Open House

Please join us for an afternoon of music, visiting with old friends and making new ones.

Learn about wool!  Meet the triplets ~ Merry, Pippen and Samwise!

OPEN HOUSE

Sunday, June 2nd from 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Music by Aurora Celtic

Pony rides (weather permitting)

Wool, Spinning Batts, Roving for Hand-spinners

Naturally-dyed Yarn and Hand-Dyed Yarn

Photographs, Note cards, Mugs

Spinning Demonstrations

Bake Sale benefits historic Mt. Olivet Church

{this moment}

A Friday ritual.

A single photo - no words - capturing a single moment from the week

A simple, special extraordinary moment.

A moment to pause, savor and remember.

Participating with the SouleMama blog

{this moment}

A Friday ritual.

A single photo - no words - capturing a single moment from the week

A simple, special extraordinary moment.

A moment to pause, savor and remember.

Participating with the SouleMama blog

Don't forget to comment on yesterday's post - you could win a skein of Poseidon's beautiful yarn!

Weekly Top Shot

joining Madge at The View From Right Here for Weekly Top Shot

Please don't forget to comment on Monday's post! You could be the lucky winner of a 2013 Sheeps and Peeps Calendar!

Tee Time (It's a Give-Away!)

Well... we're still muddling along without electric on half of the farm, but we decided to celebrate Independence Day with you.  It's a Give-Away!  We introduced these Sheeps and Peeps Farm tees at our Open House and now have them available in our Etsy shop.  The graphic was designed and hand-drawn by local artist, Marceline Mason.  

You could be the lucky recipient of your choice of a Sheeps and Peeps Farm tee - available in adult, youth or toddler - or an infant onsie.  Just comment on this post and a winner will be chosen by random number generator.  Comments will be closed on Sunday at 10 p.m.

Wishing you all a wonderful holiday!

Comments are closed... winner will be announced shortly!

Sheeps and Peeps Calendars!

Well, they're here... our first farm calendar!  It's 8 1/2 X 11 inches, spiral bound and printed on high quality paper.  The good news is they are now available in our Etsy Shop, but wait... there's even better news.  We are giving one away to a lucky blog reader. To enter the give-away simply comment on today's post.. Comments will be closed on Sunday at 8 p.m. and the winner chosen by Random Number Generator. Good Luck!

Connents have been closed... a winner will be announced tomorrow.

Comment #10 was chosen by the random number generator - congratulations Wendz!

Scenes From Our Open House

{this moment}

A Friday ritual.

A single photo - no words - capturing a single moment from the week

A simple, special extraordinary moment.

A moment to pause, savor and remember.

Participating with the SouleMama blog.

{this moment}

A Friday ritual.
A single photo - no words - capturing a single moment from the week
A simple, special extraordinary moment.
A moment to pause, savor and remember.
Participating with the SouleMama blog.

Happy Thanksgiving

Peeking in on the Peeps

The newest hatchlings are doing well with mama hen in their ultra-protective quarters; the two little ones are shy and just as cute as can be; mama is very protective

This summer's earlier hatchlings have moved (still with their mama) into juvenile quarters and are at that kind of awkward teenager stage; it's going to be exciting to see what they will look like when mature

And as for those spring peeps... it just seems that those silver wyandottes are constantly seeking the spotlight... errr sunlight

News from the Peeps

We had a lot of excitement on Saturday when it was discovered that one of the older hens in the big coop had hatchlings!  We haven't wanted to disturb mama and her two tiny peeps, so no pictures yet.  

Instead we'll share a few pictures of the growing chicks in one of yesterday's rare moments of sunshine... Buff Orpingtons, New Hampshire Reds and Silver Wyandottes. 

The Rest of the Chicks

A quick look at the rest of the chicks....slowly learning to roost in the new coop addition at the farmhouse:  the Rhode Island Reds and New Jersey Giants.

The lighter colored hen is a Turken from the older layers which kept escaping from the outdoor run and is in time-out with the little ones for now.

The barred chick is the free rare breed chick from the www.mcmurrayhatchery.com order. We think it may be a Cuckoo Maran rooster.

Peeking in on the Peeps

The peeps are growing... as peeps are bound to do... and enjoying their treats of brush hogged grass, weeds from the garden, etc.  This little group is pretty quiet and calm.  The bigger group of Rhode Island Reds and Jersey Giants moved into their expanded coop at the farmhouse last week.  We will try to share some pictures of them soon.  The Jersey Giants are living up to their name and are significantly bigger than all the others.  They are being raised for a brother-in-law and his family.

Silver Wyandottes, New Hampshire Reds, Buff Orpingtons

Buff Orpington rooster

Buff Orpington, Silver Wyandotte, New Hampshire Red

Some Days Are Rough

"Some days I feel like crying

It don't matter if it's rain or shine

I feel like my heart was broken

At least a million times'

-- from 'Have it All' by Jeremy Kay

Yesterday was a rough day.  There are times on the farm when no matter how hard you work, or how hard you try to do things right... bad things happen.  Yesterday we found Betty Lou Moo Moo and Beefcakes lying under a tree together, the apparent victims of a lightning strike.  We are so saddened... we loved those cows.  They really meant a lot to us for so many different reasons.  It is very difficult to talk about... or even think about.

Things did not go very well on the 'peeps' front yesterday either.  Everything went pretty well on Saturday, but yesterday morning Erma went off the deep end and had to be removed from the coop.  All but one of the peeps is going to recover.  Erma has been relegated to roosting in the barn.  Things are now going well in the coop, and Erma seem quite content to spend her time with the sheep. 

While finishing this, this advice popped up (at what seems to be just the right moment), "You know those bloggers who say "be blessed"? All fine and good but I admonish you to "be a blessing" instead; we're all already more blessed than about most of the world's population."   Thank you, Sandra, just the words we needed.

'So I try so hard to keep the rhythm of a train
Rolling right along
When the ride gets rough you got to carry on
Carry on'
-- from 'Have it All' by Jeremy Kay

Moving Peeps

Erma's new roomates moved in last night!  We moved the Buff Orpingtons, Silver Wyandottes and the New Hampshire Reds into Erma's coop at dusk with the hope that everyone would soon roost, and the transition would  go smoothly.  As we closed the coop door, everyone was huddled in a corner... including Erma.  Fingers crossed that everything goes well today.

Scenes from the Open House

Sunday morning dawned foggy, damp and a little dreary, but it wasn't long until the farm was filled with...

sheeps...

and peeps...

bake sale goodies...

happy painted faces...

wonderful 4-H'ers...

equally wonderful music...

solar dyeing...

very merry wagon riders....

spinning....

 

and many, many happy faces

(Many thanks, once again, to everyone that attended our open house! We are also very grateful to all the family and friends that pitched in helping out. Photos courtesy of Jonathan and Megan.)

Chirping Peeps

The Peeps are going strong and are providing a melodious soundtrack to everyday tasks.  Their wing and tail feathers are beginning to come in, and we have reduced the wattage in their heat lamps.  Day by day... growing bigger and stronger...

And Then There Was One

Once upon a time... Sheeps and Peeps Farm was the home to 16 guineas.  They spent their days happily roaming the pastures, eating bugs and noisily chatting away.  Then, one day Mr. Foxey Loxey was seen in the vicinity and mysteriously, one by one, the guineas began to disappear.  Now there is only our dear Erma.

Erma spends her days wandering the pasture looking for bugs...

inspecting farm equipment...

gazing at herself in the 'mirror'...

communing with the sheep...

and checking inside the barn several times a day to make sure everything is going well.

In a few weeks, Erma will have company because the Peeps are here!  She will be joined in the evenings in the coop in the Granddaddy Green pasture by

**  the colorful, hardy, docile and productive Silver Laced Wyandottes

** the New Hampshire Reds, a pretty, vigorous, cold hardy and very docile breed 

** and the 'Golden Beauties', the Buff Orpingtons who have a calm, quiet disposition and heavy, full plumage.

The beautiful and very productive Rhode Island Reds and the White Giants will spend their nights in an enlarged coop by the farmhouse.  So far, all the peeps are doing just great.  We'll keep you posted.