I've been making preparations over the last several weekends to get ready for this day.
The combs and cutters have been cleaned and sharpened. The barn swept and rearranged. The mats are scrubbed and set up. The collection bags are labeled. The checklist has been prepared and supplies all set out.
And the house? It's (nearly) sparkling clean too. :-)
I roasted a turkey earlier this week and started baked beans. I will finish preparing the food today as well as the rest of the last-minute items.
A group of wonderful family and friends are coming out. There is no way that we could do this day without their help. So I want to make sure they are all well fed and cared for.
It's a little damp right now but the weather forecast looks good for shearing.
Now for a bunch of gratuitous photos of our alpacas... who will all be looking a lot different tomorrow. :-)
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| Kocoa and Daisy |
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| Keyla, Frieda and Apple |
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| Keyla decided it was a good time for a nap. |
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| Clementine and Big Thompson |
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| Gus and Yoda |
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| and Noodle and Wonton because... Noodle can find something interesting nearly anywhere |
I hope you have a great Fiber Arts Friday. :-)
Happy shearing! Can't wait to see the after pics of the freshly sheared alpaca. Love your dogs :)
ReplyDeleteI don't see a link to an on-line shop on your blog or any of the links in the side bar. Do you sell your fiber on-line at all? Please leave me a comment if you do...I am just about out.
ReplyDeleteThanks
Your barn is so beautiful! (It doesn't even look like a barn to me!) Good luck with all of your hard work!
ReplyDelete(I recently read two of Catherine Friend's books "Sheepish" and "Hit By A Farm"...both put me 'inside' the farming life and I really enjoyed them.)
Thanks for getting back to me so quickly. When you are all set up and ready, I would be very interested in fiber from any of the following: Keyla/Gus/Yoda and Clementine/BigThompson. Raw would be fine...I can wash it in a big laundry bag in my tub if I need to, although washed is fine too :) Just contact me whenever you are ready. PS. I am pretty patient, so even in a few months is fine. Thanks a lot.
ReplyDeleteOh my you are so organized! I hope the weather co-operates and you have a great time in the process!
ReplyDelete@Heather - barn is really a generous term... it's much more of a shack that happens to have a concrete floor. We use it to store hay and feed. The animals generally don't have access to this building.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the book recommendations, I love stories about farming and animal husbandry. :-)
@Natalie - you have very good taste. ;-)
I hope one of the crew will be taking photos - it looks to be a busy, yet fun day. And your mad project management skillz are on prominent display. :)
ReplyDeleteHappy shearing day!
Wow, your barn looks amazingly clean. Hope all goes well. LOL when I read about the beans. Someone once told me, "don't feed your shearer and crew gassy food". The person who told me this was so serious....must have had a BAD experience!
ReplyDelete@Melissa - hahaha, yes... but since I used to live in New Mexico... I have secret ingredients for making the musical fruit less musical. :-)
ReplyDelete@Voie de Vie - boy do I have a surprise for you. ;-) ...and thanks for noticing my Mad Project Management Skillz. :-)
Now I'm curious about your bean recipe ...
ReplyDeleteI agree with VdV, pictures! I didn't know shearing day is such a big event (what do I know about alpaca farm!), hope everything goes smoothly, wish I can be there!
Hooray! I love to see alpaca pictures and am looking forward to seeing bobbled headed shorn ones soon. Hope you have a good day of shearing and get lots of beautiful fibre
ReplyDeleteLOL, Frieda lays down to eat!
ReplyDeleteOoooh! They're so fluffy... should be wonderful to shear them. I can't wait to see after shots. :)
ReplyDeleteGood luck on your shearing! May they stay dry, stress free and warm once all their woolies are off.
ReplyDeleteI might do a few more of mine on Sunday now that I think about it.
Happy Shear Day!
ReplyDeleteI was hoping Knitamazoo would link in this week with all the photos she took of my shear day.
Wishing you a smooth day and clean fleece.
I wrote a haiku on Spring shearing!
ReplyDeleteFirst time visiting your blog, and I am Loving all the names you have chosen for everything! Alpacamundo? Alpacas with names ike Yoda and Apple?!! Yep, great stuff!
ReplyDeleteI hope your shearing went well today. Your alpacas look like their ready. I can imagine how fabulous that fleece will be from Big Thompson. He's a beautiful color.
ReplyDeleteOh, how exciting! Looking forward to some after pics of your herd. You really looked after your team of helpers..the food sounds delicious!
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