Dolly and Toni leave Critter Farm

So, if you've been over to my friend, Marcee's blog lately, you will already know that she became the proud owner of two, beautiful llamas this weekend. You might recognize those llamas. Dolly llama and her daughter, Toni, who have been living on Critter Farm since last November, now call Marcee's new home their new home, too. Marcee has been fancyin' llamas for a really l-o-n-g time, so when her new "babies" set foot on her property for the first time on Saturday, I felt very lucky to be able to be there with her.

Last November, when I took in these sweet rescue llamas, the plan was that I would foster them over the winter and, come spring, find a forever home for them. In an incredible turn of events, during this time, Marcee's family managed to 1) find new employment, 2) find new employment in a city only 4 hours (instead of 34 hours) away from Critter Farm, 3) find and buy a house with property and a barn and 4) be totally moved in shortly after spring began. She never even hesitated when I asked her if she would like to have these girls come and live with her. In fact, I think she had had a similar idea mulling around in her head for quite some time. It seems pretty clear these llamas were meant to be with her.

So, here is the story from my side - told mostly in pictures - of what happened this weekend...

Observing the giant trailer in the barn driveway:





Helping to navigate from the back of the truck (with the Shasta daisies):

A new place in the sun:


Critter Farm pup, Roxy, and Darby made friends quickly:



Little G. was very excited to share a goldfish snack with (and sit right next to) Mr. Jim:

G. pleasantly surprised me with a glass of ice water, presented in a festive Zoey cup with a lid and straw:

A first taste of grape leaves:



Meeting her new goats:

Scrambled eggs:

Roxy made herself completely at home:

Trimming llama nails:


CD&T booster vaccine successfully administered:

Saying goodbye:




P.S.
Those of you who follow my blog will notice that Kai llama did not go to Marcee's. She has stayed behind on Critter Farm to care for her goats, Pete and Reggie, who refuse to stay safely in their pasture without her watching over them. In the time she has been here, Kai has become a delightful - and protective - goat guardian:

Road trip... with a purpose

It's a happpy/sad time on Critter Farm. I'm not at all fond of good-byes (who is?) and it's time for one.

Yet, it's also a happy time. A new adventure is beginning for someone very special to me.

And so, my Jim and I are taking a trip this weekend.

Our trip involves this truck and this borrowed-and-rusty-old-stock-trailer again:

Despite its outward (and inner) appearance, it's a good, good trailer. It brought my beloved Chester to me last November:

And my sweet Beau just two months later, in January:

Jim bought me these for the road...:

...and he made me laugh by doing so.
These little chips worked wonders for the tremendous carsickness I experienced when we were travelling the bumpy, windy roads of Ireland last month. The driving this time will be a pretty straight shot, with not much likelihood of that weaving, curving, bumpy motion sickness, but I still love Pringles. :-)

I wish everyone a happy weekend and I leave you with this:

A rooster in a basket.

June 15th, 2010

So, hey, do you remember my last post? The one that talked about the glorious, sunny weekend we had?

And the post a week or so before that? The one where I said I had made peace with the rain?

Well, this is what June 15th (yesterday) brought us:

As I watched the hail come pounding down, I noticed the temperature drop to 48 degrees. In the middle of June. During the day.

Gutters overflowed:

Some plant damage occurred, although it was less than I expected.
My wee eggplants received big tears in their leaves:


As did the pumpkins:

My hardy Music garlic, however, survived the onslaught with no problem:

Jim's jade plants, that he placed out on the deck a few weeks ago...:

...took a hit, too:

Their sensitive succulent leaves now have pock marks:

That's how hard that nasty hail came down.

Later in the evening, while it wasn't much warmer, we decided we needed a walk:

The air was clean and cold and everything had a "just washed" feeling about it:

I don't think that Pete, Reggie and Roxy noticed this, though. They were just happy to be outside:

Just as a small P.S., yesterday set a record for the wettest June here in the past 70 years, with 4" of rain so far this month. But I'm at peace with it. I just keep telling myself this. :-)

The clouds parted...

And, miraculously, the sun began to shine.

After months and months (...and months) of record-breaking rain and cold, we were finally gifted with a weekend of paradise.

Saturday was noted to be our hottest day of the year so far. Everyone - and everything - reveled in it.

This lovely, warming, soothing, growing sun brought out....

Pea pods with the promise of juicy peas:

Garlic scapes:

Tomato blossoms:

Presents from my chickens:

Baby grapes:

Baby raspberries:

Baby apples:

Fat blueberries trying to ripen:

Strawberries finally beginning to develop their first reddish hue:

Strange bugs that seemed to appear out of nowhere:


Peonies bursting into bloom:

A dust bathing donkey:

Quickly followed by wrestling donkeys:




The hot sun made a farm pup seek shade among the garlic:


And enticed many to buckets of water:



It's vital to stay hydrated on hot days, you know.

Important conversations took place in the cool of the shade:

This day became the day where everyone got to do their own thing. Where one llama preferred standing in the shade, another preferred standing in the sun, while a third decided a sound sleep was just the ticket:

(Please note Pete the goat relaxing in the pasture chair, with Reggie the goat whispering sweet nothings to him from behind.)

Ah, sun. You heal us.