We are so (not) cool

Trying to stay cool has been a full time job around the farm lately. We did have a bit of a break over the weekend, but the weather forecast shows us heading back into the mid-90's in the next few days. We all have our ways of coping, as best we can. The animals move as little as possible during the daylight hours and do their grazing at night. There are four fans running in the barn right now and that is where they hang out during the day. Last week, I kept noticing that the automatic waterer that's shared by the llama/alpaca pen and the lamb's pen was filthy every evening when I brought the lambs in for the night. Sheep do not like dirty water and will not drink from it. It took me a while to figure out what was going on. The alpacas were cooling themselves by putting their feet in the waterer and splashing water all over the place. Yesterday I found a tub that we used before the waterers were installed and pulled it into the back barnyard. I filled it full of water and stood back to watch. Prince, who is the boldest one of the herd, stepped right in and tried his best to figure out a way to lay down. Failing that, he stood in it and splashed water until the tub was nearly empty. Next thing I know, they'll be requesting a swimming pool!

Holly moves around all day looking for a cool place to catch a nap before her night-shift begins. The cemetery rock is a favorite spot because it's shady all day and I'm sure the rock feels cool on her stomach. Plus, it's a great vantage spot for keeping an eye out for any predators. An elderly woman who grew up in the big log cabin that stood on our house site (before it burned down), told us about all the different people buried on that spot. They were her ancestors and she had a story for each of them. When we bought the farm, there was only evidence of one grave marker, so when this huge rock came up out of the ground when our farm road was rebuilt, we decided to use it to mark the cemetery. The rock forms a natural seat and is a great imaginary stage or boat or mountain for the grandkids (and a wonderful observation platform for Holly).

I hate to wish my life away, but I'm already dreaming of cool autumn days and nights. Hope you are staying cool, wherever you are!

So happy together

I keep coming up with these blog titles that are phases from songs....don't know where they are coming from. Then, I walk around for days with the song going on and on and on in my mind. Anyway, the title of that Beatles song (and later by the Turtles) is what I thought of when I saw these guys a few mornings ago. It wasn't that long ago that Mr. Lucky and Ollie were pushing, shoving, head butting and generally trying to dominate. On shearing day, I decided to put Buddy in with them and that changed the whole dynamic. It's not that Buddy is a more aggressive boy. He's been wethered and is really just a big baby. He is bigger than they are, but I think it's just his mellow attitude that has influenced them. Now they are all best buds! Don't they look sweet?

It's hot, hot, hot here, but so is the whole right side of the country, so I'm not telling you anything new. The combination of the heat and not having internet for three days (yes, again!) has made me not want to be outside at all. Of course, I have to be outside to take care of the animals, and, unfortunately for them, they have to be outside all the time. I went to Lowe's today and bought another huge barn fan to put on the alpacas and llamas. I'm worried about getting everyone through this week.

If you are out and about tomorrow (in the predicted 97 degree heat), come on by Henry Clay's home, on Richmond Road. They are having Ashland's Country Life Festival and Olive and I will be there. I'll be demonstrating spinning wool (I know!) and Olive will be wearing wool and, well, .............just being Olive. The hours are from 10 am to 2 pm. Please be sure to bring a cool breeze along with you!

Hail, hail

the gang's all here........in the barn.......jockeying for position in front of the big fan. There is a smaller fan hanging on the side of the pen and the runner-up gets that one!

It was so stinking hot here last week. High heat and high humidity make for miserable animals (and me!). Early in the week, I started bringing the group of boys (alpacas and sheep), plus Strawberry and Finn, into the barn first thing in the morning and turning on the fans. The sheep boys make a bee-line for the big fan and settle themselves in for the duration. The alpacas and llamas stay scattered about and they all spend the day snoozing away. When the sun goes down, I let them all out into the pasture for the night, so they can graze. The ewes and lambs are kept in the driveway lot during the night, to make it easier for Holly to guard them, and I let them into the big pasture early in the morning. They graze early, then find a shady spot and sleep all day. As soon as the sun starts going down, they are up and eating. Musical pastures is the name of the game around here in the summer. Some in, some out and then some out and some in! It's like brackets on each end of my day to get everyone in the spot where they will be most comfortable.

Thank goodness we are getting a break from all that heat. It is wonderful today. Low 80"s. It's one of those days when I can say there is no place else on earth I would rather live than right here. (Might not have been my answer last week!)

My old friend

This old girl (and she is a girl) has been with me for a long time. Yesterday, in the blazing heat (what was I thinking?), I took her out for a spin. It was the first time I'd been on her in quite a while. I decided that I couldn't stand looking at the weeds in the donkey lot another minute and so I mowed them down. We keep the donkeys in a sparse paddock behind the barn because sometime before we got Jenny, she foundered and she can't be put on lush grass anymore. I feel bad for them, but know we are doing the right thing to keep her walking around healthy.

There is a story behind my old friend. She was mine in my "past life" and came with me when I married Mike, almost 12 years ago. I like to remind him that I'm probably one of the few women he would ever meet who would come into marriage equipped with her own tractor (and come to think of it, I came with a chain saw, too!). Blue was the only tractor we had for years after we moved out here to the farm, but a few years back, Mike decided he really needed something bigger and stronger (you know.......more manly). He now has a big John Deere, complete with enclosed cab, air conditioning and stereo radio. It pulls a huge bat-wing mower and can make short work of fields that take me hours to mow on Blue (and he stays cool while he's doing it!). So mainly we use her to mow the small places. Mike puts a big blade on the back of Blue to work on our driveway when we get gully-washers, so she sees a little action for other farm duties that the big John Deere can't do. She's getting some age on her and she's fading some, but hey, I am too.

I suspect she'll still be on the job long after I'm gone.