Merry Christmas!

I thought I'd share some outtakes from our Christmas card photo shoot.

No animals (or humans) were harmed in the taking of these photos.

Yep, this six year-old can hold a rooster in one hand--even after putting a wreath around the rooster's neck.  He tried this with many of the hens, but none were quite so happy to model as Colonel Brandon.

 Macadamia would wear a hat, but would not look at the camera.

Don't worry, the hat has been inspected by a llama...

 ...twice.

Almond tries a little too hard to participate.

With a pocket full of treats, my little guy lured in more lambs than he bargained for.

Our best model?  Sally!  She mastered wearing a hat and looking at the camera.

She looked snazzy in the scarf, too.

Cute Youngsters

There are few things cuter than Filly.

If you prefer cute cows, here's Sally:

Macadamia is also pretty cute, except when she's "helping."

She was so busy she missed the group shot.  It's all the ewes--both big girls and lambs--in one place.

Mystery Solved

How Gunpowder's horns become green:   green fence posts!

And it begs the question: Can horns be itchy?

Back To Normal

Pistachio knows we're up to something.

Yesterday, we moved the ewes back to the front field.  It would have taken a lot of maneuvering on a good day.  We needed to make room in the barn for nine fluffy pregnant ewes.  The Mule moved out of the barn, and Barack O'Llama has a new stall. The move was a bit dramatic.

"You parked here so I could have a snack, right?"

The sheep freaked out...

Sandy is out in front.  Hmm.

...but recovered quickly.

All that running made Theresa hungry.

Sally went nuts.   She flung her neck and her legs around just like a llama does when worked up about something.  It's a scary sight no matter what animal is doing it (although it's much more impressive with a long neck).  Snowball clicked at her, and she stopped...eventually.  It's a good thing the Mule (just barely) fit in its new home.

Getting it back out might be an issue...

We had enough sense to corral Gunpowder before we starting moving the ewes, but we didn't think to restrain any of the other animals.  There were llamas and sheep everywhere and a cow on the loose. Sally ran to the front pasture as did Snowball.  All of the ewes went that way as well (whew), but some of the ewe lambs headed for the other side.

Our biggest concern was a llama fight.  Eventually, all the sheep and the cow ended up where they belonged (the wethers needed to be carried--good thing we have Shetlands).  Barack O'Llama was in the back field with Snowball.  They were getting along much better than anticipated.  Barack was reluctant to leave; he needed to be removed via halter.

Two llamas!

Barack seems happy to have his flock back.  Gunpowder thinks we delivered two more ewes to him, and he's been chasing Pecan and Almond around.  Together again, Calico and Henrietta have resumed their feud. 

A Puzzle

Taking advantage of a December day in the mid-60s, the boys and I took a little "nature walk" through the backyard this morning.  They were doing a good job of observing; they noticed that Gunpowder has one green horn.  The question is: How did Gunpowder manage to get crayon on his horn?  It boggles the mind. 

Gunpowder: Truly a greenhorn.

Snowball was so excited to greet us that he didn't finish eating first.
 

"Why didn't you let me know you were coming?"

Hazel begged for some peanuts.

"If you give me a peanut, I promise I'll go to bed on time tonight."

Can you imagine how cute their lamb(s) would be?

Theresa and Gunpowder

Llamas, llamas, everywhere

It's been awhile since I've posted.  (It's the season for not being able to keep up with blogging.)  I was scrolling through my recent pictures, and I realized a person would think that I have a lot of llamas, a few sheep, and a crazy chicken.  Hmm.

Look at all those white llamas! 

Snowball, ...

Snowball, ....

... and more Snowball.

(Perhaps there are so many pictures of Snowball because he is one of the few animals who doesn't try to eat the camera?)

Now for the rest of the llama herd:

Barack O'Llama bonding with the Mule.

Some sheep:

The ewes know a sheep shouldn't be in the backyard.

'
(Yes, Almond is in the backyard.  Yes, it was intentional on our part.  He seemed to really enjoy his mini vacation. There were a lot of exciting things for him to eat, like raspberry bushes.)

Finally, the crazy chicken:

At least she doesn't have buddies up there.

That's the inside of the barn, and she's roosting on top of the garage door.  She's been up there three nights in a row.  I'm not sure if she's brilliant (seriously, what kind of animal is going to get up there?) or completely insane.

Let's not forget about the cat.  Scott didn't want to her to feel left out, so...

Yep, she's wearing a "coat," too.

Anyone who knows our cat will be shocked to hear that Scott is still alive and in possession of all of his body parts.