Any Day Now
We are in the "check every night" phase of our lambing season. No lambs to report yet, but somebody gets up nightly at 1 or 2 and heads out to see if anyone is in labor or needing attention. Most of our ewes will need nothing but a little space to do their thing. There is something magical for the kids in these days leading up to our first lamb. Everyone wants to be the one to "find the first lamb". That honor comes with bragging AND naming rights.
When we were at The Meeting School we had quite a walk to get from our residence to the barn. We also lived on a campus with close to 50 other students and staff. I remember the walks being amazing moments of peace and quiet in an otherwise busy and often hectic space. Even the short walk to the barn here in the middle of the night has a magical quality. So rare these days that our senses take in that hour, the stillness. Our location here is elevated, the farm slopes down to the water on both sides and can have a "mountain top" quality to it on a starry night. It is awe inspiring.
Tonight Yvette has a friend over to sleep. They are going to be the ones going out to check on the sheep. They have already secured their clothing and flashlights for the mission. It is hard not to think back to the night my sister and I decided to brave the night in a tent out back of the house in Kennebunk. I don't remember how old I was, just the trail I blazed back to the house when I woke up in the middle of the night much less certain of my ability to sleep in a tent with those woods so close. We'll see how the kids holdup to all that dark and quiet.
I asked the sheep to cooperate and produce something for them to discover tonight. The ewes are certainly close, we'll see .... any day now.
This is my choice for the "first to go". Looks like twins.
When we were at The Meeting School we had quite a walk to get from our residence to the barn. We also lived on a campus with close to 50 other students and staff. I remember the walks being amazing moments of peace and quiet in an otherwise busy and often hectic space. Even the short walk to the barn here in the middle of the night has a magical quality. So rare these days that our senses take in that hour, the stillness. Our location here is elevated, the farm slopes down to the water on both sides and can have a "mountain top" quality to it on a starry night. It is awe inspiring.
Tonight Yvette has a friend over to sleep. They are going to be the ones going out to check on the sheep. They have already secured their clothing and flashlights for the mission. It is hard not to think back to the night my sister and I decided to brave the night in a tent out back of the house in Kennebunk. I don't remember how old I was, just the trail I blazed back to the house when I woke up in the middle of the night much less certain of my ability to sleep in a tent with those woods so close. We'll see how the kids holdup to all that dark and quiet.
I asked the sheep to cooperate and produce something for them to discover tonight. The ewes are certainly close, we'll see .... any day now.
This is my choice for the "first to go". Looks like twins.