The Jacob's:Genesis 30







"Fuse"

A purebred Jacob ram

Rockin' A Ranch has waited almost 5 years to obtain a pair of Jacob's for breeding.  We have finally achieved our goal with the purchase of "Fuse"  December 2010, and the purchase of "Lily" in May of 2010. Timing is everything so they say, and it couldn't have transpired any other way for us, because we did indeed, need time to set ourselves up for this project.  Along the way, we have learned huge amounts in regards to sheep and sheep rearing.  All of it a process to land us where we are today.  I'm glad we didn't rush this, I'm glad we took our time.

It has always been my desire to raise Jacob sheep.  They are a small breed, they are smart,  they have a beautiful fleece known as the "Hand Spinner's Delight." Actually hand spinner's and weavers alike love their fiber. For market meat, the Jacob meat is lower in total fat, lower in cholesterol and high in quality protein, compared to any other red meats.  Only venison and rabbit rank leaner.........so with that said, I've always wanted to raise and market Jacob's.  Besides, who can resist their gorgeous lil' lambs all spotted, their "goat like" personalities which make them very curious and easily tamed.



"Lily"
A yearling Jacob ewe



We are now in the midst of breeding our two Jacob's.  Fuse has turned out to be a very gentle, sweet fellow.....Lily a bit nervous (this will be her first breeding). Most often, first time ewes will have a single lamb, after that, they are prone to twins and triplets.  If she has a lil' ram lamb this summer, he is sold to the gentleman that sold us Fuse.  Tom and I are hoping to do some in-line breeding with our small flock in order to be able to sustain our flock of Jacob's. 

Lambing season is the crux of raising sheep.  It's the one time in the growing of sheep to "get it right."  We keep our sheep in top conformation all year (at least we try), flush them prior to breeding, fine tune their food in the last 6 weeks of gestation..... providing the ewes with top quality hay, a smidgen of molasses three days of the week,  daily grain..........all in the hopes that our percentage of lamb to ewe ratio will turn out excellent. Thus far Rockin' A Ranch has done very well.  There is always room for improvement though because we're always learning something new in regards to sheep.  As I've said before, what works for us, doesn't necessarily work for someone else. For instance, we know that our sheep HATE bermuda grass (it's too soapy tasting), they'd rather starve than eat that grass.  They love the high protein hay that Shawn brings us twice a year, they love Timothy grass and they LOVE rye grass.  We don't feed our rams or wethers any hay unless it's super cold outdoors, otherwise they get grass. They love apples, pears, carrots, turnip greens (but not the turnip) and ORGANIC animal crackers from Costco. 

I've had one ewe in particular over the past five years that wouldn't let me near her.  She was so flighty and skittish, which made it very hard to work with her.  To boot, she's a very large Suffolk.  After her lambing in July, she can't stay away from me, her nose is constantly in my face or pockets.  Her son Mickey even goes so far as to jump up on me like a pup.........he wants pets under the chin (or those yummy cookies!). Gaining the trust of sheep takes time, perseverance, routine, and calmness. 

More than anything, we enjoy raising our sheep...........Jacob or not.  We have "Heinz 57" sheep that are just as special and prolific in lambings as any purebred.  They all have their own personality and are unique in their own special way.  I can't imagine a life without sheep. 

Now that the breeding has begun, we watch and wait.  If a ewe spends a lot of time squatting and urinating in front of the ram, she is not ready.  Her estrus has not begun.  If the ewe nears ovulation, the ram will move near her and keep near, till she will stand for mating.  Ewes will stay in heat for 6-18 hours and if not mated cycle again in 17-21 days.  I will keep Lily with Fuse for approximately 60-68 days before removing her.  That will ensure several cycles of ovulation.  Once a ewe is pregnant, she will no longer let the ram mate with her......the copulation is over.  

So we're looking very forward to our lambing season this year, we should have at least one lil' spotted, curly haired lamb by summer.  I believe that Tom and I are focused on the true essence of raising this breed of sheep...........we're helping preserve a unique and valuable breed.

"Lily" & "Fuse"
Purebred Jacob sheep

  

The Cowgirl

I had a s-t-r-a-n-g-e day Saturday, November 28th.  The day started very well, me sippin' a mug of joe in my recliner knitting, The Man at the computer looking at local real estate for sale.  The man finds a 1930's cabin that has been re-located from Murphy's cabin's in Pinetop, to the Concho area.  The real estate ad said it had 23 acres, couple of barns and wood cook stove in the kitchen, WELL...........that fired up my lightbulbs.........I learned to can on an ol' wood cookstove.  So we decided that when a reasonable morning hour rolled around, we'd call a realtor and maybe go see this cabin.  In the interim, the man located some further properties we could look at.  So our morning consisted of  driving around our area looking at listings we were interested in.  The cabin............not EVEN worth the money they are asking, but they've only been on the market 30 days, we'll keep our eye on it and see how low it drops (which is really unfortunate for the people who own it, but it's a buyers dream!). 

We decided that since none of the houses we had seen were really good income property, we'd drive around in the Black Mesa area, just because it's pretty and we'd never been on the road.  We went past some very interesting places.  New Dawn Ranch.........that was defintely an interesting place.........several yurts, a single wide mobile, gorgeous backdrop and view and an es-guess-timate of close to $100,000K in fencing and barns for Alpacas.  I wanna be an Alpaca when I grow up............crazy the craze over Alpaca's.

We finished up with that lil' road and headed down Stirrup Road which ended up at the edge of a huge wash...........it was impassable with a four wheel drive vehicle.  However, when we turned around and headed back out to the highway, about a mile or so down, we ran across Stirrup Road. Guess that road's for 3 & 4 wheel drive ATV's. Certainly wasn't one we could take, and we're not weanies.

As we headed East on Concho highway, The Man says," there's a road that I wanna check out, how's that sound to you?"  Well hell, I'm captive in the car, going 70 mph down the road, "sounds good to me."  So we do, we turn onto a dirt road with a sign out on the highway that reads, "A to Z Well Drilling & Water Tanks," so it dawns on me The Man wants to inquire about the water storage tanks, but turns out I was dead wrong.  He really did just wanna take a drive down this road.  This is where my day turns strange...........we are heading South on this dirt road, we're approx. 4-5 miles back in (BTW-there is NO sign of any living creature, driveway nor home), when we happen upon a guy (in the middle of nowhere) in a Bobcat driving down the road........hmmmm.  Further down the road, say another 3-4 miles we run into a guy (looked like an old hippy from the 60's), driving a 1940's Ford tractor.......hmmm.  I ask The Man, "what in the world are these two guys doing?"  I can tell by his look I'm not gonna get an answer.  We are driving along, admiring the country (in the middle of nowhere), taking spur roads off spur roads and just driving.  We're hoping that one of these dirt roads will take us out to the highway in a very round about way......ya know, so we can see all this remote country!  We are in this huge rock outcropping of sandstone driving, when we come upon these piles of stacked rocks.........you know, the "new agey" type of stacked rocks you see in Sedona.........all over!  In the middle of nowhere...........hmmm.  We continue on, both thinking about the rocks when we spot a Border Collie/Aussie Shepherd with a bandana around his neck, running.  Seems he's with the cowgirl on the horse that rounds the corner about the same time we round the corner.  She stops, we stop..........the dog is running around trying to follow her commands and gettin' an ass chewin' by this cowgirl at the same time.  I roll down my window.........we talk, I ask her if we can get out to the highway on this lil' ol' dirt road.  She says, "used to, but the damn wash washed out and ya can't anymore."  O.K. well, can we head further South on this road and meet the highway South of here?  She says, " ya, ya can, but don't turn left up ahead, keep veering to the right and the ol' road turns kindly rough, but........well" she says as she pets her horse,  "I have 4-wheel drive so I can get through anything." About that time, she takes a long pull on a beer she's got with her in this cool beer holder that's part of her darn saddle!  "Yep," she says, "I figured I'd take ol' Wallace out today for a long ride cuz it's gonna snow tomorrow."  She looks up at the sky, sniffs the air, seems like in anticipation of a snow flurry at any moment.  The Man and I look up also....then she says, "Ya know I aint afraid to ride out her by myself, cuz I pack a gun and I know how to use it."  "Good, good," I say to her, "that's a smart thing to do riding this far out."  "Oh no" she says, I don't live that far away, see that mountain over yonder, well I just live up on the side of that damn thing......been living there for five years now, came from Chicago."  "Told myself I'd never live anywhur it snowed evur again after Chicago, but here I am."  Takes another long pull off her beer and gazes off. "See, the Mr. and me bought land out here, pulled in our travel trailer and an ol' bus, but hell it cost us so much to put the well in that we can't afford electricity or a home..........so I live in the travel trailer and he lives in the bus.........works just fine by me."  "Got me three horses." O.K...... I am thinking that we have warped backwards in time to the Twilight Zone.  She's tellin us stuff I don't NEED to know. She says, "What do you do?"  I tell her we have a small sheep ranch and she says, "well, how do you like that?"  I tell her we really love the sheep and it's just a hobby farm really.  "Where do you live?"  I give her a vague idea.........we all sit in silence for a bit AND just when I'm getting ready to tell her to enjoy the rest of her ride with Wallace, she begins talking again.........stuff, like........."ya know, I told the ol' man that we're gettin' to old to be livin' like this, what if he had a damn heart-attack on me, how am I supposed to get his ass loaded in our truck to meet the ambulance out on the county road?"  "My GOD, we're miles off the road on the side of a damn mountian!"  I tell her I can feel for her, "yep, getting to old for this kinda life style for sure."  She likes that I agree with her, like maybe I'd ride home with her and tell her ol' man that I agree with her! 

The cowgirls name is Deb.  She is a real cowgirl from Chicago, who lives off the grid, off the land and as far away from any establishment as she can be!  She rides her three horses everyday of the week cuz she loves them, they need excercise and she can drink her beer in peace.  I wish I'd have had the camera with me for a candid shot of this women on her horse...........Goldwater would have been proud of the shot.

We say "good-bye" and head down the road she suggested............it becomes evident to us right soon, that this road is indeed only passable with her kinda 4-wheel drive..........a horse named Wallace.  We turn around and head back the way we came..........I look to the North and wayyyyy up on the side of a mountain is this.......yellow bus, up near the clouds.  Can't tell if there's a travel trailer or not cuz it's so far up..........but I think it's where she lives.  We never see her, the horse, nor the dog again on our way out...........we drive in silence......................we come upon the man still on his 1940's tractor just driving around on the road................we scoot home once we hit the highway.........in silence. Been thinkin' about Deb the cowgirl all day......... while it's stormin and I'm sittin' by my ol' woodstove in my nice, lil' cozy home. God bless you Deb, the Cowgirl from Chicago!

THANKS-giving

Thanksgiving........my favorite holiday.  Nothing is expected from anyone aside from some good vittles and a comfy, cozy, atmosphere spent with family. Something magical happens on Thanksgiving........we become more focused on the many blessings we've been bestowed in our lives.  We take a calm, deep breath and allow "life to be life" for a day. No worries, no timelines, no problem..........a blessing before a meal with hands interlocked around the table, chatter, naps, movies, and hot, comforting beverages round the ol' woodstove.  

My Thanks & Blessing

1. The health of my entire family

2. The safety of our soldiers.

3. My sweet husband, who has allowed me to be ME!

4. My home

5. My animals

6. Friends

7. My belief

8. My life

9. A special blessing to those who have passed before me.....I miss you all dearly.

May you all have a blessed, and "comfy" Thanksgiving with those you love.  

~Happy Thanksgiving~ 

Marketing Fleece

Finding the niche for marketing our fleece has taken me some time.  When I started raising sheep, I was in it for the meat production only.  It didn't dawn on me that I would soon become addicted to spinning.  Once you learn to spin, everything else becomes muted, in the background.  I still market my sheep for meat sales, and every year, I sell all our lambs.  That's a big deal to me. How did I do it?
1: Give samples of your good, natural lamb (already processed and back from the butcher) to people to try.  Once they've tried your product, they will be back to purchase a lamb the following year........guaranteed!

2: Take good care of the animals, the facilities they live in, and keep them in good body condition.  That speaks volumes to people who are in the market for meat.  A dirty pen, matted sheep, long hooves and foul water do not!

3: Once sold, take a deposit to hold that lamb for them when weaning/or locker time arrives.  Keep them posted on their lamb, the growth, weight, etc.  Set up the locker date for them, once that's done, the locker and the individual are now in correspondence.  Make sure to deliver the animal to the locker as a courtesy.

I have repeat customers who contact us a year in advance of the next lambing due to our attention to detail, exquisite taste of our lamb, and the quality care of our animals. 

Our Fiber: I've just recently found my niche' for marketing the fiber.  It took leg work, word of mouth and a skill.  I have marketed on-line via farm blog forums, walked into shops and displayed my yarn to owners, talked with many people. It has finally paid off......I now market fleece in the Appalachian mountain range, sell yarn on consignment in a local boutique, and have sold to a fiber artist in the valley. I hope to have my own web site designed, and up and running in the near future. People will buy your product if you believe in your product.  I'm not out to make huge sums of money from my fleece or yarn.  I just want to offer a premium yarn and fleece to women who enjoy the art of spinning and knitting as I do.  If the income supplements a small portion of what it takes me monetarily to raise the sheep, I'm happy. Plus, I get all the fiber I want to spin and knit my own lil' treasures.

I have found peace in my love of raising sheep.  At this point in my life, I can't imagine NOT having sheep.  A good friend of mine once told me........."you'll probably keel over in a mess of sheep dung one day Kat, but you'll be happy!"  I couldn't have said it better! 

"Crafting Happiness"



For Melanie

"Hands on projects are like mental health vitamins: They remind our brains we can have some impact on the world."-Body & Soul

"Research suggests that when we immerse ourselves in activities involving planning, anticipation, and self-forgetting movement--such as gardening, crafting, or even engine tinkering (a pastime of the Dalai Lama)-we not only come back into the moment but also reduce stress and combat anxiety and depression."

Yep, hard physical work producing palpable results might be a source of pleasure!  Modern science tells us one of the best cures for depression is god old-fashioned handiwork.  Think of it as DIY therapy. 

In our contemporary age, when it's possible to Tweet ones' deepest thoughts while waiting two minutes for dinner to warm in the microwave, "this circuitry, encompassing a vast amount of "brain real estate," isn't often called on to function in coordination and communication, as it seems evolutionarily designed to do."  When we activate our own effort-driven reward circuitry, it squirts a cocktail of feel-good neurotransmitters, including dopamine (the "reward" chemical), endorphins (released w/exercise), and serotonin (secreted during repetitive movement.)

There are low rates of depression among members of Old Order Amish communities. The Amish, who sew their own clothes, tap their own syrup, and drive handheld plows through dry furrows, could be getting a serious neurobiological lift from all of their effort!

When I knit a scarf, spin my fleece into yarn, can goods from our garden and grow my garden, my brains executive-thinking center get busy planning, then the happy-anticipation zone begins to zing with activity, talking back to the executive top brain and reaching out to other parts that make me dive my hands into action.  The irony is that some of these hobbies sound so simplistic!

As I age I understand that keeping my brain fit is crucial to keeping my body whole, alive and alert.  Learning something new, working Soduku, crosswords, crafting, are all key to aiding in the "whole of Kat." It produces new, healthier brain cells. Doing a mentally absorbing task interrupts ruminations long enough for them to subside, and my thinking becomes more clear and less negative.

When I repeatedly do things with my hands that have a tangible result, I get better at them and I have more confidence.  Handicrafts are so gratifying, and promote a fine grained, joyful observing that is hard to come by when life flies by at it's usual breakneck clip.  Any creative activity presents an opportunity to realize how much you've never noticed, which leads to more engagement, which leads to better health and well-being.  When you let yourself explore your own innate creativity, the resulting "mindfulness"-often branches out into other areas.

For me, the joy is in the planning and execution, when I can tap into some new realm by returning to a beginners mind thinking (I'm thinking it's similar to a childs way of being a free spirit).

Just about everyone has a story, and her/his own deep, uniquely creative talents.  There's so much to learn from the unknown--realizing that often there's no such thing as right or wrong in anything you do.  Hands on work satisfies our primal craving to create solid objects; it could also be an antidote to our cultural malaise...........



My Baby Girl.........Jessi

Jessica Ann

There is a reason GOD gives us the pleasure of having daughters, because we need them like we need breath and a heart-beat.  They are such a quintessential part of our being, an extension with a "new, fresh perspective."  This is my sweet baby girl, Jessica (I've always called her Jessi or Sis).  She is a Thursday's child, born at 11:43 a.m. at 6 pounds 14 oz. in a huge snowstorm, very near the Canadian border in Eastern Washington.  I had her naturally, by the LeBoyer method and nursed her until she was six months of age.  She was a sheer joy from the moment she entered this world.  She has always smiled a lot, talked a lot and been very, very smart!   When she entered pre-school she could count to 10, say her ABC's and was one of the teachers favorite kids.  By the time she was in kindergarten, she was honored with going next door to the pre-school class to "READ" to them.  She has always been a Type A who enjoys excelling in everything she does. 

She's done amazing things over the years: Graduating from high school a year early w/excellent grades, getting her Associate degree when she was pregnant with her second child.  Getting her Bachelor's degree in between the second and third child.  Now enrolled in the Master's program with three kids and a full-time job as a teacher.  She is an excellent cook, debater, dancer, singer, hiker, mother, wife, teacher, lady!  She is MY BEST FRIEND!  I am very proud of this young woman, she has done copious amounts of "good things" with her life. 

She's thoughtful, sweet, humorous, sensitive, kind, loving.  When I watch her with her three kids, I feel honored.  She hugs them, loves them, tells them positive things all the time, she also disciplines like know one you've ever seen.  The kids respect her, love her back immensely, worship her, confide in her, miss her terribly when she's gone...............isn't that the way it's supposed to be?  She rules with an iron clad fist, and holds them as if they were a glass figurine, ever so gently, the perfect dynamic.

She's beautiful with a very slight body frame (size 0), she's very health conscious, energetic beyond human capability (she wears me out).  She outdoes most men in fishing, hiking, and horseshoes.  Anytime I go ANYWHERE with her, people stare.  She exudes a confident demeanor and zest for life that shows in her stance and face.  

Jessi, from the moment you entered my life, you changed me forever.  I wanted you to always be safe, be happy, be healthy.  I pray for you everyday, because now I can't protect you from under my wing.......you have your own family to do that for you now, but it's the BEST way I know to still keep you safe from afar.  I will be praying for you the rest of my days..........because I love you beyond measure.  My life is far more enriched because of you.  Did you know that Thursday's child will go far?  You have gone far my sweet baby, you have pursued a richness in your life and I'm very, very proud of you. I often miss holding you, playing barbies or plane with you, I miss baking lil' goodies for your small, sweet mouth.  I miss the kisses, the grimy hugs, the cherry stained face.  I miss that lil' baby girl, but then I see you walk in the door............and I'm taken back.............you have become a beautiful, smart women, and I'm so proud of you................this is my Billet-Doux to you!



When times seem too hard to bear & I l feel like giving up

I envision your beautiful face, the twinkle of your eyes and things of such

The bond we created from my womb to the day you were born

Is a mother and daughter bind that can never be torn

With the strength and guidance of God and the blessings he pours down from above

I want to be the best mom I can be to you and embrace you with all my love

You are as precious as a flower and as gorgeous as a rose

You have been specially made to the very tip of your nose

You are as sweet as honey; such an innocent young child

You are brighter than any star in the sky every time you smile

I want you to be proud of who you are and strive to be the best

Put forth your efforts to achieve your goals and let God do the rest

I will always be your mother first, but I'm also your friend

Your are the most precious gift, that I've ever been given

I love you Jessica Ann!

A Farm Girls Life

Life sure is good, I've absolutely no complaints (except on occasion when my hands are too stiff!). 

It's a GOOD life when: 1. You wake up to the most gorgeous sunrise ever.

2. The smell of the ol' ranch kitchen smells like fresh brewed coffee.

3. You wake up with a good plan for the day.

4. You feel good.

5. When it's feeding time in the morning, you walk out to a nice, crisp, clean, outdoorsy smell, and all the animals are happy to see you.

6. All the animals appear to be healthy.

7.  Having a bowl of oatmeal with fresh milk from the dairy down the road.

8. Taking a nice, hot bath in the morning with a book....just a half hour to read in peace.

9. No phones interupting the guiet.

10.  A husband that calls you shortly after he's left for work, just to tell you he "loves you."

11. A day spent either canning, gardening, spinning, knitting, reading or cooking.  No T.V. for this "farm girl." I like a productive day.

12. Or, a day skirting fleece from our sheep, or hanging out clean clothes on a well loved clothesline.

13. An afternoon spent blogging with other "farm girls."  We chat a lot about spinning, sheep, gardens, and canning.  Boring to most people I'm sure, but ever so exciting to have such a wonderful network of women to converse with, share ideas.

14. The joy of picking a lot of fresh veggies from the garden and then plotting the meal around it........how blessed we are.

15. A phone call from a grand child after school, to tell me something hugely, significant that happened to them that day.

16. The joy of seeing my husband pull in the drive-way, the three dogs thrilled beyond containment as well, what a splendid "welcome home."

17. A healthy, delicious meal spent with someone you love so deeply.

18. Crawling into bed together, snuggling and talking about the day, the weather, the animals, our grandkids.

19. Saying our "prayers" together in hopes that all those we love will remain healthy and happy.

20. Sleeping well through the night, awakening to the rooster outside our bedroom door in the early morning hours, only to start all over again........

Yes, life is very, very GOOD!

To my lil' cowboy, "I love you more and the most!"