Green Beans

Mom and I harvested approximately 150 cups of green beans today from my auntie's garden.  It has been years, maybe even decades, since I've picked beans with Mom.  I had to smile a little when she shouted across the rows a reminder to "pick'em close."

 

As if I knew any other way to pick them! I believe I've had more green bean picking training than all other types of preparation (academic, life skills, or otherwise) combined!  Though I've come to realize, later in life, that my veggie and berry picking skills may be specific to my matriarchal line.  These truths I know in my bones:

Truth 1: If you don't pick green beans close, you have to pick them EVERY DAY. If you want to do something fun tomorrow, you better pick those beans CLOSE today!

Truth 2: If you don't pick clean, you will spend your afternoon cleaning beans instead of playing, while your mother describes, in detail, the subtleties of how to snap a bean off the bush perfectly, without sacrificing any length of bean, or damaging the brittle vines or delicate blossoms of the bush.

Truth 3: Bean season doesn't end until Mom says it does. At which point, the vines are ripped up with exhausted, exasperated viciousness, and thrown over the fence to the eager cows.

Every woman in my excessively large rural family had a monster of a garden and put up a year's-worth of food during our short Northern Minnesota growing season. I don't know how other kids spent their summers because I was too busy spending my childhood planting, weeding, picking, snapping, washing, cutting, and filling canning jars with green beans. If my sister and I didn't pick the beans closely enough on the first try, we had to pick the row again. Mom definitely checked our work. If she found one missed bean of appropriate picking size, we had to repeat the row.

I'm not complaining. I'm rather proud of the fact that I know how to pick "close" and "clean." It just made me smile that Mom thought she should remind me.

Book Bonding-Fully Funded!

I would like to say a HUGE THANK YOU to my friends from Bemidji High School Class of '91.  Many of them donated to this project and it was fully funded yesterday.
So happy!

Do you remember the first moment you fell in love with reading?

One of my earliest memories is of my Richard Scarry's Mother Goose book.  It was hardcover and I still have it.  I lived inside that book's world until I went to kindergarten.

As I progressed through school my teachers introduced me to other authors.

Beverly Cleary

Walter Farley

Roald Dahl

I loved reading.  I loved reading for reading's sake.  I loved all kinds of books:  love stories, murder mysteries, against all odds, historical, science fiction, fantasy...

I just loved reading.  And all those stories have played a part in molding my person.

I'm guessing that many of you reading this blog are also avid book readers.  

If you are, take just a moment to imagine your life if your connection to reading had never been established.  However you came to be a person that loved reading....just imagine that never happened....

Where would you be without those books that influenced your life?

Where would you be if you had never latched on to the joy of reading?

Without doubt or question, my life would have been bleak.  It is unfathomable how my spirit would have been sustained through my darkest hours without access to reading.

Now think of all the distractions that a modern-day teenager has.  So many young people enter their high school years without having fallen in love with reading yet.

Do you really want to live in a world governed by young people that never learned how to love reading?

I find it terrifying, myself.

And so deeply, painfully sad.

Here's where I'm going with this:

 The BOOK BONDING Project!

My dear friend from high school is now a high school teacher herself.  And she is trying to raise money to get high-interest reading materials in her classroom library.  She wants to put high-interest books in the hands of her students so they can fall in love with reading for the first time in their lives!  "High-interest" means the books kids are talking about NOW.  You aren't going to see Steinbeck on this list.  But a kid that doesn't like to read isn't going to pick up Steinbeck anyway.  A kid that loves to read will, quite possibly, eventually visit some of the classics.

So I'm asking you to PLEASE DONATE to my friend's classroom library by clicking on one of these links.  It only takes a minute to donate any amount you choose to give.

  Help Ms. Dittrich lead her students toward a lifetime of reading. 

If YOU recognize the value of reading in your life, this is a WORTHY cause.

Happy Birthday

I turn 40 today.

It sounds rather daunting, but I'm so glad I made it this far.  Life just keeps getting better and better!

 

I recently started running to try to get fit. You can follow my progress on my new blog;

Bean Can Run

 I guess a birthday like "40" will do that to a person.  I'm rather terrible at it, but I'm learning.  And learning something new is good.  It keeps one young.

 

In the spirit of youthful exploration I decided to post this baby photo of me

P - L - A - Y - I - N - G

 

 

Remember how fun a box could be... or the kitchen cupboards?

:)

Here's to more PLAY in my future.

A Familiar Sight

For anyone living on an old farmstead, barbed wire 'growing' out of tree trunks can be a familiar site. 

Or barbed wire randomly sticking up out of the ground where there is no memory of a fence.

Or barbed wire 'wreaths' hanging off decrepit, mossy fence posts that are rotting into the ground.

I find it interesting to envision the way this farm might have looked 70-some years ago when my Great Uncle was growing up here.  Back when all that barbed wire was functioning with purpose, and it was a matter of pride to have these acres fenced with it.  Gives me something to think about when I run across a new tangle of the spiky stuff.

Tradition

Once again, it is time to post one of my birthday photos from waaaaaayyyyyy back.

This one was taken the year I turned three!  hahaha.

Auntie Helen made the cake, which I adored because it was a horse.  It was covered in Lifesavers and had licorice whips for the bridle and tail.  If I remember right, it was also covered in coconut flake.

This was October 1975...before we had carpet on the floor...

and before my little sister was born.

Well, I'm not three anymore...I'm entering the last year of my thirties!

I took a bike ride today...something I haven't done since the boys were little munchkins in the pull behind trailers.  It felt great. 

One thing I can say for having children while I was still quite young:  now that they are starting to wander farther from home and needing me less...I'm still young enough to enjoy a lot of the hobbies I put on hold.  Maybe some moms don't put their lives on the back burner the way I did...but I found motherhood a bit overwhelming and it took all I had just to cope the first several years.  So now I'm teaching myself how to count myself into the equation.  It's all new again.  :) 

Looking forward to another good trip around the sun!



Happy Mother's Day

Sextant was the first lamb born this spring on April 18.  I put that little green lamb coat on him after he was dried off.  He swam in it.  Now, just three weeks later he has ripped himself out of the back legs and the thing is dangling like the tattered clothes of the "Incredible Hulk."  Don't worry, shortly after I took this photo I cornered him in the barn and removed the coat entirely. 

This photo may seem an odd choice for a Mother's Day sentiment.  But if there is anything so poignant about being a mother, it is the undeniable fact that children grow up...fast.  A recent cartoon in the newspaper, (either ZITS or Arlo & Janis...sorry, they both feature a typical teenage son with frazzled parents)  captured the experience perfectly with the words, "The days are long...but the years are short."

So true. 

I took a good long look at my sons yesterday as they were doing yard/farm spring clean-up work.  (The best Mother's Day present EVER!)  I cannot fathom how they got to be so big and capable.  But there it is.  Children grow up.  We can't see it happen, we just look up one day to realize their clothes have shrunk.... again.

Birthday Post

Inspired by the heavy influence of recent dog incidents,

I decided to feature my first dog in my

Traditional Birthday Old Photo Post...

This photo was taken in 1973 in Deer River, MN.

I don't remember much about the dog, though I do remember his black and whiteness.

Funny how even tiny kids can remember blurry images like that.

I've been told that I enjoyed crawling in his dog house and eating his dog food with him.

I'm struck by how similar his shape, size, ears, and face are to my Megan Pie. 

He must have had some border collie in him.

Partly Sunny

It has been raining buckets for two days now.  The weather report predicts a little bit of sun peaking through the clouds by late afternoon.  I believe this community will welcome the light as the flooding recedes.

I have noticed how life can go for weeks without major incident.  Not that it is boring during that time.  But there is only a general hum of progress and maintenance.  Dishes, homework, music lessons, chores, grocery shopping, supper, bedtime...   Then there are specific periods in time where life is suddenly thrown into stark relief.  One is suddenly facing a crossroads.  A decision is weighted with complexity.  A clear mind is needed to navigate an intense situation...

This week has been filled with important issues.  It has required me to be very mindful of each word, each thought, I release into the universe.  I haven't been able to dance down life's path.  Life's path is suddenly overgrown with thorns and shadows.  If I'm going to continue forward I have to tread carefully and believe there is light beyond this immediate condition.

And there IS light.

No matter how torrential the rains or wild the tempest, above the turbulent atmosphere is a clear view of the sun.  The sun does not cease to shine, we simply must weather the storm.

I am grateful for God's love, mercy, and guidance today.  For truly, I could not withstand some trials without His presence and strength.  In fact, the minute I turned over my fears to Him in prayer, solutions appeared.  Assurance bathed me in warmth.  Peace gently spread over my soul.  Compassion supplanted hurt.

My path was cleared enough for me to move forward.

All is well.

Why am I sharing this?  What does this have to do with a small flock of sheep and the rhythms of farming?

For me...everything.

Though the troubles I faced this week had nothing to do with my flock or farm, Shetland sheep, the organization that maintains their registration (NASSA), and shepherds involved with this breed are currently facing division and turmoil.

Anger, fear, and hurt are being sputtered and spit across North America regarding this small adorable animal.

So what should be done?

Truthfully, I do not know.  I do not know if I have a solution, or if I even will be a part of a solution.

But know what I want for this breed...

I want the positive energy of each singular Shetland to be one of the most obvious messages of it's public persona.

And I know one cannot battle negativity with negativity.  The problems I faced this past week would have become nightmares for me and my family had I relied on my gut reactions and emotions.  Did I have a right to those feelings?  Certainly.  However, they were no more than swirls of justifications and self-righteousness.

If Shetlands are going to survive in North America, I believe every shepherd of them is going to have to tap into the power of light and love.  Sounds flaky, I know.  But how else do I express this? 

Let us each reflect before we speak or publish.  Let's remind ourselves of one terrific thing about a person that completely disagrees with us or has attacked us.  Let's open our minds to the positive aspects of each perspective.  Let's listen to the energy of each voice and allow ourselves to be moved only by those that seek harmony and growth, rather than those that seek division and hatred.  

In the course of world events...perhaps this is a tiny, insignificant battle.  What is not insignificant is our personal response to it's fallout.  I believe our individual actions create vibrations for better or for worse.  How do we each weigh in on this subject?  I'm not asking for your opinion on the subject.  I'm asking how you intend to conduct your response.  How do you navigate a path of thorns and shadow?  Do you draw strength from judgement or from faith in positivity?

I'm just pondering aloud.  Not that I'm dismissing what I said in a hope that no one will criticize me for my opinion.  But I can't control those responses in others and I have decided I don't really need to worry about them either. 

If there is one gift I would like to give the Shetland Community, and those folks that are considering becoming shepherds of these terrific little sheep, it is this: 

I believe you have a mind, and I believe you have the right to make your own decisions. 

Do your research. 

Work with breeders that encourage your dreams rather than press you to join their personal battle. 

A good breeder will introduce you to the breed in all it's variety, and refer you to other breeders if you are searching for something not offered in their own flock. 

How can they do this?  Because they are proud enough of their own stock, effort, and vision to realize it will survive because it is GOOD.

Shetlands are quite variable.  Shetland shepherds are quite variable.

The only similarity I can think of between each of my Shetland friends that are spread far and wide across this continent is NOT the type of sheep or wool they raise. 

The similarity is their kindness, civility, and decency. 

Each shepherd is in a completely different place with their flock goals at this time.

But I rejoice in their positivity and their commitment to these dear, small sheep.

The Goal

Little Red Oak Ash

smooth polled ram

1 year old

Boston Lake Clennam

scurred ram lamb

13 weeks old

Considering the fact that both the rams I used last fall had huge horns, it is rather amazing that the scurs I got in ram lambs this spring are as small as they are. But scurs are not smooth polls. And smooth polls are what I want.

Setting up breeding groups for this fall will be a major challenge for me. I have several ewes that carry polled. Some may even be full polls. I have two rams with good potential. Ash is a smooth poll and Courante has snail scurs. The challenge for me will be to try to emphasize polled breedings even though my tendency is to breed for the best conformation possible.

Perhaps every shepherd favors a certain approach to creating breeding pairs. When push comes to shove, I favor creating a lamb with improved conformation...straighter legs, a shorter tail, a more correct ear set, a prettier head, etc. I am always trying to get softer fleeces with at least a 4 inch length. And now I am really trying to get polled lambs. But my brain has a very hard time considering a pairing for fleece or polled if I feel the resulting lamb may loose ground in the area of conformation. I cringe at the thought and end up rearranging breeding pairs until my mind is relieved. So a fleece goal may have to wait another year...Maybe the lambs might be half-polls. I tolerate the time lapsed for these goals to satisfy the conformation goals. It's just the way I'm hard wired.

So is this good or bad? Better or worse than another shepherd's goals?

I believe it is a good thing. But it is not better than anyone else, and certainly it is no worse.

If I have any kind of eye at all relating to sheep, it is to discern a well-put-together animal. By no means am I the best at this. What I still need to learn is infinite. But I have a passion for it and so I shall try to humbly consider it one of my talents.

However, every shepherd has some talent of discernment. Whether it is a discernment for fine fleece, lustre, silky handle, rare color, spot patterns, productivity, hardiness, polled genetics, friendliness, thriftiness, size, or any of the other traits Shetlands are noted for. If I can't help the way my eye is drawn to a specific type of sheep, there is a good chance other shepherds can't help it either. Their talents lead them in a certain direction.

This can be a wonderful thing assuming each breeder is still aiming for Shetlands that meet the breed standard. If Shepherd A has been focusing on fine fleece for several years than there is a good chance that trait is rather "set" in his flock. I introduce that trait to my flock by choosing to buy sheep from Shepherd A. Shepherd B may have been focusing on polled genetics or thriftiness with her flock. She would be the person to turn to for more of those traits. As long as each one of us is breeding to the Standard, we are free to focus our flocks according to our talents and resources.

I didn't set out to write about the 1927 Standard. I intended to say "I can't wait till my ram lambs are as polled as LRO Ash." But in writing out my thoughts, I realized I CAN wait. I would have to morph into a different person to rearrange my strategies for reaching flock goals. That led me to ponder why I am like that, thereby realizing that everyone has their tendencies. But what makes it possible for me to benefit from the introduction of other flock's genetics, is the Shetland Breed Standard. If that is the measure we are all holding against our sheep, one person's flock goal can be utilized by another shepherd to create a more well-rounded sheep. If the Standard has not been applied, then a specific trait may be introduced, but the identity of the breed will be compromised.

When I critique my own lambs, it is easy to see the good. They are cute, after all, and much longed for. Each one is a fulfillment of a dream. But then, as a breeder, it is my job to go back and look at each one with a harsh eye. What parts of the Standard does each lamb fall short of? If I still think the lamb is worthy of breeding - for no lamb is absolutely perfect - do I have the integrity to point out the weaknesses and faults of the animal in my advertising? There might be a buyer out there whose flock is strong where my lamb is weak, and that flock can thereby absorb the weakness while still benefiting from my lamb's strengths. There are a whole lot more buyers out there that might not yet be able to notice my lamb's fault, and unwittingly pair him with animals that will only exaggerate the fault. The only guards we have against the eventual unraveling of our breed is to use the Standard and exercise our integrity.

Even though I support the wording of Appendix A and it being a part of our Standard, I can understand how some people might be uncomfortable with it. One thing that I haven't been able to understand, though, is how some breeders have voiced that they never really paid attention to, or gave much weight to, the Standard in the first place. Those sentiments surprise me. So I guess it is fair to be open about my vision as a breeder of Shetlands. I do take the Standard seriously. I do try to use it as the final measure against which all of my stock is judged. For better or worse, that is how I look at my flock.

Blessings to all as we journey through this life together.

Deep Breath

Go not abroad for happiness. For see,

It is a flower that blossoms at thy door.

~ Minot J. Savage

More Fleece Photos

I would like to share photos of fleeces I have had, or do have, in my flock. These are all from sheep I have owned at one time or another, but not necessarily from sheep I have produced here at Boston Lake Farm.

I have had other sheep and fleeces in my 6 years with Shetlands. Unfortunately I threw a bunch of the earlier samples out a while back in a fit of spring cleaning.

I don't get to travel around to other Shetland farms very often. I rely on photos, and occasionally samples, to help me understand what is going on with Shetlands in other areas of North America. So in a gesture of sharing what I would love to see from other farms, I am offering up my available fleece photos and notes, as few and insignificant as they may be, to anyone that is interested in looking.

Moorit Katmoget: 4 year spring sample photo. 3.5 years autumn midside sample tested: Mic: 28.1 SD: 5.3 CV: 19.0. Staple Length Range 1.5-3.5". This is the midside sample, which is the longest staple on the whole animal. Not offered for sale to handspinners because most of fleece is quite short.

Moorit Katmoget: 1 year spring sample photo. 6 month autumn midside sample tested: Mic: 27.8 SD: 8.3 CV: 30.0 Nice lustre, crimp, and lock shape, but fleece does not have a soft handle.

Black Katmoget: 2 year spring sample photo. 1.5 year autumn midside sample tested: Mic: 25.4 SD: 5.5 CV: 21.6 Silky, lustrous, downy soft at the base. Fleece sold immediately.

Black: 4 year spring midside sample photo. 3 year spring back hip sample tested: Mic: 28.1 SD: 6.6 CV: 23.6. Good lustre and crimp. Fleece has only a little iset. Very dense fleece. Sells with excitement for the extremely dark true black color.

White: 2 year spring midside photo. 1 year spring back hip sample tested: Mic: 27.7 SD: 6.6 CV: 23.9. Soft, lustrous, crimpy. I love the handle of this fleece.

Black Kat: 1 year spring midside photo. 7 months midside sample tested: Mic: 24.6 SD: 5.2 CV: 21.1. Incredibly tiny crimp. Soft and has some lustre. The lady that helped skirt it took it home, so I haven't had a chance to personally work with this fleece.

Modified Moorit: 1 year spring midside photo. 7 months midside sample tested: Mic: 23.8 SD: 5.8 CV: 24.2. Relaxed crimp. The most buttery soft handle I currently have in my flock.

Grey: 1 year spring hip photo. 1 year spring hip tested: Mic: 24.1 SD: 7.1 CV: 29.6. Fluffy lambs fleece. Wavy, no crimp, no lustre. Felt soft to the fingers but not to my neck.

Black: 2 year spring hip sample photo. 2 year spring hip sample tested: Mic: 30.9 SD: 10.5 CV: 34.1. Very crimpy, dull-no lustre. Felt like a greasy brillo pad. Fleece not offered for sale. Culled to freezer.

White: 3 year spring hip sample photo. 3 year spring hip sample tested: Mic: 36.0 SD: 8.1 CV: 22.4. Dramatic crimp and lustre. Described by return buyer as "fiber-optic" in its bright white washed state. Had a silky hand and I was surprised the Micron was as high as it was. Added nice length, crimp, & lustre to breeding.

Black, possibly modified: 1 year old hip sample photo. 1 year old hip sample tested: Mic: 25.7 SD: 7.7 CV: 29.9. Undercoat was tolerable if separated. Overall, an unremarkable fleece that did not feel soft on my neck. Culled to freezer at one year.

I will post more photos as I get more fleeces skirted. I will also be sending in midside fleece samples from this spring for micron testing as soon as they are assembled. That info will be posted too.

Double-Coated Fleece Photo

There is much debate going on in NASSA (the Shetland Sheep registry I am a member of) about fleece length, softness...and many other issues.

To illustrate some points, Juliann posted a photo of a double-coated Shetland fleece that was 14 inches long. I'm glad she did because I wasn't aware there were Shetlands with fleeces of that style, look, feel, or length.

When I refer to double-coated Shetland fleece, I am basing my comments on this particular fleece pictured below. This sample came from a ewe I used to own. She had the most "extreme" coat length that I have come across in my experience with Shetlands.

Whatever one's preference in fleece length, Shetlands are supposed to be SOFT. I felt that, excepting the minimal guard hair, this fleece was soft. This is a mid-side sample. It may not be evident from this photo, but the guard hair is not soft. It feels like mane hair from a horse. It also has zero lustre. But it's amount is in such a small ratio to the soft undercoat, and so very easily removed, that I am not concerned about it. Nor am I concerned with the 9-10 inch length of the sample.

This ewe is true recessive emsket in color. She also carries good spot genetics and throws flashy lambs. I enjoyed having her in my flock because she was also super friendly, an excellent mother, and she had terrific feet, tail, poll wool, and utter traits. I'm listing all of these things simply to illustrate how I feel about a Shetland with a fleece like this that has excellent qualities.

As opposed to the fleece above, the sample displayed on Juliann's blog is not something I would feel comfortable defending any more than she does.

Wolves in this Wood

Ponderous Leil

It was very windy yesterday. But by 10pm, when Clancy went out to fix the fire, the night was calm and beautiful.

Clancy and the boys found a wolf kill on our driveway early this morning. Several deer had opened up a round bale of good alfalfa a few weeks back. The blood started there and ended a few yards down the road at the carcass. The heart and front shoulder of the fawn were devoured. Tracks were all around. It was simultaneously shocking and natural to behold.

As I passed by, a swirl of black crows twined upward from the remains...only to circle back down again in my rear-view mirror.

Seven hours later, as I returned home, a complete skeleton rose above a rug of hide. Each rib was clean and the spine and legs were visible from a distance. Clancy and the boys reported that the hide was picked clean from the inside. There was even less left of the deer than there appeared to be. The wolves had opened up a carcass. Undisturbed, the crows, the eagles, and perhaps even a fox or coyote, had made short work of their daylight discovery.

There isn't anything left of that carcass for a wolf to eat tonight.

Feisty Ewes
AnnaBelle & Silvy

Deep January

Clancy took this photo of the sunset reflected against the Eastern horizon.

Looking West, our view has dramatically changed. A friend of the family has been logging off the mature aspen in our deep forest. We knew we had a lot of aspen mixed in with our hardwoods, cedar, and balsam. We knew it would look different with it removed. But it REALLY looks different!

The older I get the more I am learning to accept the positive aspects of change. The aspen was overly mature and was starting to blow over. Though it isn't thrilling to see piles of branches that need to be burned, it is interesting to see the lay of the land a bit more. Some pretty young hardwoods will have more room to develop. And my sheep will have another acre or two of grazing within view of the house.

Like everything else around this farm, it will take work to make the logged off areas look the way I want them to. Rather daunting. But exciting too.

Acceptance

Courante & Roux

Life has a way of knocking our good intentions for a loop: My complicated musical-breeding-pens plan for the ewes and rams this fall never happened. Lack of time, lack of sleep, and lack of space interfered with getting the breeding groups put together and dismantled more than just the one time.

Lyneth

So here's what really happened:

Anna Belle went in with Bombarde on November 3, 2009 and was pulled out December 24. I'm fairly positive she was bred on November 23.

Lyneth, Nhu, and LRO January went to Arvada's pen on November 7, 2009 and they came back out again on December 24. I jotted down that Nhu was bred on November 29. Then I saw Arvada very interested in Lyneth in late December. I'm hoping he managed to do his job since he had plenty of time and I didn't have the space or time to use a clean up ram.

Darla Gay

Only the above 4 ewes will be lambing this spring. I unintentionally gave Sian and Silverthorne the year off. Some regrets there, yes...but I'm not complaining. As I was praying about my frustrations this fall, I realized that God is more than likely looking out for me. I made the choice to not put new breeding groups together over Christmas break. The prospect of a small lambing season is almost a relief. If life is too busy now to simply rearrange sheep...what is it going to be like this spring?

Leil

I have accepted the ramifications of not pushing myself, or my plans too hard. It feels a little odd to have so many sheep right now and not be planning for a big lambing season. But I think this is exactly what I needed. This time next year...there should only be two polled rams and maybe one prospect ram lamb living at Boston Lake Farm. There will also be a more select group of ewes. I'm looking forward to my flock and my efforts being that succinct.

Exceptions to the Norm

Beautiful Rachel

Breeding Season '09 is shaping up differently than I expected. Lack of time and space have been factors; as well as the projected departures of Bombarde and Arvada. I'm employing two practices that I don't usually favor: breeding ewe lambs, and breeding early.

For better or worse, here are the decisions I made for this season. I'm hoping for the best.

ShelteringPines Bombarde is paired with Bramble Anna Belle for a third time. She has been with him since November 3. I plan to keep her with him until about Dec 8. Hopefully I will get another dynamite set of twins from this cross. My wish is a polled ram lamb. But I wouldn't mind more ewe lambs either.

WhitePine Arvada was given Boston Lake Lyneth & Nhu (Anna's '08 twins), and also Little Red Oak January. January is the only ewe lamb I'm breeding this year. I wanted to put the girls most likely carrying polled genetics to Arvada before he left in hopes of some keeper ewe lambs. The fleece pairings of this group are also exciting. This group was put together November 7 and will disband around December 12.

Sometime this coming week I will put the 3 remaining adult ewes with their rams. Currently, I plan to put LRO Ash over WhitePine Silverthorne and Boston Lake Sian.

S'more Courante will get SheepyHollow Rachel. I feel bad he won't be getting more girls his first year, but I plan to use him heavily next fall.

Sitting out the breeding season this fall are the ewe lambs Boston Lake Darla Gay, Qdy, Vianne, and Leil.

Lambs should start arriving around the last day of March. The first four ewes will hopefully come in well before the other three, thereby keeping the barn from becoming too crowded. As mentioned above...I'm hoping for the best.

October Micron Reports

Click on a photo for its larger version.

I was excited to get my micron reports in the mail yesterday. Here are the results for the seven sheep I had tested. Each sample was scissored from midside, just behind the last rib.

I wasn't too surprised with any of them. While I don't think in terms of microns and numbers, the reports did not change the standing I had already given each sheep according to my own assessment of fleece characteristics. It feels validating to know the numbers support my personal preferences.

Bombarde had a higher micron than I expected. I thought long and hard about how that could be and suddenly I had an epiphany: Last spring's micron report was from a rather large lock sample that was dangling off his rump. This was likely snagged by Unicorn's horn in some tussle. I suspect that this sample was not the full spectrum of fiber I would have obtained had I scissored off the same lock. Perhaps some of the courser fiber remained anchored while the finer fiber ripped out? Probably. Although it is evident from both reports that Bombarde is very consistent. Maybe this is just the difference in his third fleece and his fourth fleece? I shudder to think of how naive I was of the whole micron sampling process back then. Whatever the reason, I appologize if the initial report was misleading. I understand now how carefully samples need to be collected and how they are difficult to compare unless they are collected in the same manner.

Arvada

4-2-08

Black Kat

Ash

4-30-09

Modified Moorit

Bombarde

3-22-06

Musket Kat

Courante

spring 09

Black Kat

January

4-29-09

Moorit Kat

Jchen

5-1-09

Black Kat

Roux

4-26-09

Musket