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Today’s high was about 32 degrees.

And so, other than taking care of critters, I’ve been mostly engaged in indoor pursuits-

Turning pumpkins in to tasty things:

Soup

And cookies

Also got some spinning done. This is about 160 yards of silky, fluffy shetland goodness. Hoping it will look kind of tweedy and nutty when knit up.

Then I thought I would take a look at the stash inventory I started last January, to see how much progress I’ve made in SY2010 (Spinning Year 2010)

I didn’t quite finish. About the time that I repacked the third rubbermaid bin, I felt the need to break out the drumcarder and accelerate the process some.

Here we have some dyed Romney, mohair and alpaca. Nice thick singles, I think.

Maybe next week I’ll get brave enough to add it up and see where I stand 🙂

The Take

Ok. I truly cannot resist a fleece sale. But in my defense, I only took half of it. And I didn’t have any light, pearly grey in the stash, so this baby is definitely admissable.

The De-Stash.

This lovely glowing  creamy white stuff is bargain Romney from last year. Amazing what a pair of combs can do!

The Finished Object.

Kinda cute, eh? It’s stranded, so it’s really thick and squooshy. Got another one in the works already.

And some gratuitous sheep photos-

The boys seem to be adjusting to the shorter days and the colder weather. I know they are pretty well insulated, but I think it’s so odd that they prefer to sleep out in the field rather than their new shed. Silly buggers.

(Sorry. Stupid Jedi Mind Trick.)

Anyway,
I finally finished the Groovy Red Toe-Up Socks, and here is photographic proof-

They were really fun to knit, but they took forever on little size 2 needles, so my fingers are very gratified to be moving on to this Cowichan Hat!

Gauge is about 3.5 stitches to the inch, so it’s going pretty fast. And I think it’s going to be really cool (and mighty toasty)
Almost instant gratification knitting 🙂

And in non-wool news, I have to report that I have discovered the neatest kitchen gadget ever.
I think these have been around forever,, but it’s new to me, and it has pretty much transformed my relationship with apple pie.

Here is the thingee-

It peels, slices and cores, all without the use of electricity. And eliminates any chance of me maiming myself with a corer and or paring knife. It’s like magic. (I got this little gem as a Christmas gift last year, and had almost forgotten about it. Many belated thanks to Carole!)

And here is my pie. Or what’s left of it right now. Probably won’t last long.
Guess I’ll get to play with my new toy again soon.

That’s about all the excitement here.

So, I’ll sign off with a message from Boo Kitten.

“Getcho own socks. Theses all mine”

Over the last 5 years, we’ve hauled a lot of rock out from various areas of the yard.

This weekend, we decided to recycle that rock into a jungle gym of sorts for the sheep.

Thought I don’t have any photographic evidence of the guys at play, they seem to really dig it. I think they like to be up on things. Must make them feel taller 🙂

Hoof observation and treatment continues, and I’m inquiring about soil and forage testing through Univ of Idaho.

Everyone seems to still be getting around without difficulty, and morale is high, so at least it doesn’t seem to be impacting their quality of life- but it does worry me and I really hope to get to the bottom of it.

I’m beginning to think that perhaps there’s something problematic in the sheep ration/alfalfa pellets that I have been giving them as treats- because Griff’s feet look the best of anyone’s, and he’s the one I’ve had the least interaction with the whole time they’ve been here! Thing is, I don’t have the bags for either product any more, and I haven’t had any sucess digging up content info for them online.
So, for now, I’ve discontinued the treats. Just hay, pasture (which of course isn’t growing much now) and mineral. So at least I’ll know exactly what the inputs are.

No sweater progress to speak of this week,, but I am still spinning down the stash-

Thinking of something vaguely Cowichan-ish for The Man.

Have a good week!

Denise