Astrid and Isla

 Freya is doing SO much better today! She ate some of her feed and hay this morning. She has lots of milk now. Just 100% better than a few days ago. She's outside eating grass. I fixed a bottle yesterday morning and only one of the kids drank a little. So I am very happy and relieved right now!

This was yesterday outside for awhile with mommy.

This is Astrid. I'm still thinking about that name. Not totally sure about it. But it somehow fits her. She has the cutest little elf ears ever.

                                                           This is Isla. She is just adorably cute!

And Astrid again. I love them both. I was so worried about Freya, I almost put them on Craig's List to see if I could sell them. So glad I didn't now.

                                                      Just look at those sweet little ears. So cute!

I love this picture. Looks like the girls are whispering to each other, doesn't it? Wonder what they're saying?

Still waiting on Olga. No signs from her at all yet. I told her today would be great to have kids. I'm home all day. Friday and Sunday gone all day. She'll wait til then I'm sure.

Springtime!

My alpacas have declared March 10th the official first day of spring here at Outback Farm!

This morning as I was filling up water buckets, the alpacas came walking up to me. They hardly ever do that, so I was wondering what was wrong. Then I realized they wanted to be sprayed with the water hose. They love to sprayed with water when they're hot. So I figured they must think it's spring and time to get wet.

                                          Sugar likes to get wet then lay down in the mud. He's so funny.

So happy 1st day of spring, y'all!

Making soap and cutting wood.

 Yesterday was pretty hectic here. Freya was not doing well when I went out in the morning to check on them. She was not eating. Had runny poop. I swear this happens every time. The day after they kid or lamb. So I called a few goat friends to see if they had any ideas. It's a pretty long story so I won't go into the whole thing. I'll just say that I will NEVER give a doe or a ewe molasses water again! Ever! I just hope she makes it. I had milked her some Sunday because the kids were just nursing one side. So had 3 little bags in the freezer. I'm giving them a bottle to help out. They are fine. Freya just doesn't have much milk right now with not eating much. She is eating a little hay here and there. Kim brought some alfalfa and she loves it. So I'll be getting more for both goats. And I'd like to sell the kids as soon as possible. But I think Freya will be fine soon.

So my brother Mark came out and we fixed the electric fence. There was a big branch that fell on part of it a few weeks ago. So had to get that all fixed. Then the post at the end had just rotted at the bottom. So put a new post in and got it all back up and running again.

Then we came in and made soap. He's been wanting to learn. We made an easy honey-oatmeal hot process soap. He did good! Quick learner.

That's the soap he made. He did a great job and he was so happy about the whole process. I think he will be making more soap soon.

And while we were fixing fences and making soap, my husband and his friend Kid were cutting up the rest of the tree. Kid went back home and got his wood splitter and withing an hour, they had this pile of split wood! Pretty cool, right?Now all we have to do is take it over to the wood shed and stack it up. I got it all out of the chicken yard so all that's left is the brush to burn.

I will be taking pictures of kids when I can get them outside. It's nice out but still a little chilly.

Still waiting on Olga to kid. Any day now. She does not look like she's going to really. But she is so lonely,  poor girl. That's the bad part of having just 2 goats. I was hoping they'd have kids about the same time.

Babies!!!!!

 This morning, Freya did not want to leave the barn. She kept calling me. I checked her and she didn't seem to be having any discharge or goo. But she didn't want to leave the barn. So I called the caretaker that stays with Mrs. T Sat. night til I get there at 8:30 and told her what was going on and to see if she could stay for the day.She could stay half the day then my daughter Heather came in for the other half. So I got to stay home and keep an eye on Freya.

(I did have to go to Mrs. T's from 5-7. When I got home, I heard one of my sheep. A very distressed sheep. So ran and got the flashlight. It was Cameron, all wrapped up in that darn electric netting fence I have around the kale in the garden. She hadn't been there too long. But I had to cut the wires to get her out. Always something going on with those sheep! She was fine.)

I did notice her udder had gotten huge though, so I knew it could be any time. And today was just a beautiful day to have kids!

So we hung out in the barn. I cleaned both the stalls. Fluffed up the hay. Got water buckets and hay ready. And waited. And waited. I always said waiting on goats to kid is like waiting for Christmas morning when I was a kid. Like it would never get here.


So I went inside and did some things inside.

Went back out 30 minutes later and   she had 2 kids on the ground, all dried off! I checked them both and they are both girls!!!!! And So cute! Freya is such a good mother.   

This little one is Isla. She has gopher ears. She's about the same color as Freya, a little lighter though.

And the one laying down here is Astrid. She has cute little elf ears like her daddy, Oden.

                                                                        Isla says hello y'all!

I left them alone to bond. When I came back for a check, they were both laid out here in the sun. I had to check Isla, she was laying so flat.

And they are both nursing the same side, so I had to milk out the other side. They are good kids, already full tummies and I've seen both pee and poop.

So, welcome to the farm! The first kids in 3 years I think. So exciting to have little kids here again!

Now waiting on Olga. This is her first time so I really want to be here for her. I'll be here all day Monday and Tuesday til my pottery class at 6. And the whole week will be in the 70's with NO rain!!

Goat watch!

Yesterday started goat watch 2016 here at Outback Farm! I counted the days and yesterday was day 145 for Olga with Freya being 5 days behind her. So the 3rd through the 18th is goat watch. Olga's udder has really gotten big the past few weeks! I'll spare y'all pictures of goat rear ends. But that is the most important part of a goat right now. It all happens back there! I have to check for loose ligaments in the tail. Check the vulva for any discharge. Check the udders for fullness. So a lot goes on back there that a person needs to be aware of. It may not be pretty, but it's important right now.

I need to get some towels and a few other things ready and put in a bucket in the barn. Need to have my camera charged up too. My brother is coming tomorrow to help work on the electric fence. I want him to help me get a few lights hooked up in the barn. It would help to have lights in there at night with kids. Flashlights are too annoying to have to hold and do things at the same time. I need 2 hands!

I am thinking they are both carrying twins. I just hope they come out the right way! And that I'll be here when it happens. This is Olga's first time. She's a big girl, but things can go wrong really fast. And these first timers can really be dramatic.

Most all the goats I've ever had here would have kids in the morning or during the day. I have gone out during the night for checks, but nothing ever happened. Maybe 5 or 6 in the morning, but that's the earliest. But these 2 does are new, so ya just never know. And goats are goats. They do whatever they want to do!

So hopefully, in the next few weeks, there will be some cute little goat kids bouncing around back there!

Pottery

 I started my pottery class last Tuesday night. It's hard. I mean, seriously, it's hard. I could not get it. The instructor wanted us to start with a cylinder. Right. No way could I make a cylinder. Mine and everyone else, made bowls or plates or whatever. But no cylinder. I just could not make the clay go UP. So the few things I did manage to make, I smashed at the end of class.

We get 1 free studio day during the week to practice. I went Wednesday last week. David was there then. He showed me a few other techniques that actually worked for me. I made these 2 pieces. A bowl to scramble eggs in and what might become a mug. It was fun that day. So these had been drying since last Wed. They were just right to trim yesterday when I went back after this Tuesdays horrible disaster of a class. It was not a good night for me. I almost cried. A lot. Very frustrating for sure. So I went back yesterday to practice some more.

This is the mug I started trimming on. I loved this part. It was fun. I love all the curly clay trimmings. I can save these and let them dry and add water next week to make clay again.

So Tuesday was not a good class for me. I could not get anything to work for me. Nothing I did was any good. I had 7 piles of clay on the plaster board to soak up the moisture so I could reuse the later.

So I went back yesterday to practice. There was another instructor the then. She was very helpful. She sat at a wheel next to me and we worked like that for a long time. She would just slap a square hunk of clay on the wheel, turn it really fast, and within seconds, had a workable mound of clay ready to make something with. So I tried it her way. It worked!

Then she showed me some more good techniques to make the inside. I have got to cut my nails on my right hand now. Fingernails just get in the way in pottery. So they have to go! I used all those 7 chunks of clay plus a few more before the night was over. I made 4 fairly good pieces. Even if they are not perfect, they say to keep some to practice the glazes on. Good idea. So these are drying now and should be ready to trim next week.

Only 4 days in, I have a great appreciation for potters. And I can totally agree with how much they charge for their work. I totally understand. It is a lot of work. It's a lot like spinning wool actually. The speed of the pottery wheel determines how the pot will turn out. Same with spinning wool. The speed of the wheel while spinning determines the twist of the yarn.

So there is SO much to learn. These 3 people who are helping us in this class have a lot of years of pottery between them. And all 3 are so different in their ways of instructing us. I have learned something from each of them. I don't know how far I will go with this, but I am enjoying the learning process. And who knows, I may even get some usable pieces one day.

This shawl

I finished this shawl last week. Ended up with over 500 stitches.Took forever t bind off. Then I used a size bigger needle to bind off. Which is why I think it made the ruffle. Which was the top. But is now the ruffly bottom. I really had no idea what I was doing. I just started knitting from the bottom up. So please don't laugh at this very first shawl I've ever made. It still needs to be blocked too.

I did a lot of yarn overs to make the little holes. I just thought it needed something in there besides just all knitted. And I love the colors. It's not a heavy shawl. The yarn was probably more lace weight. Not really sure. So, there it is. And I had models a few days ago, but forgot to get pictures of it on.

Now to start on a new project!

I stopped at a cute little thrift type store in town yesterday after I voted. I had some time before my pottery class. And I found this cool pot. I love it. She had $19.50 on it and I asked if she'd take $15. She did! I love the color. I am thinking about redoing my kitchen and these are the colors I am leaning towards. With maybe some pops of red and yellow. Just something different. And I would love to find an old vintage range in this color. Wouldn't that be awesome? I have an old GE with a big and a small oven and the extra room on top. I love this stove. But I am down to only 1 big eye now. And the smaller over only has broil working. But I am not ready to get rid of it. I would like to get it fixed some day. And maybe it could be painted?

Rainy Superdedooper Tuesday.

 Yes, it's a rainy day here in N. Ga. And it's voting day. It's supposed to be 70 here. With strong winds now later this afternoon. Just a gloomy day really.

My brother and mom came out yesterday afternoon to eat and cut down a tree. My husband had gone to take our daughter for an interview, so wasn't here. Don't let this picture fool you. He did not get that tree down!

First my brother took the fence down. We didn't even think about doing that. Then he cut a wedge above where it split. Then started cutting with the chain saw. He cut it all the way through. Nothing happened. It never even moved. So he got a wedge and sledge hammer and went to whacking it. He was thinking it would turn and twist a little, then fall to the right. Well, it did. Right between 2 of the fence posts and just missed the shed! The top had already come off when it fell over or it would have hit the rook. But it was all good.

He went ahead and cut the tree in half so we could get the fence put back up so the sheep could get in there later today.So we will be working on getting the tree cut up for fire wood. My husband's friend, the wood fairy, will probably come help cut it up. He likes doing that. Then we will have a big ole bonfire.

                                               You can see here where the tree landed. Really close.

Do you see that bird bath? Back when it was still frozen, there was ice in it. I was putting sunflower seeds up there for the birds. But the chickens would hop up there sometimes too. One day, I noticed the bowl had fallen off. I didn't think anything about it then. Just thought one of the cats had knocked it off.

Well, about 3 or 4 weeks ago, I noticed one of the hens was missing. I assumed a hawk had gotten her, since I never saw any signs of feathers or  bones anywhere. This morning, as we were eating breakfast, my husband asked if I was going to pick up the bird bath any time soon. I just had this horrible thought pop into my head that the chicken was under there. I ran outside and lifted it up and sure enough, there was the hen. With an egg next to her. I cried. I am crying now. It's so sad. And I feel horrible. I never even looked or thought a thing about it. Poor hen.

I have to go vote today and I am still confused about this whole mess.I do not like any of the people running. One of them is the closest to what I believe in, so will probably go with that person. Then I have to go get Mrs,. T. to take her to vote. Her daughter is here too, but doesn't know where to go. So I'll take them.

Then off to the pottery class! I can hardly wait. I love it. But, the studio is in an old school building. And it's the voting precinct for that little town. Ugh. And it's probably going to be raining and nasty. The doors are closed at 6:30 and the class is at 6. Should be fun to find a parking place, right? Well, I hope there is a big turn out and all the parking places filled. They were all filled last week, come to think about it. But there's parking around back.

SO back to spinning this morning, while I have some time. This wool is amazing. Have a great day, y'all!

Extra time.

 I have never really thought about leap year before. Never thought how we have a whole extra day. 24 hours. Who started this? How do people who were born on Feb. 29th, celebrate their birthdays? Do they even get to have birthdays when there isn't a Feb. 29th? I am going to have to do some research on this. But anyway, we have a whole extra day to do whatever we want to! I think this day should be a holiday. Everyone should get this day off to do something special.  Don't y'all think that's a great idea?

So this is what happened to the bird condo. We have had SO much rain and wind, that it pushed the tree over.

Thank goodness there's a maple tree in the corner that caught it. Or it would have fallen right on the shelter. And the fence. I don't see how it's holding it up, but it is so far.

So my brother is coming over this afternoon to help us figure out how to go about getting this poor tree down. The birds are still going in and out of their little holes.  My husband has wrapped a heavy chain around the trunk and I think we'll use my 4wd Trooper to pull the trunk and get it to fall. It's going to fall on the fence. There's no way to avoid that happening. I have a cattle panel I can put there til we can fix the old chain link fence. But in the mean time, the sheep cannot go over there. We will have some extra firewood from all this. Looks like we'll need it tomorrow. We are in for some nasty weather Tuesday afternoon. Hail and wind and rain. And it's Super Tuesday. And my pottery class too.

Looks like March will be coming in like a lion!

And with all the crazy weather, we have leaves coming out on some things. My elderberry bushes.

And the blueberry bushes are getting lots of buds on them!! I hope I get some blueberries this year. Last year, the darn chickens got them all.

This is what I've been spinning at Mrs. T's while I'm at her house. I love this natural color. Almost like a linen or tweed. It's really beautiful. I left my niddy-noddy at Mrs. T's yesterday, so I can't take it off yet.

Me and the goats and dogs went for a walk out back. It's not our land, but they don't mind if we walk back there. This was the first time I took the goats for a walk. I used to take all my other goats back there all the time. I picked some daffodils and the dogs went swimming in a few ponds. It's a beautiful day.

My oldest grand daughter, Chloe, is taking guitar lessons at a music school on Saturdays. Coryn, the middle grand daughter, wants to play cello. Or violin. Since I have a violin, she can start on that. And I want to learn too. Chloe's teacher has it right now, checking it out and putting new strings on it. He said we could take a class together. How fun! I really want to learn fiddle though. Coryn is in band. She's in 8th grade and has been in band since 6th. She plays clarinet. She want to play in marching band when she gets to high school next year. She will be the first to do that and I am really excited! Dade Co. High has a really good band program. They are planning to go to Chicago next fall to perform in a parade.

Ok, enough rambling. I have stuff to make. I need to get busy and make things for this show coming up in May. More about that later.

So I hope you all have a great extra day today! Have fun and do something special with it.

Wednesday ramblings.

Yesterday was a pretty busy day. My brother is here for a few weeks. He's staying at moms, helping her get some things done there. Wednesdays me and mom always go to lunch and then do a little shopping. We had to bring Mark along with us. And we met Abby and Jason, my daughter and her hubby, my other daughter Heather and my husband, at a really good Mexican restaurant over near where Abby and Jason work, for lunch. Had a good time with the family.

Mark, mom and I then went over to a really big thrift store so I could look for a filing cabinet for my little office at home. I did find a nice big 2 drawer with sides in the drawers! The one I have in my studio has no sides. So I can't hang those hanging files in it. My brother said they make those little cage like things to put inside the cabinet to hang files in. So why don't all filing cabinets have sides? I think that's just crazy. Anyway, I just paid $15 for it. And it fits perfectly where I had in mind to put it. Now I just need a nice warm rug. There's concrete floor in there, and it's cold!

After I left mom's, I went back over to the pottery studio, to practice. One of the guys, David, was there and only one other person. So had the whole wheel area to myself! I got some really good help from David. And I got to throw 2 really good pieces that I felt good about keeping. He said not everyone has the guts to smash the first things they make, but that's a good sign of a good potter when they can start over. And over and over. He was a really big help to me. It's funny how everyone has different ways of teaching. Like the lady who first tried to teach me to spin. She just was not the right person for me.  David took pictures for me and was supposed to post them on their FB page, but I don't see them yet. I made a little bowl that I will use to scramble eggs. He made a little pouring lip on the side for me. I love it! Then made a little mug like cylinder. I'll see what it becomes in a few weeks. He also said I should make several balls of clay ready for next week, so I don't have to spend so much time doing that. So I feel better about pottery now, just having that time yesterday to practice more.

And my friend came yesterday morning and got Big Red, the rooster! I caught him the night before and had him in a crate on the driveway, ready for him. When I got home last night, my husband said I gave them the wrong roo. It scared me because I just knew I grabbed Big Red, not Black Bart. But he said that rooster crowed ALL day, right outside the window where he sits. The roo and hens love being up at the house, right under the living room windows, where he crows all the time. He follows me around, crowing too. It really hurts the ears.

So I am home all day! I will hopefully finish that shawl. I did go to the yarn store. I had to buy another cable. She said she wouldn't trust it to hold much longer. So now, I have to transfer all those 1000's of stitches over onto the new cable, then knit a few more rows, then bind off. Then weave in all those ends and block it. Can't wait to see how big this shawl will be. Probably big enough to wrap around me twice at least!

I've been spinning the last of Buttercup's wool. I had so much on this bobbin, it would not turn anymore. I ended up with 217 yards. That was way too much. So far, I have 197 yds, 148 yds and 217 yds. And I am working on the last bobbins to get ready to ply. Then done with Buttercup wool! It is SO soft and pretty too.

Oh no!

A few days ago, I am knitting on this shawl, which I am just a row or 2 away from binding off. I am counting and was at 330 when I was pushing on what I had just done and the cable broke! Oh my goodness, I almost screamed. There were at least 30 dropped stitches, just hanging there, as I am trying not to go crazy. I got my glasses on real fast, but carefully, so I wouldn't lose it all together. Got all the stitches back on, with a few little mess ups that I hope to be able to fix. And I got the cable back in as far as I could. But there's still probably a 1/8" that should be inside the little metal thingy. It's rough. I can't do anything right now. So I will take this little mess to my little yarn store in Chattanooga this afternoon and see if they can fix it for me. It's the longest cable too, because I think there must be 1000 stitches on there. Geeze, it's going to take me a month just to bind this off!

                                              The owls look really worried, don't they? I am too.

And in other news, last night was my first pottery class! I was SO excited! There are 7 of us, all women. With a man instructor. He wanted us all to practice working with the clay, pounding out any air bubbles on the table. I tell you what, that first cut of the clay to get a bit off was amazing. I had seen people do it, but to do it myself, well, that was really cool. And the clay was so soft and smooth and felt so good on my hands too. Just a cool thing right there. I was amazed the whole night really.

So we went to our little wheels and plopped that cone of clay down in the middle and practiced centering it. That took awhile. And I'll tell you again, my left hand hurt! So got mine centered real good.

Then the fun part! Making a hole. I just really enjoyed every part of this experience. He wanted us to make a cylinder. Well, we were all over the place! Every one of us. We had bowls and plates and all kinds of shapes. But no cylinders. Mine was pretty much a wide cylinder, with the bottom way too small. I was going to keep it, but after getting it off the wheel and onto a board, the more it sat, the more wonky it got. By the time I was ready to leave, I went over and smashed it up.

I did get to practice on another piece. Did pretty good, but smashed it too. It's hard! I had no idea. But the instructor, he was whipping out bowls and cups and tall cylinder-like vases and cups. Then he'd cut them in half so we could see the way ours should look. Then he'd smash them up and start on another piece. Oh to be like him some day. But it will take SO much practice. They encourage us to come during the week to practice so believe me, I will be going! I really want to do this. I want to make yarn bowls.

So this is the ancient pottery wheel my friend Daryl gave me. It's heavy. And foot pedaled. What fun, right? We just have to figure out how to get it all together. And what is that half round piece of metal for? Can't figure that out and Daryl couldn't remember either. And it needs a seat. We can just make a seat out of plywood I think. And then I might can practice more on this.

I just hope we don't all float away from all the rain we've been getting here. I woke up early this morning and it was pouring. Thunder and lightening all around. And more rain to come! Yay! I guess this is a good thing. For ducks maybe. And rivers and streams and lakes. But I am sort of over it all, thank you. And I have got to get new boots. Plastic bags don't last very long.

Sold!

About an hour after I put the ad on CL I got a call from a guy from Dalton. He and his wife came up in their little 4 door hatchback about 12:45. We went ahead and got Oden loaded up in the back of the car. Then he saw the sheep and asked if I had any for sale. I told him I'd been thinking about selling Adele and her daughter Cassidy for awhile. Their wool is not really that good because Adele is half hair sheep. He said ok, let's get them caught and load 'em up. So just like that, he had 2 full grown wooly sheep and a big buck loaded in the back of his little car. With his wife in there too.

But it took about 30 minutes to catch those 2 crazy sheep. Adele has never let me touch her. Like ever. Cassidy is friendly. She's the one who always got in trouble. So I got all the sheep over in the North side and got most of them in the stall with the door. But not Adele. She went the other way. Then Cassidy did too. We got them around the back of the little barn and he caught Adele as she was flying over his head. Good catch! Got her loaded in the car. Then went back for Cassidy. She went in the stall and he caught her as she flew past him into the wire at the top of the wall. Another good catch! That poor guy was covered in mud.

Sheep are crazy when they are scared. But all was good. And they drove off down the driveway.  And all is well in the kingdom again.

Or will be tomorrow when my friends come to get that darn rooster.

Oden, the buck.

 Oh this buck. He's back. And he's a jumper. He's already jumped out of the back yard. Then I had the does in the back stall again for the night and this morning, he had to jump over that gate and got in with them. And he's a pig. He didn't like his bowl of feed, he wanted theirs. He's a mess, this buck.

He's been gone for about a month, visiting other does. He went straight from one farm to another one last Sunday. But they brought him back yesterday. I have been trying to call the butcher, to see if they had a spot open for me to bring him in tomorrow. But the phone's been busy all morning. So I put ads on Craig'd list and on FB.

Just had a call from a guy from Dalton. He's heading over right now to get him! I hope. Sometimes CL is not all it's cracked up to be. I hope he shows up. Because I have all the goats in the back stall, so I can catch the little bugger. I just do not need a buck around right now. The does are due in a month and I really don't want him around then. And he's just annoying.

This is the 1st skein of yarn from Buttercup. Isn't it beautiful? I so need to learn to dye now. I will. I have most everything to dye with. Just need that little push to actually do it. Then I think I will be hooked. I have another skein and am working on getting the rest spun and plyed. Then on to another fleece! I have SO many!

This is a fleece a friend gave me a few months ago. It's been in the milk room since. I had no idea what it was. The paper on the bag just said 'nice and soft" Patches 5-8 lbs. And the date from 2014. I laid it out on the skirting table to look at it closer. From what I can tell, and seeing pictures, I think it's Jacob. It's really pretty. So many variations in color too. I decided to wash half of it after skirting it.

And when I was done and ready to put it back on the screen to dry, I saw all these little dots of things. Like dandruff. I thought it could have been the Borax powder, but only used it on the 1st wash. So I threw it all out. It scared me. So it's out of the studio. Going to the dump now.

My brother is here visiting from Colorado. He's staying with mom, then he's going other places for work. So will be spending time with him this week before he has to leave.

And we are due for more rain this week. And BOTH my boots decide to get holes in them, at the same time! Right on the tops of each boot. The way I knew is that I had a boot full of mud after a few steps. UGH! So now, I have to put my feet in plastic bags. Isn't that so cool? And rednecky farmer? Til I can get some more, this is the way I shall have to wear those boots.