So Many Things Happening

I'm not even sure where to begin. But since this will be a information-heavy post, I think I'll start with an awesome picture!

That's right . . .  it's a 1967 Volkswagen, Karmann Ghia! My husband is awesome. He and the kids completely surprised me this past weekend with it after going to "get lumber" and was gone for something like 6 hours. I got regular updates about broken windshield wipers, a flat tire and grocery shopping to explain the delay. I was a bit miffed when they finally showed up, but then when they opened the back of the trailer, I was speachless.

This is a car I've wanted since I was in high school, and one of the first Mike and I daydreamed about owning when we were dating. 

It has no engine, and there's a two-year ETA on driving it, but that's OK. It's mine!!!

In other news . . . 

I've decided that it's time to say good-bye to my Breed Study Group. This is a really bitter-sweet decision, and one that I put off announcing for a very long time because I wasn't quite sure I could let it go. But I did, and now it's time to look forward to new adventures.

The decision really hinged on the farm. Willow Glen farm now has 10 sheep and we have 8 pregnant ewes this spring! That's going to be a lot of animals and a lot of wool. I'm finally at a point where the farm is more than a hobby to write about. We'll actually have quantifiable products! So here's how the shop will look within a year (or two!):

-Shetland roving. Lots of it! Natural and dyed wool will fill up the shop all from my animals!

-Debouillet roving. Lots of it! Dyed debouillet will round out the shop's spinning offerings as a fine, delicate wool. This all comes from a flock in the midwest that I work with on an annual basis.

-Alpaca/Merino yarn--Sport and DK-weight will be available soon. Some of the sport-weight is in the shop now, and I'm test driving the DK yarn in a cardigan for myself. It's pretty scrumptous! This wool comes from Hope Farm, and is processed into yarn at Autumn Mist Fiber Mill, both NY small businesses.

-Romeldale yarn--probably a light worsted weight. This is a long-range plan for the shop/farm. I'd like to purchase some Romeldale sheep this fall and use their wool to start a yarn line. Just like the Shetland, it'll take a while to build up, so the yarn may not be available for a few years, but I think we have enough fluff to keep us knitting in the mean time!

-Handspun yarn--whatever I feel like working on at the time!

My goal is to further develop an identity for the shop and farm. As much fun as the breed study has been, it's been a challenge to keep the shop consistant for returning customers. 

And my time has been morphing quite a bit, too. I love teaching, and will definitely be available for private lessons or to teach groups, but I've decided that regular class offerings just don't work while I still have young kiddos. On top of that, I've taken on the added responsibility of being our guild's president for the next two year. Teaching will come back when the time is right.

In the mean time, I'm still writing for PLY magazine, and that is a much more flexible schedule for me to stick to. So far, I've had an article appear in the Winter 2013 issue and a pattern in the Spring 2014 issue. I have three more articles slated for Summer, Fall and Winter 2014. Pretty cool, huh? But to keep the article ideas flowing, I need time to actually spin and knit so I know what I'm talking about!

Though saying "so long" to the breed study and teaching has been hard, I think all of us here at Willow Glen are excited about the new opportunities (and lambs!) that are on the horizon!

Robin Update 5.22.13

They're getting pretty squished in their nest.

Too tire to pose for the camera . . . 

The parents were close-by this morning yelling at me as I took pictures.

Daddy:

Mommy:

Lamb Update 4.2.13

Emeralds' twin ewes, Lily and Violet:

Lily

Violet--not the best photo, but she's rather squirly.

Sparkles' rams, Hickory and Ash:

Hickory popping around the barn. He wouldn't stand still!Ash, on the other hand, enjoyed posing.Peridot's girls, Rose and Buttercup:

Rose--I love how deep her color is. Hope it doesn't fade too much in the sun.Buttercup--love her fleece; check out the crimp!And Peridot's little ram, Rowan, who's hanging in the house with us:

He really has the exact fleece I've been wanting in a ram: dark brown and tiny curls. However, he's just too small and scrawny. He's doing OK, but I'm a little worried about his high respiratory rate and he seems weak today. We're doing what we can, and keeping our fingers crossed!

Everyone still looks rather wobbly--photos in a week will show strong, stout little lambs!!

Bachelor Pad

Last Fall we set up a pasture for the rams in order to separate them for breeding purposes. We knew they would be wintering with the girls again, but for a few months, they needed their own space.

And with that, we made one of our first big newbie mistakes: electric fencing will not hold back a ram in rut. There's a few week's span that I have marked out on my calandar that indicates "unknown father" to lambs born then. Grumble, grumble. They won't be able to be registered, but they'll still have great fleeces! One thing is nice though, I'm completely certain Knox settled Peridot, and that's one of my favorite pairings. 

With our little mess-up behind us, we've been plotting out a permanent housing situation for the rams (which we should have done earlier, I know!). Last weekend we spent two long, gloriously beautiful days outside putting up the fencing. And this weekend (which was NOT a gloriously beautiful weekend), finished up with putting up a small house, trimming hooves, giving shots and moving the boys in.

Some work shots from last weekend:

The boys setting up the fence.

Matt looking cool.

The dogs got in on the fun (Axel is getting really big!).

Kat waved from the tractor (with Brendan driving) like she was a queen in a parade!

Just had to have a shot proving I can drive a tractor.

This is my favorite photo of the day. Kat and Matt eyeing eachother up: Matthew carting posts and Kat about to throw a snowball.

Another shot just to prove that I know how to do some manual labor. Really, these are photos for my family in Texas; I'm not sure they believe I do all this!

It's all good until someone slips in the mud puddle!

The next photos are from this past weekend (3/16/13).

Knox, Mike and Brendan demonstrating our ram-moving method. It worked pretty well. We even used the bucket to hold them down while we did hooves and shots.

The boys enjoyed the buffet in the new pen.

Knox inspecting the house.

Willie and Johnny giving it the go-over.

Update: this morning (3/18/13), I checked on the boys and they've knocked a hole in the side of their house. Perfect timing with this nice, new blanket of snow we got today. 

They're idiots; what else can I say?

Our new bundle of Joy!

We have a new member of our family. Introducing Axel Hartrich!

He's a 5 month old labradoodle that we adopted from a rescue in Ohio. We made the journey to pick him up on Sunday, and he's now settling in well.

His first full day home wasn't a good one. His poor little nerves couldn't handle the transition, and he was sick all day long. The past two days have been much better, and we're starting to see some playful puppy behavior.

Since he's also a rescue, we have some work to do in order to get him comfortable in a family. We also have some work to do to get Hunter to like him!

I think Hunter is still waiting for him to go home.

It's taken us three days to come up with a name, and right now "Axel" is sticking. But who knows, maybe in a year I'll look back at this and think it's funny that we called Scout "Axel" for a few days!