Kentucky Wool Week

Normally this week would be spent frantically getting everything finished and set up for the Kentucky Wool Festival.  We lost both the spring and fall festivals this year :-(.   We are all not only missing the income those festivals would generate, but also the social aspects of it as well.  Most of us don't get out much.  Those festivals are a fun way to catch up with each other.

The Kentucky Sheep and Goat Development Office, Kentucky Natural Fiber Center, Kentucky Fiber Trail and Kentucky Wool Festival got together to create Kentucky Wool Week as a fun way for us all to socialize a little on social media and at the same time help promote Kentucky wool and our small businesses.

This year everything is based around a photography challenge. I'm hoping things will be settled down next year and we can expand Kentucky Wool Week to include some educational classes, competitions and fiber gatherings throughout the state.

Today's challenge prompt is Color.  You know, my favorite topic ;-).  Just to throw everyone, I'm going to actually post a picture of a color besides white or gray today!  There is, of course, more to the story. 

Back in August 2018 (yes, you read that correctly) Miss B and I dyed some wool with marigolds.  We had a big bag of yellow and orange blooms and a big bag of yellow and burgundy blooms.  We dyed some white Border Cheviot (PPPP) and some light gray Jacob (Billy Belly and Allie).

I think we used Alum as our mordant.  I'm sure I took a bunch of fun and pretty pictures that would probably remind me, but without a deep dive into the archives, all I have is the above picture...which has been sitting on my desktop as a reminder that I needed to write up a full blog post about this...since 2018. 

We dyed both white and light gray wool in both marigold pots.  I remember that the yellow and burgundy marigolds provided a slightly darker, almost greener, yellow.  You can sort of see that in the picture above.  

I know that I combed all of my share and I believe I spun the brighter of the two yellows.  It's kind of hard to say at this point though because I kept everything in a cute basket on my workbench so I could enjoy looking at it...which I thoroughly did...until I realized the dark rich yellows were fading and I then packed them away :-(.

The marigolds are in full bloom in the dye garden right now and that combined with the color prompt inspired me to pull the still mostly slightly colorful yarn out and finally share some pictures.  I'm now sort of toying with picking some of the flowers and tossing everything back into the dye pot and restoring the yarns to full color. 

It makes me sad to pick flowers though.  I've got plenty of poke weed berries right now though and it wouldn't make me too sad to boil those before they end up all over my car ;-).  Maybe I'll see if Miss B is up for a new natural dyeing adventure.  If we do, I promise I'll post the pictures much quicker.

Regardless, I can now take the yellow pictures off my desktop because I finally did a 'sort of' post about a fun thing we did...a couple of years ago.  I also cleaned out my refrigerator the other day, so look out!

If you are interested in joining in with the Kentucky Wool Week photo challenge, jump in!

Well...

Well.  

I've tried to find the inspiration to post a blog.  I've even gone out on three occasions and taken some good pictures specifically for the blog.  I write "BLOG!" on my daily To Do list.  I don't know.  

I've kept the Instagram/FB feed going, which has been nice.  Sharing pictures and videos of the normal craziness of the farm is a respite for sure.  The ups and downs of the 2020 Iknitarod - no, I didn't finish...yet.  Rebecca Boone getting sick again...and now doing better again.  Frankie and Lancelot rolling in the mud.  Billy Belly sleeping with his head on Woolliam's back.

Billy Belly.  Billy Belly flew under the radar here for years, just another one of those crazy Jacobs who, while they might sneak up and take a cookie from you, really didn't want any other sort of attention.  He was probably 10 years old before I realized that whenever something was wrong with someone, Billy Belly was always there.

As Renny lay with her head in my lap that last morning, Billy Belly stood next to her.  He looked at her and then turned and looked at me.  I hope he wasn't looking for me to do something to help her and was disappointed that I couldn't.  Hopefully it was a look of understanding.  Maybe it was nothing more than a look.

I wish I could explain "looking".  I think about it a lot.  Cheeto lives here because she looked at me several years ago.  She still looks at me.  Lancelot looks at me in a way Frankie does not, even though Frankie does look at me all the time.  I never walk into the barn when I don't lock eyes with Maisie.  Everyone watches me, but only a few actually look at me.

Billy Belly is the sheep looking at me.

He was the caretaker of the flock, especially the old sheep.  

I'm glad I took these pictures last week.  He got down the other day and couldn't get up on his own.  I was able to help him up the first day and he could then get around.  The second day he could no longer stand on his own...and he was completely over me trying to help.  He was older than the blog.  To the best of my recollection he'd have been 15 next month.

I hope everyone is okay.  I really don't have any words...but I can share pictures.  And a new puzzle.

Renny

I've lost track of how many times I thought I'd be writing these words.  So many times that now that I'm actually having to write it...I don't know what to say.  

Renny probably should have died before she ever hit that muddy pond years ago.  She should have died in the pond.  She should have died at the animal shelter.  She should have died at the vet clinic.  She probably should have died even after she got to our farm.  There was never a tougher sheep.

I think she must have had a huge heart.  And a lion's share of courage.  So many of us worked together to care for her as she saved herself and I know none of us will ever be the same.   I know I never thought I'd be able to do the things I had to do to care for her in those early days. Roar!

I hope anyone who didn't know Renny will stumble across her for years to come and learn from her that we can live through and do way more than we think we can.  That if you can just hold on a little longer, you might get pulled out from the mud, your wounded legs heal and the rest of your life be spent surrounded by friends.

Renny had been declining all summer.  I knew it was coming.  Her body was worn out.  Still, I was not prepared for her collapse yesterday morning.  As I sat with her, her head on my lap, both PPPP and Billy Belly came over to see her.  They knew what was coming as well.

It will be okay...eventually.

If you need to stumble across Renny's story, here are a few links.

http://myfavoritesheep.blogspot.com/2010/11/if-there-was-ever-sheep-that-deserved.html

http://myfavoritesheep.blogspot.com/2010/11/renny.html

http://myfavoritesheep.blogspot.com/2011/11/happy-birthday-renny.html

Golden Oldies

My original paragraph started by stating "Renny is the youngest sheep in the Golden Oldies group...", but I wanted to make sure about Rebecca Boone and then started checking everyone and, yikes, time has flown.  

PPPP is 14, Ewen is 12, Billy Belly is 14, Rebecca Boone is 11, Woolliam is 11.  At 10, Renny is not the youngest sheep.  That would be B. Willard, who is just 9.

(!)

Ewen McTeagle.  It seems like just yesterday you were terrorizing the cat food on the back porch.

There's a new puzzle :-).

Oldies But Goodies

I think I've talked about "Easy Breezy" on the blog, but in case I haven't, it's the bigger version of Del Boca Vista, utilizing the end of the outside stall and the level paddock next to the barn.  DBV is perfect for a couple sheep, but when the population as a whole starts getting older, more and more sheep needed to move into "assisted living" this fall.

Silly Lila, one of my very favorite bottle lambs from quite a few years ago.  She's not exceptionally old, but she has some arthritis issues that make it hard for her to keep up with the younger sheep.

Popcorn PeePee Pants.  Her birthday is in January, but I don't remember the exact day.  I'd look it up on the blog...but she's older than the blog!  She will be 14 next month.  

PPPP is the lamb on the bookmarks we hand out in the festival booths :-).  She makes a nice puzzle, too ;-).

Renny the invincible.  She's not old and definitely not skinny, but she's starting to have trouble with her horribly damaged back legs and can't negotiate the hills on the other side of the barn any longer.  She's loving the Easy Breezy life ;-D.

Billy Belly and Heidi.  Heidi is another of the old girls.  She'll be 13 this spring.  Billy Belly is only 11 this year, but he was a bit thin heading into fall so I moved him into Easy Breezy so he could get some extra food.  He's also loving the EB life ;-D.

Ewen McTeagle (11), Woolliam (10) and Allie (12) do still come out and graze at least a little bit.  Ewen can usually be talked into grazing in the yard for a few minutes after breakfast if I stand out there with him.  Allie likes to go out in the afternoons and Woolliam does a bit, but he's also quite happy to hang out indoors and eat hay and wait for the next Bingo game ;-).

Spring Shearing

Our favorite shearer, Bill Haudenschield, was in town for a few days last week (with his nephew Dustin :-) so we decided to go ahead and shear a week or so early this year.  It was a beautiful day, the company was excellent, the sheep all behaved (mostly ;-) and the fleeces look good.  Here are some of my favorite pictures.

Lila

Rebecca Boone

Woody

Muffin

Biscuit...all those pretty curls :'-(.

The video.

Renny

Daniel Note Liddy in the background.  Just after I took this picture, she stuck her head through the gate and grabbed a packet of french fries!

Murphy

Clover Belly

Levi 

Levi 

Chocula

The Little Darlin'...

...who actually behaved quite well this year!

This is the extended version of the video I posted the other day.  Instagram has a 60 second limit.  This is 30 seconds longer...and cuter.  I just love these!

You'll notice a few sheep didn't get shorn.  They are the oldies who don't have enough fat on them (Allie, Annabelly, Billy Belly and Mrs. Pepperpot) for me to feel comfortable taking away their woolly jumpers before we are certain the cold is over for the year. 

After a couple weeks of 70s and 80s, we have now, of course, turned a bit colder, but with the barn shut up when it's windy and plenty of hay in front of them, everyone is doing okay.  The warm sunshine has been appreciated though for sure.  And look at that green grass and bright blue sky!  It matches my hat :-D.

And here's a new puzzle!  Enjoy :-).

And We're Off

Well, 20 loaded me down for this year's Tour de Fleece.  I knew he would.  We're alike that way ;-). Since this seems to be the year of color, we settled on the Elizabeth blues, Murphy's gray, Chocula's light brown,  Petunia's darker brown, some white over gray core roving from Allie and gray over white core roving from Billy Belly.  Those last three are from deep in the SABLE*. 

The colorful batt in the bag came from a friend and is for one of the challenge days.  Not that I think the batt is going to be challenging, but the whole spinning red, green and white into one yarn...  I may have to add in a small ball of Plain White as an antidote.  This Tour will cure me or kill me!  

*Stash Accumulation Beyond Life Expectancy

I think the team ravatar turned out cute.  Muffin and Biscuit grazing nose to nose in the blooming clover :-).

Side by side. #Biscuit #Muffin #friends #sheepfriends

A post shared by Sara Dunham (@thecrazysheeplady) on Jun 30, 2017 at 3:00pm PDT

Just like in real life.

Thank you for all the kind words for Jester.  The very first wool I spun was Punkin's.  I sat down at a friend's wheel one afternoon and she got me started.  And while I was very excited to actually be making yarn, I found myself choking back tears.  It goes fast, that wool through your fingers. Those twelve years. Jester's seventeen.  I don't think I'll be spinning any Jester this year.

Meanwhile, Back At The Ranch

By the time we got to the Jacobs on shearing day it was getting late, everyone was tired and they got shorted on pictures.  I love the sunbleached chocolate color of their full fleeces, but also love how black and white they look underneath.  We've had some lovely evening light this spring.

The T's.  Ts just looks wrong.  I'm in a grammar vortex :-o.

Sun to the camera face.

Sun to my back.

Billy Belly and Annabelly.  Both came through winter in good order.  I was relieved.  I was afraid they'd be thin.  They are both 13 I think.  Or, wait, Billy Belly is just 12.  Annabelly was the first Emily lamb.  Billy Belly and Baby Belly were her second lambs...

Time flies!

Soaking Up Some Sun

It's been a little colder than I'd like (down to 4 the night before last), but I've loved the snow! Walking out to the barn late at night to check on everyone and toss out a little more hay - everything is so bright and crunchy and sparkly and quiet and...  

We've been lucky and no wind.  Everyone can handle single digits when there is no wind. Beautiful sunshine yesterday.  Clouds moving in today and we are headed back to the mid 60s and rain in a couple days.  I (and the sheep, but maybe not the chickens ;-) will take sunny cold and frozen any day!   

Annabelly, Billy Belly and Heidi

Keebler and Allie

Keebs again

Buddy.  He may never have a cool 'do but he has awesome ear fuzz :-D.

Hershey, Hank and Liddy

Ewen

Oh, and from the department of if something weird is going to happen, it's going to happen to Maisie...here's a sort of funny Maisie story.

I did remember to unhook the hose from the hydrant last week, but forgot to drain said hose...so it's been full of ice for the last four or five days.  Not really a problem as I can carry buckets of water to refill the water tanks.  Just an inconvenience...much like the pioneers faced ;-).

The other night I was carrying out a big bucket of water.  Somehow Maisie bumped into it and got thoroughly splashed.  It was heading down to five that night (!).  Five and wet would be horrible, except it was Maisie, who has at least five or six inches of wool on her, so it probably hadn't reached her skin.

Still, I didn't want her to lie down and have it soak in, so I quickly (and sort of without thinking) started madly brushing as much water off her side as I could.  For those who've met the little darling, let's just stop and think about what happened next...

 At least I lived to tell the story ;-D.

Wool Pillows Are The Best

Billy Belly and Boudreaux