Llama

Some Catch Up Before New Year’s

/ LDSVenus / 15 Comments

Ok, some of this is a more than a month old and some is this month. If you click on the picture you are looking at it will enlarge. The first picture is a vertical swift my son made for me out of pvc pipe from some plans that I found online (maybe Ravelry). It was made, when finished, for a 4 yard skein around, but I only wanted a 2 yard skein so he cut it down a bit for me. Nice to have a great son who is willing and able to do stuff like this for me, I’m very grateful because he has a full time job and his farm to run, he could have said, I don’t have time, but he made it for me anyway, he is a sweetie!

The next two pictures are to show my progress on the Look for Happiness baby blanket I’m working on. I am loving this pattern, it’s such a pretty pattern, and it’s peaceful to make. I figure I am almost 1/2 way finished :). I took one up close so you could see the pattern a little better. I am still working on the fingerless mitts and will put a picture up when I get one finished and start the other one.

The next 3 pictures are at my son’s farm’s last Saturday with the public for the year (the Saturday before Christmas). He had to postpone from the week before because we had had an ice storm, I took the pictures before people started arriving. The first picture is Libby (the Llama) in a Christmas Top Hat, she was not impressed, hehe. The next 2 pictures are some of the female alpacas at the farm, 2 of them are wearing Christmas hats. They were ok with them. Libby is a bit more head strong, but that is a llama for you :P. They are all loving the cooler temperatures. There were cookies and hot chocolate for the visitors and my son’s mother in law made a wonderful chile con carne, for those of us working at the farm, for lunch, soooo good!!! She promised me the recipe.

Real cold weather is finally on the way, hello winter!

Happy Flag Day, 2 New Stitch Markers and Cria at the Farm :).

/ LDSVenus / 8 Comments

Happy Flag Day!!

I like to buy stitch markers and progress keepers from Adore Knit because they are really cute and makes me happy to see them on my knitting project, and they are well made. I really love her Snoopy stitch markers and progress keepers, so cute!

These are the two new cria (baby alpaca) on the farm. Libby is a young llama (about 9 months old) but this is after having her first shearing, you can see her real color now. The next two are Liza with her cria Himalaya (cream color, nick name is Laya) and Liz with her cria, Rocky. Rocky is the same color as his dad Everest. Everest was the father of both cira. Laya may look a little dirty but my son has a splash pad for the alpaca so they can stay cool and if they sit in the dirt, after they get wet in the sprinkler on the splash pad, they get muddy :P. Liza is Liz’s daughter, so Rocky is Liza’s 1/2 brother and Laya is Liz’s grand daughter ;), Everest wasn’t related to Liza or Liz. Did I confuse you enough? My son keeps up with all the relationships so he doesn’t breed back to family lines.

This week coming week starting on Sunday is going to be very warm, in the 90’s. Ugh! Everyone, stay cool!!

FOs and Better Late than Never

/ LDSVenus / 8 Comments

I finished the latest of the Hats for Warmth project. I liked the colors, hope it will keep someone warm next winter. I really like the cotton yarn I got at Hobby Lobby, I love this Cotton. It’s very soft and this was the 2nd wash cloth I got from it with some left over, tho I’m pretty sure I’d lose a game of yarn chicken if I started another, time to buy some more :P. This is the Granny’s Favorite dish cloth pattern, you can tell it’s a diagonal knit with the stripes. I’m going to start, some time this week, the 2nd bobbin of my multi color tweed spin. Still not sure if I want to chain ply each bobbin separately to keep the colors separate and have two half skeins or just go ahead and do a fractal ply. That’s me, last min decisions!

I try to have a picture of the Robbins when they first come back for spring. But they are not helpful in that aspect. I saw the first one about 6 weeks ago but they were only out where I could see them when I was driving and that wasn’t helpful. I was parked at the drs office earlier this week and lo and behold one where I could get a picture!!! He was running back and forth staking out his territory. I don’t get them every year because they are not always worried about rather I can get their picture or not lol. I have a feeling the males out there looking now probably missed the boat on a companion this year :(.

I forgot to get pictures when I was out at the farm :(, but I will try hard to remember to do that this next week. In the mean time here is one they took at the farm. I am calling the alpacas the motley crew right now because they are in need of sheering, which happens next month lol, then they will look more dignified and a lot thinner, their fleece is very thick. Can you find Libby? She’s only about 7 months old and already the size of the adult alpaca. They changed the llama’s name from Belle to Libby because my son has an African grey parrot named Belle (who is a character). Libby’s registered (call) name is When Liberty Rings. Libby the Llama has a ring to it, lol. She is friendly, no fear and sweet.

Farm Update :)

/ LDSVenus / 8 Comments

My son added a 6 month old Llama to his herd. They are pack animals in Central and South America, Alpacas aren’t really big enough to be pack animals they were more for fiber. Llamas can be fiber animals as well, tho they tend to have a lot more guard hairs, but they can have pretty soft fiber as well. She not full height yet, when I get down there next I’ll take a picture of Belle and an alpaca so you can see the difference, but her ears are a dead give away :). I’m hoping she will be a guard Llama, time will tell, they aren’t all good at that. I’ll let you know as she grows up.

He also added a peacock and a pea hen to his farm. They are not mature yet as you can tell by the lack of color in the peacocks tail. He said they were India Blues, because those are his favorite. They are in a large shed to protect them while they are getting use to his farm. The pole above them is their roost area. I haven’t seen the set up yet but I’m sure he has them in his old baby chick pen so they can’t get out of the fenced in area and predators can’t get to them. He’s very protective of his animals!