I am sitting outside at a cafe in Austin, Texas. I have been in Oklahoma and Texas visiting family and friends for the holidays. It is hard to imagine how cold it is on the farm. I left right after the first big snowstorm of the season. We got about a foot of snow and the farm was instantly transformed into a winter wonderland. The sheep seem to really love it. They have their wonderful wooly coats to insulate them. The sheep (and donkey and llama) have a moveable hut where they can seek shelter from the elements, but they often choose to spend their time outside of it. We started them on hay, but we hope to get them back to grazing soon. For the past month or so the sheep have been grazing on Hearty Roots' cover crops. They started on the oats and peas and we plan on moving them to the winter rye soon. This is a great collaborative effort between our two farms. We are thrilled to be able to keep the sheep grazing as long as possible and Hearty Roots is thrilled to get the nutrients from the manure and urine.

The laying hens weren't so sure about the snow. The first morning after the snow, not a single chicken had ventured out of their house. I brought some food to them and lured them out a bit, but they were not too sure about all the snow. Owen and I shoveled a path to their feeder for them and figured the curious creatures would begin exploring their new environment soon.

It has been so nice to soak up some warm weather and some longer days, but I am looking forward to getting back to the animals. It is amazing how things can change in just a little bit of time. A big shout out to Owen for picking up the slack while I have been away. Hopefully he will be vacationing soon.

Happy New Year to everyone. I hope that 2009 brings more local flavor and goodness to everyone.

Breeding season has begun. We put the rams in with the ewes on Monday, December 1st. We now are running three groups of sheep: a group of ewe lambs that will not be bred, and two separate groups of ewes with a different ram in each group. The rams will stay in with the ewes for the month of December which should ensure that each ewe goes through two estrus cycles. When the ewe is in heat she will allow the ram to mount her. When she is not in heat, she runs away from him very quickly. It is immediately obvious who is in heat and who is not!
Sheep gestation period is 147 days. We breed them now so that the lambs will be born in May. The lambs are born outside, on pasture and we want it to be fairly warm and for there to be plenty of grass for them and the mommas when they come into the world. I am already excited for lambing season. When I look back at the pictures of the lambs, I can't believe how amazingly cute they were.

In other news, we have a new guard llama. He is very alert and very exotic. He is currently on duty with the ewe lambs and one breeding group. I will get some pictures up soon. He doesn't have a name yet, and we are very open to suggestions!

Coming next week: 400 Black Sex Link chickens. Our laying herd should be 600 hens strong next year which means eggs a plenty.