The surviving lamb is little ewe, and she’s doing very well. The interaction between her and momma is not quite like the other ewes, but it seems to work for them. I’m very used to always seeing the lamb dogging momma’s heels, but this one is just as likely to be tucked down somewhere napping clear across the pasture from momma. Gives me a bit of a start, and I’ve been out to look for her at least twice today, but every time I find her, her tummy is full, and when she starts to bleet, momma comes to investigate (eventually), so I guess it’s all good. I gotta say, though, that this is one of the smallest babies we’ve had. The legs are the only reason she’s bigger than a cat. Just tiny.

It’s 4:10am, and I’m at the computer. I woke up about 20 minutes ago and had a short conversation with myself about that lamb. It was short because I was worried, but I had to have it because I really didn’t want to get out of bed. But, I know myself well enough to know that if I had not gotten up and the lamb hadn’t made it, I would have felt terrible. Unfortunately, the lamb did not make it. It has only been about 4 hours since her last feeding. If she were at all healthy, she should have been able to make it that long, since she was also nursing from momma. There must have been something wrong with her from the get go. This happens occasionally, but it’s still sad. The good news is that the little brown lamb was with momma and got right up when everyone started making noise, so I’m confident he’ll make it just fine. Again, all pronouns are generic. I’ll do a gender check in the next few days.

Steve was right. That last ewe was not just fat. She just delivered twins. One brown and one black. Pictures will come soon. I’m keeping an eye on the little black one because it hasn’t stood up yet, and I’m a bit concerned. Of course, this is the crazy wild ewe, so getting her and the babies into the barn isn’t likely, because she’s more scared of me than she is concerned with her babies, so I can’t even use them to lead her to shelter. Thankfully it’s warm enough that I don’t have to force the issue. I’m thinking Baily is going to sleep outside tonight a predator control, since getting them inside isn’t very likely. For now, I’m off to make up a bottle of warm lamb replacer for the the little black lamb to see if I can get it up on its feet.

New baby #1. Actually, this is the younger of the two twins, born sometime during the night. We haven’t checked gender yet, so I’ve go no new information on that, but he (generic he) sure is a cutie.
And this is new baby #2, actually the older twin born first. Momma hasn’t gotten him (generic pronoun use again) cleaned up, but she’ll get there. This is our first true black. I’m kinding hoping it’s a girl, but I haven’t checked, so it’s only a hope at this point.
And here are some of the rest of the crew. The little one in the center is our baby from last week. He seemed very excited to have some potential playmates. He kept hopping around the little ones trying to get them to play, but they were too busy sleeping. Maybe tomorrow. The big guy in right behind the lamb is our ram. He’s very gentle and is great with the babies. The two on the left with the dark fronts are our new acquisitions. They have finally integrated with the original herd and are doing very well. Ignore Steve’s speculation that they are full grown. They aren’t. They are still young enough to be playing dominance games with one another and jumping and turning circles in the air just because life feels that good. Not more than 4 or 5 months. I should probably get out some old books and remember how to age them from their teeth, but it’s not really that big a deal at the moment. They’ll grow up and have babies when they are ready.

I am writing this post on what is quite possibly the best gift my loving husband and daughter have ever given me. In order to understand my glee, you will likely need a little history as it relates to the gifting habits of our family. Steve invariably asks for some technology gadget, despite the fact that he is only marginally technologically capable. Usually I get him what he wants, and spend a couple of days after Christmas setting it up for him and teaching him the basics. He learns enough to make the whatever work, and then asks me for help every time he gets stuck for the next year or so. And all the while, I am secretly wishing the nifty gadget belonged to me. This year, though, he s
Really really surprised me. For my birthday, he got me a very nice piece of technology that I have been covetting almost from the moment I saw it. I just could not justify the purchase. But, Steve and Sarah got me one for my birthday!

Yes, my friends, I have joined the masses of iPad users. I have only had it in my hands for about 6 hours, and I am sure I have only barely scratched the surface of what this little thing can do, but already I am infatuated. I am going to have to put it down to knit, because all but five of my booties have sold, so I need to replenish my stock. But for the short term, this toy is one of the best distractions I could have hoped for. I have a wonderfully thoughtful family. Now, I am going to go watch a movie with my family. I hope everyone has a wonderful and blessed holiday.