The Great North American Afghan

I am now on block 13 of The Great North American Afghan. However, I skipped block #12 since the needles in my hands at the end of block 11 were the same size needed for block 13, I bypassed #12 until a later time. A precursor to each block is thoroughly reading the instructions and typing them up to fit my knitting style. I usually type up several blocks at a time so that I don't have to stop between blocks and type some more.

Knitting this afghan is a journey for me. Each block on average is taking 6-8 hours of my time. But the beauty that grows with each row is so exciting that I can barely wait to get to the next block. With all the other activities that go on this time of year, I don't expect to get this afghan completed before Christmas. The blocks that are done will have to go into a box and and I.O.U. on the top. The recipient will just have to settle for an unfinished afghan with the expectation of getting it before summer arrives.

Meanwhile on the farm, we didn't expose our ewes to the rams until Dec. 1. While having early babies was fun this past year, we bred late in hopes that we lose fewer lambs since the weather should be more agreeable to lambing in April and May. The ewes are so fat and sassy right now.

In spite of space between the Shetland/Finns and the Border/Bluefaced Leicesters, Galahad, the B/B L ram has been standing at the fence jealously eyeing Bob the Babydoll/Finn's flock. Bob is a cutie. He is friendly and easy with the girls as well as easy to handle when time comes to remove from the flock. Galahad is also easy to remove from the flock with a call to come. So like a big dog, he lumbers to the space given to rams that no longer need to be with the ewes.

Now to get back to knitting Christmas. I do not see anyway possible to get everything knitted or stitched before Christmas, but I will do what I can to get as much as possible completed before the big day. In the meantime, onward and forward!

Photo Updates of My Babies

My digital camera and I spent some time together the other day to snap some photos of curious sheep. I thought it would be hard to get pictures, but not the way it was. I found it hard to get good photos because everyone was curious what the "Great Food Meister" was doing among them. My one little ram (babydoll/Finn/Shetland) wanted to nose the lens and since he is a ram in training, it wasn't real safe to squat down. I have been gently butted, but only because I wasn't doling out the candy corn fast enough. So I went back into the house and when I came back out, I rounded the corner of the house carefully and got this side view photo of him before he saw me and came running to me looking for a handout. I am planning on using this little guy on my 50/50 Shetland/Finn ewes this fall. That should improve the crimp and productivity in preparation of using a higher percentage Babydoll ram next fall. So what do you think of my little guy? He is stocky, small, short crimpy fiber, easy to handle, and a big baby.

So Much To Be Done

Here it is a day away from October and I'm not ready for winter. I have 3 shelters to build for the sheep and goats and a hen house to winterize. I also have about 8 extra ewes and 2 rams to find homes for. I really hate to part with those ewes as I am really pleased with the fiber I'm getting. I have a 2-fold breeding program.

The first program I'm breeding a 50/50 blend of Border Leicester and Bluefaced Leicester for a silky long lock for durable yarns. The next program is more complicated. I love Babydoll sheep but only have 3 but they are mixed with a percentage of Finn. They still have the babydoll type fleece. The only problem is that the fleece is short. Now I'm not complaining about the crimp, mind you, only the lack of length. So I introduced a 50/50 Shetland/Finn to my Babydolls last fall. I didn't get the typey fleece from my older ewe who is 50/50 Babydoll/Finn. However, her 2007 twin daughters who are 75/25 Babydoll/Finn presented me with very crimpey/longer-fleeced youngsters. The feel is luscious. The little ram even has close to a babydoll face and the size is just a fraction more than the original babydoll breed. I will get some pictures to post this week. I want longer fleece with the babydoll crimp and softness. I am continuing my breeding program this fall to improve on what I have. I want fibers that yearn to be next to the skin. Let's see how well I do. Until next time......kate of WindSong Fibers Farm