So here are the pictures:
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| The sign is installed! |
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| Christmas present complete! |
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| Jack and Pancho checking each other out under the door! Sam looking through the window. (Glass is removed) |
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| Now it's Lefty looking through one of the windows. |
Saturday, January 16, 2016
Gate Complete
We are so excited! The gate was completed yesterday and the boys came right over to check it out! Bill did such a great job and it adds so much to the look of our yard. It's like yard jewelry! lol We can see it from in the house and it's a great view when we're relaxing on our back porch. This is the best Christmas present ever!
So here are the pictures:
We thank our local Nelson's water lily nursery for the idea!
So here are the pictures:
Monday, January 11, 2016
Gate is Coming Along
When we saw a door being used as a gate at our local lily garden shop, we knew we needed one from our back yard to the boys field.
Bill surprised me with this fabulous sign for Christmas.
We just had to see it with the boys so a temporary hanging took place. I love how they made the three alpacas on the sign look so much like our boys.
And so the next day we headed out to the Architectural Antiques shop in downtown Houston to find a door. We love the one we found - sort of reminds me of the door for Mr. Ed. Ours isn't a split door, but the look is similar. Bill removed the glass and I've sanded it down making it much more rustic. I have painted some brown over the bare spot and then added some white on top of it. The next step will be to sand that part down and put a sealer over the entire door.
And Bill has got the door frame ready to go.
That temporary piece of picket fence will move out and the door will move in! Our plan is to complete the installation this coming weekend. They promise some sunshine - hope we get it. If all goes well, next post will show it all complete.
Looking forward to this addition to our back yard!
Bill surprised me with this fabulous sign for Christmas.
And so the next day we headed out to the Architectural Antiques shop in downtown Houston to find a door. We love the one we found - sort of reminds me of the door for Mr. Ed. Ours isn't a split door, but the look is similar. Bill removed the glass and I've sanded it down making it much more rustic. I have painted some brown over the bare spot and then added some white on top of it. The next step will be to sand that part down and put a sealer over the entire door.
And Bill has got the door frame ready to go.
That temporary piece of picket fence will move out and the door will move in! Our plan is to complete the installation this coming weekend. They promise some sunshine - hope we get it. If all goes well, next post will show it all complete.
Looking forward to this addition to our back yard!
Monday, January 4, 2016
Winterizing!
Finally winter appears to be coming to our part of Texas!
We spent most of December in the 60's and 70's and even broke some records around Christmas with 80 degree days! But finally, we're around normal and we'll hit around 60 during the day this week, but around 30 for a few nights! I have friends in Colorado and Canada that are laughing right now!
We do live on a prairie and the wind is amazing from the north. And while that is awesome in the summer it's not so much fun in the winter and so I've winterized the boys pen. They love the cold, but the wind, not so much!
I'm excited because I finally seem to have this under control. The first year we used plastic tarps tied to the fencing and gates, but when it flaps it makes noise and it's bright blue. (that's my complaint, not theirs) Last year I bought these canvas drop cloths and sewed velcro on thinking that would work - well, I spent a lot of time re-hooking the tabs.
And so this year, I got a kit to place grommets along the edges. Wow, this was so much easier than that velcro sewing last year. and should last a few years. Anyway, within a couple of hours I had grommets in three pieces and had the pen almost ready for the upcoming cold weather! Surely, we'll have some!
And, Bill got the frame up for the new "door gate" and I got the touch up painting done to the door. So next weekend we should have it all in working order!
And everything is paca approved!
We spent most of December in the 60's and 70's and even broke some records around Christmas with 80 degree days! But finally, we're around normal and we'll hit around 60 during the day this week, but around 30 for a few nights! I have friends in Colorado and Canada that are laughing right now!
We do live on a prairie and the wind is amazing from the north. And while that is awesome in the summer it's not so much fun in the winter and so I've winterized the boys pen. They love the cold, but the wind, not so much!
I'm excited because I finally seem to have this under control. The first year we used plastic tarps tied to the fencing and gates, but when it flaps it makes noise and it's bright blue. (that's my complaint, not theirs) Last year I bought these canvas drop cloths and sewed velcro on thinking that would work - well, I spent a lot of time re-hooking the tabs.
And so this year, I got a kit to place grommets along the edges. Wow, this was so much easier than that velcro sewing last year. and should last a few years. Anyway, within a couple of hours I had grommets in three pieces and had the pen almost ready for the upcoming cold weather! Surely, we'll have some!
And, Bill got the frame up for the new "door gate" and I got the touch up painting done to the door. So next weekend we should have it all in working order!
And everything is paca approved!
Thursday, December 31, 2015
The Last 2015 Highlights
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| Pancho got a cowbird as a friend! |
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| Yellow crowned Night Heron came to fish their soggy field! |
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| My sketch of said night heron! |
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| The boys got neighbors! Three horses - they love visiting through the fence! |
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| They had a visitor from Indiana and |
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| And she loved to feed them - they loved her! |
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| Polly came in from Indiana, too. They remembered her and loved having her let them out in the mornings! |
For some time we have talked about using a door and having a sign above it. We headed out the next day and found the perfect door to use as the gate. (See below)
It has been lousy weather since Christmas, but we have gotten the frame work up and will have the gate operational within a week or so! Watch for a post to proudly show off our new gate!
Couldn't close out the year with out showing them munching on their Colorado hay! It has been a big hit and they got special serving on Christmas and New Years!
Lefty got a pencil drawing and I think I did pretty good, not sure he would agree. But at least I didn't give him that flat rain do!
The other two got watercolors done during the year;
And so with this I'm closing out 2015! I've been practicing with purchased fiber to perfect my spinning before I use their fiber. And speaking of their fiber, it will be heading to a new local mill for processing and prepping it for me to spin. Next year our goal is to have some of the boys yarn and or fiber for sale! Love these guys and it's been a wild ride for the last three years! Can't wait to see what's ahead!
Monday, November 16, 2015
2015 Spring Means Shearing
Spring began with shearing and it was done at our place this year. We had the greatest group of young men from ShearingAlpaca.com. Our team of was headed up by Ben and they did a wonderful job. It was so nice this year to have it done at our farm and not load them up and visit another farm. They were so much calmer and so relieved to have that heavy thick fiber off.
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| Waiting for the shearers to arrive. |
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| Checking Lefty's fiber before shearing. |
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| Going to be a lot cooler with all of that off! |
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| I'm skinny! |
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| Eek, we're really little! |
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| Chilling in the sun! |
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| Catching up on some zzzs! |
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| Jack checking out the boys fiber. |
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| Starting the carding process of some of Lefty's fiber. |
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| After a couple of passes through the carder. |
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| Ready to spin. |
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| On the wheel. |
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| Ready to dye, knit or weave. |
Saturday, August 8, 2015
Love at Last
Love is in bloom with me and my boys! It has not been an easy road to this point. They have tolerated me and I've dreamed of the time that they might look at me as something other than the one that feeds us so we must tolerate her, but we don't need to be friendly or nice.
It's really not been that bad but it's finally becoming a respectful relationship and I'm a happy paca momma!
It all started as the weather began to slightly warm up and I decided I would sit in their small pasture before I let them out into the field. I would sit and talk to them whether they paid attention or not, but I soon found they came right over and hung out close - not so close I could touch them, but close.
If I had a few pieces of food they would come closer and eat from my hand and after 30 minutes or so I would open up the gates and let them out. Then I began to leave them in the smaller area while I did my chores - cleaned up poo, scrubbed water buckets and refreshed hay etc. and they hung pretty close watching me work.
And then one day I reached out to try and scratch a back and they let me! I just did it for a few minutes and stopped. At one point or another each of the three have let me scratch backs and necks, but Sam is the one that seems to love it. Last night he leaned into my legs and I leaned back and scratched him for probably 10 minutes - WOW!
Of course, at this time of the year with the heat hosing their bellies and legs becomes not just a fun gesture of my love, but a necessity and I think that has finally become a sign of my care and they have grown in their trust of me. They run to the hose and greedily get as much as they can ahead of the others.
I am spending much more time with them and they are gifting me with trust and even occasionally
a paca kiss! Of course, Lefty will also try to steal my cap if it's on or maybe taste my hair, but it's done in playful way and makes our time even more fun.
We always fought to get them in their trailer and after we moved it and left the doors open, they have turned it into their "vacation" home! They go in and out of it like it's the greatest of fun and even take naps in it. Who knew they would adjust to it on their own and now I can walk up when they're in it, open and close the doors and they don't seem to mind.
We will take it!
It's really not been that bad but it's finally becoming a respectful relationship and I'm a happy paca momma!
It all started as the weather began to slightly warm up and I decided I would sit in their small pasture before I let them out into the field. I would sit and talk to them whether they paid attention or not, but I soon found they came right over and hung out close - not so close I could touch them, but close.
If I had a few pieces of food they would come closer and eat from my hand and after 30 minutes or so I would open up the gates and let them out. Then I began to leave them in the smaller area while I did my chores - cleaned up poo, scrubbed water buckets and refreshed hay etc. and they hung pretty close watching me work.
And then one day I reached out to try and scratch a back and they let me! I just did it for a few minutes and stopped. At one point or another each of the three have let me scratch backs and necks, but Sam is the one that seems to love it. Last night he leaned into my legs and I leaned back and scratched him for probably 10 minutes - WOW!
Of course, at this time of the year with the heat hosing their bellies and legs becomes not just a fun gesture of my love, but a necessity and I think that has finally become a sign of my care and they have grown in their trust of me. They run to the hose and greedily get as much as they can ahead of the others.
I am spending much more time with them and they are gifting me with trust and even occasionally
a paca kiss! Of course, Lefty will also try to steal my cap if it's on or maybe taste my hair, but it's done in playful way and makes our time even more fun.
We always fought to get them in their trailer and after we moved it and left the doors open, they have turned it into their "vacation" home! They go in and out of it like it's the greatest of fun and even take naps in it. Who knew they would adjust to it on their own and now I can walk up when they're in it, open and close the doors and they don't seem to mind.
We will take it!
Tuesday, January 13, 2015
Starting off 2015 with a Seminar!
I am determined that I will post more this year and stay up with what's going on in our alpaca life. They arrived in February 2013 and so a major anniversary is coming up soon. I keep telling them we will celebrate, but they just look at me like I'm crazy! Really? Well, maybe I am!
I post on Bev Ann's Mixed Bag, my other blog, what I'm doing in the crafty world and that includes my spinning and weaving. But I'm going to share ore of that here to this year, because I wouldn't even be doing it if it wasn't for the boys! When you shear once a year you get fiber and you can either store it, which I'm finding out is what many alpaca owners do, or you can use it! You have a choice to send it off to a mill to be processed or you can do it yourself. If I had 15 or more alpacas there would be no doubt it would be sent off, but I have three so I'm going to attempt to process it myself.
That brings me to the point of this post! I just spent all day Saturday (January 10) at a seminar sponsored by Rancho Inca Alpacas, Texas Trails Alpacas, Rancho do Santo Domingo and Tejas Alpacas featuring Lynn Snell from Spinderella's Fiber Mill. What a mind blowing day! So much information but presented in a most useable way! Much of what I heard I had heard before, but there's so much to learn about fleece that you really must hear it more than once. The first time it sounds like you're hearing a foreign language. The next time it's like you begin to recognize words, but still don't speak it clearly, just understand it a little more. I have had instructions on skirting fleece, washing it and processing it. Finally, I think i understand it after this seminar. We, also, painted yarn (that means dying it in multiple colors), carding it (this is one thing I'm comfortable with) and wet felting. I'm a needle felted and haven't done much wet felting, but finally it mostly made sense.
I came home Saturday night with a batt I started at the seminar. I completed the batt and wet felted it into a piece of felt fabric the very next day! I still have some questions, so signed up for Diana's class for a wet felted scarf (check out Feisty Fenn) at WC Mercantile this next Saturday and then I hope I'm ready to roll on my own. It's all so much to take in and even with notes and handouts and You Tube there's still so much to learn and there's nothing like hands on!
I post on Bev Ann's Mixed Bag, my other blog, what I'm doing in the crafty world and that includes my spinning and weaving. But I'm going to share ore of that here to this year, because I wouldn't even be doing it if it wasn't for the boys! When you shear once a year you get fiber and you can either store it, which I'm finding out is what many alpaca owners do, or you can use it! You have a choice to send it off to a mill to be processed or you can do it yourself. If I had 15 or more alpacas there would be no doubt it would be sent off, but I have three so I'm going to attempt to process it myself.
That brings me to the point of this post! I just spent all day Saturday (January 10) at a seminar sponsored by Rancho Inca Alpacas, Texas Trails Alpacas, Rancho do Santo Domingo and Tejas Alpacas featuring Lynn Snell from Spinderella's Fiber Mill. What a mind blowing day! So much information but presented in a most useable way! Much of what I heard I had heard before, but there's so much to learn about fleece that you really must hear it more than once. The first time it sounds like you're hearing a foreign language. The next time it's like you begin to recognize words, but still don't speak it clearly, just understand it a little more. I have had instructions on skirting fleece, washing it and processing it. Finally, I think i understand it after this seminar. We, also, painted yarn (that means dying it in multiple colors), carding it (this is one thing I'm comfortable with) and wet felting. I'm a needle felted and haven't done much wet felting, but finally it mostly made sense.
I came home Saturday night with a batt I started at the seminar. I completed the batt and wet felted it into a piece of felt fabric the very next day! I still have some questions, so signed up for Diana's class for a wet felted scarf (check out Feisty Fenn) at WC Mercantile this next Saturday and then I hope I'm ready to roll on my own. It's all so much to take in and even with notes and handouts and You Tube there's still so much to learn and there's nothing like hands on!
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