Happy Saturday!

Oh my goodness it's been a busy week.

Our accounting/office manager at work has gone to Tahiti far a big vacation so I am working extra hours.  Really makes me appreciate my part time schedule.

We got a couple of brochure projects that I have been working on back from the printer this week.  It is exciting to see something that I put a lot of hours into come out looking nice...really nice, actually.

I walked through the garden yesterday and took bunches of pictures.  I haven't figured out how to post more than one per post from my phone, but they are so pretty I may just do that and, of course, today is chores day, I'd better get with it!

The colors of spring

I have been driving down our neighbor's driveway to see the sheep this spring and I have been getting a different view of our yard that is very pretty.  Love this yellow azalea that we don't see from our driveway. 

Happy Anniversary Honey

Today was our 23rd wedding anniversary.  Sometimes it seems like it has only been a few months, and sometimes, well, you know the old story...the one that talks about "for better and for worse", etc, etc.....

However, the good times and the bad times all add up - and as we so often have, our anniversary cards were in sync - this is my card from The Shepherd -  my card for him said the same thing - You & Me - (different picture though)    One year we actually got each other the very same card - that was a wild one - I opened my card from him, saw the picture and went "Oh, no, I've opened his card!"

We had planned to go down to Whidbey Island, but The Shepherd was feeling under the weather all week and when I suggested that we skip, he said "lets sleep in and then just go down to The Farmhouse (an old favorite restaurant that's on Highway 20, on the way to Whidbey) for lunch and then come home.  We had a great lunch (I had a Reuben - they make their own corned beef and its not that thin deli sliced stuff and he had a hot pot roast sandwich - so we were both happy, and full, and didn't have such a long drive to boot), and then we decided to go looking at the tulips  -


The Skagit (rhymes with "Badge-it"} County area is renowned for their tulip fields - so much so that they now have a month long Tulip Festival during the month of  April.  These were part of the display gardens at the restaurant.

It would have been better if the weather had been a little nicer, but it didn't seem to deter the tourists. 

The tulip fields are just about done blooming, but the farmers have conveniently planted some "late blooming" ones that are just color as far as you can see. 

I was taking these pictures out the car window, on the fly, as the sheriff's were everywhere, giving out tickets to anyone who blocked traffic. But I couldn't resist showing you these pretty pink tulips.  Imagine thousands of people tromping through your fields - I'm surprised they don't have electric fences around them. 

Even with the blustery weather, there were quite a surprisingly number of people out today.

You can see more tulip pictures on my Instagram page.

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It's Caturday!

 Hi Effurrybody!

George here, just lubbin the spring sun on ma belleh.

And the gravel on my back - sort of like a massage...

Sort of, but sometimes it puts my furs out of order, and we wouldn't want that to happen.  

Mummy says to tell you that The Shepherd is getting a little bit better every day.  He's out working in the greenhouse this afternoon, planting seeds to transplant into the gardens.

We hope YOU are having a good Caturday and a great weekend. 



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Lookin' good here

 I haven't quite gotten the hang of taking pictures with my camera yet - they always look cloudy - maybe I have fingerprints all over my lens... ha ha - I took this picture of our front garden the other day.  Since then, the "glory of the snow" has doubled and it's all OVER the place! 

But it is pretty and springy, so who cares. 

Pesky stuff is everywhere!

The Shepherd continues to improve - he had a shower tonight - and it went well - the one he took at the hospital was a fiasco - he wasn't ready to be off the oxygen yet, and he panicked - this time it went much better and he felt bolstered by the improvement of not needing the oxygen, so that was good too.  Plus, I think it was just time for a shower, ya know...

I have to work tomorrow (normally have Fridays off, but one of my co-workers is taking off the weekend for a trip to see family for Easter.  Nice for her as she has been working hard, and nice for me, because I get some extra hours.  Always good. 

The sheep chores come early - gotta go. 

Houston, the Eagle has landed.....

The "Inn at the Barn"welcomed it's first visitors on this fine Sunday afternoon.

This is Sandy with her lambs, as yet un-named - The little white one is a ram and the little spotted one is a ewe. 

This is Sandy and her brother Frosty on their birthday two years ago - April 7, 2012 - Sandy is the brown & white spotted one - the little black & white is Frosty -  The Shepherd thinks that Sandy's new little girl looks like Frosty, so he's thinking of calling her "Frostianna" - Would not be my choice of a name, but they are his sheep.  I can only make suggestions...

And look who was snoopervising...

I couldn't figure out how Bella got up there, but She/he is sitting on the rest of the lambing panels -

Always interested in what is going on in the barn - Neelix was like that too.  Bella loves it when there are lambs. 


The lambs are probably less than an hour old here - so you can still see their umbilical cords hanging down - kind of gory - but The Shepherd takes a hands off approach in that department - many people dip them in iodine, etc.  He just lets the mom take care of them. 










After the trip to the barn, I did a little walk around to see what's blooming right now and what's growing, etc.

I love these little mini daffs - each blossom is about as big around as a quarter.











The rhubarb is growing in leaps and bounds - we will have enough for pie soon. 








This is the front flower bed when you come up to our place.  It is so pretty with the blue carpet of glory of the snow right now.

And I love this little clump of Grape Hyacinths - it is one of my favorite spring flowers - it always reminds me of "home" as there were literally thousands of plants in my mom's garden. They lined all the walkways.  My little sister & I used to pick them, strip the blossoms off and use them as "blueberries" in our mud pies.  He he he he...





We have four more ewes pregnant - so expect the blog to be a little "sheep heavy" for the next three or four weeks. :-)

Next Saturday we will be at a local farm/wool sale with our fleeces and some of my yarn.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I can sell some of it.  I'm also keeping my fingers crossed that the weather, which is forecasted to be Sunny and about 60 degrees holds.  The past two years it has snowed!!