Insanity ... Perhaps ... Happy ... of course ... :-)

Well ... in one of my weaker moments ... and due to a strange chain of events ... I have purchased a black Blue Faced Leicester ram lamb. It all started when a friend lost her barn and hay in a fire ... and then there was an auction to raise money for her hay ... and then a white BFL was available at that auction and I bought him. Then I got talking to the breeder and decided that if I am going to have another breed here in Canada ... then I might as well buy the best ... and sooooo ...

For a couple of years I have admired the BFL from Beech Tree Farm at Michigan Fibre Fest. Their fleeces are very soft, crimpy, and lustrous. Although they are bigger sheep, they are very calm and seem ... majestic.

Anyway ... I will soon own this little guy. My intent is to live with him for a year and then decided if I want to add a SMALL group of REALLY top notch ewes for him ... well ... I may cross him on some of my Shetlands this year, but we'll see..

No picture yet of 'Bo' (I hope I can name him ... after Bo Dibbley, one of the first and greatest BLUES singers).

Above, though, is a picture of his dam.

Below, is his sire.

Yard Work - Nearing Completion

Well ... it was raining this morning ... THANK YOU GOD! ... so I gave Matt the day off and just sort of took it easy myself ... a bit ... ;-)
I still have to cut down the posts on the porch and build the railing for the steps. We're also going to put down a flagstone sidewalk ... with our own rocks of course. The river rocks are supposed to look like a dry river bed ... and also provide a place to walk as you travel through the garden. Although this one is smaller than others that I have done, it is designed so that you can never see it all from one spot.
My philosophy is that a garden is interactive. I'm not interested in a garden that looks good from the street. I want one that invites people to explore ... and has something unexpected at every turn.
As I said, this one is smaller than others I have done ... but ... it still has the flavour of my other gardens. It should also be fairly low maintenance, which is a real big attribute for me ... ;-) Picked the paint for the shutters and will try to get them done this weekend as well.

Ram Lambs For Sale

Well I have FINALLY put together a sales list of ram lambs for sale. There are only 5, and they are all looking pretty promising. I'll get pictures and complete information up this weekend.

There will also be three yearling rams for sale. All are gulmogets, with one being a krunet as well.

Email me if you want the information sent directly to you.

Not Done Yet!

Just when you thought we were done ... nine cubic yards of cedar mulch was delivered (I think I'll need another couple of yards).

Gene is also headed out first thing in the morning to get two more bales of peat moss, some more perennials, and a few yards of river rock for the walkways through this new garden.

This is how I keep that 'ripped' look that you all saw of me in the earlier post ... ;-)

Oh ... and the best part of tomorrow ... Gene and I are going to buy new paint for the shutters ... after we finish with the peat moss, mulch, perennials, and annuals ... aubergine (egg plant). We'll also get a wooden screen door that can also be painted the same colour. I HATE the look of the yellow on our wee house ... :-)

The End Of The Day

As this picture shows, Gene planted a LOT of the shrubs that are in the ground so far. We had fun.

And one of us got dirtier than the others ... But I am NOT saying who ... hehehe
Here we have the rose garden in front, and the 'under the window garden' (still needs work ... likely a LOT of field stone tomorrow afternoon)
These two pictures show some of the 'sculpting' that we did to get the top soil deep enough to plant a lot of these plants.

There are STILL a LOT of perennials, ornamental grasses, and some larger annuals as well. ... But that is for tomorrow.

The Crew Today

Of course, I didn't move all of that dirt ... and plant all of those shrubs ... on my own! I had a crew!

Here we have Kate, my daughter ... who is also 'on staff' and responsible for cleaning the house every week or two ( I am NOT allowed to call her my cleaning lady ... so she is 'on staff')

Coming down the stairs and holding his already aching back is my partner Gene. What a trouper he was today. Sure hope he can get out of bed in the morning ... hehehe
And of course, there is always Matt ... "the kid across the road who allows me to do all of this". He really was not as sad as he looks in the picture ... well ... not all of the time anyway ... LOL
And then there was me ... pictured above ... IT IS SO ME ... hehehe. Of course, I had to run circles just to keep the others at the point where they could keep up. (hey ... if you are believing this part, let me know, as I have a real estate deal or two for us to discuss)

:-)