Alpaca shearing

Abby and I helped out on a local farm shearing baby alpacas. The tips of their fiber gets damaged during birth so it must be sheared off so new health fiber will grow and make for a wonderful soft, squishy yarn. The fiber length is longer than sheep wool so is a dream to spin. It dose have crimp, but dose not have lanolin in the fiber. Alpacas don't secrete lanolin so after a quick wash it is very clean and has no smell. When I mix my angoras with their fiber I get a warm luxuries yarn that's hard to beat. After angora my favorite is alpaca which I hope to have a few some day. Abby is a naturel when it comes to these animals.

Playing with dye.

Tim was off from work all last week so not much was done around the house, but I did find time to dye my handspun yarn. All of the yarn is 30% Angora and 70% Alpaca. I'm almost out of my Alpaca (Chelsea) so my next visit to the farm I'll grab a new bag. Speaking of alpacas, Susan has lots of new babies, you may want to take a look. http://www.mylittledarlingsalpacas.com/ . Back to dyeing. I was not going for any special dyeing technique, I just wanted to play so I doubled the amount of dye powder I usually put in and came out with very bright color. I use the Jacqard acid dyes, my angora takes the dyes really well. Abby helped and we had so much fun playing with all the different colors, she dyed her own roving with koolaid and it turned out wonderful. I'll be teaching her to spin today after we finish school, she can't wait. She has finished her first scarf for Christmas and is now working on her next project. Both Abby and I have put in half of our fall garden and we plan to finish the other half this weekend. She will start training a baby alpaca on Friday for a obstacle coures competition in November. I'll make sure to post pics.

Pickles

Pickles is the biggest baby of all the babies and the most piggish. She is the first to the feeding bowl and the last to leave. Mommy has to push her nose under her and flip her out of the feed bowl, but Pickles just crawles right back in and then mommy scratches at her with her front feet. I'm afraid she will get hurt so I have moved her to a new cage. Pickles stopped nursing and is eating regular food. She is the most curious one as well. She tries to run away and get into thing when we put her on the floor and are not looking. Pickles likes to nibble on everything even me when I'm holding her. She is so much fun to play with and the whole family enjoys her very much even if mommy is glad to be rid of her.

Time, where has it gone?

Here it is August already and the kids are headed back to school. For me this means starting my homeschooling program with my youngest and having less time in my day for all the demands that seem to hit me every morning. Getting organized is the key and not being naturally a organized person this is a challenge for me.

I'll be starting a two year art program this fall as well as spinning, dying, and of course the bunnies. My goal is to produce a high quality lace yarn that you will not be able to get anywhere else but from me. And don't let me forget that there is a husband that needs a little tender loving care as well as a home cooked meal from time to time. Whew, I'm already tired, but this is the best kind of tired there is.

Today I groomed Mystic and cleaned cages before my fiber guild meeting. The bunnies are eating food now and still causing mommy much aggravation. They sneak up on her while she's eating and try to nurse, so she gets a mouthful then runs all over the cage shaking off babies, when the last one falls off she runs back to the food dish and it starts all over. This goes on two or three times a day. So far she has been so gentle with them, but I'm waiting for her to say "I'm done; get them out of my cage." I'm hoping for two more weeks; they will be six weeks old.

Driving mommy crazy

I'm just now sitting down with a cup of coffee after finishing making homemade bread and rolls for Sunday dinner. This morning started early with taking care of my bunnies before everyone got up, and got ready, and headed out for church. Every day the bunnies are more and more active and sleep less, this means that Mystic spends more and more time trying to get away from nursing babies. Angoras only nurse one to two times a day and each time lasts for five or six minutes. Their milk has a higher % of protein than that of other animals, so with only one or two feedings this produces fat healthy babies. But they still love to try and steal a little snack here and there. This is a problem for Mystic when she is trying to potty, the results is a baby getting pooped on from time to time. I still can't tell if I have girls or boys, I'm not sure if I'm reading body parts right. My kids will be picking out their names as soon as I'm sure. You will be the first to know. This morning Mystic had to eat out of her dish with babies crawling in and out. She is such a good mommy. They will soon be eating her food and that will mean cages of their own.

Busy babies

Well today has been day 2 that I've allowed my babies to roam free. They refuse to stay in their nesting box and would prefer to follow mommy around and get in her way and drive her crazy. Sound familiar mommies? She can't even go to her potty place with out stepping on babies. But the little sweeties are so soft and squishy that she will lay down and let them nap beside her.

I made up new mixes last night of angora (Feller) and alpaca (Chelsea) rovings. Chelsea is a local girl that I try to visit every week. She lives on a alpaca farm called "My Little Darlings". http://www.mylittledarlingsalpacas.com/. I spun 1 batch already and got a soft neppy lace weight yarn that I plan to dye next week. Three more to go. My goal is to have a specialty lace weight yarn dyed bright colors that will make any lace project outstanding. My yarns will have neps because I love lumps and bumps of soft angora. Texture is very important to me, it needs to have a interesting feel as well as squishy softness.

Baby bunnies

This morning woke up to the screams of Abby, my 10 year old. Once again the baby bunny jumped out of the nesting box and got its foot stuck in the cage floor. It seems the mommy bunny (Mystic) is done being a mommy because she would not feed them. They only eat once a day for about 5 min. I had to remove the nesting box because they would not stay in, and Mommy keeps stepping on them. This was the second time, so now I was forced to help them nurse. Mystic was not very happy but when the babies were finished they went right to sleep. I do this by turning Mystic on her back and putting her ears between my knees, then allowing the babies to nurse. I do have to say they are very loud, wiggly little nursers.

Something New

Life has many twists and turns, and about the time I start getting worried about the future something new comes along, and before I know it there's another twist or turn. This year it's been a turn. I've been a homemaker for 19 years, and after my oldest went to college last year I realized I needed a life after the kids move on to bigger and better things. I don't want a career away from home, I love being a homemaker. There is a art about being a homemaker that has been lost over the years; I think my grandmothers understood that art. I want to continue that art, but at the same time have a little something of my own to add just the right amount of spice to my life.

My turn, English Angora rabbits. Yes, it sound funny, but its true. I fell in love the moment I set eyes on them. Their soft, silky, fluffy, squishy bodies, and their sweet faces. The best part, fiber. Yes, fiber. It's a wonderful word that congers up thoughts of spinning a silky, soft yarn that after knitted has a fuzzy glow; like wearing a little piece of heaven, and I get to spin this fiber every 4 months. yeah for me! So this turn has taken me from homeschooling, homemaking, mother of 3, and wife of the hardest working man I know, to fiber artist that has started a rabbitry for the spinning and dyeing yarn that will be my new bussiness. I thank the Lord often for the twists and turns of life, and the reward of doing things I love while keeping up with the most important things, my family.