Ohhhhhh it is cold out there!!

It has been so cold for the last couple of days, we had a snow storm with strong winds and have drifts all over the barnyard. We had sorted animals around trying to get them all some shelter, we had some of our gift llamas that had taken a dislike to some of ours and would not let them up for food or water, one nasty llama girl does not like the alpacas so she was chasing them and running them off in the female area so we moved goats out of the shelters into the barn and put them in there with a couple younger llamas and a couple of older llamas that the nasty llama was chasing around, the funny thing was the two older llamas were llamas that she came with!! So they had shelters but when RH went out the next morning the alpaca girls decided not to go into the shelters and were laying out by the fence almost covered with snow, he tried to herd them in and one of them jumped into a big drift and she could not get out so he had to dig a path for her to get out, so he closed them into the paddock and fed them in the shelter and last night they stayed in. Until now we have not had that much trouble mixing in different animals but this has been a big worry with the cold weather. The male that came with the herd is on the thin side and was sheared so is really suffering in the cold weather so we put a large animal coat on him and he is better. This is just too much stress!! I am amazed that the animals can survive weather that cold!!
Meanwhile I have been struggling along with my computer problems managing barely to read e-mails and send them but then the computer would not recognize the printer, so could not print anything!! Like what else for goodness sake....I am trying to get my Christmas letter printed and mailed. Oldest Son was coming out yesterday to help me get the computer back online in exchange for a haircut but the weather was too bad but he managed to get out today even though it was thirty below, he did not have time to clean up the computer but he got the printer working and identified some damage the virus did and I will be able to manage until after Christmas when he has a couple of weeks off work and can get out to fix things up and he got his hair cut and we had a good visit.
Now on the knitting front, on the Yarn Harlots blog she had been knitting those scarves with the two colors of yarn and it gave me an idea....that I would dye a solid color of yarn to go with my multicolored yarn and knit a similar type scarf, and I love the way it turned out, I have a picture of when I first started it and it is neat the way the colors swirl along. I just finished it tonight plus a hat to match and will get pictures tomorrow. I knit two rows of the multicolor and then two rows of the solid color in knit one, purl one. On the hat I did the knit one, purl one for five centimeters to start with then knit the rest in stocking stitch in two rows multi and two rows plain. Now can not wait to start the other colors....but I better get my Christmas letter written and mailed and finish shopping for Christmas. For all my nieces and nephews, nineteen of them at this point I make up a small bag of goodies each, I do not see them that often and I feel that doing this makes me remember their names and they remember mine...right..I just use brown sandwich bags and use a stamp of a llama and some cats and decorate them. I also better get baking this coming week as I do up bags for children and Grandchildren full of baked goodies and a jar of homemade jam. Jam is already made so just have to get the baking done up. I am running out of days so I better get a schedule so I can get everything done in time. And "Please" to the powers that be over computers.....keep mine going until my computer fixer son can get at it!!

Finally online again!!

I think the computer having problems is too stressful!! A virus tried to get in one night through a chatline while RH was on the computer and he did not notice or tell me there was a problem so when I went to shut down the computer before going to bed here it was!! Although I blocked the line it was coming in on and hoped I was o.k. my internet was closed down....I worked for hours trying to get it working...would take a break and then get at it again, RH had some info to send to people before his conference call this coming week plus I live in the middle of nowhere and my computer is my lifeline, specially my daily online chat to sister Jean. Sent an S.O.S to older son who deals with my computer problems but without him being here he could not offer any quick fixes so I was on my own. Finally by going in the back door so to speak I managed to open my e-mail and read messages but could not send e-mails.....o.k. went to bed and tried again yesterday morning...managed to stop all the alerts that something was going to take over my computer and finally....could not believe it...I could finally send e-mails and access the internet. I can not believe I did this on my own!! RH managed to get his info sent!! It still is not great but I am managing so far so hopefully this post will go.
So now what else have I been up to....have to think...this computer thing has consumed me for four days so have to think.....oh..yes..I knit the little doll for my niece's youngest little girl, she was born the day after Christmas last year so is coming up a year old, knit some fingerless mitts out of some llama yarn, two pair....I am really having a mind blank I tell you...will have to go refresh my memory, I know I was knitting.
Meanwhile we have been trying to get the herd of llamas mixed into our herd which is not easy I tell you, the male had always been in his own paddock by himself and we run ours together now we have so much space as it is healthier than being confined in small paddocks, well when we first put him in the main male area he was getting beat on and not fighting back, so put him in the younger male pasture and they beat on him and he would not fight back, finally put him in a small pasture by himself and he went down to a corner and stayed and looked depressed so went down and brought him up and put him in with the geldings in their pasture and so far so good, we were afraid he would start beating on the geldings. Then I noticed one of the females from the new herd chasing my alpaca girls and not letting them up to the barn and the water, so now we are solving that problem by moving goats around so we can get the alpaca girls their own area with a few of the younger llama girls. We have had a bit of snow but any day we could really get dumped on and I would like to have everyone safe and comfy.
Well better get this posted while the going is good. Off to make some bread and dye up a couple skeins of yarn and get my dye stuff tucked away until after the holidays. RH is off to a Christmas party today so I better make the most of the time.

Where has the time gone??

Although I have lost track of time I have been getting a few things completed. The socks are knit and mailed away. I had knit a little hat with the sheep on it and had it at the guild sale and someone wanted one just a bit smaller for a baby. So I knit one hat with sheep and made one with llamas on it, I think the llama one would have worked out better if I had used a different colored background....I don't know...will have to think about that one. So that is finished. I still had some dye solution mixed up so dyed up some of the mohair/merino roving I had processed up at the mill, I think it felted a bit in the dye pot so will have to see how it works out for spinning, I think if I split the roving it will work...or I will felt some hats with it. Want to dye some mohair locks and then will put all the dye pots away until the new year.
Finally had to get the sewing machine working this morning, RH had broken the zipper on his favorite jacket and it is getting too cold to walk around outside with his coat open so finally got all the stitching picked out (black on black) and then replaced the zipper, thinking to myself how did I do this for a living at one time, I haven't replaced one for years, then his down vest was leaving a trail of feathers as he walked by so mended the vest too and then washed jacket and vest, I am always so nervous about washing and drying down things in the machine...always have to keep checking as I am sure I am going to find the machine full of feathers. Then while I was on a roll I mended a couple pair of his jeans and a shirt so he is good for a while.
Then our llama herd grew again last week by nineteen, friends of ours that bought their first llamas from us years ago had to disperse as she has had cancer the last few years and it is not getting better and he just can not manage to take care of her and the llamas, his health has not been great the last few years either, they did not know what to do so we went and got the llamas and have been trying to fit them in our herd. I had said we would take a gelding llama for another lady as she has to move....and then there is going to be a sign on our gate...."no room in the Inn" we have been trying to cut the herd down for years but it keeps growing.
Our weather has been nice for November which is great, hope it lasts until after Christmas although it looks so brown and dull outside but we are getting outside things done up. Am off to knit a little doll for my youngest niece for Christmas, she was born the 26th. of December last year, she will have Christmas one day and then birthday party the next day!!

I am still here...in body if nothing else.

Well fall markets are finished and I am trying to get the special orders finished and delivered...almost done...almost done. The two pair of child's wool socks are knit and ready to pop in the mail, I am just finishing putting the suede on the heels of three pair of men's slipper socks and then they are in the mail, so now just have a pair of thrum slippers and a little sheep or llama hat ordered for a baby. Then I can think about Christmas but before that I better think about some house cleaning, I am seriously thinking about giving two cats and one dog a crew cut.Want to dye some mohair roving before I put all the dye stuff away until the new year, did two pots of wool skeins just before the last market so have enough of that left until the new year. My poor carder is being neglected lately, is just sitting there with bags of fibre around it.
While it has been cold out we have only gotten a skiff of snow thank-goodness so outside work continues when we can, sun was shining today but when I went out it was not warm but supposed to be warmer tomorrow. Charlotte has not returned...do I resort to going around to the neighboring ranches and ask if I can check out their pigeons??? They already think I am the crazy lady on the hill so I do not think they would be surprised. My sister Jeannie says there is something to be said for arranged marriages, we should have found a guy pigeon for her before she had to go looking for one herself. Well am off to finish sewing suede onto bottoms of slipper socks, not my favorite thing to do, I think I have run out of gas lately. Should also put a pot of soup on the stove, made a pot of chicken with rice soup a few days ago and we inhaled it....it was so good. Nothing like a bowl of homemade soup!!

Attention to all blog friends!!

Valwho lives in southern Australia with her pug friends Abraham and Happy has given me "Blogging Friends Forever Award" What a nice thing to do!! Thank-you Val!!

Now to keep the ball rolling I now pass the award to five other bloggers.

Maple I love the pictures of her Alpacas and what she creates with their fibre. I also admire her strength at this time in her life.

Val Love the pictures of her sheep....they are very photogenic and what she creates with their fibre. Val just had an accident which has slowed her down at the moment so we should see a lot of knitting etc. going on. Speedy recovery Val!!

M.J. my creative daughter, check out her beautiful needle felting creations, they are fantastic!!

Shelley enjoy reading about her adventures in sewing for herself and her daughter (the worlds cutest little girl) because I was a sewing maniac before I was a fibre maniac.

Eileen I recently came across Eileens blog and loved the pictures of her dyed yarn....thinking it looked just like some of my yarn I had just dyed and spun up!

Now pass the award on!!

(1) Only five people are allowed
(2) Four have to be followers of your blog
(3) One has to be someone new to your blog or live in another part of the world
(4) You must link back to whoever gave you the award.

Getting There Slowly

Week is going too fast!! Have been trying to get some things made up for the Christmas Market this coming weekend. Got five wool hats knit up and felted, I always have to hold my breath when I put the knit hats into the mesh bags and toss them in the washer, I stand there trying not to panic and take them back out...are going to felt...are they going to turn into a ball of yuk...but they came out great, it always amazes me how much they do felt as they are so big before I felt them, actually I should have made a few of them larger. But they turned out great!! They are much warmer when they are felted....and I think they are cute. Then I had a pattern for a headband I have wanted to knit, the face of it was knit in cable and although I thought it was going to be too large I thought I would follow the pattern to the letter and was glad I did. After the face of it was finished and sewn together you picked up a stitch every other row with a round needle and knitting a lining as wide as the face then knitting a stitch from the other side as you cast off finished it off. Made a nice warm headband. Will have to make some more of them for Christmas presents. Yesterday and today I managed to have the dyepots on the go so have sixteen skeins dyed and hanging to dry. Tonight I just finished a knit boucle scarf in bright Christmas red and put a fringe on it and the biggest job.....putting a knot in the end of every piece of fringe so it will not fray when washed . Should really cast on for a pair of socks before I go to bed, still have some slipper socks but am sold out of regular socks...have two more days....have two more days..
Now about Charlotte....she has not been around the last couple of days....I knew that Sirus was up to no good!! He has taken Charlotte away to who knows where, he was so sneaky coming around at dusk every night, he has probably taken her to a terrible old dirty cow barn somewhere...then he will cast her off and send her home with fertilized eggs to hatch and raise all by herself in the cold winter weather. We are missing her, specially Maxx (the Jack Russel) I say to him in the morning...do you think Charlotte came back...he runs to the window and looks out then goes to the door and when I let him out he runs to the garage to check...and no Charlotte. And it has snowed tonight...hope she is warm....I know...I know...I should get a life...worrying about a pigeon. But you have to admit...she was a special pigeon. Well am off to cast on a sock and then am off to bed.

What Should I do First???

Lately it seems all I have been doing is running in circles, at this time of year there is so much to do. If the weather is warm enough there is so much outside work, getting the flower beds ready for winter, we finished siding the garage and just have the big door to put in, have decided to leave putting the floor in until spring as we are running out of time and of course the big problem is.....we did not put a pigeon door in the garage....how is Charlotte going to come and go...now we did put a window in that opens...maybe we can take the screen off and she can come and go that way...plus Charlotte has found herself a guy friend all by herself. He is very sneaky...comes to visit just at dusk...have not caught him having a sleepover...he does not stick around long enough for me to ask his intentions toward Charlotte. We are calling him Sirus.
We had our guild sale last Sat. I had dyed up some skeins of wool which all sold and the hats I knit then felted all sold too and now we have the Christmas market sale and I have to get some more stock made up, have been trying to knit one hat a night, so far have four finished and am working on the fifth. Want to get some dye pots going too, maybe next week. Finished knitting the three pair of slipper socks on order, just have to sew the suede on the heels of two pair and the sole on the other pair and get them mailed off. Have also been spinning some alpaca/merino/silk I carded together the other day, it is a off white color so would like to rainbo dye it and right now am leaning to making fingerless mitts with it, have to see when I ply it what the yardage is. I loved the yarn I just dyed and had the same problem I always have of wanting to keep it for myself, will post a picture. Better get the dyepots brewing again.