Love birds

 
We have some lovely new residents on the hill this year – Eurasian collared-doves.

These so-so photos are the best I've managed to get of these shy birds. While not native nor as hauntingly beautiful to the ear as mourning doves, I am still enjoying the sight and sound of them very much.

In sheep news, I spent some quality time with the chocolate twins this morning. I think Bittersweet is going to be a push-over. :-)

That's it for today from . . .

Sibling rivalry

Bloom and Bittersweet, getting along like the siblings they are.

Bloomers is moving to Washington in July to join Franna's flock at Everranch. There are only two other breeders of fine-fleeced Shetlands using polled genetics on the West Coast that I know of, and Franna is one of them.

Bittersweet is now banded. His small scurs flare out so they shouldn't ever need to be trimmed. He is available to a fiber pet home, or will stay here to produce the clean, crimpy, soft, fine fleece that my customers like. I haven't worked on making him friendly; I need to do that. Too bad he wasn't born with different plumbing; I'd sure love to have a moorit ewe lamb just like him!

That's it for today from . . .

My weekend

I camped in the presence of this

Helping set up this

Kept myself occupied with this

Found time to work on this

Relaxed by this

Watched others enjoy this

And even got a chance to do this

All while enchanted by lots of this

Hope your weekend was as lovely!

That's the holiday weekend report from this . . .

Sometimes two's a crowd....

The other day these two were both sure the middle nest box was the only one suitable for their eggs.

Our hens are laying fairly well, as evidenced by the egg tally in the right sidebar. The four Speckled Sussex and two Easter Eggers should be; they aren't yet two years old. We're also getting occasional contributions of big chocolate eggs from Welsie, the Welsummer. I don't think Roosty, our sole remaining Rhode Island Red, has laid anything for a year or more. Oh well, at least she's a handsome hen!

 Just a little post while we're away from . . . 

A flair for the dramatic

After a beautiful, sunny day, dark clouds gathered to the northeast yesterday evening. A full rainbow with a partial pal formed in the sky, while lightning flashed and thunder rumbled. It was exhilarating! We rarely get thunder and lightning in the Willamette Valley; I think my heart dog Rosie only heard a thunderstorm once in her seven and a half years of life and she prompted crawled up on our bed and under our covers in her fear (something she had never done before). But I AM hoping for calmer weather while we camp out in the wilderness!

That's it for now from . . .

Pied "piper"

This morning when I went down to ride Larry, I heard music. I peeked through the stalls and saw Brian walking around the arena playing his fiddle. He is in "cowboy mode" because of our horse-camping trip this weekend and told me he was going to take his old violin along; apparently he couldn't wait until we arrived at the campsite! Sorry for the shakiness; I took this video surreptitiously to record the event. I was pretty tickled to see him playing on his own initiative!

Shortly after I shot the video, Brian decided to go out into the pasture and serenade the sheep; Larry was watching all this with great interest. Or maybe it was worry, since he was unusually spooky during our ride!

Wishing you a happy holiday weekend from . . .

Lilies of the field

"Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin." Matthew 6:28

That's it for now from . . .

Sunny spectrum

The yellow iris opened today

And I washed the skeins for Taygete.

pronounced Tay-EE-jet-ay

The weather may be damp and grey

But these colors are cheery, wouldn't you say?

That's it for now from Boulderneigh!

Wet petal contest

After an unusually long dry spell for this time of year, it started raining yesterday (fortunately stopping during the dressage show Larry and I competed in). The white iris are melting like the Wicked Witch of the West, but the brown iris are flaunting their raindrops like diamonds. (As always, you can click to biggify any photos.)

Hopefully some rain will keep the grass growing for awhile longer, which helps the hay bill and keeps the sheep and horses happier!

That's it for today from . . .

As pure as the driven snow

A silent Sabbath post from . . .