit her. It's a really great way to get some extra help, and also provide someone with some really cool experiences!


----------



## lexierowsell

Katie- yes, we have heard of it. The only issue is the we don't want resident interns. We live in a gated community (we own 50 acres of the community, but still), and we so value our privacy...

I have not read up on it at all tbh because of that. We run a CSA and have decided to offer some work shares this year so we shall see how it goes.

Thanks for thinking of me!


----------



## Kasota

Yet another drive by wave for me. Oh, I will be glad when things settle down and I have time to catch up on what everyone is doing! 

I love talk of gardens and spring and the puppy pictures and hearing how Loretta is doing. Chickens are so funny. 

Skandi, your kitchen is rather expansive compared to what I have.  I have learned to be very efficient. I have 9 feet of cupboard space/counter space but some of that is taken up by the double sink...so not much counter space to speak of. Still, it suits me just fine and I love my wee home. I rather feel like a hobbit on some days except the tops of my toes are not covered with hair. Well... hmmmm Maybe I'd best check.... 
Our thoughts and prayers are sure with you and your country what with all you have been dealing with.


----------



## MDKatie

lexierowsell said:


> Katie- yes, we have heard of it. The only issue is the we don't want resident interns. We live in a gated community (we own 50 acres of the community, but still), and we so value our privacy...
> 
> I have not read up on it at all tbh because of that. We run a CSA and have decided to offer some work shares this year so we shall see how it goes.
> 
> Thanks for thinking of me!


I understand!! We could never do it because my husband would hate the idea of strangers staying in our house! Plus we work full time, so I"m not sure how that'd work out anyway! I'm cool with strangers staying in the house, but probably not when we're not home. :runforhills: Hee hee. My sister is home all day, and my BIL is home all day during the summer, so it's going to work out nicely for them.


----------



## lexierowsell

This. 









This is why we farm. 

I raised the beef, from my dairy cow. I made the butter from that same cow. We grew the lettuce with the compost that both fed the cow and came from the cow. 

We lead the most amazing life.


----------



## Osiris

Lexi, farming is the most admirable of endeavors. Many have no idea of what it takes. You must be versed in many things. So many have lost the connection to the land. But it's so refreshing to see that it's still alive and well here on HT. 

Oh spring!! Is there really such a thing??? We're going to have -8 degrees Thursday nite!!! And I have to be *outside* directing parking! Having the Wild Game Dinner here at the club. It's a fundraiser. 80+ people sit-down buffet! I don't eat any of the stuff, (even tho I've made some excellent duck Tinga this year *and* Goose breast pate') but being caretaker, I have to be involved. 

Next week we're supposed to go into the 50's. YAY!


----------



## hotzcatz

Yumm! Great looking cow, Lexi! Buttered steak? 

Looks really tasty, although it seems a bit over the top. Although, I've heard they butter chocolate in some areas, (I used to have a boss from Denmark, he said they did) so maybe I'll have to try buttering the next steak here. Still not sure about buttering chocolate, though.

The trouble with moving is you have to move the garden, too. Just when the new 'maters were getting going good, too.










These are from some seeds from the guy at the local feed store, Big Bill at Alfalfa Hay & Cubes. He got the seed about twenty years ago from a greenhouse below the feed store and has been selecting them for size, flavor and ripening all at the same time (although they don't really seem to be a determinate tomato). I'll save some seeds, too, to continue them. It started as a variety of Roma, from the looks of it.

So, those 'maters are at the old garden and eventually most of it will be picked up and moved, but I'm sure the plants won't like it. Here's the new garden, I've really gotten into raised beds lately. Keeps the weed whackers at bay and is easier to pick. 










That's just outside the kitchen door, so it will be mostly veggies. Mostly stuff like lettuce, beans, beets, carrots, tomatoes, etc. At the moment, it has onions, choi sum, lettuce, tomatoes, some sea island white cotton (just to get sprouted), and four grape vine starts and an English walnut sapling that still need to be moved to their permanent locations. There will be a more decorative herb garden to the left of it for cooking herbs, but haven't cleared back the overgrown backyard jungle yet. The first fifteen to twenty feet of the upper area of the back yard are pretty steep and then it levels off. I'm planning terraced gardens on the steep part. With steps up to the banana patch that is already up in the back. There's also a jacaranda tree, a grapefruit, avocado and some macadamia nut trees back there.

When the tree order arrived several weeks ago, they were put in the garden as a holding space until they got their permanent home. All plants to Hawaii are mailed "bare root" with just moist paper on their roots so they need to be planted somewhere immediately. 










So, that's was the temporary tree garden. There are two apples, two peaches, an almond, a pear, the four grapes and walnut tree temporarily in the garden.










However, when folks from the mainland visit, they are so desperate to get gardening again that they will help plant trees. Woot! This is my new sister-in-law and her husband visiting from Kansas City and I was planting the fruit trees when they drove up so they hopped right in and wanted to help. Shootz! I'm good with that! Good job little brother in selecting new relatives.

And we have trouble with our pipes, too! Must be a universal thing with pipes.










Since there's no space inside the walls for the pipes, they are usually hung on the outside of the house. So, do we paint them to match the house, or should we paint them to match the trim? The house will be green and the trim probably white. I'm thinking green might be better than white for pipes. That's the kitchen sink drain with a side drain for the washing machine so there will be a washer and dryer sort of in front of the pipes obscuring their painted glory, no matter what color they end up.


----------



## lexierowsell

Hotz- not sure where the idea came from, but it sure suits this beef! He was 100% grassfed, and was a little leaner than I wanted when his appointment came around (bad cold snap this winter kept the grass from going lush).









Still, he came out ok. We have a freezer FULL of organic grassfed meat, for what came to less than a dollar a pound. Organic ground beef at the grocery store is $8.00/lb. 

I butter chocolate when I'm making pastries (petit pain au chocolat for example, like a croissant with chocolate inside...) and I swear to you it isn't over the top at all. ;-)


----------



## 7thswan

Butter is the best way to get a nice crust on the outside of your steak without over cooking it. My Mom always did it when she made steak under the gas broiler. I've gotten to be very good at frying steak in a cast iron pan-little olive oil and butter in a hot pan.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

*lexierowsell* buttering steak? buttering chocolate?  

wow - I am still trying to get used to the idea of bleu cheese on steak...

*Hotzcatz,* personally, I would go with the same green for the pipes- to make them LESS obtrusive - and with green, if some paint should flake off black pipes, the flaking would not be so noticeable? 

How nice you had help planting trees.  Do those tree planters rent out? (My sweetheart ordered 500 spruce trees which are due to arrive the end of May/first of June. )

In other news, I got a call from my doctor about the results of last Friday's shoulder(s) MRIs. :sob:

The news was about what I expected. 

"Bilateral, multiple abnormalities, tears, calcium deposits, and tendonitis." I have an appointment with the orthopaedic surgeon on March 4th to dicsuss a plan of action. Boo. Hiss.  

I just wonder if I will be out of commission when it comes to tree planting time. I hope not.


----------



## hercsmama

I never eat a steak without a nice big blob of herb butter on it! OMgoodness! Just amazing.:thumb:
We went to Ruth Chris in San Antonio for our Anniversary every year, I don't think they serve a steak with out butter.
Hotzcatz, I'd go with the green as well.
WIHH, sounds like my right shoulder, someday, maybe, I'll deal with it. Just do not have the time. 
Well now, Dare I say, Shiner is quickly coming back to his handsome self. I'm going to be talking to my vet about having that lower lid tacked back on him. Seems like a lot to go through for a 3 year old retired show ram, but he has perfect genetics, and such a gentle temperament. Not to mention, he is the foundation for my fiber business, so I see it as an investment in future fiber production. I can justify anything, can't I ? LOL!


----------



## Skandi

hotzcatz said:


> Looks really tasty, although it seems a bit over the top. Although, I've heard they butter chocolate in some areas, (I used to have a boss from Denmark, he said they did)


buttered chocolate? never heard of that one, asked hubby he also thought that was strange BUT, they do have thin sheets of chocolate that you put on bread and butter.. so I'm sure butter on chocolate isn't that wierd. As to butter on steak, that would be done here, and in the UK.

Today I tidied the first room in the barn (someone has split our smaller barn into rooms) I got three bags of rubbish out of it. started tying together the chicken fence.. and it started raining so I gave up and came in.


----------



## lexierowsell

Buttering chocolate makes it melt like milk chocolate without detracting from the beauty of the dark choc. Makes it silky, and also makes it shiny if you temper it correctly.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Butter on steak? Yes, please! And on top of that, onions, mushrooms & tomato/onion conserve .... although blue cheese sounds decadent too!

I love being able to make a meal using nothing but what we raise here. We no longer have a milk cow and I really should plant a greens garden in the house over winter. The only food stuffs I regularly buy from the store are flour, corn meal, salt & pepper & dairy products. Everything else (including my herbs & spices) is grown here. I'm horrified at the price of meat at the store! We didn't get a calf last spring or fall (I told Paul we needed one) and will probably run out of beef come fall so we'll be without it for about a year. There will still be freezers full of pork, chicken & turkey though so I can probably trade for beef.

Hotz, I still think you need to paint those pipes green and paint leaves & flowers on the wall! The trees we get are bare rooted also. We put in almond trees last year and are getting more plum trees this year to supplement the one we have. We also have apple, peach, pear, asian pear & cherry as well as red & black raspberries, grapes, strawberries & blueberries. I'm hoping for a decent spring this year for the fruits. Last year, our winter lasted forever and we didn't get any fruit except strawberries & grapes.

As of today, our farm is Paid In Full! What a good feeling! I'm going to celebrate by spinning 50/50 wool/cotton.


----------



## Miz Mary

That looks like a good steak .... I've never had grass fed steak ...... regular meat is so icky we just dont eat it ...... 

WIHH, glad you finally have answers on your shoulders ..... I'll be there someday , my left shoulder/upper back gives me fits ...

Hotcatz, love your pictures ! Your tomatoes look soooooo good !!


----------



## MDKatie

I don't think we've ever buttered our steaks, but I'm going to start! We have cooked them in butter, I think, when we don't grill them. 

Cyndi, David tried looking in the store for "Cowboy Candy" yesterday. Poor guy. He really loved that jar you sent in the gift exchange! I think I'll have to can him some this year.


----------



## Woodpecker

hercsmama said:


> WP, if she is starting to peck her own eggs, it could be a few things.
> She may need more calcium, get her some crushed oyster shell, you can find it at any decent feed store. She may be bored, take a small head of cabbage, or lettuce, and hang it so she can peck at it, it'll keep her busy.
> Lastly, she MAY be turning into an egg eater, not a good thing at all.
> But, try the other two things and see what she does. Hopefully that'll take care of it.:thumb:


Thanks! She has oyster she'll available at all times. With this weather and her being stuck inside I bet she was bored. I'm keeping a good eye on her and was able to give her some outside time today. It was in the 30's and some of the snow was melting so I picked her up and carried her to a dry spot where she dust bathed for a while. She was so happy, I think she's only had 2 dust bathes this month. She's lookimg forward to spring too.

ETA: you are in my prayers WIHH.

Congratulations Cyndi you must feel great.


----------



## MDKatie

DH called a little while ago and said this, "I just wanted to call you first and tell you before someone else called and scared you." Gee, not a great sentence to hear!! He was at work and had a snow plow chained up (hanging, I guess) and the chain failed and fell on his foot. He didn't realize his foot was in the danger zone. He's on his way to the hospital for x-rays. He says he's ok, but it hurts and is pretty bruised up. Luckily he had steel toe boots on (required by his work) but he thinks the steel toe may have been pushed onto his foot. Hopefully he'll call soon and tell me what the doc says.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Ouch, Katie! Hope David's foot is okay. LOL about the cowboy candy!


----------



## hercsmama

Oh no Katie! I hope he's alright.

I can't move my head right now, lovely. I have RA in my neck, and apparently, after the phone call from my son earlier today, (sorry to have to hang up so quick Lexie), either the stress did it, or the slight flare up has exploded.
My youngest son has (had, don't know yet) the best freaking job in town. He drove a fork lift for one of the factories. Anyway, he had his own accident at work today, and ran into a huge shelving unit, about taking it, and the two guys standing behind it out.:facepalm: Wrecked the fork lift.
He has no idea if he is fired, or if he is just going to get a reprimand, but it doesn't look good. It just figures, right when things start to settle down, something always has to happen.


----------



## lexierowsell

Oh ship Debi! Hope all is well.


----------



## Miz Mary

Katie, a quick prayer for your hubby !! OUCHIES ! 

oh .....and ...... *I GOT THE JOB !!* I start Tues @ 6am ! I think they will have me on lesser hours to start, until she can train me ... WOOP WOOP !!!


----------



## MDKatie

Oh no, Hercs. I hope they give him another chance!! 


WIHH, I'm sorry about your shoulders. I hope they have a good plan for you that won't take you out of commission for too long!


----------



## Skandi

MDKatie said:


> DH called a little while ago and said this, "I just wanted to call you first and tell you before someone else called and scared you."


Ouch, well hopefully the boots did their job and it'll just be bruised



hercsmama said:


> O
> He has no idea if he is fired, or if he is just going to get a reprimand, but it doesn't look good. It just figures, right when things start to settle down, something always has to happen.





Miz Mary said:


> K
> 
> Good luck there, hope his boss is understanding.
> 
> oh .....and ...... *I GOT THE JOB !!* I start Tues @ 6am ! I think they will have me on lesser hours to start, until she can train me ... WOOP WOOP !!!


And congratulations.. 6am.. shudder!


----------



## 7thswan

MDKatie said:


> DH called a little while ago and said this, "I just wanted to call you first and tell you before someone else called and scared you." Gee, not a great sentence to hear!! He was at work and had a snow plow chained up (hanging, I guess) and the chain failed and fell on his foot. He didn't realize his foot was in the danger zone. He's on his way to the hospital for x-rays. He says he's ok, but it hurts and is pretty bruised up. Luckily he had steel toe boots on (required by his work) but he thinks the steel toe may have been pushed onto his foot. Hopefully he'll call soon and tell me what the doc says.


I hope things work out well. The same happened here, but it was both dh's feet and he was driven home without notice. 800 lbs on both feet,the steel toes saved his toes from being damaged but the hy, cyl, then bounced off the steel toes onto his bones on the top of the feet,breaking them both,little bones just like the ones we all have in the back of our hands. I hope workman's comp will not make you sue them to get what he rightly paid for-because WC thinks it's their $.


----------



## 7thswan

Skandi said:


> Ouch, well hopefully the boots did their job and it'll just be bruised
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> And congratulations.. 6am.. shudder!


I agree. Dr. wants me to have tests without food in the morning , is coffee food???,because it's been almost 6 mts. and there is no way I will drive anywhere without coffee.I don't even hunt anymore because 6am is torture:facepalm:


----------



## MDKatie

7thswan said:


> I hope things work out well. The same happened here, but it was both dh's feet and he was driven home without notice. 800 lbs on both feet,the steel toes saved his toes from being damaged but the hy, cyl, then bounced off the steel toes onto his bones on the top of the feet,breaking them both,little bones just like the ones we all have in the back of our hands. I hope workman's comp will not make you sue them to get what he rightly paid for-because WC thinks it's their $.


Oh gosh, I hope your DH healed ok! DH was lucky!! The steel toes caught the brunt of the weight, so he has no broken bones!!! Whew. What a relief! He has to buy new boots now, though he said he can't tell they've been damaged.I guess it's like a car seat or a helmet...once they've been in an accident it's best to get a replacement. 

He has had no trouble out of WC, luckily. Last year he fell backwards out of a dump truck cab (about 5'? down) and fell on his back, hit his head. He got all the doc bills (x-rays, etc) taken care of, and luckily he wasn't hurt badly then, either. He had a very slight concussion but no major damage. 

I'm going to start wrapping him in bubble wrap when he leaves for work. :ashamed:


----------



## lexierowsell

So glad your DH is ok!!

When I was working as a farrier my mentor insisted I wear steel toe boots (which I hate, make me feel clumsy and slow-- bad combination around horses...). 

A horse jumped on my foot and collapsed the toe cap, trapping my foot. They had to cut it apart, on my foot. I was lucky, just had serious bruises and a few fractures in the top of the toes. I don't know if the it was the boot or not, but I've had horses stepping on me my whole life and nothing has ever hurt like that...


----------



## 7thswan

lexierowsell said:


> So glad your DH is ok!!
> 
> When I was working as a farrier my mentor insisted I wear steel toe boots (which I hate, make me feel clumsy and slow-- bad combination around horses...).
> 
> A horse jumped on my foot and collapsed the toe cap, trapping my foot. They had to cut it apart, on my foot. I was lucky, just had serious bruises and a few fractures in the top of the toes. I don't know if the it was the boot or not, but I've had horses stepping on me my whole life and nothing has ever hurt like that...


I have, heard the same," steel toes"even cutting off the toes. It's one of those things 6 against ,half a dozen.


----------



## MDKatie

lexierowsell said:


> So glad your DH is ok!!
> 
> When I was working as a farrier my mentor insisted I wear steel toe boots (which I hate, make me feel clumsy and slow-- bad combination around horses...).
> 
> A horse jumped on my foot and collapsed the toe cap, trapping my foot. They had to cut it apart, on my foot. I was lucky, just had serious bruises and a few fractures in the top of the toes. I don't know if the it was the boot or not, but I've had horses stepping on me my whole life and nothing has ever hurt like that...


Yikes! I've always heard (and been told) never to wear steel toe boots around animals, for exactly that reason!


----------



## susang

Well my knees are still knocking. My SIL just went off deep end. Screaming at me then going ahead of me slamming in my sons door threatening to rip him to shreads and his fiance. I was still in driveway. He was so out of it threatening to kill us my daughter was trying to stop him neighbors were asking if I was ok. I came in and got behind sons fiancÃ© then he turned around and came at me I stepped out in his face, I dont know why, scared and mad, mostly mad.
Our family isn't like this, but this SIL always goes there its so scary. He is crazy. I dont ever want to be around him again.
I will be so happy to get home on Friday.


----------



## 7thswan

Sorry Susan. Yesterday must have been a strange day. I had an interaction with a road rage nut, 3 cars back my dh saw the whole thing then the guy cut him off doing a U turn then came back arround again and followed him(dh) until he turned. Dh was worried the guy was after me.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

yikes 

Praying that the craziness comes to an end soon in everyone's lives. :facepalm:

I hope and pray that those that need help get it before they do something irreversible, destructive, and regrettable.

Friends, don't be afraid to CONFRONT crazy - and don't be afraid to call people on their bad behaviour -don't ignore it or hope it will go away - it won't. PLEASE hold people accountable for their crazy and do everything you can to help them get help - call in their friends, their family, start a file with law enforcement - but do not allow them to threaten you, your loved ones, or to spew their crazy all over you - or you will go crazy. 

Please be safe, be smart, and do all you can to remain healthy while the crazy rages all around you - but do NOT jeopardize your mental or physical health by pretending the crazy is not there. So sorry for all of you going through this carp. Life can be a challenge. 

On a lighter note - 

Y'all be careful out there!

* It is wicked cold today -our lowest temps this season.*


----------



## MDKatie

So, WIHH, does this mean I'm not allowed to complain about our wind chill tonight of -25?  Please stay warm, don't let any fingers or toes freeze off!


----------



## MDKatie

Oh, and for anyone who is bored in front of a computer today, you can check out the camera on my sheep in the barn. http://www.ustream.tv/channel/ewe-tube

Please note, I've had to set it up via a baby monitor plunked in front of my laptop, so it picks up sounds from the house, and my husband is home today. 

And I'm not sure when my ewes are due, but Darla is looking very close. She's the rounder of the two, if you can tell on the picture.


----------



## lambs.are.cute

I've always found that it hurts less to not wear boots when I'm around horses. I figure is because I'm in nice soft pasture and when im barefooted it just squishes down, but in a boot you are on a hard surface. The only problem with that is when they twist the foot picking it back up and scrape the top of mine....

Wihh you really need to move somewhere else before you freeze. I can recomend a few places that are warmer including Canada. :thumb:


----------



## lexierowsell

Brrr. I was complaining about 35* this morning too...


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

for those of you that think we don't have fun up here in the frozen northwoods, here is one of our weird cold weather science experiments from a few years back - blowing bubbles at -20ÂºF. Click on the bubble to watch the video.




and here is what a bubble frozen at -20ÂºF looks like when it pops. 










and we do stuff like this


----------



## Billie in MO

Ok , I won't complain about our piddling little 5 degrees then! 

No radiation today, machine down, so we just tack it on the end.

I get to see my grandkids tonight!! Daughter is making dinner and bringing it over. Been a few weeks and even tho we talk on the phone and the oldest one and I text each other it is not the same. Ready for this be over so I can have my girls back.

Shawl still on the loom, ugh. But my daughter will get to pick out what colors she wants for hers tonight. Promised to make her one as Christmas was pretty lousy since my surgery was just a few days before that. Have lots to catch up on when my energy comes back.

Oh and if any one needs any more crazies in their family, we will gladly hand over ours! Confrontations are coming and they won't like it one bit but for our safety/well being it has to be done. WIHH is right on the mark.


----------



## Kasota

Hello all! 

I am behind, so so far behind on everyone's posts. 

Hotzcatz, I think you should yarn-bomb those pipes!  

Lexi, I LOVE buttered steak.  

WIHH, Oh rats! I am so sorry about the results of your MRI. UGH. 

Debi, I am glad Shiner is doing better! I am so sorry about the work troubles for your sun. 

Cyndi - congratulations on paying off the farm!!!! WOOT! 

MDKatie, I hope his foot is okay!!!

MizMary - CONGRATULATIONS!!!! Yay!!!!

Susang, what a mess. Stay safe! I hope things settle down. 

Thank heaven's it's FRIDAY!!


----------



## Marchwind

Wow I miss do much in just a few hours. Such craziness Susang! MDKatie I'm glad your DH is going yo be okay. Everyone else take care of yourselves and those you love and care about.

It's been like old home week for he here in the Zoo. First I had a phone call from a woman I have talked to or thought about in years. Our kids were friends but she and I were more like aquantances. Mostly I felt sorry for her because she didn't have any friends, there is a reason for that. Well, apparently she ran into my son in Minnesota and he gave her my number :facepalm: I'll be having words with my son 

Then all this week we are hosting the USA curling Nationals here. Bemidji, MN was the hone of both the men's and the woman's Olympic metal winning teams. I've seen several people I know, one of which used to teach my kids in elementary school in Walker, MN, I also worked with her. What fun! Then I was contacted by one of my friends on Facebook who I've been following but not talked to in years. He used to work at the airport in Bemidji with me.

I have my spinning group meeting this morning. I can't wait, 4 hours of spinning and good friends. I'm just hoping our "chatty kathy" doesn't show up. I place myself in a corner and make sure I have good people around me. Maybe I'll take my iPod and be anti social, or just move to another room or leave and just come home to spin.

My kitty is doing well, the swelling if her eye has gone way down. No news on the biopsy yet. I'm trying to be matter of fact and the vet and I are hoping to gave a definitive answer.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Good morning all. Short day for me at work today. I threw my back out again last night so I could barely move this morning. I took some pills and went to work anyway. Bossman came in about an hour and a half later, saw how much I was in pain just from moving and walking, and called another guy who is kind of a substitute fill in when needed. I really do have a good boss.

Oh, and, I had a litter of rabbits born last night. This doe, we really thought she didn't take when we bred her. She should have had her babies last week, but never did. Then in the past couple of days she started building a nest out of hay and last evening started pulling fur. I would have thought it impossible that she could go this far past her due date, but from reading on a rabbit web site, it is uncommon, but it does happen. So now I have 6 baby frankenbunnies. Doe is a Holland lop cross, buck is a mini lop. Obviously, these are just pet bunnies, no show, no dinner plate.


----------



## Kasota

DBA, I am so sorry you hurt your back. UGH. Not fun. Congratulations on the bunnies! Woot! 

Marchwind, I hope your spinning group went well and that you had oodles of fun! 

I am tired and glad it is Friday and just wanna sleep for a week. I think I must be deficient in something. Maybe I need some vitamin D.


----------



## hercsmama

Kas, try adding some Iron and Magnesium as well. Did wonders for me!

DBA ouch on the back, but Yea! on the bunnies!

MW, hope all went well at your spinning meeting!

Tomorrow, Miss Kelsey and I have a Guild meeting to attend. Should be fun, we are going to do some stuff on a tri loom :thumb:.

We're also supposed to get snow, we shall see what happens.


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

My mom is coming to the guild meeting too!


----------



## susang

I'm home and so happy to be here. Although after the other night I feel like I left part of my heart behind. WIH what do you do when the crazy is in your family, I am forced to accept SIL behavior or not see my daughter. They are making me crazy, bringing me down and down right depressed. I feel my only solution stay away from daughter, sad but the only thing I feel I can do.
On a good note the trip down on bus was good, nice weather even saw an eagle on a tree along freeway.


----------



## Skandi

Susan, give it a break, some months off, it may not make things better when you see her again, but it should have refilled your patience/sanity.

Hubby was drinking last night, came to bed at 9am. Told me he had checked the chickens feed. Well I went out to get the eggs about 11am and I found the water knocked over, three eggs in the nestboxes and a broken and well crushed shell on the floor. grrs. I don't know if he stood on it, they laid it somewhere dumb and it fell off and broke(I found one in the oystershell yesterday) or one of them just liked egg. They had of course eaten it, but I know it was todays as the shell was still wet inside. The other three were untouched, so guess I just have to wait and hope it doesn't happen again.

EDIT: Just recieved a fb message that my MiL's 19 year old dog died yesterdaym she said she's burried where she can look out over her favourite field to be in. *cry* They've just built a chicken house, becasue we showed them our chickens on the way home, lols. (they have 12 limousine beef cows and two horses already) Oh and it's her birthday on the 28'th so we're invited for lunch, but we're also meant to be going to a 30th in the evening.. wouldn't be so bad if she didn't live one hour away and the other guy two.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

susang

abusive people abuse others (physically, emotionally, etc) because other people allow them to. 

*Don't be that person* and encourage your daughter NOT to be that person either. :nono:

You are NOT forced to accept that kind of behavior and neither is your daughter. :nono:

When someone is raging- you tell them in a calm voice that their behavior, language, etc is unacceptable and when they are calm, you will entertain a new conversation. But put an end to it. Leave if necessary- or - calmly, but firmly- ask them to leave. 

If they persist, call the police. 


In life, we get what we settle for.

NO ONE should allow them self to be a doormat. Your daughter has a choice to make. 

Your actions speak louder than words. If your daughter sees you allowing this bully to abuse and threaten you, then she will allow him to abuse and threaten her. :shrug:

If you confront him- in a letter? even, and you let him know in no uncertain terms that you will not put up for one more minute with his behavior- and demand an apology- then your daughter will see that she, too, deserves to be treated with compassion and respect. 

Your daughter has options and staying with someone that has threatened to KILL someone is no small matter and should not be ignored. :nono: It is a warning flag that cannot go unaddressed and unconfronted. 

Afraid to confront? Afraid of losing seeing your daughter? 

Consider the fact that we buried a 24 year old family member after her abusive husband brutally beat her, then strangled her to death. _Her _mother will NEVER see her again. 

I pray you find the strength you need to confront this...person.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

I agree, take a stand. I hate hearing the old, "he only acts like this sometimes. It's not his fault, i love him and he loves me"
No, that's wrong. I love my wife. Yes, we have had arguments and fights, but never once, never have I laid a hand on her, nor she to me.
Noone deserves to be beaten or abused, but I do have little sympathy for anyone who chooses to be in an abusive relationship when they have options to get out of it.
Show her and teach her that she has a way out, even if that way out is you sending her a ONE WAY bus ticket.


----------



## Marchwind

Agree with EVERYTHING WIHH said, couldn't have said it any better. Heed those rd flags especially if they are being waved madly in your face.


----------



## Kasota

Ditto what WIHH said! From someone who has been on the inside of an abusive relationship...those people who stand with you as you extricate yourself are true gold. 

One of the tactics of abusers is to isolate their target. Do not let him isolate your daughter, especially from you.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Dixie Bee Acres said:


> Show her and teach her that she has a way out, .





Kasota said:


> .those people who stand with you as you extricate yourself are true gold.
> 
> One of the tactics of abusers is to isolate their target. Do not let him isolate your daughter, especially from you.


It is very, very difficult when you are inside that type of relationship to actually see and believe there is a way out. 

Their minds have been manipulated so much that they truly believe what the abuser is telling them ... and it is scary when you are told that if you leave they will (a) kill themselves (b) kill you (c) kill your children (d) kill your family. 

Show her how to be strong. Reassure her that nothing will happen. Build her Up mentally.

Don't put down the abuser to her ... he probably already has her "programmed" that it is him & her against the world. 

It is very difficult to leave an abuser. I know folks that have never been in the situation find that very hard to understand, but it doesn't start with physical abuse ... mental abuse, conditioning, starts way before the physical altercations.


----------



## susang

Thank you all it means so much.
My daughter defends his actions, blames others for the way he acts. This was the worst situation, but he has had a gun in his hand and threatened to kill himself, in front of her kids. He had a knife once when hubby tried to stop him. She said he was sad. Police have never been called but should have been. I honestly think he is ???. The list of things he does because he is a ******* and it's ok is both silly and offensive. He has no respect for others minor or common values. One example he pees anywhere he wants, in our yard, parking lot, parking lot of little league field...he thinks it's his right. I tell you this because this is an example of us making him sad and argumentative. We can't tell him where he can or cannot pee, even our own yard.
We have banned him from our house I have asked not to have him included when we go up north to visit kids, but he comes anyway.
I worry about my daughter and grandson still at home. I was terrified that night when he drove the car in his out of control/crazy state.
We don't go up north again until Thanksgiving. I can't see us going if he will be at dinner. Time does not heal all wounds.


----------



## MDKatie

Remember I mentioned a frozen pipe the other day? :sob: It's not frozen anymore. We were away for several hours yesterday, and came home to the sound of gushing water. The pipe (upstairs) had burst, which flooded the ceiling of the main level, which then busted through the drywall and flooded down the stairs to the basement, and we found about 2-3" of standing water in our basement, plus drywall damage to much of the upstairs where the main damage occured. 

Now there are 2 huge holes of drywall missing from that area of the ceiling. Plus drywall in the bathroom, hallway, and stairwells will need to be replaced. All the carpet in the basement will have to come out, and the drop ceiling will too (as it was "raining" from the basement ceiling last night.

I cannot tell you the shock and horror I felt when we got home last night. This 33 year old called her Momma, sobbing, and luckily Momma helped me calm down and get an action plan together. 

Much of my soap business stuff got ruined. I'm not sure if the soap is still good or not. Most of my stash is ok though, and now I'm trying to dry what did get wet. 

These record breaking temps are just ridiculous. Serve Pro (the company that will handle the demolition of wet walls/carpet/etc said they have 200 calls in our area right now. Our homes just aren't built for this sort of cold!

I attached a few pictures.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Ouch! I feel sorry for you MDK, I've been there myself before.


----------



## Woodpecker

Hugs Katie.


----------



## Kasota

((((MDKatie))))) Oh, I am so so so sorry! What a horrible thing to have happen!


----------



## lexierowsell

Oh Katie. That's so horrible, I'm sorry. 

Maybe this will make you smile-

New twins! A pair of rams out of my favorite dairy ewe, Ella. 
















Unfortunately, Ella didn't take to the white one right away. Due to my absofreakinglutely terrible awful devastating lambing season so far, I decided to just pull him and make sure he stays alive.


----------



## Woodpecker

I really love pics of Lambies, thanks for sharing Lexi. Having it so cold here with so much snow your pics are really refreshing. They are also a reminder that spring will come for all of us eventually.


----------



## MDKatie

Aww, congrats on the lambs, Lexie! So cute! Going out to feed my animals is my little escape from reality lately. I'm just glad no lambs yet!! LOL. I have enough going on in the house right now, I am not quite ready to add lambs! It's going to be any day now, though.


----------



## Miz Mary

MDKatie,sorry to you for the hassle and (maybe) loss of soap stuff .... how frustrating !

Lexie, what breed are the sheep ? They look to be a nice size ...and SOOOOOO cute of lambies !

Susang, I _TOTALLY _ hear you ... I have a SIL that has been mean, thoughtless , gossipy, to the point that a legal "cease and assist " could have been placed.... and she is now saying my DH wasnt a legitimate son of my FIL and should not get any of his inheritance .... DH was raised since he was a year old by my FIL ..... crazy people ! PRAYER works best , for forgivness of our thoughts of bad in regards to these people.... and for these people to know God more and protect us from them !


----------



## lexierowsell

Miz Mary- these are my super-exciting-fleeces-on-the-hoof BFL x Rambouillet. They're great big babies for twins!

Here's a pic of the twin still on his mama with my two week old BFL x rambo twins this pm at night check.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Oh Katie, that is horrible! I pray your insurance does well by you.



susang said:


> My daughter defends his actions, blames others for the way he acts.
> 
> I worry about my daughter and grandson still at home.
> 
> Time does not heal all wounds.


Susang, 
It is a bad situation. You have to make a decision ... either chalk her off as dead or try to make a difference. Yes, that is harsh, but that is reality.

What ever you do, do NOT put down the abusive idiot. Do you remember any of her dreams or goals? Remind her of these things. Encourage her that she CAN do them. You need to build her up, give her the strength that has been taken from her. That is what they do ... they sap the strength of others to try to build themselves up. You need to give her strength back to her. Let her know she is worthwhile, intelligent, capable. Validate her in her dreams and goals. You may be the only person that can do this for her. Giver her your strength until she can find her own.

My journey through two abusive relationships would have been much shorter if my mother had done this for me ... but unbeknownst to me, she was battling her own abusive relationship.

Be loving, be kind, be supportive of Her dreams. You almost have to act like the idiot doesn't exist.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Timothy, It was good to hear your voice today ... why was it that you called just as Catherine (AverageJo) & I put down the premeditated massa-cree sweater?? Hate (no I don't ... Love) to tell you that I'm planning more massa-cree upon it. The arms are too long, so I'm going to frog back the yarn and use the extra for the button band. You'll barely recognize it when I'm done but it will be perfect for me and will probably replace my "Jacob's Coat" for my winter outerwear

You definitely need to spark an interest somehow for your sweaters in the North East. They have the bucks, they have the fashion to make it happen. Do your Peoria connections have connections???

Thanks for calling and being a part of our mortgage burning par-tay.


----------



## Skandi

Two loads of free wood coming today, FiL cut made a new chicken coop behind his cow barn, and had to cut down some trees, so he figured we would like it. I've not seen it but he says two trailors full, so that's about a cord just got to clear room in the big barn to put it, which is good as I need to do that anyway if we're going to store a years worth of wood in there to dry.

Chickens gave 5 eggs today, I'm waiting for the magic day where we get 6 from 6.. but 5 is excelent. So anyone got any good egg recipes!


----------



## hercsmama

Skandi, I'm a huge Fritatta fan. Just mix them up with whatever all you like, veggies, meats cheese, and dump in a nice hot pan, plop it in the oven and bake it off. Yummy!

Katie, I'm so sorry about you water disaster, what a mess.
Susan, lot's of good advice here. I too went through shall we call it a nasty time for awhile. Left the SOB unconscious on the floor, strange how that tv set just flew through the air straight at him as he slammed me into wall, I took our 2 yo daughter and finally walked out, I was barely 18 at the time, 'nuff said about that.
Support your daughter, just like Cyndi said, I'll be thinking of you all..

Lexie, loving on the lambs! So sweet.

Cyndi, WOOHOOO!!!!!! So happy for you guys on the mortgage payoff! Very nice.

I have no doubt I missed someone, hugs all around!

We got a light dusting of snow last night, nothing exciting.
Today marks the official 3 month point for Mollie and Mae with their pregnancies. They are starting to belly up, and Shiner is a very attentive guy. He nuzzles on them constantly, and always let them eat first. We will be pulling him out of there area in about another month. I have a feeling none of them will be happy, but it's best not to have him in there as the big event becomes imminent.
For those here that aren't on my FB, here's a few pics of the big guy and his girls. You can see how his poor face is healing up, poor guy.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Wow, Debi, you had described his face before, but I never expected it to look that bad, and especially while on the mend, i can't imagine it at its worst.


----------



## 7thswan

Lexi- I sure would like to have a couple of those Rambo X BFL wethers. Too bad you are so far away.


----------



## Marchwind

MDKatie so sorry this happened. It doesn't take much for pipes to burst, just a wee little crack can become chaos in no time. I hope your soap making things aren't damaged.

Lexi too sweet for words


----------



## lexierowsell

7th... There sure seems to be a railroad moving things up and down between us... ;-)

Right now I only have 3 males. I have two more BFL ewes left to lamb. As it stands, all these boys are staying intact til I see who is nicest. Also, they come from impressive dairy mamas, so may hold some value as hot-weather dairy rams. 

Doberman raised lambs are the best:









__
Sensitive content, not recommended for those under 18
Show Content


----------



## lexierowsell

Debi- I lamb with my ram in the pasture. He's actually my most reliable "tell" that the girls are close.


----------



## 7thswan

Here is a picture of a picture of my Rottie, Magic with one of my lambs. See the smile on his old face. He has been gone 10 years. I keep this picture on our reefer. His best bud was a turkey, I hatched out from a clutch out of a alfala field(mowing). I raised it in a box and Magic would get the turkey out of the box everyday and the 2 would greet me at the door when I came home from work.


----------



## lexierowsell

I'm sure this is how my Sunday will be spent!









(ETA- I'm about half way through my heel flap! Weeeeee!)


----------



## Billie in MO

Susang......so sorry you are having to deal with this. Everyone has given good advice. The only thing I will add is if you think the police need to be called, then call. We did, several times. However, you have to be prepared for them to turn it around and have the police called on you and false accusations made. That happened to us, too. The other is be careful of getting blindsided. That happened to me just 3 years ago, and it was done in a room full of people in a hospital room. Caught everyone off guard, not just me. Prayers and strength for you and your daughter.

My daughter has picked out the colors for her shawl. She actually likes two, one just a bit better than the other. Will make the one she likes best first and later I will make the other. Still have to get the current one off the tri-loom but my skin is giving me fits. Thought I would make it with only 6 more treatments to go but, no. Blisters, raw, stinging and painful. I am lathered up with Aquaphor which they gave me to use.

Love the pictures of everyone's little lambs. So cute and reminds me spring is on the way even tho there is snow on the ground!!


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

I enjoy seeing the lamb pics, especially the pics with dogs. I had to have my dog, father of the week old puppies, put down this past week.


----------



## lexierowsell

Oh no! So sorry to hear DBA. Was it expected or? 

Regardless, heartbreaking. 

<3


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Yeah, very heartbreaking, he was my buddy. Almost a year old, he met me at my truck every day when i came home from work, walked me from house to truck every morning.
I don't know what got into him, but in the last couple of weeks, he tore up the chicken pen fencing three times, killed several birds each time. He had never taken any interest before. That was bad enough, but I was trying to teach him to stay away from the pen. Then Thursday morning when my daughter was feeding him, she saw he had another dead chicken, she tried taking it away from him and he barked once and started growling at her. Scared her, ticked me off. That evening, I came home from work to find 6 more dead chickens, I yelled at him and took a bird away from him, he grabbed it back. I smacked him on his hip (open hand) yelled at him, NO!, and grabbed it back from him, he then growled at me and bit me.
Sorry, I loved my dog, but if he is going to kill our chickens, its time to find him a new home, but if he is going to get mean and bite people, well, I wouldn't feel right giving him to anyone else and didn't feel safe with him around my kids any more.


----------



## lexierowsell

Oh I'm so so sorry. You did right, IMO.


----------



## susang

DBA sorry for your loss.
Katie hope things go smoothly in repairs.

Lexie the lambs are cute overload.
The dog and lambs pictures to my heart.

A little secret about me, I like NASCAR so today is a big day. I have it recording as I may have to run some errands. When I get home it will be knitting, NASCAR and Dale Jr. all the way.:happy2:


----------



## Kasota

DBA, I am so, so sorry. I had a dog I had to put down for similar reasons. About broke my heart but it was the right thing to do. Someone was going to get hurt. I tried everything - even sending him to a trainer who specialized in aggressive dogs but it just didn't work. He got to the point where he would clear a 6 foot fence and go after anything that moved. I just couldn't take the chance anymore. 

I am trying to rest today. Feels like I am coming down with something. Can't warm up and everything aches. UGH. This has been a rough Winter for me getting sick. I never get this sick this often.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Kasota- I am having trouble getting warm today, too!  Of course, it was -22ÂºF and there are -35ÂºF wind chills. (Why would we go outside, you ask? Because the smoke alarm battery started beeping at about 5:00am this morning.  


So far, I have tried: 

Alpaca/wool slightly felted warmest socks I own- check.
Felted wool slippers- check.
Fleecey jammie pants- check.
Wool sweater- check.
1 heated rice bag-check.
1 heated flannel bag of buckwheat hulls-check.
Fleecey blankie wrapped around my feet with rice bag and buckwheat bag tucked inside with my tootsies - check. 

Cup of steaming hot pomegranite black tea- check. 
Homemade ginger snaps- check. 

Lapful of knitting, watching a bunch of old movies with my sweetheart- I feel better already. 

Feel better soon, Kasota. Wintertime is no time for your resistance to be down.

Love the lambie pics, lexierowesell and hugs for you DBA- its so hard to "make that call". Katie, I am so sorry for that destructive mess. Hang in there. This too shall pass.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Get some rest Kas, hot tea with honey and lemon



And a splash of bourbon


----------



## BlueberryChick

So much going on with you all!

Cute lambs, aggravating water damage (been there more than once- it WILL get fixed eventually), sickness, crazy people and difficult decisions--prayers for you all!

Andy (DH) has been sick the last couple of days, but is feeling better. He's sweet but much less cooperative than the children when I tell him to STAY PUT.

Also, if you could spare a prayer or positive thought Thursday, my daughter is having her wisdom teeth taken out. 

We have to drive into downtown Columbia, about an hour away. Not usually a big deal, but there's currently ice/freezing rain in the forecast for Thursday. After a mild winter, now we get ice?!


----------



## lambs.are.cute

Not fair sharing lamby photos. My lambing season started today and what did I get? Nothing. Not a darn lamb. I have two that are so wide the can barely walk and have to lay on a slope, and not lambs yet....... I told them it's not fair and all I got was increasingly hysterical demands that I top off their hay.


----------



## hercsmama

LAC, I still have almost 2 months to go, every time the girls see a human they go bonkers for food!
Eat like they have 12 stomachs and 15 behinds, crazy hormonal wenches.:hohum:


----------



## PKBoo

Hi everyone! Good thoughts and prayers for those who need it - been a rough winter. 

DH was traveling and brought home a nasty virus. Been in bed the last 3 days with a fever and terrible coughing. At least I could knit today. AND it slowed me down enough that I could catch up here!

Poor doggie - he's been so patient while his momma's been sick


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Hugs for all of you that are under the weather or caring for sick ones! 

BBC, safe travels and sunny weather prayers for the wisdom teeth extractions on Thursday. 

I finished some socks and posted the pics on the Current Projects page.  

http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/fiber-arts/532928-current-projects-february-2015-a-6.html

AND I just got started on the Rosamond socks- what a nice pattern!


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

PKBoo said:


> Hi everyone! Good thoughts and prayers for those who need it - been a rough winter.
> 
> DH was traveling and brought home a nasty virus. Been in bed the last 3 days with a fever and terrible coughing. At least I could knit today. AND it slowed me down enough that I could catch up here!
> 
> Poor doggie - he's been so patient while his momma's been sick
> View attachment 44592


Border collie? I love border collies.


----------



## Marchwind

DBA I am so sorry about your pup 

I had one like that, raised it from a wee puppy, he killed chickens, bit me and growled at me when I repremanded him. The last straw was that he would set up a trap for every other animal, cat and dog, in the house. He would take a bone or other high value item and place it where everyone had to walk by it. When they did he would attack, I caught him doing this and nailed him in an alpha roll and it did no good. I had to have him put down he was getting dangerous for the other animals and the people. It is still a sad day when you have to make those decisions. Hugs to you.

Safe travels BBC and good luck to your daughter.

Kasota hope you feel better soon.

Temps will start dropping tonight and we will be back into the negative numbers at night and singles to low teens in the day.


----------



## BlueberryChick

Ice is currently off the menu for Thursday! This time of year, weather changes so quickly. On Wednesday ant Thursday of the past week, we had lows in the teens and highs in the 30's. Yesterday and today, highs around 60.

Thanks for your good wishes for my daughter.


----------



## Woodpecker

Hugs and prayers to all who need them.

We got more snow yesterday, I estimate that I have 2' in my yard. At least it was warmer today than the last couple of weeks. I've been doing some embroidery on and off there's not too much I can do when we have all this ice.


----------



## lexierowsell

My day of doing nothing turned into a day of less nothing. With wee Lyndon at foot, of course. 









BEETS! 36 jars of beets, dug from our garden yesterday. 









The other twin, Grover:








These rambo x BFL lambs have the most gorgeous newborn fleeces. For those of you who haven't felt a newborn lamb, they feel more like a Brillo pad than a cotton ball. Not these 4! The BFL added length, but they've got all the crimp and fineness of the rambos. 

CANNOT WAIT FOR THE SPRING FLEECE!


----------



## lexierowsell

Just another dog laying on the rug...

This guys a total love.


----------



## Forerunner

Wow......

I don't get in here as often as I should.

Looks like life is running full blast for most of you....with all that entails....

Cyndi..... I could hear the two of you cackling and giggling......hence the timing of my call. 

Incidentally, frogging a sleeve cuff back for reconfiguration is fair game.
It's one of my favorite boredom killers. :bored:

I am compelled to at least TRY to do Lexie's cute-coma lamb pics justice.....so, my Lincoln had a healthy pair of little boy lamb fellers, and Lily rather took special notice of the white one......or vise versa.


.


----------



## Marchwind

Cute kids and lambs, what could be better on a Monday morning


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Lexie, your kitchen is absolutely drool-worthy. Gorgeous. 

My husband loves canned beets but I love PICKLED beets - so I do both.  But at the end of September when my harvest comes in. Where did you get fresh beets this time of year??!?!?!


----------



## BlueberryChick

Agreed--gorgeous kitchen! 

Remodeling our kitchen was on the Five Year Plan when we moved. It's moved to the Ten Year Plan and I may need to move it to the Fifteen or Twenty Year Plan. Eventually...

WIHH, I also like pickled beets, but I've never made them myself, only store bought.

And for the third or fourth time in about a month, the power is out. Grrr...


----------



## lexierowsell

Thanks ladies, Steve designed it. It's perfect, there is nothing I would change. I use every square inch of it at least 5 days a week. I figure if I've got it, I might as well wear it out, hahaha! The one before me didn't cook but from a package (!!!shockandhorror!!!) 

These were all pickled beets! We planted them in the fall, September I think, and started selling from that row in November. We want the row for spring stuff now, so we gleaned out the last of them, fed 50% to my critters and brought 40lbs in. We are debating wether or not to plant a spring row of beets right now.


----------



## lambs.are.cute

Had a scare last night. My 12 year old favorite ewe wasn't feeling well, didn't want to get up, didn't want to eat and she's due any time now....... This is the ewe from the first set of lambs I delivered by myself at the farm where I was learning about lambing (she was at work), and I raised her as a fair lamb. The person I sold her to heard the story and gave her to me for a breeding ewe and thus she became my first breeding ewe. She has been a stunning mother and adores babies, but is 12 years old now. The neighbors lambs set her off yesterday searching for her baby and she got really depressed that there wasn't one. And she's fat as a house and having trouble getting comfortable and getting up again. Anyway she got a shot of b and some quite time with me, and this morning she's bright eyed and perky enough to put the twerp ewe lamb in her place. She also was starving and willing took hay! Not safe yet as the lambs aren't here but better.......


----------



## lexierowsell

Great news LAC! Jingles for continued success!

Lyndon is ready to come do chores with me:


----------



## Skandi

Mmmm Pickled beetroot, I'm growing extra for that this year (Or I will be if that veg garden ever gets dug) I don't "can" as such. it's not done in the UK really or here in DK. However I do make a lot of jelly and pickles. anything where you're using sugar/acid to do the actual preserving for you. and in traditional danish food you eat a LOT of pickled things. they have a large type of cucumber called Asier that is only pickled. I really need to grow some of them this year, I made a similar thing using a marrow, but it wasn't quite as crispy.


----------



## lexierowsell

Little Lyndon didn't love the sleet and wind, so stayed in the workshop with dad while I fed the ewes. 

I had to get him back to the house when I was done, so...








He's such a good baby. <3


----------



## Marchwind

Lyndon is adorable. I think you should write a children's book about him.


----------



## MDKatie

Too cute, Lexie! 

LAC, good luck to your old gal! 

Just an update on the house. There is such a huge demand for Serve Pro (the clean up crew) that we're still waiting on them to come out. DH and his brother took out all the carpet and padding from the basement yesterday, and took down all the drop ceiling tiles. What a mess! Our insurance doesn't cover any mold at all, but it has been days since it happened and we are very concerned with getting any potential mold stopped before it starts. I was really hoping we could just pay the professionals to do it, but oh well! 

There's even an industrial dehumidifier for rent at the local rental store, so we may go ahead and rent that too, just to get everything dried out some more. 

I'm telling myself this is an adventure...we'll get to pick out new carpet and a new ceiling...this is fun, not awful. LOL


----------



## Marchwind

MDKatie do a search for mold experts in your area. There are places other than ServePro that do this sort of work. You can also find some great information on how to deal with and prevent mold from forming. While you wait educate yourself on what to do. Good luck I'm sure it is a huge mess as well as a huge headache.


----------



## Kasota

Hello, everyone! 

Lexi, the lamb pictures sure made my day. I had a horrible day at work and Lyndon was just the ticket to perk me up! (You're kinda cute, too, but not as cute as Lyndon.) :happy2: I love your kitchen, too. 

LAC, watch that she doesn't have pregnancy toxemia. This is way more common in ewes that are overweight, btw. Not sure if she is "big as a house" because of lambs or if she is a touch over condition. Either way, it's something to keep a very close eyeball on. http://www.sheepandgoat.com/articles/pregtox.html 

MDKatie - sounds like you are doing the right thing...get the wet carpet outta there and the wet ceiling tiles and cut out the wet drywall. Get fans in there and dehumidifiers. My heart just breaks for you. What a mess! (((hugs)))

Today I don't know whether I am coming or going but I'm sure thinking about my fiber family and keeping folks in prayers. Reading posts even if I don't respond. Life is just SO darn crazy. UGH. I have Friday off. Thank God.


----------



## PKBoo

Dixie Bee Acres said:


> Border collie? I love border collies.


DBA - he's an English Shepherd, so almost BC? But... he's not at all what I wanted in an ES. 

I got him as a 2-year old about a year and a half ago. I just didn't want to deal with the puppy stage, and the owner assured me that he was biddable and could move stock, which is what I wanted. He was low dog in a pack of 8 (breeders on site), so she said his potential was untapped....

Well, he's great with the critters, but it took a while for the 'herding' side of him to come out. And when it did, then he wanted to herd everything all the time! I've taken him to obedience class, and that helped, but he still does not listen like I want him too. GAM and WIHH - I wish you were closer!

I know I need to work on MY consistency. He does better when I carry treats in my pocket, and train train train. And he's very food motivated, which helps. Then I slack off, and he backslides into his old habits. And he's a barker, which drives me nuts!!!! 

I really think that he can't handle being the 'watchdog' of the place, and would probably do better with another more dominant dog here. He SHAKES all the time! Even after being here almost 2 years! The shaking has gotten significantly better, but he still does it more than I'd like.

But I love him to death. He's my constant companion, and rarely leaves my side (unless DH is cooking bacon downstairs haha!). This is a good reminder that I need to start the obedience stuff with him again - I'm half the problem!


----------



## GeorgiaGirl

Popping in to say hello. I am so behind on reading all threads! I've been on here for several hours and these 50 year old eyes of mine are getting blurry even behind glasses! 
Wanted to let everyone know I'm thinking about you, praying for you, happy for you, etc. Lexi.....you just about make me want to go to the barn and bring in a lamb. Haha.. I went out this evening to check on everyone and the little guys are becoming big guys. I believe they keep mom drained of milk. 
I've been knitting scarves and hats and printing off more patterns that I could possibly get to in years. LOL 
And the weather.............well.........there's nothing more perishable in my area than a forcast. Freezing one day, hot the next. I believe we have a wintry mix coming tonight. That would be a "Georgia" wintry mix. Haha.


----------



## lambs.are.cute

Kas I think she does have it. It's pretty early since I've been working with her since birth I can see pretty quickly when something is wrong. I needed to go to store to get the rest of the meds then she got treated. She was NOT impressed with me and fought, but Gatorade made it better.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Paula, you have to keep those ES busy with something. I have a 4 yo BC/ES & an almost 2 yo ES. 
The ES is my shadow. He loves to move the horses & cow ... and chase the birds out of the back yard into the barnyard ... haven't been able to convince him they are ok in the backyard.
He gets nervous when there are a lot of children about. I have to introduce him to each one.

My BC is pretty laid back ... so unlike a BC.

Katie, get a few fans going to help dry things out. They actually work faster than a dehumidifier.


----------



## MDKatie

Thanks Cyndi! We do have a big carpet dryer fan running, as well as the 2 dehumidifiers. Now that the carpet is out, it seems to be drying out pretty well. 

I've just about got all my yarn dried out. I have been taking the really wet stuff and winding (or unwinding, actually) it onto the swift to put it into hanks so it can dry out. That is so time consuming! I've got one more batch to do (about 10 skeins maybe) and then everything should be dry!

The only thing I had to throw out was a Jacob fleece. Kinda bummed about that, but hopefully I'll be able to get a replacement!


----------



## Marchwind

You could try drying your yarn in a super low over too. It work, believe me, just don't forget it's in there . I know about that too


----------



## hercsmama

So, dh is at the VA today. He is getting all his intake stuff done, so that it will be one less thing we ever have to do, should we ever need to use them.
Our kids will never have to go through the almost 3 years of grief I did trying to get Daddies stuff taken care of.:happy2:
I'm chasing Colton around here for a bit. He woke up with the sniffles, so oldest ds decided to keep him home from "school" today. So he and LaLa have baked cookies, and chased sheep. Then I let him drive the tractor about the top pasture for a bit. He is only 2 1/2, so we just go in circles a lot.:hobbyhors

He's having a nap now, and I'm catching my breath! There is a reason God gave me my kids in my 20's, holy moly. Keeping up with a 2yo is not for the faint of heart, lol!

I did have a buyer come by earlier, and pick up 3 of my Barbados wethers. Hate seeing them go, as I hand raised these boys. But it is what it is, and I certainly can't keep them all as pets. He offered to save back the hides for me, so I said I'd love to have them back. I'll give tanning them a go, hopefully it works, and I don't ruin them.:huh:
Off to get a bit of knitting time in before the grandson wakes up!
Take care all!


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

My 2yo ES, Newt










And first pic of my new granddaughter, Amelia Josephine.








,


----------



## lexierowsell

We finished cataloging and organizing our book collection this evening. 

483 titles. 

I now know what subjects and genres are poorly represented! Only about 40 titles are fiction. 

We love books. 

We've both kept all of our important text books from college, but mostly our collection is from the last several years as we began farming and pulling out of the mainstream. 

I set aside 3 shelves for fiber books, and I only managed to fill a third of one shelf! I need more books (suggestions, go!) to keep the shelves for myself!


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Color in Spinning -Deb Menz
Alden Amos Handspinning
Spinning for speed & softness -paula simmons
Spin control -amy king
Intentional spinner -Mackenzie mccuin
Spin to knit -shannon okey
Your handspinning -elsie davenport


----------



## hotzcatz

"A field guide to fleece" or the larger version "fleece & fiber source book". Tells you what to expect when spinning different fleeces and they cover most of the major breeds of sheep and other fiber critters.


----------



## MDKatie

Good news, all my fiber is now dry!!! Whew. I was so worried when this happened, but everything is safe and dry in the storage unit at the moment. 

One thing I need to think about, is how I'll store it from now on. I had some Expedit shelves from Ikea, and it was tricky to store on those, because the yarn wasn't easily "stackable" and I couldn't use the shelves to their fullest potential. 

I was thinking about those wire shelves you can stack/connect together. I'm also thinking I should keep everything in plastic bags or bins. 

I just can't decide what I'll do. Any suggestions would be welcome!

Our insurance adjuster is due to meet with us at 7 on Saturday morning so we can go over stuff and she can take stock of the damage. Yay, progress!


----------



## Kasota

I recently got the Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook and really love it!


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

I like the 4-harness weaving draft book, The Handweaver's Pattern Directory. I think they have an 8 harness book too. 
Favorite Scandinavian Projects to Weave. 
Big Book of Weaving
Anything by Peter Collingwood that you can find for a reasonable price. 
I got an app for my phone recently called libib. You can scan in the barcode or type in the ISBN of your books, or if those don't exist you can manually add each books info. Then you always have your list of books with you! And it catalogues them for you. I've been slowly getting all of my books scanned in. I'm about a fifth of the way done.


----------



## lexierowsell

Kelsey- I use CLZ. Had libib and iBookshelf and had problems with both. Be sure to back up your db, I was 250 books in the first time it crashed and emptied itself...

I have "The Handweaver's Pattern Directory" and "The Big Book of Weaving". Will look for Peter Collingwood and project books! 

Cyndi- I found all of those books (except intentional spinner which I already have, and Color in Spinning which was $40+!) for less than $5 each! 

Hotz- I have the field guide! Anyone know if it's worth having both?


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

A couple more for you

The Weaving Spinning & Dyeing Book - Rachel Brown
Hands on Rigid Heddle Weaving - Betty Linn Davenport
Learning to weave - Deb Chandler
Spin to Weave - Sara Lamb (also a DVD)
Natural Dyes & Home Dyeing - rita J Adrosko
In sheeps Clothing - Fournier
Warping all By Yourself - Garret
Weaving without a Loom - Burningham
Respect the Spindle - Franquemont
The Care & Feeding of Spinning Wheels - Karen Pauli

and some fun ones

"It Itches" a stash of knitting cartoons - Franklin Habit
This is how I go when I go like this - Linda Collier Ligon


----------



## BlueberryChick

Kasota said:


> I recently got the Fleece and Fiber Sourcebook and really love it!



My daughter gave me this book for my birthday last year. It's a great resource.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Cyndi, congrats on the new little granddaughter in progress! And love her name, too - will this be Punky's baby sister? 

Those photos are JUST amazing - you can see what they are going to look like - just...a miracle.


----------



## lexierowsell

We started our permaculture experiment last fall. Planted trees (nearly 200) all winter, sprinkled out any extra seeds every time we planted in the "real gardens".

Today we ate a whole meal from it, for the first time. 









Spinach, speckled trout lettuce, red lettuce, arugula, bloody dock, snow peas, snow pea tendrils and flowers, dragon carrots and tops, dandelion flowers, hen bit flowers, parsley, bronze fennel, thinly sliced raw turnips, pickled zucchini and onion relish, pickled beets, homemade vinaigrette, and cracked pepper.

Best. Salad. Ever.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

No, WIHH, Amelia is son & DIL's first child. She is 23 weeks in utero.
I also saw 3D images ... 

Lexi, that looks & sounds delish!


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Lexie, is there anything like the satisfaction that comes from enjoying the fruits of the sweat of your brow?

Love it. 

Though we don't grow any of our own meat, we do eat mainly our own venison and fish, and we have a good garden in the summertime and a few fruit trees. We can and dehydrate and freeze our bounty so that we can enjoy our garden all year long and we keep potatoes, pumpkins and squash and onions in our basement root cellar. 

We also really enjoy "foraging for wild edibles"- like chokecherries, wild blueberries, raspberries, purslane, lamb's quarter and _especially_ wild mushrooms.


----------



## lexierowsell

Lyndon helping me pick snow peas. 








My milk moos love any baby. Felix (in the background) loves any food.


----------



## lexierowsell

Wow WIHH! Beautiful!


----------



## Skandi

I love the idea of a food forest, but I just can't get my head round how it works. put a tree in here even a heavily pruned fruit tree and you can't grow jack under it. not enough light. you could (if I were not on chalk) manage some blueberries maybe a raspberry or three but they wouldn't produce much down there, better to put them on their own in the sun. 
And all your greens makes me jealous! my dandylions are just about coming back up. not even the nettles are over an inch high yet. about all there is out there is watercress, and that grows all winter as the water comes straight from a spring so is always about 11C.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Two weeks old today


----------



## Woodpecker

Nothing better than puppies and lambies! It was finally warmer here so I got to chop some of the ice. Lorretta was in the nest box so she will lay any day. I'm praying to St. Brigid that she dosen't break it this time. My poor doctor is the only one who hasn't gotten an egg. St. Brigid is the patroness of poultry farmers and other things.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

G'mornin all.
It snowed again sometime after 8 last night, not much, maybe an inch or so. Regardless, I'm sick of snow and cold weather. Yesterday it was sunny and 17*, its sad when that feels like a heat wave.
I know it could be worse, I could live in Boston, but, in any case, I'm tired of winter, ready for spring.


----------



## hercsmama

Dixie, you are so preaching to the choir here :bored:. I'm just getting to that point where I am so over it.
Come on Spring!:nanner:
If we lived closer, I'd have to arm wrestle you for that little brown and white guy, so sweet. I already have 5 dogs, so what's one more at this point? Beside Maggie and Murphy are so good with any baby, I'm sure they would just lover him to death..ah well. Just as well as Mags will be having a litter of her own by the end of summer.
Woke up to 1* outside with a wind chill of -26*, not Mini-so-tah temps for sure, but cold enough for this Texas transplant. It's supposed to be nasty cold for the next few days, and then snow, snow, snow, this weekend and into next week. 
Think I'll work on getting seeds started, at least that'll make me think warm thoughts..

OH! almost forgot, Kas, that tiller I got from you last fall? Runs amazing!! New carburetor, and a few other little tweeks, and it is off to the races!
Thanks again so very much!:kiss:


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

That brown pup has been named little buster. She is female, but looks absolutely like the father, Buster, who was my dog that had to be put down last week.
If you lived closer, she would be yours.


----------



## hercsmama

Dixie Bee Acres said:


> That brown pup has been named little buster. She is female, but looks absolutely like the father, Buster, who was my dog that had to be put down last week.
> If you lived closer, she would be yours.


Whoops! Sorry Little Buster!
I really need to start wearing my reading glasses more.:happy2:


----------



## kandmcockrell

I know this is not a lot of snow for some of you, but here it is. My poor DH is so sick of it. Everytime it snows he has to go shovel out the boats so they don't sink.


----------



## Marchwind

Congratulations MLF on the new grand daughter!

Lexi Lyndon is so darn cute. Will you ever be able to part with him?

DBA I want to snuggle those puppies and smell their puppy breath and listen to them grunt.


----------



## lexierowsell

Lyndon is likely here for life. I'm deciding about castrating him. I have pretty extensive experience with intact males in a breeding environment, and he is really a neat cross of my best sheep. Ahhhh. Decisions decisions...


----------



## MDKatie

Just my $.02 (which was totally not asked for :happy2, but I wouldn't keep a bottle baby ram ever....they tend to get nasty because they're too friendly. BUT, YMMV. :happy2: I love that picture of him near the lush green veg!! I'm so jealous. I'd like to see green stuff about now!

We've got a couple more inches of snow. Now you can't see the layer of ice where you walk, so you've got to be super careful! 

Our plumber is coming back tomorrow to fix the broken pipe. It'll be nice to have the 2nd bathroom again. It's no fun walking downstairs in the middle of the night to use the bathroom....I can't imagine having an outhouse! 

And how cute are those fat puppy bellies?! 

Congrats on your granddaughter, Cyndi! What an exciting time!

WIHH, those mushrooms look beautiful and delicious!


----------



## lexierowsell

MDKatie said:


> Just my $.02 (which was totally not asked for :happy2, but I wouldn't keep a bottle baby ram ever....they tend to get nasty because they're too friendly. BUT, YMMV. :happy2:



I wouldn't have mentioned it if I weren't willing to receive advice ;-).

My question to you is this- have you ever had a bottle ram that turned mean? I own one, a two year old, who is sweet and respectful, even in full rut. I never forget he's a ram, but I met his father and grandfather when I bought him, and they were lovely too. Also, almost all the dairy bucks (goats) are bottled. I just wonder if it's a matter of handling, like with a stallion. He's a horse (sheep) first, then a male. Treat him as such.

It's not to sound snarky, I'm sorry if it comes off as such, I so hate to waste this guys genetics, and he's so.dang.sweet!


----------



## lexierowsell

Can't edit my orig-- both sire and grandsire were bottled as well, by the breeder.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Yay for fixed pipes!!

We got another 3"-4" yesterday afternoon/overnight. Thankfully it is light, dry, powdery snow so shoveling is easy. Good thing because Paul left yesterday morning and won't be back until Sunday (or Saturday if the new snow front moves in as predicted).

He made things so easy for me, what a sweetheart! Barn chores take about 15 minutes, even with chopping ice in the waterer ... he has already filled buckets of feed in the tack room for the poultry and brought down hay bales so I don't have to climb into the loft. He brought enough wood into the house to last me through at least Saturday morning.

I know Spring IS Coming ... last week I saw a flock of robins ... very unusual in February AND I swear to bob I heard the call of a red-wing blackbird. They usually don't show up until April, well after the robins.

I'm still working on the Inlay socks. One sock is finished & I have 18 rows of gusset/foot finished. I love the look of this pattern but it is a slow pattern to knit ... mostly 2 stitch cables & I'm using size 000 needles. I put them down for a short while yesterday and made myself a new hat from handspun using a modified Lomond pattern.


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Size 000!??!?!?!?!? are you a crazy woman!?!??!?!?! 

I cannot even begin to imagine. Huh-uh. :nono: No way. 

Your Paul is a good man, Cyndi -but you already knew that.  Just be careful without your good man there. Be twice as careful as always. 

Glad your snow was the light and fluffy stuff. I see we are looking at (more) snow on Tuesday. :0


----------



## MDKatie

lexierowsell said:


> I wouldn't have mentioned it if I weren't willing to receive advice ;-).
> 
> My question to you is this- have you ever had a bottle ram that turned mean? I own one, a two year old, who is sweet and respectful, even in full rut. I never forget he's a ram, but I met his father and grandfather when I bought him, and they were lovely too. Also, almost all the dairy bucks (goats) are bottled. I just wonder if it's a matter of handling, like with a stallion. He's a horse (sheep) first, then a male. Treat him as such.
> 
> It's not to sound snarky, I'm sorry if it comes off as such, I so hate to waste this guys genetics, and he's so.dang.sweet!


 You didn't sound snarky at all! When I got into breeding goats, I was shocked at how friendly the bucks are/were, because my experience was with rams and all of the rams I have known personally had the tendency to be buttheads (ha!). 

When I was in college, we had several rams on the farm. One was a Montadale...300+ lbs of jerk, and he would go out of his way to butt you! He got me several times, and he got my boss REALLY hard one day, totally out of the blue. The other ram was a Suffolk, and he wasn't as bad, but you still had to keep your eye on him. 

Then I got my own Suffolk. He was fine as a lamb, but once he got older he turned into a jerk. Then I had a Katahdin ram for a short period, and he was a yearling and just starting to show signs of potential jerkiness. 

We did have a few rams that were respectful, but it was because they were scared of us and didn't want to be close to us, or they were too young to really get the full effect of their hormones.

Bottle baby rams are super friendly, but as they get older that friendliness turns into cockiness, and then meanness, especially after breeding season when they get bored. 

If you really like this guy's genetics, you could always keep him for a season or two. Likely he won't be a jerk as a lamb, but can still sire lambs for you. If he ever starts getting mean, then ship him or have him butchered. Some rams can seem totally nice when you meet them or only see them once or twice, but once they get comfortable with you, look out. 

So, I've never had a bottle baby ram that turned mean, simply because I've never kept a bottle baby as a ram!


----------



## Woodpecker

Lexi Lyndon dosen't look too happy that you took a pic of him in his diaper. I love the pic were he is in your jacket! 

Congratulations on your new granddaughter Cyndi! 

Not much going on here it's much colder than yesterday. I plan on rendering some lard later for the suet cakes I make for my woodpecker friends. No egg from Lorretta yet but she was in the nest box. She was outside yesterday and had a good dust bath. It was much warmer yesterday close to 40o. I am so sick of snow and ice that I ordered a mood light bulb from Vermont Country Store. This weather is really starting to have negative effects on me mentally. I need to be outside! Oh well only a few more days of Febuary.


----------



## Marchwind

I've heard the very same thing as MDKatie from my sheep breeder friends. One in particular had Shetland and the Rams had very impressive horns and they knew how to use them when they wanted to. She would let us pat them and Oooooo and Ahhhhh over their fleeces all we wanted but it had to be through the fence. They were nice as could be, very sweet. The told a few horror stories about bottle baby Rams who got too friendly, had no respect (even though she did), and how dangerous a situation it could be. She was a very small woman so maybe that had something to do with it. Maybe having horns made them more "rammy", I don't know but I have heard that a bottle baby ram is NOT a good thing to keep for breeding purposes.


----------



## lambs.are.cute

I worked on a farm with a bottle baby Suffolk ram. He was extremely dangerous and weighted about 400 lbs. she kept him for a couple of years, and it was scary enough I wouldn't feed with in two fences of him. By 6 months he was hitting fences when you walked by. When turned in with the ewes he broke one of the ewes legs, and was almost constantly beating up the girls. He bent a welded wire cattle panel well staked and wired in half, and almost took out a barn door. By the way none of this was going on while he was bottle fed, it only showed up after weaning. He died hitting a 12x12 barn support post..... 

Was it because he was a bottle lamb or was it because he was crazy. No idea. It was enough that I'm still terrified of Rams to this day.


----------



## lexierowsell

Thanks for your inputs ladies. The thing that makes me question is this: I can, from personal experience, swap the word "stallion" into almost every one of these stories. Ad every single one was a handling issue. These horses were ruined by people who didn't handle them like horses, just big bad "stallions".

Another thing that I'm considering is that Lyndon is dairy bred. The dairy ewes, does and cows (I have all of them on my farm) are *SO* different than other sheep, goats and cows. My other bottle ram, that I purchased in, is also dairy bred. 

My jersey bull was a FINE example of poor handling, and now he's in my freezer (see above beef).

Maybe I'll consider it an eyes-wide-open experiment, see for myself if it's nurture vs nature ;-)


----------



## hercsmama

Hmmm. My shiner was a bottle baby. They just don't come any sweeter than the Big Guy.
Of course he was also trained for showing, I don't know, he's the only bottle ram I've ever met, and if I had to make a decision on bottle rams using him as my example, I'd bottle 'em all!:happy2:


----------



## lexierowsell

I was hoping you'd chime in Debi! Shiner is a mature, well-used breeding ram. 

Also, I forgot to mention it earlier, but Lyndon is polled (not sure that it matters, but fyi)


----------



## hercsmama

Shiner is polled now, but he had horns when he was born, and his sons will have them too. Unless we have them removed, as his were..


----------



## lambs.are.cute

I agree most of the problems are handling issues (the animal I mentioned was NOT). It would be interesting to know how it works out if you do keep him as a ram. 

What I have found to be the most effective with bottle lambs is to have him with the flock for a while when he gets sturdy on his feet, teaching him how to be a sheep. It makes for a better adjusted, more relaxed animal. I personally create a creep area (the only time I do) that is the bottle lambs personal space. The other lambs can come and go but mostly the feed with their mothers and come to play. This is a safe zone that the BB can escape when they anger a mother but otherwise they are out with the flock 24 hours a day. I have done this for years and have no injuries. The babies quickly learn not to tease the ewes, and the ewes are pretty gentle with the really young babies where they wouldn't later on. As a side note you do want to watch the ewes for the first year, the could kill the babies.


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Care if I post another baby critter picture?
Will be one week old tomorrow.


----------



## BlueberryChick

I love reading about sheep care. The amount of experience on this board constantly amazes me.

My daughter came through her wisdom teeth removal today. She seems to be pretty comfortable, just groggy from the medication. I couldn't believe how fast it was. The appointment was for 10 this morning. We got there about 20 minutes early and they took her back right away. By 10:07, they were done and I was able to go back and sit with her. 

She was really wobbly for a while, and even sick to her stomach. The doctor quickly gave her an injection for the nausea and she felt much better. They couldn't have been nicer and even noticed my hand knit sweater!

I'm planning to sleep upstairs in a chair near her, in case she needs something during the night. Hopefully, she'll be back to her usual self in a few days.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Dreamy, Loretta would love a piece of the suet cake!


----------



## MDKatie

lambs.are.cute said:


> I worked on a farm with a bottle baby Suffolk ram. He was extremely dangerous and weighted about 400 lbs. she kept him for a couple of years, and it was scary enough I wouldn't feed with in two fences of him. By 6 months he was hitting fences when you walked by. When turned in with the ewes he broke one of the ewes legs, and was almost constantly beating up the girls. He bent a welded wire cattle panel well staked and wired in half, and almost took out a barn door. By the way none of this was going on while he was bottle fed, it only showed up after weaning. He died hitting a 12x12 barn support post.....
> 
> Was it because he was a bottle lamb or was it because he was crazy. No idea. It was enough that I'm still terrified of Rams to this day.


He should have been sent to freezer camp as a lamb! 

I'll disagree it's handling, because in my case I know how to handle them (that sounds cocky, but I really just mean I'm not a novice) and I've had some turn out to be jerks and some turn out not. I've had rams that have been totally ignored be fine, and some mean. I've had rams that were show sheep be fine, and some be mean. 

Perhaps breed has a lot to do with it. Not sure. In the case of dairy bulls, they have an overwhelming tendency to be total jerks and VERY dangerous. Beef breeds, as a general rule, are WAY calmer and less dangerous. Jerseys are notoriously the worst breed as far as bull behavior goes. 

I say just see how it goes with him. Perhaps he'll be the exception to the rule...but there are generalizations for a reason. :happy2:


----------



## BrownYaks

I have one former bottle baby ram who is a real turd but I've talked to other people who haven't had issues. It just really isn't something I have the desire to invest my time and money in since it might not work out. 

If you have the time and don't mind butchering him if does become an issue I would say go for it.


----------



## lexierowsell

BrownYaks said:


> ... And don't mind butchering him if does become an issue ...



And that ^ is why I'm uncertain about trying. I absolutely do mind butchering something that I've raised like this. I am going to talk to Steve, see if keeping a fiber wether is in the books ;-), and hope for another nice one next year.


----------



## MDKatie

lexierowsell said:


> And that ^ is why I'm uncertain about trying. I absolutely do mind butchering something that I've raised like this. I am going to talk to Steve, see if keeping a fiber wether is in the books ;-), and hope for another nice one next year.


Another option would be to simply have him castrated if he becomes rude. If he's young enough, you may be able to band him...but if he's mature, the vet could do a vasectomy. But maybe he could be a very valuable wether to keep around as a companion for a ram.


----------



## lexierowsell

Wrt my jersey bull- we had tenants who put their chow cross out to "play with the bull" everyday for a few weeks. He forever acted like a psychotic chow. He wasn't mean, ever, but was always... Well, like a rough disrespectful dog. I will never have another bull on this property, just not laid out for a Mac truck with hormones.


----------



## Kasota

I am so far behind on reading threads and catching up with people. My work life has been brutal. 10 hour days, day after day. Hopefully soon it will slow down. I am about done doing User Assisted Testing for our new program. Then maybe I can breathe. I have a team of 4 people testing plus meeting with the project manager and the techs and compliance and so on and on. Soon... sooon... it will be better.

Wow Cyndi!!!! Just look at that little sweetpea!! ((((hugs)))) Congratulations! 

Lexi, I am so sorry you have to buy more yummy fibery books... LOL!!!! I love the Lyndon pictures!! So smoochable! 

MDKatie - so glad the fiber is dry!! Wooot!!!!! 

WIHH - those shrooms are awesome! I don't know enough about shrooms to gather them. I would probably poison myself. 

DBA - those puppies are soooo cute! 

WP, I hope you get an unbroken egg! 

Debi - I am SOOOO glad the tiller is working well! I LOVED that tiller when I had her. She saved me many many hours of work. She sure is an "off to the races" sort. LOL!!! 

KandM - you sure did get some snow!! Look at you lookin' like a Christmas postcard! 

My apologies for missing people... 

I am off work tomorrow. Yay! I can sleep in and maybe work on moving some sewing room stuff around or something... or maybe nothing... yeah that's it...maybe I will just sleep and knit.


----------



## Kasota

Lexi - I gotta agree on bottled rams being a danger. It may be that given his sire and grandsire that you have a more gentle attitude coming in the genetics. So you could try it, but egads be careful. Some things are simply game changers and the risk of getting hurt isn't worth it. JMO. If I was going to keep him I would get him castrated, regardless of the genetics, but that is just me.


----------



## Woodpecker

MullersLaneFarm said:


> Dreamy, Loretta would love a piece of the suet cake!


Thanks Cyndi, I was hoping you'd chime in. I wasn't sure she could have lard.


----------



## Skandi

MDKatie said:


> Perhaps breed has a lot to do with it. Not sure. In the case of dairy bulls, they have an overwhelming tendency to be total jerks


over in the UK you can have a beef bull in a field with a public right of way but it is illegal to have a dairy bull in a field with one. 

down where my mother lives there is a dairy herd with a lovely bull in there, hes a hereford I think and their holstines. the worst he will do is steal your sandwiches.. or blackberries, depending on the time of year.


----------



## 7thswan

I had a corridale ram, he was awful, but he learned after I smacked him a couple times with my aluminum baseball bat. I kept it by the gate, I had to go thru there to get to my horses. He would see me and turn hishead sideways and squint his eyes-remembering the "feeling". I had to teach him,he could have broken my leggs. Have had a Iclandic ram-he was nice and now have a Shetland ram, nice also. I worked with many stud horses, Standardbreds on breeding farms. I have always done best with stud horses, I think it's because I demand respect and always act as the alpha,which ofcourse is like working with dogs. I have never cut a male dog , it's work but you can get them to understand who's boss-no matter what.We raise beef, we have never cut any of them and the bull always stays with the cows year round. We did once raise a herford bull, loaned it out and it escaped to breed another farmers cows. Bunch of us got together and kept him from going to the other farmers and got him in a barn. He snapped, went full nuts crazy. The butcher shop made room for him asap.
Any how, I'm telling this because I think that somewhere along the line a male will misconscrew all the attention and kindness if it isn't put into perspective right away when the male reaches that point where he thinks he is the boss,but you have to be the boss in small ways eyeryday. Some never push it,some never stop.


----------



## lexierowsell

Exactly. My big rambo ram, Washington easily doubles my weight, and has a 48" rack. I never let him step to me, he doesn't come around when I'm fussing the girls etc etc. 

I am a horse person, and have worked with everything from ponies to draft horses, farm mutts to $150k warmbloods. I also have always preferred stallions. 

Regardless, the reality is that I don't want to MAYBE have to destroy him, because it would kill me. My lambing season has been so devastating that I think a loss that I've saved would break my last heartstring.


----------



## hotzcatz

Another good reason for bunnies! A feisty English angora buck is all of five pounds.


----------



## hercsmama

Lexie, my experience with bottle raised animals has just been so different from most peoples. With the exception of Alpacas and Barbados Rams. Bottle raised Male Alpacas are all certifiable! They are just WAYYYYY to much to deal with. Psychotic you know whats, every last one I've ever encountered. As to the Barbados, every ram I've ever met was just flat out mean, after about age 3, regardless of how it was raised.
Then again, I've dealt with plenty of bottle Bulls over my life, and never had issue with any of them. Mind you, my family raised Herefords back in Texas, and we have a few here as well. We also have 6 Hereford bulls that live in our back pasture every year, all good guys.
Would I turn my back on them? No, but they keep a good distance when I'm out there, and don't harass the sheep, or the 'Paca boys, or the dogs for that matter.
You'll figure it out. 
Cyndi, CONGRATULATIONS!!!:nanner: Aren't those 3d pics amazing?
Kas, hopefully you get a bit of rest today.
DBA, baby bunnies are just to cute, almost as cute as little brown puppies...


Well now, it's -7 right now, and that's without the wind chill.
I have an appointment this morning, about an hour away. Can't tell ya'll what for yet, as I haven't made a decision about it. But I'll fill you in after. Could be a fun and exciting little something, if I decide to do it.
Then a quick run to the grocery store and feed store for dog food, and home to finish my second sock for the KAL.

Everyone stay warm!


----------



## 7thswan

lexierowsell said:


> Exactly. My big rambo ram, Washington easily doubles my weight, and has a 48" rack. I never let him step to me, he doesn't come around when I'm fussing the girls etc etc.
> 
> I am a horse person, and have worked with everything from ponies to draft horses, farm mutts to $150k warmbloods. I also have always preferred stallions.
> 
> Regardless, the reality is that I don't want to MAYBE have to destroy him, because it would kill me. My lambing season has been so devastating that I think a loss that I've saved would break my last heartstring.


I totaly understand. I have this new rottie pup he will be 6 months march 1. He is starting to push it with my older 3 dogs (2 rotties and a golden). I will not let him try to dominate. I love these guys too much.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Yay!! I did it!! Just ordered a Bulky WooLee Winder for the Traveller!!!


----------



## MDKatie

Happy Friday, everyone!!! :bouncy: This time next week I'll be driving down to the Outer Banks for my knitting retreat!!! 

AND, plumbing to the upstairs bathroom is fixed! That's a small step, but it's in the right direction! Yay! 

Hope you all have a fabulous day!! If you could please send some "lamb now" vibes to 2 of my ewes, that'd be great. They're very close, and I want them to lamb before I have to leave next week!


----------



## BrownYaks

That is great reason to wether him then and completely understandable. and if you need help convincing your husband just think that we have a 7 year old ewe that has never lambed, that jumps every fence on our place, isn't very friendly, and has crappy wool, but we haven't gotten rid of her just because she has a name

In our defense my sister would be a little ferious if we ever did get rid of her as she is one of the two my sister claims as "hers".


----------



## Kasota

Hello, all! Happy Friday indeed! 

I got the post office and mailed off some things that needed mailing. WIHH - sorry for being SO slow getting that dvd back to you! Mailed off my "secret project" today. Had hoped to get it mailed off on Monday when I mailed the scarf swap but I didn't have a box for it...took a little sleuthing to find one. But it should arrive on Thurs of next week. 

Now I am going to take a nap.


----------



## hercsmama

:nanner:
Have I got one for ya'll!
Guess who is the new "Spinning Lady" at the Pioneer Village Museum in Minden Nebraska? I'll wait while ya'll guess.:bored:

















LOL!! Yeppers me!
Went down there this morning to talk to the man who runs it. Basically he wants me there 20-30 hours a week. They have a wheel I can use, if we don't get along I'll bring one of mine. They also want me to supply my own fiber, but the huge upside is that I can sell anything I want to that I spin! Not to mention I can sell all the unspun fleece I want, and finished projects!:happy2:
They are also looking for a weaver, same deal for them when they find one.


----------



## SvenskaFlicka

It's you!
Do you need a historical dress? Lol
You know, that is what got me started on spinning. I saw a lady spinning at Pioneer Village when I was little, and knew I really wanted to do that!


----------



## hercsmama

I asked about dressing up, and he said it would be great, but not necessary, I'm going to as I think it will be fun.
I found a top I think will work, but need to find a simple long skirt, and I'm thinking a long apron, tied at the waist....as I am a barefoot spinner, I'm not to stressed about shoes, lol!
Kelsey, the lady you saw was the Mangers mom. She has been the Spinning Lady there for the last 42 years. Bless her heart, she passed away this past fall. I have seriously big shoes to fill!


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

how exciting! I am 30 miles from 3 historical villages that do not staff their facilities with reinactors. What a shame. Without reinactors, these buildings are just lifeless, empty, silent buildings. 

I am so glad you have an avenue to spin in. I am just so tickled for you!


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

hercsmama said:


> DBA, baby bunnies are just to cute, almost as cute as little brown puppies...


Keep talking about that brown puppy.....
Don't be too shocked if you get a box in the mail that has air holes poked in it


----------



## MDKatie

Wow, hercs, that is seriously awesome!!!! We want pics when you start!!


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

Just for Debi....


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

And, Congrats on getting that historic opportunity.


----------



## hercsmama

:happy2uppy butts!!!!!:happy2:


----------



## 7thswan

My rottie baby weighed 78 lbs at the vet today. He will be 6 mo. on march 1. It needs to warm up, he needs to work off some of this energy outside. It was -17 this morning when we got up.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Debi, that is terrific!! I've always wanted to do something like that.

Love puppy butts almost as much as I like horse butts when I'm driving them.

Whelp, I went and did it again ... slipped on ice ... I was being real careful shuffling along on the ice/snow & got to the blacktop in the parking lot at church. Gave a sigh of relief that I hadn't slipped. Stepped onto the blacktop and both feet went out from under me. Landed on my back and smacked the back of my head on the blacktop so hard my glasses flew off. Thankfully I had on a wool hat and my coat hood was up. I saw stars but there is no lump on my noggin. My bad knee is wrenched and I already know this will probably set off a fibro flair. I took some Alieve and I'll finish knitting a cowl tonight. Good thing Paul gets home tomorrow.


----------



## hercsmama

:facepalm: Cyndi.
What in the world are we going to do with you?
Thank goodness it wasn't any worse. For Pete's sake woman, get some of those spikey things to wear on the bottoms of your shoes, would you?:hair


----------



## GeorgiaGirl

Cyndi,
I too, stepped on some black ice yesterday and landed on my left side  My last sheep was giving birth. She was having a hard time and I hit the panic button. Ran in the house to call the vet and when I ran back out I guess I hit a spot of ice and down I went. Sounds crazy but I was sick at my stomach the rest of the day. I feel better this morning. Hubby had to help the lamb out. As of this morning, the mother still will not have a thing to do with him.


----------



## Marchwind

Bubble wrap all the way around. Yak Tracks are wonderful things to have. Lots better than falling and cheaper than a visit to the doctor. There are several different different versions of those things, they just slip over your shoes or boots.

Hercsmama you are going to have so much fun. Do you know what sort of schedule you will keep?


----------



## Wind in Her Hair

Cyndi- what did I tell you!?!?!?!?!?!?!!?!?!?

Praying you had a good night and that your fall doesn't give rise to bigger problems on down the road!


----------



## hercsmama

GG, I hope you feel better today, you be careful as well!

MW, not really, I know it'll be like 20-30 hours a week. For sure when school groups come through. My little area looks like the front porch on an old farm house, so cute! I can decorate it however I want to, so that'll be fun.
It's right next to one of the doors, so hopefully that'll help with the heat in the summer. 
It's strictly seasonal, through the summer, until like the end of September, and then during the winter only if they have a group coming through.


----------



## Kasota

Cyndi and GG - egads, women! Bubble wrap all the way around! Spikes on your shoes! Prayers for both of you to heal well and quickly! 

Debi, that is sooo awesome about being the spinning lady!  woot! Although I do wonder how you are going to find time! 

I only have 4 payments left and my car is paid off. Woot!   Today mom and I are going to look for drapes. She needs to get out of the house and she needs the boost it would give her to have new window dressings.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Oh GG, that sounds terrible! Did you hit your head? Nauseousness is a sign of a mild concussion. So glad you're feeling better this morning.

Marchie, I *do *have Yax Trax, well at least one ... and my oldest son bought me generic ones for Christmas. I've been faithfully wearing them when I'm outside on the farm. I didn't take them into town with me though. I thought I was safe once I got off the snow/ice, but there was black ice .... I'm doing 'okay' this morning. The knee feels like I've over-stretched/tore a ligament in the knee & I'll probably need to go in to the chiropracter ... sheesh!

C'mon spring & mud ... I'm ready for it.


----------



## GeorgiaGirl

No....I didn't hit my head. Just a hard hit on a little cement slab that is right in front of the gate where the momma was. Landed on my left side. My left leg and arm sure is complaining today


----------



## Woodpecker

Thank God this is the last day of Febuary! I've hurt myself more times than I can count chopping ice and shoveling this month. This month was a new record the coldest Febuary since 1934. Lorreta's coop door is frozen shut and now a bit broken from all that ice chopping. I can't wait for all this ice to go away, I've seriously had it. 

Prayers for all that fell on ice.


----------



## lexierowsell

I really wanna buy these!


----------



## 7thswan

Woodpecker said:


> Thank God this is the last day of Febuary! I've hurt myself more times than I can count chopping ice and shoveling this month. This month was a new record the coldest Febuary since 1934. Lorreta's coop door is frozen shut and now a bit broken from all that ice chopping. I can't wait for all this ice to go away, I've seriously had it.
> 
> Prayers for all that fell on ice.


Ha, sounds like me, a hatchet in one hand and a short crowbar in the other. Chop away the ice, then pry open the door, i have 2 chicken coops. I have to chop away the ice from the house doors where it dripps off the eves on the porch,too. Dh saw me the other night walking across the living room with the cook stove hatchet. He just stood still and watched, quietly. I opened the door and chopped and chopped. Turned arround and he was still standing there, with a kinda scared look on his face. Some things, he is clueless what I do arround here.


----------



## MullersLaneFarm

Lexie, where did you find those?? they're perfect!!

7thswan ... you seriously made me LOL!


----------



## lexierowsell

I am not sure Cyndi, I was tagged in it on fb. Will tag you!


----------



## 7thswan

lexierowsell said:


> I am not sure Cyndi, I was tagged in it on fb. Will tag you!


http://www.leafcutterdesigns.com/projects/changingclothes.html


----------



## lambs.are.cute

Dear Alaska, 

We do not appreciate your generosity. We never asked for it. It is making life difficult, and costing us a lot. Come and get it. NOW!

Washington


----------



## Dixie Bee Acres

lambs.are.cute said:


> Dear Alaska,
> 
> We do not appreciate your generosity. We never asked for it. It is making life difficult, and costing us a lot. Come and get it. NOW!
> 
> Washington


It would be just as appropriate for us to write that letter to Siberia.


----------



## Marchwind

I love those tags, very cute and appropriate.

MLF and GG I'm glad you two are ok. Lay low for a bit and allow your bodies to heal.

Hercsmama, will you be paid? That's a lot of hours for volunteer work. Will it have an impact on your farm plans? It really does sound like a lot of fun.


----------



## hotzcatz

Whew! Happy End of February! The knit tour has come and gone. That will ratchet the stress levels down about four notches. The tour driver dropped by an hour before we were expecting them to see if he knew where the right address was. We almost all died thinking they were here early when he pulled up. That did add a certain frantic-ness to the last hour before they arrived.

I hope everyone in the tour enjoyed themselves, they all got bunny hugs and the bunnies seemed to have a good time, too. Nicky Epstein is a sweet person and she likes bunnies, too! We're still undoing the chaos and about half the Hula Bunny yarn is gone. Time to send off more fiber to the mill. We'd been delaying the bunny hair cuts so the buns would still have some hair on them for the knitters to see. Tomorrow we will start shearing the herd and then sending the fiber off.


----------



## hercsmama

Marchwind said:


> I love those tags, very cute and appropriate.
> 
> MLF and GG I'm glad you two are ok. Lay low for a bit and allow your bodies to heal.
> 
> Hercsmama, will you be paid? That's a lot of hours for volunteer work. Will it have an impact on your farm plans? It really does sound like a lot of fun.


I will! I get an hourly wage, along with being able to sell whatever I produce, so that's awesome as far as I'm concerned. 
The Manager, as I said, is the son of the former Spinning Lady, and he is married to one of the women in my guild. He totally appreciates the work, and time involved in anything fiber related. 
As to my little farm, I see this as an extension of that work. I am allowed to label my product, so will be looking into getting labels with the Baa-Berry Farm logo, and web site on them.
I'm thinking something like, Handmade by Baa-Berry farms for Pioneer Village. What do you think?
I'll have my contact info included, so if they want to buy more, they can come straight to me...


----------



## Marchwind

The new FAC is up. Please hope there from now on. Here's the direct link http://www.homesteadingtoday.com/co...ts/534561-fac-~-march-2015-a.html#post7393425


----------

