Three bags full

Demi in full poof.

It was a beautiful March day to work sheep and shear the ones that are due next.

Demi, Basil and Cowslip are due right about March 15. They are waddling about, stretching their legs over udders that are starting to tighten and easing their big bellies up and down the hill.

Demi is half Icelandic and half Corriedale.  Her multi-layer, multi-color fleece makes the most fantastic rugs. She just keeps getting more silver-tipped as she ages.

Basil's fleece is usually one of my favorite spinning fleeces, but this year, I think it will make a great rug.

Cowslip's fleece, too, all poufy and fluffy as always, is a little coarser than usual this year. It will be a fantastic, big, soft rug.

Shearing Demi

Too much Demi wool for one pillow case.

Clean and cool and ready to scratch and have babies,
in that order!

Basil says to "get on with it!"

 These fleeces and many more will be available at our farm open house, Shearing Day, on March 31 from 10 to 4. We'll also have fiber wethers and angora goats, and Jacob sheep ewe lambs available to reserve.

Cowslip, born in '03, says she'll just nap through shearing.

Weekend highlights

 This weekend was a sunny warm end to January. I had Arkansas Craft Guild board meeting most of yesterday. We planned events for this 50th anniversary year and worked out details for the March 10th annual meeting.

Emma, half sheared

In the morning before the meeting, Lena and I sheared Emma-sheep. She had a huge girl lamb on Thursday and the lamb was having trouble nursing due to her mum's fleece. We named the lamb Hippo. I don't think I've ever seen a newborn jacob that big.

Lisa says the new mohair throw is divine.

Last night I finished a mohair throw out of Fantasia's fleece. Lisa has graded it "divine" and she is certain that it is hers. We'll see.

The new mohair fleeces are coming along well. The wethers Glitch and Gizmo are still steely gray. I had planned to sell them after this spring's shearing, but we'll wait and see how the fleeces look.

This morning we sheared Frannie and Amyrillis. I think in that flock Elizabeth will lamb first. She's already sheared and then the other two, but it was just better to get the shearing done while the weather is good. I think Nilly will be the next ewe to lamb, and Geo-goat is not too far out, maybe another month. Spring is certainly on the way, but we haven't had winter yet. Not that I'm complaining, mind you.

Shawn's out in the shop making me a pretty pecan size P crochet hook so that I can finish my next 52-things-to-do-with-an-old-shirt project. I'm shopping online for a used front load washer to finish felting my rugs. So many projects to finish and things to do. Life is good here.

Glitch does his pelican pose. 

Meet the flock - Cowslip

Cowslip

Cowslip was born February 14, 2003, on our Laffing Horse Farm outside of La Junta, Colorado. It was our second herb name year, two years before we went to the alphabet naming scheme.

Her mum is Corriander and her sire was Bergamont, both from the Downaire flock out of Texas.

That year, I wanted to do something special for my Aunt Jeannie, kind of a "thank you" for all the looms and yarn and support she's given me, all my life. So I sent her pictures of the ewe lambs and told her she could have one to keep in our flock. The sheep would be hers. She picked Cowslip because of the heart shaped patch on her shoulder and her matching birthday.

A fleeceyful rug from Cowslip's wool

Cowslip has twins every year. Her heart-shaped spot is
on the other side.

Cowslip grew up to be a gentle, quiet ewe. She grows a long puffy fleece each year. I wove a rug with a heart shaped spot out of Cowslip's first fleece for Jeannie. She keeps it in her bedroom. I spun Cowslip's second fleece for Jeannie to weave with. In 2006, Cowslip's fleece placed 3rd in her class at the National Western Stock Show in Denver, Colorado.

The last several year's I've woven rugs like the one on the left. These rugs have sold across the country and the income helps to feed the flock through the winter.

Every year Cowslip has twins. Babette and Faith were two of her exceptional daughters who went on to other Jacob breeding flocks. Because we have to keep our flock numbers down, we have not kept any of her daughters, yet. This year she is bred to Dapper Dan.

I'm glad Jeannie chose Cowslip for her sheep. She's been a wonderful ewe to have in the flock all these years - and she makes me think of Jeannie with a smile every day when I'm out feeding the sheep.