Tag Archives: Joseph

Everybody’s Naked

Posted on March 25, 2012 by | Comments Off on Everybody’s Naked
It's done.  All the shearing is done and the fleeces are bagged for cleaning.  Ahhhhhhhh.  Give me a minute while I enjoy some major shepherd relief.  Nothing could have gone any better, from surviving the rain on sheep shearing day, to me learning how to successfully drag a trailer.


And the fiber is, easily, our best ever.  Here's Joseph without his amazing technicolor dream coat.  Cute spots, eh?


Here's his coat coming off in velvety waves.  Every bit as yummy as we had hoped.


The pasture is now populated with pipe cleaner animals.  They look like cartoon characters to me, freshly shorn.


And they match the nekkid sheep at the other end of the property.  Everyone is ready for the 80+ degree temperatures we're supposed to see, beginning tomorrow.  Whew.  Just in time.

Now, comes the big job of getting the fiber clean and ready to send to the mill.  We've been streamlining and perfecting our systems, so as soon as the last of last year's fiber is finished, we'll bang this stuff out.  And enjoy every minute.

Comments Off on Everybody’s Naked

Tagged , , ,

Everybody’s Naked

Posted on March 25, 2012 by | Comments Off on Everybody’s Naked
It's done.  All the shearing is done and the fleeces are bagged for cleaning.  Ahhhhhhhh.  Give me a minute while I enjoy some major shepherd relief.  Nothing could have gone any better, from surviving the rain on sheep shearing day, to me learning how to successfully drag a trailer.


And the fiber is, easily, our best ever.  Here's Joseph without his amazing technicolor dream coat.  Cute spots, eh?


Here's his coat coming off in velvety waves.  Every bit as yummy as we had hoped.


The pasture is now populated with pipe cleaner animals.  They look like cartoon characters to me, freshly shorn.


And they match the nekkid sheep at the other end of the property.  Everyone is ready for the 80+ degree temperatures we're supposed to see, beginning tomorrow.  Whew.  Just in time.

Now, comes the big job of getting the fiber clean and ready to send to the mill.  We've been streamlining and perfecting our systems, so as soon as the last of last year's fiber is finished, we'll bang this stuff out.  And enjoy every minute.

Comments Off on Everybody’s Naked

Tagged , , ,

Joseph Arrives

Posted on February 9, 2012 by | Comments Off on Joseph Arrives
Wow, we've waited and waited for this beautiful boy to get here, and let me tell you, it was worth it. 


The Welcoming Committee was on hand to greet the newcomer.  This is a big deal when a new alpaca joins the family.


Mr. Ramsey's rig pulled up Church Lane with several alpacas on board - our Joseph and a couple of lovely ladies.


Joseph gets his first look at his new home.


The hospitality suite is a stall with a couple of buddies to get acquainted at a gentle pace.  Levi is the perfect sweet boy to make Joseph begin to feel at home.


The suris wanted to visit with him, but they kept worrying him around and around the stall, so they had to wait outside.




I finally got a good look at his gorgeous fiber.  Charcoal down deep, and rusty red on the tips, with some funny spots tossed in for character.  So, so beautiful.


It's so dense that very little grass or hay gets down into the fiber.  It's going to be pretty easy to clean up for the processor.  Six more weeks (give or take) and that fleece is in the bag.


He has a kind and serious air about him.


In a day or so, he'll have the run of the place, just like all the other boys, and we'll be able to get better photos of him.  He is a real cutie-patootie.  Please come visit him when you can!

Comments Off on Joseph Arrives

Tagged , , ,

Good News || Bad News

Posted on February 3, 2012 by | Comments Off on Good News || Bad News


The Good News is that it is supposed to start raining soon, and rain on and off for the next 24 hours.

The Bad News is that Silver Lining, aka Joseph, won't be coming for another 3 or 4 days because the alpaca transporter has had several weather-related delays on his trek across America, spreading alpaca joy.

The Good News is that we won't have to install our boy into his new digs in the pouring rain.  Though Cindy Negen, his former owner, says his fleece is so dense he'd never even notice it.  SWOON.

The Bad News is that this blog post was supposed to feature a great story about his arrival at Jacob's Reward Farm.  Wah.

The Good News is, that I was so anxious to get my hands on that guy, I pulled out the partial fleece of his that our friend Lisa sent me last year--back when I thought that was as close as I'd ever get to him-- and spun it, raw out of the bag, on my Celtic Sheep Golding spindle.  That was a cozy comfort.  This fleece is so baby-soft-eat-it-with-a-spoon my fingers thought they had scored their own spa treatment.

I couldn't linger long, however... we've got so much coming up ....

We're preparing for our usual Spring Deluge of stuff on the calendar: Winter Fun Fiber Retreat, Wildflower Fiber Retreat, CampKIP in Missouri, Farm Camp in June, Farm Tours with real-live teaching components, Fine Arts Day at Hedgecoxe Elementary in Plano, a new class of knitters in the LRB, Farm Women School developing a kick-butt curriculum, shearing around the corner... all the while, share fiber is getting skirted, tumbled and washed.  No moss growing under our feet.

The fantastic Helpers have been making a difference.  Just the other day, Anela helped me clean out one of the chicken tractors which was getting really icky.  Now we can all sleep peacefully, knowing the ladies are comfy, clean, and snug.  We played "store" in the LRB, too.  You should see a difference next time you visit...

I hope to have more information on Joseph's arrival in a couple of days.  So. hard. to. wait!

Comments Off on Good News || Bad News

Tagged , , ,

Off to the Country

Posted on January 24, 2012 by | Comments Off on Off to the Country

Two of our alpacas have graduated to their plush retirement out in the country. 

Noah and Gizmo left yesterday for the new chapter in their lives, called "Greener Pastures," as they headed south to Goldthwaite.  Our friend Barbara is populating her large ranch with some pampered 'pacas and llamas, who will enjoy lots of grass and camaraderie.  Gizmo and Jonah were Barbara's first alpacas, and they boarded here for years.  I'm so glad she gets to have them on her own place finally.  She's waited a long time for this.

Barbara's husband, Ron, picked up the boys.  He's so tall, the alpacas look really tiny standing next to him.

Ron and Barbara's brother, Paul, convince Noah to talk toward the trailer.

Gizmo and Noah settle in for the ride to Goldthwaite.

Gizmo is always up for an adventure.  He'll have familiar friends to spend the rest of his life with.

Barbara reports today that everyone made the trip just fine, and are settling in to their new digs.  I couldn't have let them go, if I wasn't absolutely sure they'd have a fantastic life on the other end.  Enjoy your new boys, Barbara!

Next week, Silver Lining Joseph will roll up from the Lubbock area.  I'll let you know more specifics as we get closer to time.  If you'd like to meet him in person, watch this space for all the details.

Comments Off on Off to the Country

Tagged , , , , , , ,