Sunday, But Not a Lazy Sunday

The guineas are early risers. A couple of them have found the roof. They are learning how to fly and have made the roof as a goal of some sorts.

They were noisy when we first got them and that hasn't changed a bit. As you can tell they are quite vocal. They have found the chicken gate to the pasture and are regular visitors there now. The sheep don't mind and Fuzzy the llama certainly doesn't care.

They were telling the world that Ted had put some round things in the goat pen and was making noise building something. As you can see Sophie is always willing to give a helping hoof or too to make the job easier. I could tell the next step in her playground experience was going to be Ted's back. I think like a goat.

We had discussed that the goats needed something to keep themselves occupied with. Ted had stopped by and spoke with an electric company just outside of Bangor about getting some of their wire spools to put together playground equipment, goat playground equipment. It turned out really nice and the goaties really love playing king of the hill. I think Bella and Sophie were playing Billy Goat Gruff under there.

I was inside with the wood stove going making soap. Today was a honeysuckle with calendula flowers day. I added a yellow mica pigment for fun. I had help with the setting up phase of soapmaking. Mo loves to help out. She keeps the quilt from coming off of the soap mold while it is heating up. Isn't she wonderful? She takes her job very seriously.

I have been complaining about the soap supply storage. No matter how I readjust things space is still a problem. My storage area inadequate. I NEED MORE STORAGE SPACE. Is anyone listening? I was afraid my scent bottles would break, my herbs and seeds were getting lost. I was whining. I know whining when I hear it, especially when it comes from me.

Yes my dear friend Alex was listening. She at least wanted to shut up the whiner. "Enough already," she said. "Enough of the infernal whining." "Do you know you are a whiner?" No, she really didn't say that. She is too nice to say that out loud. I know she was thinking it though. She started setting up the shelving in the staircase to our attic over the kitchen.

While I was making soap and listening to Nat King Cole's, "A Christmas Song" CD she was busy building a shelving system even Martha Stewart would be proud of.

I couldn't wait to move in. I started grabbing tubs off of the shelves in the mud room like a mad shopper on Black Friday in Walmart. I love my new shelving. I can see what scents I have and those I need. It looks so nice and neat. I can find everything now.

We have been so busy working the last couple of weeks that I have been remiss in my posting. I have been on reading blogs but just not able to post. I really miss it. I hope ya'll have had a wonderful Sunday. Much love and prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Kelly

A Sheep and Goat Kind of Day

We have had that kind of day. It started off with a package from Tonya from Flat Creek Wool and Pottery. I had ordered some Christmas presents and they arrived. It's so nice to get packages in the mail. This mug is Ewenice and the ornament is Ewenice too. See what I mean about a sheep kind of day?

Now the goat part of our day.... It was time to trim hooves. I will admit that I have been a bad goatmama. The littles have not had their hooves trimmed. Honestly, I was afraid. Afraid I would trim them too close and hurt them. But now...I went to Goat School. I trimmed the hooves of the deceased goats so I wouldn't hurt my babies. And to be completely honest again, I was still afraid. Afraid I would take too much off. Poor Sophie was the first. We took our time. She was patient for such a little girl. Of course a little grain in a bowl of hay kept her busy. She was picking through the hay trying to get every last piece of feed with those little goatie lips. Her hooves may still be a bit long but I didn't cut her. Actually, I did a rather good job on all of the littles. They all look beautiful and have nice feet too.

After this harrowing experience I got to reward all of us. I sat in the stall and took a goat break. Even Carina got into the love fest. She has been a bit standoffish. I think she is starting to warm up to us now. We made some changes for her. All of the goats have switched over to a sweet feed rather than pellet food. Even the littles liked this change. Now Carina finishes all of her grain. Just look at those lips. Ain't she sweet.

Isabella wanted to get in line early for feeding. I didn't have the heart to tell her she was about 3 hours early.

Edward wanted to get into the Twilight/New Moon mood. Here is his Cullen look. Sensitive but a bit standoffish.

Now for a big surprise. We got a call from a neighbor last night asking if we would like to take 2 Angora and Cashmere mixed goats. We were ecstatic. Yes, we said. Emphatically, YES! They're mother and daughter. This is Mercedes (renamed Sadie, after my grandmother) and no name (renamed Curly Shirley). Nothing, and I mean nothing around her doesn't have a name. Except for food. We don't name food.

Carina and the group are getting used to the additions. After all, they were new at one time too. Now they are family. One big goatie family.

The outdoor flock came closer to check out the new arrivals. I'm sure that they will all get along in time. Right now there is a bit of pushing and shoving till the pecking order is achieved. Sadie seems to hold her own. I fear the littles will still be on the bottom of that order again.

Our farm keeps growing and changing. I guess that is how life is too. Forever changing. Much love and prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Kelly

Love Is In The Air

The day has finally come to put Truffles and Baby in with the girls. Truffles is a beautiful Icelandic ram and Baby his trusty side kick. Baby is a wether. Herd animals can not be kept as a single unit. They have to have a buddy to be happy. When we brought Truffles home we brought a friend with him. They have stayed separate from the girls so we would know when they were bred. The minute the gate came open and we went into the boys pasture the girls came tearing down the hill.

We thought we would try using a harness with a yellow crayon on Truffles. Supposedly this way we would have a physical indication that he had been there and done his business.

He acted like a little girl that had to wear a bra for the first time. Eww, this is uncomfortable... I can't move...Its too tight.

However, the minute he was turned in with the girls all thoughts of his "bra" were forgotten. I could just hear him. "Hi, my name is Truff...I live over in the next pasture. I have been keeping my eye on you. You sure are cute..."

The girls aren't sure if he is a good thing or not. They are playing interested but shy. Giving him come hither looks and then running away.

Inside the barn it was time to hang up the handy dandy "buck rag". Isabella and Corina had both been bred prior to coming to live on our farm. One good way to determine if they are pregnant, when you don't have a buck around, is to hang a rag that has been rubbed on the chest and face of a buck in rut. Evidently, this makes the girls go wild if they are not settled. Isabella took her time sniffing....

Corina took her turn next....

The littles even acted a bit interested. We weren't sure if they had come in heat this season yet. We know they are still too small to breed. Bella thought the buck rag was "interesting"....

......and it was soon forgotten. Evidently the bigs are with kid and the littles are a bit too little to care. Some things, like a new hay rack just seem more important.

The pups were out in full energy mode. What do labs do when there is a puddle?

Zoom.......through them at 45mph in full lab on crack mode.

All in all it was a fun day. We are very excited about the possibility of having kids and lambs in the spring. Now it looks like that is a real possibility. Much love and prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Kelly

Goats in the Garden

Every once in a while I do something smart. Not very often. Sometimes I crack myself up with my outcomes. I have found that with the best of knowledge I can not change the outcome. I have tried raising bees and I have tried raising Giant Meal worms. I have come the the conclusion that I can not raise insects. I must have a larger project. Larger mammal to be exact. Although, I do well with fish in a large aquarium. Go figure. After a brief visit to my two hives I thought the bees had left again. I knocked and they did not answer. When the weather gets cooler bees congregate into a cluster to stay warm. I assumed that mine had left for Florida for the winter. I had been following one of my favorite blogs Pink Porches. Lisa has a wonderful sense of humor and I love reading her blog. After a few conversations we realized that Alex and I had attended a Bee School with Lisa last winter. I emailed her to see if she would be interested in my empty bee hives and all of the equipment. Thankfully, she said yes so she was going to come this past Saturday to pick them up. Around noon Saturday I went out to disassemble the hives and clean them out. To my surprise I found the girls flying. The weather had warmed a bit and they were busy. I didn't have Lisa's phone number so I emailed her. Thank goodness she read her email. I asked her if she would like for me to wrap the hives and she could pick them up in the spring. She was so excited she wanted to take them anyway. She is a brave soul. Around dusk we went out and tapped up the hives to keep the bees on the inside. I repeat she is a brave soul. She rode home with 2 intact, but closed, bee hives in the back of her van. In hind sight I should have brought the bees to her. I was worried about her travels. Thank goodness she arrived without incident. The bees are in good hands. She was kind enough to make us this gift basket. The pillow is so beautiful and I am limiting anyone on the homemade ginger snap cookies. I want your recipe. Thank you again for the basket.

Usually goats in the garden is not a good thing. Today we brought our brood out to eat the leftovers in the garden. They were so happy to get some of the still green collards, burssels sprouts, cabbage, and greens. Edward made the best of his visit.

Jasmine was up and helped with the herd. Does 5 goats make a herd?

See what you get when you sit down with goats? Lap goats!

Again Oreo came for our walk. I think he found something stinky to roll in.

They all had a nice wander through the garden.

Everyone ate their fill.

Even Corinna was there. She isn't sure about leaving her barn. She kept looking back to make sure she wasn't too far away.

Alex ripped our scare crow up by the post. He did a good job this year. He will get new scrubs and new stuffing next spring. With pinwheel hands and bells the crows steer clear of the garden.

We are enjoying the few warm days we have. Such a blessing each and every one. Take care and much love and prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Kelly

List Completed!

Whew! We finally completed the last "To DO" on the list. Now we have a Ta Dah List. We started this list mid summer. We have lived in Maine just over 2 years and have learned how winter can sneak up on you. The weatherperson forecasted a dusting of snow for Friday morning. I'm okay with that. It is November and not that unusual. I did have a bit of problem when we got snow in October. Now that is just too early. It felt so good to write the Completed on the list. I even used a Sharpie. No going back now. It's done!

Our last item was to change the light bulb in the well house. See, our well house is near the top of the hill in the apple orchard. I say apple orchard loosely. It needs a lot of work to become a true apple orchard again. We have plans. On our way we took a new picture for the blog. This is Mainely Ewes Farm in late fall splendor.

Ted drove the tractor up. You never know when you just might need a tractor.

How many farmers does it take to change a light bulb? 3-1 to take the picture, 1 to decide that she isn't going in there, and the 1 who gets voted as the light bulb replacer. I just love democracy.

Not the most comfortable spot. Kind of damp and ewwwy. Is ewwy a word? Nope, but you know exactly what I mean.

There, light bulb changed. Now the pump wont freeze up in a blizzard. Think maybe that happened before? Yep, now we change the bulb in good weather. See, we're learnin.
Now for a nice walk through our woods. The look on Alex's face says it all. When you are 5'4" you don't follow the 6'3" person through brambles. She just couldn't win.

He is deathly afraid of spiders. He finds no humor in our imaginary sightings. There...there...there.

We came across this old pair of pants, a belt and a vest. Ted was sure we would find a body. I think he has been watching CSI way too much. He wanted to send some of the dirt for DNA testing.

This fuzzy caterpillar was hiding out on a lichen. We almost missed him.

The log covered with lichens really fascinated me. Such soft cool colors. All natural, no dyes or preservatives needed. We need to take lessons from nature.

At one time the previous farmer had chicken pens in the woods. Such a cool latch. We plan on returning with tools to remove them. What an ingenious latch. Simple.

We never walk in the woods alone. Oreo loves to accompany us.

Emma and Lucy are getting so big. Getting a picture of either one of them still is a lesson in patience.

Got it...

Two dogs and millions of sticks in the woods. They have to have the same one.

Emma listening to a rustle in the leaves......

After a nice long walk in the woods we are greeted by the girls.

Oreo picks a different trail, away from the pups.

They can't stop wrestling all the way home and Oreo doesn't want to be a chew toy. They never hurt him. Just slobber all over him. How demeaning.

Our guineas have finally decided to use their outside perch. The get up but can't figure out how to get back into the yard. Like Bev from Bee Haven Acres says, "they have 1/2 brain split between all the birds". No joke.

What a beautiful walk in the woods. Now that the list is done I can begin making soap in earnest and Alex can start making her cheese. After such a busy spring, summer, and fall it will be nice to work indoors. Oh, I feel an Inside To Do List coming on. I am Virgo therefore I make lists. What can one do? Much love and prayers to all from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Kelly

Happy Halloween!

Several weeks ago on a night that was slow in the ICU,I began to peruse the web for bulbs. Yes, glorious, colorful, diverse bulbs. All shapes, colors and varieties. It was late and I was delusional. What was I thinking ordering 1,000 bulbs. Yes folks, it was not a typo, I said 1,000 bulbs. Weeks later after I had gotten sleep and promptly forgot about my purchase this big box arrived filled with those glorious bulbs. All 1,000 of them. I repeat, what was I thinking? Since the weather has cooled it is now time to bury those bulbs so they can catch a few ZZZ's before breaking out in the spring. We got all the requisite tools out.

One of the "tools" was the tractor. Ted scraped an area 6'x25' to make the planting easier. We removed the sod, dug down and planted a mixture of tulips. I turned into a giant mud ball. Make that a cold giant mud ball.


For all that work it sure looks bland. I have dreams of the spring and all those tulips popping up to greet the sun.

Now, trimming off all of the peony's. At this time I only have herbaceous peony's so they die back every year. We also planted 9 alliums. It will be so excited in spring.

Everything slows down in late fall. The leaves are done, the garden trimmed back. It seems like we are just waiting. Waiting for the first good snowfall. I am always amazed at the quiet in late fall and winter. Most of the birds have headed south. Their chirps and squeaks just a memory.

Then things like this little fellow remind us that it is only a few months and spring will return. This year we will have guineas to take care of you mr grasshopper. Mmmm........

Some things just show up. We don't know how they got there, where they came from. Now please keep in mind that in our yard you can dig just about anything up. We actually dug up a complete rusty old bicycle while planting the cherry trees this past year.

The breeze swings this chime sending soft sounds through the afternoon air. Such a soothing sound.

The flag snaps in the breeze......

The pug snorts and snuffles....

and the cat just is....

and a farm just wouldn't be a farm without chickens. This is my granddaughter Jasmine when she was about 2. Yes, I sent my granddaughter out into the world dressed as a chicken. I love that costume. I think it is one of my best ever.

Best wishes for a safe and Happy Halloween. Much love and prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Kelly

Working on the List

We have been working steady on that darn list. Little by little we have been able to whittle it down to just a few projects left. Ted gave both pastures a quick mow to get rid of the taller weeds. The sheep loved being able to get down to the last little bit of green grass left.

They followed behind the tractor. Hopefully next spring the weeds will not take over the pasture. I was out pulling thistle up by hand. Not a pleasant task. Those darn stickers are able to penetrate leather gloves.

While Ted was mowing we took a walk in the woods behind the pasture and this is what we found. A big tree stand. We had a good idea that it belonged to a friend we had given permission to hunt last fall. We now have animals and don't allow hunting on the land. After a phone call he came and removed the stand. Thanks Chris.

Work inside the barn is overseen by our resident critics. Everyone is enjoying the afternoon sunshine. The littles are still betting bossed around by Isabella and Corina (the bigs).

We were able to complete two milking stands. One full size for the bigs and one smaller for the littles. Amazing so, the littles are still a bit to small for this milking stand. We have to put blocks in the front for them to stand on to reach their food. Like a booster seat for the kids in the car.

We planned on using stall mats for the base to prevent slips. Blue Seal was out of mats so we took two old commercial rugs, flipped them over so the rubbery side was up and secured them with deck screws. We saved money with that adjustment.

Isabella is working on her portfolio. She wants to know if this is her best side.....

or is this her best side? I think she loves the camera. She is very photogenic.

Corina doesn't trust the camera yet. She is still a bit camera shy. But boy can she give good goat milk! Just look at those kissy lips.

All of the dirt has been spread in the back of the house. Ted is a fast learner. He has been working with the tractor and has become a pro at spreading dirt. No way to get grass seed to grow in this cool weather. Soon snow and ice will cover the dirt till spring. Then we can plant some grass seed.

Finally, we are able to get this old telephone pole down. Fair Point is the communication provider for our area. Anyone not familiar with this company you are fortunate. They took over for Verizon and went downhill like a snowball from a much warmer climate. They are filing for bankruptcy at this time. We had a new pole placed last fall. The previous pole was in really sad shape. I called Fair Point to let them know that the phone lines could be moved before we had a storm that could tear them down. According to the customer service assistant, we would have to pay $65 for a service call, $65 for 15 minute increments. Wow! However, if the line or pole just fell they would come out and change it over for free. Now that makes sense....... That is a high priced industry and a rip off. In a few, not quite so nice words, I told them it would be a cold day in a warmer climate before I would pay that. The whole thing would have to fall first. Well, this past week the line fell and we were without phone service. The Fair Point repairman came out and kindly, and for free, changed the line over to the new pole. It took him about 45 minutes. That was the nicest $260 that I didn't have to spend. I thoroughly enjoyed watching him work. Ted was able to use the tractor to push the old pole down.

Like a kid in a candy store. You get to drive big equipment and tear things up at the same time. Woo...Hoo........

Down came the pole with a mighty crash..... It was so old he was able to cut it into lengths to use in the wood stove. It was pre-creosote and safe to use.

All of our wood has finally arrived. What a beautiful site. Stacking can come a bit later, not too long. Otherwise, it will be covered with snow.

What a nice cozy feeling. Plenty of fire wood, a pot of coffee going on a cool fall day. Home. What a wonderful word.

We hope everyone is well and having luck finishing their list. Hopefully, ours will be finished soon. Much love and prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Kelly