SORRY FOR THE ABSENCE
The other day someone pointed out to me that I had not composed a blog entry for some time. To tell you the truth, I didn't think anyone was actually reading my blogs. And, we've been pretty busy around here and I just didn't carve out anytime to write. I'm going to try to get back into a routine that will include a bit of writing once in awhile. If nothing else, it will require me to sit down, relax a bit and celebrate the life we live here on the farm. And it will allow me to reflect on what we have accomplished and dream of what is yet to come. So to catch up since Spring weaning:
The grandkids have returned for another summer session of Grandma and "Papa" summer camp. That includes swim lessons, tennis lessons, and an art school.
We took a few of our animals to Black Sheep Gathering in Eugene. We didn't show too well but I attribute that to our late lambing and thus small stature lambs.
A lot of cold rain this Spring that seemed to help out pastures but was tough on our vegetable garden. I've had to mow the pastures twice already to keep the grasses from going to seed. At this writing, the hot dry season has set in and I've begun to feed hay remaining from last year, though the sheep still seem to prefer the pastures.
Melody, our guard llama, still never ceases to amaze me. The other day I had called the ewes up to the barn. When Melody didn't come with the ewes I was quick to accuse her of being obstinate and I started down into the pasture in a foul mood to get her. As I crested the knob that keeps the bottom of the pasture from view I saw Melody herding 4 ewes up to the barn. She had heard me and was only trying to move the 4 ewes that hadn't heard me. I was quick to apologize.
We've joined a local venture, the Sandy Area Farm Loop. This is a group of local area small farms that the public is welcome to visit, particularly on week-ends. No visitors yet, but the new brochure/map has not yet been printed and their website has not been updated to include Drumcliffe Farm.
We're only a couple of days away plugging in our new array of photovoltaic panels that will hopefully generate a significant portion of our electricity needs. This has been a long term dream and the house was designed and sited on the property with this objective in mind.
Speaking of conservation matters, our 1500 gallon rain cistern is now fully operational. This collects rain water from the roof which we use to water the vegetable garden. When there is no rain, the cistern is slow-filled from our well. Seems to work well and will work even more efficiently once I've expanded the drip irrigation system.
Our chicks (we're running a bit late on this one) are just about to be released from the brooding box in the barn to the pasture and their coop on wheels. The idea here is to roll these layers into the pasture as the sheep are rotated out. Once the brooder box is empty I hope to start a crop of fryers.
We've registered for the Oregon Flock and Fiber Festival in September where we'll once again show a few of our sheep and have a small retail space in the animal barn. We're scrambling to produce product for this show as well as keep our regular customers provided with fleece.
And of course we've had our regular share of visitors and celebrations on the farm. Both family and friends. Right now we are hosting Sarah Swett from Moscow, Idaho who is here to teach a special tapestry class at the Damascus Fiber Arts School.
And finally, speaking of family, we'll soon be packing up the grandkids for a trip to San Francisco to meet their new cousin who'll be arriving in the United States from Ethiopia with his new parents within the next couple of days. What a dear blessing!
I promise my blog posts will be more frequent.
