January Thaw!!!!

Warm...sunny...and great. Working in the barn is a joy on a day like this. I had hoped to get the Bobcat out and clean the barnyard but the mud is so bad that I'll be mired down on my first trip out to the dump site. (My brothers think it amusing that I love to drive my skid steer loader.)Instead I just worked in the barn and prepared for lambing. Two BFL ewes look really close. Guess the nights of walking to the barn several times will be upon me soon. My friend Emma who is 77 and has raised sheep for 50+ years tells stories of lambing 500 ewes and weeks sleeping in her quarters in the barn complete with cot,heater and coffee pot. Makes lambing about 60 ewes seem like a piece of cake. Emma lambs about 20 now because can't give up the joy and excitement of lambing season. It's like Christmas going out to the barn each time to see what you'll find. I use monitors so the sounds give me a clue as to what to expect but seeing newborn lambs up and about is so rewarding. I tell people I work for 5 cents and hour raising sheep but it is such a joy...most of the time. Like Emma, I couldn't imagine a year without lambs and all the joy, frustration,anxiety and exhaustion that goes with it.