Okay, they’re not black…but we did finally add sheep to our farm! We bought 3 mommas and their babes a few weeks ago. They are darling of course! Doug is calling them Chops, Rack, Leg, Gyro…you get the idea.  I’ve progressed from thinking that by not naming them, we’re somehow less attached at butchering time. It’s simply not true.  So, I’ve named them Domino  (her baby is Spot), Ivory (and Snow), and Fiona (just for Joyce!) – her baby is Ram-a-Lama. He (duh) is a ram lamb- our only one- and he’s all brown.  Really darling, except the little butt keeps slipping through the fence (to nibble the roses, blueberries, beans, corn…)- and he brings the other 2 babes along to be his partners in crime. Grr….!

The sheep are a Katahdin cross. The Katahdin have hair and therefore a milder taste (something about lanolin), but since these are a cross, they are slightly wooly. Now they are shedding (no shear- another plus) and look so funny. The kids love to go out in the fields and find the wads of hair/wool. The girls washed and dried a bunch to use as Barbie rugs!

We love having the mowers out there in the field! They are much more fun than the riding mower! Better for the environment too! I’m trying to decide if wool is something I want to get into…I’ve always wanted to do the carding and spinning and what-not, so we’ll probably try it at some point…however, much as I like the sheep, I think I’d rather have cows to mow the grass. Maybe Dexters…or Belted Galloways….

I took this just before Easter- I can hardly believe how much they’ve grown! Ram-a-lama is laying down, Spot is in front of him, and Snow is to the left. Fiona is next to Spot, Ivory is in the middle, then Domino.