Life has been so busy the last few months, we've had a son leave on a church mission to the Philippines, another son graduate as a new US Marine from Parris Island and continue training, and a new granddaughter born! We've added several Angora goats to our farm and after fall shearing months of work went into washing, carding and spinning wool and fiber for Christmas sales! We are heading into the new year, so enjoy some of my favorite pictures and photos of our farm in 2015! :)
My oldest daughter helps with late summer shearing.
These Icelandics hate being sheared so we really have to tie them down!
Sheep milk soap making!
Purse made from handspun Finnsheep wool :)
Our local LDS missionaries started helping to cut firewood for winter in early September, and did some shearing too! A fun experience especially for the ones who've spent some of their mission in Baltimore, what a difference!
Youngest boy helping to shear Carmen, one of my sweet ewe lambs we didn't sell.
Carmens chop job
Laying out soap to cure
My new baby granddaughter with her Daddys boots
In love with his new baby!
Spinning wool, I often wonder how many housewife chores through the last 200 yrs have been done sitting out on this porch. :)
My daughter is studying photography and developed this in a dark room! I love it so much!
Sister missionaries helping with our fall shearing! :)
My shepherd son helping to sell lambs
Hungry piggies!
This chicken is in a hurry, haha
Delilah, my pretty colored angora!
Finnegan my Finn ram trying to get into the house. lol
Frigga peeking in the kitchen window
Worming checklist, Did this ALL summer! Lost 2 lambs to worms this year, it was so wet and warm. :-(
Dagny and the Icies
Pretty Finnsheep lamb. We sold all this year and are excited for a new crop in the spring! Such friendly lambs and very worm resistant!
Caspian our new Icelandic ram- on the small side.
Pretty white Icelandic lam
Felted kitties
I love needlefelting, making sheep is my favorite!
Summer squirrel!
Dad and the boys, first day of school!
Pile of Icelandic wool from ONE sheep. Phew, what a project!
The boys out selling roadside produce! :)
My shepherd sons 11thb-day, of course he had to have a sheep cake!
And got a sheep puppet!
My daughter modeling a handspun hat
Neptune our new Angora Goat buck
Neptune and Cedric, 2 Angora bucks...surprisingly so far they are friends and not stinky.
Starsha my new Angora doe
My son loves goats now, too!
His best buddy Finnegan
:D
Grandbaby at Halloween
Starsha sneaking into the kitchen
October starts firewood gathering season! Soooo much work to keep our old farmhouse warm in winter!
We have prolific chickens this year!
Our house settled down to the left in this little valley. How I LOVE autumn in Virginia!
No place like home!
The sheep hanging out in the driveway, you can see passage creek in the background which runs on our property.
Neptune!
Some folk art paintings up for sale
Crochet and knitted projects handspun from our sheep and goats
Best friends, lol..this chicken loves Finnegan
Delilah after her haircut
My awesome son, saying goodbye to the sheep before leaving home for two years to teach the gospel of Jesus Christ to the people of the Philippines.
Neptune gets a little bit frisky
My baby
Icelandic ewe
The barn in autumn
I LOVE the hot air balloons that drift over our property in summer and autumn
Party tree!
Roscoe the pitbull who thinks he is a sheep
Missionary picture
Finally after 3 summers here it was time to tackle painting the roof, kindof a scary job and the 3rd story will be tackled this spring!
My husband and I ran our first half marathon on Thanksgiving! It was awesome! I'm so grateful to have the health to run, it gives me energy to keep up with my farm.
My girlie and I, our getting firewood in the rain
Bigfoot family, seen deep in the Blue Ridge mountains
Starsha napping on the porch
Charlie Brown Christmas tree
Cozy mantle and warm fireplace, makes all the wood splitting worth the effort!!
Thanksgiving dinner, we really have to squeeze for family dinners in our home, but it's cozy.
More balloon watching!
Sheeepies, time for grain!!!
Marine Daddy & baby <3
Dungeon Master Screen painting for my sons Christmas present
There's my hardworking son, saying hello from the Philippines!
Baby mermaid tail from handspun wool
Last woodcutting trip... and then December was mainly in the 50's to 70's, lol.
Baking for Christmas!
Gingersheep
Another sons B-day, he's a total D&D nerd. He's awesome!
Gingerbread castle!
More gingersheep, sooo fun
Dad and son doing a goat check
Sheep & Kermie attack!
For our Christmas nativity my son was a shepherd, of course!
Merry Christmas!
Afternoon tea, a new tradition!
Skyping with my second daughter who is a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints in Arizona
We found DECEMBER dandilions!!
CRAZY warm weather in Virginia this winter. Yes, that is a sprig of Forsythia
Christmas goat kiss!
Christmas in the barn with the sheep & goats
Starsha loves raisin bagels and gingerbread
Cedric is getting pretty handsome!
Butting heads with Felecia
Fanny and Roscoe fighting over dog food
Lining up for hugs and kisses
Fat Fanny, haha, and Carmen
Neptune, love this guy even though he's an annoying love machine
Our little forest
Delilah and Cedric
Boys at the party tree
Maybe by spring we'll get some snow, meanwhile this is all we have! :)
We've been sooo blessed this year. We are hunkering down for the difficult cold months of January and February and looking forward to March and April lambs! We miss our missionaries and our Marine, but are so happy they have a comfortable loving farmhouse to miss and someday come back to. :)
Please support small farmers!
For a visit to our farm or for information on purchasing lambs, please email us at samsbillthepony@yahoo.com
For yarn, wool, sheepmilk soap, paintings or other local handcrafted products, please visit Smith Building mercantile on facebook! Ordering online is available!
For more information on our farm, please visit http://samsbillthepony.wix.com/getting-liberty#
