A Shepherd Venturing Into The Great Unknown

The kitchen ;-).

Tadaa :-)

20's Uncle John built the box in the center of the island.  It is a perfect place to stuff anything that might be is cluttering up the counter if you have company coming or Lori keeps harping on you to take pictures ;-).

This shepherd had been in our living room for years.  I don't know what made me think to move him into the kitchen, but I love him here.  He came from a folk art gallery that used to be in downtown Cynthiana, The Gourd Patch.  He's signed, but I can't read it :-/.  

Don't worry, Betsy still has her bed and breakfast spot.

A little closer look at the calendar.  Each month is a different breed of sheep and plant, tree or flower to go with.  The artist is Emily Fratson and it's just stunning.  A treasured gift.

This is one of my favorite updates - a garbage bin...for dog and cat food :-).  That's Kate's auxiliary bed tucked in the pantry.  She goes in there whenever I'm cooking.  I try not to be offended, but can't help but remember that she is very smart ;-).

The artist who painted these beautiful bar stools was my grandmother.  The wood floor is actually vinyl.  I loved the old floor, but like most things I love, it's obsolete and we couldn't find it any more. I like the look of this.  It's a little slick, but I'm guessing after we rub enough dirt into it, that won't be a problem anymore ;-).

The granite is Costa Esmerelda, which is a light grayish green.  I had a hard time getting a picture that really shows the true color.  This is pretty close.

But the color is maybe a little closer to this...if it were lighter/brighter.  The picture of Betsy's bed is probably the closest to real life.  I was really nervous about the counter tops.  Will they be green enough?  Too green? What color paint will match?  They turned out perfect and interestingly, the color that best matched it was the exact color the walls had been in the old kitchen.

The amazing Liddy card was painted by a friend.  Another treasure - the card and friend :-).

Still room for the lamb cage :-).

And now we have a couple extra can lights...that have dimmer switches...that will be perfect for a baby night light ;-D.

We toyed with taking this whole wall out and combining the kitchen and dining room, but I'm glad we left it similar to the old design with a "window" looking into the dining room.  I love the flower lamps and the six small shelves were the contractor's idea.  Good call!

A sheep for Auntie Reg ;-).  The bottle she's climbing is yet another treasured gift from an artist friend. Look closely at the bottle.

So that's the ten cent tour of the kitchen.  Want to see the new dining room and bathroom?

Of Course She Is

Here are a few more shots from Andy's integration day.  I was so sad to not find a good shot of Kate for the calendar this year.  Calendar pictures need to be the right direction (horizontal, not vertical), sharp, good color, interesting composition, high resolution...  I think we've got one for next year!

Kate goes everywhere with me, especially if there are sheep involved...which there almost always are ;-). Her motto is "I can help you with that!"  When I let the main flock into Graham and Andy's paddock the other day, I went in with them to make sure no one tried to modify the borrowed "space ship".  Kate followed me in, but I didn't notice that because I was busy taking pictures.

I don't have much true stock dog experience.  Iris and I figured out more things than I thought we did over the years, but I definitely need more training.  Letting Kate follow me into a paddock full of sheep, while accidentally setting up a nice photo, might be a big no-no.  Not paying attention to my dog in the first place is probably even a bigger no-no.  A dog not as good as Kate would probably teach me that lesson the hard way ;-).

However, to me (again, remember I am definitely no expert), if I turn around and see that my dog has followed me somewhere, but is laying down waiting patiently while I'm goofing off not paying attention, that's not just a pretty calendar shot.  I think that means she's a great dog and I am so honored for the opportunity to get to learn from her.  I am looking forward to stepping up my game this year!

We all sat out there in the paddock for a good while letting everyone get acquainted.  Being a cocky young punk, Andy got a fair sampling of who would send him flying if he got too friendly (Rebecca Boone) and who would make some good new friends for him (the boys).  When I was ready to clear them out of there, Kate was up in an instant.

"I can help you with that!"

We had to make an emergency run to Florida this weekend.  My mother is in the hospital down there and needed someone to come get their two dogs and cat who were traveling with them.  I left a note for our farm sitter explaining how to use Kate to set hay out for the sheep.  "Open the stall door. She knows what to do."  I got a text the next morning, "Kate's awesome!"  She really is :-).

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Here's a new puzzle and a new puzzle tip.  If you click the puzzle piece at the bottom right of the frame it takes you to the same puzzle, but on the puzzle site.  There, if you click "play as", you can change the number of pieces to make it easier or harder, depending on your mood.  Have fun and stay warm!

Sweet Spud, So Misunderstood

Well actually we all understand him, loud and clear.  I think appreciate might be a better choice of words ;-).  Any time I sit down (or stand around) the barn lot, Sweet Spud comes over to visit with me.  I really love that and I do appreciate him.  Hank on the other hand...sometimes just wants to take a nap.

Here Spud is fixin' to "close talk" Hank in his second location.  He'd gotten up and moved away from Spud's first attempt over in the corner.  After this he moved down to the other side of the Grahaminator 2000 and that was apparently far enough. 

"Whatever."

"I just wanted to tell him something."

Loud and clear!

A Winter Siesta...And A Thank You

Well, it's turned into "almost winter", finally.  I think it was down in the 20's last night.  Felt like it at least.  Some spitting snow this morning, but the sun has tried to come out a bit this afternoon.

I'd spent a good bit of the morning at the dentist and my mouth was so sore that I wanted to just go curl up on the couch and do something warm and non-violent like knit.  I couldn't resist Liddy's cute smile though so I grabbed my camera and sat down next to her on the barn lot couch.

Here's where Liddy and I were sitting.

Here's where Hank and Baba were sleeping.  More on that tomorrow ;-).

Here's where Andy was sleeping.  See him tucked into the background?

Big Baaxter will never outgrow being Baby B.

Here's where Kate was sleeping - at the ready!

Jester gave me a big scare last week, but he's a tough old bird and keeps on keeping on.

If I posted this green grass picture in June, you'd never suspect a thing...except for all that wool.

Liddy stood up and snuggled with me for awhile and then turned around and laid back down with her butt tucked up next to my lap, just like when she was a baby.  Such a sweet lambie :-).

Here's where Emily was sleeping.  Wool pillows are better than gate pillows :-).

Maisie looks like such a cute, tubby little angel...

"One of my orneries was supposed to go straight south from Kentucky to Tennessee, but I sent it the scenic route through California."

Seriously, we watched the tracking.  Sigh...  Did everyone else get everything okay and in a timely manner?  Anything damaged in shipping?  

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Thank you so very much for all your holiday orders!  I'd set a goal this past year to not just pay all the sheep's feed and bedding expenses, but to try to cover everything sheep related - minerals, vaccinations, deworming, shearing, miscellaneous vet bills, supplies like water tanks, buckets, new gates, Hank's food and medical expenses, Kate's food and medical expenses, one bobcat rental (we rent a bobcat twice a year to clean out the barn) and one farm payment.  

It ended up being a pretty crazy and not super productive (I didn't think) year, but we managed to cover everything I'd hoped except for making the mortgage payment and I'm actually pretty close to getting that done, too, if I throw in the petty cash jar (now that I think about it!).  Andy pushed me backwards a little, but he was worth it ;-).  I'm putting it in the win column!   

I didn't figure in everything* like barn electric/gas/water bills, insurance premiums, fuel for car/truck/tractor, a couple loads of gravel...and goodness knows what else I'm not thinking about right now (luckily Saint Tim doesn't keep score).  I think I'm going to try and make a good run at some of that for 2016 along with some fiber and artistic goals and I'd sure like to try to write a book.

Here's to 2016!

*I also didn't figure in cookie expenses because thanks to two festivals, Hug a Sheep Day, some well timed farm visits and extra $5 bills tucked into envelopes here and there, the cookie coffer has stayed in the black for a couple years now...and that's all the sheep really care about ;-D.  

Thank you!!!

Well?

"I think it'll fly."

B. Willard's been wanting in on the space ship action for awhile.  He, Murphy and Baaxter gave the "sheep camp" a good check.  And Andy just thought that was a fancy water trough...  He'll learn ;-).

This was my home away from home during the remodel.  The Jeff Foxworthy underpinning was for the couple nights it got in the 20's.  Luckily most of the late fall/into winter was super warm so the living was easy and I was actually sort of sad to move back home.  

Parked next to the barn, I could hear Graham and Petunia's bells chiming any time I woke up during the night.  I'd hear coyotes off in the distance, here Hank's "reply" and go right back to sleep.  Rain on the roof was a treat as well.  It was just like camping, but with a furnace, hot running water, a computer and a coffee pot :-).  

The remodel is basically done.  We are finishing a couple small projects and I have some painting to do.  I've  been waiting for some sunshine (natural light) to take some pictures, but I'm beginning to wonder...  I'll try to get some pictures this afternoon regardless.  It should will all be straightened up before the new year starts.

What are your new year "superstitions"?