Moving Day.....

Hey folks - I can't change the web address on this blog to match my farm and etsy shop name, so I am starting a new blog.  If you want to continue to follow me, I will be at www.diamondbsheepfarm.blogspot.com 

I promise to stay more up to date on my postings. After all, if I am moving, that means I get to start over!

Come join me!

~Lori

We have been quite busy since shearing day about a month ago.  As usual, the weather doesn't want to cooperate so I can get outside and skirt fleeces.  Only about half of them are done, with most of those being out the door and into their new homes.  Thank you!  Even if the weather yucky, that's okay, it isn't like there is a lack of other things to do.  If all else fails, there are ALWAYS clothes in need of ironing. 

I finally got some new items in the etsy shop today:

By the way, I have changed the etsy shop name to match the farm name, now both are Diamond B Sheep Farm.  This should clear up confusion.  When I figure out how to change the blog name, it will change too.

I have been spinning up a storm.  Yarnology and More in Van Buren, Arkansas is now carrying my handspun yarns.  Woo-Hoo!  I took several yarns over there to get started, and now I am working on the fancy stuff.  This is carded recycled Sari Silk:

It kinda looks like dryer lint or pocket fuzz.  It is the leftover bits after Sari's are woven, and those silk threads are run through a carder.  This batch came from Spinning Straw Into Gold, who I met last year at Fiber Christmas.  I thought I would try it, and boy I am glad I did.  I love the results:

This is just the single - I think it looks like jewels.  I can't wait to see the finished product.  In fact, I like it so much I just ordered another half pound. 

Remember Me????

Gee whiz!  Was it really September the last time I blogged about anything?  (Is "blogged" even a word?)  Well, farm life has taken up a chunk of time lately.  Let me explain.  No better, let me sum up:

We now have 58 sheep, not counting babies.  Remember when I only had three?

Both of our dairy heifers had calves, but only one is cooperating to let us milk.  So now we have about a gallon of fresh milk every day.  I have learned to make butter, and I am working on learning to make simple mozzerella.

We have added 4 Alpine dairy goats - a male and three females.  They came to live with us when they were only 2 days old, so bottle feeding has been a regular ritual.

We have new chickens.  Well, babies really.  They are about 8 weeks old.  We are still getting between 6 and 12 eggs a night. 

The Etsy business has picked up dramatically.  THANK YOU TO ALL WHO HAVE HAD A PART IN THAT!!!  I am blowing you kisses right now  >kiss<  The Fiber Indie Coop on Ravelry has been a huge blessing to me and my family.  Don't forget to check out each month's giveaway.

The sheep we let breed have lambed and we have a number of ALL MALE lambs.  What are the odds?  One became a bottle baby and is now a pet and a real pest everytime I go in the pasture.   More on him later.

Danny just came last weekend and sheared all of the sheep except the babies.  I had to crawl over bags of fleece to even get to the computer to type this.  Don't believe it could really be that bad?  Well:

Believe me now?  That is handsome husband's long bed truck.  Full to the brim.  They are now all in my living room.  Good thing we have a den, too!

Fleeces will be for sale at the farm website www.diamondbsheepfarm.com in short order.  Mom and I skirted the first 10 or so this morning. 

I will try and blog a little more often than once every 6 months.  I would like to share some of the other fun we have here on the farm.

~Lori