Monday, February 27, 2012

What a beautiful day.  We have been having a snowstorm the last couple of days.  Not more than 10" but certainly enough to get our driveway plowed by our nice neighbor with his BIG tractor.  Not as much as those living around the Great Lakes but enough for us.  Now our local weather calls for another foot starting tonight.  Phew!  Its getting pretty late in the winter for this much.  So far its been a very mild one.

I've started spinning the soft superwash merino for my sister's friend.  It spins up very nicely and will be great for next to the skin items, such as a neck scarf or mittens.  Think I will spin more of this right away and have some yarns available.

We're getting a new force-air heater with a heat pump this week.  This is so exciting.  We haven't had a furnace of any kind since we moved here nearly six years ago.  Wood stove, a couple small Cadet heaters in the walls for heat and open windows in the summertime.  Since we live on dirt roads out here, this is a very dusty place.  This system will have a whole house air filtration system, plus our all-electric bill should be a lot less than we're paying now.   I can't wait to try it out.

One last note, when they were cutting through the wall from the pantry to the small room off the kitchen for ducting, they found a wall that looks like a log cabin.  You just never know with this house.

Monday, February 13, 2012

Its no wonder I don't get anything done these days.  My calico kitty River, has chosen my desk or my printer to take her day-long naps on.  I just love her and think she is so beautiful!

I should be starting a new spinning project soon.  A friend of one of my sister's wants yarn, so when she picks out the fiber and color she likes I can get started on it.  Its been so long since I really was very inspired to do anything fiber-y.  And I still haven't worked on that autumn-colored scarf I've got warped on the Mighty Wolf loom out in my studio.

We are currently working on getting our house straightened up as we are finally having a heat pump and forced air heating unit put in.  With no furnace or anything forced air, this place is so dusty at times, especially in the summer when we have to keep the windows open.  We also will have cooling for those few weeks in the summer than can get to 100+ at times. 

I can't wait!

Friday, February 3, 2012

Life on our farm is quiet.  Winter is still with us but the forecast this week is cold but clear.  I took these pictures a couple days ago.  The day had been drizzly and cloudy.  All of a sudden the clouds parted and we were blessed with this fantastic view.  It only lasted for a few minutes, just enough time to snap two pictures.  Then it was gone.

This time of year we concentrate on getting the inside of the house fixed and cleaned.  In just a few weeks it will be time to start on the outside and the yard.  With 10 acres, that can be a daunting task.  But with all the alpacas and goats re-homed now, we can concentrate on our yard and finally on our garden.

We have several blueberry plants, asparagus, raspberries, an orchard with about a dozen different fruit trees, and an entire pasture of mulch in a big pile thanks to the alpacas.  That should suffice to energize all the veggies and fruit.  Now just to have that ground unfreeze.

Friends at Serano Alpacas got a new great pyrenees puppy a couple weeks ago and named him Abe.  He died yesterday of unknown causes.  We are so sad!  They don't know why or what happened.  Farm life can be tough at times. 

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A late update on little Abe.  Apparently he dug out under the fence and was killed by a fox.  They found him with a neighbor's dog laying next to the little guy like she was trying to protect him.  So sad.

 The picture on the left is Abe with his big buddy Thor.  The other one is little Abe inspecting his new yard.  Such a loss.  Goodbye little guy.