Sal is a Big Girl Now

I went out to the barn a couple of days ago and found a round patch of fresh hay.  I thought to myself, "why didn't the sheep eat this hay?"  Then I decided if they weren't going to eat it I would scatter it on some wet areas.  As I picked up the hay I found 2 goose eggs.  The other 2 eggs are chicken eggs Charlie brought us, just to show a comparison in size.  The speckled egg is extra large.

The nest the geese built in the barn was pretty well built but not in a good place so I moved it to the geese run and gave the geese a little extra hay.  I noticed 4 white feathers Cirrus lost in the barn, keeping the sheep from the nest.  I kept the geese in their run for part of the day, today, so they would build a new more appropriate nest.  It isn't as pretty as the first but it kind of looks like a nest.  It was too nice a day to keep them in all day and every time they would hear the house door open they squawked to be let out.  We will see if Sal lays an egg in it tomorrow or maybe I will need to build a small nesting box or better protection.

Yesterday, I finished some homespun a friend is going to weave with, today, I went to a spinning demonstration at the library, gave a farm tour to 4 college students and gave the sheep their garlic for the new moon.  Tomorrow, my attention goes to geese.

I received a call this morning from a guy in NJ who wants to come to Ruckus Day next Saturday.  He and his wife and their 2 young children are going to Ashville NC  and stopping in Lexington for a break.  I asked him how he heard about Ruckus Day and he said, through the power of Google.  He said he just googled Lexington VA and March 28th and we came up.  So strange, I will never get used to so many people finding us through the internet.  Such a different world we live in now.

I felt a little guilty putting Sal's eggs in the bright green new spring grass when there is probably still snow up north but soon the green will be everywhere.

HAPPY SPRING

The MUD has Changed to Mud

We have gone from Winter mud to Spring mud and I am loving it.

The grass is coming.  It always amazes me that the mud we have been tracking in for so long actually sprouts grass.

 Brave, hardy little plants.

I think we can safely say winter is behind us, just in time for the official beginning of Spring this week.
I hope it doesn't spring ahead too quickly and leave me in the dust- at least it might not be mud that swallows me up.  I need March to proceed in slow motion because April is going to be CRAZY and I am not ready yet.

Last Week at Cabin Spring Farm

Sometime, I think to myself, "what do the animals do all day".  They don't have all the projects and chores we humans do.  I guess they just have to spend the day looking at all the natural beauty that surrounds us ALL everyday.

 the colors of the ice cycles don't quite show up in the above picture , unless you really zoom in, but still spectacular!  And that BLUE!, bizarre to think that blue was not a color once.

 tracks and diamonds in the snow, so many tracks this past snowfall

My latest venture--  a line of greeting cards    Order yours today.  $97.50 plus tax  (per card)

below- common sulfur butterfly

A good week.

Where's the Driveway?

Some people I know, measure snow in feet, some in inches, but I measure snow in how long it takes to plow and shovel your way out.  Today it snowed 3 - 4 hours worth.  That was one person (me), who doesn't plow that often, on a tractor with the blade on the back.  We got about 7 inches.

A couple of weeks ago, we were suppose to get snow in the afternoon and I had a meeting in the morning, so I decided to go and then get some food before the snow.  Well, it started snowing during the meeting and one of the guys at the meeting said he had to go home and put his driveway flags up so he could plow the driveway.  What a brilliant idea.  Look what happens when you don't.

This was the mid afternoon accomplishment.  Then I went in to dry off and get some nourishment for the next go.
You can't really tell that the driveway goes down a hill in the picture below, but it does, and remember I have to plow backwards, so I decided to define the driveway first by shoveling.  Half way through, Cirrus started squawking for dinner so I stopped to feed everyone and then went back to finish.  When I did it was 6:00.

If I am lucky the snow will compress and melt some in the morning and maybe the rest won't take too long.  The sheep did their path this time.  They were hanging out in the barn during the worst of the snow storm so I went down to give them a treat and they came through the snow to get it.

Below, is new snow on top of old snow where I go in and out to get feed. Tomorrow, when all the snow comes off the roof, it will be a lot more.

I know friends and family up north are laughing at our "insignificant" snow but remember I measure snow by how long it takes to deal with it.

Trading Places

I am home again.  I have been in Ohio with John's Mom.  She is now home, at her home, after being at hospital (that is the way foreigners say it), and rehab for 49 days.  John's siblings have been taking turns    hanging out,  helping with home tasks.

When John's turn came, we decided it might be better for me to go first since the farm was in the path of a big snow storm and we didn't think it fair to ask our farm sitter to plow and shovel to get to the animals.  So, I left between storms, John stayed to wait, plow a foot of snow, shovel paths for the animals, shovel a path to the wood pile, and then, he traded caring for 9 sheep and 2 geese in our snow, for hanging out with his mom in her snow (about the same amount).

When I was giving John's mom a pedicure a few days ago, I told her I wish my sheep would put their hoofs in warm water and feel pampered instead of flipping out about hoof trimming.  It is always enjoyable doing anything for someone appreciative and positive.  Maybe I should send the sheep and geese to Ohio to hang out and take notes.

I guess the animals here just have a different way of showing appreciation.  The sheep did come down to the gate to greet me when I came home (and they had been fed only a couple of hours earlier).  The geese made a huge racket welcoming me and Cirrus didn't hiss.

Trading places, is an important adventure.  It gives one a different perspective on life.  It is kind of like the practice of walking in someone else's shoes.

Another kind of trading places, I have always wanted to try, is trading homes with someone across the world.  Just for a week or month.  I might have to start looking into that, but not too sure if anyone would want to trade for a farm and care for 9 sheep and 2 geese in snow and cold.  Better to wait until it warms up a bit, I think.

A Spectacular Day with a Brilliant Sky

The perfect snow greeted us this morning.  More powder like yesterday and only around 6".  When I reached the barnyard the sheep greeted me, and they had already done their snow clearing.  When I let Sal and Cirrus out this morning Sal hesitated for just a few seconds to take it all in and then went off to join the sheep.  The geese have the perfect feet to walk on snow and will go through anything and then they stop and lay in the snow.

 The sky was AMAZINGLY blue and the water in the trough, crystal clear.

 There had been more than an inch of ice on most of the water, yesterday but the insulation from the snow melted it all.  The temperature was 14 degrees.

 Which of these beautiful sheep did the artistic loop I wonder.

 What is it about snow that cleans the water this clean?

So much to ponder on this Spectacular Day.

Sheep are no Whimps

Well, the snow finally arrived.  The forecast is for 12"-18" by morning.  Nothing like New England, but still could be significant.  The sheep seem to like the snow and the geese look like they like it better than cold ground.

When the ground is cold the geese stand on one foot at a time a lot.  Today, they were laying in the snow.  Good insulation.  Here is Greta looking at the camera.

Zorra looks like a white sheep, accept for her head.

The snow today was some of the finest powder I have ever seen.

I swept a path to the barnyard and then around the barnyard.  I picked up the sheep feed bowls because when it snows a lot they get covered and we, most me, trips on them.  When I was picking up the bowls and putting them in a pile the sheep thought I was going to give them some grain. I figured they deserved a treat so I gave them a little.  I have to make a mental note-- next time I want snow cleared I just have to walk around with some grain and the sheep will do all the clearing.  

Might not work in the morning if the snow gets as deep as predicted, though.

We have been having trouble with the cold tripping the electric outlet at the water trough but with the snow, I don't have to worry, they all love to eat the snow.