"It is well to remember that the entire population of the universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others." A.Holmes

Sunday, January 18, 2015

All This & Heaven Too

 Ella & Fella, my Sebastopol geese, were enjoying sunshine this past week. Warm sunshine untypical of our usual January weather. But no worries for us, the rain and high winds are back tonight. "It was a dark and stormy night".
 I cleaned out the goat pen on that rare sunny day and rewarded Thorin with his favorite treat after I was done hauling out 3 wheelbarrows full of manure. Something seems amiss here though, I did the work and he got the treat ? Oh well, he is a very old goat, going on 12 years of age.
 My husband finished the 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzle we received as a Christmas present. Do you see that all the pieces are in varying shades of black & white ? The puzzle became an obsession with him. He would drink his morning coffee while working on it, eat dinner while working on it , and go to bed way too late because he could not let it go. The puzzle dominated our home for a little over 2 weeks. But look, it is done ! I am now declaring we will only have jigsaw puzzles to work on over the Thanksgiving through Christmas season. ( He finished a 1,000 piece Christmas puzzle on Christmas day,then quickly began this one.)
 
 I cleaned two sheep pens last week during sunny and rainy weather , after I cleaned the goat's pen.
I finished weaving 2 rugs ( not shown ) and spun up several skeins of yarn. This is some of my hand-dyed Jacob Sheep wool. I also spun up a few skeins of natural color Jacob Sheep wool, then set the ply . Maybe I'll sell this wool yarn, maybe not. I can think of a few weaving projects this wool might be perfect for.

January has thus far been both restful and hard work. I love the feeling I get after a very hard day of physical work, even if I do smell like sheep and I hurt all over. I love seeing my baskets and bins fill up with the yarn I spin up from the wool of the sheep I love. I love seeing the rugs I weave especially after I cut them off the loom and finish the ends. I love having work to do that is not really work because I still count it all a blessing and a privilege to be able to do these things. And I really love a hot bath after a day of working here on Cedar Pond, and then spinning up yarn on my spinning wheel as I spend a quiet evening with my husband, watching our favorite shows and simply being together. I love my husband. Thank-you God for all these blessings. " All this and Heaven too." au

"The sleep of the working man is pleasant whether he eats little or much." Proverbs 5:12

15 comments:

Sally said...

You do work hard. 1,000 pieces of jigsaw - I would not have the patience to do that.

A.K.W. said...

Wow, I love to do jigsaw puzzles but haven't done one in years though except online ones.

Amy

Judith @ Lavender Cottage said...

Manure shovelling and hauling must burn a lot of calories although I'm sure it is a bit of a stinky exercise activity. :-)
Your husband is a patient fellow to do a puzzle that large with so many similar colours, the completed one on the table looks nice.
Good shot of the eager tongue reaching for the delectable cracker.
Have a nice Sunday!

Texastracking said...

one of the nice memories of my goat herd - goat poo isn't as stinky as so many livestock animals. Yes - saltines are a real treat - and I love your Sebastopol geese - all ruffly fluffly and elegant

Unknown said...

I love the life you lead - my idea of as near perfect you can get. Hard work but so fulfilling. You are so talented with your animal husbandry, horticultural, and arts and crafts. Are you self taught I wonder. You are an awesome woman

Butterfly 8)(8 Bungalow said...

I love the geese. I have a friend that is a licensed puzzle artist under John Enright. He does mostly wildlife puzzles.

Lady Jane said...

That is a neat challenging puzzle. Keeps the mind active for sure. Maybe I should get a few goats, lol. I might lose a little weight.... They are beautiful colors those goats...

Anonymous said...

Well that's a fun accomplishment to have finished that puzzle. It's been ages since I've sat down to a puzzle. Ella and Fella are so pretty. Boy those winds last night and this morning were something else!

De said...

Our third puzzle since Christmas break is still on our dining room table. It's 1500 pieces and seems to be challenging my husband and daughter more than the other two. Some day I will see the other side of the table, lol.

I am also blessed with the love of a wonderful Christian husband. Isn't God wonderful?

Deborah Montgomery said...

Loved seeing the picture of Ella and Fella! And your funny goat :) Sounds like a lot of hard but satisfying work going on there, but a wonderful life, for sure. Your yarn looks beautiful. And our puzzles never got opened this Christmas, too much else going on. Will you take that puzzle apart now, or glue it together? Or maybe just enjoy it for a while? Looks like it was a challenging one!
Have a blessed week Kathy.

Deanna said...

The perfect names for a couple…Ella and Fella!!!
I have never been good at putting puzzles together. Your dear husband has a gift.

Wish I had your energy!
Blessings,
d

Nib's End said...

It runs in the family. We do a puzzle every year between Christmas and New Year. It has to be a photo puzzle and it has to be 1000 pieces. We get hooked on it too and stay up waaay too late. But it is only once a year and it is fun. Don't tell anyone but I bought a 1500 piece puzzle for next year.

Stella Jones said...

I've never seen a jigsaw with all black, white and grey pieces. It's beautiful. Yes, you do work hard. What do you do with all that manure? Love all your animals.

L. D. said...

I am an old farm boy who really appreciates seeing you animals. The yarn you get from these animals is wonderful too. I miss sitting down and doing a puzzle. That was a difficult one you both finished. It is a wonderful scene.

Connie said...

Oh my goodness, that jigsaw puzzle looks incredibly hard. Wonderful photos, Kathy. I enjoyed seeing these.