Wow, am I behind on posting!  I’m sorry about that.   It’s the spring and it seems that every day is full of projects and things going on, that once I sit down in the evening, I’m likely to just fall asleep in my chair!  I actually have 18 folders of pictures to get caught up on!!!

As you might have heard on our facebook page for the farm…  we’ve been having babies!  Yes!   Lambs and one goat baby!  (So far…)

Let me introduce to you, the first baby lamb born this 2014 lambing season at Windhaven!

Little Prince Aragorn of WIndhaven!

Yes, we have decided to have a Lord of the Rings theme for our sheep babies this year.  If you’ve been reading our little tale, you know that we like to name groups of animals in a theme, partially because it’s fun but also because it allows us to know when the animal was born.  So this year all our little lambs are going to be LOTR royalty!

Frankly, I was very surprised to find this little baby all beautiful and born one Sunday morning!  I had been waiting on Iris, our lovely ewe, who is HUGE and well, if I was a betting woman, I would have bet she would be the first.   Noel looked pregnant and we were putting her in the lambing jug at eveningfall, but she just wasn’t as ready looking.   Fooled me!   I went out there to check on everyone and there was no babies…  I had to rush off to the junk yard and take care of some race cars that needed vinyl work, so I checked, then dashed in the house to tell Jessy that I was leaving and to keep an eye on the ewes…

Well, a hour later, Jessy goes out and there is little baby Aragorn!   All dried off and standing.   That Noel must have seen me leave and went into labor.   Sheep are so sneaky!   Actually, we’ve only seen two births!   They usually have them all by themselves and quickly.  Very little fuss.

Aragorn is so striking….  I just love his coloring.   I hope he stays mottled like that.   He’s beautiful.   His momma is a black Welsh Mountain Sheep…  and his daddy was Harley, our Shetland ram.  So he’s the only cross bred little boy of the bunch.  I plan to keep him, and to whether him so he can stay with the flock and his momma.  He’s that striking!   How beautiful his fleece will be, I think it would mix to make a beautiful grey and black mixture!

Momma and son stayed together in the lambing barn for the day and then the next morning, we let them out to meet everyone.  It’s always a good thing to keep ewes with their lambs in what is called a “lambing jug” for 24-48 hours, just to make sure the baby is nursing well, and so they can bond very closely.  I like to keep the first timers in for two days because they sometimes need a little recovery time to get it in their heads that they are now mommas!   But this is Noel’s third year birthin’ youngins, so she’s a pro.  And she is one tough mudder!    Nothing comes between her and her boy!

Just a cute little picture of Jelly Bean…  he’s teeny tiny, don’t you think?  Chickens are bigger than he is!  He is such a funny little boy.  We just love him.  He’s definitely staying here at the farm.  He can earn his keep with that delicious lovely fiber he’s growing!   He’s just perfect and everything I hoped for with his breeding.   He is a pygora cross goatling.  Since his daddy is a type A pygora  (the most mohairlike of pygora goats), I am hoping that Jelly Bean will retain that beautiful curly Angora coat as he matures.  Looks like he will so far!  

Oh how cute this little lamb is!   He’s adorable…  And he lets us hold him…  a bit.   Many lambs are pretty skittish but he’s pretty confident about people and that is so nice.   He’s a bruiser!   I thought Noel might have twins like last year, but nope…  just this big oaf of a baby prince!!!

Now Jelly Bean has someone to play with!   In a few days…

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