Oh! The things we get excited about around here. Both Ben Harper and Regina Spektor concerts within 48 hours from each other? Well, yes, that is fun. But! Nothing tops the rental of the hydraulic earth drill. Really, it's true. It wasn't just Harper who was giddy at the arrival of a piece of loud and powerful machinery. Steve and the (big) boys might have been even more glad, at the prospect doing days (weeks?) worth of manual post hole digging in just one day's time. Adelaide was ready and eager to move the sheep easily into the next spot of pasture. And I? I'm excited to be that many more cedar posts closer to my cow.
With more trees cleared, holes dug, gates hung...we now have all of our cleared acreage divided into six separate, but all connected, pastures. We'll now be able to seamlessly (in theory, anyway) move the animals from one pasture to the other - to bring them closer to us in winter, to let the pasture grow back, to separate the animals as needed. Fencing, we know, will never be 'done' so long as we have livestock behind them, but to have all of this permanent fencing in place now does certainly feel like a very big job done. Even if it's only 'done' for a while. It's a good start. Ah...
The sheep are now quite happily moving from pasture to pasture these days. Do you see how big the girls are getting? Charlotte and Anne (the Brontes), are so good, and sweet, very curious and only a little bit timid. Cinnamon (the brown one) loves people most of all, begging for attention from anyone who passes by. Emily (the Mama) pretends to be aloof, but she quickly gets jealous of all the love Cinnamon gets and works her way in assertively. I'm surprised to find their personalities much like dogs, honestly. Sometimes terribly misbehaved dogs. But mostly very charming and eager to love and be loved. They've each worked their way into our hearts, that is for certain. And while I fully enjoy all the time I spend with them (and wish for a little bit more), true credit for their good nature must be given to the shepherdess.
It takes every one of us to make this whole thing work. It really does.
