Three More Bags Full!

Yesterday our sheep gave me their wool to enjoy in my fiber pursuits. Before leaving, our shearer gave me the name and number of another local farmer who had a very nice fleece that she couldn't use.  The woman wanted to give it to someone who would put it to good use.  The shearer told me that it was a fleece with little v.m. (vegetable matter) and I'd be able to jump in and spin without too much skirting.  Well, being a fiber fanatic, I couldn't pass up the opportunity for a good fleece!  I got directions and picked up a beautiful cream fleece with wonderful crimp (that's good in fiber language).

This afternoon I received a call from the shearer.  "Linda, I'm about to drive by your house and I have three beautiful fleeces that were going to be thrown out.  I thought of you.  Do you want them?"  She went on to describe the color and qualities of the fleece.  My response, "I'll meet you in my driveway!"  I grabbed some garbage bags to store them and we emptied her trunk...three  bags full of beautiful, soft, wool that my hands are just itching to skirt, wash, and spin.  One is a deep black, another is a silvery black, and the final one is a gorgeous white.

Wayne is wondering why we are raising farm animals if it's this easy to get good fiber.  I think that there is something special about raising the animal that gives the wool...I just have to help him see it from that perspective. 

The shearer is happy to share the bounty of her profession with a fellow spinner.  Unfortunately, she has little time to spin and has quite a collection of fleece from previous seasons.  She told me that her husband would not be happy if she brought any additional bags home so I'm able to reap an abundant wool harvest this spring.  

Excuse me, but I think I'll go wash some wool...

Surprising Revelation...

Growing up I vaguely remember my mother asking us kids to weed the garden.  I didn't do the task very often because I think I put up enough of a stink that Mom probably did it herself rather than deal with my bad attitude. 

Yesterday I was able to spend the majority of the day weeding and mulching my flower gardens.  As I 'played' in the dirt, I realized that I was thoroughly enjoying myself.  I don't know when my perspective of weeding changed, but as I pulled out the various weeds and revelled in the growth of my perennials, I thought to myself, "If Mom saw me now, she'd be amazed!"  My kids don't look at weeding as a "fun" task, and that's okay.  I've found a nice quiet way to relax where I know the kids won't disturb me!

Today the sheep got shorn.  My fat 'teddy bear' sheep look so funny in their new 'skins'.  The early part of the day was quite musical with the goats blatting to get back into the barn and the sheep baaing to get out of the barn.  Since the shearer wanted the sheep to have empty stomachs (it makes it more comfortable for the sheep as they are being sheared) we gave them food last night, and this morning let the goats out to pasture.  Now they are all back together, but the goats are trying to figure out who the strange creatures are and continue to voice their distress over the change in routine.

 

May?!

How did May get here so fast?!?!  I have to keep checking the calendar because last night we had temps in the 20's!!!  Hopefully, the blueberries will still produce since Wayne covered them with a tarp, but only time will tell for the peaches and apples.

The past month has been filled with rushing...to learn everything I could from my boss who retired after 35 years of service to the Town...to get things to a point where I could run up to Maine for a long weekend before my boss retired...to get a quilt made for the retirement party...to get kids to dental appointments, Wayne to doctor appointments, and kids to music lessons/therapy sessions.  Thankfully, my new boss is wonderful to work with and together we'll get through this adjustment period--laughing and teasing each other all the way.  Now that I'm not rushing quite as much , I'm trying to figure out what I'm supposed to be doing!

The alpacas were sheared on the 4th.  The sheep get sheared this Saturday.  I'll have all sorts of fiber to play with!  I picked up a loom while in Maine and hope to get that set up soon.  Marc wants to learn to weave and I'm eager to learn myself.  I've played around with smaller looms, but have not dived in with 'both feet' (or hands in this case). 

Marc is scheduled to restart his blacksmith lessons next week.  He's been working on making aluminum hooks over the winter.  Our neighbor gave us a  12' x 12' building to set up his smithy.  We want to move it to the end of the garden so Wayne can have a greenhouse set up off one side of the building.

Our seedlings are doing well, but tomorrow I need to go through the rest of the seeds and finish starting any 'indoor' plantings.   The peas are in the garden and showing a few leaves. 

We're still at a standstill with the shop.  Wayne and Rachael manned a tent in the village on Saturday for several hours with no sales.  Several people stopped by to say how much they missed the shop, but after 4 hours with no sales, they closed up the tent and came home.  We're still praying about the future of the Artisan Guild.  In the meantime, since we're not under pressure to keep inventory up, we've been able to pursue some other artistic interests (i.e. the weaving and Wayne redesigning his cut glass worktable) and slowly build up an inventory for the future.

Half way through May--unbelievable!  Jonathan is counting down until the 21st--his 10th birthday--that seems unbelievable, too.