Happy Anniversaries

Twenty-two years ago today we closed on this farm...and each other.  Technically it was the 23rd, but I liked the idea of the fall equinox (possibly my favorite day of the year :-), so our anniversaries are a floating holiday, depending on the year.

This has been a horribly long, hot, dry summer so I'm especially celebrating that we got some much needed rain and cooler temperatures today, just in time for the fall equinox.  The farm is celebrating, too.  

I actually enjoyed walking out to our oldest pear tree this afternoon to gather some fruit to try to make a pear tart. I tried to set up a photoshoot with the freshly baked tart resting under the tree, but the rain pushed us back to the porch.  That's an okay trade.  I brought the tree to the porch :-).

Twenty-two years ago my mother looked at that pear tree and said it was very old and she didn't think it would last much longer.  That old tree outsmarted the spring freeze that took all the rest of the pears and apples here and at the local orchards and it was loaded with pears this year.

This is a very dear little farm.  Thank you.  For everything.

Work In Progress

Thank you so much for all the kind comments and notes I've received about Maisie.  She was a sheep with a lot of friends.  So missed by so many.  

I think Baaxter is doing okay.  He was pretty unsure what to do the first couple of days, but he's started going out to graze in the driveway a little and I think he's finding his way.  He's a curmudgeonly old guy, but I think he loved her more than he let on.

I've been mostly hiding out knitting the sweater that I'd hoped would have been finished weeks ago.  Maybe it was good to be slow starting as I've needed this time and it's a good reminder that spinning, knitting, weaving, crocheting, felting, dyeing...can help sooth a broken brain and heart.

Remember the walnut dyed yarn?  And the comfrey and goldenrod?  The green is comfrey and the yellow is from the green leaves of the goldenrod.  The tan, rust and brown are from green walnut hulls.  The yarn started as the nearly white with a hint of Baaxter's gray wool mixed in Lamb Camp Bottle Lamb yarn.  

I tweaked the Vintersol pattern by Jennifer Steingass to represent my favorite fall flowers.  I'd hoped to have this finished by the time the goldenrod bloomed, but I'm running behind...as usual...and in case I don't get the sleeves done before the blooms have faded, here's a quick shot.  

As hot as it's been this week, I'm tempted to leave the sleeves off!

Transplants

As I was picking some tomatoes for dinner last night I noticed several monarch caterpillars trying to make a living on some pretty marginal milkweed in the raised bed area.  Even with trying to keep everything watered, this summer has been hot and dry and the milkweed has paid a price.

I was headed off to our weekly Wool House Crafters zoom meeting so I couldn't do anything about them right then, but this morning I headed out to see if I could find and move them to a couple of greener plants in the nearby B Garden.

I stewed about whether or not it was okay to do that, but a couple of them were pretty small and sickly looking.  Moving them might be their only chance of making it to maturity.  I carefully snipped their current leaves from the dried plants and placed them on a greener neighbor.  Each caterpillar immediately started eating the fresh(er) leaves. 

I hope everyone has had a good monarch summer.  I've seen more butterflies this summer than I've seen the last ten years combined.  Same with caterpillars.  The one thing I'm not seeing...or finding...are their chrysalises.  Hopefully they are out there and I should just stick to finding four leaf clovers.

I'd love to find at least one to watch open though.

What are you seeing your way?

To The Moon And Back

It will be a surprise to no one that she didn't go down without a fight.  She'd started having trouble getting up and needed help a couple of times.  She didn't like that, but once she was up, she cheered back up and trucked on like normal.  Not normal Maisie, but normal for these last few months.

She wasn't able to walk around very much and no one was any longer in any real danger of being taken out in a side attack, but she'd still swing her head around to remind us and her teeth still worked just fine if she thought you were not scratching her back enough or being stingy with the cookies.

I had started watching her pretty closely on the barn cameras and noticed Saturday morning she was struggling to get up so I went out and helped her up.  It was 6:00 in the morning.  She didn't lay back down until 1:00 Sunday afternoon.  31 hours on her feet.  Not. Giving. Up.

I couldn't figure out if she was just scared to lay down or if her arthritis was just so bad that it hurt too much to lay down.  I let her decide what she wanted to do and even though I really wanted her to just  please take a nap, I didn't force it.  I'd have helped her get back up forever.

In the end I think she believed if she went down that it was all over.  And I think she was as disappointed as the rest of us that she didn't live forever.  When she finally laid down, she instantly fell asleep for good while and that brought me some peace watching her...like I'd watched her for so many years.

I sat down next to her and then leaned over and put my head next to hers and we laid there nose to nose, both afraid we'd never be able to get up again.  She snuggled into my hands and I'm not sure if she was looking for comfort or trying to comfort me.  She heard the vet pull in and I knew she knew and I could tell she was upset.  I'm not sure if she was scared or sad.  

The vet and I talked about how tough she had been her whole life while she gave her the first shot.  She was chewing on a mouthful of hay and then closed her eyes and went to sleep for the last time.  I held her head in my hands, stroking her face telling her how much she was loved while she got the second shot.  I hope when she woke up, there was a big white dog sniffing her, wagging his tail in greeting.  I hope she's not as gutted as I am.

This morning I walked outside in the pre-dawn to a brilliant rainbow around the full moon.  All the colors were there and so bright.  I went back inside for my camera, but couldn't capture it.  I'll  keep the colors in my memory.  My heart wants to believe it was a gift from over the rainbow bridge.

To end this on a more cheerful note, here's maybe my favorite Maisie memory.  There are so many great ones.  I'm not sure I ever wrote about it and I sure wish I'd taken some videos.  We can curse these crazy cell phones these days, but I'd give anything to have had a smart phone back in her baby days.

She lived in the house for months that first winter.  Once we got her eating issues straightened up and her legs growing in the right direction, she loved to run.  There's only so much some towels on a slick kitchen floor would help, so she was allowed to run all over the carpeted house to play and exercise.

Tim would sit on the couch with his arm hanging over the side and she'd come over and sniff his fingers.  Right when she'd almost touch them he'd make a buzz sound and she'd scream with lamb laughter and race away with her tail spinning...and come right back to do it again and again.  She loved that game.

At a neighborhood gathering once I admitted that "I've never loved anything as much as her...and I'm pretty fond of Tim."  The comment of course got back to him and he quickly replied that he already knew where he stood.  

We all loved her to the moon and back.  

Maisie

November 25, 2012 - September 7, 2025

We buried her on the hill next to Hank.  I thought about adding her angel costume, but ended up just making her a new pretty halo.  I told her she didn't have to wear it, but maybe should take it with her...just in case she needed it.  

Golden Hour

The light this evening was truly golden.  The grass is too, even though it looks lush and green in these pictures.  We could sure use some rain.

 A golden new puzzle :-).

Meanwhile, Back In Nashville

Wait, what?  Nashville?

Last year I heard that the purple martins in this part of the country gather in Nashville to prepare for their fall migration.  The video clips were amazing.  The amount of birds, staggering.  I talked all year about going down...and then didn't go.

I hate to disappoint myself.  I had really wanted to go...but it's hard to leave the farm, especially in a hot summer.  It's easy to talk myself out of taking trips.  Maybe next year.

We were working on Saturday morning, normal farm chores and helping load up fence posts for a friend.  I stopped to get some lunch and, of course, picked up my phone to see what was happening on Instagram.

Sheep, painting, knitting, cats, rabbits, squirrels, wool...and a post by Margaret Renkl.  

"They'll be on their way soon.  If you're anywhere near Middle Tennessee, you don't want to miss this.  This sight will get you through whatever hardships the next year brings."

Summer is hard for me, especially the heat of this past (I hope it's passed) summer.  I've spent almost an hour trying to think of anything besides these birds that I like about summer and have come up with nothing.

Sure, flowers are beautiful, fresh tomatoes are sweet, butterflies and bees, the bats, but I'd trade all that to not have to try to make it through the rest of it.  The martins moving in is a good day.  The quiet when they fly out is deafening.  

I found Tim and asked if he'd like to go to Nashville for the day, the rest of the day.    

20 is always up for a road trip.  Pip, too :-).

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A post shared by Margaret Renkl (@margaret.renkl)

Nashville on a Saturday night was not for the faint of heart and if we hadn't driven four hours to get there, I'd have probably said some grown up words, given up and hightailed it back north.  Tim handled everything like he always does, but I'm sure he wasn't having a great time either.

We found where we needed to set up at dusk, gave up trying to find someplace to eat downtown and headed to the outskirts and had a good dinner, found our way back downtown (holy $%&#). 

I had been quiet panicking to myself that we were a day too late and they would have moved on.  The tips online had been to get there by the 22nd (it was now the 23rd) around 7:30.  It was 7:15 and we didn't see any birds.

And then there were four.  And a group of six.  And some flying into some small trees along a sidewalk.  

And then there were birds everywhere!

The trees got heavier and heavier as thousands of purple martins settled in for the night.  And this is about all the people who were there to watch.  There were thousands of people two blocks away and they missed the best show they'd see all year.

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A post shared by Sara Dunham (@thecrazysheeplady)

These two videos are short.  The next video was while I was filming "live".

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A post shared by Sara Dunham (@thecrazysheeplady)

Some answers from questions from that IG post:

Yes, I believe they gather here every year.  

No, it doesn't seem like enough trees.  They were all bent low by the time everyone found a place.

They gather here each August.  If you follow @birdsafenashville or @nashvilleurbanbird they apparently post the details each summer and give best dates to see them.  

Do not go on Friday or Saturday if you can help it.  Watch for downtown events like football games...and avoid those as well.

We did not get pooped on, but the truck got a couple hits.  It wasn't bad and I even walked up under the trees near the end.

Even Tim enjoyed seeing them, but would probably have rather stayed the night than pull back into the farm at nearly 1:00 a.m.

It was absolutely worth the drive.

Blooms, Butterflies, Bugs And Bats

The best news I have is how many butterflies I've seen this summer.  I have had years where I could count on one hand the number of monarchs and swallowtails I've seen.  A few years now where I could probably count them on two hands.  This year I've lost count!

I've seen monarchs (sometimes as many as four) almost every day for a month or so and I'm finding multiple caterpillars out on the milkweed plants.  I haven't seen a chrysalis yet, but maybe if I put that in writing I'll see one on my way to the house this evening ;-).

Not only are the monarch visits up, I've had more swallowtails than I've ever had here.  Stella used to get pretty ones on the butterfly bushes at her house, but I'd never seen a zebra down here and I've seen two this summer.  

We've also had many, many smaller butterflies of all shapes and sizes, several hummingbird moths and more hummingbirds than normal as well.  I put in some salvias this year and they love those big blue blooms.

The bats have been happy this summer too.  We've been overrun by mosquitos, so the bats have been busy.  

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Today has had just a hint of fall in the air so maybe the end of this horrible summer is in sight.  In the meantime, here's a new fun and easy puzzle for you.  

Speaking of puzzles, I'd LOVE to know who works all the puzzles at 300 pieces :-D.  If you don't want to use your name online, shoot me an email if you'd like to raise your hand.  

Are You Feeling Lucky?

 

There are at least five "extra" clovers in this picture.  Can you find them?

I made this into a puzzle and by making the pieces a little smaller (140 pieces rather than 120), the four and five leaf clovers really stand out.  I thought that might make the clovers easier to find...but the puzzle took me almost a hour to complete so I'd maybe adjust the number of pieces if you aren't looking for a good challenge :-o.

July

July...was brutal.  So incredibly hot and humid.  Demoralizing.  I did manage to spend about 36 hours up north for a wedding...and that made it almost worse.  Worse in a  "need to buy a lottery ticket" way.  And yet, watching these photo flash by, there was a little good mixed in...but I can say it was better watching it than living it.  

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A post shared by Sara Dunham (@thecrazysheeplady)

 

Garden Visitor

While I'm partial to butterflies of all sorts and sizes, I have a special fondness for hummingbird moths.  I heard the distinctive buzzing as I walked around the back of the Wool House dye garden and was able to locate this snowberry clearwing moth working on some zinnias.  

Bees, butterflies and actual hummingbirds love zinnias.  I do too :-).

 

Hey, Pinot

 It looks like you've been exploring in the barn again!

"Yeah, maybe.  How'd you know?"

It's not a puzzle.  Look at your messy face!

This picture does make a fun puzzle though.  Enjoy!

Pinot loves his outdoor run around time and is currently obsessed with exploring the barn.  He still briefly checks in with some of his garden haunts, but I think he likes visiting the sheep and he loves to climb on the lower hay bales.

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Let Me Know

"Did this picture make you yawn?"

"Me too."

This made a fun puzzle.  Enjoy!

Us Sheeps [Updated Yarn Crawl Hours]

Other than two fairly recent dreams that finally involved sheep, the only animals I've ever dreamed about that I can remember have been bears.  So, up until the last few months, I sort of assumed my "spirit animal" was actually a bear.

My spirit animal is surely a sheep.  I like I'd like to lay around and take naps, hang out with my friends, listen to stories, go out to graze, visit the farm ponds, eat cookies, cuddle up with a sheep friend in the winter, wear wool sweaters...

Us sheeps ain't lovin' this summer.

Yeah...

Interestingly, most of these pictures could do with some cropping, but every time I tried they immediately felt too close and too hot.  Sort of like when Archie tries to lay on your lap when it's 94 degrees.  Every day.  For the entire month of July.

* * * * *

I doubt anyone was actually planning on hitting the Bluegrass Yarn and Fiber Crawl Trail to come out to the farm this Wednesday evening (Heck, even I don't want to visit the farm when it's this hot :-o), but if you dare, we'll all be here sitting in front of our fans.  

It looks like Thursday might be a little better though, so I'm adding in that evening as well.  

It might be better.  

It might not.  

I have a bunch of really yummy leftover icing.  

Maybe I'll make a small cake.

I'll try to keep Archie away from you.

Fiber Crawl Updated Hours

Wednesday and Thursday 4:00 to 7:00

Saturday and Sunday 11:00 to 4:00

Zen And The Art Of Spinning Wheel Maintenance

The first thing I tell someone who's having trouble with their spinning wheel or weaving loom is that while these tools are definitely specialized, they are at heart, basic tools, and when they aren't functioning well, probably just need something adjusted or simply fixed...

...and then I spend Two Weeks of the Tour de Fleece fighting with my own wheel, not having the most fun, whining about the trouble I'm having, stressing that I need to start saving for a new wheel...

Luckily our small, but mighty Ravelry group is full of experienced and helpful spinners...who still had to suggest to me twice that maybe my drive band was just slipping, and sure enough, five minutes later I am back to spinning with a well working wheel.  

Do as I say, not as I do.  

Sigh...

This is an odd picture, but I was working with blazing too hot, too bright sun and this spot in the shade worked perfectly for a yarn shot.  Neither the wheel or Bea are in prison.  They are both just trying to stay cool.  The fence is for Pinot...who is enjoying the AC in the wash room.

Love this light silver and it's so soft, lightly spun and fluffy - Sara yarn - and I think I might just go ahead and spin the rest of what I have left of his roving and make a souvenir from one of the sweetest sheep ever.

This is what a touch of Cotswold will do for your yarn.  Drape a shawl would die for :-).

This picture just struck me funny.  Do you see two eyes, a silver wig and my poor downtrodden wheel sticking her tongue out at me?

I probably need to go sit in the AC with Pinot ;-).

The 2025 Bluegrass Yarn And Fiber Crawl

It's time for the Bluegrass Yarn and Fiber Crawl and the farm and Wool House will be open for the following dates and times and can also be "open" at other times, but please email to make an appointment.  If you show up without checking first, you'll probably just get put to work ;-).

 

Saturday and Sunday July 26th and 27th from 11:-00 to 4:00

Wednesday July 30th from 4:00 - 7:00

Saturday and Sunday August 2nd and 3rd from 11:-00 to 4:00

So what can you do if you come out to the farm?  

Obviously bring cookies or crackers to treat the sheep and meet the flock :-D.

Bring your spinning wheel or current project and find a shady spot to sit and visit...or not visit if you'd prefer to just relax and not be social.  We understand.

Bring a picnic lunch or a bottle of wine and snacks and enjoy relaxing on the farm.

Wear work clothes and clean stalls or run the weed eater.  Just kidding...sort of... ;-).

Do a little shopping.  We have raw and washed fleeces, roving, batts, yarn, spindle kits, gift items...

Take a free spinning lesson - bring your own wheel or borrow one of mine. I can also help with basic knitting questions or problems...or teach you some new ones ;-).  I'm also happy to talk about how to process wool or take care of sheep.  What would you like to learn?

Get your passport stamped and try to win some prizes from the Kentucky Fiber Trail! 

There will should be cake on both Sunday afternoons.  Wednesday evening...I might make some fresh sourdough bread and have a bowl of bruschetta topping.

 

If you need directions or have any questions, just shoot me an email!