Life on the farm

It's been one of those weeks when spending any extra time on the computer just hasn't been feasible. I'm going to attempt a quick update while the beans and cornbread cook before my guys get home….

Oh, those naughty lambies! The past few days all five of them have spent much of their pasture time playing and exploring outside the fence, while the ewes yelled for their little truants.

On Tuesday I scissor-sheared Bing. Black is so hard to photograph accurately; Bing has NO light fibers and is oh, so crimpy and soft with great length! Now I can move his group into the wooded lot where grass has had a chance to regrow since I moved Blake and Browning into the grassy strip between the arena and paddocks. The big boys have got that mowed down pretty well, so they will be moved back to the Ram-ada Inn lot soon.

This morning I monkey-picked Sarai's fleece clean and got her suited back up until I have a chance to scissor-shear or roo her. Since her (exquisite!) fleece is not yet reserved, she will have to wait until I skirt the fleeces that are reserved. Brian is going to be gone all day Sunday, so I'm hoping to get all my skirting done then.

I also took down the panel dividing the fold so that my Minnesota Moms (Marta and Sarai) and their lambs are all together. Annabelle and her boys are still in the corner pen when they are in the fold, but not for long.

We're getting a perfectly-timed showery day that should keep the plants looking lush and gorgeous for awhile. The rosemary and perennial cornflowers in my island bed are going gangbusters this year, making up for the half-hearted efforts of the red rhododendron and lithodora. (The red rhodie has one – count it, ONE – flower bract on it this year!)

I caught this bumblebee hard at work yesterday; now it's time for me to get back to work!

Oh! I nearly forgot to include your daily dose of lamb cuteness! It's Mr. Hot Stuff himself, Boulderneigh Barbados:

That's it for now from . . .