Archives for Craft

Plan “Be”

October 1, 2010 | 24 Comments

As you may have wondered, not everything has gone exactly according to plan here for several weeks. It's true: hay has been mown, baled and stacked in the barn. Though not overly fond of the fall monsoons that arrived this week, the sheep are relishing cooler days. And absolutely loving the hay field we decided not to mow, but to save for autumn pasture. So they're waist-deep in sheep nirvana. But as you've probably gathered from all quiet on the blog front, I have needed to step back a bit and take it easy. Today I finished week twelve
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Sheep Shadows

August 28, 2010 | 14 Comments

In the lengthening shadows of shortening of daylight hours, Mike and I inspected the ram pasture on Wednesday. Thanks to three solid rainy days, the grass is in good shape. But we noted the length of time they've spent on this field and deemed it time to change pastures. The wet weather means no second mowing just yet. But we're entering a sunny dry spell. Hay is imminent. It's the stretch before Labor Day. Heath Fair, Cummington Fair, Franklin County Fair. Hay time. Storms have wreaked a bit of havoc here. Thanks to a close encounter of the electrical kind,
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Summer Shares

August 18, 2010 | 12 Comments

Returning from a blog hiatus and a trip to spend some time with my family and friends on the seacoast. We celebrated a very special birthday. My niece, Lilly, turned 1. And okay, I'm a little biased, but I'm telling you she is the cutest, happiest little girl in the world. It is such good fun being an Auntie. Going on vacation is an amazing amount of work. List making, shopping, packing, instructions for the house sitter, instructions for the farm – it almost doesn't feel worth all the effort until you actually get away for a few days. I
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Lambs – Out to Pasture

July 22, 2010 | 8 Comments

It takes a llama to get the lambs going in the right direction. Just a quick post – I thought you'd like to see how we get them out to pasture in the morning. WE LOVE CRACKERJACK!! copyright 2010. Barbara Parry. All rights reserved. Feel free to share a link to this website. Please do not take content or images from this website without my explicit written permission. Thank you.
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Weaning the Lambs

July 19, 2010 | 15 Comments

The lambs huddle around me in the barn. With the shift of independence from the ewes, they've become more interested in our comings and goings. When I arrive they press in like this. They butt me in the legs and nibble on my camera strap. It's a nice way to start the morning. This group has made the transition of weaning quite smoothly. Just one very noisy night and then quiet. Except for when we arrive. They shadow Crackerjack, their new leader and we count on his help in getting them where we need them to go. The mother's are
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Of Rams and Men

July 15, 2010 | 20 Comments

In summer the rams live in our backyard. We like to visit with them after dinner, before dusk gets thick with mosquitoes and forces us to retreat indoors. It's one of my favorite times of day. In general it's ill advised to treat rams like giant teddy bears. You certainly shouldn't get down at their level in the middle of the field without nearby cover, as Mike is the photo above. Mike has a special connection with the "big boys". It's a guy thing, I suppose. He's not intimidated by them the way I am. They sense it and don't
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Big Moves

July 14, 2010 | 5 Comments

A few scenes from a busy day full of big changes. Weaning, Day One – We separated the lambs from the mothers this afternoon. It was high time. While I'm sure the lambs would nurse until they were yearlings (if the mothers allowed it), they are getting everything they need from the pastures now. And those mommas need a break. Holly led the troupe across the road: one llama, 20 mothers, 33 lambs. An orderly procession until we made it to the open barn where it was all craziness, noise and chaos. We sorted ewes from lambs and then
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Keeping Watch

July 7, 2010 | 9 Comments

Hay is happening. Last week's string of sunny, breezy days kicked off a chain reaction. Every farm in Franklin county is making hay. You need at least 4 days to get it crackling dry. Norm mowed every field on the farm in two days and he and his family then spent the rest of the week tedding, raking and baling. Haymaking means juggling the pastures a bit, keeping the flock out of the way. Perfect timing, really, as Holly and I would like to wean the lambs next week. We plan to use one of the mown fields for lamb
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Sheep Shares Lamb Visit

June 30, 2010 | 7 Comments

The lambs had company on Sunday. We got lucky with a picture-perfect day for our Sheep Shares Lamb Visit. The flock was on their best behavior. Mostly. They lampeded for guests before fanning out to graze in the field. Holly and Mike gave a farm tour. The bottle lambs scampered right over and hung out with us for the afternoon. Helena stole someone's plate of grapes and carrots. Crackerjack eyed the refreshment table but minded his manners. Mistral peed on the picnic blanket . . . yet still managed to win everyone's heart . . . while amusing us with
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Bottle Lamb Nostalgia

June 14, 2010 | 14 Comments

Georgia & Mistral Garamond My three little friends are now bottle lambs in name only – since we're entering week two of the weaning phase. That doesn't stop them from mobbing me the moment I set foot in the barn, nudging and nosing around my legs, insistently bah-ing, pleading eyes, jumping up in protest when all I have to offer is a handful of hay. Garamond is taking it very well. He's caught on to the "no more milk" thing, and after quickly checking just to be sure there are no bottles up my sleeve, he ducks outside. Georgia is
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