Baa Baa Black Sheep

Baa baa black sheep

Have you any wool? 

Yes sir, yes sir

Three bags full.

One for my master

One for my dame,

and one for the little boy 

Who lives down the lane.

Baa baa black sheep 

Have you any wool?

Yes sir, yes sir, three bags full.

I must have chanted that rhyme a million times as a child, and not once did I ever think that I would be the one holding the three bags of wool. Who would have thought that I would have a sheep farm one day? I think there are members of my extended family who still wonder at such a thing. Our journey in farming has evolved and grown over time. We did not set out to own a sheep farm. They entered our lives as a means to maintain our pastures. Using the wool from our sheep was an after thought, and now is the focal point of just about everything I do.

Our farm now raises meat (chicken and pork), pasture lambs, eggs, and vegetables for our own family, and a few fortunate neighbors, fellow farmers, and guests. I spend the better part of the summer and fall growing, harvesting, and putting away our bounty. Five years ago, we converted one end of our home into bed and breakfast rooms. This endeavor, to share our rural farm life with others, extends what began 25 years ago as a desire to raise our own food, into a desire to help others make a connection between farm and food, and farm and yarn.

Shearing Day at Grand View Farm 2011

Our sheep and other fiber animals (llamas and German Angora rabbit), provide the central focus to our farm and my life. Our yarn business and the fiber classes we hold here on the farm, rely upon them for their wool. The astute yarn customer or guest to our farm recognizes that our small flock can not possibly provide all the wool necessary for all the yarn we produce.  So where does the wool come from that goes into our yarn? All of our yarn CSA shares come from the wool produced here on our farm, from our own sheep, llamas, and rabbits. In doing so, I am certain of the quality of wool and fiber put into the yarn. My CSA customers want to feel a direct connection to our livelihood and our animals. They wish to "know" their wool producers and know their purchase supports a family farm. When our customers come to the farm, I can personally introduce them to the flock that provided the wool for the yarn they have purchased. I can introduce them to the llamas that their share helped us purchase, and they can hold the bunny whose fiber was used to make their shawl. Our CSA share holders feel a connection to our family and farm, and have the satisfaction of knowing that they have supported us and our farming efforts.

Ewe and Lamb from John O'Brien's Flock

Once all of the CSA yarn has been fulfilled, I then turn to a local farm just about 10 miles down the road to provide me with additional Romney wool. John O'Brien, movie producer and shepherd, maintains a large flock of Romney sheep, which he inherited from his parents. A mutual fiber friend, saw the potential of my yarn business and John's wool, and connected the two of us together. John raises his sheep primarily for meat lambs. For years, he composted his wool. Now, I purchase the wool from him, and have put his own yarn, made from his own sheep, into his hands and the hands of his friends. Last year, I used approximately 18 fleeces from John's flock. He does not coat his sheep in the winter as I do, and so the process of skirting his fleeces is tedious and takes a long time. In the end, I am rewarded with lovely Romney locks of wool with an amazing luster. This wool goes into my bulky weight yarn, sock yarn, and felting batts. So now, my yarn customers support not just one Vermont farm, but two!

Two Lambs from 2011

At our current level of farming, I know that my endeavors on our farm will not make me rich, and will not even support our family. My husband has a "real job" and earns the income needed to raise a family of five, home school, and now send our children off to college. I need my sheep, and all of the animals here on our farm, to earn their keep, and that is what they do. We are stashing away something much more valuable than money here on our farm. We are enriching lives. My reward comes when a yarn customer visits the farm and has an "aha" moment, making the connection between their knitting project and my sheep, or when a child from New York City collects fresh eggs for the first time, or when my farmstay guest looks at me in amazement, after eating breakfast, and says, "it tastes so fresh!" They have fit the pieces of the puzzle together; their appreciation for and their value of local farms and sustainable agriculture has increased exponentially. Our farm has made the connection, and one more person in the world understands what "buy local" and farming is all about.

Will you be my Valentine?

Tell your sweet heart you love them with a beautiful wool heart!! It is so simple, even children can enjoy it!

1. Gather a small zip lock bag, wool roving, shiny glitz, and  locks of mohair. 



Gather your supplies








Your batt is now ready for felting

2. Pull tufts of wool from the roving and lay them out on top of the zip lock baggie. You will be creating a batt with the wool. Now, continue to pull thin tufts of wool off of the roving and make a second layer on top of your first one. Lay the wool in the opposite direction. Be sure that as you layer the thin pieces of wool roving that there are no holes. You want an even layer of wool. Now lay your tufts of mohair and glitz on top of the batt. 
3. Carefully slide your batt into the zip lock bag. Add several drops of liquid dish soap and carefully sprinkle about 4 tablespoons of warm water into the bag. Zip it shut.

   

   Slide the batt into the baggie.

4. Gently begin patting the baggie. Be careful not to ball up the wool inside the bag. You want all the wool to be wet and soapy. Add  more water and more soap if you need to. Once all the wool is wet you may begin to gently rub the baggie. Continue rubbing for about 5 minutes. Children love to sing a song while they work.

Rub the baggie gently.

    5.  Now begin rubbing vigorously. Rub the baggie for about 5 to 10 minutes longer. Open it up to see if the wool has turned to felt yet. If you can pinch and pull fibers up from the batt then you need to work it a little bit more.

Rubbing more vigorously

     6.  Now take the piece of felt out of the baggie and rinse it under warm water and then rinse under cold water.

Rinsing your felt.

Your wool Valentine!!

    7.  Smooth your piece of felt out and let it dry. It is now ready to cut into a heart shape!

Let your wool felt dry.

Visit our online shop to purchase a supply kit for making your own wool felt Valentines!

"Charlotte", bulky weight-mohair/Romney wool

The Sheep Herder's Hat

Last fall, at the VT Sheep Festival, I came in contact with a knitwear designer who lives in northern Vermont. She and I spent some time in our booth talking about our farm, sheep, wool yarn, and my desire to put unique knitting patterns into my customer's hands. Becky seemed passionate about her work and about connecting with local fiber sources. By the time she left my booth, I knew a perfect match had been made. Each of Becky's designs offer something special that sets them apart from other knitting patterns. A few weeks later, I sent a box of yarn to Becky for her to be inspired by. Within just a day or two, she had drafted a couple of ideas for our yarn!

The Sheep Herder's Hat

Today, Becky released our first pattern!! I am so excited to see this long time vision come to fruition.The Sheep Herder's Hat features our bulky weight yarn, "Charlotte", named for one of our first angora goats. The hat can be worn back for a stylish slouchy look, or pulled down over the ears for those cold trips to the barn to feed the sheep. I have dyed the yarn using natural dyes and a non-toxic dye called "Greener Shades". This hat knits up quickly and easily using a lace pattern. The band is held with a decorative button. 

Buttons by Melissa Jean

A PDF of the pattern may be purchased from Becky here or visit our online shop for a hard copy and to order yarn as well. I buy all of my buttons from Melissa Jean who hand makes lovely buttons in many styles and colors. 

Thank you Becky for sharing your love of knitting, and amazing creative talent with us and our customers! We look forward to new designs this spring!

Into the Hands of Knitters

This year, the Vermont Farm Show moved to a different venue, the Champlain Valley Exposition.  For the first time ever, the show featured a "Buy Local" Market one evening, which proved to be a smorgasbord of Vermont artisan foods and a haven for individuals claiming to be "locavores".  Vermont's agricultural base was evident as forty-two farms set up displays featuring their products. Farmers filled the hall at the fair grounds, stocking their tables with samples of  maple syrup, artisan cheese, wine, apples, honey, farm raised meat, vegetables, and caramel sauce. One woman commented that she had no idea that it would be like a fancy gathering with wine and cheese tasting. The entire room buzzed with excitement and chatter as people moved from table to table, sampling, and selecting their purchases.

When I filled out the vendor application for the market, I knew that I would be surrounded by farms who raise food. I suspected that they would offer tasty treats to the crowds in order to lure them in for a closer look at what they had to offer. Indeed, people packed the isles to taste their way through the market.  I did not want our farm to be overlooked so I offered my own tasty treat...."Yarn Tasting". Husbands chuckled as they read my "Yarn Tasting" sign while their wives readily picked up a pair of knitting needles. It is one thing to be able to touch and caress a skein of yarn, but another thing to knit with it. At one point, I had women waiting in line to knit with our "Leisel" yarn. My shawl, which I knit from our bunny's yarn, drew them to the basket filled with yarn. As one woman knit with "Leisel" another woman joined her, picking up our new bulky weight yarn. She wanted to learn how to do a "yarn over" and so the three of us stood at the table, knitting and chatting with one another as though we had known each other for years. 


By the end of the night, we had passed out countless business cards and fiber class schedules. We had connected with old friends, and made new acquaintances. We had laughed with people we did not even know, and shared a small piece of our lives with many. We put our yarn into the hands of Vermont knitters and proved that the traditional art of knitting still thrives. 

"Lord Willing...."

 A couple of weeks ago I had a phone conversation with a woman who is heading up a new bed and breakfast association. She embarked on a long description of how to "triple sheet" a bed. It took her about 5 minutes to give me each detail of the process as I quietly listened at the other end of the phone. She ended with a laugh saying, "Oh I have completely overwhelmed you haven't I?" To this I just laughed right back and said, "I am a farmer and there is little you could say that would overwhelm me." I could tell that she could not  begin to understand my response.

As a farmer, I have learned that each day holds new endeavors, rewards, and challenges. There are no guarantees, and nothing should be taken for granted. You can choose to either be overwhelmed by it all or to grab hold of each day, letting go of your own agenda and rolling with whatever comes your way. I thank God when I wake up in the mornings for bringing me here to this place, and thank Him every night for seeing me through another day.

"Faith" enters the world...backwards.

Yesterday morning I left my husband at home to tend to chores  while I ran some errands in town. When I returned home, he greeted me outside to tell me that we had a sheep fatality. When he went outside to fill the hay feeder for the ewes, our little ewe lamb named Faith was down, and he could tell that it did not look good. He discovered that she had apparently cast in the night and had died. She had laid down with her head pointing down hill and her back on the downhill as well. The gentle slope was enough to prevent her from righting herself. A couple of weeks ago, I had found her cast in this same position when I went out to do evening chores, but she was still alive. Once I helped her to her feet, she rebounded fine.  When a sheep casts, and feels stressed, it does not take much time for them to die.

Faith enjoys playing with mom

My husband spent the better part of the day dealing with this situation. I was thankful that he was home to help as I would not have been able to move her from the field very easily. We sheared her so that I can use her wool in yarn this spring. He laid her in the back of the truck as he used the hand clippers. Faith was one of those perfect Romney ewes. Her fiber glowed with luster and had a beautiful, even crimp. She had the classic jet black nose and black hooves. She looked like a little teddy bear in the field.

Faith peeks through the hay feeder

Faith was our first lamb  for 2011. My daughter and I had to assist with the lambing as she presented back feet first. Pulling her out was no easy task, and I feared losing her in the process. My daughter had faith in our ability to bring her out safely just as her mom, Ina, had faith in us as we worked. Thus, we chose the name "Faith" for this little lamb. As soon as she hit the ground, my daughter asked if we could keep her. Faith would join our breeding ewes.

Because the temperatures have been so mild, we have left the ewes in the upper field with the llamas. Their winter paddock had remained muddy, and I was waiting for it to completely freeze before bringing them down by the barn. After our accident with Faith, I decided it best to get all of the ewes off the hill and to flatter ground. So just at dark last night, we moved them to their winter quarters.

Take nothing for granted....hold on to each new day.

This incidence reminds me again that there are no guarantees, and that despite my plans and desires, I am ultimately not in control of life here on our farm. I can diligently care for each animal and do my best to keep them healthy and well, but I am reminded of the saying, "Lord willing, I will do this or that...."

The Christmas Spirit

This morning we seemed to capture someone in our household with a little too much Christmas Spirit.....


My son, who was supposed to be helping clean house, ran through the dining room imitating Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer with a fuzzy duster for his tail and a red dot sticker on his nose! 


We sincerely hope that your family has a blessed Christmas full of Christmas Cheer!

Morning Routines

Most of us find comfort in routines. We find ourselves almost on auto-pilot as we go through our daily rituals, whatever they may be. Routines are predictable and bring a gentle calmness to our day. Animals, like people, find comfort in routine. In the morning, all of the animals know approximately what time I show up with hay and water in hand. If I am late arriving, they stand at their fence line or cages waiting and watching, as if to hurry me along. The longer they stand, the more they pace and call out as if scolding me for ruining their morning routine. 

Three Hens...One Nest

Hens, in particular, have their morning ritual of finding the perfect place to sit to lay their eggs. They do not  need to wait for me before they can begin their routine. Several hens have learned how to escape the chicken coop. This opens up a whole new realm of egg laying nooks in the barn, and simply adds to my daily chores. I must hunt for the new nesting locations. For several weeks now, several hens have enjoyed using a little corner in the main part of the barn for their nest.  We partition it off with a panel during lambing season. The lambs enjoy piling into the corner to get away from their moms and take a peaceful nap without worry of getting under foot of a large ewe. 

"My beautiful egg has arrived!"

This morning I arrived a little early to the barn and watched three hens as they vied for the corner nest. Eventually, all three hens sat nearly on top of one another. As one laid her egg, another hen would quickly tuck the egg under her own wing to keep it warm while she continued sitting. Then, the hen who had just laid the egg jumped to the railing announcing the arrival of her beautiful egg. I imagine this little scenario has become their morning routine. By the time I had completed all the other chores, three wonderful eggs lay in the hay. One hen lingered on the railing, another on the nest, and the third ventured off in search of something to eat. 

Leisel Looks for Her Treat

Leisel, our German angora bunny, has gotten accustomed to her own little routine. In the morning, I pull a table over to Leisel’s cage so that she can hop out onto it. She seems to enjoy hopping around while I go about feeding the bunnies and cleaning cages. She waits for me to put her little “treat” of sunflower seeds and oats out for her to eat. She lets me pet her as she sniffs around and eats. One morning my daughter did the morning chores. She was unaware of Leisel’s little ceremony with the table. My daughter came back in the house saying what a bad mood she had been in, proving the point that even the bunnies depend upon predictability of morning routines to bring peace to their day.