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We lost our first sheep this fall. It was heart breaking, but I believe there will be good coming of it. We struggled with the health of a few of our sheep all summer, with the extreme heat especially and one finally died in Octobler. He became the truely "sacrificial lamb" as his liver was sent off for testing. We found out that he was severely deficient in copper. What a surprise for animals who are supposted to be so sensitive to copper poisoning! In my research since then, I have come to realize how important copper is to all animals, including sheep, especially colored sheep. All of my black or darker colored sheep suffered this summer, and now I know why: black sheep need 6 times the copper of white sheep! They just weren't getting enough from the grass, and I don't often feed grain (even that didn't help this year) Many of the problems we had: heat stress, coccidia, pneumonia, and anemia are all linked to low copper. We will be changing to a different mineral mix as soon as possible to balance out their needs for increased copper among other things. I would highly recommend Pat Coleby's "Natural Sheep Care", a new book available from Acres publishing. If you have sheep, particularly wool sheep, it is invaluable. Wish I had seen it before losing one of my own. |
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Well I did it...told my two 9 year old girls about growing up. I explained to them about Menstruation and the changes they can expect in their bodies in the next few years. They are homeschooled and very sheltered. They both had the same reaction (I wish I were a boy!) and "I don't want to grow up". They took it calmly initially, but I caught one crying to Daddy later about not wanting to stop being a little girl. I cuddled with her and we talked again. They seem to think that kids have all the fun and all adults do is work and worry about money. Oh boy! I guess I'm not doing a very good job modeling the enjoyment of being a parent. I can't tell them about the pleasures of having a husband (they aren't ready for that discussion yet) but everything else I mentioned, they didn't seem to think fun. |
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Kitty wants to know about life with triplets. Well, they are good little workers now (mostly) but the first few years were definitely a challenge. God blessed us greatly. We had 10 years of infertility and this was our second attempt at IVF. We felt that we had hit the jackpot. The pregnancy itself was the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. I was on bedrest from about 18 weeks and spent the last 8 weeks at NNMC in Bethesda. However, despite severe discomfort and depression, I delivered by C-section at 35 weeks. They were all healthy, and weighed 4-10, 5-8, and 5-15. We put them on a "Babywise" schedule (the same as they had them on at the hospital) and came home. Living next door to my parents was such a blessing. It was a very odd life for the first year. I nursed the two girls at the same time and then pumped for my son (he was a rough nurser...so he brought it on himself) and someone else would bottle feed him at the same time. My Dad would come over and help me at 7 am after my husband left for work in DC (about a 1 1/2 hour commute) then Mom would help me the rest of the day until DH came home from work. He would go to bed about 9:00 and then Mom would come back over and help with the 11pm feeding (while DH slept next to me in bed) Then he would get up with me in the middle of the night. That was the toughest time: 10 weeks until they dropped the middle of the night feeding. There were a lot of diaper changes and lots of laundry. Our triplet stroller always turned heads in public. We lived here until they were almost three, then moved to Iceland for 2 1/2 years. DH was nearing the end of 20 years in the Navy and that was our best option to stay together as a family. I started homeschooling them while we were there and fell in love with the Icelandic breed of sheep. I never have been much of a baby person, but once they started talking and walking it has been the adventure of a lifetime....never mind the Navy....having triplets is not just a job: it's an adventure. |
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Well hello cyber-sisters! This is my first blog ever...first of my own and first I've ever written on. Let me introduce myself. I am a homeschooling mother of nine year old triplets. We are on summer break from school, but there is so much to do on our small farm. We have Icelandic sheep...14 total, chickens: Brahmas, Buff Orpingtons, Marans, an Americauna, and one lone Rouen drake. Then there are the rabbits: four English Angoras and two Dutch; a miniature donkey, an Australian Shepherd, and a chinchilla. I wonder if it is as much a farm as a zoo sometimes. The children are each responsible for a set of animals. Aleena cares for the chickens, Madeline the rabbits and Jared the sheep. They are also in 4H and plan to show a ewe lamb at our county fair next month. Some has suggested that I offer information about the sheep and spinning. I have been spinning for about 8 years and enjoy it although I am certainly not an expert. We have only had the sheep for 1 1/2 years, but I grew up with dairy goats. We have a small garden which was truely pitiful this year---too many rabbits. The peas, beans, edamame, which all did very well last year, were eaten to the ground three times, even after replanting. I finally gave up. The zucchini, tomatoes, and popcorn, as well as the basil did well. We have had a hard time with predators this year, losing all total: 4 guineas, a duckling, 3 runner ducks, a Rouen duck, and a chicken. Some of them are free range, some not. We also had something attack one of our ewes with new lambs. It took a chuck out of her ear. We know there are foxes, owls, and skunks, raccoons, and bobcats have been seen. I have just purchased an electronic device that scares them away with a cougar scream (every six minutes all night long) I am hopeful that it will help... will keep you informed. We picked blueberries, blackberries, tomatoes, elderberries, okra and sweet corn today. My parents are gone for a few days, so they asked me to pick from their garden. I also roasted chili peppers from our garden and dried Italian tomatoes. If you haven't roasted chilies before, here is the absolute best way: Put them on foil on a cookie sheet under a broiler, about 3 minutes, until they are blackened. Then turn them over and repeat. After they come out of the oven, put them in a ziplock bag and let them steam a few minutes. When cool, the skin will slip right off. Then you can seed them and chop them. I freeze them and use like canned ones. As far as spinning, I try to spin a little in the evening at least every other day. I spin mostly roving from our sheep, sometimes wool that I have washed and machine carded, sometimes angora. I haven't started blending the fibers, but I plan to try that soon. I would also like to do some dyeing. I took a simple class of natural dyeing and would like to try it soon. I have spun white singles, about one ounce each to try some color. I'm also planning to use these for my Kumihimo braids. The wool is spun from the "tog" part of the Icelandic fleece. It is the long fiber which is smooth and strong (the Icelandic sheep is dual coated) The Kumihimo is a Japanese braiding craft that I have recently discovered. I built my own "maru dai" from a cardboard box. It work very well. If others have interest in this, I will describe it in greater detail. I have made two different 8 strand braids so far (two colors each) I guess that's all for now...looking forward to "meeting" you! Amanda
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