Fleece, flowers, food, and friends (an update)

I worked at Rick's clinic Monday morning, which meant an opportunity to wash fleece. No, not mine (yet), but the BFL/Romney cross ram fleece that my farrier/shearer gave me. So I got busy skirting it on Friday, figuring I need the practice before skirting my Shetland fleeces for the Shepherds Extravaganza. Do you think it's possible to get these straw-magnets in show shape??? (And do you think Bella REALLY has a tail in there somewhere?)

Anyway...talk about a big lump of fleece! I thought about weighing it, but decided to just dive in.This is very different wool than my girls grow!

Switching subjects, March in the Willamette Valley means a head-on charge into spring, with flowers everywhere. I'm only showing you what blooms on Boulderneigh, but we don't do too bad here. More daffodils...daphne odora, one of my favorite floral scents...the flowering plum tree...even the native shrubs and plants are getting into the act!

In another shift, fellow Shetland owner/blogger Tina has shared several recipes with me, and when I could not find a key ingredient for one of them, she surprised me by sending it via UPS! So I made a batch of Chocolate Coma Cookies for a meeting I had Monday night (with some left over for indulging in at home, of course). Kathy told me to take pictures, but I guess I'm just not FoodieFarmgirl enough. Staging food shots just doesn't turn my crank. I'd rather eat the subjects!

One last shift, for those of you who have asked. My friend Joan is comfortable and in good courage, although she is steadily growing weaker. Moving in with us out here in the country doesn't appear to be an option, because the drive would be inconvenient for both Hospice workers and her friends, most of whom are elderly. So either she will be moving into a care facility or we'll find a home health care worker to move in with her soon, in addition to Hospice care. The cancer wasn't discovered until quite advanced, and she doesn't want to endure any treatments for it after seeing her husband suffer through them. Her faith is strong, and she isn't afraid to go to "sleep" until Jesus comes.

That's it for now at . . .