Boiling fat? o-k....

Fresh off of butchering the lambs and running out of room in the freezer, I decided to make tallow from the lamb fat so that I can try soap making later in the year. In the crock pot is definitely the easy way to cook down the fat...but next time, it will go outside on an extension cord. HOLY-moley, the smell!!! Still,  I had a great end product! I never thought I'd be so excited for a 'pie slice' of fat.

 I was so happy to find that tractor supply sells these awesome old -school burlap bags. It's much nicer to see my wool stacked out in these than in big plastic bags. I love sitting out on the balcony and watching the birds and the sheep & horses while picking through the fleece, my hands smelling like grease and lanolin. It's so relaxing!  I can just picture some household servant sitting out and doing the same thing in this very spot 200 yrs ago.

 

My old brick oven in the background...one of these days I'm going to bake a loaf of bread out there, or better yet, a pizza!

Washed my first skein of yarn in hot water to set the spin...a cast iron skillet makes an awesome weight! I'm really getting the hang of it now, and am on spinning my 4th skein of yarn!

 

Expanding our rabbit...flock? Someone from church had half a dozen rabbit babies to re-home before going on vacation, so of course, they ended up at my house. This one is a New Zealand mix, but 2 of them are pretty white lion heads, and another friend dropped off a cutie- pie of a lop eared buck for my lop eared female. Babies to sell next Easter?
:-) We made them a grazing pen out on the lawn and each of the kids adopted a bunny or two. It's crazy to go out and see chickens, ducks and rabbits all over the place! haha.

 

 

I celebrated my 40th birthday this week. My birthday present this year was my 'old' house, my sheep, and a new flag. :-) My family and best friends celebrated the day with us, and really, I couldn't have asked more! I am so blessed by my Heavenly Father to have a life I've always dreamed of. Sure there are trials and hard work, both raising my children and growing our farm, but there is so much joy in a simple life. I guess if I actually had blown out 40 candles on my cake, I would have wished that my kids will not lose the freedoms that this flag represents.

 

 

For more information on our farm, please visit http://samsbillthepony.wix.com/getting-liberty#