Happy Birthday, Archie!

We don't exactly know when Archie's birthday really is, but since he had so much fun at Maisie's party and Auntie Reg had found a Temptations Birthday Party Pack for him, we decided Saturday was as good a day as any :-).

 

"Hurry up with the prizes!"

"These are nice, but I sure wish I'd gotten a cake like Maisie."

Reg flips box over ;-).

"This is the best cake ever!  It's even better than the Cheerios cake!"

Happy Birthday, Archie :-).

Happy Birthday...Um...Archie?

Archie, not knowing how birthdays work, can't believe he's already 10 years old.  Or maybe it's how many lives he's used up so far!  He showed up out of nowhere, ate Cheerios until Maisie ran him off and then came back after the sheep were finished to see if there were any left.  

I recorded the event "live" on Instagram and it was...well, you'll just have to watch it.   It was another classic Maisie birthday party :-D.   

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Reg was trying to re-seat the big nail that holds the box to the table before Maisie did something...Maisie-ish.

Everyone decided the green(ish) grass was the best party food ever.

Happy Birthday, Maisie!  You are loved more than you'll ever know.

How about a birthday girl puzzle?  Enjoy :-)

Elf On A Shelf?

 

The 2023 Calendar

Ready or not, it's almost the new year...again :-o. 

Sadly, we are only offering the farm calendar this fall, not a Lamb Camp calendar.  I say sadly not only because I liked the small size and sweet pictures, but also because I didn't get anywhere near enough lamb snorgling this past spring :'-(.

It was a pretty good year otherwise and only a few tears shed as I picked out pictures.  Archie and Bea provided several good choices and some funny stories to share.  Of course Possum makes several appearances as do quite a few sheep and that dirt ball, Lancelot ;-).  

Frankie missed getting a big picture this year because most of the time I spent with him would have given me blurry action shots :-).  Maisie's back, larger than life, there's the obligatory chicken picture and some fun surprises.  I also included a different butterfly this year and some interesting bee information.

I can't fathom how I am once again writing up a 'welcome to the new year' blurb for the back of our farm calendar. Didn't I just do last year's only a month or so ago?!?

Many things have stayed the same, thankfully. Lancelot is still rolling in the mud, Maisie is still watching over her flock by night...and day, Jared is still grazing the yard, Possum's still sleeping in all her beds, except whichever one Archie has claimed at any given hour of the day or night, and the chickens are still...well, chickens. It's hard for Bea to keep our feet warm when she's sleeping belly up on the couch, but at least when she's asleep she's still. We still miss all of our old friends.

As always a special thanks to Saint Tim for doing all the hard work and heavy lifting and a grateful thank you to all of you who are such an important part of our farm family. Your care and kindness through each year, as they feel shorter and shorter, is appreciated more than you could ever imagine. Here's to another new year!

The calendars are $20 this year and as always, shipping is, well...shipping :-/.  For the local folks, if you are interested, we can offer pick up options at Tim's print shop in Corporate Center, just off New Circle Road and you are always welcome to come out to the farm to pick one up. Fighting New Circle Road isn't much fun, but coming out to the farm and saying hi to the sheep is always fun. Please email to set up a time to make sure we're around.

For the not local folks...I'm guessing the shipping is going to be around $10.65 for most of the country and probably $15 or so for parts distant. I'm still trying to source a more ecologically friendly mailer, so I'm probably not going to start shipping calendars until next week.  Please let me know if you need one quicker than that!

If you are interested in purchasing a calendar (or anything else from the farm shop :-), just send me an email  (thecrazysheepladyATgmailDOTcom) letting me know what you'd like and please provide your mailing address.  I will include an invoice and return envelope in your (hopefully greener) mailer or box and you can stick a check back in the mail (preferred method) or we can usually figure out how to do an online payment method if we need to. 

I know it surely goes without saying, but any purchases made from our on farm shop or website directly support the Punkin's Patch sheep (and dogs, cats, horses and even those stupid crazy Adventure Chickens), but also indirectly support the local farmers who grow our feed and hay, veterinarians who take such good care, our sheep shearers, the mill that processes our wool...and, of course, Nabisco and Keebler ;-).  We all truly appreciate your support.

Troublemaker, Guardian, Meteorologist, Friend

Spud is having trouble getting around and I thought if he moved to Easy Breezy he'd be able to just walk out the side door, straight onto the grass rather than all the way down the aisle and across the driveway.  He could also have access to hay all day and night with no competition.  

He's been used to eating breakfast and dinner with Short Round and that's already her favorite place to sleep.  She likes to graze the yard as well and I knew if I set them up in there she would love having all day access to an open gate to come and go as she pleased.

The other member of their breakfast club is Maisie, but I didn't even consider moving her to the other end of the barn.  She'd be lost if she couldn't sit in her normal spot and watch the back of the barn.  

The first day and night went okay.  Short Round was happy with the arrangement and Spud seemed okay as well.  The second day the weather changed and rain started blowing into the EB end of the barn so I closed the roll down door.  This makes for a cozy spot out of the wind.

At evening feeding time Maisie was not in her normal watchdog spot in the aisleway.  She'd moved into the middle stall.  I wondered if she knew the weather was really going to turn ugly and we needed to add meteorologist to her resume.

By the night check, winter had definitely arrived.  As I walked into the barn, Spud hollered at me.  He doesn't say much unless he needs something so I always go find him.  Before I could answer back, Maisie hollered.  Maisie always has something to say these days, usually involving wanting more food ;-).  Spud yelled, Maisie yelled, Spud yelled, Maisie yelled...

Spud wasn't in any sort of physical trouble when I got to him, but it was windy and he wasn't used to being in that part of the barn and the north wind was whipping at the door and I think he was scared.  I turned on a night light for him and Short Round, gave them some extra hay and everything settled down.

The walk through door on the side of EB isn't as wind proof as I'd like.  I'd blocked it with a feeder that night and  Tim was going to rebuild it in the morning.  The wind, rain, freezing rain and snow yesterday made working outside a miserable chore and since I knew Spud would be happier back in his normal spot, at least until this nasty weather moved on, I let him move back in and put the door rebuild off for a nicer weekend.  

At the night check last night this is where I found Spud and Maisie.  

When the weather is bad, Spud prefers to move into the middle stall.  I think Maisie moving in there the night before had less to do with the weather and more to do with wanting to be nearer to her friend, maybe more to comfort him than herself. 

The most interesting sheep in the world apparently does have a sweet side.  

The Pumpkin Party

Well, the after the pumpkin party.  Or maybe I should say the after we ate all the original pumpkins party ;-).

That's a ewe on a mission.

And the race is on!

"Let me show you how it's done, boys."

The two white faces looking at each other are Christopher and Maggie.  They are still the best brother and sister :-).

If you'd like a new puzzle, this is a fun one.  Enjoy!

The Great Pumpkins

After most of the pumpkins in the accidental pumpkin patch were eaten by the sheep, I stashed the last few in the garage for the big day.

And Auntie Reg picked up a few extras at Stepping Stone Farm.

Of course 20 helped and he brought Pip along for the fun, too!

Since Short Round was one of the main pumpkin eaters and she and Maisie are breakfast buddies and we couldn't stop her anyway, we let her join Maisie's Halloween party...but we whipped up a quick hat topper.  She didn't care one bit.

"I think the yellow pumpkins taste the best!"

Pinto was watching all the activity with great interest...and longing (for cookies) so we dressed him up as well.  

I think he liked it...or the cookies ;-).

Bea did her best to talk Auntie Reg out of more cookies.

Her very best.

"I don't mind dressing up for cookies!"

Tricks or Treats!