Mainely Ewes Farm

Family-Moving on Out

2012-01-23T09:35:00.003-05:00

Today is the day. We have been blessed with our youngest daughter moving back to Maine with her theee children. They are getting their own apartment in Bangor. Leah will be starting classes toward her nursing degree. She hopes to go on and become a Medical Attorney. Big dreams with three children but if anyone can do it, she can.

Brianna 4, Natasha 3 and Little Bit (Vic) 2. They are very active children and need outside time to work off all of that energy.

Thankfully we have plenty of outside here. They can run and play without worry. This is Little Bit and Tasha's firs snow season. He doesn't look like he is too happy with all the winter wear required to be outside.

A round disc can provide hours of fun for three little ones.

Down the hill, up the hill, down the hill and up the hill. As many times as mom can take them. I get tired just watching.

Brianna likes to pose. She has such big brown eyes.

I think Poppop is having a lot of fun with these three little urchins.

Anything can become a toy. Tubbies?

Sorry for the screams and the sideways video. If anyone can give me pointers on how to change the direction I would really appreciate it.

The noise level will decrease significantly over the next few days. It will be nice to know that they are safe and sound in their own place. We will be starting work on our bathroom next. We also had an energy audit and will be having insulation done professionally to combat the winter chill. One day we will be warm and toasty.
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

What...The Refrigerator Died...Again

2012-01-22T09:12:00.002-05:00

A word of wisdom or rather a few words. Never, ever, ever buy a refrigerator without an extended warranty. Last year we shopped for and bought the coolest refrigerator. An Amana with all the bells and whistles. It did everything but clean house and make dinner. Oh, yes and work. The telling fact was when it started making a strange noise 1 month before it's first birthday. The repairman came out and in no uncertain terms explained that I didn't have the good sense to run a refrigerator. I had it set too cold. Well. Lets see, I can read a cardiac monitor, titrate blood pressure meds on pumps to keep people alive but I CANT WORK A REFRIGERATOR. Okay if he says so. After all he is THE repairman. Anyhoo...after the fridge either quit or piddled on my floor. Yes, I thought the dogs had an accident. Here I was with broken leg on crutches trying to wipe up the pee and fussing with the dogs when they didn't even do it. The thing met it's 6th repair in a 12 month period that was required to finally get a replacement. The new LG arrived all fresh and full of promise. It was a good time to really get rid of a bunch of stuff that always fills the back of the fridge. What is that hard chunk with green fuzzies growing on it anyway?

I can honestly say they did good by us. They gave us the regular price for our old fridge even though we bought it on sale. This one was on sale, so we actually got an even better fridge for the original sale price. We hope. We have our fingers crossed that it will be here for years to come. We were able to keep the remainder of our extended warranty and apply to this fridge. Yes, we will be extending it when it expires.

I wish that John Deere had the same warranty. Maybe that is something that they will think about. Customer service is everything. If we could only convince big corporations that we matter. I would love to have American Made on every item in my home. Remember when Made in Tiawan was a joke and not a fact? Go American!

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Finally, Maine Winter

2012-01-21T18:38:00.000-05:00

Finally winter has arrived in Maine. We have snow. It's about time too. I'm not one of those folks who complains when it snows. I love the soft white flakes. It just seems right. The way winter should be. The tractor has been working like it is suppose to. We are keeping our fingers crossed that everything that can go wrong has. John Deere seems to think this is the case. Wait and see.

The guineas are flying from place to place. They definitely do not like to walk through the snow. However, they will go through the flower garden looking for any left over seeds that remain. Treats vs cold feet! I guess the treats won out.

It appears that a couple of the guineas overshot the garden and ended up in the big maple tree.

Treats are found in all places for goats. We were on our way home from Bangor last week and we spotted 5 Christmas trees stacked on the side of the road at the entrance to a subdivision. Well, we just had to stop and save them from a landfill. None had tinsel so they were loaded up and brought home. The goats thought it was a holiday.

Edward thought he should start from the middle and eat toward the top.

Next came the ladies. They just couldn't speak with their mouths full but there were looks of appreciation.

Fuzzy and the sheep were more than happy with their snacks.

The guineas had to come see what all the ruckus was about. They weren't very interested in the trees at all.

Chores include bringing in wood for the stove. We had tractor problems again this summer so we weren't able to bring in enough wood for the winter. We would like to give a shout out to Bangor Baptist Church. They gave us the name of a gentleman and he promptly brought us 2 cord of firewood. I mention the church because they were kind enough to offer us a couple of cords if we couldn't get any delivered. Things like that just touch me. We always hear of bad actions when they happen. We need to shout about the good.

Firewood loaded and ready for use. I don't know if you notice the boxes in the background, but they are the vanity and toilet for our bathroom. It is winter so it must be work on the inside of the house time.

Chores done, happy animals outside and in. Oreo has the right idea. He has taken the best spot in the house.

It seems like everything is getting back to normal. My leg has been healing nicely. I hope to be released back to regular duty next week. Finally, I have been allowed back with the animals. I don't do well on house arrest. I miss them so much. I got a sweet kiss from Isabella today. I was afraid they wouldn't remember me. Ted has been taking care of everything. Evidently I have broken the last bone that I am allowed to break. Honestly, I have been battling a bit of depression being sent indoors. I need the animals. I swear goats are prozac on 4 legs. They keep me happy, grounded, and at peace. I lost interest in blogging for a bit. I still visited but just couldn't write. I know I'm where I'm suppose to be in this life. Right here with my love and our farm.

Much Love from Mainely Ewes Farm

Bravo

2011-12-04T14:10:00.000-05:00

Love has been in the air on our farm for several weeks now. The racket can be anoying at times. Teddy, our buck is very vocal with his courting. There is alot of stomping and snorting. The odor of love hits you in the nose when you get within 20 ft or further if the breeze is just right. Of course we can't blame all of the noise on the boys. The girls jump up onto the playground and yell like their in danger. All of the does want a boyfriend. Due to harsh winters we choose to breed later in the season. We want our does to birth past the worst weather. When the temps reach 20 below, those tender little nubian ears on the kids can freeze. A does gestation is approximately 5 months. By breeding in December our kids will be due in May. Much safer for both moms and kids. I am using some old pictures here because I can't get out to take any new ones. My camera is in shock. Still non-weight bearing on my right leg. All of the girls are excited today.

Because...... Bravo and sweet Nubian buck is visiting. He belongs to neighbors and he is going to stay with us for a few weeks to perform his task.

I fell in love with his spots and that sweet little face. They dropped him off this morning and he is in with the bucks right now. Teddy, Edward and the two little bucklings from this past year are getting along very well. Plenty of hay, water and space.

We were concerned that he would be too small to get the job done. However, he is already an expecting father.

Ted was the photographer today. Hopefully, I will get good news when I go to the doctor on Tuesday. Hey, a boot would be nice. Anything that will allow me to go outside without crutches. Not that I have been allowed outside with crutches!

Thanks for letting us know that the eggs were in fact turkey eggs. That is a first for our farm. The hens are laying regularly. In spring we will let them set and have little poults running around. That will be so cute.

Well, hopefully I will have pictures later today when we put Bravo in with his girlfriends.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

A Little This and A Little That

2011-11-30T21:53:00.000-05:00

I don't know if anyone else has had problems with Blogger but I just about gave up. First I couldn't sign in on the blog. I lost my pictures. I thought that I would have to start another blog but it seems to have cured itself. I think it is a conspiracy and they are having fun with our minds. I'm still trying to get my header pic in place. It wants to be off center. I hope it cures it self in the next few days.

I have a question to all you egg savvy folks out there. Are these turkey eggs? The three speckled eggs are a bit bigger than our brown hen eggs (in the background). They are really beautiful. We have two Bourbon Red turkey hens and one tom.

I celebrated Thanksgiving at work. Not a bad thing. This allows others to spend the time with their families. Due to work schedules our family celebrates the holiday on the Saturday after. We went to NH and spent the weekend with our daughter Sue and her friend Muji. They did all of the cooking, cleaning, washing of dishes and it was a blast. These young women are wonderful cooks.

For the holiday we had the standard fare, turkey, cornbread dressing, green bean casserole, squash casserole and macaroni and cheese. Muji makes a wonderful curry chicken. No, not for Thanksgiving.

She is always smiling a beautiful smile.

Ted was very busy making sure the recliner didn't skip town. I think he grew attached while we were there.

Of course we took Emma and Lucy. Sue has a big backyard for them to play in. It took Lucy a little time for adjustment. "Hey, I am a house dog."

This is my Grandcat, Paco. He was on his best behavior. He dressed up for the special occasion. I think every cat should wear and tie.

He may dress up but deep down he is a nature lover. This cat adores flowers. I love a cat who isn't afraid of showing his feminine side.

No day is complete without a cat on your head and a pup in your lap. If you will take time to notice the crutches beside me. Ahem.....I found the only hole in Susan's back yard and I fell into it. It took me a while to get up. I was embarrassed, hurt, and getting licked all over my face by the pups. I limped into the house with help. Actually, I limped all day Sunday and Monday then decided to go and have it checked out. Yep, I broke my fibula. That is the small bone on the outside of your leg. Just call me Grace.

I am still working, only light duty. Ted says that he is "driving Mrs. Daisy" to and from work. He is cooking, cleaning, taking care of me and the animals. He will need a vacation soon.

He needs your prayers!

Hope all is well with each of you. For those who are having a difficult times our prayers go out and you are in them.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Happy Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T13:47:00.000-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving to all.
No pictures today. I'm working and the patients really weren't into sharing, not to mention the whole privacy thing.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Paula Deen, Paula Deen

2011-11-11T16:53:00.000-05:00

Okay, so everyone knows of my infatuation with Paula. To those of you who don't understand I am truly sorry. I just can't get as excited as Rachel Ray nor can I be a snooty and smile as wide as Giada. I do get Paula. I understand her love affair with butter. I don't imbibe quite as freely, but there are those special occasions when butter is it! On my sojourn to Florida and my week with my Mom she gifted me with a trip to Savannah and a visit to... yes....are you ready? THE LADY AND SONS. The alter to butter.

We arrived early, evidently you have to get your name on THE list around 9:30 am. So we left Jacksonville at way too early o'clock. The menu was posted behind glass, you know, like we do the Constitution or the Declaration of Independence. I got to stand there and ooooo and awwwww. There was okra, peas, lima beans, collard greens and fried chicken. Oh, and don't forget the table wine of the South, sweet tea with lemon. In Paula's words, YUM!

We didn't get to see the Royal Family of Savannah so we had to settle for pictures of Bobby and Jamie.

I may have eembarrassed my mom a bit with taking pictures of the food, but MOM. WE ARE AT THE LADY AND SONS! Besides, no one knows me here and best yet, they don't care. Don't look for a salt and pepper shaker on any table. I'm sure there are folks who salt their food before even tasting it. If done, I promise that it would have to be thrown in the trash and you would have to start over. If you have CHF (congestive heart failure) do not eat this food. You will swell like a beached whale and be unable to breathe. A bit too much salt for me. Just sayin.

There was no room for desert. No, I didn't clean my plate either. I did feel like a nap would be a great idea after eating though.

After lunch we ambled, I say ambled because we were too full to walk, over to Paula's shop.

Would you please look at that iron door! Have you ever seen anything so......... culinary?

Do you see those measuring cups? Yes, those are the very special measuring cups that Paula uses on her show. Oh, I almost swooned. It was good just to pick them up and touch them. Mom kept a close eye on me. She knows that I have been carrying on a love affair with these measuring cups for ages. She had to pry the 1 cup from my death grip. "Walk away from the cups!"

Paula is one smart female. PDE. Paula Deen Enterprises. Yes, she is a smart cookie. She doesn't pass up marketing bonanza. All those little kitchen accessories that we love.

By this time our food had digested and we were able to take a trolley and see Savannah. Thank goodness we could sit. I don't think I could have done a walking tour. Tomorrow, pictures of the Southern Lady. Savannah.

Much Love and Prayers from an overstuffed Mainely Ewes Farm Woman and Mom.

Where I Come From

2011-11-08T22:32:00.000-05:00

"I said where I come from
It's cornbread and chicken
Where I come from a lotta front porch sittin'
Where I come from tryin' to make a livin'
And workin' hard to get to heaven
Where I come from" by Alan Jackson.

I don't know how to say it any better. I come from hard working people that never give up. They know hard times. Many have lived through the Great Depression and made it. I feel so fortunate to know these people, much less carry their DNA. We had a family reunion in Starke, Florida. My mothers side of the family. I just didn't appreciate these folks when I was a child. I guess we take such things for granted. So many have left us now. Come along and meet my Great Aunt Retha. She is now the Matriarch of our family. This lady can still cook a mean pot of collards and chicken and dumplins'. You know what I mean with, "slap yo mama good". She is so sweet and everyone knows and loves her. I named my daughter after her mother, Susan Rebecca. As a child we always called her Maw. I didn't know Maw wasn't her name.

Our contribution to the reunion. Niece Sarah, my sister Connie, Mom and nephew Joe. The youngins are my sisters grands, Abbey and Maggie. The family keeps growing and growing.

Many kids that I don't even know. They were on the swings, pushing cars, and meeting their cousins for the first time too. They are the future of our family.

Tables of home cookin'. Everyone brings out their best recipes from near and far.

No way to go home hungry.

After eating it was time to roam around the yard a bit. This yard always seemed so big when I was a kid. I remember a big field back then. Now the trees are mature and take up most of the space. They have kumquats, a small orange like fruit with a powerful citrus taste. You eat skins and all.

Pecan trees are everywhere. Pecans remain a major crop of the South. Where Northerners use Walnuts in so many dishes, we use the pecan. Do you say pecaaan or pecan?

The orange trees are so loaded with fruit this time of year that the limbs hang down.

This is commonly misnamed "Spanish Moss". It is neither. It is actually an air plant/parasite. Never, and I mean never hold it close to your body. There are little red bugs that call this plant home. Known to Southerners as chiggers. They bury under your skin and make you itch like crazy. If you must bring some home with you put it into the microwave for a short time and watch it closely so it doesn't catch on fire. That will kill chiggers. Mean critters.

This tree. This tree. I remember this tree from my childhood. I would climp up and sit in its arms and watch the cars pass by. Oh, it has grown. I meet an old friend again. Time has passed but it is still strong.

It's so good to come home. Something special, warm and fuzzy. Memories are what will fill our days when we become the matriarch of our families. Memories of children who now have grandchildren and great grandchildren. Memories of the ones who came before us. We still hear their laughter and feel the warm embrace of their love. Coming home. Where I come from.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Green Cove Springs, Florida

2011-11-06T11:43:00.002-05:00

When mom and I start out for a day out and about we never know where we will end up. This morning we were heading out to an Estate Sale in Penny Farms, Florida. We kind of got side tracked and ended up in Green Cove Springs. I remember visiting here about 15 years ago. The spring starts from this gated area and fills the adjacent pool. There is a tinge of sulfur to the water. Years ago the spring was visited for its health properties. Now I have to imagine ladies in long swim suits and men in trunks taking the waters for ailments from long ago.

The water is crystal clear and so clean you can see to the bottom of the 28ft deep hole. It doesn't photograph very well but take my word for it. I did want to hold onto the railing for some reason.

The water is a steady 78 degrees but the outside temp was 63. For Floridians that means brrrrrr. Hahahah. Sorry. Just a Maine sense of humor surfacing. Don't worry mom, summer will be here in about ummmm.......3 months. I would like to feel a bit of sorry here but it just ain't coming.

Hard to imagine 3000 gallons of water flowing out of that spring every minute every day of every year since it was born. That is a lot of water.

After the water fills the pool it drains out through this fall.....

down this little creek........

and out into the St. Johns River. The St. Johns is a northerly flowing river, like the Nile. I kept looking for Manatees, however, the water is a bit chilly and they may have migrated further south. I love the manatees. They are beautiful and graceful. Huge mammals with sweet whiskers.

Trees I miss are the cedar....

and the Live Oak with the moss swaying in the breeze.

Florida homes are unique. Oh, I love this one. Tin roof and all. Can you just imagine the sound it makes in a summer storm? How many hurricanes has this house survived?

I would bet this veranda is cool and inviting in the summertime. Sitting in a rocking chair, drinking lemonade with a palm fan in my hand. I do declare!

I don't remember this tree ever. Mom said it was a Rain Tree. They're beautiful with pink flowers which will transform into little pink "feather duster" like flowers in a bit.

Then it was to Starbucks for a Venti Pumpkin Spice Latte. What a way to finish an afternoon of sightseeing. Even the Starbucks here has a "Florida" look to it.

So, no, we never made it to the estate sale. I'm sure that someone got a great find and thank heavens I don't have to figure out how to fit a dresser into my carry on luggage on the home bound trip. We have been blessed with beautiful weather and great company. Hope you are having the same.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm and my Mom.

Cooking with Mom: Chevon

2011-11-05T07:11:00.001-04:00

A few weeks ago I sent my mom a copy of Goat School: A Master Class in Caprine Care and Cooking by Janice Spaulding. Janice and Ken from Stoney Knoll Farm in St. Albans, ME have Goat School twice a year on their farm. You may remember it from a previous post or two. Janice has written the book which combines invaluable information on goats and a few recipes. If you are interested in the book it can be purchased from Amazon.com.

I brought Mom some lamb and chevon, from our farm, when I came to see her. Yes, I packed a cooler with frozen meat and checked it as baggage on the plane. I did this a few years back with live lobsters. I would imagine the TSA is famaliar with people and their baggage so to speak. Last night we tried Chevon Stroganoff.

Mom had never eaten chevon before. She loves goat milk and cheese. This was the next step. Janice's recipes are so tasty. She cooks these very same recipes for goat school. The food alone is worth taking the class. I wish she would just charge a buffet fee and we could just show up for lunch. This is the first time I have cooked recipes from her cookbook. They are easy to follow.

The Strogonoff was exceptional. Mom loves the taste of chevon.

Yes, we visit and we eat. After supper last night the doorbell rang and there was a delivery man from Edible Creations. My daughter Sue, had sent us this bouquet of fruit. Oh, my goodness! It is so good. Yum. Good food and good company.

Much Love and Prayers from a very full Mainely Ewes Farm woman.

Florida! Mom!

2011-11-04T10:17:00.002-04:00

Here I am in Florida again. I came down to visit my Mom for a week. Her house is so nice, neat, manicured. No goats grazing, eating her flowers or tearing down her tree. No goat poop on her boots here. I miss my goaties even with their bad behaviors.

Yesterday morning I heard a familiar honking overhead and these sweet Canadian geese landed. Hi guys, where you from? They are enjoying the warm Florida sunshine. Making themselves at home in the cul-de-sac. Does this make them domesticated geese? Are they going to ask for cable next?

Here there are no puddles. All the roads are even and no pot holes like our roads in Maine. I guess those snow plows do a real job on our roads.

No trip to Florida is complete until we make our sojourn to Penzeys Spices. It is like a candy store for cooks. Mom had her list in hand and was leaving me behind. I have to catch up!

Oooooo, aaaaaaaaaa. The smell is so wonderful. A sight to behold. I'm in heaven. I want one of everything!

One of my very favorite, Pure Vanilla Extract, Double Strength. Oh, I wish I had a smellputer so you could lift that stopper and get a whiff. Heaven!

So this is my treasure trove that I came back with. Their soup bases don't have MSG. There are so many people out there with allergies to this additive that I try to always get MSG free items. Hot pepper flakes and not so hot pepper flakes, horseradish dip mix. Yum. I have to order my vanilla at the Penzey's online store because of the fluid limit when flying. There is no way that I would throw that stuff away and TSA would try to make me.

The baking has begun. My mom is a wonderful cook and she has passed the love of cooking on to me. The house smells so good.

She has also passed her love of cast iron cookware on to me. I get it honestly. It is in my DNA!

She has a few pieces that she keeps here. They are old, some passed down to her from her family.

Oops, I think that is enough pictures for now. I know that look! I remember it well from childhood. Love ya Mom! No more pictures for now!

We are going to an estate sale today. Now how can I get a dresser back to Maine in my suitcase?

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Hubbard Squash Soup

2011-11-03T18:08:00.001-04:00

The cooler temps and of course Autumn makes me start craving comfort food. One of my very favorite comfort foods is soup. Hubbard Squash Soup and Potato Leek Soup! They both are easy and relatively quick. Canned soup is fine for everyday lunch but when you are wanting something special the Hubbard Soup is it.

I can only get the Hubbard squash in the fall. Other squashes just don't taste the same when substituted. While we were in Newport, ME picking up the metal for the little red barn roof we stopped by Thunder Road Farm in Corinna, ME. They were selling Hubbard squash for $1 each. Now that is a deal in my book. Only one problem. They are big monsters and I can't cut them in half. Hey Ted. I need help again. It looks like he is hacking into one of the pods from "Invasion of the Body Snatchers". Remember that one with Donald Sutherland? Ewww... that was scary to me back then.

Now I dig all the guts out and give them to the chickens. Well, if they aren't guts what do you call them? Turn them over face down on a pan and bake at 350 until tender.

My Hubbard squash soup finished off with a dollop of sour cream and cut chives. Completed with homemade pumpernickel bread and butter. YUM!

Here is the recipe if you want something that will satisfy your hunger and make you all warm inside.

Hubbard Squash Soup

2 Tlb butter

1 small leek, trimmed and thinly sliced

1 small onion chopped

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 lbs of peeled and cooked Hubbard squash

2 ripe tomatoes

1 1/4 cup water

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup milk

1/4 cup sour cream

3 chives chopped

In a 4 quart sauce pan melt butter over med head and add the leek and onion, cook until translucent. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Add squash, tomatoes water and salt. Cover and heat to boiling. Reduce heat to low and simmer until very tender 30-35min. Use immersion blender or food processor to blend until smooth. Add milk. Reheat if necessary. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and chives.

I hope you love this soup. This is one of my mothers recipes.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Happy Halloween!

2011-10-31T22:00:00.001-04:00

We hope that everyone had a wonderful and spooktacular Halloween. Here are a few pictures from this past week here on Mainely Ewes Farm.
Even the signs got into the season. Welcome.

Spooky Kitty Cat came back this year to make an appearance in our graveyard.

Isabella was the only goat I could convince to put on the witch hat. She looked lovely in the little creation.

What a good sport!

She really got into the posing. What a very sweet girl.

A Turkey Witch?

A John Deere Girl Witch?

Mainely Ewes Farm does a lot of changing after dark. Kind of spooky ain't it?

Woooooooowooooooooo!

I had to work this Halloween and missed all of the little spirits that came to visit and Trick or Treat for goodies. Ted was there to pass out the loot. He even provided peanuts to good little goats.

Wishing you all a very Happy Halloween.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Day With Sue

2011-10-28T20:48:00.000-04:00

Ted and I took the day off today and went on a short trip to New Hampshire to spend a wonderful afternoon with our daughter Sue. She has a smoke shop in Dover, New Hampshire called Smoke Signals. Believe it or not, Sue has two pugs that work in the shop. They bring their mom Heather along to keep them company during the days. The boys love to dress up for Halloween. Pacy is a fawn Pug sporting evening attire. He is proud to model this sexy tux which shows off his buff bod. He does carry a bucket load of attitude, as you notice the raspberry he is giving me. Pacy you wild and crazy guy.

Link is more of a fun pug. He is modeling his latest Halloween costume. Squirrel from his favorite movie, UP. Link is the first pug there to greet customers as they arrive.

Of course if you have a cookie your are now best buds.

The biggest of the boys and definitely not a pug is Finn. This handsome gentleman belongs to Shannon and comes to work accompanied by a tennis ball. You just never know when someone may have an extra moment to throw the ball for him. Well, when he doesn't tear the ball in half that is.

After visiting the shop we went to Sue's house. We cleaned out the flower beds a bit and tried to straighten a tree in her front yard. We took a trip to Home Depot for spikes and string. The tree started tipping in one of the last wind storms.

Tree now straight and hopefully ready for the upcoming winter months. This beautiful lady is enjoying her new home. Of course the tree is lovely too.

Paco is my grandcat. He is attitude in a cat suit. I interrupted him watching TV. Just try to take that remote away from him. Oh, just between you and me he was watching Twilight. Don't tell him I said so or it could be trouble for me.

Sue had a pumpkin carving party last night and this is one of the creations.

and this little devilish creation.

Thanks for a lovely day. We can't wait till Thanksgiving. A first major holiday in her new home. Family and friends spending time together.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Lodge Pro Grid Iron Griddle

2011-10-27T20:24:00.000-04:00

Hi, my name is Kelly and I have an confession to make. Ahem, I watch way, way, way too much Paula Deen. I love the woman. I watch her show or either I tape it. I even watch re runs. I'm so ashamed! I want her kitchen. I want her ovens, I want her "Ya'll Come Back" sign over her stove. Oh, and I want her deep fryer in the counter. Can you believe that? Well, maybe not the deep fryer. I don't like that many deep fried things. I don't like my chicken deep fried. More like pan fried in about an 1-2 of oil. Or baked, I love baked and grilled chicken. Whew, I'm way off topic........ Squirrel....... I have a little story to tell. I was watching Paula cooking something in way too much butter and she used this Lodge griddle. It struck me like lightening. I just had to have it. I WANTED it! Like all good things I went searching the Web. The Lodge site wanted wayyyyyyy too much and the shipping was astronomical. I found it on, wait, WalMart.com. They got me hooked when the shipping was .19 cents. Yep, I had to order it. It came and I am in love. Here it is.

My heart was beatin so fast. It fits so nicely on two burners. It has a smooth side and a griddle side.

I had to have breakfast right then and there. Who cares if it was lunch time. I wanted pancakes and sausage.

Oh my, isn't that a pretty site. Yes, I am in love.

Thank you Paul Deen. Now, I have to admit that I looked up her measuring cups and spoons. No, not the plastic ones that she has on her web site but the handmade hammered metal ones that she USES. That will be somethin I order for myself when the economy is much better. I can rationalize $39 for a 2 burner griddle. Remember the shipping fee? I just can't bring myself to spend $150 for measuring cups. Even if they are hand hammered. Do you think Paula would send me a set? I am her BFF after all. Hey, I would even clean her mess up after she cooked. HEY PAULA, IT'S KELLY YOUR BFF. CALL ME!

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Sheep and Llama Shelter Day 3

2011-10-25T08:48:00.001-04:00

While I was at work Ted painted the little red barn and added a blue tarp. Just in case it rained and the ladies needed to get out of the weather.

We went to another local business to get the galvanized metal sheets for the little red barn. Mid Maine Metal Company in Newport, Maine can cut sheets to any length. We decided on a plain galvanized. No need for colored metal. There was such a big price difference compared to Home Depot. At home depot these sheets were $24.00 for a 3x8 sheet. At Mid Maine Metal it was only $17.00.

BIG DIFFERENCE!

We were concerned that it would be too dark inside the little red barn during the day. How about sky lights? Hey, they could be in the barn and watch the snow fall or star gaze at night.

One side done. John Deere Girl out and helping with a lift.

We even chose a clear ridge cap to add light.

A few extra screws to hold everything in place when those cold winter winds rip down our hill and try to remove the roof. We will add a door to the back that can be closed during the winter and opened during the warm summer months for added ventilation.

In these pictures it looks like we are missing part of the roof. Nope, that is the clear ridge cap and skylights.

Ted couldn't wait, he had to move the mineral feeder into the new barn. It is kind of cozy in here. There is still a lot of ventilation to prevent pnumonias this winter.

Ted couldn't wait to remove the old shelter. He will move the manure when we dry out a bit. We have been having rain way too frequently. We still have to shear the sheep. It dries out for a few days and then rains again. The sheep need a blow out so we can start.

We still have some trim to put up and paint so the little red barn looks complete. Ultimately we would like to run conduit and wire out so there will be lights in the little red barn. We had a heavy rain last night and all the ladies were inside enjoying their new digs.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

It Stands! Day 2

2011-10-24T08:28:00.001-04:00

Well, here we are again. We have four walls. I wouldn't really call it walls. Sort of like a skeleton. The final dimensions are 12x18. Plenty of room for the ladies.

Ted built the trusses while I was at work. We put them up in about 5 hours. We had to have something that was light enough that we could lift ourselves but still sturdy enough to support the roof. We went to Home Depot last evening and picked up osb board for the walls.

1x4 slats to support and to attach the roof to.

Nothing and I mean nothing is done without a peanut gallery. This reminds me of Noah's Ark. I guess they have to check everything out.

The walls are going up!

Getting late in the afternoon. Boy are the days getting much shorter. The walls are up. It's looking more like a shelter now.

Whew, I can see it now. Kind of windy still. Next we work on the roof. Notice no sheep checking things out? It got so bad that I had to open the gate to the woods and shoo the girls out. They really wanted to help with everything. Just imagine Fuzzy the llama on the ladder handing up screws to a ewe with a drill. Yep, it got kinda crazy around here today.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Sheep and Llama Shelter Day 1

2011-10-23T11:20:00.000-04:00

This poor shelter is at an end. It has served its purpose. We bought this shelter about 3 years ago, used. We didn't have it secured down well and it went airborne a couple of times. Oh, I mean over the fence kind of airborne. Needless to say it has seen better days. We had to replace the tarp last fall so we could squeeze out one more winter. It don't look pretty but it did keep the snow off of the sheep and Fuzzy. Having both money and time at the same time is a commodity. One we have to plan for.

Of course we can't do anything in the pasture without the approval of the "girls". They had to be chased away many times because they kept trying to put their two cents in. Carlotta said, "are you sure that is going to be big enough"? Emily wasn't sure that it was going to be tall enough for her friend Fuzzy the llama. Oh, too many cooks in the kitchen.

It starts out so simple. We used lumber from a local lumber yard, Parker Lumber. They have rough cut wood that is actually 2x4's. Did you know that a 2x4 is not really a 2x4? I didn't know that. We are getting ripped off if you ask me. Older structures are built of true 2x4's. Our old barn has real 2x4's. Oh, and our house too. It is 160 years old and the wood came from our homestead. How cool is that?

Even the turkeys and hens have to approve.

We had to stop due to loss of daylight. All four sides framed. Not bad for starting in the afternoon.

"Hey, where you goin? I will bring the next board. I want this done tonight!"

I think we have really bossy sheep.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Tomorrow, "It Stands".

They're Laying!

2011-10-15T09:26:00.010-04:00

Just last spring we ordered Buff Orpington chicks from Murray McMurray Hatchery. I had heard wonderful reviews in regards to their excellent egg laying qualities, their sweet and loving disposition, and their ability to go broody and raise chicks. Our last hens, Partridge Plymouth Rock, were good egg layers but never went broody, wouldn't set on a clutch of eggs and really didn't care one bit to have me love on them. Is it truly necessary for me to pick up my hens and love on them? Well, of course it is. Our girls have grown into beautiful hens now. They spend their days out roaming the pasture looking for choice bugs and worms.

They are good natured and get along well with the whole barnyard. Just look at those legs. Ain't she just so pretty?

They love to visit the rams and follow the ewes into the apple orchard looking for the best treats.

They have reached a milestone in their development. They have started LAYING!!!! We are getting some light colored small eggs and some really large brown eggs. Both coming from our young hens.

Wow! such different sizes and beautiful colors.

The large egg must have made the hen say ouch. It was a double yolk. Their little bodies are just getting in the grove. Beautiful orange yolks. They taste so wonderful.

I am so happy that we have young hens. The older ladies will remain here on the farm and free range with the younger girls. We will keep our geriatric hens in retirement but safe.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

It's October That Must Mean Halloween

2011-10-14T08:42:00.027-04:00

One of my favorite holidays is Halloween. I look forward to it each Fall. The colors and cool temps just bring out a warm and fuzzy feeling inside. I love the colors of Fall. The browns, oranges, and reds just make me smile. Halloween starts the holiday season off. Every holiday must have it's own time. First we begin with decorations on the outside. (only partially done.)

Spooky spider webs are a must!

Pumpkins with scary faces!

Some with not so scary faces. We do like to have fun.

Emma and Lucy tried on their costumes....

then they practiced their best Trick or Treat

We even bring the decorations inside too. Add a warm fire and all is well.

Candy Corn and small Jack-0-Lanterns lead the way.

Smiles from Jack.

Much more Halloween to come.

Hope you are having a spooky good time.

Much Love and Prayers From Mainely Ewes Farm. Happy Fall Ya'll!

Just Some Fun Summer Pics

2011-10-13T09:00:00.005-04:00

After looking through the pics of this last summer I thought I would share a few. They made me smile and that is a gift. A gift I want to share.

Summer Mushrooms. Does anyone know their name?

My Summer visitors. The spider ladies.

Oreo, the handsome kitty.

Sadie, our casgora goat enjoying a little sunshine on the hay wagon.

One of her favorite games is "Push everyone off of the hay wagon''.

Smiles from Emma.

Not only from Emma, but from everyone!

Much Love and Prayers From Mainely Ewes Farm.

Moving Day

2011-10-05T21:48:00.000-04:00

When we started Mainely Ewes Farm we knew that we wouldn't be able to keep every sheep and goat. We must cull for flaws, polled sheep (no horns) and too many rams or bucks. We also enjoy lamb and kid. This year we were blessed with beautiful ewe lambs with soft silky fleece. They went to a lovely lady who was starting her flock of Icelandic Sheep. She spins wool and adores the Icelandics' double fleece. The ewes are happy and enjoy a large pasture. We also had 5 ram lambs plus Lambert. You remember Lambert? Yes, the spoiled bottle baby that Ted raised in the house. Well, Lambert went to the ram pasture and is hanging out with Eccho, Baby, Acheron and Asher. He is one of the guys now.
Today was the day that we took the 5 remaining ram lambs, an ewe from last years flock with scur horns, a ram from last years flock and a kid, all on a road trip to Maple Lane Farm. They are a processor within 3 miles of us. We loaded them into the truck and took them over. They were taken in immediately. No waiting and stressing. We tried to make this as easy as possible. Is that possible?

Lots of grass, fresh air, hay and grain. Not the life of a feed lot animal.

Teddy and Edward live in the much smaller pasture next door. This is usually a good arrangement, however, there are the girl goats living right next to them. Well, this time of year Teddy is applying the cologne, strutting around like the stud muffin he is. Sniffing the air and stomping his hoof in excitement. He is very, er, efficient? We had a surprise buckling last spring. Teddy and Sadie, sort of, how can I put this? Made a little nookey through the fence.

This white buckling was the surprise. This is the bachelor pad the young bucks have been sharing. It is getting a bit cramped. Originally it was the turkey house. We do repurpose when possible.

Now they are in the big lamb pasture. They have spent the day pruning the tree limbs within reach, munching on hay and enjoying the cooler temps. More space.
As hard as it is to take the animals to the processor we try to remind ourselves that this is why we do this. We can't afford to keep every animal. We have seen how farming can be done with care and compassion. We will be updating our web site to include the sale of both lamb and kid. If you have never eaten kid it is a wonderfully flavorful meat. I was able to get a fantastic cookbook with recipes for chevon. Janice and Ken Spaulding teach Goat School in St. Albans, ME. She is a wonderful cook and has written a cookbook: Goat School: A Master Class in Caprine Care and Cooking. It is available on Amazon. I bought one for me and sent one to my mother. She loved reading about care and management of goats.
I don't know why Blogger changed the size of the font on the last paragraph. I don't understand much of Blogger. I just don't like surprises that I don't understand. I know this could be alot easier. As a goat friend is fond of saying, Oy.
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Emma and Lucy Apple Picking and Bears?

2011-09-30T11:17:00.000-04:00

There are so many blogs out there with Autumn as their topics. Well, why not it is the time of year. We really get into the season here too. The colors start to change and the temps start getting cooler. It must be apple picking time. The orchards are busy with families out picking apples, watching apples getting pressed into fresh cider. Not to be outdone, Emma have developed their own technique for apple picking.

I always seem to have my camera near, except this morning. Ted and I were enjoying coffee on the deck admiring the beautiful morning when I looked up and saw a black bear loping across our field. I know I sounded very articulate as I yelled "bear, bear, bear". That was all I could get out. I ran for my camera and Ted ran for the gun. I couldn't find the camera and when we came back out the bear had cleared our fence in one leap and was heading into the woods. Fuzzy the llama was standing guard. In no way is she any match for a bear. She would have been his first target. Ted went up into the woods and shot multiple times hopefully scaring the bear away. I hope he was as scared of us as we were of him. This is the first time we have seen a bear on the farm. We aren't delusional to think they haven't been here all along.
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Getting Goats Ready For Winter

2011-09-29T12:35:00.001-04:00

One of the biggest jobs of Autumn is the preparation for the upcoming winter. Winter arrives fast and hard in Maine. Our lady goats are lucky. They get to stay in the barn during the cold weather months. The bucks share a shelter but remain outside. Their base is full of hay and they stay warm. The boys don't seem to mind this arrangement at all. They develop a woolly coat and snuggle with each other. More like a gentleman's club for goats. In the barn we have been laying down a thick layer of shavings since spring. Well, it's that time again. More shavings needed. Before spreading another layer of shavings I, very liberally, dust the area with ditomacious earth. This keeps the area mite, flea and bug free. No pesticides at all. It helps to keep flies down too. The layering is really import. There will be heat generated by the breakdown of the fecal matter and shavings during the winter months. The urine and nanny berries promote bacterial growth. These bacteria breakdown with the shavings and produce heat in this process. In the spring we clean the barn out and let the pile mature over the summer months. Late fall we will spread this black gold over our hay fields. We don't think our fields have been fertilized in over 20 years. This way we can recycle and reuse a pesticide free fertilizer.

The Lady's were very happy to see the fresh bedding.

They even help with the spreading of fresh shavings.

We do the same thing in the chicken coop too. The diatomacious earth works the same way for them too. No mites for our hens. With all of those warm bodies they generate a lot of warmth. We still open the barn doors in winter and let fresh air in. I do believe in fresh air. It deters so many pneumonia's, bacterial infections and adds to the general good health of our animals. Oh, and it makes the barns smell so good.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Guinea Freedom

2011-09-28T09:25:00.002-04:00

This year was the first time that we were able to hatch out our own guineas. Out of 98 eggs we had 89 eggs hatch. That was a better hatch rate than the booklet said we would have. We expected about 50%. What a surprise for us. All of the keets moved to the brooder and not a one lost. That is a big difference from when we get them through the mail. We may loose up to 10. Out of 15 turkeys we have 5 left. These were healthy keets, no drafts or cold temps. The incubator was a gift from my mom. We look forward to hatching turkeys and chicks next spring. I didn't even notice an change with the electric bill. That will save us a whole heap of money in the spring. I figure around $250.00. We moved them from their brooder to an area in the chicken coop, made just for them. The screen let in fresh air and sunshine. They grew and grew.

Happy guineas. Well, as happy as a guinea can be I guess. They continued to act like we were the mad monster ready to bite their heads off. I want to make a statement here. Guineas are not sweet pets. They don't want to be touched. Notice how calm they are in this picture? They didn't know I was there.

The guineas have been turned loose in the yard. The screen is down and so is the wall. This fact comes with a sad footnote. When we took the wall down they were freaked out. Evidently, later that evening they piled into a corner and didn't come out. We lost 21 guineas to suffocation or crushing. I am still in shock. Like I said before, small brains for such good little birds. So now we have 78 left. I know that is still more than we need. Why we thought we needed that many guineas I have no clue. We like birds too? Here they are out in the pasture for the first time spreading their wings and flying.

The pups have to be watched at all times. The have expressed that fresh guinea is very tasty, no need for any condiments. We have the training collars back on to reinforce the "NO PUT THAT GUINEA DOWN" command. Emma is very vocal about the lack of fresh meat. After all they are RETRIEVERS! If you would like to have a guinea or two or three or four of five....well you get my drift. Just give me a buzz.
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Simple as Apple Pie

2011-09-27T09:16:00.002-04:00

Alot of farming is a single job. Mowing, tedding, raking, and baling is all one person. I come in handy when it comes time to put the bales into the loft. Ted really enjoys working on the tractor. I came along to take pictures and enjoy the scenery. I take this job very seriously.

Beautiful.....

Emma and Lucy keep me company...

The apple trees are loaded with ripe green and red apples. They are so sweet and just a little tart.

The girls love to eat apples. Apples and carrots, two of their favorite snacks.

As the girls ate their share of the drops I started thinking about pies. I didn't come prepared with a basket so...my shirt tail did nicely.

They may have a few knots and wormholes but that can be cut out.

Emma and Lucy waiting for anything to drop. I think their middle name may be Hoover!

The pie turnout great. Ted loves homemade apple pie. I should have watched it a little closer. My apple cut outs got a little too brown.

I found these pie crust cut outs/stamps the other day. I have to practice! The ones on the box aren't quite as brown as mine. Heck, let's be real. Mine were almost burnt. Like I said. Practice. Help me Paula.

Happy Fall.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Fall Is Finally Here! Well, Early Fall.

2011-09-26T08:12:00.000-04:00

Each year our long winters here in Maine leave us longing for warmer weather. I am usually ready for spring about March. Well.....it never comes until May. Commercials on TV show warm sunny beaches, flowers blooming in abundance, and people trying to get the crab grass out of the lawn. In March we still have snow on the ground for goodness sake. Then why does Fall excite me so much? I start looking forward to fires in the wood stove, apple pies, spice scented candles. Fall also means there is an end to the non stop work of summer. It means PUMPKINS! I love the color, shape and different sizes that pumpkins come in. The just mean AUTUMN is here.

I get to change my flag. I actually have 2 Fall flags. This is my early Fall flag. It still has to work out its wrinkles.

The grass is still green and the sheep are busy grazing, putting on weight for the upcoming winter months.

We are trying to save our second cut of hay. Lesson 500 in haying: cut hay early enough that the second cut gets done before September 10th. After that we have heavy fogs loaded with water. Hard to get the hay to dry.

The trees are just starting to get a little color to them. Not as green as summer but just a noticeable yellowing to some.

Fall also means ripe crab apples. Emma and Lucy both think they are the best snack around. Well, that is until they eat too many and yack. Sorry for the imagery there.

Our days are cool and our nights chilly. Add another quilt to the bed and stay cozy.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

50? When Did That Happen?

2011-09-18T16:17:00.058-04:00

No, no, no. I must be mistaken. I have been having so much fun and loving my life, that time has truly sped by. Like in a blink of the eye. I remember as a small child sitting on the front porch with my grandmother, swinging back and forth, and she was telling me to not wish away the days. In time they would fly by and I would wish them back again. In a childs' mind I just couldn't understand that. I wanted summer to come and it was taking it's own sweet time. Well, I guess that woman was wise and knew exactly what she was speaking of. Here I am. 50.

The very best gift of all was having 2 of my sweet daughters here along with Jasmine and of course Ted. They make my heart sing.

They know how much I love a homemade cake with icing. No bought or boxed cake here. What wonderful people they are. I didn't even have to ask.

You can never have too much help. Jasmine loves to bake and be in the very middle of everything.

The exuberance of an 8 year old.

How about that color?

Yes, and the running joke is "if there were 50 candles on the cake the house would be in jeopardy of burning down".

I think everyone had a wonderful time. I know I did!

Thank you guys so much. I love you and appreciate all the wonderful gifts. You really know me! And love me anyway!

Now I can sit on the porch with Jasmine and tell her of long ago times, not wishing your life away, taking time for yourself and appreciating what we are blessed with. Family and friends. Cherishable gifts. Okay, can you tell that I have been watching The Walton's reruns? We have to put a porch on the house so I can have my front porch swing. I want to hear that squeak, squeak as we go back and forth. Just like when I was a child on my grandmothers' front porch swing.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

What Happens When Your New Refrigerator Dies

2011-09-17T12:06:00.000-04:00

Can this be my rant for the week? Let me at em! Long story short, July 20-fridge less than 1 year old, fan making noise, repairman came out, our fault, fridge set too cold, readjusted. August28-fridge and freezer warm. Repairman came out, circuit boards ordered, four days later circuit boards installed, repairman left before checking if fridge was actually cold. Never cooled. Repairman out 3 days later, compressor dead. It will take 4 weeks to arrive because it is DC rather than AC. Whatever that means. Rental fridge obtained because it will take 4 weeks for compressor to arrive per technician. Compressor arrived next morning. Old/new fridge repaired and now working. I have a feeling deep in my gut that this is going to be a big fight with Sears because I had to pay a full month for rental fridge and they aren't going to want to pay for the whole thing.

Anything good out of this situation?

Yep, Chickens are happy. All the chicken edible food was placed into a bucket and taken outside.

Happy Hens

Happy Turkeys

Some ladies don't share very well. They like to use the grab and run technique.

Never a dull moment. At least we can find a bright spot to this story. Chicken treats!

Now, I have to reorder my vaccinations for sheep, goats and cats. I think I had more animal medicine in the butter compartment than butter. Come to think of it, we have never had butter in there. Only animal meds.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Bangor State Fair 2011

2011-09-08T10:00:00.001-04:00

We worked really hard this summer and I think we played hard too. It just wouldn't be summer without fairs. Each year we go at least one time. Jasmine looks forward to the fair each year too. I guess we do too. I just don't tolerate the rides like I did when I was younger. They make me a bit dizzy....Yep that one would make me dizzy.
The lambs are more my style. They don't spin me around or stand me on my head or shake me to death. They are sweet and clean and oh they smell so good.

Jasmine likes to be spun around and shook up and down. She is fussing because neither Ted nor I would ride this ride with her. I think she was calling us chicken here.

What? the pony ride is too slow? Oh, come on when I was a kid I loved pony rides. What? you think you are too old for pony rides? Make your Nana happy and ride the darn pony. Smile. No? Okay, I won't make you do that again.

More like it? You want to spin Papa around and make him sick? Okay,go for it!

Bumper cars? I don't think they have changed too much. Same concept. Run into Papa and try to get away fast.

Now this is Nana's ride. The Ferris Wheel. I think Jasmine liked this one too.

Yes, now this is more like it.

Even Papa was having a good time.

Wheeeee........

No, the boat is just for kids. I would loose my lunch for sure.

We all loved the tractor ride. After all of that walking it was relaxing.

And you can't go to the fair without getting cotton candy.

Back to the animals. Just look at this beautiful goat.

Is your fair small or big? What kind of fair food do you eat? Have you ever gotten sick after riding? What ride was it? I still love fairs. They remind me of a time when I could ride the rides and not get sick. Have you been to a fair this year?
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Bradford Days

2011-09-07T09:24:00.001-04:00

Each summer for one Saturday in August we celebrate our town. It may be small. One blinking light. One store, Bradford General Store. A Town Hall and a Post Office. That about sums it up. Quaint. Yes, that does sound better than small. On this very auspicious day we have a parade and it passes right in front of our house. I think that most of the town is in the parade. If you want to be in it go to the vacant lot just down the road by 10am and you can be in our parade too. Jasmine wasn't sure if it was okay to pick up the candy that was thrown. She is a city kid. Come on and enjoy our parade and celebrate our town.

There were muscle cars. I remember these cars and they make my heart beat faster.

Just look at that horse power.

There were tractors in the shade of green...............

Red......big and small.

Fire trucks complete with ladders and hoses.

Search and rescue vehicles in wild colors....

Our own EMS crew....

Our bush truck for going deep into the Maine woods and I do believe that Smokey The Bear is riding in front.

I'll be darn....that is our neighbors from across the street riding in the parade. They are heading to the show ring for the rest of Bradford Days.

I look forward to Bradford Days every year. I come from a city of over a million. I didn't know my neighbors. I went to work and came home. Every hear the term "rat race"? That was how I felt. Spinning in my little metal wheel not looking left or right. It's time to celebrate. Celebrate small town America. I hope you have enjoyed our parade. Oh, and the fireworks are nothing to sneeze at either.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

We Have a Hay Rake

2011-09-06T14:50:00.000-04:00

Finally after 4 years on the farm we have all of our hay equipment. Something old and something new, nothing borrowed but lots used. I have to say the old stuff last longer, is easier to repair and works great. The new, John Deere tractor, has been in the shop each summer since we purchased it. If a tine on the tedder breaks it is an easy fix, same thing with replacing the blades on the mower. The tractor, not so much. We will see how it behaves next summer. It makes me sad when it leaves on the trailer heading off for we don't know how long. Oh, they give us a loaner but it just isn't the same. Okay, nuff grouching. This is Ted using our neighbors hay rake. It is a really interesting machine. An old John Deere. Fred even puts a 5 gallon bucket filled with ballast to weight it down.

Welcome new/old hay rake. I can't find a whole lot of info about this on the internet. Most rotational rakes I find are horizontal and rotate. This has 5 wheels and shifts the hay to the left. It is sturdy and strong. Not a whole lot of moving parts so not much to repair. Ted got carried away with the Rustoleum paint again. We want to repaint the black a John Deere green. Right now it looks like a bumblebee. A big bumblebee but not rusty.

We are really looking forward to getting our last cut hay in a couple of weeks. Now we can mow, tedder, rake and bale when the weather is good and then transport it to the barn and put it on the conveyor. Oh what a dream come true. Hopefully, we will have about 1500 bales of hay for this winter. Enough for our animals and some to sell toward the last part of winter. We have been having daily rains which are turning the hayfield into a lush green pasture. After talking it over we plan on fencing the whole field in next spring. Then, after we cut the last hay of the year we will be able to turn the sheep out to graze in the fall. No parasites on the field, thus no parasites in the sheep. We did loose 2 lambs to worms. One day they seem fine, the next they are dead. We lost 1 ram but not quite sure what he died from. After much reading and searching the best way to combat the worm problem is to have the sheep rotated at least every 3 months. New pasture breaks the parasite/host cycle and we can keep up with the worms better. At this time we turn them into the woods during the day when we are home and can watch them and then in the pasture at night. They are really enjoying the leaves and weeds. Happy Sheep. The goats are always happy. They get to range in the woods and fill their rumens with leafy treasures and drop apples. Yum.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Where Our Summer Went

2011-09-05T22:51:00.001-04:00

I can't believe that it is September already. Time has flown by and we have been so busy. I have been very spotty with my posting. Actually I feel like I have fallen off the face of blogland. I just seemed to run out of time and energy. After a long day we fall into bed exhausted. I have been visiting and reading blogs. I have been keeping up. I will try to do a bit of catching up. I feel like I'm so behind.

Of course we have been haying our fields and any other fields we can. We even got a chance to hay the fields next to our town hall. Not the greatest of hay because it had so many weeds but still sellable. We sold a few bales straight from the field and then we took the remaining bales back home and sold it from there.

We had Jasmine, our granddaughter, for the summer. She loved helping out from a shady spot under the hay wagon. She had plenty of company from Emma and Lucy.

This is the hay wagon we have been using. It belongs to our neighbor and holds about 100 bales. Not bad but not ours.

We were able pick up this chassis via barter. It looks like it is a John Deere. Old and rusty now. All we needed was some lumber and time. Ted was positive he could turn it into a masterpiece.

I came home from work the next day and he had been very busy. We are now the proud owners of a very beautiful hay wagon. Can you call a hay wagon beautiful? Yep! Well, I do.

A masterpiece.

We have been keeping the Rustoleum Company in business lately. If we can slow down the aging and stop it from rusting we should be set for a while.

Now just a coat of sealant on the wood and we are ready to go. Just in time to get our second cut in the barn. We should be able to get about 200 bales on this trailer each trip. Less trips is just fine with us.

I love to barter. It makes both parties happy and feeling like they got a good deal. How can I get so excited about a hay wagon? I just am. Rough cut wood from a local saw mill: $160.00,

bolts: $16.00. Ted's labor priceless.

Summer Meat Birds

2011-08-28T14:13:00.002-04:00

Each summer we order Cornish Rock X chickens. They are excellent meat birds. Easy to raise and ready for the freezer in about 12 weeks. We try to make our birds as happy as possible. However, I think we may have given the boys a little too much freedom. They had outdoor space and made use of it. They were walking in and out, chasing each other and doing push ups in the indoor gym. Well, maybe not quite doing push ups. They were still more active than birds from the past.

Time came to visit West Gardnier Beef. We loaded the birds up and took them for their last ride. We take our birds off to be dispatched. We have found it is worth it. So far we have not had any problems with predetors. (knock on wood?) Freezer full enough for this next year. Average weight is about 8lbs.

Wonderful fried chicken for supper. One bird will feed the two of us for about 3 nights with a wing or two for lunch. Have you ever heard of a pulley bone? Do you cut up your chickens or do you buy pieces?

We are very thankful for our birds. We treat them very well and provide a good life for them. In turn they provide for us.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Hen Update

2011-07-29T11:43:00.000-04:00

Our ladies are about 4 years old now. They continue to lay but just aren't so reliable. Like people, chickens don't have eggs their whole life. I guess some of our hens are going through menopause. Do chickens have menopause? I wonder if they have hot flashes? Mood swings? Hmmmm.... Should I start adding

St John's Wort into their feed? About 12 weeks ago we ordered Buff Orpington hens from Murray McMurray Hatchery. Sweet little chicks.

They ate and ate and grew into much bigger poults. Too big to stay in the brooder so we moved them to their own section of the coop. They still had to share their space with the turkeys but had so much more room. They had to be kept separate because the hens would bully them. Evidently they haven't seen the PSA about bullying. I wasn't sure how to introduce the new kids to an established flock. I did what I do a lot. I went online. The Murray McMurray Hatchery site had a blog with ongoing information on just this subject. We put in a gate and a chicken wire mesh to allow the birds to see each other but not mingle. We did this for about 3 weeks. Then each day after I opened the coop up, and the hens went out to free range, we let the new poults out to get used to the coop.

They enjoyed the freedom. The hens would come in check out the new girls. There were a few episodes of hair pulling and pecking. Just like transition to middle school.

The turkeys were right at home. They even fly up to the highest roost.

Everyone is getting along great. The poults still tend to roost together and no more bullying.

Now we have an integrated flock. I guess they get along well because they have so much room to range.

Happy Chickens!

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Ebay! I Won!

2011-07-28T12:11:00.000-04:00

Do you ever have some down time and peruse through Ebay looking at items that you just don't think you have a chance of winning? Well that happened to me a few weeks ago. I have been looking at spinning wheels for about 2 years now. I didn't want anything fancy. Just something that would last be a looooong time and be easy to learn on. Well, if you haven't looked lately Ashford spinning wheels run about $400.00. Ouch! There are alot of sellers out there. Not much bidding going on. A whole lot of "Buy Now". I found a private seller that had an actual Ashford spinning wheel for auction. The bid was at $230. I thought that just wouldn't last. There was another 3 days left on the auction. So I put in a bid for $235. I didn't expect to be the highest bidder. I just knew that someone would out bid me. Well, I WON! A week later the wheel arrived. Arrived in many pieces. Oh my!

After admiring my new Ashford Traditional Spinning Wheel parts I sat down and put it together. I made a call to a very dear neighbor who sold spinning wheels in the past and is an avid spinner. Diane came over and got the settings adjusted.

She brought over some roving to get me started.

It was great fun. I need alot of practice to make my yarn thinner. Practice, practice, practice.

No time for that right now. This is a winter activity.

We will shear our sheep this fall. It will be a great experience to skirt, wash, dry and card our own wool. I have a drum carder that belongs to Diane too. At least now I have my own spinning wheel. It makes nice furniture too.

Just remember, if you place a bid on Ebay you just might win.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Talking Turkey

2011-07-26T11:11:00.000-04:00

Okay, even in summer there are days where we just take the time to enjoy the animals. The turkeys are growing so fast. We have two toms and 3 hens. I think we will keep all of them this year. Hopefully next spring we will be able to put a few turkey eggs into the incubator to hatch or under the hen. I just love turkeys. I know that some people think that they are dumb. There are old wives tales about turkeys not having the sense to come in out of the rain and drown themselves. Sorry, but that just isn't true. I think turkeys are loving, will follow you around, and are great conversationalist. See for yourself.

Well, maybe we are a bit strange. It makes for great entertainment down on the farm. We are in a kind of calm time here. First cut hay is in the barn, just finished de worming the animals. Now that I think of it, we need to get started on cutting wood again. Darn. I thought we were all caught up. Well, back to work.
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Guinea Keets Hatching!

2011-07-24T12:21:00.000-04:00

Way way back on July 1st we placed 72 guinea eggs into the incubator. We found two nests in the hay field. The birds were very upset with us. We had to remove the eggs. Guineas don't make the best parents. They love to set on eggs but will walk off and leave the newly hatched young. It's like they just don't have a long enough attention span to remember they are parents. Heck these birds will watch a car run them over even though they can fly. They really keep the ticks and bugs down and are wonderful watch dogs.

Yesterday morning we heard a cheeping coming from the incubator. We didn't know when they would hatch because we didn't know when the eggs were actually laid. Guinea eggs take 28 days to hatch per the internet. Well this is what we found when we opened the door. We had taken the eggs and placed them in the bottom hatching drawer so they wouldn't tumble down and get hurt once they started hatching.

They spent the last 24 hours hatching. So this morning we gathered the 18 little keets up into a container.

Then took them out to the barn and into a nice warm (100 degree) brooder.

They look so small in the big brooder. It looks like we have a few pearl and the rest regular.

At least they will have plenty of room to run around.

I just looked a few minutes ago and there are more keets hatched. I put an add on Craigs List and Uncle Henry's. Hopefully we will be able to sell some of these little darlings. If not we will have a noisy farm. A very, very noisy farm. Ted said that we will get a fine for the noise. Thanks for the incubator Mom. I think we will send a few guinea keets to her in Florida. I bet her neighbors would complain a bit.

Our prayers go out to all of you in the "heat dome". We were up to 100 degrees for a couple of days and thought we wouldn't make it. Today our high is in the upper 70's. More like Maine weather should be. Stay safe and remember to hydrate!

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Stinky Bottom and Lambert Update

2011-07-15T08:24:00.002-04:00

Elise is a special kid. She is the first born of Sophie, our bottle fed and raised in the kitchen goat. Elise has to be there first, eat first, drink first, be the loudest and bounce higher. I would love to say she is a lady. Nope, she is a tom boy. Well I think Elise ate a little too much of the fresh hay and got stinky bottom. Otherwise known on our farm as pigging out disease. I would be worried if more than one goat had diarrhea but it is only Elise. If the whole herd came down with diarrhea I would fear clostridium and treat everyone accordingly with Coreg. Just one stinky bottom requires Pepto Bismol twice a day and a good healthy dose of ProBiotics. While out taking care of Elise we went ahead and separated the last lambs from their mom, gave them their last CD&T shot for this year and dewormed. Never a dull moment. Now it is noisy with the lambs being sad and I swear I heard Ciera give a whoop of joy in the ewe pasture. I think she is, yes, she is dancing! Oh, please cover those udders girl. You ain't as young as you use to be. Sorry.....

Ted held Elise and I administered the Pepto. She held it in her cheeks and refused to swallow. Just like a goat. "I will do it in my time and like I want."

Now for the Lambert update. He is doing well, happy but still thinks he is NOT A SHEEP!

He is the only lamb that gets to come out of the pasture and play in the barn. Once in a while we have to rescue the fella. He is very curious and requires supervision.

Of course he is just one of the dogs. They all get along very well.

Then at the end of the day it's time to go back into the lamb pasture.

As we go back into the house we hear a frustrated little boy voice say "but I'm not really a sheep. I want to go in and watch Ellen and drink ice tea". Poor little guy. At least he will remain with us when the other lambs go away. We love you Lambert.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

New Holland 66 Baler

2011-07-13T06:28:00.001-04:00

Here we are again. Another piece of new to us hay equipment. She may be a bit used, a bit old and a bit rusty but in our eyes she is one of the most beautiful balers we have ever seen. Ted has spent a large amount of time looking through Ebay, Uncle Henry's and Craigslist for hay equipment. The really new equipment is horrendous in price. I checked online for a new New Holland baler and we were looking at $24,000 minimum. No bells and whistles. Heck, we only have 20 acres of hay fields. This sweet lady actually works. After our John Deere tractor being in the shop for 2 summers straight maybe new isn't such a good idea.

(after looking at this picture, we have to take that Christmas wreath off of the barn somehow!)

There is a whole story that goes with this purchase. Like Ted was on his way to southern Maine and about 15 min away when the seller texted Ted and said that he had already sold it. Like, 2 hrs away from home, almost there. Evidently, the buyer only wanted the clutch and pto and would sell us the remaining baler and a motor that would run the baler instead of the pto. So off he went to the new owners house to pick up the baler.

The clutch goes here. It looks kind of lonely without the pto.

Not to be deterred Ted went back to Ebay, Uncle Henry's and Craigslist looking for the pto and clutch. Ebay is where we met a wonderful family who had the exact parts we needed. Have you ever ordered a tractor online? No? Well, we did and it arrived. In a few boxes that is.

It may not look like much but to us it is beautiful.

Put together like a puzzle.

Ted just couldn't quit till it was completed.

So a little after 8pm last night the baler was all put together and ready to go.

No rain in the forecast for 3 days. Perfect haying weather. Updates to come.

Oh, I'm going to be tired. I can already feel it in my bones.

It comes with excitement and expectation.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Strawberry Hunters

2011-07-12T12:53:00.000-04:00

Please join Emma and Lucy as they search through fresh cut hay looking for wild strawberries.

These pups love to eat everything. They like vegetables, fruit, (except grapes) meat. They love when the apple trees drop fruit. When we have veggies the pups get their share too. I love to take frozen peas and toss a couple of handfuls onto the floor and watch the pups find every pea. Oh, corn and green beans the same thing. I can't help but laugh in the video as they search and sneeze.

These berries are small but have a powerful taste. I have to admit that I helped them find berries and ate a few myself. The joys of summer.
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Oh No! Another Hay Post

2011-07-11T16:33:00.001-04:00

Oh no! Another haying post. If it's summer it must be hay season. Sunshine, cool breeze and we're off to the upper meadow. Otherwise known as the upper hayfield. Beautiful trip through a thick forest of trees.

The views are breathtaking. The beauty of a corn field is so Americana. This corn field is destined as silage. Silage is fed at most dairy's here. Basically it is corn. However, they don't just pick the ears to make feed out of. A machine comes down the rows and cuts the stalk off about 6 inches from the ground and grinds the stalk and ears. Nothing wasted. The silage ferments and provides a great source of feed for dairy cattle. Not for goats. The fermentation can be dangerous and may contain a bacteria called Listeria. Listeria can be deadly to goats. Therefore, we use sweet feed specifically designed for goats. Safer.

Hay all mown. Tedded by Ted of course. Nice and dry. Ready to be raked and baled.

Ted on the blue tractor raking, Fred on the baler.

Emma and Lucy helping keep any bugs or mice away. They did find a dead snake. Oh joy!

New Holland . Great dependable baler. This is Freds' baler. Good news we are now the proud owners of a very rusty New Holland 66 baler. Old. Very old. It works and that is the best thing about it.

Plop...plop out comes the bales in neat little well...bales.

We are expecting showers tonight so we will wait till Wednesday to mow the lower pasture. At that time I will yell that we have completed the first cut. Today is one of the hottest and most humid of this summer. I keep reminding myself that it will be cold weather soon enough. I am trying to convince myself that this feels good. No luck so far. Blah.....too hot.
Hope you all are having a wonderful summer. Keep in mind that it will be cold soon enough. Just try it and see if it works for you. I sincerely hope so.
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

A Tedder!

2011-07-05T08:17:00.003-04:00

One more piece of equipment. It is a ~~used~~ new Tedder. Let's just say it is new to us. It doesn't look like much but it is so necessary to "fluff" up the hay after it is cut so it can dry nice like before it is baled.

Now Ted has a Tedder

When the arms are out it covers about 18ft. Go forth and do your thing.

So far we have broken off 2 of these coil finger things. I know they probably have a name. I'm sure when I call to get more the man on the phone will educate me. But for now they are coil finger things.

Baled hay for some greedy goats. They have been enjoying some fruits of our labor. Hay bales that break or fall apart are fed out. Like candy and babies. Our spoiled, greedy babies. Goat kisses to all.

The sheep have lush summer pastures right now. We put a bale of fresh green hay out for them and it was exciting for about 3 minutes. Then back to grass and weeds. We want to fence in a wooded area for the goats to graze. In time, in time. Patience is not one of my stronger characteristics. Nope. I want it all now.

We are still haying and baling. My back and hip hurt from throwing bales and climbing up and down the tractor. I still have to say I find it enjoyable. Ibuprofen is my friend.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Happy Birthday USA

2011-07-04T08:00:00.001-04:00

Here we are again. Another year older. Another year of uncertainty. What will the coming days bring?

Here is wishing America another birthday.

May you grow old with dignity.

May you realize your dreams.

May God bless you and yours.

Happy Birthday sweet lady!

Cheers!

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Our New Kuhn Drum Mower PZ170

2011-07-03T07:17:00.001-04:00

Yes, we finally have a mower for our hay. Piece by piece we are acquiring farm equipment. This is the first "new" one. There is a darn good reason for that. New=expensive. Kuhn has developed a drum mower. It works differently than the regular mower/conditioner. The drum mower just cuts the hay down. It doesn't crush it. It may take a bit longer to dry but for less money we are willing to wait a bit longer.

It is light weight and easy for the tractor to run.

Here is a peek of the "drum" part.

Those little square tabs on the bottom of the drums are blades.

It cuts the hay cleanly.

This belt runs off of the PTO and rotates the two drums

We are so excited. We can now cut our own hay. Little by little we are getting there.

See us in action!

I hope we will be independent with our hay season next summer.
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Finally Big Enough to Come Outside

2011-07-02T07:03:00.002-04:00

Finally the Cornish Rock X birds are big enough to come outside. Until now we have kept the doorway covered with a wire mesh to protect the boys. They may be big but inside they are still only 6 weeks old. They are just big for their age. After a bit of hesitancy they came out to the fresh air and sunshine.

A little bit of cracked corn and fresh water and they are so happy.

Every time we go near their pen they come running expecting a treat. That is usually cracked corn.

They may not be able to free range with the other chickens but they have plenty of room. No one can pick on them. They rule their roost. We will keep them for about 3 more weeks. While they are here they will be happy. I went out last evening to shoo the stragglers inside and close the door for the evening. I was wearing flip flops. I heard a yell from across the pen and they all came running to eat the 10 little worms. Ouch. Darn chickens. Barn boots from now on.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Incubator Surprise

2011-07-01T10:37:00.001-04:00

About two weeks ago this incubator arrived. It is the GQF 1502 complete with thermostat, humidity and egg turning capability. The funny thing is, I didn't order it. SURPRISE!

The incubator accompanied this crate of egg trays. SURPRISE!

Evidently Ted and my Mom had a phone conversation. When those two get together on the phone there is no telling what will happen next. Mom now has internet and has discovered shopping online. Years ago she had an incubator and hatched off chickens and guineas. She loves hearing the guineas while we are on the phone. I was so excited to get everything set up in the craft room. Perfect temperature and humidity was reached in about 12 hrs. Now we needed eggs.

We noticed that the guineas had stopped laying eggs in the hen house. They are able to fly and free range all over our farm. Well, to be honest, the neighbors farm, down the road, in the woods, in the road. Truthfully, guineas are not the brightest of the fowl world. We have lost a few to cars. Once in a while we will hear beeps and have to go call the birds out of the road. So if you see a guinea in the road, please don't assume that they will fly away. Nope, they will try to stare you down. Hence, guinea loss.

Ted found this nest in the hayfield. There were 32 eggs being set on by 3 guineas.

These guineas were very angry that we were robbing their nest. They aren't aggressive birds but very vocal. It broke my heart to take the eggs away. If we didn't then Emma and Lucy would find the nest and have a feast. Yes, they are egg lovers.

All set up and ready to go into the incubator.

Okay little keets. Do your thing.

Temp 100deg, humidity 55%, turning on.

Now we wait and watch up to 28 days. We don't know how long the guineas had been setting on the nest so we aren't sure of a hatch date. The excitement builds.

Thanks Mom!

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Guinea Egg Update

Ted was in the upper pasture and noticed guineas acting strange. "I'm not doing anything. Who me?"

He found another 40 guinea eggs.

Now we have a whopping 72 eggs in our new incubator.

And some very, very angry and yelling guineas on our farm.

Help, I think there is a plot underfoot to take us out.

Sum Sum Sum Sum Summertime!

2011-06-30T12:31:00.000-04:00

SUMMERTIME

A little of this and that.

Days of sunshine

SUMMERTIME!

Lambert being a lamb

Oreo prowling

Emma enjoying a day at Pushaw Lake

Lucy being an otter

Lambert enjoying a good scratch

Yeah, right there

Kale chips

Barn spider

Blogging in the sunshine

Lambert forgetting he is not a dog

Susan bringing some sunshine with her

Our garden blooming

A little of this and that. Memories.
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Hay Mow

2011-06-29T07:44:00.002-04:00

Oh boy! Little by little we have been picking up our very own hay equipment. The fast approaching hay season has had us scouring Uncle Henry's, Ebay and local ads for a baler, rake, mower, tedder and an elevator. Well, now we have the elevator. We store our hay in the second floor hay mow. There was no way to get it there without this piece of equipment. Our neighbor, Cheata, has been searching for us too. We got a call from her that this John Deere elevator with a two horse power motor was for sale in Corinth, ME. For our needs, this was over kill but what fun.

Our neighbor Fred has been helping/teaching us this year. We hope to have big news soon. Big, Big News.

Emma and Lucy enjoyed the afternoon in the field chasing mice.

Hay wagon almost loaded...

Yep, almost there......

Ted in our loaner tractor heading for the barn. Still no news about John Deere Girl.

Fred lining the hay elevator up with the barn door.

Finally, the hay wagon empty. What a lovely sight.

Soon the hay mow will be full and we will be content. Exhausted, but content. I wish I could blog smells. It smells so fresh and clean up here.

It may have been exhaustion or just plain feeling wonderful, but I got to wondering. What would it be like to ride the hay elevator? You know, like a bale of hay on it's way up. No, I didn't try it myself. But we did the next best thing. I hope you enjoy the ride and maybe have a laugh or two.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Highs and Lows

2011-06-28T09:33:00.001-04:00

Summer means green grass, hay fields waving in the breeze and flowers.

Lots and lots of yellow ones........

Lavender ones......

white ones........

purple clover............

Even the trees flower

The hay fields abound with flowers.

With the exception of the trees, all of these wonderful flowers along with grasses go into making our hay.

Deep breath in...deep breath out. The damn tractor starts hemorrhaging. Well, maybe that is stretching it a bit. The hydraulic thingy starts leaking. I have an incontinent tractor. Maybe Atends would help? We had to have John Deere repair out again. Is this sounding familiar? Like, maybe, last summer? Guess what? The seal is made in India. They are having so many problems with these seals. Not just our tractor. WELL....that makes me feel sooooooo much better. I want to kick something. Really kick it.

This is our loaner........Just kidding.

Our neighbor Fred brought his tractor over. This is a 1970 International . A tractor that doesn't break down every summer.

We were able to get 264 bales up in our barn. I will post more pictures tomorrow. We had to wait a few days to cut more hay due to weather. Should we trade in our new John Deere tractor in on a used one? Hmmmm.......

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

If a tree falls in the woods.....

2011-06-27T14:33:00.000-04:00

This spring we had some amazing thunderstorms with a lot of wind, thunder and lightening and hay growing rain. No flooding so we count ourselves blessed. There were many trees down up in our woods. We found a few hardwood trees that will get sawed and split into firewood. This tree was caught onto another tree and needed a little coercion in order to fall. Please excuse the dorky woo hoo at the end.

Emma and Lucy were good girls and stayed in the truck till the tree was down.

After the tree came down Ted set to work cutting it into lengths that will fit into our wood stove. I much prefer him cuttin up the logs. I don't like using a chain saw.

The logs were then split and piled into the truck.

The splitting part was my job. I enjoy splitting wood. It is fun. So much easier with this splitter.

Back down the trail to home with a truck bed piled high.

Stacked into a nice pile to dry. I know, I need to work on my stacking skills.

By the way....is this poison ivy? If so we must not be allergic to it. No rashes. Our woods seem to grow this in abundance. It looks kind of like wild strawberries too. I would much prefer the wild strawberries.

We have more trees to cut and split. We never leave home without the bug spray. The mosquitoes and black flies are in full swing. I hate those biting critters.

Our wood pile keeps growing and will be greatly appreciated when the temps drop and then the snow falls. We are outside enjoying every warm day we are given.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Music and Happy Birds

2011-06-21T06:42:00.003-04:00

Each year we order the Cornish Rock X for meat birds. They have excellent flavor and size. They grow at an amazing rate. Genetically they are made for consumption. If not butchered they will die before they are 6 months old. We use a wooden brooder to keep them warm when they first arrive. This is great for keeping out drafts which will kill birds. However, it doesn't take but a few short weeks and they outgrow their space.

The have fresh air and the wire mesh provides safety from predators.

They are moved to the floor with plenty of room to roam.

The boys are still getting their adult feathers in. At this time they are a bit naked in spots.

The boys enjoy having a little music to rock out to. We enjoy music and so do they. It seems to make them happy. Music makes me happy, so why not the animals? I know our turkeys love music too. Go ahead boys, rock on.

Happy birds.

Much Love and Prayers from

Mainely Ewes Farm

Spring Tractor Service

2011-06-20T16:46:00.000-04:00

What we did on our summer vacation. That should really be the title of this post. I had 1 1/2 weeks off. A whole lot of time to spend on the farm getting every thing cleaned up, fixed up and ready for summer. This is our busiest time. We stopped by the John Deere dealer to inquire about servicing on our tractor. Much to our amazement they charge a fee of $375 to come out, not including supplies. Servicing amounts up to changing the oil and filter, checking and filling the hydraulic and coolant fluids, changing the fuel filter and greasing the fittings. I think I'm in the wrong profession. Again we looked at each other and decide right there in the service department that this is another one of the things we can learn to do ourselves. Home we came loaded with the items we needed. We brought out the owners manual and got to work changing the oil and filter. Filling the coolant and hydraulic fluids.

It didn't take long.

The fluids all come in big containers.

Our tractor is all hydrated, lubricated, but dirty. We have had so much rain lately that a thick coating of mud prevails. What a wonderful start to vacation. That may sound strange to some. After all it's summer. We will have time to play. But, it's SUMMER!

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Parker Produce- 1st Delivery

2011-06-06T07:14:00.000-04:00

We got our first delivery from Parker Produce in Winterport, Maine. We have had cool and wet spring this year. Come to think of it we have a cool, wet spring every year. Oh, back to my point. I am amazed that we were able to have fresh veggies this early. After work Friday evening I went by the pick-up site in Bangor and look what I got. A bag full of spinach, another of salad greens, fresh radishes, a bunch of chives and scallions. We have already eaten the salad greens. I have plans for the spinach tonight. I'm thinking about eggs with chopped chives for breakfast. Yep, our fresh eggs with chives. Yum. I gotta go. Breakfast!
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

New Handy Dandy Weed Eater

2011-06-05T14:02:00.002-04:00

Lawn care is always a part of summer. We have found the ultimate weed eater.

Yep, Lambert. He doesn't pollute the air with gas fumes, he eats his weight in leaves and grass and he is darn cute.

If you need a weed eater delivered to your house something can be arranged. For a small fee we can be encouraged to take a day trip.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Spring Chicks and Turkeys

2011-06-03T09:41:00.000-04:00

It is spring so it must be time to order chicks and turkeys from Murray McMurray Hatchery. Since the first year we ordered we have learned so much. We have everything set up ahead of time. The brooders are ready with fresh shavings and food and water. We got the call from the post office in Bradford this year. In years past the birds came early Sunday morning to Bangor, ME. With the cost cut backs we now have to wait till Monday morning to get the chicks. I suppose it cost more to have us pick up the chicks on Sunday. I completely understand the cut backs but we seem to lose more chicks with the one day delay.

For a short time all of the chicks can stay in one brooder. After a couple of days we have to move the sweet little yellow chicks into a brooder by themselves. They are Cornish Rock Cross and grow at a rate of 10 times that of the sweet little brown hens. They are Buff Orpington. We put Grow Gel on top of the feed for the first feeding. They notice the green color and peck at it.

All cozy and warm with fresh water and feed. A chicks life. We have Partridge Plymouth Rock hens but they never seem to go broody. It seems that the Buffs make good setters.

The turkeys arrived a couple of days later. We ordered Bourbon Reds. We hope to keep a few hens and a couple Toms to breed.

Repeat steps 1-5 with the turkeys.

All cozy and fed.

Yep. It's spring and we have turkeys and chicks.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

The End

2011-06-02T08:31:00.000-04:00

Just a little tail wagging humor during shearing. Evidently Truffles didn't mind the shears.

THE END!

Much Love from Mainely Ewes Farm.

A Goat Kind of Wednesday

2011-06-01T16:20:00.005-04:00

I realize how fortunate I am. I work a schedule that allows me to spend the majority of my time with our animals. I head back to work tomorrow for 3-12 hour shifts. I have had 8 days off and have enjoyed every minute. We have gotten so much accomplished. I still have so many pictures to post and updates to give. It was an enjoyable afternoon. I took it kind of easy. I de stress by taking our goats out of the pasture and into the ungrazed area, bringing a bucket to sit on and my Kindle to read. Today I took my camera and snapped a few pictures of the ladies and kids. Come along with me for a few smiles. Honestly, it will de stress you too. I dare you to look and not smile. I love those little horns. Elissa is growing every day.

Isabella still loves the apple tree leaves best.

Sadie is a bit bossy and likes to get the best grass for herself.

What's a little head butt between friends?

A surprise visitor startled the goats on their graze. The guineas were working the same field.

I never go for a walk without a cat or two. Beau loves to cuddle in the grass while I read and watch the goats graze.

Happy June 1st. We are expecting a few showers tonight. I can already hear the thunder. It only makes the hay grow higher. I hope you got time to relax a bit and enjoy your critters.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Sheep Shearing DONE

2011-05-30T16:24:00.008-04:00

The weather report for Sunday was a repeat of the last several weeks. Highs in the 60's, showers and overcast. Monday's forecast was sunny and in the 80's. Way too hot to be shearing sheep. They would be heat stressed and so would we. We had to get the sheep shearing completed before the warm weather got here. So that meant that we were up early Sunday morning and shearing till 5:30pm. Every sheep is shorn. Ted got into a rhythm and wouldn't let me shear. With the Premier shears the fleece was given up like an old winter coat. A wool coat!
I was keeper of the head and chief grain giver. It really helped get their sheep minds off of the sound of the clippers.

Ted wants the sheep to look nice. No tufts of wool left. I don't think a barber could leave a nicer coat.

Shearing serves so many purposes. It gives you a fleece to use, cools off the sheep, and lets you see what condition your sheep are in. It is difficult to tell how they wintered and lambed. I was very pleased with the condition of our sheep. I tried to feel through the wool but that can be a bit difficult.

Almost done.

Almost there....

Now that's a happy, healthy, and beautiful Icelandic ewe. Still working on a few tufts.

The combs get so mucked up with lanolin they have to be removed and cleaned after about 4 sheep. I think we will invest in a few more combs for this fall.

Truffles was such a gentleman. He was a bottle fed ram and I'm sure Lambert will have the same sweet and gentle disposition. Look at that face.

And now he is just handsome. How about that beauty spot.

This is one of our rams out of Emily and Fin (Red Brick Road Farm in Dixon, Ill.) He is going to have a beautiful set of horns when he becomes full grown. I am looking forward to seeing what his lambs out of Esther look like.

Now came the time for our MAN to get shorn. I don't mind saying that I was a bit hesitant. Echo is all RAM. Not pushy or in your face. He is just big. I wasn't sure he would fit onto the stand.

I didn't say there was a lot of room to spare!

All done. Well, Ted had to keep taking a little off of the top but he looks marvelous. The more we work with the Icelandic sheep the more we appreciate their personalities.

Not a bad days work.

About a week ago we took the hand shears to Baby our wether. He still needed a touch up.

Now that's nice wether! Sorry, I had to go there.

We are still a bit muddy but the boys club enjoyed spending the day in the girls pasture.

They were hanging out smoking cigars and talking about the good old days.

What have we learned? We learned that we could shear sheep. Sometimes you just have to pull up your sleeves and try it to know that you can. We don't have to depend on undependable shearers. We can shear when we need to, not when it fits into someone else's schedule.

Shears $300.00, stand (that saves our backs) $450.00. 18 shorn sheep, PRICELESS

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

In Flanders Field

2011-05-30T16:05:00.003-04:00

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up your quarrel with the foe:
To you from falling hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

-John McCrae 1872-1918

Thank you to all who served we have not forgotten.
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Our First Sheep Shearing

2011-05-29T09:31:00.000-04:00

Well, we finally accomplished shearing. Notice the unshorn (round) sheep compared to the shorn (much smaller but still round)sheep. Yes, yes, yes, we have shorn sheep. No shearer came. We can say we did it ourselves.

It didn't take long to set up the stand and equipment at all.

Emily was the first to be shorn. I was really surprised that they did so well. No freak out I'm going to be eaten by the blue thing at all.

She was so well behaved. I do believe that the side rails should be standard not extra. If you purchase this stand make sure to order the side rails. They provide stability for the sheep while you shear from the opposite side. No one fell off!

Ted had it all under control. Look at that concentration.

There, a much smaller ewe.

Esther was next. She is a very loud ewe. She voices her opinion loudly.

"Hey come here. I have something to tell you and I don't want the humans to hear. I would never tell them this but they did a much better job than that shearer did last year. They were very careful and didn't cut me not one time. I don't have patches of hair left either. I think they did a great job. I just don't want it to go to their heads."

Moriah was next, and Ted got faster as the day went on. He has even mastered hoof trimming.

We were able to get 5 sheep shorn. Ted has gotten really good at keeping the fleece in one piece. This is really good practice for the fall fleece shearing. That will be the "good" fleece that we will skirt, wash, dry and learn how to card into roving. Then spin the roving into yarn.

It always amazes me the small stature of the sheep after they are shorn. They may be small but they are packed with attitude.

We still have eight sheep to finish up. I know what our plans are going to be for tomorrow. We will begin much earlier next year. We can shear before the lambs are born. Less stress on the ewes while pregnant. This past year we took a shearing class, bought shears and a stand. All three were invaluable. The stand is worth it's weight in gold. After 5 sheep our backs weren't killing us. It makes it so much easier to shear. The stand is adjustable and can be raised or lowered as needed. Reaching those bellies is so much easier.
It feels so good getting this job done. There is so much satisfaction when the sheep are comfortable, cool, healthy and happy.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm. The home of shorn sheep.

Sydell Goat/Sheep Stand

2011-05-28T09:15:00.001-04:00

After taking the sheep shearing class we knew we would need some help with this process. Ted and I just can't flip sheep and make them stay where you put them. Especially Icelandic sheep. You flip them and they act all docile then, boom they're gone like lightening. After perusing Uncle Henry's and Craigslist for the Sydell stand I finally broke down and ordered it Monday afternoon. I guess the things just don't come up for re sale that often. They are American made and that makes me very happy. I decided to call them this morning to see when it would arrive. After all it has to come from South Dakota all the way to Maine. The gentleman was very nice and told me it would probably arrive Tuesday or Wednesday of next week due to the holiday. Oh, darn. I think I actually let out a long sigh. Oh, well. I would just have to wait. I went to work on the laundry and I heard a delivery truck backing into the back yard, straight toward the barn! I had my slippers on and ran out the door to greet the UPS man. He probably thought I was a little too happy.
It didn't come assembled. What the heck?

All the parts removed from the boxes. Thank goodness there were some big pieces that didn't need assembly. Ted didn't break and run. He was actually happy to get it started.

Start with A and put 1-5/16 x 3" screw with spacer nut and5/16 nut. WHAT THE HECK!

Truly it wasn't that bad.

Actually the directions were very simple and they had pictures. Thank you Sydell. I love you.

It took only 1 hour to finish. It winches from a flat position to a height of 30". Much easier on the back.

It even has wheels to make moving much easier.

Tomorrow we will try it out with a sheep. I am very excited. Do you think the sheep will be as happy? Probably not. I guess we will just have to convince them otherwise. I am sure we will have some excitement. We always do.

To our goat friend Marigold, yes we will put the goats on the stand to trim hooves. You didn't think I was buying this only to torment the sheep did you? Muhahahhahhahaha

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Spring Lambs

2011-05-27T12:39:00.002-04:00

Lambing season is always exciting. We love to sit back and enjoy the lambs with their mothers. At first they are afraid of leaving their mom's sides. They stay close and nurse often. After a few days a sort of independence sets in. The lambs congregate together running, kicking and bucking. They range further away from their moms in the safety of the pasture. Oh, they still nurse and run to mom if there is any loud noise or suspected danger. After about 2 months it is time to separate the lambs from the ewes. I do not look forward to this time. Both ewes and lambs are unhappy. The ewes loudly voice their disapproval and the lambs are afraid and making all kinds of noises. It is necessary to make the separation. We hope to sell the lambs and those who do not are destined for freezer camp. We have to keep perspective on our farm. Otherwise we get too many animals to take care of effectively. After the lambs are rounded up they get another injection of BoSe (vit e and selenium), their Covexin 8 (CD&T) booster. And not to be forgotten, a dewormer. We have wet and cool springs followed by warm summers. The perfect breeding ground for barberpole worms. We are taking a proactive stance this spring. After the treatment they are turned loose into this new wonderful green pasture. They will have free feed grain, water and minerals. This little lamb loves to sit in the hay. Not a good idea. When they poop or pee in it, no one will touch it after. I don't really blame them.

We still have afternoon play sessions. A game of chase is always fun.

We put up this stockade fence to protect the one tree in this pasture. They look like they are working on a break down plan.

The lambs have settled into a routine of sorts. Eat, play, eat, play. Not a bad afternoon.

We sold two ewe lambs to a friend right here in Bradford. Diane is getting back into fiber animals after taking a tour with horses. I tried talking her into taking Sadie and Shirley the Cashgora goats back. She said her husband would have a fit. Evidently Sadie and Shirley made a breakout and ate all of his raspberry bushes. Ooops. I guess they will be staying here a while longer. Unless someone is interested in taking the ladies home that is. I am thinning out our Icelandic sheep flock a bit. I want to work with more colors. Always changing. Keeps the farm interesting.

Our prayers go out to our friends, family and neighbors in the midwest. This weather is strange and has touched so many.

We have been so busy here on the farm. I couldn't believe how long ago I had posted. Spring and Summer are out busiest times of year. I enjoyed visiting and reading your blogs. I really have kept up with the reading. You guys have been so busy too.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

House Lamb No More

2011-05-09T07:47:00.002-04:00

Okay. Now that our House Lamb is begining to get way too comfortable with the use of a glass he needs to go out. Time to be a lamb. Time to be outside at night too. Time to give up the bottle. He has to take off his diaper and put his big boy pants on. Yep. Lambert has to leave the house before he starts using a fork and knife.
Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm

Spring 2011 Goat School Day 2

2011-05-08T17:25:00.004-04:00

First of all HAPPY MOTHER"S DAY.
Day 2 started out at 9am with coffee, and a delicious goat sausage breakfast casserole. It was a gorgeous morning. A bit nippy but that ended around noon with a beautiful blue sky. There are so many aspects of taking care of goats we felt that it would be beneficial to attend Goat School for a second time. Most learn by trial and error, internet, books and magazines. We are willing to try anything we can do to improve our skills. We chose to attend Goat School in Maine so we would be instructed on issues pertinent in our area. Our country is so different. Each region has it's own issues. What works in our cold weather state of Maine will not work in Florida. We are cold enough that much of our worm load does kill off in the winter. Some wormers are still effective in Maine, and do not work in Florida. I feel the more knowledge we can accumulate the better off our animals will be. I have no problem learning from others. It is best to learn from others errors and not have to repeat them ourselves. Saying that we will probably make different mistakes.
We covered so many topics. Disbudding was covered in detail. What to look for, how long to hold the iron in place and post care was explained.
This kid was used in the demonstration but was not actually disbudded. Oh, and always give a nice warm bottle or return to mom for comforting after the procedure. Disbudding is done mostly in the US. In Ken's Anatomy of a Horn class we learned that goats don't pant or sweat to cool their bodies. It is done through blood circulating in their horns. Maybe we need to rethink the disbudding practice. Not such a problem in cool Maine, but what about Florida?

You can see the tissue in these old horns that had come off.

Lunch break and out come the kids to play. Nothing is sacred. They will climb on anything or..

..... anyone!

Kids go back into the pen so we can continue. Oh, I wanted to take a couple of these little girls home with us. Ted looked at me as though I had lost my mind. Hmmm.....

Janice spoke in detail about de worming. Medications,vaccination dosages, explanation and demonstration of giving goats injections. She even let a few give injections. If you haven't done it before it can be very intimidating. We then dove into hoof trimming. If done correctly it leads to healthy goat hooves. If done incorrectly it can cause your goat to become lame. To me this is the intimidating part. I have trimmed our goat's hooves and try to do a good job. It always helps to see how trimming is accomplished.

Nice and flat. Good base to stand on.

Trimming young kids hooves.

Close up view of a goats front teeth. They don't have top teeth on the front. Velocity tolerated this well.

Finally everyone got a pair of gloves, a hoof trimmer and a cadaver hoof to trim. Great experience. No goats go lame from too aggressive students.

Once again the day came to an end. I know that everyone went away with more questions than they came with. After they get goats they will have even more questions. That is just the nature of things. If you attend Goat School the Spauldings are available as a resource. A treasured resource. Thank you once again for holding this class. I only covered a small bit of the information shared. I hope I get this right. There will be a streaming video available in the future through the University of Maine for Goat School. Everyone will be able to attend. Just sorry that you won't be able to taste Janices food. Or you could pick up the Goat School: A Master Class in Caprine Care and Cooking. Then you could have the food too.

After class we came home and took our goats for a walk. Yep, the girls love to taste new grass, tender leaf buds and the ever popular dandelion greens. Yum.

I hope everyone had a peaceful day.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Spring 2011 Goat School Day 1

2011-05-07T19:35:00.007-04:00

Does this post sound familiar? Are you thinking, "didn't I read this about a year and a half ago"?
You are right! I went to Goat School at Stony Knolls Farm in St. Albans Maine October of 2009. Janice and Ken Spaulding have put on this very informative program twice a year in the spring and fall for several years. They have been breeding and caring for goats since 1989. Together they have a wealth of information to share and share they do with Goat School. Why did I feel the need to attend this program again? Well, there was just so much information to take in the first time around. We still call Janice and Ken with questions and problems about the goats. Secondly, Ted did not attend the previous session and he needs to develop his knowledge base too . We work this farm together. This is the Goat Bible of sorts. This manual has a wealth of information. I refer to mine all of the time.The Table of Contents is easy to follow. Your goat has a problem, the answer is here. Janice and Ken are not Veterinarians nor do they portray themselves as such. Life experience here. What works is here.

I love getting here early just to look around and see who is new. Ted found the kids first. A whole bunch of lovin in this pen.

We got started at 10am sharp. The pace is easy so questions can be asked and answered. Nutrition is subject near and dear to Janice's heart. She has a tendency to get on her soap box....

Literally...about goat nutrition. "You don't feed goats sheep food, and you don't feed sheep goat food. EVER." This said she introduced Andrew from Poulin Grain. He makes the subject of nutrition understandable. It has to make sense to put it to use.

We had lunch provided by Janice. Her recipes are so delicious. We had goat chili, salad with goat feta cheese, corn chowder with goat milk, noodle casserole with cheve and oh my goodness goat milk fudge. If you notice I didn't take pictures of the food? I think I got carried away and forgot. Janice has a cook book coming out on Amazon.com and I will be pre-ordering this book. I feel it coming on. After lunch we had some sweet talk time with Velocity. This handsome gentleman is the father of our Annie. Just look at that sweet widdle face. Smooch. Yes folks, I did kiss this goat. I love goatie kisses. Don't let Ted know that I said this, but, he does too.

We aren't the only ones with this past time. Janice is guilty too. Yep, she is a goat kisser.

I want one of these. It is a special edition covered hay feeder made by Ken. It keeps the hay and goat dry while they eat. Now, if you know anything about goats you know they don't do water. Not puddles, snow, or the dreaded rain shower. Best of all it keeps the goats out of the hay.

We spent time learning how to tattoo ears. This baby required extra lovin after the trauma of having her ears tattooed. Remember DRAMA QUEENS!

Finally, we could see it in action.

Next. A subject that I don't plan on putting into action unless necessary. The emasculator. Just looking at it make me have sympathy stomach cramps.

Janice and Ken demonstrated how to apply and when to apply the band.
Don't worry. This guy was left intact.
Again, there was so much information provided. At least this time we have some experience and know what questions to ask. Day 1 done. Before we left I had the chance to ask Janice what to do about Isabella not putting on weight. We have de wormed her but she just isn't snapping back. After we got home Isabella and Corina got de wormed with Valbazen. Sometimes it takes a different de wormer to get the job done. I don't think the girls appreciated the Goat School. Sometimes you just got to do what's best. Like it or not.
Back tomorrow for Day 2 of Goat School. More subjects to cover and questions to have answered. Thank you Janice and Ken.

I'm tired and need a shower.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm, the home of many caprine friends.

Feel free to visit Janice and Ken's website to find a Goat School near you. They do Goat School on the road. www.goatschool.com

Homemade Creep Feeder

2011-05-04T07:04:00.001-04:00

We have been looking for something that will allow the lambs easy access to feed but keep the ewes out. Easier said than done. Those sheep are very intelligent when it comes to sneaking food. The ladies get fed grain along with hay. The lambs don't stand a chance. The feed is gone before the little ones can push their way to the trough. Like so many farms, we have plenty of scrap wood around the barn. Ted was busy one morning while I was at work. He called with excitement in his voice and told me it was finished. I said "what was finished"? He described our new creep feeder over the phone. I just couldn't picture it in my mind. I couldn't wait to get home and see his creation. This is our new creep feeder. It isn't fancy. It didn't cost a fortune, but it serves a wonderful purpose. The grain is in small refillable feeders on the back wall. The lambs can go in and eat without having to fight off ewes. It isn't that the ewes are hungry. Sheep will eat until they die. Like goats, they just don't stop.

What a great design. The top has a door, complete with hinges to make refilling the feeders easy.

Please don't tell the lambs but it will soon be time to wean. No more mama's milk. They will be separated into the new pasture. I will post pictures of the new shelter tomorrow. Busy times here on the farm. Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Bad Goat!

2011-05-03T15:47:00.002-04:00

How did this happen Sadie? Did you slip out once for a night of passion? Did Teddy the buck encourage you to be a bad girl? Did you jump the fence, make a little woopie and then jump back over? Everyone kept your secret. We had no idea. You didn't act any different from you same old pushy self. Then this little buckling arrived.
He has the most beautiful blue eyes and pink nose. Little buckling I think we will call you Frank Sinatra. Old blue eyes. Yep.

A fence doesn't necessarily keep the bucks and does separated. Just ask Frank.

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm. Home if a miraculous birth. Hey, aren't they all?

Lambert's Easter Picture

2011-04-28T17:42:00.000-04:00

This is wrong on so many levels. First Lambert is in the house. Second we make him wear a diaper while he is in the house. Third....please forgive me Lambert, but we put him in a dress for Easter.

There is going to be a penance for this I can see it coming. God: Child I have forgiven you many sins in your life. You are forward, don't deal well with authority and have a potty mouth on occasion. Those things I can forgive. But why on my good earth do you dress my noble creatures in clothing? Me: Father, I have no answer. But isn't he cute?

Yep. I can see it coming. But isn't he cute?

Much Love and Many Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Vaccination Time for Lambs

2011-04-27T17:39:00.005-04:00

There was talk in the pasture today. "Hey, the feed and hay people are coming in. What are they up to? I got a baaaaaaad feeling. On my baaaa you go that way and I'll go this way. I don't know why but we should. Ready set...."

Baaaaaaaaaaaaaaa

What the baaaaad little lambs didn't count on is that they people had grain. Their mommas love grain and came running. That made the baaaaad little lambs easy to catch. Muahhhaaaaaa....
Lambert was the first to get his Bose (vitamin E and selenium) and CD&T. The CD&T vaccine had been given to the ewes a few weeks before the lambs were born thereby providing them immunity. They needed a booster now and again in about 4 weeks. Clostridium perfringins type C and D and clostridium tetani are diseases that frequently affect lambs and kids.

When you have 10 lambs to give injections to you grab them any way you can. Even two fisted. They are really speedy. The lambs are growing very fast on the rich mother's milk. Fuzzy is in the background making sure we aren't hurting her babies. She gets anxious when they baaaaaaa.

I didn't realize that Esther had licked the lens so this picture is a bit blurry. We used a waxy crayon to mark the lambs after they received their injections. That way we didn't miss anyone or give any lamb extra.

We are still a bit water logged here. Rain every day. I'm not complaining really. Our pasture is turning green and the sheep and goats are very happy. I have been asked if Ted minds being in the blog so much. He is a good sport and always willing to get in the middle of everything here on the farm. We work together and that makes taking care of the animals so much easier. Much Love and Prayers from a soggy Mainely Ewes Farm.

Happy Easter 2011

2011-04-24T12:42:00.002-04:00

Happy Easter to all my Peeps!
Oops......

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm.

Dr. Pepper and Pork?

2011-04-22T09:33:00.001-04:00

Do you ever need a recipe that is a load and go meal? We don't go out to eat very often. However, there are some nights when I just don't want to cook. So I look for recipes that are easy. I am in a very serious relationship with my crock pot. If it ever breaks I will go through a grieving period and head straight to buy another one. I thought when the kids grew up and left home I could trade down in size. No way. I can make a meal that will last for three days in that giant. After saying that, this recipe goes in the oven. I was on Pioneere Woman's blog and she made a pork butt with Dr. Pepper and chipotle peppers. I wasn't even sure that I could get Chipotle peppers in Maine. Even Maine is having an ethnic change and previously unknown foods are showing up on our grocer shelves. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Start with a good size pork butt. The bigger the better. Salt and pepper that puppy. I had Pioneere Woman's website up and went step by step so I didn't forget any steps.
Cut up an onion or two in the bottom of a Dutch Oven. Place the pork butt fat side up into the pot.

Open up a can of Chipotle Peppers in Adobo Sauce.

If you don't care for a "really" spicy hot flavor use only half of the peppers. We like it hot so the whole can goes on top of the roast.

Next come the starring characters of this play. Pop 2 cans of Dr. Pepper.

Pour over the roast. I had to buy a six pack. Oh, darn. That leaves an additional 4 cans for me to drink.

Cover with a lid. Close the oven door. Set the timer for 6 hours and take a nap.

Your nose will know when those juices start popping. The whole house smelled so good. Mine was fork tender after 6 hours. If you use a bigger roast you may need to cook it a bit longer.

I took the roast out and let it sit for a bit to cool. Then poured all of the drippings (southern term) and put them through a gravy separator to get the fat out. I then shredded all of the meat and even smashed up the peppers in the liquid.

Easy pulled pork recipe. Tastes great. We put ours into flour tortillas like recommended by Ree. However, I think we will try it next time with toasted buns. I was able to get 3 separate meals from this one roast. I like that. If you want to get the original recipe go to http://thepioneerwoman.com/

I have her cook book and use it frequently. Try the jalapeno poppers if you get the chance. Oh My Goodness.

Much Love and Prayers from a full Mainely Ewes Farm.

What..you think this house is a barn?

2011-04-21T07:19:00.000-04:00

What's wrong with this picture?
A little comfy?

"Are you taking pictures again? Wait, I just woke up and my eyes are sleepy."

"Now I'm awake."

Yes he is darn cute. A little too comfortable on my blanket, not to mention on the sofa. Don't even think about my bed Lambert!

Much Love and Prayers from Mainely Ewes Farm and Pony Show.

A Post of Goats only, for Marigold and Isobelle

2011-04-20T11:10:00.006-04:00

First let me explain my title today.We have two goat friends who write and edit their own blog. They are Isobelle from http://isobellegolightlythebeautifulgoat.blogspot.com/ and Marigold from http://http://marigold-goatphilosophy101.blogspot.com/ Two highly intelligent goats. Our goats took over a couple of times to blog but got kind of bored with it. They didn't like having to clean their hooves when they came into house.
We have had another set of twins born. Sophie was one of our first goats and she has had two doelings. No names as of yet.

Still a little damp in this picture but so sweet.

Sophie is turning out to be a great mom. Nature at it's best. She was a bottle kid and never knew her mom. She was raised with Edward and Bella in the kitchen.

Little love noises between mom and daughter

We gave them their BoSo shots and iodined their navals. I always seem to have color changing hands with this task.

Bella, Ernie and Molly viewing their new cousins.

So here is a post of goats only. No sheep, cats, llamas, or dogs. If only I could incorporate peanuts into this post for Marigold. She is a connoisseur of peanuts. We can learn so much from our animals. They bring joy into our lives everyday. Never knew they were critics too. Hmm...how did I do ladies?

Much Love and Prayers from a rainysleety Mainely Ewes Farm

Corrections were made Marigold. Now I have it correct sweet little goat.