Sunday Newsletter

Dear friends,

Welcome from frigid, frosty and wintry Hill House Farm! With temps in the teens, a thick layer of snow and bright sunny skies, we are enjoying a winter wonderland. 'Tis the perfect time to write our long overdue newsletter.

Although relatively uneventful, the fall was hectic ... delivering firewood and compost, blowing leaves, cutting pastures, changing out chickens, cleaning coops and stalls and preparing the goat's home for winter. This year we also repaired a broken water hydrant, are cutting down some very big dead trees and completing long-overdue hardscape improvements. Although never really fully finished, we hope we are prepared just enough to enjoy this weather, and arctic polar vortexes to come, for 120 more days :(

The pregnant ewes look fantastic following last week's shearing, and several months devouring extra rations. They appear ready to lamb any day. Unfortunately, they still have another 7+ weeks to wait until delivery! Tony P. already has 4 lambs in the pasture, congrats Tony. Staying dry in the barn, the loss of wool does not appear to faze them. As there is a limited market for sheep wool, this year we added the shorn sheep and alpaca wool to the manure pit to become beautiful compost. Reportedly, farmers have composted wool since the start of the industrial revolution. It improves soil water retention and returns helpful nitrogen and trace elements back to the soil. As a result, you can even compost your old clothing made from linen, hemp (ya, who really wears hemp??), cotton, silk and wool. From our friend Dave A., "I picked two amazing harvests of raspberries this year, it must have been your compost!!"

The chickens started laying again! Between old age (those are now "repurposed"), changing temps, darker days, laying eggs in the hay loft and molting, egg production plummeted. We also upgraded our nesting boxes to reduce breakage and stop the chickens from eating their own eggs, a very frustrating and nasty habit. We picked The Best Nest Box (check out the videos, especially if you want to become a homesteader). Fortunately, the new pullets are laying amazing eggs. As hoped, we collect luscious chocolate brown and pretty blue-green eggs to supplement the typical tan and white variety. Cleaning eggs is again a joyous occasion and the highlight of Cyndi's day. Making the transition was a challenge, catching the mature guineas was a full contact sport as they aggressively avoided getting caught and took turns flying into my head. I have two additional young guineas for sale if anyone is interested. They can provide some good comedy and laughs around the farm and will likely lay some wonderful hard eggs during the summer.

The wildlife continues to provide a never ending source of beauty, whether the 8 and 12 point bucks roaming the woods in search of does, squirrels everywhere gathering nuts, Garter snakes in the wood pile or Eastern Red-backed salamanders under stones in the woods. We also had the thrill of seeing a bald eagle up close as it flew 10 feet overhead, away from a fawn carcass in our 4th pasture (likely the result of coyotes). Apparently, we interrupted his dinner.

Finally and most importantly, due to your ongoing support and generosity, we made a $1,300 donation to the Greater Cleveland Food Bank on behalf of Hill House Farm. It is a wonderful organization that helps so many in Northeast Ohio.

We hope you all enjoy a safe, joyous and Happy Thanksgiving with your friends and family. We all have so much to be thankful for and I am especially appreciative for my loving family and your continued support and many years of friendship

Harry

Sunday Newsletter

Dear friends,

Welcome from stunning Hill House Farm, where last night's rain created a magical morning landscape of rich, green grass; fog rising from the pond and pastures; beads of rain forming shiny ornaments on branches turning colors; migrating geese joining Lucky Duck on the pond and two families of deer enjoying an acorn breakfast under tall oaks. And yes, the Browns and Indians won and are both in first place -- and the Cavs look like a very exciting team! We are very fortunate and thankful to live in Cleveland

Despite the lack of correspondence, the past few months were active on the farm. Our ram visited and performed admirably, with only two ewes possibly marked a second time. He is incredibly broad and thick across the back, loin and rump and should produce excellent lambs. We expect ~15 lambs will arrive starting January 10th. The garden reached its zenith and Cyndi started fall cleanout after a successful season. We still need to, however, crack the code on harvesting the green beans at the right time and our ever increasing deer population presents many landscape and garden challenges. The young chickens and guinea hens are 14 weeks old and will thankfully soon go to their new homes. We have some extra young chickens if you are interested in adding to your flock. Until they start laying, between molting, fickle weather and old age, egg production is way down. We started firewood deliveries and with the cooler weather expect to complete at least a dozen the next 2 weeks.

We also celebrated Uncle Joe's 101st birthday! He is doing quite well and still enjoys working in his garden, an excellent meal and sitting outside, spending time with friends and family.

As always, we enjoyed many fun visits to the farm including an old Hudson family friend and neighbor June. Alma and Steve brought their beautiful daughters and mother who enjoyed the garden and boots the cat. Gerri brought her friend Gail with her two grandchildren who liked feeding the chickens and alpacas. Aimee hosted a birthday party in the horse barn, with a newly decorated Bo Bo as the star attraction. And from far away, our New York City Media friends Karen, Mike and Mia visited during a family vacation. Mia especially had a blast and enjoyed bragging to her cousins about holding a chicken and feeding the sheep and alpacas. Her hand drawn picture of the farm is a treasure. Thank you all for making the farm special

The fair season has come to a close. Audrey, Kevin and Julia showed our lambs at the The Great Geauga county Fair and had a super experience. But the competition was much tougher this year with the number of lambs doubling to 70, including many "high priced" purchases. Despite stiffer competition, they all enjoyed themselves and learned quite a bit from the experience. Kelly showed two of our lambs at the Ohio State Fair, and of course The Great Geauga County Fair. She put in a ton of work to prepare by working with her lambs up to 45 minutes each day, putting them on a treadmill, feeding extra food supplements and showing at three additional shows where she had the opportunity to practice her craft in front of judges that also provided tips for her next events. At the Ohio State Fair, with our lambs, her best place was 10th out of 14 in the heavyweight division. While there for 5 days, she also enjoyed the fair food, concerts and meeting new people. Congrats to all of the 4H members, you have a bright future!

For today's fun fact: Although not directly related to the farm, I am ecstatic to say Cyndi, Liz, Loretta, Leslie and Terry are now moved into Juicy Lucy's new home at 64 Pleasant Drive in Chagrin. Thanks to a great team effort, including many of you, the new store is up and running and enjoyed by all. Stop by and say hello!

We hope you have a spectacular fall and look forward to seeing many of you soon

Your friend,

Harry

Sunday Newsletter

Friends,

Welcome from sunny Hill House Farm. While the perpetual blue skies are spectacular, we are in a drought and desperately desire some soaking rains : ( Wanting more clouds and rain is not a very typical NE Ohio concern!

Despite the lack of rain, we continue to enjoy a great growing season. The garden looks fantastic under the tutelage of Cyndi's green thumb, including lots of flowers and freshly picked squash, green beans and garlic (from Dave's garlic bulbs last fall). Next week we will receive and stack 240 first cut bales of hay from Kevin, and soon after 120 bales of straw, with 100 bales of second cutting hay in late August. I shudder to think about how much forage and grain is required to birth and grow our comparatively meager lamb business. "The best way to make more money with sheep is to have less of them!"

Thankfully the sheep are all enjoying the pastures for now, and the 3 ewe lambs we kept continue to grow and appear connected by an invisible tether, consistently staying in their tight knit gang. In addition to 7 lambs for 4H, we sold 3 for breeding to our shearer Chuck and breeding partner Joe, which is a first for us. Kelly will be showing her two lambs August 3rd at the Ohio State Fair, another first for HHF. In August, we will receive the ram Romeo for breeding, again from Joe, and will soon start the flushing process for the ewes. The never-ending cycle and rhythm for the farm is increasingly predictable, even for us relative rookies. And so must be these newsletters that many of you continue to read (I think) ... Thank you!

If you or a friend would like sheep or alpaca fiber, we have a special deal for you. All free!!

We continue to gather firewood for next year's splitting. Special thanks to Dave, Mike, Bob and Mike who made huge donations of timber to the farm. Now we just need to cut them into rounds and stack for the fall. We also have 10 dead trees to take down. We will soon contact prior customers to confirm their orders for this year. Unfortunately, we cannot add any new customers given our limited supply, drying capacity and aging workforce soon ready for social security

In June, we received 17 guinea fowl keets and 62 chicken peeps through the post office. All but one survived and they are rapidly growing, already flying to their roost 30" off the ground after just a few weeks. They are a favorite for visitors. As always, please let me know if you would like the older hens for your coops or soup pot. Many remain good layers and they make excellent stewing chickens. Dan and Anne will adopt the older guineas. I will also have pullets to sell if you or a friends needs additional chickens

As always, we enjoyed many visitors, including Quinton and Laila for fishing and hunting for salamanders. We found both mature (terrestrial) adults and young (larva) with external gills as well as snails, tadpoles, snakes and frogs. The speck of a pond in the third pasture is a huge source of wildlife. Too shallow for fish, it allows reptiles, crustaceans and amphibians to thrive. We also spotted turtles around the property (presumably for breeding or laying eggs), including one big snapper that stayed to enjoy s'mores at a bonfire.

For Terra Bella, we are sorry to see Amanda, Eric, Jake and Macy and especially Hank leave the farm. But are thrilled to have Nancy, Bruce, Nick and Pete join the team. We expect many new visitors, including their grandchildren!

The last newsletter brought to light many closet bird lovers. Cinema critic Eric reminded us of the movie "The Big Year" about bird watching (great movie) and John recently toured the downtown Wendy Park birding hotspot (near the flats) with Jen Brumfield of the Cleveland Metroparks, an extremely knowledgeable birder and excellent caller. Lastly, for anyone using a bird feeder or having squirrels around their house, you will really enjoy watching this hysterical video on the cleverness of squirrels. This is your reward for sticking it out reading the newsletter

Today's Fun Fact: For anyone wondering why the chicken crossed the road, enjoy the below cartoon from Terry, a fellow chicken farmer with many older, beloved chickens

Lastly, as you read throughout this note, we were helped by and enjoyed the camaraderie of many visitors and farming friends for Hill House farm. You are what make this grand adventure worthwhile

Stay well and start your rain dance!

Harry

Ps: Special credit to Lauren and Harry for their creativity and enthusiasm to invite visitors and take the best photos

Sunday Newsletter

Friends,

Welcome from an even greener Hill House Farm. As the remaining leaves unfurl from their winter's nap and the frequent rain leaves a dewy carpet, we swim in a sea of green. The lush landscape provides the perfect backdrop for the freshly shorn sheep and alpacas. Cyndi completing planting her garden and all but one stall received its spring cleaning. We are on the threshold of a beautiful summer.

This newsletter celebrates 10 years as an "official" farm business. In 2012, Lauren and Harry (the young one) started Hill House Farm as an opportunity for a new challenge, to put hard work to good use and learn business skills. I saw an opportunity for more free labor. We've had great fun, many laughs and awesome family stories ever since.

April 6, 2012, Lauren and Harry invested $400 in working capital to start the Hill House Farm business. Their first major purchase was $84 for a case of hot peppers from Uncle Joe (@ $7 per pint). In September of that year, they purchased 30 Araucana, Barred Rocked and Golden Comet peeps to grow their egg business and in October, placed a $28, 3-week ad in the Farm and Dairy classified section to sell lambs. In the first year, they generated $3,677 in revenue and profits of $2,106, from which they donated $1,003 to a school library in Chiltiupán El Salvador. In June of 2014, Lauren and Harry began using the business profits to support Jessicka's pursuit of a college degree, which she received last year.

The first record of a newsletter, sent to 25 customers, was July 16th. Young Harry's short and sweet note got the message across.

Dear Customers,

We now have 8 dozen eggs.

If you would like some eggs, you can either pick them up in the garage and leave money in the steel can in the refrigerator or you can let us know if you would like them delivered for an extra 50 cents.

1 dozen eggs will cost $2.50 (undelivered).

We also have hot peppers for sale at $10 per jar. They are made by my Uncle Joe.

Thanks,

Harry

Thank you Lauren and Harry for many special memories and to all of you for taking the journey with us!

Now to today's business, 6 lambs remain in the barn and we hope to sell 3 more this month for breeding purposes.  With 75 peeps and keets arriving mid-June, the remaining lambs will soon run and jump in the verdant pastures.   We may also have 4 adult guineas available for anyone wanting to adopt them for their farm.  I say farm, because you need a lot of land between you and the neighbors if you plan to keep guineas (and out of jail) ... and we don't offer guinea returns.  They are loud, but easy to keep, and some free range them!!  We also have a friend looking for a home for a big, beautiful and kind Blue Partridge Brahma rooster.  Please let me know if interested.  With the majority of the bird migration completed, and as a result, the threat of avian flu declining, our chickens are free ranging again.  Yes, even our chickens had their own pandemic concerns :  ( ... made worse by our pond that attracted wild ducks and geese that are known carriers.     

We continue to collect firewood from friends (thank you Chuck, Mike, Russ and Laura).  All donations of trees and logs are greatly appreciated as we try to fill orders for 30 ricks!   Just call or text me and we can work out the details.  

Thank you everyone for your egg carton donations.    We have at least a full year's inventory, with more arriving daily, but supplies are "tight" for rubber bands.  Any further donations are greatly appreciated as we try to reduce our carbon footprint.   Speaking of climate change, our good friend Macy at Terra Bella offered to complete a carbon footprint analyses on the farm.  Macy is a newly minted graduate with a degree in Environmental Policy and Decision Making from The Ohio State University.   We look forward to learning quite a bit from Macy and improving our own HHF environmental decision making! 

We love our many visitors who take the opportunity to stop by the farm and find joy in the outdoors, especially when they come dressed in  work boots and hardhat and bring their grandpa with big equipment to complete chores!  It was hard to know who had more fun, Oliver or Dave on the skid steer or Oliver or Jane feeding the sheep!  Congrats to our star fisherman Adrian on his big bass and celebration with family over a bonfire with smores! 

We continue to enjoy the wide range of wild animals around the farm.  In addition to the usual ducks and geese (which sadly appear to all be bachelors at this point), we see plenty of snakes, painted and snapping turtles, deer, rabbits, countless squirrels, etc. etc., and special frogs (gray tree and wood).  In addition, the Hawkes family are now bird watchers.   We are "beak to beak" for who has the most birds.  At 38, I have a narrow lead over Harry but Lauren is close behind.  I thought they had an advantage in Chicago and Boston but I just learned that Western Ohio is a huge birding capital!  Lauren and I plan to go there later this week during her visit home.  This week I saw a male indigo bunting which was truly  spectacular (do I sound old yet).   Like all hobbies, I learned the hard way birding is more difficult than imagined.  Not just an easy walk in the woods,  It is simple to see a lot of birds, but you need to have them stand still long enough (and close enough) to remember their markings and better yet get a photo.   And then you have to know if is it a male, female or juvenile ... and then if it is in summer or winter plumage.  The permutations are endless.  Forget sparrows, just give up.  And then when you finally identify the bird, you have to hope it is not already on your list.   If you see me walking the streets of Chagrin with a binocular, baggy shorts and a tripod, please return me back home.  If interested, check out The Cornell Lab of Ornithology and get their identification app.  Despite my grumbling, they make it easy to learn, and you can never spend too much time outdoors. 

Fun facts for bird watching (I'll keep it short given I have already droned on too long):   Northwestern Ohio is a top destination for birding during the spring migration due to its location on the teeming shores of Lake Erie which each spring, migrant songbirds, waders and raptors pass through by the thousands.   It is unofficially the Warbler Capital of the World.  Ohio is home to 7 designated Globally Important Bird Areas.  Over 325 species have been recorded here, with daily spring tallies reaching 120 species.   Interestingly, most actual bird migrations (flying long distances) actually occur at night!  

Thank you for your ongoing support and friendship!

Harry (the older one)

Spring? Newsletter

Friends,

Well, the best laid plans ... With a fresh blanket of snow, thankfully more of a light cotton sheet than a down comforter, our world is again white and frigid. Instead of cleaning and clearing the barn, pastures and woods this weekend, we focused on the basement and attic. As usual, we found a few treasures, including an old report card that confirmed what many of you expected, English was not my best subject, and a 42 year old letter from my good friends the Graces (the inspiration for our farm). In the letter sent during my first year in college, they shared farm updates including new steers, missing and new cats and kittens, stalls requiring cleaning (so come home quick with some chew), farm renovations and family news. I hope you enjoy reading my drivel half as much as I enjoyed reading 40 year old farming news from the Graces.

While spring paid us its short visit, we enjoyed the morning song birds, early blooming snowdrops, mating geese pairs, with Lucky Duck supervising, emerald green pastures, migrating mallards and woodies, and always best of all, the spring peeper serenades. We look forward to those days again, but for now we break ice in the barn.

Generally the farm is quiet. The lambs love their feeding time exercise dancing in the barn and will be weaned next weekend. It appears we have at least 8 lambs going to local fairs and the Ohio State fair. My sheep consultant Joe was very impressed and believes the lambs should do quite well under the outstanding care of great 4H members. I ordered 75 peeps and keets for delivery in June, just in time to meet the heavy Holiday egg demand. I purchased special chickens for extra egg color variety, including Black Copper Marans (rich, dark chocolate), Blue Ameraucana (blue) and Cream Legbar (vibrant blue). I may have some extra chickens and guineas available for sale, please let me know if you are interested. When the weather was better, we cleaned the chicken coops and our old pet ewe Daisy was happy to visit and help clean up the extra feed on the ground. And we continue to enjoy visitors, including 4H members picking and visiting their lambs and our nephews Mason, spit on by the alpaca, and Nolan, who is ready to help with firewood.

I am also happy to share a special drawing from our friends Graham and Kate who visited in December to work on the farm. Their drawing captured some of the day's highlights, including guineas yelping, our bald chicken, farmer dress tips, Graham's manhood, boots at her watering hole and Lauren demonstrating Boston driving.

Fun Fact: This week I thought I might share some facts about Black Copper Maran (BCM) chickens. I am sure nearly every breed has their own unique story and this is just an example. BCMs have been around since 1900, not too long in the chicken world. The breed appealed to the English because it was supposed to be James Bond's favorite egg! The original Marans comes from the La Rochelle's area in southwestern France. The local chickens were known as "swamp chickens" as the countryside was low and marshy. The original landrace birds were crossed with local barnyard chickens and gamecocks from India and Indonesia that sailors brought in. Sailors traded the gamecocks for fresh food and water. These original birds became known as Marandaise fowl. In 1921, a Mrs. Rousseau bred the chickens to unify the plumage and in 1930 the breed standard was set. But after WWII, the breed was in shambles and was almost non-existent. The French Department of Agriculture rescued it from obscurity and started a breeding program. In the 1950's, enthusiasts continued the breeding programs creating what we have today which is 9 recognized varieties or Marans. All Maran birds lay dark brown eggs but the BCM is sought after for their especially chocolate colored eggs. Interestingly, the more eggs a hen lays the less dark her eggs will be as the pigment overlay of the eggs is a finite source, so once the "ink" starts to go low, the color gets lighter. Eggs exposed to the air for a period of time tend to be darker due to oxidation.

Thank you, as always, for your interest in HHF. I hope in the days to come you are fortunate to remember and thank those who inspired your dreams, and that we all celebrate everyone who had the courage, drive and vision to chase their own dreams and make this world better for others.

Your friend,

Harry

Sunday Newsletter

Dear friends,

Welcome from warm, wet and now sunny Hill House Farm, where the animals are enjoying a brief glimpse of summer and respite from winter. Yesterday, the temperature surged 43 degrees in one day!

Once again, the farm and this newsletter seem unimportant given world events, but with a heavy heart and deep admiration for the courage of the Ukraine citizens, in their homeland and around the world, we will venture forward and possibly create cause for a smile.

We completed lambing a few days after my last newsletter. The final two ewes delivered 2 sets of twins, but in a tragic accident reminiscent of the Wizard of Oz, we lost one of the lambs. Despite our challenges, I am very happy to say we now have 13 lambs in a very full barn. The lambs look excellent. And having just given them their scheduled shots, can testify they are remarkably quick and strong. The best method for catching them is to approach from behind, lift where their hips meet their legs and get their "drive train" off the ground as quick as possible. Hanging in the air, they can't go far. We also gave the alpaca their monthly shot. Always a treat, the alpaca hate getting a shot but do enjoy launching loogies at my head in retaliation, thereby also giving Cyndi a good laugh. We will start weaning the lambs in 4 weeks. In addition to our many visitors, the greatest joy comes from watching the lambs perform a furry, energetic ovine nutcracker ballet while the ewes feed at the front. I am hopeful we can sell at least 6 lambs to our 4H friends. If you know of anyone looking for a lamb or interested in 4H, please let us know!

Yesterday, Cyndi and I picked up a new line feeder for the outside sheep from John and Carrie in Western PA. They breed over 200 Katahdin (hair) sheep on their 130 acre farm. Much cleaner and smaller than our sheep, Katahdin's can easily be confused for goats. After their lambing, they had an estimated 300 lambs in the barn and Carrie had 20 bottle fed lambs living in their house! In addition to loud, smelly and messy, that is dedication!

On the way home, we delivered eggs and chatted with our favorite centenarian Farmer Uncle Joe. He had just returned from grocery shopping, and as it was too wet to garden, planned to enjoy the beautiful day on his porch. He shared a story about a chicken they raised in his house when he was a child. In the yard, a hen was raising 10 peeps and they started disappearing one-by-one. One night Joe heard a noise, and went outside to find a rat carrying a peep into a hole in the yard. Joe rescued the peep, brought her inside, and his mother put some medicine and lard on the wounds. They cared for the peep in the house and she survived. They soon named the little chicken Penny (like a lucky penny) and it was a family favorite. Every night, Joe's father would sit on the front porch and Penny would sit next to him on the arm of their porch swing. When they would go to bed, Penny remained, spending the night roosting on the swing until the next morning, when she would then roam the yard searching for food. Penny and the kids loved their nightly ritual throughout the summer, until Penny was the last chicken they had. It was the start of the depression and well, you know the rest of the story ... teaching Joe one of many life lessons.

Our chickens are laying well and should pick up the pace with warming temperatures. Today some of them ventured outside. I plan to order new peeps over the next few weeks. Please let me know if you would like me to buy you peeps (at cost) or raise chickens for you ($18 each)! I need to know ASAP to I order the correct amount.

My last story comes from our wonderful renter and her daughter. In early January, I received an urgent, distraught call "Harry come her right away, we have an animal in the house." I arrived to find Amanda and her daughter tucked safely behind the laundry door and yarn circling the library. Apparently the intruder surprised the two while knitting and chaos ensued. With direction through a narrow crack in the doorway, I found my new friend tucked under a chair by the fireplace. It was my first introduction to a flying squirrel. Of course, having never seen one before, I started snapping photos ... well that did not go over so well "Harry, please stop and just get rid of it." After some prodding, some low level acrobatics and a few more screams, the three of us shooed the squirrel out the front door. I am happy to say he is no longer in residence and we will seal the house this spring.

Fun fact: Flying squirrels actually do not fly but rather glide with the aid of a patagium, a fully, parachute-like membrane that stretches from wrist to ankle. Their long tails provide stability. They are nocturnal and omnivorous eating fruit, seeds, flowers, insects, birds eggs and tree sap. Some captive-bred southern flying squirrels have become domesticated as a type of "pocket pet." They are amazingly the most common squirrel in Ohio, but their nocturnal habits make them difficult to see.

We wish you a safe and more peaceful start to spring

Harry

Lambing Newsletter

Dear friends,

Welcome from Snowy Hill House Farm. We are in the middle of what feels like our 10th storm of the winter, once again in a snow globe turned upside down with birds frantically searching for seed under the feeder and temperatures expected to plunge. Trips to the barn require 14 pieces of clothing and a healthy serving of "and why do we do this again."

But on a farm, the typical seasons don't really apply. Farmers often think of not the temperature or time of year, but rather the task at hand: Planting, growing, hay making, harvest, breeding, calving, etc., etc. For us, we add leaf season, not your New England style, put on a cute scarf and LL Bean boots and annoy people up north on weekends, but instead strap on a Stihl BR 800 Magnum leaf blower and annoy everyone within half a mile for hours and hours. Then of course, there is the growing season, when everything explodes with flowers and beautiful shades of green, including waist high weeds, then firewood season with deliveries quickly bleeding into splitting and of course lambing season, when we experience the highs and lows of farming, often both in the same day.

We are now in lambing season, enjoying our 7th inning stretch. The first 6 ewes delivered 11 lambs over the course of 4 days and nights, reminiscent of "finals week" in college. Coming often in the dark, the "lamb cam" was a huge help, allowing me to check on progress every 2 hours while still warm in bed. Every ewe movement was closely analyzed, looking for nervous walking, pawing at the ground and finally, awkward yoga moves, culminating in a sideways cobra with legs extended. Fortunately, I was there for all deliveries but one, and I found that lamb standing in fine form. I did try to film a very embarrassing "selfie" while pulling a lamb, but that video won't be on Discovery any time soon.

This year in the barn, we replaced twangy country music with old time jazz and big band music, creating a much more relaxed atmosphere for the ewes and farmers. Even at minus 3 degrees and at 2am, the barn lights create a cozy feeling, with the ewes hardly moving or making a sound as we make our rounds checking the lambs. And when a lamb is born, a cloud of steam fills the air around the newborn, fresh from their voyage into the world. When all is good, the barn at night provides a very special sense of peace.

But this year, we did have our challenges. Sadly, we lost one lamb, apparently due to oxygen deprivation during a very difficult delivery, once again reminding me of how precious and fleeting life can be. And we still have more to go, with two ewes eagerly waiting to deliver, at least I hope they are pregnant. It can be harder than you think knowing if they are pregnant when they are especially hungry sheep. The hydrant froze in the barn, requiring us to bring water from the chicken coop in 5 gallon buckets. The snow was too deep to use the gator so I broke out the skid steer to clear a path. And, the aerator froze again in the pond, necessitating capture of Lucky Duck before the coyotes had the chance. I am not sure who was more surprised when I picked up Lucky, the duck or me, but I was ecstatic, certainly more so than the chickens who shared their coop. After a few rough days, they reached a detente and are happily living together.

Despite the challenges, lambing does bring great joy: watching a mother clean and softly baa to her new charges, seeing the lambs nap on their mom or snuggled with their sibling at night, having friends, especially children, visit to take photos and hold the lambs, watching the young lambs dance and jump around the stall and most especially, working together with Cyndi in the barn to give shots, treat umbilical cords and weigh the new lambs, all the while making her 5 layers of clothing, carhartt overalls and purple, iodine stained hands look stylish and as beautiful as the day I met her. My only regret is not having my best lambing muse Lauren here as well for the birthing and Harry to help fix what winter has damaged.

Please let us know if you would like to visit. Until then, stay safe and warm!

Harry