Our usual routine is to get the barns all cleaned out in the morning. It’s a 3 -4 hour job for one person. Today, after I fed and watered the alpacas, I decided to clear snow from one of the paddocks in the girls’ barn. It’s warm today (above freezing) … Read More
It finally looks like winter! The recent mild weather has been a real treat, but lulled us into complacency in terms of the realities of winter. Looks like that’s over! A few inches of snow last night and cold this morning make it feel like a different world today. Time … Read More
Seems like summer just got started and now we have frost warnings for tonight! We’re not in one of the “cold hollows”, so we should be okay. Our garden is very productive right now, but tomatoes are ripening slowly. The green beans are prolific and I’m hoping to get another … Read More
Finally, after a very wet summer, we have a forecast for several hot, dry days. Our hay supplier will have the first load of second cut ready for us to pick up in the field tomorrow afternoon. Stacking bales in the hay mow is hot, scratchy work, but it feels … Read More
It’s about time! It’s been such a wet, gray summer. But the last few days have been lovely, if a bit cool. Today is starting out sunny and dry – a perfect summer day. It’s been a busy week here. We sheared some of the crias, weighed and body scored … Read More
After a week of family visitors (5 nieces and nephews!), we’re home alone again. It’s fun to have the kids here, but every day’s a work day on the farm and we get behind when we have company. This week, my goal is to skirt fiber and get a few … Read More
I picked up 15 chicks at Morrison’s Feed Bag today. I ordered 6 Barred Rocks, 6 Araucanas and 3 Golden Comets. They are soooo cute! The chicks are living in a large dog crate in the girls’ barn. Of course, they have the required setup: heat lamp, feed, water, bedding. I … Read More
Today I saw a cria kicking (in utero). Hannah’s Julie, one of our best females, is due in mid-May and her baby was kicking up a storm this afternoon. We always see a lot of “action’ with Julie’s crias. This is the first I’ve seen this year and reminds me … Read More
Our pastures are still partly snow-covered and pretty wet. Normally, we would let the pastures dry out fairly well before putting the alpacas out on a regular basis. But today was such a beautiful day, that I let the girls out into their pastures for a few hours. They loved it and … Read More
The only thing predictable about our weather in March is that we’re sure to see a little bit of everything before the month is over. We’re grateful for the beautiful, sunny days we’ve had, but today was more like what we’re used to in spring – 40’s and raining. And … Read More