My Sheep are so considerate

Chuck just called me this morning to say he had the BFLs in the barn, ready for our annual Scrapie Certification inspection tomorrow. I was surprised to hear this, since they were in the far corner of the farm, and he had planned to set up an eletronet corridor to move them back to the barn this afternoon. Well, they must have heard that we needed them, because he looked out the door to see them coming down the road. Bob (our OLD Great Pyrenees guard) led them directly into the barn, where all Chuck had to do was open a gate and allow them into a pen.
See how nice they are - they saved him a couple hours of work this afternoon. And for some reason, he was mildly annoyed with them. >:^)

Tonight, we'll run them through the chute to check for proper ID tags and make sure everyone is accounted for. The APHIS vet will come by around 10AM tomorrow to check them off and get a copy of our up to date ear tag log and sales/deathloss record. Then we'll be done and in compliance for another year.

Angora Yarn

Here are the 100% angora skeins I have(had) in stock. Most are red Satin Angora or fawn French, with the center one being chocolate agouti SA. I'm about to mail them to their new home, and wanted to show them off. I'd better get after those rabbits to grow more fiber!

New BFL lambswool Angora blend

Just as I expected, this roving arrived the day after A Wool Gathering. :^( Oh well, its beautiful, and a breeze to spin. Its a blend of a natural colored lamb's fleece from Jillian and some fawn French Angora I've been "hoarding". There is 55% angora in the blend, so the yarn has quite a bit of bloom already. Its a hard color to decide upon - is it grey or is it brown? I think taupe, actually, and it spins up heathery. Very nice and soft. Its $5 per ounce. I spun an ounce last night, and got 54 yards of sportweight yarn.

A Wool Gathering 2009

This is my friend, Jane, who is in the booth beside me every year. We've been friends for years - first meeting at a rabbit show. She's gone from guinea pigs and rabbits, to llamas and sheep, and now has horses. Most the roving is from her own flock of sheep. She also is a Babe dealer. We had dinner together Saturday evening at "El Toro", a mexican style restaurant in Springfield. VERY GOOD FOOD!

This is Judy, teaching drop spindling to anyone who will stand still long enough. :^) She loves to teach, and is very good at it.

The Rouge Lucet - a fun way to make cord.

The Shepherd's Rug. Letty Klein was not there, but these ladies were demonstrating the technique and selling the finished rugs and the book.

A different kind of rug - these are woven.

Joan is an Ohio artist, and I LOVE her sheep and border collie prints. Someday I'll commission something with BFLs.

These are only a few of the vendors - the festival has two huge tents - I'm guessing about 40x200 feet, plus a tent for exhibiting fiber animals and demonstrating shearing. They have a lot of free beginner classes, and are especially geared toward youngsters.

Despite concerns about the economy, the festival was well attended, and my sales were excellent.

I don't have a picture, but my friend Annette came and sat with me all day Saturday and brought along some bunnies, angora pins, and note cards to sell. You can see pictures of us on her blog.

BFL wethers at the Stark County Fair

This is Alex with her two BFL wethers. She placed 3rd and 4th in her division, which is quite an accomplishment for a pair of lambs that don't have black faces. Dad says the Leicesters made quite a stir in the barn when they arrived. They were 4 months old almost to the day, and weighed in at 104 & 105 pounds. Alex bought their dam from us last winter, and raised the twins herself. The dam is SHF Keryn, and the sire is SHF Lockerbie. A local fiber artist bought the lambs after the show, so they will live out their lives in a fiber home.

Will all this stuff fit in there????????????

Getting ready for A Wool Gathering tomorrow. No way will all this stuff it inside the Explorer!
6 storage boxes, and 7 big cardboard boxes.....

Sure it will, with room for a couple rabbit carriers and a couple more boxes!

Champion AOB open class Stark County Fair

This is Madelyn and her ewe lamb, "Babydoll". Madelyn bought a bred ewe from us this fall, and Babydoll was born in April. They placed second in their class in the 4-H competition (behind the Montedale ewe who won champion at the Ohio state fair). Then in open class, she won the AOB ewe lamb class, and then champion AOB ewe, beating out the yearlings.

Babydoll's dam is SHF Lyric, and her sire is SHF Larkhall.
Babydoll also got to star in the shepherd's lead competition. I believe they got reserve.

For Sale: Somerhill Calais

Somerhill Calais #1118 $300.00

Single, born 4-12-09

Sire: SHF Lockerbie

Dam: SHF Pegasus

Barlaes Titus, Jamie breeding

Calais has a beautiful fleece, and is a well grown ewe with good capacity. Her dam is the oldest ewe in our flock, and has raised twins and triplets. She should inherit her mother's beautiful udder; round, tight, with small wellplaced teats.

For Sale : Somerhill Wren

Wren is a twin, born 4-17-09 $250.00

Sire: SHF Larkhall

Dam: SHF Aria

She combines Carryhouse R1, Ebony Boy, Jamie, & Laird bloodlines. I've priced her fairly low because she does not have the classic blue head coloring. She is structurally sound, and has a nice style to her. She also has good wool coverage. Bred to the right ram, her offspring should have good blue coloring. Her dam is an excellent mother who raises twins and triplets.

Getting ready for A Wool Gathering

I've been quiet for a few days - mostly because I've been doing last minute stuff to get ready for this weekend. The pile of boxes and plastic tubs is growing ominously large. Will it all fit in the Explorer??? I'll find out tomorrow. I've taken Friday off work to get everything packed in and make signs and things that occur to me at the last moment. Also need to get change & buzz over to the post office to pick up the basket I left there in the lobby last weekend....... Wish I could come up with a big, eyecatching, classy looking sign for the booth. One that does not cost very much, but looks like it did. Something that lets everyone know I've got BFL.

If you are coming to A Wool Gathering at Young's Dairy on US Rt 68 between Yellow Springs and Springfield (Ohio) please drop by and say hello!

Family Fun Day

We took off this morning and headed north to enjoy the beautiful day. We first followed along the Ohio & Erie canal on US 36 and St Rt 416, checking out some of the little towns along the way. Then we looked at a map, and decided to take a look at Atwood Lake, shown above. Those are sailboats in the distance on the lake.
I had packed a picnic lunch, so we sat in the shade of some Pin Oaks and ate. What is it about eating egg salad sandwiches outside that makes them so good? Once we left the lake, we just followed our noses along some of the back roads and looked at the beautiful farm land.
After a stop in New Philadelphia to get rabbit food at TSC, we made a stop at Chuck's favorite cheese shop to get a sample bag, some baby swiss, farmers cheese, and I decided on some smokey provolone for sandwiches this week.
Now we are home, and its time for a Sunday afternoon nap!

In memory of the victims and their families

This is Jamaica

This is Jamaica. She is a 2 month old chocolate tort Satin Angora doe. Isn't she cute?

Twins - how different they can be

The first two pictures are Sarabande. She is long, slender, elegant, with very fine fleece.
This is Shivaree, her twin. She is heavy boned, muscular, with heavy fleece coverage. Both are beautiful in their own way, but very different.
Their sire is Lanark, and dam is Serenade, so they are CH R1, Loyalty, & Jamie.

Quadrille

Some more of my favorites

This is McTurk, by Lockerbie out of Colette.
This is Lourdes, Lanark & Rowan's daughter.
And this is a better shot of Bijoux (Lanark x Caliope).

For Sale Lambs

I've added 4 ewe lambs to my sales page, as well as this ram lamb. This guy just keeps looking better and better. I had him picked out to go along with 2 older adult ewes this summer, and when the buyer came to pick them up, he chose to take another ram lamb - one I had decided to cull and have for our freezer. Ah well, to each his own, I guess...............

This is Somerhill Moodiesburn.

Back in the saddle

Well, maybe not quite, but I did go down to the barn today and participate in working the BFL lambs. I helped set up the working chute, and gave some B complex/iron shots while Chuck did the worming. I also took notes describing the different ewe lambs so I can start recognizing them on sight. Some I already do, but a few I was not sure of. I have 2 sets of twin ewes, and now I can tell which is which. I must be getting stronger, because I kept leaving my crutch on the far end of the working chute, and misplacing it in other ways. :^) It feels good to be useful again.

United Angora Rabbit Club Specialty

In conjunction with the Blennerhassett RC
Marietta, Ohio @ Washington County Fairgrounds

Saturday, October 3rd, 2009

Show Secretary: Lisa Rodenfels 740-732-7120 somerhill@earthlink.net

Show Superintendent: Annette Boose 614-286-2846 boose@att.net

Entry Fee: $3.50 per rabbit
Carry in show, day of entry
Check-in at 8 AM
Show starts at 9 AM

Official Sweepstakes, National Angora Rabbit Breeders Club, Inc.
The NARBC awards pins once a year for BOB and BOS. Best-In-Show winners will receive special colored pins. Winners must be a member of the NARBC or join before the end of the show.
Secretary: Margaret Bartold, 909 Highway E, Silex , MO 63377 . Dues: Single-$10.00, Youth-$5.00, One Rabbitry/2 persons-$15.00, Family-$20.00.

Leg Update

I forgot to mention - the DR told me to stay on the crutches this week, but gradually start using the leg more and more, and use my own judgement as far as how much. Most of yesterday, I just used one crutch while indoors on a smooth surface. This AM, it feels good. And believe me - it sure feels good to be able to carry stuff in the other hand. :^)

My dad's grave and WWII plaque

My sister sent me these photos, taken of the new plaque that was added to my father's headstone recently. I think it looks very nice, and is a lovely tribute made to our veterans for their service to our country.